I'll Bring You Back. Wait for Me!

Spring gave way to autumn, and the years flew by. Two years passed in a blink.

"Hahaha! I did it! I finally did it!"

With a triumphant shout, an ice-blue figure appeared in the air above Nouding Academy's Back Mountain.

Compared to two years earlier, Ling Han's entire bearing had changed.

Ling Han still had only eight Soul Rings, but his Soul Power Level had reached Level 90, making him a Quasi-Titled Douluo.

All he needed now was for the Snow Empress to sacrifice herself and grant him his ninth Soul Ring. Then he could become a Titled Douluo.

It was the holiday before Tang San's fourth year. He and Xiao Wu had gone out to have fun and were not at the academy.

Just moments ago, Ling Han had finally grasped how to form Yin-Yang Complementary Dual Soul Cores.

For nearly the entire two years, he had been in seclusion.

He had spent part of that time working out how to form the Yin-Yang Complementary Dual Soul Cores, and the rest researching how to refine the Bone-Regrowing Blood-Fusing Pill.

Now, at last, he had succeeded.

The Snow Empress came to Ling Han's side, her eyes glistening.

After two years together, she realized she had fallen for this young man who dared to dream and dared to act.

She had guided Ling Han's research into forming his first Soul Core.

Without her help, he could never have succeeded in just two years while starting from scratch.

"Congratulations, Ling Han."

Ling Han turned to her. They smiled at each other, and he gently took her small hand in his. "I couldn't have done it without you, Xue'er."

Meanwhile, a certain little emerald-green scorpion in Ling Han's Sea of Consciousness no longer had the strength to despair.

"Xue'er... my Xue'er... waaaah..."

The Snow Empress looked at Ling Han with reluctance and resolve in her eyes. "Then let's begin the sacrifice now."

"Xue'er, are you sure?"

She nodded firmly. "I promised you I would. Even if you never become a god, I won't regret it!"

"Besides, I believe in you!"

Ling Han drew a deep breath and pulled her into his arms. "Don't worry, Xue'er. I've found a way. Even if I never become a god, I'll bring you back!"

She did not pull away. Smiling, she stroked his back. "All right. I believe you."

"Let me take you around the human world one more time."

"All right."

Ling Han took the Snow Empress to Heaven Dou City, the most prosperous city in the Heaven Dou Empire.

As they walked its streets, countless people turned to look.

With her breathtaking, wintry beauty and his cool, handsome looks, they seemed made for each other.

Ling Han led her to a stall.

All kinds of jewelry and ornaments were laid out on it.

They were inexpensive, but the stall owner had made every piece by hand.

The owner was a young woman with a sweet smile and a warm manner.

"Young sir, young miss, see anything you like?"

Her eyes lit up when she saw them. "What a lovely pair you make! This young lady looks as though she stepped right out of a painting!"

The Snow Empress gave her a faint smile in response.

Ling Han spotted a peach blossom on the stall—or rather, a hair ornament shaped like one.

"Xue'er, how about trying this on?"

He picked it up and gently placed it in her hair.

The touch of pink against her snow-white hair made her even more beautiful.

"It looks good. Really good!"

Ling Han gave her a thumbs-up.

"Miss, you truly are a fairy descended to earth. You're gorgeous!"

The stall owner certainly knew how to flatter a customer.

Once Ling Han had paid, that touch of pink remained in the Snow Empress's hair.

They went into a restaurant, where Ling Han ordered plenty of Heaven Dou City specialties. At his current cultivation level, there was no need to worry about leaving anything uneaten.

That night, they sat together on the roof of a tall building and took in the view of Heaven Dou City.

The streets glowed with lights and bustled with people.

"Thank you for taking me out, Ling Han."

The Snow Empress nestled against him, a happy smile on her face.

"You don't have to thank me."

The next day, on the Back Mountain near Nuoding City.

Ling Han had carved out a cave there for the sacrifice.

He summoned the Ice Dragon King's dragon soul to guard them and conceal the aura the sacrifice would release.

"Xue'er, are you ready?"

Everything in the cave was prepared. Only the final step remained.

The Snow Empress nodded, resolve filling her eyes.

"All right. Let's begin."

Ling Han released his Martial Soul.

A resounding dragon's cry echoed through the cave, and an image of the Ice Dragon King appeared.

Yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, red, red—eight Soul Rings appeared beneath Ling Han's feet.

The last ring bore three golden markings and shone with extraordinary brilliance.

The Snow Empress took a deep breath. Without hesitation, she began the sacrifice.

A blood-red pillar of light shot upward, bathing the entire cave in crimson.

Ling Han looked at her.

"I'll bring you back. I promise. Wait for me!"

The Snow Empress smiled faintly as her figure gradually turned faint and translucent.

Seeing this, the Ice Empress in Ling Han's Sea of Consciousness felt oddly relieved.

Once the Snow Empress had sacrificed herself to Ling Han, the Ice Empress would no longer have to watch the two of them act so lovey-dovey every day. Being unable to do anything about it had been unbearable.

The Snow Empress's figure faded away, leaving only a crystal-clear Head Soul Bone and a blood-red Soul Ring with six golden markings.

A 680,000-year Soul Ring and Soul Bone!

Ling Han wasted no time. He sat cross-legged and began forming his Yin-Yang Complementary Dual Soul Cores.

He intended to use the Soul Power released by the Snow Empress's sacrifice and the spiritual power from her Head Soul Bone to form the Dual Soul Cores.

The Snow Empress's Soul Ring soon settled around Ling Han, while the Soul Bone fitted itself against his forehead.

In an instant, the Soul Power she had accumulated over 680,000 years surged into his body.

The spiritual power from the Head Soul Bone rapidly filled his Sea of Consciousness.

Ling Han gritted his teeth and began forming his Soul Cores.

His Spiritual Soul Core in his upper dantian and his Ultimate Ice Soul Core in his middle dantian took shape at the same time.

At that moment, the Snow Empress's soul appeared in Ling Han's Sea of Consciousness.

"Xue'er!"

The moment she appeared, the Ice Empress rushed over and threw her small arms around her, like a daughter hugging her mother.

The Snow Empress smiled tenderly and stroked the Ice Empress's head. "Bing'er, I'm here."

The little girl's face filled with reproach. "Xue'er, have you fallen for Ling Han? You've completely forgotten me!"

The question caught the Snow Empress off guard.

Did I love him? I suppose I did.

Over their two years together, his tenderness and thoughtfulness, along with his courage to follow through on his ideas, had drawn her in.

She had to admit that, for the first time in hundreds of thousands of years, she had grown fond of a human. Her heart had even begun to stir.

When the Snow Empress remained silent, the Ice Empress seemed to have her answer.

"I knew it! Xue'er, you've changed!"