Ice Phoenix Wings

Those ice wings seemed born for this world of ice and snow, carrying him through the air as he glided, turned, and accelerated, every movement smooth and natural.

Shui Qingrou stood atop an icy mound below, looking up at him. The ice wings spread behind the young man glimmered with a ghostly blue chill amid the wind and snow, making him seem like a deity who had stepped forth from the frozen wastes. She could sense the purer, more condensed aura within Bing Yekong, as well as the perfect harmony between him and those wings.

"Aunt Shui." Bing Yekong descended from the air and landed steadily in the snow. The ice wings slowly folded away into his back. He turned toward her, a bright smile on his face. "I succeeded."

Shui Qingrou looked at his smiling face, though it could not conceal his exhaustion, and nodded. She said nothing more, merely turning toward the way they had come.

"Come on. Let's go home."

The wind and snow howled past behind them, soon burying the Frostwing Flood Dragon's corpse beneath a vast expanse of white. Bing Yekong followed behind her, trudging through the deep snow. The warmth radiating from the newly born ice wings on his back filled him with a sense of security and contentment.

Level fifty-four, along with the Icy Twin Wings, an External Soul Bone. This trip to the Far North had yielded even more than he had expected. Once he returned to Element City, the Tianshui Team's strength could rise to another level.

He quickened his pace and caught up with Shui Qingrou ahead of him.

On the third day after returning from the Far North, Bing Yekong gathered all seven members of the Tianshui Team at the training ground.

Shui Qingrou had specially approved this training ground for the team. It was far larger than the two previous grounds that Bing Yekong and Shui Bing'er had collapsed. The floor was paved with Azure-Steel Rock reinforced by soul power, while the surrounding walls were three feet thick, enough to withstand the shockwaves of battles below the Soul Douluo level.

At the center of the training ground stood a standard sparring platform, broad and level enough to accommodate two fully staffed teams maneuvering against each other at once.

The seven members stood in a line at the edge of the platform, their gazes all fixed on Bing Yekong. They had grown accustomed to their young captain's style; whenever he called them together, something important was bound to happen.

Bing Yekong stood in the center of the platform, swept his gaze over everyone, and opened with words that stunned them all. "No coordination training today. Today, we're having a real combat exercise. I've already invited our opponent."

"Who's the opponent?" Yu Hairou was the first to ask.

Bing Yekong stepped aside and tipped his chin toward the training ground entrance. Following his gesture, everyone saw a burly old man stride in, carrying a long spear over his shoulder. Black flames that had yet to dissipate still coiled around its tip.

He stopped before the sparring platform and casually drove the Soul-Breaking Spear into the ground. Its butt smashed against the Azure-Steel Rock floor with a dull boom.

"Senior Yang," Bing Yekong introduced him. "The Po Clan's patriarch, an eighty-fourth-level attack-type Battle Soul Douluo. He'll be our sparring partner today. Seven against one, no time limit, no restrictions on methods. If we can force him off the platform, we win."

The moment those words fell, the expressions on all seven girls' faces became rather complicated.

A Soul Douluo against a group of Soul Ancestors and Soul Exalts sounded like a case of the few fighting the many, but the gap in cultivation was there for all to see. Even seven Soul Kings might not be able to gain an advantage against a single Soul Douluo.

Not to mention someone as formidable as Yang Wudi. Bing Yekong had mentioned him to them before; he was someone capable of battling a Titled Douluo head-on despite being only level eighty-four.

"Captain, you're not joking, are you?" Shen Liuyu swallowed. "An eighty-fourth-level Soul Douluo? Are all of us together even enough for one of his hands?"

Bing Yekong smiled. "That's why I said this is a test. Senior Yang will control his strength and won't truly go for the kill. Your task is to execute what we've practiced and let me see whether our tactics can still function under real pressure."

Yang Wudi rested the Soul-Breaking Spear on his shoulder and laughed in a booming voice. "Don't be afraid, little ones. This old man will only defend today, not attack. If you can touch even this old man's clothes, you win. Of course..." He paused, his gaze falling on Bing Yekong as his tone turned more serious. "The Yekong brat is an exception. This old man will be serious with him."

Bing Yekong smiled helplessly, then turned to the team. "You heard him. Use the formation we practiced. Xue Wu starts with the buff, Shui Bing'er controls the field, Shui Yue'er and Gu Qingbo harass from both flanks, Yu Hairou and Shen Liuyu engage head-on. I'll look for openings to deal damage."

The six girls answered in unison and spread out into position. Shui Bing'er stood half a step to Bing Yekong's left, while Xue Wu retreated to the rear. Shui Yue'er and Gu Qingbo moved toward the left and right sides respectively, while Yu Hairou and Shen Liuyu stood shoulder to shoulder at the front, forming a front-line defense that was not especially thick but clearly layered.

Yang Wudi watched them swiftly take their positions, a trace of approval flashing through his eyes. Being able to deploy their formation within a few breaths showed that their usual training had not gone to waste.

He took the Soul-Breaking Spear from his shoulder and flicked his wrist, drawing a shallow mark across the ground with its tip. The imposing aura of an eighty-fourth-level Soul Douluo poured forth like a mountain.

"Come, then! Let this old man see how long you little ones can last!"

Xue Wu moved first. Azure light lit up between her hands as the Snowdance Satin martial soul spiraled around her like a nimble ribbon. Two yellow and one purple Soul Rings rose beneath her feet, and the third purple Soul Ring abruptly lit up.

The azure glow spread from her across the entire sparring platform like an invisible net, shrouding the whole battlefield.

Within the area covered by that light, all ice-attributed soul power was significantly enhanced. Moisture in the air condensed into tiny ice crystals, and the temperature plummeted by more than ten degrees.

Shui Bing'er followed immediately after. The phantom of an Ice Phoenix emerged behind her, and as four Soul Rings rose, the second ring beneath her feet lit up.

"Second Soul Skill, Ice Ring Armor!"

A layer of icy blue armor covered her body. Then she raised her hand and pointed forward, causing her fourth purple Soul Ring to light up.

"Fourth Soul Skill, Ice Phoenix Wings!"

A pair of icy blue wings spread from her back. This was the new soul skill she had gained after absorbing the twelve-thousand-year Ice Phoenix Soul Ring. It not only granted her the ability to fly, but also allowed her to release slowing ice mist across a wide area.

With a beat of her wings, the ice mist surged forward like a tide, covering the entire front half of the sparring platform.

Standing within the ice mist, Yang Wudi felt the air around him become viscous, his movement speed slowing by at least ten percent. He grinned. "Interesting!"

Shui Yue'er and Gu Qingbo moved at the same time. One came from the left, the other from the right, weaving toward Yang Wudi's flanks along the edges of the ice mist like two swimming fish. Their goal was not a frontal attack, but to constantly shift positions and seek openings, forcing Yang Wudi to divide his attention.