The Ability of Happiness

"Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, don't you run! How dare you try to 'betray' Huo Yuhao at the very last moment."

On the ice plains, the emerald-green Ice Empress was chasing the snow-white Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, her scorpion tail twitching restlessly, eager to land a vicious strike on him.

"Wait, Bingbing! It really wasn't me back then. Even if you gave me ten times the courage, I wouldn't dare do such a thing. Didn't I find my way back at the very end?"

Tian Meng was on the verge of tears. He could only count his blessings that the Ice Empress, having just converted into a Soul Spirit, hadn't yet adapted to her new body and was currently short-legged; otherwise, she would have skewered him long ago.

"You still have the nerve to speak? If Huo Yuhao hadn't helped you back then, you probably would have gone off to kowtow to that Tang San."

Snow Empress watched this playful scene, a smile gracing her features.

"The Far North hasn't been this lively in a long time. By the way, Huo Yuhao."

"Xue'er, what is it?"

"Huo Yuhao, would you like to have a ch..."

Snow Empress had just begun, her cold, clear voice carrying a hint of imperceptible anticipation.

But before she could finish, Tian Meng had already darted behind Huo Yuhao, pitifully using him as a shield against the menacing Ice Empress.

"Huo Yuhao, save me! If you don't, Bingbing is really going to kill me."

Before Huo Yuhao could even process what Snow Empress had said, he hurriedly reached out to support the flushed, panting Ice Empress, gently patting her back to help her catch her breath. He said softly:

"Alright, Ice Empress. Your current state is unstable, don't get so worked up."

The original Soul Spirit Contract merely converted soul beasts into energy forms. While they could retain their consciousness and perceive the outside world, there remained a vast gap between them and a physical existence.

The Ice Empress naturally didn't want to be different from the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm; she felt that existing as a mere energy form made her inferior to him.

To compensate her, Huo Yuhao had no choice but to use the power of the Eye of Destiny, utilizing the Ice Empress's own origin to craft a quasi-physical existence for her, though this had left her extremely delicate.

It might have looked like the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was being chased by the Ice Empress, but in reality, he was simply humoring her.

"Mm."

The petite green-haired girl leaned involuntarily against Huo Yuhao's chest.

Huo Yuhao sighed slightly; now that the Ice Empress's entire origin resided within his body, she couldn't help but want to be close to him.

Behind Huo Yuhao, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm watched the bashful Ice Empress leaning against him, his face suddenly filled with sorrow. He had never seen her act like this before.

He seemed to suddenly realize that the girl he liked seemed to have fallen for the boy he liked—so what was he supposed to do?

At that thought, Tian Meng couldn't help but hug Huo Yuhao tightly as well.

Up ahead, the Ice Empress immediately flashed a cunning smile, her scorpion tail curling around to face Tian Meng as she threatened him with a sinister tone:

"Tian Meng, if you don't let go right now, I'll stab you to death this instant."

"Bingbing, why are you so overbearing? Huo Yuhao clearly belongs to everyone, right, Snow Empress?"

Tian Meng naturally didn't dare defy the Ice Empress, but letting go was out of the question.

Clearly, dragging Snow Empress into this was the right move; after all, the easiest way to subdue the Ice Empress was through her.

"Alright, don't make things too difficult for Huo Yuhao."

A cold, clear voice came from his side. Huo Yuhao looked at Snow Empress, who was clutching his right arm tightly, and felt that warm, soft touch. He really wanted to say to her, Xue'er, I'm still just a child.

Yet, Huo Yuhao's heart felt warm. Everyone was still by his side, and this time, perhaps he truly possessed the power to bring happiness to them all.

Three months later, Shrek City.

There was only one day left until registration for Shrek Academy closed, yet the area outside the East Gate of Shrek City remained bustling. A multitude of merchants were shouting their wares, hoping to make a fortune during this period of heavy foot traffic.

At the Shrek Academy registration desk, the usual clamor suddenly fell silent with the arrival of a girl dressed in red.

The girl appeared to be seventeen or eighteen, with beautiful features and fair skin. She walked as if she had no weight, exuding an aloof, plum-blossom-like temperament.

The crowd, previously packed tight, parted to make way for her. The surrounding Outer Court students naturally recognized who she was, their faces flushing red as they greeted her one after another.

Ling Luochen nodded slightly, her pace never faltering as she prepared to enter Shrek Academy, but she suddenly stopped, her gaze fixed on the registration desk with a look of confusion.

"This, this, this—what kind of monster is this?"

A student at the registration desk exclaimed, sparking an uproar as everyone around gasped in shock.

There, in front of the desk, two dense and profound purple soul rings were pulsing rhythmically around a young man. Inside the crystal ball used for testing soul power, a brilliant glow shone—it was clear his soul power was nearing its maximum limit.

Although, after years of development and exploration, soul masters had gained new insights into soul rings—that the limit of a soul ring varied based on an individual's physical constitution and could be improved later at great cost—never in the ten-thousand-year history of Shrek Academy had anyone seen a youth whose first and second soul rings were both thousand-year rings.

"Senior, my test results are qualified, right?"

Huo Yuhao wore a gentle smile, his handsome features and mild expression drawing the attention of many of the opposite sex. However, upon seeing the stunningly beautiful girl standing beside him, they all felt a sense of inferiority.

The men who had previously been dissatisfied with Jiang Nannan—the beauty of the Outer Court—being near Huo Yuhao now felt that the two of them were a perfect match, a golden boy and jade girl.

The person in charge of new student registration stared blankly at Huo Yuhao, nodding repeatedly before breaking into a joyful expression.

"Congratulations, Junior, you have successfully passed!"

"Alright, Sister Nannan. Let's head inside the academy now."

Huo Yuhao tucked away the proof of passage and, taking Jiang Nannan by the hand, headed toward the east gate of Shrek City.

For the current Huo Yuhao, obtaining a recommendation letter for a major city was naturally not difficult, nor did he need to rely on the Tang Sect's exemption quota to enter Shrek Academy as he had in his previous life.

As for entering the Outer Court of Shrek Academy, beyond the recommendation letter, there were only two requirements: first, being no older than twelve, and second, possessing a soul power level of no less than fifteen.

Ling Luochen watched Huo Yuhao and Jiang Nannan disappear into the crowd, her confusion deepening.

When that youth had released his soul rings earlier, her own martial soul had trembled uncontrollably.

What exactly was that youth's martial soul?

Ling Luochen's curiosity was instantly piqued; although her ice-element martial soul did not qualify as Ultimate Ice, it was still considered a top-tier martial soul.

Could that youth's martial soul be Ultimate Ice?

For some reason, Ling Luochen couldn't help but abandon her original plan to return directly to the Inner Court, choosing instead to quietly follow Huo Yuhao.