Twin-Tailed Loli

Failed the second time? Then the third! The fourth! The tenth! The twentieth! The fiftieth!

Death after death, each time falling short by only a single move, Di Lintian acted as if possessed by madness.

What was even more dire was his realization that he could not leave.

As long as he did not eradicate this inner demon, he would remain trapped within this environment.

This time, he did not rush directly into combat. Instead, he walked up to the inner demon once more and sat down cross-legged.

"You haven't been this calm in a long time." The inner demon raised its eyes to look at Di Lintian. "Before, you gave me the feeling that you were more like the inner demon than I was."

"No one would be calm after being killed by themselves dozens of times," Di Lintian said softly.

"Then why are you calm now?" the inner demon asked with interest.

"You are growing stronger," Di Lintian stated calmly. "After crossing swords with you so many times, my swordsmanship has grown significantly. Your sword is no longer a match for mine."

"However, your Soul Power is increasing, and your Soul Skills are stronger than mine."

After speaking, Di Lintian watched the inner demon quietly, waiting for an answer.

Whenever the topic turned to the nature of the inner demon, it would play dumb.

Di Lintian was already accustomed to this, so he continued, "It doesn't matter if you don't say it, because I already know. What strengthens you is the negative emotion within my heart."

"In these recent battles, your swordsmanship has been left far behind by me. In terms of swordsmanship alone, you are no longer my opponent."

"Or rather, the me of the past can no longer defeat the me of the present."

The inner demon nodded, a rare gesture. "You are right."

"So, what now?"

"Control the emotions in my heart, and then kill you?"

"No. I acknowledge my fear of death, and I acknowledge my resentment toward the loneliness of my past life. I am not perfect." Di Lintian reached out his hand. "From now on, you are no longer my inner demon. You are my strength; you are a part of me."

"Hahahaha!"

"A fine 'you are my strength' indeed!"

"Ahahaha!"

Amidst the wild laughter, the inner demon transformed into a stream of light and merged into the center of Di Lintian's brow.

The moment the inner demon merged into Di Lintian's brow, the Ice God's voice boomed across the sky.

[Second-Class Five Trials, First Trial, complete!]

[Reward: Soul Ring age increased by five thousand years.]

Five Soul Rings—purple, purple, black, black, black—pulsed and descended from above Di Lintian's head.

Once they settled firmly at his feet, their radiance surged, and a trace of black pattern appeared on the purple Soul Rings.

In the end, his Soul Rings became one purple and four black.

As the Ice God's voice faded, the illusionary realm receded like a receding tide.

Di Lintian found himself back in front of the Ice God Pillar.

Wait, where did my Heart of the Ice God go?

And what about the content of my second trial?

"The Heart of the Ice God was an additional reward I granted." The Ice God flew out from within the Ice God Pillar, guiding a crystal-clear snowflake to drift before Di Lintian.

"Many thanks, Senior Ice God."

After expressing his gratitude, Di Lintian took the Heart of the Ice God.

"The Heart of the Ice God is only lent to you temporarily; Xue'er will need it for her subsequent divine trials." The Ice God's phantom grew dim. "As for your second trial, you will know it naturally once you leave Ice God Mountain."

Xue'er?

Di Lintian turned his gaze toward the woman encased in ice beside the Ice God Pillar. The Snow Empress had yet to wake, and he had no idea how much time had passed.

"I will certainly return it when I am finished."

Di Lintian gave a solemn promise, then stored the Heart of the Ice God inside his storage Soul Tool.

The Heart of the Ice God was not actually the Ice God's heart, but a treasure similar to the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud.

The way Di Lintian needed to use it was to collect the faith of the Soul Beasts in the Extreme North.

In truth, it was not so much collecting as it was replacing.

All the Soul Beasts of the Extreme North worshipped the Ice God; Di Lintian could use the Ice God's divine power radiating from the Heart of the Ice God to disguise himself as the Ice God.

By letting those low-level Soul Beasts that had not yet gained sentience treat him as the Ice God, the power of faith would naturally flow to him.

In Di Lintian's past life, there were folk legends of animals seeking to become spirits by stealing incense offerings.

Di Lintian's method was not much different from those animals, though he had received authorization.

As for whether the Ice God would suffer an unstable divine position and fall to the strength of a second-class god because the faith of the Extreme North had been pilfered...

That is impossible; at most, it would only result in a few days of weakness.

The moment a god position is created and divinity is attained, that position is fixed. It cannot be improved through cultivation, and naturally, it cannot fall.

Seeing the Ice God's divine consciousness dissipate and merge into the Ice God Pillar, Di Lintian sprouted his Ice Ember God Wings and flew straight toward the sky above.

This was the method the Ice God had told him for leaving Ice God Mountain.

Before long, Di Lintian sensed a change in his surroundings.

It was no longer the endless, boundless ice sheet, but the core area of the Extreme North, where snow fell all year round.

[Second-Class Five Trials, Second Trial: Embryonic God Position.]

[Trial Content: Collect the faith of the Soul Beasts in the Extreme North and take the first step toward the god position.]

[Trial Duration: One year.]

[Trial Reward: Soul Ring age increased by 5,000 years.]

[Friendly Reminder: After completing the second trial, do not forget to return the Heart of the Ice God.]

"This Ice God is actually quite a decent fellow."

Di Lintian flew toward the direction of the Snow Empress's castle. "But what the hell is this friendly reminder? Do I, Di Lintian, look like the kind of person who is that scatterbrained?"

Ice and Snow Castle.

"Where did Xue'er run off to?" A little girl with emerald-green hair kicked the Ice and Snow Throne in dissatisfaction. "She disappeared for seven days without saying a word!"

"Hmm?" The little girl looked toward the door.

The palace doors of the Ice and Snow Castle were pushed open with force, and a slender youth walked in.

"How could there be a human?" The little girl squinted.

The youth who walked through the door was naturally Di Lintian, who had just returned from Ice God Mountain.

"No, wait, are you a Soul Beast?" The little girl sensed Di Lintian's aura and shook her head.

"That's right, this is the core of the Extreme North; how could a human appear here?" Di Lintian felt like laughing.

Upon seeing this little girl with such a delicate and pretty face, Di Lintian instantly guessed her identity.

Who else could it be, appearing in the Snow Empress's castle with those emerald-green twin tails? It was none other than the second-ranked of the Extreme North's Three Heavenly Kings, the Snow Empress's good "bestie," the patriarch of the Ice Jade Scorpion clan, the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion, the Ice Empress!

However, why did this Ice Empress seem a bit dim-witted? Di Lintian quickly shook his head; he shouldn't have stereotypes.

"Still not right, you aren't a Soul Beast from our Extreme North." The Ice Empress shook her head again, her two emerald-green twin tails swaying along with her.

"I come from the Star Dou Forest. This is the Reverse Scale given to me by Di Tian." Di Lintian simply took out Di Tian's Reverse Scale, not wanting to waste his breath on the Ice Empress.

"Hmm, this time it's correct." The Ice Empress nodded in satisfaction.

"Why are you here? Xue'er—" The Ice Empress quickly covered her mouth. "The Snow Empress, where did the Snow Empress go?"

Well, it seemed the Ice Empress before him was not quite the same as the one Di Lintian had seen in the anime. Not only was her appearance different, but her personality and intelligence were also different—she was a bit clumsy, which defied his stereotypes.

"The Snow Empress is undergoing the Ice God's inheritance and cannot return for the time being, but you can go find her." Di Lintian put away the Reverse Scale and took out the Heart of the Ice God.

"The Ice God!" The Ice Empress covered her small mouth in surprise again. "It really is the aura of the Ice God."

Di Lintian then told her the location of Ice God Mountain.

The Ice Empress wanted to head to Ice God Mountain without the slightest hesitation, but she was stopped by Di Lintian.

"You can't leave yet. Later, you will run a lap around the Extreme North with me. You must ensure that all the Soul Beasts witness my heroic bearing."

Di Lintian grabbed the Ice Empress, who was about to run out the door, though he only managed to grab her twin tails. He had no choice; the Ice Empress ran too fast, and by the time Di Lintian reacted, she was already at the exit.

"Do you know how big the Extreme North is? And you want to run a lap?" The Ice Empress tugged at her twin tails. "Run it yourself if you want to; I'm going to see the Snow... Empress."

In the end, under the coercive power of the Heart of the Ice God, the Ice Empress had no choice but to agree.