The Ice Empress's Torso Bone

Jiang Che looked at the Ice Empress, who had transformed into human form, a flash of astonishment crossing his eyes.

The young girl's figure was petite, yet she carried the cold, haughty aura of the Ruler of the Far North. Her emerald-green hair cascaded over her shoulders, wisps of fine ice mist swirling between the strands, and the small, ice-jade crown atop her head served as the very symbol of her status.

Those signature yellow-diamond eyes had shed the ferocity of her beast form, gaining a touch of human-like agility, yet the coldness and arrogance deep within them remained undiminished.

"Rest assured, I never speak empty words." Jiang Che withdrew his gaze, his tone flat yet resolute. "From this day forward, you and I share a life; when one prospers, both prosper, and when one suffers, both suffer!"

The Ice Empress let out a soft huff. Though she still felt a lingering sense of unwillingness, the Heavenly Tribulation had dissipated. She had completely escaped the fate of having her soul scattered and had achieved a new life—a stroke of fortune she had never dared to hope for in nearly four hundred thousand years of cultivation.

[Congratulations to the Host for completing the mission and successfully signing an advanced Soul Spirit contract with the Ice Empress!]

[Mission rewards issued: Soul Power Level +1, Soul Ring age increased by 10,000 years, World Shielder ×1!]

[World Shielder has been automatically activated. It can permanently block the detection of all deities in the God Realm. The Host's subsequent actions will be completely removed from the God Realm's field of vision!]

As the system prompt echoed in his mind, Jiang Che felt a sudden sense of relief, the heavy stone that had been weighing on his heart finally dropping.

With this World Shielder, he no longer needed to fear the secret gaze of that God King surnamed Tang. From now on, all his actions on the Douluo Continent could be carried out as he pleased, without needing to be restrained or cautious!

At the same time, he could clearly feel his internal soul power surging; his original level 92 cultivation stabilized directly at level 93.

"Stronger by another notch." Jiang Che clenched his fists, feeling the power surging to its limit within his body, and a satisfied smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

With dual ultimate martial souls, a level 93 Title Douluo, a top-tier soul ring over five hundred thousand years old, and the Ruler of the Far North, the Ice Empress, as his Soul Spirit, he now had the strength to fight even a level 98 Super Douluo without using his trump cards. On this Douluo Continent, he was already a powerhouse standing at the very peak!

The Ice Empress watched the surging soul power aura around Jiang Che, a trace of surprise flashing in her yellow-diamond eyes.

She could feel that the strength of this human before her had made another significant breakthrough. While she had previously felt somewhat aggrieved to have lowered herself to become a Soul Spirit, she now felt more and more that her choice might not have been wrong.

"Hey, human, what do you plan to do next?" The Ice Empress spoke, her crisp voice carrying a hint of coldness as she broke the silence on the Ice Peak.

"Hmm... do you want to go and say goodbye to your kin?" Jiang Che only then remembered that the Ice Empress still had an Ice Jade Scorpion clan.

At these words, the Ice Empress's yellow-diamond eyes flickered slightly, her gaze drifting involuntarily toward the depths of the Far North Ice Plains—the territory where the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion clan had resided for generations.

She was, after all, the head of her clan. Even if she had lived a solitary life for years, the bonds of blood still remained. Over nearly four hundred thousand years, the clan had been the roots that anchored her to the Far North. Now, suddenly faced with leaving forever, a faint, imperceptible ripple stirred in her heart, and she actually entertained the thought of returning once to make a clean break.

But in an instant, the ice mist swirling at her fingertips condensed, and the hesitation in her eyes was quickly replaced by cold, haughty resolve.

She was the supreme empress of the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion clan, one of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Far North. Having lowered herself to become a human Soul Spirit for the sake of a new life, returning now to face her clan would only invite unnecessary complications.

She had never been one to drag things out. Since she had already made her choice, there was no need to look back, nor was there any need for pointless farewells that would only stir up attachment and cost her the dignity of a ruler.

Pressing her thin lips together, the Ice Empress withdrew her gaze from the distance and looked back at Jiang Che, her tone returning to its usual indifference, laced with a touch of unarguable finality: "Forget it, there is no need to go back."

"My clan has always lived by the law of the jungle; they have their own rules for survival. Even without me, they will continue to thrive." She tilted her head slightly, the ice-jade crown atop her head gleaming with cold light, fully displaying her aloofness. "Now that I have signed a Soul Spirit contract with you, all ties to my past clan are severed. There is no need to go back and explain, as it would only invite trouble."

As her voice fell, the ice mist around her swirled lightly, completely severing that fleeting, lingering attachment in her heart. She looked up at Jiang Che: "Do not mention the clan again. Just tell me, where are we heading next?"

"Alright, then let's head back to Shrek Academy. We can even take a look at the Heaven Dou Empire on the way." Jiang Che didn't actually know where to go, so he decided to just head back to Shrek.

"Go to Shrek Academy? Are you sure no one will discover me?" The Ice Empress still hadn't shifted her perspective, subconsciously thinking of herself as a soul beast.

"Of course. You can feel it for yourself—is there any trace of a soul beast left on you now?"

Upon hearing this, the Ice Empress actually checked herself and discovered that, aside from lacking a soul ring, her other characteristics were exactly the same as a normal soul master.

Seeing that the Ice Empress had finished her check, Jiang Che turned to leave.

"Wait!" Before Jiang Che could turn away, the Ice Empress called out to him.

Jiang Che's footsteps faltered, his body, which had just begun to turn and move, coming to a sudden halt. He looked at the Ice Empress beside him with some surprise.

The young girl stood on the pristine white snow in her ice-jade dress, her figure petite yet still carrying the cold, haughty aura of the Ruler of the Far North. Her emerald-green hair was brushed slightly by the cold wind. There was no trace of reluctance in those yellow-diamond eyes; instead, they held a crisp, decisive certainty.

She raised her slender hand, a wisp of warm, ice-jade soul power swirling around her fingertips. Above her palm, a body woven of translucent white and jade green slowly emerged—it was the very Ice Jade Empress Scorpion shell she had shed earlier.

Even without a soul or vitality, this body still radiated a dense, ultimate cold aura. The diamond-shaped protrusions on the carapace shimmered, carrying the heavy pressure unique to a fierce beast that had just broken through the four-hundred-thousand-year mark.

The Ice Empress tapped her jade finger, and the massive scorpion body slowly shrank, eventually transforming into a stream of light. A translucent, ice-jade-glowing torso bone slowly hovered between the two of them.

"Ice Empress, what are you doing?" Jiang Che asked. He knew this was the Ice Empress's torso bone, but he didn't understand why she had brought it out.

"This is my torso bone. Take it and absorb it!" The Ice Empress's tone was light, but Jiang Che knew this was one of her potential retreats.

"Are you sure?" Jiang Che looked at the Ice Empress before him in confusion.

"Why are you looking at me with such a strange expression! Don't you believe what this Empress says?" Seeing that Jiang Che didn't believe her, the Ice Empress furrowed her delicate brows and asked him, looking quite indignant.

"Cough! Not at all. How could I not believe you? You and I are in a symbiotic relationship!" Jiang Che first comforted the Ice Empress.

Then he voiced his own doubt: "But Ice Empress, if you keep your old body, wouldn't that leave you a way out in case I ever run into an accident?"