Far North

"A branch hall helping you hunt for a Soul Ring?" Yue Hongchen asked with a hint of confusion, "But didn't Sister Jingyi say that Director Du from the Martial Soul Department was helping you hunt for one?"

A lie exposed, Huo Yuhao was momentarily at a loss.

Seeing his reaction, Yue Hongchen chuckled, "Alright, alright, I won't tease you anymore. Everyone has their secrets, I won't ask further. But are you confident as a one-ring Soul Master?"

This sudden warmth in their relationship made Huo Yuhao's heart feel a little lighter. "I'm confident!"

Looking at Huo Yuhao's determined gaze, Yue Hongchen nodded. "Where are you going?"

"The Far North."

"Alright, come with me. If you go alone, who knows when you'll get there. Meng also needs to hunt for a Soul Ring for her breakthrough, and we're heading to the Far North anyway."

As he spoke, he hailed a horse carriage that was preparing to head to Shrek City to pick up passengers. It was currently a holiday at Shrek, and these carriages were all rushing towards the academy.

Once inside the carriage, Huo Yuhao sat quietly, lost in thought.

Yue Hongchen paid him no mind, sitting opposite him and playing with Meng.

"Passenger, where are you headed?" the coachman asked after the three of them had boarded and he had turned the carriage around.

"The Far North."

"Got it!" With the destination confirmed, the coachman drove the carriage towards the northernmost region.

It was an eight-thousand-mile journey from Shrek City to the Far North. Even with a hundred-year Horse Soul Beast pulling it, it would still take four to five days.

They all had provisions with them. During the day, the horses only stopped for half an hour when they got tired. At night, they rested in villages or towns along the way. Knowing Huo Yuhao's financial struggles, Yue Hongchen didn't let him eat his own dry rations, which were truly unappetizing. He covered Huo Yuhao's food and lodging expenses directly.

Huo Yuhao spoke very little these past few days. If Yue Hongchen didn't initiate conversation, he barely said a word.

They finally reached Far North City in the Heaven Dou Empire. Passing through this city would lead them into the Far North. After Yue Hongchen paid the carriage fare, Huo Yuhao stopped him, hesitating before speaking, "Brother Yue, if I told you my first Soul Ring wasn't actually a ten-year Soul Ring, would you believe me?"

These past few days, Huo Yuhao had been communicating with the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm in his Sea of Consciousness. The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, unusually awake, had been monitoring Yue Hongchen's mental fluctuations and found that the young man genuinely cared for Huo Yuhao, without any ulterior motives.

Thinking that the commotion that would occur later would surely be noticed by Yue Hongchen, who was also in the central region of the Far North, Huo Yuhao decided it was best to inform him beforehand.

Upon hearing Huo Yuhao's words, Yue Hongchen's expression remained unchanged. He replied matter-of-factly, "I know that. Your Soul Ring's effect could be explained as your spiritual-type main body martial soul absorbing the Soul Ring of a Wind Baboon and undergoing a mutation. But for a Soul Skill to grow with cultivation, especially a ten-year Soul Ring, is too outrageous. Only someone as inexperienced as Zhou Yi or Fan Yu would believe it. If you were to mention it to any elder in the Sea God's Pavilion, they would immediately notice the problem with your Soul Ring."

Hearing Yue Hongchen explain so earnestly, Huo Yuhao suddenly felt that his disguise was rather pathetic.

"So, by revealing this now, are you planning to properly introduce me to your special Soul Ring?" Yue Hongchen asked.

Huo Yuhao didn't answer directly. This was different from what the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had imagined, and he needed to probe further.

"His emotions have changed," Huo Yuhao heard the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice as soon as he entered the Sea of Consciousness.

Hearing this, Huo Yuhao was incredulous. Could it be that Brother Yue had ulterior motives for approaching him?

"There's a hint of curiosity in his emotions, but that's all."

Hearing the latter part of the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's statement, Huo Yuhao looked at him speechlessly. Couldn't he just finish his sentence next time?

"Go ahead and tell him. This young man genuinely cares for you; it's not an act." As a million-year Soul Beast of the spiritual type, a four-ring Soul Ancestor couldn't possibly hide his emotions from him. Moreover, the other party didn't even know him, so how could he conceal his true feelings?

With the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's permission, Huo Yuhao finally explained everything about his million-year Soul Ring to Yue Hongchen.

Yue Hongchen instinctively covered Meng Hongchen's mouth before she could cry out. Seeing her voice muffled by his hand, Meng Hongchen pouted and playfully hit his chest.

Yue Hongchen smiled, holding Meng Hongchen's hand while gently ruffling her hair with his other. Meng Hongchen immediately leaned against him obediently, ceasing her playful antics.

"So, your objective this time is to awaken your second Martial Soul and the Ice Empress, who ranks second among the Far North's Three Great Heavenly Kings?" Yue Hongchen asked, feigning surprise.

Huo Yuhao nodded.

"I'll say it again, are you confident?"

Huo Yuhao's demeanor returned to its previous confident state. "With Brother Tianmeng here, there won't be any accidents on this journey."

Yue Hongchen nodded. "I'll wait for you here after I help Meng hunt for her Soul Ring. Complete your task as quickly as possible; we only have less than a month."

"Okay."

They parted ways with Huo Yuhao after entering the Far North. For years, Yue Hongchen had been searching for high-quality Whale Rubber for Meng. Currently, Whale Rubber was still being used as a medicinal ingredient on the continent, and its ability to enhance a Soul Master's physical fitness was not widely known.

When Yue Hongchen gave Meng Hongchen the first piece of thousand-year Whale Rubber, the silly girl thought he had other intentions, her cute little face flushing red.

Only after Yue Hongchen's repeated explanations and her subsequent slight improvement after consuming the Whale Rubber did she believe him. Yue and Meng currently had no intention of revealing the effects of Whale Rubber to Jing Hongchen, as it would be difficult to explain. Meng would never ask further questions; she knew her brother wouldn't harm her.

Now that Meng had consumed three pieces of ten-thousand-year quality Whale Rubber, Yue Hongchen intended for her fourth ring to absorb a ten-thousand-year Soul Ring.

This year, he had seen a type of Soul Beast in the academy library that possessed two contrasting energies, ice and fire, with a faint trace of toxicity harmonizing them.

Yue Hongchen naturally intended for Meng to follow the path of ice and poison. However, it would be a shame to abandon the fire inherent in her Martial Soul. Therefore, he planned to fuse the fire and poison into a "fire poison," which could spread faster within a Soul Master's body than ordinary poison.

Of course, it would be even better if they could find a Vermilion Clear Ice Toad. Not only would it be a perfect match for Meng's Martial Soul, but more importantly, after ten thousand years, the ice and poison within this Soul Beast would begin to fuse.

Unfortunately, such Soul Beasts were extremely rare, and it was uncertain if they could even be found in the Far North.

Yue Hongchen led Meng deeper into the Far North. To hunt a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast, the edges and outer regions wouldn't suffice; they had to venture into the central area.

The further they went, the lower the temperature became. Meng was fine, as her Martial Soul possessed ice and fire attributes, but Yue Hongchen wasn't as fortunate. Fortunately, he had Xiao Ka's separation ability, which directly isolated the extreme cold. As for why Xiao Ka wasn't out, it was so cold outside, it was better for her to stay in the Sea of Consciousness, where she could still see everything happening outside.

The path to the central region was also not easy. The Far North was perpetually covered in ice and snow, and the surroundings were an endless expanse of white, making it easy to get lost.

After walking for three full days, the two finally managed to enter the central region.