Sacrifice

"How do you need me to do this?" Ice Empress finally made up her mind to take the gamble.

"Become Yuhao's second Martial Soul. Ah, Little Yuhao, meet Ice Empress. From now on, we'll be on the same side," Skydream Iceworm said with a smile.

"Hello, Ice Empress." Huo Yuhao's calm voice carried over, revealing no emotion.

Ice Empress nodded. "Hello, boy. I hope you can hold on. Otherwise, you'll only harm yourself and others, and all this will come to nothing." Her tone was much gentler now. After all, he would be her future host, so she had to give him enough respect.

"Don't worry. Yuhao absorbed an Immortal Herb, and his physical foundation has greatly improved. As long as you seal most of your power when the time comes, this will definitely succeed," Yan Jingzhe said firmly from the side.

"Skydream, who is this?" Ice Empress asked curiously.

Skydream Iceworm gave an awkward smile. "He's Little Yuhao's teacher, Yan Jingzhe, a Rank 99 Limit Douluo. He came to protect Little Yuhao."

Ice Empress froze, then sneered after giving it some thought. "Hmph, Skydream, are you sure he came to protect him? Looks to me like he's here to beat me into agreeing if I refuse."

Yan Jingzhe did not deny it. The corner of his mouth curved upward, but he said nothing.

Skydream hurriedly tried to smooth things over. "Ah, what are you saying? Bingbing, that's not right. We're all in the same boat now; there's no need to speak as outsiders. Come on, let me explain the sacrificial fusion method to you. We can figure out the safest way to do this."

The two Soul Beasts actually began discussing it. Although Skydream Iceworm was a Million-Year Soul Beast, he had reached that age by sleeping. In terms of knowledge and experience, Ice Empress was streets ahead of him. The two huddled together and whispered for a long time, going through every step—Soul Bone implantation, soul transfer, energy sealing—and even preparing responses for possible problems in advance.

Once every detail had been settled, Ice Empress turned toward Huo Yuhao.

Her voice was gentler than before, but the pride of the ruler of the Far North still hid within every word. "Boy, I'm starting. It will hurt. You'd better prepare yourself. If you can't endure it, we'll both be finished."

With that, she immediately began.

For Ice Empress to become Huo Yuhao's Martial Soul, she first had to inject her Soul Bone into his body to strengthen it. Then, she would inject her soul into his second Martial Soul. Once that Martial Soul had completely transformed into the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion, her energy would be infused into Huo Yuhao's body. They would replace Ice Empress's soul in sustaining the second Martial Soul, while Ice Empress's soul, like Skydream Iceworm's, would enter the Sea of Spirit.

The process was agonizing. Intense jade-green light frantically gathered at her tail hook. When the jade green turned dark green, the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion's tail hook suddenly lashed upward and viciously stabbed into Huo Yuhao's tailbone.

Huo Yuhao's body snapped taut.

Pain flooded through every inch of his body, as though he had sunk into a bottomless icy pool. There was no light around him, and suffocation clamped tightly around his throat. Huo Yuhao wanted to scream, but no sound came out. He wanted to break free, but had nowhere to exert strength. Every emotion choked in his chest, turning into an endless agony as numbness swallowed all sensation.

Although Huo Yuhao had prepared himself, when the pain arrived, he still found himself unable to breathe.

No one knew how long passed.

So long that Huo Yuhao's consciousness began to blur, so long that he felt he could no longer endure it.

Then the pain abruptly lessened. Huo Yuhao's chest began heaving violently as he greedily gulped down the cold air.

Although Huo Yuhao had absorbed an Immortal Herb and strengthened his foundation, he still could not withstand the washing of Ice Empress's nearly four hundred thousand years of energy. Fortunately, Skydream Iceworm acted as well. A golden sphere of light protected Huo Yuhao's Sea of Spirit and sealed the excess energy within his body, to be gradually released once Huo Yuhao had grown stronger.

In the end, the fusion went very smoothly. Though he had suffered unbearable pain, he gained an Ultimate Ice assault-type Martial Soul—a second Martial Soul that countless people could only dream of obtaining.

"Is it over?" Yan Jingzhe asked Skydream when the commotion subsided.

"Yes, it's over." Skydream Iceworm nodded happily. However, Ice Empress had only just sacrificed herself and had already fallen into slumber.

Yan Jingzhe picked up the unconscious Huo Yuhao and casually placed Ice Empress's body into his Storage Soul Guidance Device. "I'll take Ice Empress's body. It belongs to a fierce beast of nearly four hundred thousand years. I can forge it into a top-tier Soul Guidance Device for Yuhao."

Skydream nodded. "Take it. It's fine. She has already sacrificed herself to Huo Yuhao anyway. Keeping the body would just be a waste; it might as well contribute to Yuhao's path to godhood."

Yan Jingzhe nodded. "Then let's help Yuhao obtain his second Soul Ring. Skydream, do you have any recommendations?"

Skydream thought for a moment. "My original plan was to have him find an iceworm—one of my own kind—and obtain a simulation skill to make it easier to conceal his identity. But now, with you as his teacher, simulation isn't all that useful. We might as well get something offensive. That would be more practical."

"Mm, that was my thought as well." After a brief moment of consideration, Yan Jingzhe nodded in agreement. "But offensive is too broad. To be more specific, an illusion-type skill would be best. Combined with Spirit Eyes, an illusion Soul Skill would be extremely effective."

Skydream froze for a moment, then immediately understood. "An illusion-type Soul Skill? Right, why didn't I think of that? It suits Little Yuhao's Spirit Eyes Martial Soul perfectly."

"There is a mixed zone in the Great Star Dou Forest," Yan Jingzhe said. "A type of Soul Beast called the Nine-Colored Illusion Butterfly lives there. They are extremely rare, and even at a thousand years of cultivation, they can create wide-range illusions. For Yuhao, the Nine-Colored Illusion Butterfly's Soul Ring would be the best match."

Skydream did not hesitate. "Then let's go."

Yan Jingzhe grabbed Huo Yuhao by the shoulder and slashed through the air with his other hand. A golden crack appeared in midair, fine fragments of space flowing along its edges. He stepped through it with Huo Yuhao, and the rift silently closed behind them. Skydream Iceworm, within the Sea of Spirit, also returned to Huo Yuhao's body.

Shrek City, Shrek Academy, by the Sea God Lake.

A youth sat by the lake. His features were exceptionally delicate, his skin nearly translucent in its fair whiteness. His neat, short hair was a uniquely pale pink-blue, while the loose strands hanging over his forehead made his same-colored eyes stand out all the more brightly. His eyelashes were long and curled.

He wore a clean, sharp Shrek Academy male student uniform. His shoulders were narrow, his waist slender, and his figure soft and slight. Though dressed as a youth, an indescribable charm lingered about him. This person was Wang Dong, the daughter of Great God King Tang.

Wang Dong held a small flower in his hand and muttered, "Where did that Huo Yuhao brat run off to? He disappeared without even saying a word. When he comes back, I'll make sure to teach him a proper lesson."