"Elementalization" Initial Stage

"...Hmm, let me think."

Kong Ming'an's gaze naturally fell upon Snow Empress. Testing naturally meant observation—more precisely, observing and measuring Snow Empress's unusual bodily structure.

Just seeing Snow Empress's body structure gave Kong Ming'an an interesting idea. Now, he needed to continue observing in depth and fill out the framework.

As his gaze studied Snow Empress, Kong Ming'an considered where to begin.

One possible approach after another flashed through his mind. Yet, as if possessed, Kong Ming'an's gaze unconsciously landed on Snow Empress's straight, slender, yet softly curved legs...

As if possessed, Kong Ming'an blurted out:

"...Look at your legs?"

"All right."

Snow Empress responded even faster than he could realize that he seemed to have said something wrong.

"...Huh?"

"What is it?"

Snow Empress blinked. Her pure Ice Blue eyes contained not the slightest impurity. Tilting her head slightly, she showed no strange expression at all, as though she did not find Ming's request improper in any way.

"..."

Kong Ming'an rarely lost his composure, while Snow Empress naturally sat in her chair and adjusted her posture slightly, making the lines of her legs clearer.

She lightly lifted her skirt to her thighs, her tone calm.

"Where do we start?"

"..."

Kong Ming'an silently looked away, then softly sighed. He quickly cast aside that untimely distraction and regained his usual calm.

He had Snow Empress sit directly on the Experimental Bench, her fair, slender legs hanging naturally before she lightly raised her toes, placing them in front of Kong Ming'an.

Now fully focused, Kong Ming'an's gaze was calm. He extended a hand, palm upward, signaling for Snow Empress to place her foot on it. She did not hesitate, naturally resting the sole of her foot in his palm.

The next instant, an unusual sensation came from his hand.

It felt cool and smooth to the touch, warm and soft, with a peculiar suppleness carrying Life's distinctive elasticity.

His gaze lowered. Her ankle was slender and delicate, its lines beginning at the arch of her foot and gradually tracing upward, revealing perfectly balanced proportions.

Kong Ming'an looked at the nearly perfect "work of art" in his hand, but his expression did not change much. Silently, a faint blue shimmer flowed through his eyes, dreamlike and ethereal.

He entered Energy Perspective.

At that moment, the foot in Kong Ming'an's hand was no longer made of flesh and blood in his eyes. Instead, it became a collection of countless intricate yet orderly energy nodes and flowing pathways.

This was the ultimate manifestation of nature's creation.

Born of heaven and raised by earth, nurtured by nature... in a sense, this was an embodiment of perfection.

His fingertips were coated in a highly condensed yet gentle blend of Spiritual Power and Soul Power. Like the most precise probe, they began at Snow Empress's toes and moved upward, inch by inch, at an extremely slow pace.

Toes, arch, ankle, calf...

Kong Ming'an's expression was serious as he carefully sensed every subtle characteristic of Snow Empress's leg energy structure, its circulation patterns, and the nature of its interaction and resonance with the Heaven and Earth Origin Qi outside.

A complete structure began taking shape in his mind.

Time passed, second by second.

Kong Ming'an remained focused and serious. All his attention was immersed in the inspiration brought by that perfect energy structure. His mind was entirely free of distractions, without the slightest other thought.

As for Snow Empress, at first, she merely watched Kong Ming'an's actions with some curiosity.

But when that warm Soul Power, carrying a strange sense of inclusiveness, touched her body and came into contact with the Extreme Ice Snow energy within her, she trembled slightly.

The rejection and conflict she had expected did not occur. Instead, an indescribable tingling sensation, accompanied by warm comfort, spread from where they touched.

The feeling was not unpleasant. On the contrary, it was rather comfortable, so much so that she initially thought Ming was giving her a massage.

But after watching for a while, she dismissed that possibility. The Youth looked far too serious to appear to be massaging her.

So, she stopped overthinking it. Relaxing, she tilted her head slightly and quietly watched the Youth before her while experiencing the novel sensation of this energy exchange within her body.

Between them, one was wholly absorbed in "research," while the other was simply experiencing a novel sensation on the energy level.

It was clearly an action that could be called intimate and suggestive, yet because both of their purposes were so pure and their minds so free of distractions, it seemed unusually natural, even carrying a strange sense of harmony.

It really was quite strange.

After a long while, Kong Ming'an slowly withdrew his hand and Soul Power. The blue glow faded from his eyes as he sank into thought, organizing the massive amount of sensory data he had just gathered.

Snow Empress silently drew back her leg as well, but she did not disturb Kong Ming'an. She quietly sat to the side, picked up the book he had prepared for her, and began reading.

The book taught her how to inscribe her own Soul Skills onto blank Soul Tool Soul Rings. This was the first step in accumulating her own value, so naturally she had to study it carefully.

Yet as she studied, her gaze would occasionally drift toward the Youth deep in thought.

Hmm... she was rather curious about what the Youth was thinking right now.

At that moment, Kong Ming'an had his eyes closed. In his mind, he repeatedly revisited Snow Empress's nearly perfect energy-based body structure. Before long, a basic model naturally formed.

Given that Snow Empress's unusual form of existence allowed her to receive nearly terrifying enhancement within the frigid environment of the Extreme North...

Could he draw upon Snow Empress's form of existence and transform himself into an energy-based form to a certain extent? Or rather, could he try to actively enter... "Elementalization"?

For a certain period, his body could become infinitely close to a form of pure energy, greatly increasing his affinity and control over Elements of that attribute while granting him some degree of immunity to physical attacks and lower-level energy impacts of the same attribute...

This idea had emerged the instant he saw Snow Empress's unusual body structure.

And now that he had obtained the foundational information, he could begin his first attempt.

He acted as soon as he thought of it. Kong Ming'an's execution was absolute.

After adjusting his condition, he immediately began mobilizing his Soul Power. Imitating the energy frequency and structure he had sensed from Snow Empress, he carefully guided Soul Power to cover his arm, attempting to temporarily transform his flesh-and-blood body toward an elemental form.

Inside the Laboratory, a Silver White glow belonging to space began shining beneath the skin of his arm, and its outline seemed to become somewhat blurred and unstable.

At that moment, Snow Empress, who had been quietly reading beside him, suddenly raised her head. Her Ice Blue eyes instantly locked onto Kong Ming'an's arm as it attempted Elementalization.

At that moment, she could clearly sense an elemental aura similar to hers, yet more immature and artificially controlled, emanating from Kong Ming'an.

This resonance born from their similarity on the energy level was countless times stronger than their previous simple contact through Soul Power!

A look of "just as I thought" appeared on Snow Empress's exquisite, beautiful face.

And you still say you're not one of my kind!