Song Wen stood suspended above the valley.
After a moment's contemplation, water vapor appeared out of thin air and swirled around him, shrouding his figure in mist.
Song Wen's body then began to change rapidly.
In the blink of an eye, a Mysterious Tortoise appeared amid the vapor, its massive body spanning dozens of zhang.
The Mysterious Tortoise held its head low, its eyes like cold stars. Sharp teeth lined its mouth, its limbs were like pillars, and its tail hung like a hook.
Its shell was black as ink, its markings like mountains and rivers carved in shadow, heavy as a reef suspended in the air.
Then nine wisps of ghostly white mist poured from the Mysterious Tortoise's slightly parted jaws.
The instant the Taiyin Cold Qi appeared, the water vapor surrounding the Mysterious Tortoise condensed into fine ice crystals and fell.
The air immediately became much clearer.
Immortal essence circulated throughout the Mysterious Tortoise Song Wen had become, drawing the nine wisps of cold qi into an endless spiral around his body.
Yet Song Wen discovered that:
The Mysterious Tortoise's body was as solid as bedrock.
The Taiyin Cold Qi was freezing beyond measure.
But neither enhanced the other in any way.
How could this be?
Song Wen pondered inwardly.
He had assumed that Taiyin Cold Qi was a water-aspected substance and should therefore strengthen the power of the Black Tortoise.
But the result was nothing of the sort.
Song Wen could not help feeling disappointed.
If Taiyin Cold Qi could not strengthen the Black Tortoise's power, its usefulness to him was greatly diminished.
After thinking it over, Song Wen still could not quite accept it.
The Mysterious Tortoise's body immediately began to transform, becoming a great azure dragon.
The Azure Dragon stretched roughly a hundred zhang across