That Moment of Phoenix Dance and Phoenix Cry, the Ice and Fire Phoenixes Were Born!

Shui Bing'er followed Li Qinglian's gaze.

"What is this?"

Looking at the sight of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Shui Bing'er cried out in shock.

What appeared before Shui Bing'er was a scene so strange it was almost dreamlike.

Between the mountain walls, a spring had split into two halves. The left side was crystal-clear ice blue, its chill condensing into white mist that rose in curling wisps; the right side was crimson, like molten lava.

Yet where the two springs met, they did not devour each other. They remained clearly divided.

The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well!

"Such pure water-attribute cold energy."

"Ice energy of this level is several times denser than the extreme cold released by my Martial Soul."

She looked at the ice spring and spoke softly, her gaze shaken.

"The ice is absolute, and so is the fire. But they can coexist."

"In other words... ice and fire were never completely opposed to begin with."

Shui Bing'er murmured.

In truth, she had never understood why she and Li Qinglian had been able to produce a Martial Soul fusion skill.

It was not until she saw such a sight that she finally understood.

So there really were magnificent scenes in nature where ice and fire blended together.

"You're feeling it correctly."

Li Qinglian stood still, his gaze moving between the two spring mouths.

"Sister Bing'er, do you still remember how it felt when our Martial Souls fused for the first time back then?"

Shui Bing'er was slightly startled, then her cheeks flushed.

Of course she remembered.

That had been their first true cooperation in every sense. The Phoenix and the Ice Phoenix spread their wings at the same time, and it was as if only the rhythm of their breathing and soul power resonating remained between heaven and earth.

Even now, when she thought of that feeling of perfect union, warmth still rose in her chest.

"I remember."

"Then do you know why our Martial Souls were able to fuse?"

"Because... our Martial Soul attributes complement each other?"

"Not just complement."

Li Qinglian shook his head and pointed toward the center of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

There, at the boundary between the ice spring and the fire spring, two completely opposite energies collided and tore at each other, yet maintained a subtle balance.

"Look at these two spring mouths. Ice and fire, yin and yang—absolute opposites, yet they counter and generate each other. The reason they can coexist is because a complete cycle has formed between them. Part of the ice spring's cold energy is offset by the fire spring's heat, and part of the fire spring's scorching force is suppressed by the ice spring's chill. They consume each other and complete each other."

"And the fusion of our Martial Souls works on the same principle."

Shui Bing'er blinked her sapphire-like eyes, looking thoughtful.

Li Qinglian continued:

"My Phoenix Martial Soul is pure flame, its attribute leaning toward yang and hardness. Your Ice Phoenix Martial Soul is extremely cold and extremely gentle, its attribute leaning toward yin and softness. When we release our Martial Souls separately, both sides' energies operate on their own tracks, not interfering with each other. But once our Martial Souls fuse..."

"My fire collides with your ice."

"After that collision, the originally conflicting energies reach balance within the special framework of the fusion skill. Ice doesn't extinguish fire, and fire doesn't overcome ice. Instead, they stimulate each other into producing an even purer power."

"Just like these two spring mouths."

As Li Qinglian spoke, he raised his hand and condensed a cluster of Phoenix flames. The fire leaped in his palm, dazzling gold-red.

Shui Bing'er barely hesitated. At the same time, an ice-blue cold light rose at her fingertip and gently approached.

Fire and ice, gold-red and ice blue, slowly drew closer between the two of them.

The instant they touched.

The two clusters of energy were like old friends reunited after a long separation, intertwining, circling, and merging.

In the end, they transformed into a halo flowing with blue and red light, hovering between them.

"See?" Li Qinglian smiled. "This is the principle behind the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, and also the secret of our Martial Soul fusion."

Shui Bing'er looked at the radiant, flowing halo, as if stars had fallen into her beautiful blue eyes.

She understood.

"So the reason we were able to fuse successfully the first time was because neither of us deliberately suppressed our soul power. We let the two attributes collide naturally and found that point of balance. And later, when we failed..."

"It was because we were too deliberate."

"We were both afraid of hurting each other, so we subconsciously held back our energy. But what a Martial Soul fusion skill needs is precisely an all-out intermingling, not a cautious probing. If you take half a step back and I take half a step back, the balance point is lost."

Shui Bing'er gently bit her lip and fell silent for a moment.

Then she lifted her head, her gaze bright and resolute.

"Qinglian, shall we... try again?"

When she said it, her voice trembled a little, but her clenched fists showed her determination.

Li Qinglian was just about to nod.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey!"

Off to the side, Dugu Yan finally couldn't hold back anymore. Hands on her hips, she jumped out.

"A Martial Soul fusion skill???"

"You two even have a Martial Soul fusion skill???"

Her eyes went wide as she looked at Shui Bing'er, then at Li Qinglian.

"So the two of you can even use a Martial Soul fusion skill?? Doesn't that mean that as long as you team up in the future, you can pin down and beat Soul Elder-level opponents???"

"...More or less."

Li Qinglian rubbed his nose.

Dugu Yan took a deep breath.

She was completely numb.

She had originally thought Huo Wu was actually still manageable.

Huo Wu was just someone who had known Li Qinglian a little longer.

But now, out of nowhere, there was Shui Bing'er, who had a Martial Soul fusion skill with Li Qinglian.

Dugu Yan really felt a little shattered.

Li Qinglian was still just a little boy!

Yet at such a young age, so many outstanding girls were already circling around him.

What would happen in the future?

Most importantly, Shui Bing'er and Li Qinglian's Martial Soul fusion bond was too damn tight!

She still had some confidence facing Huo Wu, but against Shui Bing'er, she really had none.

Dugu Yan stomped her foot in anger, then turned and left.

She had no hobby of watching other people show off their affection. Especially when one of them was the man she had her eye on.

After Dugu Yan left, Shui Bing'er and Li Qinglian activated their Martial Souls at the same time.

The instant ice and fire intertwined, heaven and earth fell silent.

Two phoenixes, one fire and one ice, one yang and one yin, circled and crossed above the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, forming an utterly breathtaking scene.

Then they became one.

Two masses of light, golden-red and ice-blue, slammed together, tearing, merging, and erupting with a dazzling bluish-white halo.

At the brightest point of the light, the phoenix's outline continuously reformed and changed, finally condensing into an entirely new existence.

It was a giant bird whose entire body flowed with blue and red patterns. Its wingspan exceeded ten meters, and every plume displayed a strange gradation of color, shifting from crimson-gold at the base to ice-blue at the tips.

Its phoenix eyes were different from left to right. The left eye burned with undying flame, while the right eye was sealed with ten-thousand-year profound ice.

"This is what a true phoenix is."

Li Qinglian murmured.

"Sister Bing'er's is the Ice Phoenix, and my Martial Soul is the Fire Phoenix. Combined together, they're the Ice Fire Phoenix!"

At the same time, enlightenment came to them as if by divine inspiration.

They both understood that the Martial Soul fusion skill was called Ice Fire Phoenix Dance!

Once this skill was unleashed, the Ice Fire Phoenix flapped both wings at the same time. Its left wing swept out a sky full of crimson-gold fire feathers, each one carrying the destructive power of true phoenix fire; its right wing stirred up billions of ice-blue feather blades, each blade condensed with the freezing force of extreme cold.

The fire feathers and ice blades crossed and circled in the air. They did not cancel each other out; instead, they spurred each other on—fire borrowed the force of wind, ice borrowed the force of fire, and two completely opposite energies erupted in collision with terrifying power that grew by geometric multiples.

In the end, this destructive storm woven from ice and fire would spread in all directions with the Ice Fire Phoenix King as its center.

Within its range, enemies would suffer the double torment of searing heat and freezing cold at the same time. While their bodies were roasted by flame, their blood would congeal in the extreme cold.

The purer Li Qinglian's fire was, and the colder Shui Bing'er's ice became, the closer the power of Ice Fire Phoenix Dance would come to true ultimate destruction.

At that moment, above the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, the blue-and-red phoenix circled and cried, scattering both extreme cold and extreme heat into the sky.