As Sword Douluo Chen Xin left, his tangible sword intent seemed to linger in the ice cave, carrying an edge that could cleave through anything and a reassuring sense of protection.
He had instructed Lin Yi to wait where he was and not to move. This was the core region of the Far North, a place of extraordinary danger. Even a Soul Saint or Soul Douluo who ventured into it would have only a slim chance of survival.
He needed to search for and confirm the exact location and condition of the top-tier Soul Beast with a cultivation base nearing twenty thousand years, to ensure nothing could go wrong.
Lin Yi sat cross-legged in the depths of the ice cave. As instructed, he kept his aura contained and silently circulated his Soul Power, adapting to the surge of strength brought by his recent breakthrough to level sixty. At the same time, he spread his mental power out like a fine web, keeping watch over everything around him.
At the heart of the Far North, silence itself was a kind of invisible pressure—a deathly stillness where all things withered, and only the cold wind and snow endured forever.
However, this silence did not last long.
About the time it took an incense stick to burn after Chen Xin had left, a strange, immense mental fluctuation seeped in without a sound, like a gentle, warm current. It was completely out of place in this bitterly cold environment.
Lin Yi's eyes snapped open, sharp as knives. Soul Power surged through his body. The Snow Lotus Martial Soul and Ice Dragon Martial Soul remained concealed, but he was ready to respond at any moment.
He could feel that this mental fluctuation was as vast as the sea. It seemed gentle, but its essential level was terrifyingly high!
"Don't be nervous, don't be nervous, human boy..." A peculiar voice, sounding a little lazy yet somewhat hurried, rang directly in his Sea of Consciousness.
A flash of golden light followed, and a plump, round, silkworm-like creature suddenly appeared in the ice cave. Its entire body was crystalline white, like carved jade, and it gave off a faint golden glow.
It looked harmless, even a little comical, but its tiny eyes gleamed with wisdom and age utterly at odds with its appearance.
"Who are you?" Alarm bells rang in Lin Yi's mind. To slip so easily past the sword intent Sword Douluo had left behind and appear right in front of him, this was no ordinary creature!
"Heh heh, who am I? I'll scare you to death when I tell you!" the silkworm said smugly, though its voice could not quite hide its weakness. "I'm the one and only, under heaven and above earth, Million-Year... Sky Dream Ice Silkworm!"
A Million-Year Soul Beast!
Lin Yi's pupils contracted. No matter how resolute he was, those four words sent waves crashing through his heart.
On Douluo Continent, Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts were already the stuff of legend. A million years... that was something that existed only in theory!
"Y-you... what do you want?" Lin Yi forced himself to calm down. The other party seemed to mean him no harm. With a million years of cultivation, it could crush him as easily as an ant.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm wiggled its plump body, its voice brimming with temptation and a trace of urgency. "I don't have much time, so I'll get straight to the point! I've taken a liking to you, kid! There's something incredible hidden inside you... three Martial Souls, all with Ultimate Ice attributes! You're the perfect vessel!"
Its tiny eyes lit up. "I want to sacrifice myself to you! I'll give you all my million years of cultivation and my Wisdom Soul Ring!"
A sacrifice? A million-year Soul Ring?
Lin Yi felt his breathing grow unsteady.
This was a pie falling from the sky, heavier than the entire Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!
"Why choose me?" Lin Yi did not let the immense joy cloud his judgment. Instead, he became even more wary.
There was no such thing as a free lunch, especially when it came from a Million-Year Soul Beast.
"Because I've had enough!" The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice turned both tearful and furious. "I may have a million years of cultivation, but I can't fight worth a damn. Those guys have been chasing me around like a walking tonic! I don't want to die. I want to keep living and see a wider world! The Divine Realm! That's right, the Divine Realm!"
Its voice turned intensely serious and eager. "Kid, I can tell you're someone blessed with great fortune and destiny! You have what it takes to become a god! I'm betting everything on you. I'll sacrifice myself to become your Soul Ring and live inside your body. In return, when you become a god, you have to take me to the Divine Realm with you!"
Become a god?
Lin Yi's gaze flickered. He knew the story, so he knew the Divine Realm truly existed. Tang San would become a god in the future.
And as for him, he had Triple Martial Souls and innate Soul Power at level thirty. With a million-year Soul Ring on top of that... becoming a god did not seem so far beyond his reach!
"Fine! I accept!" Lin Yi agreed almost without hesitation, his words firm as a nail driven home.
This was a chance he could neither refuse nor afford to miss! "If I, Lin Yi, am lucky enough to enter the Divine Realm someday, I'll take you with me!"
"Haha! That's the spirit! I knew I wasn't wrong about you!" The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm wriggled excitedly. "All right, let's begin! Relax your mind and accept my power! By the way, you have three Martial Souls. Which one should I attach my Soul Ring to? That Snow Lotus? Or that little Ice Dragon? Or... the even more impressive little bird you've hidden in your right hand?"
It had seen through every card he held! Lin Yi's heart tightened. The Ice Phoenix Martial Soul was his greatest secret; even Sword Douluo had never noticed it, yet the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had seen through it at a glance.
Which Martial Soul should receive the million-year Soul Ring?
The Snow Lotus Martial Soul was his openly displayed primary Martial Soul, with powerful support abilities. A million-year Soul Ring would take those abilities to another level, perhaps even granting him an ability that defied the heavens.
The Ice Dragon Martial Soul was a Power Attack System Martial Soul with limitless potential. Sword Douluo had strictly warned him not to attach a Soul Ring to it lightly, but with a million-year Soul Ring... its might was beyond imagining.
And then there was the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul, his most deeply hidden trump card. It also possessed the top-tier Ultimate Ice attribute, and its quality might even surpass the Ice Dragon's by a hair.
In the blink of an eye, Lin Yi made his decision.
The Snow Lotus Martial Soul followed a pure support path. Its five Soul Ring skills already formed a perfect system, and adding a million-year Soul Ring without careful consideration would make it far too conspicuous. Revealing a million-year Soul Ring too soon would be courting death.
The Ice Dragon Martial Soul was an offensive powerhouse. A million-year Soul Ring would certainly send its attack power soaring.
But Sword Douluo's warning still rang in his ears. Attaching a powerful Soul Ring to his Second Martial Soul too early might cause his body to buckle under the backlash.
Even if he could bear it, a Second Martial Soul with a Soul Ring of ten thousand years or more would be so shocking that it would go against his intention of keeping his strength hidden.
Then the best choice was the unknown Third Martial Soul—the Ice Phoenix!
The Ice Phoenix Martial Soul also possessed the Ultimate Ice attribute, perfectly matching the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's power. Using it to bear the million-year Soul Ring would let him absorb and use that power to the fullest, while keeping this trump card hidden even deeper.
No outsider could possibly know what terrifying Soul Ring had been attached to a Martial Soul that had never been revealed! It would be his true weapon for turning the tables when he faced desperate circumstances in the future!
"Sacrifice yourself to my Third Martial Soul, the Ice Phoenix!" Lin Yi said gravely. At the same time, his thoughts stirred, and the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul imprint hidden deep in his right palm, wrapped in layer upon layer of Soul Power and mental power, surfaced clearly for the first time.
It was an exquisitely detailed, lifelike pattern of an ice-blue phoenix, radiating nobility, cool detachment, and the endless rhythm of ice.
"The Ice Phoenix! Good! Excellent! It's every bit as good as the Ice Dragon, maybe even more spirited! Perfect!" the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm cried excitedly. "That's the one! Relax and accept me!"
As soon as it finished speaking, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's round body erupted in dazzling golden light! The glow was not harsh; instead, it was gentle and warm, filled with mental power and life essence as vast as a sea of stars.
Its enormous body began to turn insubstantial in the golden light, transforming into the purest torrent of energy. Like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, it surged toward the Ice Phoenix imprint in Lin Yi's right palm!
"Remember your promise... take me to the Divine Realm..."
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's final words echoed through Lin Yi's Sea of Consciousness, carrying relief, anticipation, and a trace of weariness that was difficult to detect.
Boom—!!!
An indescribably vast energy surged into Lin Yi's body, but it did not crash into him violently. Instead, like a mother's embrace, it seeped warmly and gently into every inch of his meridians and every fragment of his soul.
The Ice Phoenix Martial Soul let out an unprecedented cry of joy and trembled. The ice-blue phoenix pattern seemed to come alive, radiating a noble, powerful aura as it greedily absorbed the nourishment of a million years of cultivation.
A Soul Ring that defied description by color began to slowly take shape around the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul. It seemed to contain the stars and cosmos, gave off a faint platinum glow, and carried the unique pressure of a Million-Year Soul Beast!
At the same time, Lin Yi could clearly feel his mental power skyrocketing at a terrifying rate! His consciousness seemed to rise without limit, and his range of perception expanded sharply. He could sense every tiny shift in the wind and snow outside the ice cave! Countless profound insights on the use of mental power and the essence of ice also appeared in his mind. These were benefits that came with the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's million years of cultivation—the Wisdom Soul Ring!
The energy infusion continued, and the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul was undergoing a metamorphosis.
Lin Yi sank into a mysterious, wondrous state, forgetting time and where he was.
After an unknown length of time, the last trace of energy finally merged into the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul. Only then did Lin Yi slowly open his eyes. The Soul Ring, giving off a faint platinum glow and containing endless mysteries and power, had completely stabilized and now hovered quietly above the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul.
In the depths of his eyes, it was as if a galaxy flowed and an ice phoenix soared, their depths enough to make anyone's heart tremble.
He gently clenched his right hand, sensing the terrifying power within the Ice Phoenix imprint in his palm—power enough to destroy the heavens and earth—and the million-year Soul Ring that, though hidden, truly existed, an unprecedented first on Douluo Continent!
He had successfully absorbed the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's sacrifice. It had become the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul's First Soul Ring—the first million-year Soul Ring in history!
Moreover, his mental power had reached a terrifying level, and his Soul Power had multiplied several times over.
Just then, a sharp sword intent drew near from afar, rapidly approaching.
Sword Douluo Chen Xin had returned.
With a thought, Lin Yi instantly concealed the Ice Phoenix imprint in his right palm, along with the astonishing million-year Soul Ring, until they vanished without a trace.
He also forcibly reined in his surging mental power, letting only a slightly stronger Soul Power fluctuation show. It remained at level sixty as he waited for the Sixth Soul Ring for his Snow Lotus Martial Soul.
His face returned to its former calm, as if the life-changing encounter just now had never happened.
Only the deep confidence in the depths of his eyes could no longer be erased.
Ice Phoenix Martial Soul, first ring a million years old. From that moment onward, his path was different.
"I found the Soul Beast!"
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