"Okay."
Yin Chen didn't ask any more questions and nodded obediently.
He took out a Warm Jade Box that had been prepared long ago to store treasures of heaven, materials and earth. He carefully took out the Snow Core containing Snow Empress Origin and put it into the jade box.
Fortunately, Snow Empress restrained all the outward power and aura before falling asleep. Otherwise, with the material of this ordinary jade box, it would be impossible to carry the original core of a 700,000-year-old Soul Beast. It would have been frozen and cracked or even exploded by the extreme power of ice and snow that was inadvertently released.
After putting away the jade box properly, Yin Chen looked at the dying Ice Empress and the still pale Zhang Lexuan, frowned slightly, and said in a deep voice:
"The integration process must be extremely difficult and dangerous. We need to find a place that is absolutely safe and undisturbed."
This area is obviously not an ideal place right now.
"I know there is a safe place, I will take you there."
Ice Empress responded immediately.
As one of the true rulers of Extreme North, her familiarity with this vast ice field is unparalleled, and she knows very well which hidden corners are safe from the prying eyes of Soul Beast and the search of the Wangsheng Hall.
She forced herself to stand up and fulfill her duty of leading the way.
However, she was too weak. As soon as her body left the Ice Stone she was leaning on, her legs gave way and she fell forward uncontrollably.
Just when she thought she was about to fall awkwardly on the ice, an arm hugged her in time and firmly.
Yin Chen came to her side at some point and supported her shaky body.
He looked down at the petite but stubborn green-haired girl in his arms, and sighed helplessly, with a hint of gentleness in his tone:
"That's it, don't be brave anymore. There's no problem in relying on me occasionally. After all, from the moment you proposed the deal, we were already partners, right?"
Before he finished speaking, Yin Chen exerted a little force on his arms, and easily lifted Ice Empress's light and delicate body into a standard princess hug.
"You...!"
Ice Empress froze instantly, and his green vertical pupils shrank slightly in shock.
As one of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Extreme Norths, the supreme being who controls hundreds of millions of Soul Beasts, has she ever been treated so... such a shame?!
Being picked up by a human boy in such a protective yet ambiguous posture?
This was simply an unprecedented experience in her hundreds of thousands of years of life. The huge impact made her mind go blank, and a faint blush appeared uncontrollably on her pale cheeks.
Mixed with shame and anger, she instinctively wanted to struggle, but Yin Chen's words and the strength from her arms forced her to suppress this impulse.
He is right, now is not the time to show off one's appearance, the top priority is to complete the integration safely.
She could only try her best to put on her delicate but cold face, and use a frost-like expression to hide her inner embarrassment and that... indescribable feeling of strangeness.
Yin Chen hugged Ice Empress who had come down obediently, walked to Zhang Lexuan who was sitting next to the ice wall, winked at her, and asked with a playful smile on his face:
"Senior Sister, what about you? Do you want to trade with Ice Empress, or should I carry you on my back?"
Zhang Lexuan glanced at Ice Empress, who was held in Yin Chen's arms in such a shameful manner. Just imagining the scene of him taking his place, he couldn't help but shudder, and a strong sense of shame rushed to his head.
She quickly shook her head like a rattle, and her voice had a hint of urgency:
"No, there's no need to change, just carry... carry me, please, Yin Chen."
To let her be held like that? It would be better to just let her die.
Although her injuries were barely stabilized by Yin Chen and were no longer life-threatening, it was still wishful thinking to walk independently or even move quickly, and she could only rely on Yin Chen at the moment.
So, in this vast Far North Ice Plains, a strange scene appeared.
A white-haired boy held a petite girl with delicate appearance, green hair and blue eyes but a frosty face with both hands in the posture of a princess. Behind his back was a woman in a moon-white dress with a cold temperament and beautiful face, but her cheeks were slightly red due to injury and embarrassment.
He walked steadily, guided by the low voice of Ice Empress in his arms, and headed towards some unknown secret location of Far North.
The direction pointed by Ice Empress is getting more and more remote, and the surrounding environment is becoming more dangerous and desolate.
Finally, they came to an inconspicuous ice crevice covered by huge icebergs and thick snow.
"This is it, go in." Ice Empress said softly.
Yin Chen turned sideways, carefully hugged Ice Empress, carried Zhang Lexuan on his back, and got into the narrow ice crevice that could only allow one person to pass.
At the beginning it was very narrow, but the talent became enlightened. After taking dozens of steps, it suddenly became enlightened.
Behind the ice crevice is a naturally formed Underground Ice Cave. The ice cave is not particularly spacious, but it is enough to accommodate several people.
Surrounded by the eternal Black Ice Wall, it exudes the blue light of Youyou, providing some illumination.
There are sword-like icy edges hanging down from the top, but the ground is relatively flat and dry.
The most important thing is that the atmosphere here is almost completely isolated from the outside world and is extremely quiet. Only the faint Extreme Cold Primordial Energy flows slowly. For ice attribute beings, it is an excellent place for cultivation.
"This is a place where I... used to occasionally come to meditate. It's very safe."
Ice Empress explained, with a hint of unnoticeable nostalgia in his voice.
Yin Chen gently put the two people down and let Zhang Lexuan sit next to a relatively flat ice wall to rest.
He carefully sensed his surroundings and confirmed that there was no other life or danger lurking, and then he felt completely relieved.
"Okay, now we are safe."
Yin Chen looked at Ice Empress, his golden eyes shining with light.
"Can we start?"
Ice Empress leaned against the cold wall, looking at the human boy in front of her who had pulled her back from the edge of despair and was about to be connected to her fate. He took a deep breath of the cold air in the ice cave and nodded solemnly:
"Well, let's get started, get ready... this may be the most painful test you have ever experienced."
On the side, Zhang Lexuan also steeled himself, looking with complicated eyes at the upcoming fusion that was destined to shake the continent.
Inside the ice cave, time seemed to be frozen, only the coldness surged like a tide.
Under the guidance of Ice Empress, Yin Chen did not hesitate at all, and put the Hundred-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus, which exuded a hazy halo and majestic life essence, into his mouth.
Snow Lotus melted in his mouth, not as cold as he imagined, but turned into a warm and mellow current, sliding down the throat, and then exploded in his body like a volcano that had been accumulated for thousands of years.
"Uh--!"
The huge torrent of energy instantly broke through Yin Chen's Soul Power defense line, rushing and colliding wildly among his limbs.
This is not pure destruction, but an extremely domineering pioneering power with extremely cold attributes.