The Far North, core region.
Ice and snow that never melted covered this white wasteland. The bitter wind howled, sweeping ice crystals into the air.
Inside Snow Maiden Palace, a woman in a plain white dress stood quietly before an ice-crystal window, her beautiful features cool and ethereal.
Her long hair was as white as snow, her eyes a clear ice blue. Her skin was fair as snow, and her aloof bearing was utterly free of worldly dust.
She was none other than the leader of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Far North, the Snow Empress.
At that moment, the Sky Screen rippled, displaying the information about her ranking.
[Combat Power Ranking, fourth place: Snow Empress.] [Identity: Leader of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Far North; a life-form formed from the purest ice-attribute energy of heaven and earth; the only humanoid Soul Beast.] [Strength: First-Level God.] [Techniques: Yin-Yang Reincarnation Technique, Heavenly Demon Chaotic Dance.] [Reward: 10 Teleportation Talismans, which can transport the user to any location on Douluo Continent; divine skill: Absolute Zero. Organic life, energy attacks, and even space itself will be forcibly brought to a standstill.]
The Snow Empress closed her eyes, sensing the newly acquired divine skill, Absolute Zero.
Organic life, energy attacks, and even space itself would be forcibly brought to a standstill.
The corners of her lips lifted slightly.
"Roar!!!"
A deafening bear's howl came from outside the palace, making all of Snow Maiden Palace tremble.
Ice Bear King Xiaobai's enormous body charged into the hall with a rumble, like a moving snow-covered mountain.
His round, innocent eyes were wide with excitement and joy.
"Mom! Mom, look! You made the rankings! You made the rankings!"
He waved his massive paws wildly in the air, overcome with excitement.
"You and Auntie Ice made it, too. When will I make the rankings?"
The Ice Empress emerged from a side hall, dressed in a jade-green gown, her twin tails swaying gently in the wind.
She looked at Xiaobai's excited expression and couldn't help rolling her eyes. "You silly Xiaobai, you're male. You can't make it."
Xiaobai froze, confusion filling his round, innocent eyes. "Why?"
The Snow Empress shook her head gently, a helpless smile appearing on her cool face. "Your Uncle Cao only likes females."
Xiaobai clutched his chest with his massive paws, his face falling as though his heart had been shattered.
Why? Why was he male? Why did Uncle Cao only like females? It wasn't fair!
The Ice Empress ignored him and moved closer to the Snow Empress, mischief in her eyes. "Sister, what do you think would happen if we used the divine skill Absolute Zero while Brother Cao was having fun with us?"
The Snow Empress's cheeks flushed slightly. "Huh? It would probably freeze Brother Cao in place, wouldn't it?"
The Ice Empress giggled. "Perfect. We'll have to try it next time. Let's see if he still dares to make us an ice bed. We'll freeze him half to death!"
...What on earth was that girl thinking?
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Yu Yuanzhen looked at the Snow Empress's cool, ethereal figure on the Sky Screen and exclaimed repeatedly, "Tsk, tsk. She's a humanoid Soul Beast, unlike those who transform or switch forms. Doesn't that mean he actually did that with a Soul Beast?"
He stroked his beard, longing in his heart. "I wonder if there are any more Soul Beasts like her?"
Yu Luomian hurriedly chimed in from the side. "Don't worry, big brother. I'll arrange a search right away! If we can't find one on the continent, we'll look overseas. If we can't find one overseas, we'll search the Far North. If we can't find one in the Far North, then we'll—"
"That's enough, that's enough." Yu Yuanzhen waved a hand. "Take care of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's affairs first. We can talk about the rest later."
Yu Luomian nodded repeatedly, but had already begun planning where to search for a humanoid Soul Beast.
If Brother Cao could find one, there was no reason he couldn't.
Spirit Hall, Pope Palace.
The Rakshasa God leaned against a pillar in the corridor, admiring the Snow Empress's figure on the Sky Screen.
She licked her lips, a bewitching smile curling her mouth. "Heh, Brother Cao really knows how to have fun. He went straight for a Ferocious Beast. I'll join in next time!"
Bibi Dong sat on the papal throne, watching the Rakshasa God's expression. The corners of her mouth twitched slightly.
She tried to hold back, but finally couldn't help asking, "Are the gods of the Divine Realm really all this depraved?"
The Rakshasa God turned to look at her as though she were a child who had never seen the world. "What would you know? The gods of the Divine Realm have endless lifespans and nothing to do. What kind of perverse things haven't they tried? Doing that with a Ferocious Beast is nothing. There's also—"
"All right, all right." Bibi Dong hurriedly cut her off. She didn't want to hear any more.
Qian Renxue stood to one side, her head lowered and her ears burning red.
She didn't want to listen, but every word still found its way into her ears.
Were the gods of the Divine Realm really so... open-minded?
Seeing the mother and daughter's awkward expressions, the Rakshasa God couldn't help bursting into laughter.
When she'd laughed enough, she patted Qian Renxue on the shoulder and said earnestly, "Little girl, you're still young. Once you reach the Divine Realm, you'll understand. There's plenty of fun to be had there."
Ye Family Fortress, courtyard.
Ye Lingling looked at the Snow Empress's cool figure on the Sky Screen, the corners of her mouth twitching slightly.
A humanoid Soul Beast? A life-form formed from the purest ice-attribute energy of heaven and earth? Her husband had even managed to win over someone like that?
She turned to Cao Xiyu. "Husband, weren't you cold when you got intimate with the Snow Empress?"
Cao Xiyu gave an awkward laugh. "It was fine, it was fine. She was pretty enthusiastic."
Ye Lingling rolled her eyes.
Enthusiastic? How enthusiastic could a life-form formed from ice-attribute energy of heaven and earth be?
Xiao Wu came over, wearing a sweet smile. "Sister, don't be jealous. Sister Snow Empress is a very nice person. She often helps us warm the bed in our dreams."
Warm the bed? An ice-attribute life-form warming the bed? What would that even feel like?
Zhu Zhuyun joined them, too. "Sister, don't worry. Sister Snow Empress may be cold, but she's truly enthusiastic with Brother Cao. We sisters all get along very well."
Ye Lingling took a deep breath, forcing down the anger roiling inside her.
Get along well? Of course you all got along well. She was the only one here who hadn't been with the other sisters.
She set down her teacup and stood up, not wanting to deal with those little minxes.
"You all carry on. I'm going out for a walk."
The women hurried to their feet to see her off, all of them wearing obedient smiles.
Forget it, forget it. Things were already like this. What else could she do?
She shook her head and headed toward the back hill.
The construction site there was bustling with activity. Ninety-nine garden-style residences were being built.
Once they were finished, all those girls would have places of their own, and she wouldn't have to see them wandering around in front of her every day.
As she thought this, golden light began to surge across the Sky Screen once more.
A new ranking was about to be announced.
This time, the scene showed a vast ocean, followed by an enormous island.
In front of a grand, solemn temple stood a tall woman dressed in a bright red robe, her sea-blue hair flowing down her back.
Her gentle, beautiful features made her look no older than thirty. Her beauty came more from her bearing: noble, graceful, and warmly serene.
She was Bo Saixi, the legendary Soul Master who stood unmatched in the sea.