The Ice Empress, Ready to Die-Have You Ever Seen a Dragon?

A beam formed from Ice Emperor's Wrath shot toward Heavenly Fiend Douluo.

Ultimate Ice suppressed Heavenly Fiend Douluo so completely that he could barely circulate his Soul Power. As he watched the terrifying attack bear down on him, only one thought remained:

I'm finished.

At the last possible moment, a crimson figure stepped in front of him.

Whoosh! The figure opened his mouth and swallowed the terrifying Ice Emperor's Wrath whole.

Heavenly Fiend Douluo stared blankly. The man before him was Taotie Douluo, Xuan Zi, with his Martial Soul unleashed.

Xuan Zi no longer looked old. His body was as powerfully built as an ox's, and two enormous horns had grown from his head.

He grinned. "So this is the Ferocious Beast Ice Empress? Not much to look at."

Seeing her attack stopped so easily, the Ice Empress's gaze turned colder still.

If she could draw on her four hundred thousand years of Soul Power cultivation, how could she have let this stupid ox strut around in front of her?

But right now, she truly was no match for Xuan Zi.

Xuan Zi looked past the Ice Empress at Chi Hong and said viciously:

"Boy, I'm curious. You can even command a Ferocious Beast-class Soul Beast. Where did you get that ability?"

"If you voluntarily hand that ability over to Shrek, along with the Plate, the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone, and the hundred-thousand-year Soul Beast embryo, I might consider going easy on you, traitor to humanity."

Chi Hong swept his gaze around. The emperor of the Star Luo Empire, dukes, commoners, and students from other academies attending the tournament were all present.

Every one of them now looked at him with wary, united hostility.

An idea suddenly came to Chi Hong. He gave a soft laugh, clasped his hands behind his back, and took on an air of sharp confidence.

"Since you all want to know, listen carefully. I come from the Beast Taming Sect, the mightiest ancient sect hidden from the world."

"I am this generation's young master of the Beast Taming Sect. I emerged to survey the world."

Xuan Zi frowned.

"What Beast Taming Sect? I've never heard of it. If you're its young master, why did you come to Shrek and plot against my students?"

Chi Hong sneered.

"A frog at the bottom of a well. The Beast Taming Sect has existed since the dawn of humanity. Even in ancient times, we could form contracts with Soul Beasts and command them, making us the strongest power of our age."

"Later, we discovered that the Soul Beasts we raised could not become gods and would face heavenly tribulations. So we withdrew from the world to study how to help Soul Beasts ascend to godhood."

"But I never imagined that after a mere few tens of thousands of years..."

Chi Hong's eyes swept across the crowd.

"You would hunt Soul Beasts without restraint to increase your strength, driving their numbers into a steep decline. Countless species that had existed since ancient times are now extinct."

"Have you ever considered what consequences such destruction of nature's balance might bring?"

The crowd fell silent.

Of course they knew that if this continued, Soul Beasts would die out. People would no longer be able to obtain high-age Soul Rings or grow stronger.

But who could resist the temptation to increase their own strength?

Chi Hong paused, then continued:

"I know you can't put a complete stop to it. But I never expected you to lack even the slightest sense of prevention. Instead, you've pinned all your hopes on Soul Tools and their development. How disappointing."

Chi Hong shook his head with a sigh, then looked at Xuan Zi again.

"To change the future in which Soul Beasts go extinct, the Beast Taming Sect has decided to emerge once more and take charge of this world. We will change the future of humans and Soul Beasts alike."

Xuan Zi burst out laughing.

"Never mind whether your Beast Taming Sect even exists. Take charge of the world? Have you asked Shrek, the continent's greatest academy?"

Chi Hong's expression did not change. His voice remained calm.

"The Beast Taming Sect values peace. We had no wish to resort to violence the moment we emerged, so I was sent ahead as its young master. Naturally, I chose the so-called greatest academy on the continent as my first stop."

"If your academy had been upright and noble, working tirelessly for humanity's future and willing to make sacrifices, I would have given it my full support."

At that, Chi Hong sighed again.

"But I found that you were nothing of the sort."

"Your teaching is barely competent, and your academic standards are a disgrace. From teachers to students, almost the entire academy is mired in romantic entanglements. And its second-strongest member is a gluttonous fool like you. What a joke."

"This tournament has gone just as I expected. You people are beyond saving."

The people in the arena exchanged glances.

If they could improve relations between humans and Soul Beasts and gain the ability to command Soul Beasts as Chi Hong did, they would gladly accept it.

But they did not want another powerful faction to arise.

That would mean fewer resources to go around, along with shifts in status and new conflicts.

So almost no one accepted what Chi Hong said.

Only the Ice Empress looked at Chi Hong with shining eyes.

Emotion rippled through her heart.

She had not been wrong about this man.

For the sake of Soul Beasts, he was willing to proclaim his convictions to everyone in a place watched by the whole world.

In that case, she would not fail the one she had chosen as her... master.

[Ice Empress intimacy +7. Current intimacy: 89.]

But Xuan Zi's eyes had turned bloodshot, and he breathed like an enraged ox. He could not bear Chi Hong's insults. "You dare insult Shrek? You've given me every reason to kill you. Die!"

He stamped his foot and charged at Chi Hong with overwhelming speed and force.

"If you want to kill him, you'll have to step over my corpse first."

The Ice Empress's small figure stood before Chi Hong, her gaze fierce and resolute.

She thrust out both hands, and Ultimate Ice condensed into layer upon layer of shields before her.

Ice Empress Protection!

Xuan Zi slammed both fists into the ice shields.

Boom!

The violent clash between two top-tier fighters sent a shockwave spreading across the entire Soul Arena.

Everyone buckled under its force. It felt as though the Soul Arena might be torn apart at any moment.

The two remained locked in a stalemate.

But Xuan Zi laughed wildly. Two black holes formed around his fists, steadily devouring the Ice Empress's Ultimate Ice.

Although more of the Ice Empress's power had been unsealed, she was still no match for Xuan Zi.

As they struggled against each other, she sent a message directly to Chi Hong's mind.

In a moment, I'll force out my source power and freeze the old man and myself in place, trapping us both here. Use the chance to escape. Go as far as you can, and don't come back.

Chi Hong frowned. He understood what the Ice Empress intended at once.

You're going to use the Ice Explosion Technique on yourself and take him down with you? Don't be ridiculous. I won't allow it.

After acquiring the Ice Jade Scorpion left arm bone, he had immediately had the Ice Empress refine it and learn the Ice Explosion Technique.

He had never expected her to want to use it so soon—and only once.

The Ice Empress gave no further explanation. She merely smiled.

You don't need to worry about me. I do as I please. Hurry and go. I'm glad I met you. My only regret is that I won't get to see the day you become a god.

Hearing words that sounded like a farewell, Chi Hong could only smile helplessly.

Then he walked forward, step by step, until he stood beside the Ice Empress.

He said softly, "Have you forgotten how I took you in? You really are an idiot."

The Ice Empress froze. Her eyes shone brighter. "You mean...?"

Chi Hong looked coldly at the grinning Xuan Zi. Holding an ordinary Poké Ball in his palm, he asked:

"Xuan Zi, have you ever seen a dragon?"