The Ice Empress's Worry, Sky Dream's Sadness

Time passed in silence within the Far North Ice Cave. It was unknown how much time had elapsed before the icy blue halo surrounding Huo Yuhao suddenly retracted, pouring entirely into his dantian.

The soul beast embryo that had originally rested between his hands had completely vanished, replaced by the second martial soul slowly taking shape within Huo Yuhao's body—the Silent Frost Ice Phoenix.

Huo Yuhao slowly opened his eyes. A flash of icy blue light flickered in their depths before fading, returning his Spirit Eye to its original clarity.

His aura was completely different from before. Although his soul power fluctuation remained at the twentieth rank, the biting chill lingering around him was genuine Ultimate Ice.

"Senior..." Huo Yuhao spoke after a moment. He stood up from the ice, his knees slightly weak, yet he forced himself to stand firm. The look he gave Jiang Che was filled with profound gratitude.

Jiang Che waved a hand, cutting off whatever he was about to say. Huo Yuhao opened his mouth, but ultimately remained silent, merely nodding heavily.

"The fusion was successful?" The Ice Empress's voice came from the side, carrying a hint of coldness as her yellow diamond-like eyes scrutinized Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao felt uncomfortable under her gaze and subconsciously shrank back behind Jiang Che.

Jiang Che chuckled and stepped aside, revealing Huo Yuhao behind him. "It was a success. Second martial soul, Silent Frost Ice Phoenix, fused with a two-hundred-thousand-year-old beast embryo. Its potential won't be much lower than mine."

The Ice Empress gave a light huff and didn't respond. Her gaze shifted away from Huo Yuhao, looking back toward the exit of the ice cave.

"It is time to leave," the Ice Empress said, her voice tinged with urgency. "Although that God-Sealing Platform was damaged, the energy fluctuations released when it activated were not something only we could perceive."

Jiang Che nodded. The Holy Spirit Cult had been able to send Gu Qianye and Ming He to guard this place; there might be others rushing here as well. While he did not fear them, with Huo Yuhao—who had just fused with his second martial soul and only possessed twentieth-rank soul power—it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble.

"Let's go." Jiang Che reached out and patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder.

The three of them left the ice cave together, following the ice fissure back toward the Ice Valley.

"By the way, Senior, it seems I obtained a soul bone while I was fusing with the embryo. I originally intended to give it to you, but I don't know why it fused directly with my body." Huo Yuhao felt quite embarrassed mentioning this; after all, he had received the greatest benefit without doing anything himself.

Why? Jiang Che thought to himself. It's because the will of the world was afraid you'd actually give it to me, guarding against me like a thief.

Outwardly, Jiang Che said, "It's fine. Since it could fuse directly, it means it has an affinity with you. You don't need to be so hard on yourself."

Hearing his senior not even ask what kind of soul bone it was and telling him not to be troubled, Huo Yuhao was moved to the point of tears, silently swearing to himself that he would definitely help his senior in the future.

"Alright, although you have obtained a second martial soul, you only have one soul ring. Would you like me to help you obtain one here?" Jiang Che asked.

"No, no need." Huo Yuhao hurriedly waved his hands to refuse, explaining, "Senior, it seems my martial soul can provide soul rings on its own, but it will take some time."

"Hmm, very well. In that case, there is still one spirit-type soul ring left. The Far North likely doesn't have any, and we were planning to return to Shrek Academy anyway. We can find one for you in the Star Dou Great Forest then."

It took Jiang Che a long time to remember that the setting for Soul Spirits was indeed like this—one Soul Spirit could provide multiple soul rings. As for Huo Yuhao's nonsense, Jiang Che couldn't be bothered to expose it.

On the way back, the Ice Empress's hesitant demeanor made Jiang Che feel uneasy.

Taking advantage of the moment when Huo Yuhao wasn't paying attention, he secretly approached the Ice Empress to ask.

"What is wrong? Is there something you find difficult to say?"

"When your junior was absorbing the embryo earlier, I sensed a familiar aura on him. If I recall correctly, it should be the only million-year soul beast in the world, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm. I am worried it has some ulterior motives."

Hearing Jiang Che ask, the Ice Empress had nothing to hide and poured out everything she knew, having already chosen to become Jiang Che's Soul Spirit.

"Oh, you mean that. I did indeed sense a spiritual power within Huo Yuhao earlier that didn't belong to him, though it was hidden very well."

After the Ice Empress finished, Jiang Che first agreed that her perception was correct, then added, "However, it shouldn't have any malicious intent. When Huo Yuhao was about to reach his limit earlier, it was the one who intervened to help him pull through."

"I can feel that it is sincere and holds no malice."

Since Jiang Che had said as much, the Ice Empress had nothing more to say, though she still felt it best to remind him: "One must always be on guard. Even if it truly has no malice, you should still be careful in the future."

"Understood, I will keep that in mind."

Ahead of them, Huo Yuhao was also chatting, but the conversation was taking place within his Sea of Consciousness.

"Brother Sky Dream, why have you been sighing constantly?" Huo Yuhao asked, looking at the dejected Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.

"Sigh, what do you know? My original plan has been completely disrupted. Do you think I can be happy?"

Huo Yuhao was full of confusion. In the Sea of Consciousness, he leaned closer to the chubby white silkworm cocoon phantom, his eyes filled with bewilderment. "Brother Sky Dream, what exactly was your original plan?"

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm lay on the clouds of the Sea of Consciousness. Its originally round body had wilted by half, its tiny eyes drooping with grievance and helplessness. Its long silk threads hung limply, and even its usual arrogant demeanor had vanished without a trace.

"What else could it be!" The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm flipped over violently, its silk threads waving wildly, its tone filled with regret. "Of course, it was to find the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion and make her your second martial soul!"

It paused, looking at Huo Yuhao's blank expression, and continued indignantly, "That Ice Empress is one of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Far North, a four-hundred-thousand-year-old Ultimate Ice beast with peerless talent and formidable strength. I had planned everything perfectly! Once you reached the Far North, I would reveal myself and persuade the Ice Empress. Relying on my relationship with her, plus the Soul Spirit method I meticulously devised, I would convince her to abandon her soul beast body, sign a Soul Spirit contract with you, and become your second martial soul!"

"With a top-tier Ultimate Ice martial soul like the Ice Empress by your side, the path to godhood in the future would be infinitely smoother. I had already thought through how to reason with her, how to appeal to her emotions, and how to guide you step-by-step to establish a connection with her. I had even rehearsed the persuasive speech in my heart thousands of times!"

The more the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm spoke, the more aggrieved it felt, its silkworm body trembling slightly. It looked toward the outside world, where the cold and proud Ice Empress was walking side-by-side with Jiang Che. Its eyes were filled with complex emotions: unwillingness, helplessness, and a lingering fear.

"But who could have expected that Jiang Che would appear out of nowhere? That guy is young, yet he is a genuine Title Douluo, and he possesses an Ultimate Ice martial soul of the god-beast level, the Ice Dragon King! He forcibly took the Ice Empress as his Soul Spirit!"

"With the Ice Empress becoming his Soul Spirit, all my schemes have gone up in smoke. Forget about convincing the Ice Empress to go with you; now I don't even dare to show my face in front of her. That is the Ice Empress! Her temper is violent and her strength is overwhelming. If she discovers I am hiding in your Sea of Consciousness and that I once had designs on her, she would surely tear me into pieces."

"My million-year plan has been completely ruined just like that. Do you think I can be anything but depressed? If you hadn't been on the verge of collapse while fusing with the Silent Frost Ice Phoenix embryo earlier, I would never have dared to expose even a shred of my aura, for fear of being detected by Jiang Che and the Ice Empress!"

After the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm finished speaking, it collapsed completely in the Sea of Consciousness, looking utterly hopeless. Its originally golden, shimmering body had dimmed, filled with the frustration of having all its efforts come to nothing.

Huo Yuhao listened, dumbfounded. It took him a long time to recover, and looking at the wilted Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, he didn't know what to say.

"Wait, the Ice Empress you mentioned... she wouldn't be the girl next to Senior, would she?" Huo Yuhao asked, realizing it only now.

"Who else? Why do you think I knew so early?" The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm rolled its eyes at Huo Yuhao.

After saying this, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm sighed again. "Forget it, perhaps this is fate. At least this trip wasn't entirely without gain; at the very least, you have your second martial soul."