Setting Off! The Extreme North

Cao Longyan returned to his room and looked at Zhang Lexuan, who was still fast asleep. The corners of his mouth, which had been slightly upturned, immediately drooped back down.

He did not know if this parting was temporary or forever.

If there was anyone in this world he could not set his mind at ease about, it was the person before his eyes.

Yet, what could he do now?

He quietly packed his belongings and left.

Before leaving, he only told Mu En his destination and begged him to help keep it from the others.

After several days of trekking, Cao Longyan finally reached the outskirts of the Extreme North. The thick snow and bone-chilling winds made him shiver uncontrollably.

"Longyan, are you ready?"

Electrolux's voice echoed in Cao Longyan's spiritual sea.

"I will convert the power of the Necromancer Saint into your second martial soul and wrap you completely in undead aura. Even a powerhouse with the strength of a Limit Douluo will not be able to detect you."

"Remember, do not initiate an attack, and do not get hit by an attack, otherwise this barrier will vanish. You will be completely exposed, and at that point, you will be nothing but a lamb waiting for the slaughter!"

Cao Longyan nodded slowly toward Electrolux.

"Thank you, Elder Eli, I will remember."

As soon as he finished speaking, a cold and majestic power surged from his spiritual sea. Projecting from between his brows, a gray-black phantom of a martial soul, covered in eerie runes, slowly emerged.

It was the Necromancer Saint martial soul!

This martial soul had no fluctuations of soul power, only the pure aura of the undead.

A faint gray-black mist rose around his body, completely hiding his figure and aura within the vast ice field.

Cao Longyan felt the changes within him and his heart settled slightly.

He tried moving his body; the undead aura completely enveloped him, and he left no footprints even as he stepped on the snow.

With everything prepared, he lowered his profile and was just about to sneak into the depths of the Extreme North when he suddenly heard the sounds of chaotic footsteps and conversation not far away.

He immediately stopped, hid behind a massive ice rock, and peeked out.

In the snowy field ahead, two teams were heading in opposite directions.

At the center of each team was a young girl; clearly, they were there specifically to accompany these girls in hunting for soul rings.

Cao Longyan was very familiar with the attire of the northern team—it was the unique uniform of Shrek.

The girl in the middle looked to be about eighteen years old.

The southern team's attire was ornate and filled with an aristocratic air, but it was not the style of the Heaven Dou, Dou Ling, or Star Luo Empire nobles he had seen before; rather, it was essentially the same as the Sun Moon Empire attire from his memories before he transmigrated.

The girl in the middle was younger, only about thirteen or fourteen.

Cao Longyan's eyes flickered, and his brows furrowed slightly.

These two groups, one from Shrek and one from the Sun Moon Empire, were likely both here for the soul beasts of the Extreme North.

He decided to wait a while after they left before moving, avoiding them as much as possible.

His goal was clear; he must not let complications arise before reaching his destination.

The Extreme North was far more vast than he had imagined. Under the guidance of the Sky Dream Ice Worm, Cao Longyan, with his ordinary human body, trekked step by step toward the Ice Empress's territory.

During the day, he braved the biting winds, the snow beneath his feet growing deeper and every step becoming exceptionally difficult.

His face was frozen purple-red and covered in frost, and he had multiple cases of frostbite, yet he did not stop.

At night, he found a wind-sheltered ice cave to rest. Even though he had prepared thick clothing and comprehensive cold-weather gear, the extreme cold still made him tremble.

Just like that, he walked for two full days and nights. His strength was nearly exhausted, his face pale, his lips purple from the cold, and his vision blurring. He even stumbled and fell to the ground while walking.

Finally, on the morning of the third day, the Sky Dream Ice Worm's voice sounded in his spiritual sea.

"My Lord, we have arrived! Ahead is where the Ice Empress stays. Be careful, the Ice Empress does not have a very good temper."

Cao Longyan stopped and looked up to see a massive, pitch-black ice cave ahead.

"Leave it to me. Bingbing and I are old acquaintances. I will go talk to her; I can definitely convince her. My Lord, I still have that much charm."

The Sky Dream Ice Worm patted his chest, his tone confident. As he spoke, he transformed into a blue-white figure, flew out of Cao Longyan's spiritual sea, took the form of a guardian spirit, and flew toward the ice mountain, looking completely sure of himself.

Cao Longyan stood where he was, watching the Sky Dream Ice Worm's departing back, and smiled awkwardly.

The Sky Dream Ice Worm—if he hadn't known the plot of the Peerless Tang Sect, he really would have fallen for it just like Huo Yuhao...

Sure enough, not long after, a crisp sound of impact rang out, followed immediately by the Sky Dream Ice Worm's scream.

"Ouch! Bingbing, why are you attacking! We're old friends!"

Cao Longyan looked up and saw a pair of blue eyes suddenly emerge from the pitch-black cave entrance.

Immediately after, an Ice Jade Empress Scorpion, blue-green all over, walked out. With a light flick of her scorpion tail, she sent the Sky Dream Ice Worm flying.

The Sky Dream Ice Worm fell heavily into the snow like a kite with a broken string, plunging headfirst into the drift. Only his round, wiggling rear was exposed, and he stubbornly blustered, "Bingbing, you've truly broken my heart! I came here out of the kindness of my heart to help you, and you actually hit me!"

Cao Longyan shook his head helplessly, stepped forward, and gently pulled Sky Dream Ice Worm out of the snow. Seeing him dazed and seeing stars, he let out a soft sigh.

"Tian Meng, just save it. I told you long ago she wouldn't buy it. I'll go instead."

Having said that, he released Sky Dream Ice Worm and walked toward Ice Empress alone.

When Ice Empress saw Cao Longyan, a human, her blue eyes instantly turned icy. The pressure around her erupted without reservation, and an extreme chill swept toward him.

"A human? Who let you barge in here!"

Ice Empress's voice was bone-chilling and filled with intense hostility.

"The Extreme North is no place for you humans. Get out! Otherwise, don't blame me for being impolite!"

Cao Longyan did not dodge. Yes, he did not dodge, nor did he show the slightest fear. His gaze was calm and firm as he stared directly into Ice Empress's eyes.

He possessed no soul power, no guardian spirit, and even his martial soul had become a useless one. At this moment, he was nothing more than an ordinary person, as common as they come, yet his eyes held a backbone that would not lose to any powerhouse.

It was a stubbornness carved into his bones, a pride that would never bow even if he fell to the very bottom of the abyss.

A flicker of obvious surprise flashed through Ice Empress's eyes, and the pressure around her receded slightly.

She had lived for tens of thousands of years and had seen countless human soul masters—some cowardly, some arrogant, some sycophantic—but she had never seen an ordinary person without soul power remain so composed in the face of her pressure, neither dodging nor flinching, and even daring to look her straight in the eye.

"Interesting."

Ice Empress murmured, the hostility in her ice-blue eyes gradually fading, replaced by a deep sense of intrigue.

"A human without soul power who can withstand my pressure—you are the first. I will leave your corpse intact."

Just then, Sky Dream Ice Worm regained his senses and hurriedly wiggled in front of Cao Longyan, blocking the space between him and Ice Empress.

"Bingbing, don't be impulsive! I'm telling you, we came here this time to do you a huge favor!"

"I, the dignified Ice Empress, one of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Extreme North, would need help from a gluttonous, lazy worm like you and an ordinary human with no soul power? Besides, there is nothing I need help with!"

"Bingbing, I know you won't survive your next lightning tribulation... We really are here to help you..."

"Tian Meng, what did you say?!"