The girl's three thousand strands of dark green hair fell naturally down her back. She was about 1.65 meters tall, and her long, slender legs extended straight beneath her skirt. Though her dress was not form-fitting, it still perfectly outlined her graceful figure.
Her exquisite face was like the bright moon shining in the distance. Her lashes fluttered faintly, and her almond-shaped eyes shimmered like a rippling lake, filled with tenderness as gentle as a spring breeze.
She should have been a cool, elegant beauty, but in front of Mu Qian, she occasionally let a cute side show.
Especially that sweet little "Master," which made Mu Qian, who already knew who she was, cry out that he couldn't take it.
"From now on, never tell anyone outside that you're a peerless Ferocious Beast from the Far North Forbidden Land. Your master here can't afford that kind of embarrassment!" Mu Qian teased her mercilessly.
He held a special position in the Core Circle of the Far North. This sort of thing was simply part of their daily interactions over the past few years.
Anyone else would have turned into an ice sculpture by now—even a Titled Douluo.
"Bingbing" huffily turned her head away.
She didn't argue with Mu Qian, mainly because she knew she couldn't win.
She hadn't originally been like this, but she never expected that habits formed over hundreds of thousands of years could be changed by this fellow in just two or three.
Sometimes, she even wondered if Mu Qian was really a child. How did he know so much?
His occasional, sudden teases could make her blush with embarrassment.
Mu Qian sighed helplessly. Paired with his childish face, he really did look like a little adult.
"Little Bingbing, let me teach you again. Watch closely."
He couldn't understand it. How could someone whose strength rivaled that of a top Titled Douluo have so little talent when it came to cooking?
Wasn't it easy enough to just memorize the steps?
There was no helping it. Mu Qian patted the dog on the head and could only make another batch.
The little puppy looked utterly dejected, its head drooping. Under someone's "tyrannical rule," it still obediently cooperated.
For such a little Spirit Beast, it was remarkably intelligent and often made expressions that seemed almost human.
Its name was Little Flower. It was obviously a male dog, yet Mu Qian had given him such a name.
Fortunately, he was only a dog and didn't understand what the name meant.
Speaking of which, Mu Qian's constitution was frighteningly strange too. Here in the Extreme North Core, where even Titled Douluos couldn't live for long, he wasn't affected by the extreme cold at all.
Mu Qian himself was baffled. He hadn't even undergone Martial Soul Awakening, yet he already had a body that could only be called abnormal.
Mu Qian had found Little Flower a year ago while out exploring, inside a rare volcano in the polar regions.
When he found him, he was only a scrawny pup, and there were no signs of his parents nearby. Mu Qian had been moved by his pitiful, big eyes and decided to take him in.
But in the end, what they really needed was an endless source of fuel to provide fire.
For the first few years, they had eaten raw food. It was hard to find a source of fire in the Far North. Besides, even if they could make fire through the Ice Carving Prism, there was no dry kindling to be found in this frozen wasteland.
After all these years, Mu Qian had felt as if he were turning into a primitive man. It wasn't until he met Little Flower that he finally returned to modern life.
"Master, that's enough for now. Don't forget, we have something important to do today." As Mu Qian pondered, a cool voice interrupted his thoughts.
Snow Maiden wore the same outfit as always, unchanged for years. Even her expression rarely shifted.
Mu Qian had lost count of how many times he'd told her she could just call him by his name, but she always agreed and then carried on as before.
He really couldn't understand how he'd become the master of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Far North.
Even though he had crossed over with his memories, and still remembered the fragments of his first arrival in this world, he had no idea what secrets lay behind it all.
But today was the day of his Martial Soul Awakening. He believed that after today, he might finally get some answers.
"Snow Maiden, can't we wait until I've finished lunch?" Mu Qian looked at her hopefully.
He really wanted this caring big sister to give in, but she always wore the same frosty expression.
"No. If we miss the appointed time, something could go wrong."
Snow Maiden's voice was as cold as ever, but her gaze on the boy held a hint of anticipation and tenderness.
For some reason, there also seemed to be a trace of nervousness.
She hid it well, though, and neither of them noticed.
"All right, then." Mu Qian hung his head in disappointment, looking exactly like Little Flower had a moment ago.
At the center of the Extreme North Core.
Ever since the miracle appeared six years ago, this place had gradually expanded, and a vast, deep chasm had opened up.
Beneath the chasm stood a towering, magnificent Divine Temple. Its sacred cyan-gold light illuminated the surrounding layers of ice until they shone translucently, casting a faint glow that made the place feel like a hidden realm.
The Divine Temple had no support beneath it. It simply hovered in midair, its sacred and solemn presence filling the entire Rift Valley.
Mu Qian stood at the edge of the chasm and looked down. The sacred aura that made people want to kneel had no effect on him. Instead, he felt a sense of familiarity and closeness.
He even felt an urge to approach the Divine Temple, a subconscious desire to embrace every brick and tile.
Mu Qian didn't understand.
Martial Soul Awakening was an extremely simple matter. With Snow Maiden's cultivation, even if she didn't know how, she could easily have gone outside and asked a Spirit Master about it.
But she hadn't done it herself. Instead, she had brought him here.
To the place that marked the beginning of his new life.
"Go on. Put your hand on the crystal by the temple entrance."
Snow Maiden spoke softly. The boy's small figure had already filled her eyes; it was as though the rest of the world no longer existed.
Yet she couldn't control the way her body trembled as she looked at the Divine Temple.
Mu Qian nodded, leaped forward, and landed on the open space in front of the temple gates.
There was no point asking her more. Snow Maiden was so sparing with words that questions would get him nowhere.
This wasn't Mu Qian's first time here. He'd come several times over the past few years, hoping to uncover the secrets of this place.
He could feel that he was connected to this Divine Temple by countless threads.
Why had he appeared here? Had the Divine Temple summoned him?
Or was there some other astonishing secret behind it?
But on his previous visits, he hadn't even been able to get through the gates.
Following Snow Maiden's instructions, Mu Qian placed both hands on the enormous cyan-gold crystal outside the entrance.
A gentle, pure white energy flowed out from the crystal and swirled around Mu Qian's arms.
Mu Qian stared blankly at the scene. The sensation was so gentle, like a willow branch softly brushing his cheek, or a stream flowing over his ankles in the third month of spring.
Amid a deep, ancient rumble, the temple gates slowly opened, revealing a passage just wide enough for one person to enter.
The scene before Mu Qian's eyes changed. It was as if he had crossed endless ages and glimpsed the end of all things...
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