"Senior..." Huo Yuhao had somehow come to a stop not far behind Jiang Che. The boy's voice held a trace of caution and a shock he couldn't quite put into words.
He had witnessed the battle with his own eyes, seeing the clash between Titled Douluo-level powerhouses from the perspective of an ordinary Soul Master. That power, that speed, that absolute control—the ability to end an opponent's life with the lift of a hand—had been carved deep into his heart.
Jiang Che turned to look at him, his expression returning to its usual warmth. "Scared?"
Huo Yuhao shook his head, then nodded. Finally, as though he'd thought of something, he murmured, "Senior, I'm going to become as strong as you someday."
Jiang Che gave a soft laugh and said nothing, only patting him on the shoulder.
"Come on. Let's gather up what those Evil Soul Masters left behind."
Jiang Che took Huo Yuhao and Ice Empress with him as they collected the Storage Soul Tools scattered throughout Ice Valley.
The storage rings and bracelets carried by Gu Qianye and Ming He, along with the odds and ends left behind by the Soul Saints and Soul Douluo after their deaths, added up to around twenty items.
Jiang Che didn't inspect their contents. He simply stored all the Storage Soul Tools in his Ring of the Overseer, intending to take them back to Shrek Academy for the academy to handle.
This was standard procedure for the Supervision Group when dealing with Evil Soul Masters. All spoils were handed over, registered by the academy, then distributed among members of the Supervision Group according to their contributions. Jiang Che didn't rely on such things to get by, but he wouldn't break the rules either.
Ice Empress had no interest in any of it. She stood off to the side the whole time, arms folded, her golden-diamond eyes sweeping over Ice Valley with bored indifference.
Huo Yuhao, on the other hand, busied himself helping to gather everything. He worked quickly and carefully, not even missing the small items buried beneath the shattered ice.
Once everything had been collected, Jiang Che was about to take Huo Yuhao out of Ice Valley to continue looking for a spirit-type Soul Beast when Huo Yuhao suddenly spoke, hesitantly.
"Senior..." Huo Yuhao's voice held a trace of uncertainty.
"What is it?" Jiang Che turned back.
Huo Yuhao scratched his head, as though trying to find the right words. After a moment, he said cautiously, "Senior, I was wondering about something. Why did that group of Evil Soul Masters stop here?"
Jiang Che halted.
"The Far North is enormous, and they're Soul Saints and Titled Douluo-level powerhouses. They can come and go as they please, so there's no reason they had to settle in this ice valley." Seeing that Jiang Che hadn't interrupted him, Huo Yuhao grew bolder and continued with his guess. "And when we came in, I noticed all those Evil Soul Masters gathered around that ice wall, as if they were guarding something."
"They had two Titled Douluo and so many high-level Soul Masters. Even if they ran into someone as powerful as you, Senior, they wouldn't have had to fight instead of running, would they?"
Jiang Che looked at Huo Yuhao, a flicker of surprise passing through his eyes.
"You think there might be something behind that ice wall?" Jiang Che asked.
Huo Yuhao nodded. His face was tense, but he forced himself to say, "Senior, I think we should take a look."
At that, Jiang Che didn't hesitate. He headed toward the ice wall deeper in the valley.
The ice wall in the depths of Ice Valley was a layer of ten-thousand-year-old ice, nearly twenty zhang tall and a deep blue throughout. Its surface was smooth as a mirror, reflecting the murky gray sky of the Far North.
At first glance, it looked no different from the surrounding walls of ice. But up close, Jiang Che saw a faint ripple of Soul Power on its surface, as though someone had covered it with an exceptionally skillful concealment technique.
Jiang Che pressed his palm against the ice wall. The Soul Power of his Ultimate Ice trembled, and the concealed Soul Power barrier shattered like a mirror, revealing what lay behind it.
A narrow fissure in the ice slanted deep into the mountainside. Clear traces of Soul Power remained at its entrance, left behind by those who had passed through.
Jiang Che turned sideways and slipped into the fissure. Ice Empress and Huo Yuhao followed close behind. The passage widened considerably beyond the entrance. Ice crystals of all shapes had formed along its walls, and the pale blue light radiating from Jiang Che illuminated them with a dreamlike glow.
After roughly a hundred paces, the space ahead suddenly opened up.
It was a naturally formed ice cavern, its ceiling about ten zhang high and hung with countless glittering icicles. A thick layer of ice covered the floor, smooth as a mirror.
At the very center of the cavern stood an ancient stone platform. It was grayish white, made of a material completely different from the surrounding ice, and its surface was covered in tightly packed Soul Tool patterns.
"God-Sealing Platform!" Jiang Che's pupils contracted slightly. Though he'd never seen a real God-Sealing Platform, he recognized it as a high-level Soul Engineer.
In the very center of the God-Sealing Platform, nestled in a fist-sized hollow, lay a Soul Beast Embryo.
The embryo was ice blue all over, covered by a thin, transparent membrane. Through it, one could just make out the curled-up outline of a tiny Soul Beast inside.
"What is this..." Jiang Che approached the God-Sealing Platform, his gaze fixed on the Soul Beast Embryo. He could sense the power of an Ultimate Ice origin within it.
Ice Empress came closer too. For the first time, clear surprise appeared in her golden-diamond eyes. She extended a slender finger and gently touched the membrane over the embryo.
"Silent Frost Ice Phoenix." Ice Empress drew back her finger, her tone certain.
"Silent Frost Ice Phoenixes are all but extinct. This one is around two hundred thousand years old. It seems it knew it wouldn't survive its tribulation, so it wanted to reincarnate as a human before its second tribulation. But it was captured."
"Silent Frost Ice Phoenix?" Jiang Che raised an eyebrow and instinctively glanced at Huo Yuhao behind him.
Huo Yuhao stood at the cavern entrance, staring blankly at the Soul Beast Embryo on the God-Sealing Platform. His eyes held undisguised astonishment, along with a strange yearning he hadn't even noticed himself.
Jiang Che understood. He knew that Sky Dream Ice Silkworm lived in Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness—a million-year-old "useless" Soul Beast. One look at Huo Yuhao's expression told him that Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had just explained what the Soul Beast Embryo could do.
Though it was a "useless" Soul Beast, there was no denying that its spiritual power was incredibly strong, at least considerably stronger than Jiang Che's. It must have been the one to alert Huo Yuhao just now. Even he and Ice Empress hadn't sensed that anything was hidden here.
Jiang Che silently watched the Soul Beast Embryo, still pulsing faintly, his thoughts churning.
He finally understood why the Holy Spirit Cult had sent two Titled Douluo, three Soul Douluo, and ten Soul Saints to this godforsaken corner of the Far North. A Soul Beast Embryo two hundred thousand years old was worth any faction throwing everything it had into the fight.
Jiang Che then noticed that something was wrong with the God-Sealing Platform. It was damaged, and its effect was weakening. If no one interfered, it would be completely useless within three days.
No wonder Gu Qianye and Ming He had refused to surrender even at the cost of their lives. They must have wanted to lure him away. Other Holy Spirit Cult higher-ups might know about this place and be on their way.
He turned his gaze from the God-Sealing Platform to Huo Yuhao behind him.
Huo Yuhao stood at the cavern entrance, his face conflicted. His lips parted several times, as though he were hesitating over whether to say something.
His eyes kept darting toward the Soul Beast Embryo. The yearning in them was almost spilling over, yet he bit his lip and stayed silent.
Looking at Huo Yuhao like this, Jiang Che suddenly felt like laughing.
This was probably the fate of someone blessed by destiny. Humans had a chance to obtain a Second Martial Soul through a Soul Beast Embryo. The odds weren't high, but if they succeeded, that Martial Soul would surely be extraordinarily powerful.
He had intercepted Ice Empress, so the child of destiny had received a Silent Frost Ice Phoenix Embryo as his Second Martial Soul. It might not be as powerful a Second Martial Soul as Ice Empress, but it was still a two-hundred-thousand-year-old Ferocious Beast. How many people could even dream of something like this?
"Huo Yuhao," Jiang Che said.
"Huh? S-Senior?" Huo Yuhao came back to himself, his voice tinged with guilt.
"Do you want this Soul Beast Embryo?"
"I... I..." Huo Yuhao stammered, unsure how to answer.
"If you want it, it's yours."
Of course Huo Yuhao wanted the embryo. From the first moment he saw its icy blue glow, an intense, uncontrollable yearning had surged within him.
But reason told him that the embryo was spoils from a battle Senior had won against powerful foes. He had no right to ask for it—or even covet it.
But now Senior was offering it to him of his own accord.
"Senior, I..." Huo Yuhao's voice trembled, and his eyes reddened slightly. "This is far too precious. I can't accept it."
"Take it." Jiang Che's tone brooked no refusal. "It's no use to me. Besides, this God-Sealing Platform is broken. It won't hold the seal for long, and it can't be moved. You're the only one here who can use it. And you were the one who found this place. We wouldn't have discovered it without you."
Huo Yuhao fell silent for a long while, then nodded firmly. His voice was hoarse as he said one word: "All right."
He didn't say thank you, because he knew those words were too light to bear the weight of this kindness. He simply carved the favor deep into his heart, waiting for the day he could repay it.
What came next was simple.
That was the fate of someone blessed by destiny. No one could truly take it away. He could take Ice Empress, but the world would give Huo Yuhao a Silent Frost Ice Phoenix Embryo. He could take the Ice Jade Scorpion Torso Bone, but the world would give Huo Yuhao a more suitable Soul Bone. What was meant for someone would, in the end, belong to them.
But there was nothing wrong with that. He was growing stronger, and Huo Yuhao was growing too. Without God King Tang's interference, Huo Yuhao would be his little brother from then on, and Shrek's future would only grow brighter.
Before you continue