Battle Ice Empress

The cold air around Jiang Che surged violently, and a pale blue radiance erupted from his body, instantly manifesting as a phantom Ice Dragon coiling between heaven and earth. With its head held high and whiskers flowing, the dragon's cold eyes locked onto the Ice Empress's diamond-yellow gaze, refusing to yield even an inch.

Accompanied by a low, humming resonance, nine Soul Rings rose slowly from beneath his feet.

Black, black, black, black, black, black, black, red, red. When the eighth Soul Ring appeared, Jiang Che noticed a flicker of surprise in the Ice Empress's eyes, but by the time the ninth emerged, that surprise had curdled into deep apprehension.

Clearly, she had recognized Jiang Che's 500,000-year Soul Ring; that was a soul beast two levels higher than herself.

The Ice Dragon phantom around Jiang Che let out a heaven-shaking roar, the sound waves carrying a bone-chilling, extreme cold that swept across the entire sky of the Far North. He stood tall and straight at the center of the frost, his nine Soul Rings circulating endlessly. The first seven deep black rings were steady and heavy, while the eighth and ninth bright red rings hung like two inextinguishable flames, unleashing the terrifying pressure of a 500,000-year Soul Ring.

He looked up at the Ice Empress, his ice-blue eyes as cold as eternal glaciers. His voice cut through the freezing air, low yet undeniably forceful, each word striking at the Ice Empress's heart: "Ice Empress! Do you truly wish to fight me?"

As his voice fell, the Ice Dragon phantom stretched its body, its giant claws stepping into the void. Fine ice patterns rippled across the space, and the power of Ultimate Ice erupted, faintly suppressing the primal cold of the Far North itself.

Seeing that Jiang Che, a mere Title Douluo, could unleash power rivaling a Super Douluo, the Ice Empress felt a twinge of regret. But the arrow was already on the string; she had no choice but to fire. If she backed down now, would the reputation of the Three Heavenly Kings of the Far North not be utterly ruined? How could she continue to rule the Far North in the future?

"Human, if you kneel and admit your mistake, this Empress may consider forgiving you!" After a pause, the Ice Empress decided to take a step back; in her eyes, this was already a massive concession.

"First Soul Skill, Dragon Might!"

"Second Soul Skill, Dragon Transformation!"

"Seventh Soul Skill, Avatar of Martial Soul!"

Seeing that the Ice Empress was determined to fight, Jiang Che spoke no more. He activated three enhancement skills in rapid succession, his aura instantly skyrocketing once again, rising like an eternal snow-capped peak that one could only look up to in awe.

The previously ethereal Ice Dragon phantom suddenly solidified at this moment. The pale blue radiance became so dense it was nearly tangible, the dragon scales clearly visible, each one shimmering with a frigid light.

The air vibrated violently, and the gravitational field around Jiang Che shifted instantly. Even the distant herds of soul beasts trembled, prostrating themselves on the ground, not daring to move a muscle.

For the first time, the Ice Empress's expression turned truly grim.

"You ignorant human!" the Ice Empress roared, killing intent boiling in her diamond-yellow eyes. She held nothing back, and the entire sky began to flow with emerald light.

That ice-jade green radiance swept across the horizon, forcibly pushing back the pale blue cold air released by Jiang Che.

The translucent white and emerald-interwoven carapace of the Ice Empress suddenly shone with a brilliant luster. Her hexagonal, diamond-shaped protrusions shot out frigid light, as if billions of ice crystals were exploding at once. The primal pressure of the 399,900-year Ice Jade Empress Scorpion erupted completely. An invisible shockwave expanded from her center, instantly freezing the surrounding snow into solid ice and locking the very wind in place. Even the spiritual energy of the Far North bowed before this pressure, stagnating inch by inch.

This was the absolute power accumulated over nearly 400,000 years of cultivation, the unique, overbearing aura of the Three Heavenly Kings of the Far North. It collided fiercely with the pressure of Jiang Che's Ice Dragon Avatar of Martial Soul, causing the entire ice plain to tremble violently. Several ice mountains, unable to bear the strain, collapsed with a roar, kicking up a sky full of snow mist.

The Ice Empress tapped her six long, segmented limbs lightly, and countless spiderweb-like ice cracks spread across the ice layer beneath her, extending directly toward Jiang Che.

Her pair of meter-long ice-jade pincers opened and closed slightly, the silver-white tips gleaming with a cold light that seemed capable of piercing anything. Fury raged in her diamond-yellow eyes: "Since you are determined to seek death, this Empress shall grant your wish!"

Before the words had even faded, the Ice Empress transformed into a streak of emerald light. Her speed was so extreme that she left several afterimages in the air. The emerald cold air around her body condensed onto her pincers, and with an aura that threatened to tear space itself, she slashed viciously toward Jiang Che's chest and abdomen!

This was the innate, life-bound attack of the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion. It had no soul skill name, yet it contained the purest power of Ultimate Ice. Wherever it passed, even space was frozen and slightly distorted. Jiang Che felt the cold around him intensify, his movements momentarily sluggish, and the protective cold air of his Ice Dragon Avatar of Martial Soul was largely dissolved by this force.

"Fifth Soul Skill, Dragon King Charge!" Facing the Ice Empress's enraged strike, Jiang Che did not panic. He activated his fifth soul skill, choosing to meet her head-on.

Jiang Che roared, the power of his fifth soul skill flooding his entire body. The pressure of the Ice Dragon Avatar of Martial Soul climbed once more, and layers of mysterious patterns lit up on the pale blue dragon scales.

He stomped heavily, cracking the ice layer beneath him, and transformed into a whistling streak of ice-blue light. Instead of retreating, he surged forward, slamming directly into the Ice Empress's pincers. His dragon-transformed right arm, muscles bulging and covered in thick ice dragon scales, struck out with unstoppable dominance toward the gleaming pincers.

"BOOM—!"

The moment fist met pincer, a heaven-shaking roar shattered the silence of the Far North. A terrifying shockwave of energy erupted from the point of impact, instantly blasting away the ice layer for a hundred yards and exposing the frozen black earth beneath.

Jiang Che felt an irresistible force surge into his arm, shaking his blood and qi until his throat tasted of sweetness. His body was sent flying backward involuntarily, dragging a deep trench dozens of meters long across the ice before he could barely stabilize himself.

The Ice Empress did not fare much better. Her indestructible pincers were left numb, and fine cracks appeared on the silver-white tips. She had to tap her six limbs against the ice repeatedly to dissipate the overbearing impact, a flicker of shock flashing through her diamond-yellow eyes.

This human's strength was actually this formidable!

Jiang Che wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his ice-blue eyes burning with even greater battle intent. He raised his hand abruptly, and the solidified Ice Dragon phantom behind him let out a roar that shook the heavens. Its massive claws grabbed at the air, and the surrounding cold air instantly converged, forming a pale blue, dragon-patterned spear several yards long.

"Your attack is nothing more than this!" Jiang Che's voice sounded like thunder. Holding the Ice Dragon spear, he shot forward once more, the tip of the spear piercing the sky with a shrill whistle as he thrust directly at the Ice Empress's brow!

The Ice Empress laughed in fury, her diamond-yellow eyes filled with chilling intent: "Arrogant human, do you truly think my nearly 400,000 years of cultivation are just for show?"

She whipped her long tail, and light erupted from the five emerald tail segments. Her tail hook shimmered with cold light as she swept it toward the Ice Dragon spear. Simultaneously, the emerald cold air around her surged wildly, condensing into a thick shield covered in diamond-shaped patterns before her. The power of Ultimate Ice flowed across the shield, radiating a heart-stopping chill.