Absorbing the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' Bones and Forming a Red-and-Blue Dual-Colored Soul Ring

Two skeletons lay sprawled at the bottom of the spring.

Though no one knew how many years they had lain buried, their bones still gleamed like jade, giving off a faint glow.

One was snowy white, radiating bone-chilling cold that nearly froze the spring water around it; the other was fiery red, its scorching heat so intense that even the stones on the bottom cracked from the baking.

The Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King.

Even reduced to bones, their utterly opposing dragon auras still clashed and intertwined at the bottom of the spring, turning the waters into a forbidden zone where no living thing could venture.

If not for the film of light given off by the Silver Scale in his arms, Qian Anci had no doubt those two forces would have torn him to pieces by now.

No wonder the Ice Fire Yin Yang Well could nourish so many immortal herbs.

Qian Anci murmured to himself.

"After these two Dragon Kings fell, the essence of their flesh and blood seeped into the spring water, while the remaining Dragon Soul power in their bones continued to radiate outward.

"After ten thousand years, it'd be stranger if this valley hadn't become a treasure trove."

As he thought this, a violent shudder suddenly came from within him.

It was the Shadow of Pollux.

The long-dormant Bone Dragon was now raising its head and roaring in his Sea of Consciousness, its ghostly blue soul flames flickering wildly in its eye sockets.

Qian Anci had never seen it this agitated. Even the Scythe of Death in the palm of his right hand trembled faintly.

"Anci."

Castorice's voice sounded in his mind, carrying a rare note of gravity.

"Pollux is longing."

"Longing for what?"

"Those two Dragon Bones."

"When a Dragon Clan member falls, most of their power fades with time, but some of their Origin Essence remains in their bones.

"These two Dragon Kings have been dead for at least ten thousand years, yet the Dragon Soul power in their marrow hasn't completely dissipated. Pollux wants to devour it and turn it into your Soul Ring."

Qian Anci fell silent for a moment.

"You mean... refine the remaining power in the Dragon Bones directly into a Soul Ring?"

"A Dragon King's remains are the finest materials there are."

"Though this isn't a complete Soul Beast sacrifice, the Dragon Soul essence left in these two Dragon Bones is enough to form a fourth Soul Ring."

"Ice and fire fused as one, twin-born and two-hued."

"Then let's begin."

Qian Anci asked no more. He sat cross-legged between the ice and fire dragon bones.

"Clear your mind. And endure the pain."

"May death protect you, Anci."

As soon as the words fell, an indescribably terrifying force of suction erupted from within him.

The Shadow of Pollux slowly materialized behind him. Its enormous body unfurled in the spring water, its bone wings spreading until they blotted out the sky.

The ghostly blue soul flames in its eye sockets fixed on the two Dragon Bones before it, and it let out a dragon's roar that shook the soul.

As if summoned by some unseen force, the Dragon Bones of ice and fire began to tremble after ten thousand years of silence.

A wisp of gleaming white light drifted out of the Ice Dragon Bone, and a wisp of crimson light emerged from the Fire Dragon Bone. Like two little snakes, they slowly swam toward Qian Anci.

The instant the wisps touched his brow—

Qian Anci's body stiffened.

He felt as if he'd been shoved into both the glaciers of the Far North and the magma at the earth's core.

Half his body was so cold that his blood nearly froze; the other half was so hot that his meridians felt ready to burst.

Two utterly opposing forces clashed wildly within him, turning every inch of his flesh into a battlefield.

"Endure it."

Castorice's voice sounded in his mind.

"If you give up now, not only will all your efforts be wasted, but these two forces will run completely amok inside you."

Qian Anci clenched his teeth, swallowing the scream that nearly burst from his throat.

Just then, the Silver Dragon King's scale on his chest suddenly blazed with light.

A third force joined the battle.

Unlike the ferocity of ice and fire, this force was gentle as water, yet bore an authority that could not be defied.

It flowed slowly through Qian Anci's meridians. Wherever it passed, the forces of ice and fire quieted down, like two rowdy children suddenly facing an elder.

"Big sister..."

Qian Anci murmured to himself.

The Silver Dragon King's scale was more than a talisman protecting him; it was also a catalyst.

Though the power within the Dragon Bones of ice and fire was violent, it was still the power of the Dragon Clan.

The aura of a higher-ranking Dragon Clan member was enough to suppress them, calming their fury and turning them docile.

Who knew how much time had passed?

Fine, phantom dragon scales began to appear over Qian Anci's skin.

On his left they were silvery white; on his right they were crimson. The two kinds of scales flickered across his body in turns, then slowly converged, forming a red-and-blue dragon pattern between his brows.

His Soul Power rose steadily.

Level 41.

Level 42.

Level 43.

Level 44.

Level 45.

Behind him, the body of the Shadow of Pollux was undergoing a transformation.

Faint ice-blue and crimson patterns emerged across its original form, intertwining between its bones.

At last—

Qian Anci slowly opened his eyes.

An ice-blue dragon shadow flashed through the depths of his left eye. A crimson one vanished into the depths of his right.

At the same time, a brand-new Soul Ring slowly rose from beneath his feet.

It wasn't the color of an ordinary Soul Ring.

The ring was half red and half blue, ice blue and crimson twisting together like two swimming dragons joined head to tail.

The two colors flowed endlessly around the ring. At times the blue light overwhelmed the red, and a chill spread outward; at others, the red eclipsed the blue, and waves of heat surged.

The fourth Soul Ring. Two-hued, ice and fire.

Qian Anci raised his right hand, and the Scythe of Death condensed in his palm.

With a thought, he switched the Soul Ring to Ice Dragon form.

In an instant, blue light surged from the ring. Bone-chilling cold spread outward from him, freezing even the surrounding spring water under a thin sheet of ice.

He turned his hand again, switching the ring to Fire Dragon form.

Crimson light flared. The thin ice that had just formed melted in an instant, and the spring water began to bubble.

"It was formed from the remaining Dragon Soul essence of the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings."

Castorice's voice sounded in his mind. Though weary, it held a note of satisfaction.

"Though it's only one Soul Ring, it possesses the Origin Powers of both Dragon Kings of ice and fire."

"In Ice Dragon form, your attacks carry a frigid corrosion that slows enemies and makes their Soul Power sluggish. In Fire Dragon form, they carry flames that burn the heavens, scorching your enemies' Soul Power and vitality."

Qian Anci stood and felt the surging Soul Power within him.

A Level 45 Soul Ancestor.

Four Soul Rings slowly revolved around the Scythe of Death.

Purple, black, black, and the newly formed ring, woven of red and blue.

At the same time, on the Underworld Wasteland in his Sea of Consciousness, the Shadow of Pollux threw back its head and roared.

The moment the fourth Soul Ring of the Scythe of Death formed, a fourth ring of ashen light quietly appeared around its body.

"What is Pollux's fourth Soul Skill?"

"Dragon Transformation: Ice and Fire Dual Form."

"Bone Dragon's breath can switch between ice and fire attributes. Combined with your Dragon Transformation, its power will multiply."

The corner of Qian Anci's mouth lifted slightly.

He rose through the water, broke the surface, and landed steadily on the bank.

Dugu Bo was standing not far away. When he saw Qian Anci emerge, his slit pupils swept over him.

The old man had watched Qian Anci get dragged to the bottom by some strange suction and had stepped closer to see what was happening, only to be driven back by the terrifying aura of clashing ice and fire.

He had tested that power himself before. Over the years, he'd tried diving into the spring, but each time he couldn't withstand the alternating crush of extreme cold and heat. At most, he'd made it five zhang before having to retreat.

Naturally, he wasn't going to risk his life for a boy he'd only just met, but he hadn't left, either.

Qian Anci's aura had vanished beneath the spring for nearly two hours.

Dugu Bo stood on the bank with his hands behind his back, his expression shifting between light and dark. If the boy really died down there, who would cure his granddaughter's poison?

Just as he was thinking this, the surface of the water broke.

Qian Anci came striding up from the bottom, soaked through, yet his Soul Power had shot from Level 40 to Level 45.

Four Soul Rings revolved slowly behind him. One, half red and half blue, was gradually fading from view.

Dugu Bo's gaze fell on the two-hued Soul Ring, and his slit pupils contracted.

"...What the hell?"

After a long moment, those were the only three words he could manage.

Qian Anci shook the droplets from his robe, his expression calm.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Senior Dugu."

"Who was waiting for you?" Dugu Bo snorted and turned his face away. "I was afraid you'd die down there and no one would be left to cure Yan Yan's poison."

Qian Anci chuckled but didn't call him out.

He lowered his eyes to the Silver Scale in his arms. Its luster had dimmed a little.

"About what just happened..."

"I didn't see a thing."

Before he could finish, Dugu Bo flicked his sleeve and turned toward the stone house.