Defy Fate, Plan to Become a God

Douluo Continent.

Far North, Ice-Sealed Forest.

A frigid wind blew in from the depths of the snowfields, sweeping up ice crystals that lashed against tree trunks encased in thick ice, producing faint crackling sounds.

A perpetual gloom shrouded this bitterly cold forest, where Soul Beasts were scarce.

A bonfire flickered beneath a sheltered ice cliff.

The firelight illuminated the faces of a grandfather and granddaughter.

The burly old man had neatly combed gray-white hair draped behind his head. His eyes were sharp as an eagle's as he vigilantly scanned the darkness beyond the edge of the firelight.

Beside him sat a girl of twelve or thirteen.

She had yet to fully grow into her frame, but it was already clear that she would become a great beauty.

Her skin was as white as snow, and her features were delicate.

Her sapphire-blue eyes were clear and bright.

Her ice-blue hair was simply tied behind her head, with a few loose strands resting against her smooth forehead.

The old man was Leng Jun. His martial soul was the Ice Crystal Phoenix, and he was an eighty-seventh-rank Soul Douluo.

The girl was Shui Bing'er, Leng Jun's granddaughter. Her martial soul was also the Ice Phoenix, and her Soul Power had only just broken through rank thirty.

They had come to find Shui Bing'er a suitable Soul Beast for her third soul ring.

Leng Jun set up a small tent beside the bonfire.

"Bing'er, go inside and rest first. Suitable Soul Beasts aren't easy to find, but there's no need to rush. We'll find one."

"Got it, Grandpa."

Shui Bing'er crawled into the tent.

Her third soul ring was of vital importance to her, and even to her family.

As a top-tier ice-attributed beast martial soul, the Ice Phoenix possessed tremendous potential.

Furthermore, her family followed the extreme approach.

That meant they had exceptionally high standards for the quality of soul rings. They had to come from ice- or water-attributed Soul Beasts.

Naturally, ice-attributed Soul Beasts would be better.

The Ice-Sealed Forest was the place most likely to contain such Soul Beasts.

However, the environment here was harsh, the land vast and sparsely populated. Finding a suitable Soul Beast would not be easy.

Night gradually deepened.

Shui Bing'er was still a child. Having spent the entire day searching for Soul Beasts with her grandfather, she was somewhat tired and soon fell asleep.

Leng Jun stood guard nearby, his Soul Power circulating silently as he vigilantly sensed his surroundings.

Unbeknownst to them, less than three hundred meters from their camp, a pair of ice-blue eyes silently watched the bonfire.

Even with Leng Jun's Soul Douluo-level cultivation, he could not sense the presence of that danger.

Yet those eyes held none of a beast's savagery—only the contemplation of a human.

"Finally, I've encountered human Soul Masters... That little girl is actually Shui Bing'er? Heaven really is helping me!"

Xu Feng's consciousness had awakened within the body of this beautiful Ice Phoenix, a body brimming with terrifying power, only a few months ago. Yet he had already endured countless hardships.

He was not a native of this world.

His soul came from Blue Star.

When he awakened again, he had become an Ice Phoenix of the Far North's ice plains, having just broken through to a hundred-thousand-year cultivation.

Vast fragments of memory, surging Soul Power, and the instincts belonging to a top-tier Soul Beast had all fused into this modern human soul.

As a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, he faced two difficult choices.

Either he could trigger a heavenly tribulation and attempt to overcome it, continuing to cultivate to greater heights in the body of a Soul Beast.

Or he could choose to take human form and cultivate anew as a human, gaining faster cultivation speed and greater potential.

But during the initial stage of transformation, he would be extremely vulnerable. If discovered by a powerful human, he would be hunted down, stripped of his soul ring and soul bone, and doomed beyond redemption.

Overcome the tribulation?

He would have to endure lightning from the heavens, and the Divine Realm did not permit Soul Beasts to become gods. In the end, he would still die with his soul scattered.

Transform into a human?

Without a background or anyone to protect him, even if he remained extremely cautious, it would be difficult to survive until maturity.

Clearly, neither was a good choice.

And now, there was another option.

As a transmigrator who had taken possession of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Ice Phoenix's soul, Xu Feng possessed spiritual perception far beyond that of ordinary Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.

He heard the conversation between Shui Bing'er and Leng Jun and sensed the aura of an Ice Phoenix martial soul.

Shui Bing'er could also be considered exceptionally gifted.

Xu Feng came up with an idea.

He would voluntarily sacrifice himself to Shui Bing'er!

His Ice Phoenix body and Shui Bing'er's Ice Phoenix martial soul shared the same origin.

If he sacrificed himself willingly, his soul ring, Soul Power, and origin power would all merge with her in the most perfect manner.

Not only would it greatly enhance her strength and potential, but more importantly, he might be able to preserve his soul consciousness and exist in a manner similar to a "soul spirit."

He could guide her, nurture her, and use her potential to strive for godhood together!

If she became a god, then as a "soul spirit" closely bound to her soul and martial soul, he would also have a chance to ascend to the Divine Realm with her, break free of the shackles binding soul beasts, and attain true immortality!

Of course, there were risks to doing this.

Shui Bing'er was not strong enough yet.

Whether the sacrifice process could truly preserve his consciousness as he imagined was also unknown.

But compared to dying in a tribulation, body and soul destroyed, or facing deadly danger at every step of taking human form, this was a path he might be able to control himself.

"There's no time to hesitate..."

Xu Feng could sense that, somewhere beyond perception, the heavenly tribulation that belonged to him was about to descend.

Every extra day he spent in this forest was a waste of time.

Shui Bing'er's appearance seemed more like fate forcing him to make his final choice.

The night deepened.

Shui Bing'er had already fallen fast asleep, her breathing even.

Leng Jun remained highly vigilant.

Suddenly.

A sharp gleam flared in Xu Feng's icy blue eyes!

An invisible mental wave spread like spilled mercury, silently crossing three hundred meters and piercing Leng Jun's mind in an instant!

Leng Jun's body abruptly stiffened. His hawk-like eyes widened, and a trace of horror flashed deep within his pupils.

He felt a cold, vast spiritual force crash violently into his consciousness, like an iceberg pressing down upon him!

Before he could react in any way, he completely lost consciousness.

Xu Feng had deliberately controlled the force.

This was only a deep mental stun. It would not cause permanent damage, but it was enough to keep Leng Jun unconscious for several hours.

A gentler spiritual force lightly reached toward the sleeping Shui Bing'er, silently entering between her brows.

Shui Bing'er had a dream.

There was none of the bitter cold of the Ice-Sealed Forest in the dream, only an endless expanse of clear, azure sky.

She was flying, free and unrestrained, with vast glaciers and snowy plains beneath her.

The sensation of wind sweeping over her wings felt so real.

She felt like the ruler of the skies, the king of ice and snow.

Then, she saw what lay ahead.

It was a gigantic ice-blue phoenix, so beautiful it took one's breath away.

Every feather looked as though it had been carved from pure ice crystals, flowing with rainbow-colored radiance. A faint mist of ice and snowflakes curled around its body.

The phoenix hovered silently in the air, its icy blue eyes as profound as stars gazing gently at Shui Bing'er.

Shui Bing'er felt a tremor and closeness that came from the depths of her soul.

It was as though she had met a blood-related relative, yet also as though she were a humble hatchling looking up at the true king of the skies.

"Mother... is that you? Mother..."

Crystal tears welled in the young girl's eyes.

The Ice Phoenix gently flapped its wings and spoke in a human voice:

"Little cutie, I'm not your mother. But I can love and protect you just like your mother would."