Ice Empress watched in terror, her heart pounding. The miserable screams were almost too much for her to bear, and she couldn't help turning to look at Gu Yuejin.
"Human! You're just going to stand there and watch? He's about to die!"
She didn't need to remind him. Gu Yuejin had already made his move.
"What are you panicking for? With me here, even the King of Hell can't take him."
Gu Yuejin strode forward and pressed one hand against Huo Yuhao's back.
The Blue Silver Emperor appeared behind him, its golden veins pulsing wildly.
"Mother's Embrace... No, Life Infusion!"
Gentle, life-filled Soul Power poured ceaselessly into Huo Yuhao's body, fiercely protecting his heart and organs. It formed a delicate balance with that overbearing force of extreme cold.
Gu Yuejin watched his apprentice struggle in agony, his gaze steely.
"Hang in there, kid."
"This is your ticket to becoming strong. Don't embarrass me!"
Amid the swirling wind and snow, the last trace of icy-blue light sank completely into the space between Huo Yuhao's brows.
What kind of pain was it?
It was like having every bone in his body smashed, then remade with the coldest ice.
Like having every drop of blood drained from him, then replaced with ten-thousand-year-old Snow Marrow.
Huo Yuhao gritted his teeth. His consciousness teetered on the brink of collapse, yet he clung fiercely to that last shred of clarity.
No one knew how long it took.
The wind stopped.
Huo Yuhao, who had been curled up on the ground, slowly got to his feet.
The thick layer of ice covering him cracked and fell away, revealing the new skin beneath.
His complexion was no longer the sickly yellow of someone who had been malnourished. It was translucent as jade, faintly gleaming with cold light.
The tips of his once-black hair had turned a pure snowy white. As his eyes opened and closed, they seemed to flash with icy lightning, carrying an air of indifference as if he looked down upon all creation.
His whole bearing had changed.
If Huo Yuhao had once been a weed by the roadside, now he was an Ice and Snow Monarch just beginning to reveal his brilliance.
The fierce cold wind automatically veered away when it came within three feet of him, as though bowing in submission to this newly risen king.
The moment Huo Yuhao awoke, a panel appeared before Gu Yuejin's eyes.
[Main Quest: Take Huo Yuhao as your apprentice and raise a completely new Huo Yuhao. The greater the contrast between his fate and personality and those in the Original Work, the richer the reward.] [Current Progress: 15.0%.] [Stage Reward Obtained: Hundred Thousand Year Blue Silver Emperor Left Leg Bone.]
"Whoa, what a huge haul."
A flash of delight crossed Gu Yuejin's eyes.
He'd thought fusing with the Snow Empress would raise the completion rate by a few percentage points at most. He hadn't expected it to shoot straight up to 15%, and even reward him with a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone.
It was just what his Second Martial Soul needed—like having a pillow delivered right when he was getting sleepy.
Looks like he'd made the right move by getting to the Snow Empress first.
Meanwhile,
Huo Yuhao stared in disbelief as he clenched his fist.
The sensation of power coursing through him made him want to throw his head back and roar.
His physical strength had improved several times over. He'd been completely reborn!
Even more shocking was the change in his Soul Power.
He'd had only eleven levels of Soul Power before, but now it surged like a mighty river, breaking through one barrier after another until it reached the bottleneck at level twenty!
He'd become a Soul Grandmaster as soon as he obtained a Soul Ring!
Humm—
At a thought, a Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet.
It was a dazzling blood-red ring, radiating an aura of nobility!
A Seven Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring—a Fierce Beast Soul Ring!
As the Soul Ring appeared, the back of Huo Yuhao's clothes burst apart, exposing his muscular back.
A lifelike tattoo of the Heavenly Snow Woman was branded across his back.
It was the Snow Empress's recognition—and a symbol of the Ruler of the Far North's power.
"It... It worked! It really worked!"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was so excited he could barely speak. He flew around Huo Yuhao, exclaiming, "Twin martial souls! Extreme Ice! And a Seven Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring! Wahahaha, we're going to be invincible!"
Huo Yuhao, however, wasn't nearly as overjoyed as Sky Dream.
He stared blankly at the Soul Ring on his body, feeling the power that could freeze even his soul.
He might have been a country boy, but even he knew what a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring meant.
It was a treasure that even Titled Douluo dreamed of possessing, something powerful enough to plunge the entire continent into bloody turmoil.
Yet his master had helped him obtain it without the slightest hesitation. He'd even been willing to offend a Rank 9 Soul Master and face Ice Empress's wrath.
Why was he treating him so well?
At the Duke Mansion, he'd been an illegitimate child whom even the servants could bully at will.
His so-called father had never once looked him in the eye, and hadn't even cared whether he lived or died.
But Gu Yuejin, a man he'd known for only a few days, had given him a new life, dignity, and a chance to defy fate.
The weight of that gratitude made his nose sting.
Thump.
Without the slightest hesitation, Huo Yuhao dropped to his knees in the snow and knocked his forehead against the ground three times before Gu Yuejin.
Each kowtow landed with a thunderous thud, and blood seeped from his forehead.
"Master!"
Huo Yuhao raised his head, tears welling in his eyes. His voice was choked, but firm.
"I could die ten thousand times and still never repay your kindness!"
"From now on, you're as good as my own parents! If anyone dares disrespect you, I'll kill them!"
In that moment, the timid, insecure boy was finally gone.
In his place stood a avenger with both hope and hatred in his heart.
"Enough. What kind of man cries like that?"
Gu Yuejin's heart stirred, but he still wore an expression of disdain.
He waved a hand, and a gentle surge of Soul Power lifted Huo Yuhao to his feet.
"I don't need another son, and I don't need someone groveling at my feet."
"You're my apprentice now. Stand tall."
"If anyone bullies you from now on, don't tell them you're my apprentice. It'd be embarrassing."
His words were sharp, but anyone could hear how fiercely he was protective of his own.
Huo Yuhao wiped his tears and nodded firmly, his eyes brighter than ever.
"Yes, Master!"
"Aw, what a touching scene between master and apprentice. I'm about to cry."
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm floated over at just the right moment, breaking the sentimental mood.
It circled Huo Yuhao once, clicking its tongue in amazement.
"Little Yuhao, you've really hit the jackpot this time."
"Not only did the Snow Empress give you Extreme Ice as your Second Martial Soul, she also gave you four Soul Skills!"
"Four?" Huo Yuhao asked, stunned.
"Exactly! That's the kind of treatment you get with a Seven Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring!"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm boasted, "But I don't know what the Soul Skills are, specifically. You'll have to ask the Snow Empress."
"Too bad she used up too much of her strength and has fallen asleep. She'll probably be out for a long time."
After saying that, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm turned around. Its beady eyes darted toward Ice Empress, who stood not far away.
Its gaze instantly grew blazing hot.
"The Snow Empress is already on board, so now..."
"Ice Ice, it's your turn."
Ice Empress was watching Huo Yuhao, his aura completely changed, with a complicated expression.
She could clearly sense the Snow Empress's aura. It was weak, but the Snow Empress had indeed made a home inside that frail human—and was even slowly recovering.
Could this path really work?
"Why are you looking at me?"
Under Sky Dream's unblinking stare, Ice Empress felt an inexplicable shiver and instinctively took a step back.
"Ice Ice, your time is almost up too, isn't it?"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm rubbed its hands together, finally revealing its true intentions.
"Since the Snow Empress has joined the God Creation Plan, don't you want to join us too?"
"If you become Yuhao's Soul Ring as well, we'll be together forever!"
"And this is your last chance to stay alive!"
Before you continue