Bountiful Divine Trial Rewards, Ice Empress's Sacrifice!

"It was very strong. It could be used as a trump card."

Du Busi's eyes were full of approval.

Under normal circumstances, there would be no need for Ye Chen to use Death Feast. If they encountered a Titled Douluo, their protectors would surely step in.

But the enemy might launch a cunning sneak attack, tying down all three other protectors before coming directly for Ye Chen.

At that point, if Ye Chen pulled out an unexpected move, he might be able to instantly kill an off-guard Titled Douluo.

[Heir of Space, congratulations on completing the first of the Nine Space Trials: advance to Soul Emperor within ten years.]

[Reward obtained: Soul Power +3, all Soul Rings +1,000 years, God of Space affinity +15%, doubled space-attribute affinity, all space-type soul skill consumption halved, artifact Void Crown "Mark Form" unlocked.]

[Second of the Nine Space Trials: enter the Void Crown's Mark Space. There is no light, no sound, and no reference points. Above, below, left, and right are all gray void. Find a weak point through spatial perception alone and tear open an exit. Within this empty space, spiritual power will continuously drain away. The longer you are trapped, the blurrier your perception will become. Time limit: one year.]

[Heir of Space, the faster you complete the Divine Trials, the more generous your rewards will be.]

Ye Chen sucked in a cold breath.

Although the God of Space's rewards were generous, the time constraints were extremely tight.

The second trial even had a one-year limit. Failure to complete it meant immediate failure. It was practically forcing a duck onto the perch.

This was somewhat similar to Sea God Island's tests. Sea soul masters were given ten years for their trials, while land soul masters only had one year.

"Your Soul Power rose from Rank 63 to Rank 66?"

Snow Empress sharply noticed the change.

After Ye Chen had absorbed his Soul Ring earlier, he had clearly only been Rank 63. Now, he had jumped another three ranks.

Furthermore, the geometric pattern on Ye Chen's forehead gradually transformed into the shape of a crown.

Although the colors of the Soul Rings beneath his feet had not changed, they seemed to have improved as well.

"I completed the first of the Nine Space Trials and received the Divine Trial reward just now."

"I have to complete the second trial within a year."

Ye Chen took a deep breath.

Judging by the God of Space's trial pace, he felt that he could become a god several years before Tang San.

By then, Tang San could only crawl up the steps on Sea God Island like an insect creeping through damp darkness.

"You completed the first trial at twelve?"

Ice Empress blinked.

The human before her was far too monstrous. His cultivation speed was absurd, and so was the speed at which he completed Divine Trials.

"It was just luck."

"I think I'll be able to obtain my seventh Soul Ring within a year."

Ye Chen could not help frowning.

According to his original plan, he would kill Xiao Wu after the Advanced Soul Master Tournament to obtain his seventh Soul Ring.

Since it would be a Martial Soul Avatar anyway, he could absorb any attribute. He could simply throw the Soul Bone to someone else.

Now that he calculated it, he could become a Soul Saint within a year at most. He would have to hunt a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast ahead of schedule.

Xiao Wu, the Titan Giant Ape, and the Sky Azure Bull Python could all be left to the others in the Body Sect.

Those three Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts were extremely incompatible with his space attribute. Absorbing them would instead affect the effectiveness of his soul skills.

"If Bing'er sacrifices herself to you now, you should be able to rise directly to Rank 70 Soul Power."

Snow Empress suddenly spoke.

Soul beast sacrifices on Douluo Continent were inherently unreasonable things, and they even had the effect of replenishing a soul master's Soul Power.

If Ye Chen's body were much stronger, he could completely step on his own foot and rise straight to Titled Douluo by relying on the sacrifices of several more Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.

However, if Ye Chen wanted to accept Snow Empress's sacrifice, he would need to be at least a Titled Douluo to withstand the impact of her 680,000 years of Soul Power.

"Snow Empress, Ice Empress, have you agreed?"

Ye Chen was delighted.

Although he had just absorbed his sixth Soul Ring, Ice Empress was willing to sacrifice herself!

With spiritual power at the Titled Douluo level, along with the powerful physique of his Body Martial Soul, he should be able to withstand the impact of Ice Empress's Soul Power and soul.

Ye Chen's situation differed from Huo Yuhao's. Huo Yuhao had the soul spirits created by Electrolux, which drastically reduced the difficulty.

"Where did all this nonsense come from? Since I've decided to sacrifice myself to you, there's no turning back for me."

"Kid, bone first, then ring."

Ice Empress wanted to test the waters first.

She feared that Ye Chen's Soul Power would be unable to restore her soul, as the gap in strength between them was simply too great.

If Ye Chen knew Ice Empress's concern, he would definitely say it was no problem. What he controlled was the power of time, not the things themselves.

"Boom!"

Ice Empress's body began to collapse.

Her ice-blue shell cracked apart from the edges. The shattered ice dispersed as soon as it struck the ground, turning into specks of light that drifted toward Ye Chen.

An ice crystal the size of a fist floated out from Ice Empress's chest, hovered in midair, then shot directly into Ye Chen's chest.

Ye Chen's entire body tilted backward.

A bone-chilling sensation spread from his sternum, traveling along his spine toward both ends of his body.

Ice-blue patterns emerged from his chest, covered his entire back, then gradually sank beneath his skin and disappeared.

Immediately afterward, the final streak of ice-blue light rose from Ice Empress's shattered body, condensed into a pure red Soul Ring in the air, and drifted toward Ye Chen.

Ye Chen's Nine-Hearted Begonia floated in the air. Beneath his feet, there was now a blood-red Soul Ring marked with three golden lines.

His Soul Power, originally at Rank 66, directly reached Rank 70. He was only one Soul Ring away from becoming a Soul Saint.

"Temporal Reversal!"

Ye Chen activated the power of time and applied it to himself.

Ice Empress's soul, which had originally shattered, was restored to its original state under the reversal of time.

She stared blankly around her. She had truly died once, and only recovered after a long while.

"Kid, I'll be staying in your spiritual sea from now on."

Ice Empress haughtily slipped inside.

She kicked the Mirror Shadow Beast away, sending it rolling into the farthest corner to sleep.

Ye Chen sat cross-legged. The Nine-Hearted Begonia suspended above him would occasionally drop a petal to help ease the extreme burden on his body.

It had to be said, the soul spirit method was far more comfortable. There was no need to endure such a terrifying impact at all.

Compared to his difficulty, Huo Yuhao's was not even in the same league.

After all, Ye Chen still had to use the power of time to lock onto every fragment of Ice Empress's soul before reversing them and restoring her.

"Whew, it's finally done."

Ye Chen let out a long breath.

After being altered by the power of time, Ice Empress's Soul Ring and Soul Bone had both undergone certain changes.

After all, he was not of the ultimate ice attribute, but the even stronger time attribute.

"Should we head for the sea next, or the Star Dou Great Forest? We're short three Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings now."

Du Busi looked eager to give it a try.

Ye Chen still needed Snow Empress's sacrifice, so the Body Sect had no intention of seeking Soul Rings in the Far North.

Even if there were soul beasts willing to sacrifice themselves, they could be reserved for Ye Chen's second martial soul until he became a Titled Douluo.

"Let's go to the Star Dou Great Forest!"

"There's no point in keeping the Titan Giant Ape and Sky Azure Bull Python alive. Let's hunt them directly."

Ye Chen did not need their Soul Rings.

However, the two great Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts had powerful bloodlines, making them useful for increasing the Body Sect's strength.

Once they reached the Star Dou Great Forest, they could look around and see whether they could encounter any suitable soul beasts.

"I'll go with you."

Snow Empress wanted to leave with them.

As long as the Body Sect did not harm her people, she could not be bothered to interfere.