Little One, You Have Quite an Appetite

The Snow Empress cradled Ling Xiao in her arms and took out a piece of cloth, wrapping him tightly within it.

Then she rose from the bottom of the ice cave.

By the time she stood upon the ice plains once more, the baby in her arms had already fallen deeply asleep.

His little hand still clutched the Snow Empress's collar, as though letting go would mean losing that warmth.

The Snow Empress lowered her gaze to the baby in her arms, a trace of complicated emotion flashing through her eyes.

"An Innate Heavenly Thunder Spirit... I suppose he is half one of my kind."

The Snow Empress murmured to herself.

On the way back.

She unexpectedly discovered a Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus.

The snow lotus grew within an icy crevice, its entire body radiating an icy blue glow.

To ice-element Soul Beasts, a Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus was an exceptionally precious heavenly treasure, greatly beneficial to their cultivation.

In preparation for the coming Heavenly Tribulation, the Snow Empress had gone out many times in search of suitable heavenly treasures.

She had passed through this place on multiple occasions, yet she had never discovered the existence of this Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus.

Had she not come here today because of Ling Xiao, she might have missed this Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus.

The Snow Empress had not expected it either.

Today, she had not only found a child but also found a way to deal with this Heavenly Tribulation.

"Little one, you truly are a lucky star. You actually helped Mother find a Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus."

After putting away the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus, the smile on the Snow Empress's lips deepened.

She gently poked Ling Xiao's cheek. "It seems you are a gift Heaven sent me."

Ling Xiao remained asleep in her arms as the Snow Empress carried him straight back to the Ice Crystal Palace.

Ice Crystal Palace.

Beneath the ice sheets of the Extreme North stood a magnificent palace.

There were no resplendent decorations inside; the entire palace had been condensed from ice.

The Snow Empress had returned to the Ice Crystal Palace.

This was the Snow Empress's territory, the very heart of the Extreme North.

Apart from occasional visits by the Ice Empress and Xiaobai, no fourth living being had ever set foot here.

But today, there was one more.

The Snow Empress first took out the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus and used Soul Power to seal it within a jade box.

The snow lotus was vital to her breakthrough, but that matter could be discussed later.

Because she now had an even more troublesome problem to face.

"..."

The Snow Empress placed Ling Xiao on the ice bed, sat beside him, and gradually fell into deep thought.

How was she supposed to raise a child?

This was not the first time she had taken in a child, but a little white bear and a baby were entirely different.

Xiaobai was an ice-element Soul Beast, naturally suited to the bitter cold of the Extreme North.

As long as she occasionally looked after him, Xiaobai, being a Soul Beast, could grow up strong and healthy.

But Ling Xiao was completely different.

First of all, he was a baby.

Not some Soul Beast cub, but a human infant that had only just been born.

Second, he was an Innate Heavenly Thunder Spirit. Thunder and ice, supreme yang and supreme yin, were naturally opposed.

The cold of the Extreme North would leave Ling Xiao's body somewhat unaccustomed to the environment.

With those two factors combined.

The difficulty of raising him had instantly soared to an unprecedented level for the Snow Empress.

"..."

The Snow Empress looked down at the sleeping Ling Xiao, a rare hint of confusion flashing through her eyes.

She had lived for who knew how many tens of thousands of years, experienced countless great battles, and faced innumerable powerful enemies, yet she had never furrowed her brow even once.

But now, the issue of raising Ling Xiao had truly left her troubled.

The more important question was...

What should he eat?

According to human biology, a newborn baby needed milk.

But the key issue was, where could one find milk in the Extreme North?

This was a forbidden zone for life.

Within ten thousand miles, there were no mammals besides Soul Beasts.

If it had to be a Soul Beast, an image appeared in the Snow Empress's mind:

She, the dignified ruler of the Extreme North, the Heavenly Snow Woman, the foremost Heavenly King of the Far North, walking up to a Soul Beast and saying expressionlessly:

"Give this Empress some milk."

"..."

No, no! Absolutely not!

Just thinking about it made the Snow Empress blush.

She shook her head helplessly, driving that absurd image from her mind.

"Mm..."

Ling Xiao murmured softly on the ice bed, seeming to feel the cold even in his sleep.

His body curled up slightly, and his tiny hands grasped wildly through the air, as though searching for something.

The Snow Empress's gaze slowly lowered and inevitably fell upon her own ample bosom.

"..."

The Snow Empress fell silent at once.

After all, from the most primal biological instinct, this was the most direct solution.

But after only an instant, the Snow Empress utterly dismissed the thought.

"No."

How could she, the dignified ruler of the Extreme North, do something like that?

Setting aside the matter of her pride.

She was an ice-element Innate Elf, pure Ice Origin flowing through her body. If she truly did it, the little fellow would be frozen into an ice pop.

"..."

The Snow Empress fell into thought once more.

After a long time.

She finally thought of a solution.

Ling Xiao was an Innate Elf.

He differed from ordinary babies. He took the power of heaven and earth as his origin, and Soul Power as his sustenance.

If that was the case, then he did not need milk. He could be fed directly with Soul Power.

The Snow Empress nodded slightly.

She was a Soul Beast nearing seven hundred thousand years of cultivation. The Soul Power within her was as vast as the sea; feeding a newborn baby was more than manageable.

No sooner thought than done.

The Snow Empress gently picked Ling Xiao up and let him rest against her chest.

Then she extended a slender jade finger and pressed it against Ling Xiao's chest.

A wisp of pure Soul Power slowly entered him, gently circulating through Ling Xiao's body.

Ling Xiao's body trembled slightly.

"Mm..."

He let out a comfortable murmur and even snuggled closer toward the Snow Empress.

The Snow Empress also breathed a sigh of relief.

"It works..."

After a while, when the Snow Empress felt the time was right, she increased the flow of Soul Power.

She feared Ling Xiao's body might not be able to bear too much Soul Power, so she was especially cautious.

However...

A quarter of an hour passed.

Two quarters of an hour passed.

Half an hour passed.

The Snow Empress's brows gradually furrowed, because she noticed a problem.

Ling Xiao was absorbing Soul Power far faster than she had expected.

Not only did he show no discomfort whatsoever, a healthy flush had even appeared on his face.

Ling Xiao was like a bottomless pit. No matter how much Soul Power the Snow Empress sent into him, he devoured it all, showing no sign of stopping.

He accepted everything that came his way, taking it all without exception.

It was as though there was no limit at all!

"This..."

The Snow Empress found it hard to believe.

The Snow Empress looked at Ling Xiao in her arms, a mixture of complicated excitement flashing through her eyes.

"You little thing... just what are you?"

She murmured to herself.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Only after the Snow Empress noticed that Ling Xiao's complexion had returned to normal did she slowly stop sending him Soul Power.

"That is enough already."

"Little one, you certainly have quite an appetite."

The Snow Empress looked down at the sleeping Ling Xiao, and the corners of her lips unconsciously curved upward.

Because this was not a bad thing. The greater Ling Xiao's appetite, the greater his potential.

The aptitude of an Innate Heavenly Thunder Spirit was not something ordinary Innate Elves could compare to.