What's it like to be chased by seven Ice Jade Scorpions in Douluo?

Ice and snow retreated rapidly beneath their feet, the cold wind whistling past their ears.

A moment later, the silhouettes in the distance gradually became discernible.

Then Su Hui realized that the situation did not seem to be what they had anticipated.

On the ice field, seven young girls were fleeing for their lives.

Their formation had fallen into complete disarray.

Panic was etched onto every face, their gorgeous dresses snapping loudly in the frigid gale.

A thin layer of frost had already formed on the temples of several girls.

Chasing behind them was a massive, crystalline scorpion.

Its ice-blue and emerald-green carapace refracted a chilling luster under the snow-light.

Its tail hook was raised high, curved in a way that chilled the soul.

An Ice Jade Scorpion.

And a tens-of-thousands-year-level Ice Jade Scorpion at that.

Su Hui twitched the corner of his mouth: "Ice Empress, it seems the true hunter is one of your kin; they are the prey."

"This..."

The Ice Empress's voice hitched.

Clearly, she had also realized that her previous judgment had been off.

It was not the Ice Jade Scorpion being hunted.

This group of human girls, whose strength ranged from Soul Grand Master to Soul Elder, were the ones being hunted.

"Big sister, it's getting closer!"

Shui Yue'er's voice was laced with tears.

She was already panting, her legs feeling as heavy as if they were filled with lead.

"Don't look back, keep running!" Shui Bing'er shouted through gritted teeth.

Her soul power was more than half depleted, and the others were no better off.

The strongest among them was Shui Bing'er, a level thirty-six Soul Elder.

Facing a tens-of-thousands-year Ice Jade Scorpion, a head-on confrontation was no different from suicide.

Originally, this soul-hunting mission for the Skywater Team was supposed to be foolproof, with the dean of Skywater Academy leading the way.

Who could have known that a once-in-a-century blizzard would suddenly descend upon the Far North?

In the howling wind and snow, they had been separated from the dean, and while lost, they had stumbled straight into this lethal Ice Jade Scorpion.

Shui Bing'er recognized this soul beast.

To be precise, she had seen the illustration of the Ice Jade Scorpion in the academy's ancient texts, though she hadn't known its name.

This type of soul beast was extremely rare, even in the Far North.

It was said that its bloodline contained the power of extreme cold, and an adult was at least at the ten-thousand-year level.

With seven Soul Elders, what could they possibly use to fight a ten-thousand-year soul beast?

"Big sister!"

Shui Yue'er suddenly shrieked.

"!"

Shui Bing'er whipped her head around.

The Ice Jade Scorpion had closed the distance to less than fifty meters.

Its yellow compound eyes reflected the figures of the seven humans, cold and indifferent, as if looking at a few already frozen corpses.

They couldn't keep running!

Their stamina and soul power had hit rock bottom; continuing to flee would only lead to them being hunted down one by one.

Shui Bing'er gritted her teeth and came to a halt.

"Big sister, what are you doing!"

Shui Yue'er stumbled from the sudden tug of her movement.

"You all keep running!"

Shui Bing'er turned around to face the approaching Ice Jade Scorpion, her azure hair flying in the wind.

"I will hold it off."

"You're crazy!"

The other girls were terrified.

"I am the captain!"

Shui Bing'er's tone did not waver in the slightest. "Follow my orders."

The other girls all came to a halt, looking at one another in dismay.

No one was willing to abandon their captain to flee alone, yet no one knew what to say.

Fear and guilt were intertwined on every young face, rendering them speechless.

Shui Yue'er gripped her sister's hand tightly. "I'm not leaving! If you don't go, Sister, then I'm not going either!"

"Yue'er—"

Shui Bing'er did not finish her sentence.

"Ding!"

A surge of chill erupted from not far away.

A purer, more fundamental extreme cold, as if something had instantly drained all the temperature from the air.

The seven girls' bodies froze in place simultaneously.

The chill was so terrifying that merely brushing against their skin made them feel as though their blood was about to freeze.

This was not the power of an Ice Jade Scorpion!

They had already experienced the cold of the Ice Jade Scorpion, and it was nowhere near this overbearing.

Before they could even recover their senses, A massive ice dome over ten meters in diameter appeared out of thin air on the ice field, trapping the ten-thousand-year Ice Jade Scorpion entirely within it.

The ice dome was crystalline throughout, its surface shimmering with a deep blue luster, so thick that even sunlight could not penetrate it.

"..."

The seven girls stared at the ice dome, no one speaking for a time.

There was no sound coming from the Ice Jade Scorpion inside the opaque ice dome.

That seemingly invincible ten-thousand-year spirit beast had been covered by this suddenly appearing ice dome and had gone completely silent, without even a sign of struggle.

"Sister..."

Shui Yue'er's voice trembled slightly. "What is going on? Is it the Dean?"

The other girls also looked toward Shui Bing'er, a glimmer of hope igniting in their eyes.

Shui Bing'er's expression, however, was exceptionally grave.

She stared at the ice dome for a long time before slowly shaking her head.

"This is not my mother's technique."

She knew better than anyone that although her mother's spirit power was not low, she could absolutely not manifest ice-type power of this magnitude.

"Everyone, fall back."

Shui Bing'er made a prompt decision. "No matter what is happening, everyone must first move away from this ice dome. I will stay here to cover the retreat."

But Shui Yue'er did not let go.

"Sister, I will stay with you."

Her tone was uncharacteristically stubborn.

Shui Bing'er turned to look at her sister, wanting to say something, but in the end, she only sighed softly and did not drive her away again.

The wind and snow continued to howl.

The massive ice dome stood silently on the vast white ice field, like a silent tombstone.

The seven young girls stood at a safe distance, waiting vigilantly and bewildered, not knowing what would happen next.

As for the person who had acted, they had not shown their face from beginning to end.

Inside the ice dome.

The cold air surged like a tide.

Su Hui slowly lowered his right hand, the lingering frost-white aura still swirling between his fingers.

The spirit bone skill of the 400,000-Year Ice Jade Empress Scorpion Torso Bone—Eternal Frozen Domain.

This was his first time utilizing this power, and the effect far exceeded his expectations.

The ten-thousand-year Ice Jade Scorpion had been thoroughly sealed within the thick layer of ice.

Even the cold glint flickering on its tail hook had solidified into a static sculpture.

"Don't dwell on it; this is merely the tip of the iceberg of this Emperor's power."

"Uh..."

Hearing the Ice Empress's proud voice, Su Hui snapped back to reality.

To be honest, he hadn't even clearly seen who the Ice Jade Scorpion was chasing, only catching a vague glimpse of a few figures sprinting across the ice sheet.

What truly compelled him to act was that cold, biting voice within his Sea of Consciousness.

"Ice Empress."

Su Hui cast his gaze toward the Ice Jade Scorpion frozen within the ice layer.

"Why did you suddenly ask me to strike at your own kin?"

Logically, the Ice Empress was the most protective of her own kind, especially when it was a ten-thousand-year Ice Jade Scorpion.

There was a moment of silence in the Sea of Consciousness.

Then, the Ice Empress let out a cold huff.

"Naturally, it is for your sake."

"Me?"

Su Hui's thoughts stalled for a second, and just as he was about to press for an answer—

Crack!

The ice layer shattered.

The ten-thousand-year Ice Jade Scorpion broke free from its icy prison.

Cracks spread across its emerald-green carapace, and shards of ice scattered like blades in every direction.

It shook its head, fierce light glinting in its compound eyes, and raised its tail hook high, letting out a hoarse roar directed at Su Hui.

"Skree!!!"

Su Hui instinctively took half a step back, his right hand condensing cold air once more.

But the next moment, he lost control of his body.

His eyes suddenly glowed with a crimson light, and an ancient, majestic aura erupted from within him.

It was not soul power, nor was it killing intent; it was a form of hierarchical suppression etched deep into the bloodline.

It was the absolute law that the Ice Jade Scorpion clan had carried in their souls since the moment of their birth!

"Behave."

Three words, spoken lightly, yet they landed with the weight of an entire iceberg.

The Ice Jade Scorpion's roar came to an abrupt halt.

Its entire body pressed down, its carapace flush against the ice, its tail hook hanging limp on the ground. The fierce light in its compound eyes vanished completely, replaced by total submission.

The posture was exactly like a subject paying respects to a monarch.

The Ice Empress returned control of the body to Su Hui.

Su Hui flexed his fingers, confirming he had regained control of his limbs.

The sensation of having his body controlled by the Ice Empress was quite peculiar.

He looked down at the Ice Jade Scorpion, which was now as docile as a house pet, and his mood felt even more subtle.