Halving the Spoils, a Plan to Forge a Lifebound Soul Tool

"What do you mean?"

Snow Empress did not want to return empty-handed. The initiative was not in her or Ice Emperor's hands at all; they could only watch Yan Jingchuan's expression.

The Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Ice Marrow was their hope of surviving their tribulations. When there had been no hope before, she could naturally act without restraint. But now, hope had appeared and was right before her eyes. Snow Empress was absolutely unwilling to give it up.

The reason someone trapped in despair feared nothing was because they could not see any hope at all.

The moment hope appeared, the desperate would surely chase after it with everything they had. Extinguishing it just as they were about to obtain it was what hurt the most.

Yan Jingchuan, who understood this well, had been waiting for this very moment—for them to have no choice but to lower their heads.

"You can only take half. The other half belongs to us."

Splitting it in half was the result of Yan Jingchuan's careful consideration. In the original story, Ice Emperor had said that she only needed two or three pieces of Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Ice Marrow to survive her four-hundred-thousand-year heavenly tribulation, while Snow Empress needed four or five.

Giving them too much would make Yan Jingchuan feel cheated, but giving them too little would likely mean the Ice and Snow Emperors would refuse to let the matter rest.

Given the scale of the Ten-Thousand-Year Mysterious Ice Cave they were currently in, half would come to a little over twenty pieces.

It would resolve their urgent need while also giving them something to rely on against future heavenly tribulations, preventing them from being driven to desperation.

Snow Empress thought for a moment, then looked at the Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon. Just as she was about to agree, Ice Emperor spoke first.

"Human, you are going too—"

Yan Jingchuan swept his gaze over her, and Ice Emperor forcibly swallowed the words that had reached her lips.

"It seems the two of you have objections and do not agree with my proposal. Or do you think I do not dare to make this real?"

The Ice and Snow Emperors fell silent. Ice Emperor's gaze in particular was filled with disdain beneath its intense killing intent.

"Heh!"

That low chuckle gave Snow Empress a bad feeling. Yan Jingchuan's face twisted into a savage expression, undisguised madness surfacing across it.

"If that's the case, then we'll all die together!"

The Dark Sacred Dragon martial soul possessed him. One yellow and one purple soul ring rose beneath his feet, while the External Spirit Bone, the Darkgolden Terrorclaw, sprang from his hand and stabbed toward the Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon.

The golden-glinting claws pierced through the rare-metal shell of the Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon. Jing Hongchen's expression turned horrified, while Ice Emperor and Snow Empress abruptly paled and retreated in alarm.

After all, the Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon was a ninth-level soul tool. The metal used for its casing was extremely tough, and the Darkgolden Terrorclaw produced an ear-piercing screech of metal grinding against metal as it cut into it.

"Oh! It's pretty hard!"

Yan Jingchuan's other hand transformed into a dragon claw, and the first soul ring beneath his feet lit up.

Snow Empress could no longer sit still. She had realized that Yan Jingchuan truly wanted to drag them all down with him.

"We agree! Stop! We agree!!!"

Hearing Snow Empress's shout, Yan Jingchuan merely glanced at her. Under Snow Empress's horrified gaze, he remained completely unmoved.

It was as if he had not heard her at all. His soul skill activated.

"First Soul Skill, Dark Sky-Splitting Claw."

The claw light struck the Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon. Its metal shell instantly dented and warped, and the entire shell trembled.

Snow Empress was nearly dumbfounded, her mind completely blank. There was only one thought in her heart: this human brat was a madman!

Jing Hongchen was not doing much better. His heart seemed to skip a beat, and his legs went weak.

He knew that if the Ice and Snow Emperors refused to split the spoils evenly, Yan Jingchuan would pretend to be enraged, flip the table, and attempt to detonate the Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon in order to intimidate them.

But you never said you'd do it like this!? This was completely different from what they had agreed on!

If it really exploded, then at this distance, he did not know whether the Ice and Snow Emperors would die, but the four of them and those Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Ice Marrows would not even leave ashes behind.

Seeing Yan Jingchuan raise his hand to continue, Snow Empress clenched her fists anxiously and suddenly turned to glare at Ice Emperor.

"Ice Emperor! Apologize!!! Now!"

Snow Empress's shout snapped the frightened Ice Emperor back to her senses. She could no longer care about the pride of being one of the three rulers of the Extreme North and immediately apologized.

"It was... I... I misspoke!"

Once those words left Ice Emperor's lips in her little-girl form, she looked like a defeated rooster, hanging her head in dejection.

Yan Jingchuan snorted coldly and lowered his raised hand.

Jing Hongchen let out a long breath. Yan Jingchuan had truly frightened him.

Seeing Yan Jingchuan finally stop, Snow Empress relaxed and silently stopped circulating her soul power.

"This is the last time. Before you leave, say one more word and I'll throw it in your face."

Fixing his gaze on Ice Emperor, Yan Jingchuan finished speaking and punched the Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon.

With a humming tremor, Jing Hongchen and Snow Empress's hearts both lurched again.

Not wanting to remain there any longer, Snow Empress took half of the Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Ice Marrow and immediately pulled Ice Emperor away.

Above the ground, the Ice and Snow Emperors turned into streaks of light and headed back toward the Extreme North.

Ice Emperor did not say a word along the way. Snow Empress could sense her hatred, but she chose silence as well.

The gains from this trip had already been immensely satisfying. At the very least, their heavenly tribulations were no longer a threat. Though they had taken only half the Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Ice Marrow and the other half remained behind, she did not dare even think about it.

Snow Empress had no doubt that if she indicated she wanted the other half as well, Yan Jingchuan would immediately blow himself up with them.

Not only would they get nothing, they would also be seriously injured.

Within the Ten-Thousand-Year Mysterious Ice Cave, the atmosphere eased considerably.

With Ice Emperor and Snow Empress gone, the four of them no longer had to remain on edge every second.

"Jingchuan, you've got some real guts! Those were two ferocious beasts hundreds of thousands of years old. I'm impressed!"

Xiao Hongchen was full of admiration for Yan Jingchuan's actions just now.

"Ha! Nothing special. From now on, remember to call me Brother Yan!"

Yan Jingchuan, lying directly on the ground, did not forget to crack wise.

Meng Hongchen laughed softly beside them, teasing the two.

Not far away, Jing Hongchen carefully put away the heavily damaged Level-Nine Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon. For a time, he felt both emotional and relieved.

This time, Yan Jingchuan had truly turned the tide. Otherwise, Jing Hongchen's old life would definitely have been left here.

After resting for a while, they did not plan to linger. No matter what, they were still on Earthdragon Sect territory.

The four split up and collected all the remaining Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Ice Marrow within the Ten-Thousand-Year Mysterious Ice Cave. They did not overlook the rare metal Ice Extreme Divine Crystal at the entrance either.

After stripping the place clean, they immediately set out for Bright City.

They did not fly very quickly. Jing Hongchen's injuries had not fully recovered, and he was in no condition to carry the three of them at high speed.

Yan Jingchuan and the other two were limited by their soul power ranks and used only low-grade flying soul tools. Jing Hongchen had to control his speed to ensure they could keep up.

Along the way, Jing Hongchen noticed Yan Jingchuan's thoughtful expression. Having already begun to regard him as an equal, he could not help asking.

"What are you thinking about?"

From Ice Extreme Divine Crystal, Yan Jingchuan thought of forging techniques from ten thousand years later, then of the creation of Battle Armor. His heart itched with anticipation.

The amplification granted by Battle Armor was absurdly powerful. It was technology far beyond this era, and Yan Jingchuan wanted to recreate it right now.

But after thinking about it, Yan Jingchuan quickly realized that this era did not even have a proper blacksmith. There was no way to get started, and even if he truly could make it, he would not be able to use it anytime soon.

Settling for the next best thing, Yan Jingchuan began considering Lifebound Soul Tools.

The one known person who possessed a Lifebound Soul Tool was Kong Deming. His Silvermoon Divine Radiance Shield had merged with his martial soul, and only after long-term nurturing had he broken through to rank ninety-five during battle.

Not only could Kong Deming rival a Limit Douluo, he could even unleash a god-level strike.

The enhancements provided by a Lifebound Soul Tool were unquestionably powerful. The only problem was that the process took too long, and Yan Jingchuan wanted to drastically shorten the time required.

Among forging techniques, Spirit Forging could build a bridge of communication with metal through one's martial soul, infusing one's own aura into it. Could using such metal to create soul tools open up another path for crafting Lifebound Soul Tools?

Yan Jingchuan briefly explained his idea to Jing Hongchen and carefully described the specifics of Spirit Forging.

Jing Hongchen was deeply shaken after hearing it.

"You can do that!?"