"The matter's taken care of."
The Snow Empress's voice was cool as water dripping from an icy spring, yet carried a hint of softness that was hard to detect.
She spoke nonchalantly.
"I've already taught those Titan Snow Demons who didn't know their place a lesson."
"That newly appointed clan chief kept clamoring for revenge. He was too noisy."
"So I killed him while I was at it."
She spoke so casually, yet Liu Ruyan and Shui Bing'er, standing off to the side, were struck as if by lightning, their bodies turning icy cold.
K-killed...the clan chief of the Titan Snow Demon Clan?
That was one of the overlords of the Far North!
His strength was at least that of a Soul Beast with a cultivation base approaching a hundred thousand years!
And she'd...killed him just like that?
Who exactly was this woman?!
At that moment, Lan slowly opened his eyes. He tilted his head back to look at the Snow Empress, his expression calm.
"Aunt Xue."
He answered, then spoke as if reporting some minor errand.
"On my way back, I ran into a few stragglers. I cleaned them up while I was at it."
At his words, the Snow Empress's nonchalant expression changed abruptly.
"What?"
"You fought them?"
She stepped forward, completely ignoring the two Skywater Academy teachers and students who had been left frozen in place.
"Were you hurt? Let me see!"
She pulled Lan up from the rock, cupped his face in her hands, and examined him closely.
Seeing that he looked as usual, she grabbed his arms and checked him from top to bottom, sending her Soul Power swiftly through his body.
Lan looked a little helpless.
"Aunt Xue, I'm fine."
"They were only a few ten-thousand-year Snow Demons."
Only after confirming that he was truly unhurt did the Snow Empress let out a long breath of relief.
She gave Lan a reproachful glare, then did something that nearly made Liu Ruyan and Shui Bing'er's eyes fall out of their sockets.
This stunning woman, powerful enough to make one tremble, actually opened her arms and pulled the boy into a tight embrace.
She rested her chin lightly on Lan's shoulder, her voice tinged with lingering fear.
"Don't do that again."
"Your safety is what matters most. Leave those little fry to me."
Lan stiffened for a moment, but soon relaxed and gently patted her back.
"Got it, Aunt Xue."
Liu Ruyan and Shui Bing'er stood rooted to the spot, their minds completely blank.
Aunt Xue?
That way of addressing her...
They looked at the woman, who was as powerful as a god, then at the boy in her arms, whose expression was calm and even a little helpless.
The world seemed to turn surreal in that instant.
Lan had long since grown used to Aunt Xue's sudden displays of affection.
Aside from a little helplessness, what he felt most was the warmth that had long since sunk into his bones.
He didn't even notice that not far away, the Skywater Academy girl who had just begun to feel drawn to him had gone paler than the ice and snow of the Far North.
Shui Bing'er's heart sank, little by little.
She looked at the boy nestled in the arms of that peerless empress, at the calm, matter-of-fact expression on his face.
The faint affection that had only just begun to stir hadn't even had time to sprout before this painful sight froze it into shards of ice.
So...he already had a girlfriend.
And she was someone so powerful that Shui Bing'er could barely look up to her without feeling suffocated, so beautiful that she couldn't even bring herself to feel jealous.
Perhaps, in his eyes, the little thoughts she'd just had were nothing but a joke.
Shui Bing'er mustered all her courage.
"Is she...your girlfriend?"
Liu Ruyan had also recovered from her shock. She looked at Lan, her expression complicated.
Lan finally slipped free of the Snow Empress's embrace. Hearing Shui Bing'er, he turned his head to look at her.
Lan looked at her but didn't answer.
Some things were too much trouble to explain.
To Shui Bing'er, his silence was as good as confirmation.
That last spark of hope went out completely.
Liu Ruyan sighed and walked over to gently pat her on the back, but she didn't know how to comfort her either.
Just then, that cool, snowlike voice rang out again, carrying a hint of unmistakable teasing.
"What kind of nonsense is going through that little girl's head?"
The Snow Empress folded her arms and looked down at Shui Bing'er in the corner. A rare trace of amusement flickered in her ice-blue eyes.
"I'm Lan's elder."
That short sentence made Shui Bing'er jerk her head up.
H-her elder?
The Snow Empress seemed pleased with her reaction. Her tone remained indifferent.
"You may address me as Her Majesty the Snow Maiden."
Liu Ruyan shuddered. "Her Majesty?!"
On the Douluo Continent, only a nine-ring Titled Douluo was entitled to be addressed as "Your Majesty"!
The Snow Empress paid no heed to her shock. Her gaze returned to Lan.
Lan spoke at just the right moment, breaking the stalemate.
He looked at Liu Ruyan and Shui Bing'er, his tone calm once more.
"I still have some things to take care of."
"I'll come find you at Skywater Academy in three days."
With that, he said no more.
The Snow Empress reached out and naturally wrapped an arm around Lan's waist.
The next moment, a gentle current of Soul Power lifted them both, carrying them slowly into the night sky.
Lan didn't resist, letting the Snow Empress hold him.
From the ground, they could only watch as the pair of figures rose higher and higher, framed by the stars and brilliant aurora.
The pure moonlight cast a sacred silver glow over her white dress. Her snow-white hair fluttered in the night wind, as if a god were returning to the divine kingdom in the heavens with a messenger in their arms.
It was a breathtaking sight, one beautiful enough to remember for a lifetime.
Liu Ruyan and Shui Bing'er stared blankly upward. Only after the two points of light had vanished completely beyond the horizon did they slowly lower their gazes.
Shui Bing'er touched her face and suddenly realized it felt a little hot.
At the heart of the Far North, a palace built of Ten-Thousand-Year Black Ice stood in silent splendor.
This was Ice and Snow Residence.
Lan landed quietly alongside the Snow Empress.
Inside the palace, a jade-green figure lay bored atop an ice-crystal throne, her long legs swinging lightly.
It was the Ice Empress.
When she saw the two of them return, her jade-green eyes lit up at once. She flipped off the throne and landed on her feet.
"Little Lan, Big Sister Snow, you're back!"
Lan looked at her and nodded, counting that as a greeting.
He walked to the center of the palace and looked at the two Soul Beast Emperors who regarded him as their own.
He took a deep breath and spoke calmly.
"Aunt Xue, Aunt Bing."
"I've made up my mind. I'm leaving the Far North for Skywater Academy."
At his words, the air around them seemed to freeze for a moment.
A barely perceptible ripple passed through the Snow Empress's sky-blue eyes, but she merely nodded.
"Go."
"This is the kind of training you need on the path to becoming strong."
The Snow Empress's words had barely faded.
"Waaah!"
A piercing sob burst out without warning.
"You ungrateful little thing!"
"It's only been a few days, and you're already thinking about running off?!"
"Are you sick of us?!"
Before anyone could react, a jade-green blur had already thrown itself at him.
Before you continue