Damn it, damn it! You bastard Xu Qing, you idiot Xu Qing, go to hell Xu Qing!!

Sun Moon, Ming Capital, the home of the Ice Empress.

At this moment, the Ice Empress was sprawled on the sofa, listlessly scrolling through the Soul Guidance Network on her handheld device.

It was a palm-sized, square screen displaying the daily news of Ming Capital, along with various videos of Soul Engineers crafting Soul Tools.

"Why hasn't Xu Qing finished yet? I'm hungry..."

She puffed out her cheeks, then deflated, tossing the Soul Tool aside as her gaze drifted aimlessly across the ceiling.

"I'm so sick of eating Mystic Ice Marrow ice cream. I should make Xu Qing try a new recipe later..."

A sliver of a pale pink tongue peeked out between her cherry-colored lips, moistening them before darting back inside.

"How about shaved ice? This Empress hasn't tried that yet. Xu Qing won't let me go out, either. How hateful... he always puts the keys where I can't reach them."

"I finally saved up some Soul Power, but it all got used up helping Xu Qing cultivate that soul skill of his..."

"I should add some fruit. Hmm... maybe add some Crystal Melon from the internet. I heard it's grown on the Far North border. Hmph, as the leader of the Far North, how could I have never tasted that?"

"Oh, and I need those Sun Roses grown on the outskirts of the Star Dou Forest... honestly, why do humans name fruit after flowers?"

The Ice Empress wiped a bead of crystalline liquid from the corner of her mouth; just thinking about it made her mouth curl into a 'W' shape.

"I'll just have that part-time human next door run an errand for me. Tee-hee... I remember Xu Qing gave me a card..."

The Ice Empress began to rummage through her clothes...

But even after searching every nook and cranny where she could hide things, she found nothing.

"I lost it..."

"Rip--!"

Space tore open, and Xu Qing dropped from directly above the Ice Empress, landing squarely on the sofa.

The sudden impact caused the Ice Empress beside him to bounce up and down repeatedly, as if she were on a trampoline.

"What did you lose?"

Xu Qing pulled out an ice-blue soul bone and tossed it into the Ice Empress's lap. His hands didn't stay idle, as he began to test the new soul skill granted to him by this Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.

"Nothing. Tsk, can't you be a little gentler? Honestly."

The Ice Empress retorted irritably.

She then curled up in the corner of the sofa, holding the Titan Snow Demon soul bone in both hands, her expression returning to normal.

Only her fingertips were slightly pale.

You actually succeeded in absorbing that hundred-thousand-year aura.

It truly is...

She raised her brows, glanced at Xu Qing's profile as he focused on preparing the Mystic Ice Marrow, and said softly:

"Why not absorb this soul bone?"

"A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast spawned from Mystic Ice Marrow lacks a solid foundation; it's only decent in terms of soul ring quality."

Xu Qing kneaded the substance with his fingers, manipulating the Mystic Ice Marrow as it took shape in his palm as if he were playing with a Rubik's cube. He glanced at the soul bone in the Ice Empress's lap from the corner of his eye.

"The essence of this left leg bone is only eighty thousand years; the age is still too low."

"I plan to give it to Xiao Meng in a few days."

"Suit yourself."

The Ice Empress tossed the soul bone aside, her gaze sweeping casually over Xu Qing's palm. At that single glance, her attention was completely captured.

Her eyes seemed glued to it, and she instinctively shifted her body to get closer to Xu Qing.

It smells so good...

The Ice Empress pressed both hands against Xu Qing's forearm, her knees braced against his thigh, her body leaning forward until her nose was nearly touching the forming Mystic Ice Marrow.

The scorpion seemed completely unaware of how ambiguous their current posture was.

Xu Qing's entire focus was on the ice marrow; he didn't notice the sudden warmth pressing against him at all.

"Hehehehehahaha..."

He chuckled, his eyes burning with intensity as the information regarding the soul skill granted by his fifth ring surfaced in his mind.

[Fifth Soul Ring: Hundred-Thousand-Year]
[Titan Snow Demon, the king species of the Far North]
[First Soul Skill: Upon consumption, total Soul Power doubles, and Soul Power recovery speed doubles. Lasts for one minute. Cannot be used repeatedly.]
[Second Soul Skill: Upon consumption, enter a special state. In this state, Soul Power refinement speed increases, focus sharpens, the mind becomes clearer, and thoughts accelerate... Lasts for one hour. Effect improves with cultivation level. Cannot be used repeatedly.]
[The two soul skills cannot be stacked on the same piece of ice marrow.]

The effect of the first soul skill was clear at a glance—a straightforward numerical boost that suited Xu Qing perfectly.

But the second soul skill made him even more curious!

That long list of status effects was simply unreasonably powerful!!

Xu Qing felt that the boost from each individual item might not be that significant, but the sheer quantity was overwhelming!

With all sorts of minor buffs stacked on top of each other, and their durations capable of extending alongside his cultivation, wouldn't these eventually become permanent buffs in the future!?

"Xu Qing..."

Ice Empress grabbed the corner of Xu Qing's shirt and called out softly.

Her eyes were somewhat unfocused, her cheeks flushed with a peach-colored glow, and the hot breath she exhaled brushed against the corner of Xu Qing's eyes.

"Are you done? This Empress..."

"What is going on here!!?"

Xu Qing sensed that something was wrong. His gaze sharpened, and he mentally connected with the mark that controlled thirty percent of Ice Empress's strength, crushing one-tenth of it in an instant!

"BOOM--!"

Emerald-colored Soul Power immediately began to riot, sweeping through every corner of the villa, yet it remained firmly contained within, not leaking out in the slightest.

Everything was blocked by a layer of pale golden Soul Power.

It was the emergency measure Elder Yi had set up beforehand, specifically to guard against this exact situation.

"Ahhh!! Wuwuwuwu..."

"Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it!!!"

"Damned Xu Qing!! What did you do to this Empress!!"

Ice Empress stomped her foot onto Xu Qing's face, pinning him down onto the sofa. Giving him no chance to explain, she channeled her Soul Power, and the Mystic Ice Marrow in Xu Qing's hand was snatched into her palm.

"What did you add to it!! Why did this Empress act in such a manner!?"

Ice Empress was incredibly ashamed and furious.

She felt as if a ball of fire was burning on her face, scorching her from her toes to her fingertips, before rushing back into her mind with a bang, leaving her dizzy and hot.

Mmm-unh!!!!

ꐦ!

How could I have turned into that kind of person!?

Damn it! Bastard Xu Qing, idiot Xu Qing, go to hell, Xu Qing!!

"You are, beyond hopeless..."

"Tsk."

Xu Qing reached out a large hand and gripped that familiar foot, moving it away from his face.

"Whew... I almost suffocated. Why is your reaction so intense?"

Thump, thump, thump!!!

The enraged Ice Empress could not hear a word at this moment!

She simply kept fighting Xu Qing!

She had completely forgotten all combat techniques, returning everything to its most primal form: biting and clawing!

"This Empress is going to beat you until you lose your memory! Forget it all!!!"

Tears welled up in the corners of Ice Empress's eyes, but they were quickly evaporated by the heat of the battle.

A while later.

Xu Qing lay sprawled on the floor like a salted fish, the cool surface against his back a reminder that the battle had ended.

No, this didn't count as a battle.

It was merely a one-sided "beating" after the Scorpion King had recovered her strength.

He slowly opened his eyes and looked at Ice Empress, who stood expressionless, yet incongruously had the Ice Marrow that Xu Qing had prepared hours ago clamped between her teeth.