Seeing Snow Empress's eyes shining as she eagerly tried to sell him on the idea, Xiao Yan was at a loss for words.
This woman, who had lived for hundreds of thousands of years and commanded awe throughout the Extreme North, had none of her usual icy aloofness. She looked just like an obsessed fanatic who had stumbled upon an unparalleled treasure and couldn't wait to bring all her friends and family in on it.
Xiao Yan shook his head inwardly. Snow Empress, I still prefer the way you were just now, so proud and defiant. Please go back to that.
Still, setting aside the enormous contrast, Xiao Yan naturally knew who Snow Empress meant to bring over.
In this frozen wasteland, the only ones Snow Empress cared so much about were Ice Empress, ranked second among the Three Heavenly Kings of the Extreme North, and her godson, Ice Bear King Xiaobai, whom she had raised herself as if he were her own.
Bringing those two Ferocious Beasts aboard was naturally something Xiao Yan would welcome with open arms.
When Snow Empress had offered herself up and transformed into a Soul Spirit, the vast majority of her massive reserves of Origin Energy had been swallowed whole by the Eastern Emperor Bell. All it had left him was enough scraps to gain two levels.
That great Buddha had finally eaten its fill for now. With another injection of energy at the hundred-thousand-year level, the Eastern Emperor Bell shouldn't come snatching up the food again.
Then, drawing on Ice Empress and Xiaobai's reserves, he could build up a solid stockpile of Soul Power and push his cultivation considerably higher.
"Since you're willing, then call them over." Xiao Yan nodded in agreement and stepped aside.
With his permission, Snow Empress immediately closed her eyes and crossed her hands before her chest.
She was now a Soul Spirit, and the source of her power was linked to Xiao Yan's Soul Power Pool.
As she summoned her strength, the Taiji Innate Qi in Xiao Yan's meridians began to drain away at a rapid pace.
Thanks to her newly acquired authority, [Mystic Yellow Water Controller], Snow Empress had lost her physical body, but her control over this icy world had not weakened. On the contrary, this Origin Law had amplified it to an astonishing degree.
She parted her lips slightly, and a clear, piercing cry shot into the sky.
The instant the cry rang out, the ten-thousand-year-old profound ice surrounding the cavern vibrated in response.
The sound wave ignored the howling snow and swept through the swirling snowflakes and ice crystals with overwhelming force, instantly spreading to every corner of the Extreme North.
The pressure contained in that sound was on par with the full-force strike of a Limit Douluo!
However, this transcendent burst of power lasted only three seconds.
Snow Empress cut off the sound wave of her own accord and stopped.
Xiao Yan's cultivation was only at level fifty, after all, and his Soul Power reserves were limited. He simply couldn't sustain this kind of high-intensity output for long.
Three seconds was more than enough.
After the cry faded, the blizzards of the Extreme North seemed to pause for a moment.
Then, a muffled tremor rose from deep beneath the earth.
On the distant horizon, the gray-white storm was torn apart by brute force.
A streak of jade-green light raced across the snowy plain at a speed that tore through the air. In its wake, it left a bottomless trench of frost.
Behind the streak of green light, a white silhouette as large as a hill pounded forward with steps that shattered glaciers, roaring as it charged.
Chunks of ice and rock were smashed apart by the white giant, sending snow billowing into the sky.
At the cavern entrance, Xiao Zhan leaned against the icy wall. Hearing the rumbling draw closer, he felt the ice beneath his feet shaking violently.
He poked his head outside and saw the earth-shaking commotion. Then he silently retreated into the cavern, very sensibly clearing most of the entrance.
A dignified level-ninety-six Super Douluo had truly seen it all today in the Extreme North Core Zone.
First, there was Snow Empress, who was seven hundred thousand years old. Now, two peerless Ferocious Beasts he couldn't afford to provoke had been summoned as well.
Xiao Zhan was numb by now. He even felt that if his son called Beast God Di Tian over from the Star Dou Forest to join them for a game of cards the next second, he wouldn't be surprised.
"Boom!"
The gale reversed, and the snow and ice erupted.
The two Soul Beasts came to an abrupt stop outside the cavern.
A scorpion more than one and a half meters long crouched in the snow.
Its entire body was the translucent color of icy jade. Six-sided protrusions as brilliant as diamonds covered its front half, and its two enormous pincers gleamed with a chilling light. Its long tail rose high behind it, the stinger pulsing with a deadly green glow.
This was none other than Ice Jade Empress Scorpion, Ice Empress, ranked second among the Three Heavenly Kings of the Extreme North.
Beside Ice Empress stood a giant bear of terrifying proportions.
It stood more than twenty meters tall, its thick white fur rippling in the wind. Each breath from its gaping maw froze instantly into ice crystals. This was Ice Bear King Xiaobai.
As soon as the two Ferocious Beasts came to a halt, they sensed the presence of humans inside the cavern.
Killing intent surged in Ice Empress's diamond-yellow eyes. Her scorpion tail snapped taut, ready to unleash ice spikes and turn the humans inside into pincushions.
Xiaobai let out an ear-splitting roar and raised a paw powerful enough to shatter a city wall. He was about to flip the cavern over.
"Stop!"
Snow Empress's voice rang out from deep inside the cavern.
The two beasts froze mid-attack.
Xiaobai's raised paw hung awkwardly in the air. He whimpered in grievance, then slowly lowered it.
"Bing'er, Xiaobai, don't be rude. Come inside first, and we'll talk."
At Snow Empress's command, the two Ferocious Beasts outside immediately reined in their killing intent.
A dazzling emerald-green light burst from Ice Empress's body. Her enormous scorpion form rapidly shrank and reshaped itself within the glow.
When the light faded, a little girl who looked no older than twelve or thirteen stood in the snow.
Her long, emerald-green hair was tied into neat twin tails, with exquisite scorpion-pincer ornaments decorating the braids. A tiny Ice Crystal Crown rested on her head.
Her cold, orange-gold eyes swept over the surroundings. Her skin was pale and translucent, with a faint greenish glow beneath it.
She wore a short white-and-green dress and a fluffy shawl patterned with icy designs over her shoulders. The tip of a jade-green scorpion tail peeked out from behind the layered hem of her skirt.
She looked sweet and charming, yet radiated an icy, arrogant air. Just standing there was enough to make the snowflakes drift around her of their own accord.
Xiaobai followed suit. His enormous body shrank in a cloud of white mist, turning into a round, white bear less than a meter tall. He looked almost adorably foolish.
The little girl and the white bear walked through the passage Xiao Zhan had cleared and entered the cavern.
As soon as she stepped inside, Ice Empress's gaze passed over Snow Empress and fixed on Xiao Yan and Electrolux. Her orange-gold eyes brimmed with hostility.
"Xue'er, what's going on? Why are you with humans? And your body..." Ice Empress noticed Snow Empress's current energy-body state. Her expression changed dramatically, and she spoke in a rush.
Snow Empress sighed and raised a hand to stop Ice Empress's questions.
She turned and recounted every detail of the perilous events that had just unfolded.
From absorbing the energy of the Hundred-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus in preparation for her transformation, to the despicable ambush by the human Soul Engineers, then the life-or-death crisis caused by the destruction of the God-Sealing Platform, and finally Electrolux setting up the Soul Spirit Magic Array and transforming her into a Soul Spirit—she left nothing out.
As Ice Empress and Xiaobai listened to Snow Empress's account, their expressions began to change.
Their hostility gradually faded, giving way to shock and lingering fear.
The Soul Beasts of the Extreme North were simple-hearted. Snow Empress was the leader they trusted most in the world, so naturally they had no reason to doubt her.
Besides, Snow Empress was standing before them unharmed. Her abundant Origin Energy and intact, independent consciousness were the best proof of the Soul Spirit Contract.
A contract that allowed her to retain her mind, cultivate independently, and even survive apart from her host had shattered Ice Empress's preconceptions.
Ice Empress looked at Xiao Yan with a complicated expression. She knew all too well about the seventy-hundred-thousand-year tribulation Snow Empress was about to face, and she also knew that her own tribulation, nearly four hundred thousand years in the making, was an impasse she couldn't overcome.
Now, a path to escape the cycle of reincarnation and perhaps even set foot in the Divine Realm lay right before her.