Ice-Fire Dragon Rings, First Meeting with the Ice Dragon King and Fire Dragon King

After seeing Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan off, Lin Chen did not leave the valley immediately.

He stood on the shore of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, looking down at the Taiji-shaped spring.

The milky white and dark green spring waters did not mingle. They slowly revolved within the spring, forming a massive yin-yang fish pattern.

Heat and cold intertwined as they rose, forming a hazy mist above the water's surface.

His purpose in coming here was not merely to help Dugu Bo detoxify himself.

Beneath the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well lay the remains of the Ice Dragon King and Fire Dragon King.

The two Dragon Kings had fallen in ancient times. Their bodies had transformed into this extraordinary spring, while their dragon souls still slept in the deepest part of the spring.

Lin Chen raised his right hand, and a gray mark emerged on his palm. His first soul ring lit up: the Law of Five Elements.

The Law of Water and the Law of Fire activated simultaneously. Two streams of light covered his body, forming a thin protective barrier. He took a deep breath, leaped forward, and plunged into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

The instant he entered the water, two utterly different forces surged toward him at once.

The spring water on the left was boiling hot, while that on the right was piercingly cold. Even with two layers of laws protecting him, he could still feel the oppressive force brought by the extreme temperature difference.

He continued diving.

The spring was far deeper than he had imagined. The farther down he went, the more extreme the difference in water temperature became, while the light grew dimmer and dimmer. After sinking several dozen meters, his feet finally touched the bottom.

The bottom of the spring was much broader than above, like an underground cavern. The surrounding rock walls were covered in dense cracks, from which faint red and blue light seeped out, bathing the entire cavern in a dreamlike glow.

At the very center of the cavern lay two enormous skeletons.

The skeleton on the left was entirely icy blue, crystal-clear, as though carved from ten-thousand-year ice. Even reduced to bones, it still radiated bone-chilling cold, causing a thin layer of ice crystals to form over the surrounding spring water.

The skeleton on the right was completely crimson, like red-hot iron, radiating scorching heat that made the surrounding spring water bubble and boil.

The Ice Dragon King. The Fire Dragon King.

The two dragon skeletons lay facing each other, skull to skull, like their final confrontation in life—or their eternal companionship after death.

Lin Chen landed between the two dragon skeletons, and a faint tremor traveled through the rock beneath his feet.

He could sense two consciousnesses awakening.

Those consciousnesses were ancient and immense, carrying the sleep and accumulation of ten thousand years as they slowly awakened from deep within the dragon bones.

Like beings roused from a long dream, they studied the human who had intruded upon their resting place with confusion.

The next moment, two beams of light rose from the dragon bones.

One was icy blue, the other crimson.

They met in the air and transformed into two slender figures. Lin Chen looked up, and when he saw them clearly, he could not help but freeze for a moment.

Unlike the massive dragon forms he had imagined, two women appeared before him.

The woman on the left wore a long icy-blue dress. Her hair was white as snow, her skin pale as frost, and her features so exquisite that they seemed sculpted from ice and snow.

There was a cold, distant air between her brows, like an unreachable iceberg that no one dared approach.

The woman on the right wore a long crimson dress. Her hair blazed like fire, her skin was white as snow, and her dazzling features were captivating. A burning aura lingered between her brows, like a raging flame—passionate and flamboyant.

Both the Ice Dragon King and Fire Dragon King had appeared in female forms.

"Human..." The Ice Dragon King spoke, her voice as cold as clashing icicles. "Why have you trespassed here?"

"Little brother, this isn't a place for fun." The Fire Dragon King spoke as well, her voice carrying a lazy smile. "One careless step, and you might lose your life."

Lin Chen came back to himself, his expression returning to calm. "I came to take your dragon souls."

As soon as he said that, the cavern fell silent.

The two dragon souls exchanged a glance, then laughed at the same time.

"Take our dragon souls?" The Fire Dragon King wiped at tears that did not exist from the corner of her eye.

"Little brother, do you know how many people have said that over the past ten thousand years? Not a single one walked out alive."

"I know," Lin Chen said. "But I'm not them."

The Ice Dragon King looked at him coldly. "What makes you think you can do it?"

Lin Chen did not answer. He raised his right hand, and the gray mark on his palm lit up. Five nine-colored soul rings slowly rose, revolving around his body.

The powers of four laws—the Law of Five Elements, the Law of Yin and Yang, the Law of Destruction, and the Law of Life—intertwined and flowed around him, releasing an aura that startled both dragon souls.

The phantoms of the Ice Dragon King and Fire Dragon King trembled simultaneously.

"This is... the aura of creation?" For the first time, a ripple appeared in the Ice Dragon King's voice.

"Impossible... The Creator God fell ten thousand years ago..." The Fire Dragon King also lost her smile, her expression turning solemn.

"But that mark... truly is the Creator God's source imprint..."

The two dragon souls fell silent for a long time.

They could sense the Creation Mark on Lin Chen's body. It was a source imprint from the Creator God, the most primordial and purest power in this world.

If there were still anyone in this world capable of bearing their dragon souls, it could only be someone carrying the Creation Mark.

"Little brother, what is your name?" the Fire Dragon King asked, her tone far more serious than before.

"Lin Chen."

"Lin Chen..." The Fire Dragon King repeated the name, then turned toward the Ice Dragon King. "Sister Ice, what do you think?"

The Ice Dragon King was silent for a moment before slowly saying, "His body can indeed bear our power. Furthermore, the Creation Mark would not choose someone with a crooked heart. Of that, I am certain."

She looked at Lin Chen. Her gaze remained cold, but it now held a trace of approval. "Lin Chen, we can give you our dragon souls. But we have two conditions."

"Please, go ahead."

"First, our dragon souls need somewhere to reside. We will transform into two rings and be worn on your hands. Normally, we will sleep and recuperate within the rings. When you need us, you may borrow our power."

"Second," the Fire Dragon King took over with a smiling gaze, "you have to talk with us often. We've been trapped in this rotten place for ten thousand years—we were bored to death. Now that we've finally met an interesting little brother, you can't let us be bored again."

Lin Chen paused, then smiled. "Deal."

The two dragon souls lit up simultaneously, transforming into one blue and one red pillar of light that flew toward Lin Chen's hands.

Lin Chen felt a chill on the ring finger of his left hand. An icy-blue ring appeared out of nowhere, its setting a crystalline ice crystal that emitted faint cold air.

At the same time, warmth spread across the ring finger of his right hand. A crimson ring appeared as well, its setting a fiery-red gemstone that radiated gentle heat.

The Ice Dragon Ring. The Fire Dragon Ring.

The auras of the two dragon souls came from the rings, forming two clear connections in his mind.

"Not bad." The Fire Dragon King's consciousness came from the ring, carrying a hint of satisfaction. "The material of these rings suits our attributes very well. It's quite comfortable living in them."

"Mhm." The Ice Dragon King's consciousness also came through, as concise as ever. "Acceptable."

Lin Chen looked down at the two rings on his hands, sensing the brand-new power within his body.

The powers of the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings had already established a connection with him. Although it was only an initial fusion, he could feel a clear change in his physical constitution.

More importantly, he had gained the ability of ice and fire sharing the same origin, and his understanding of the Law of Five Elements had deepened further.

"Let's go, little brother." Expectation colored the Fire Dragon King's consciousness. "Take us outside and let us see what the world has become."

Lin Chen smiled and turned to swim toward the surface.

By the time sunlight fell across his face again, it was already noon.

Lin Chen leaped out of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and landed on a rock by the shore. He lowered his head to look at the two rings on his hands. Icy-blue and crimson light reflected one another beneath the sun, breathtakingly beautiful.

"Lin Chen." The Ice Dragon King's voice sounded in his mind. "The outside world... has changed greatly."

Her voice carried complicated emotions, like a sigh of sentiment, yet also like nostalgia.

"Yes." The Fire Dragon King's voice rang out as well, rare gentleness in her tone. "Ten thousand years... We're finally out."