"You haven't earned the right to know."
Di Tian glanced at the Ice Empress, making no attempt to hide the contempt in his eyes.
To the outside world, the Ice Empress was renowned.
But in Di Tian's eyes, this scorpion was nothing special.
Besides, the fewer people who knew about Gu Yunxiao's identity, the better.
"Di Tian, you!"
A trace of anger crept into the Ice Empress's clear voice.
As one of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Far North, she had never been belittled like this before.
Only Di Tian could get away with it. Had it been anyone else, she would have torn them apart long ago.
There was nothing she could do. Although this was her home ground, Di Tian's strength was terrifying. She was no match for him.
"Di Tian, don't you dare act so arrogantly!"
"I may be no match for you, but this is the Far North, the territory of the Snow Empress and me. You'd better weigh your chances before running wild here!"
The Ice Empress immediately invoked the Snow Empress.
With the Snow Empress at her side and the advantage of their home ground in the Far North, she had no reason to fear Di Tian.
"Then we'll wait for the Snow Empress."
Di Tian spoke mildly, then raised his brows slightly and looked in a certain direction. "Oh, she's already here."
In the distance, an astonishing aura was rapidly approaching.
That icy aura carried an emperor's majesty. Even Di Tian grew solemn, putting away the contempt in his eyes.
Whoosh-
Snowflakes swirled through the sky, and powdered ice filled the air.
A graceful figure drifted down through the swirling snowstorm. Her delicate feet descended, but rather than touching the snow, she hovered just above it.
She had the appearance of a human woman, with long, pure-white hair flowing loosely down her back, falling straight all the way to her feet.
Her sky-blue eyes were ethereal and clear, as though they could see through everything in the world.
A white dress without a single adornment perfectly accentuated her slender, flawless figure.
Her bearing was noble, pure, and immaculate, like a winter plum blossom amid deep snow, standing apart from all others, proud against snow and defiant of frost.
Without a doubt, she was a beautiful woman.
As Gu Yunxiao took in her face and figure, a flicker of admiration crossed his eyes.
He was looking at the Snow Empress, and she was looking at him too.
After all, a human whom Beast God Di Tian protected so devotedly could hardly fail to arouse her curiosity.
"Snow Empress!"
Seeing the Snow Empress arrive, the Ice Empress immediately found her pillar of support, and her voice became noticeably happier.
In the Ice Empress's view, once the Snow Empress arrived, Di Tian could no longer act with impunity.
"Bing'er."
The Snow Empress smiled faintly at the Ice Empress, then turned to Di Tian.
"Beast God Di Tian."
"Snow Empress."
The Snow Empress's gaze met Di Tian's.
Invisibly, the auras of ice and snow and darkness seemed to clash, neither willing to yield.
With the advantage of her home ground in the Far North, the Snow Empress's aura was scarcely weaker than Di Tian's.
"Di Tian, as the guardian of the Star Dou Great Forest, what brings you to the Far North?"
The Snow Empress looked at Di Tian with a solemn expression.
"I've come for the rise or fall of the Soul Beast Clan."
Di Tian glanced at the Ice Empress behind the Snow Empress and spoke mildly. "I need a soul beast with Ultimate Ice, and its bloodline must not be too weak."
"There aren't many clans in the Far North that meet those conditions."
At that point, his meaning was already clear.
"Impossible!"
The Ice Empress flew into a rage and refused without a second thought.
As the queen of the Ice Jade Scorpion Clan, she would never stand by and watch her people be harmed.
"This is a notification, not a negotiation!"
Di Tian's voice was cold and brooked no argument. The power of Ultimate Darkness surged into the sky, as though he was ready to strike.
The Snow Empress's gaze chilled slightly, and an aura of Ultimate Ice erupted from her as well, contending with his Ultimate Darkness.
The Ice Empress did the same, joining the Snow Empress in opposing Di Tian.
For a time, neither side gained the upper hand.
"Di Tian, I need a reason."
"Otherwise, I will not allow you to harm the people of the Far North."
The Snow Empress shook her head, her stance unyielding.
The Ice Empress stared fixedly at Di Tian. Had she been strong enough to defeat him, she would have attacked long ago.
"..."
Only after a long silence did Di Tian speak. "Yunxiao needs an Ultimate Ice martial soul. The chosen Ice Jade Scorpion can retain a sliver of consciousness."
"In the future, it will be glad of its choice."
Hearing this, the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress turned their gazes toward the little boy beside Di Tian.
Under the gazes of the Ice and Snow Empresses, Gu Yunxiao remained exceptionally calm, without the slightest trace of panic on his face.
After all, he had lived in the Star Dou Great Forest for six years and had dealt with its great ferocious beasts since childhood. He had at least that much composure.
The Ice Empress looked at Gu Yunxiao and sneered coldly. "A mere human thinks he's worthy of making my-"
"Ice Empress, this is a warning!"
"I can pretend I didn't hear what you just said. If it happens again, even the Snow Empress won't be able to protect you!"
Di Tian spoke coldly, his eyes brimming with killing intent.
Gu Yunxiao's status was incomparably exalted!
Never mind the Ice Empress-even Di Tian himself could not show him the slightest disrespect.
"You..."
The Ice Empress's heart trembled, and she fell silent.
In that instant, she truly felt Di Tian's intent to kill.
Just who is this little human brat, for Di Tian to place so much importance on him? The Ice Empress was filled with doubts as she stared straight at Gu Yunxiao.
Beside her, the Snow Empress was also rather shocked, even finding it somewhat unbelievable.
Di Tian's reaction was completely unexpected.
This child...
The Snow Empress looked at Gu Yunxiao and fell into thought.
As far as she could sense, Gu Yunxiao was indeed a human.
The only thing worth noting was that, besides a trace of icy power, Gu Yunxiao's body also contained a mysterious, unfathomable power.
That power might be the reason Di Tian valued Gu Yunxiao so highly.
"Snow Empress, you've learned enough."
"Now, have the Ice Empress select an Ice Jade Scorpion with a superior bloodline and let it willingly sacrifice itself to become Yunxiao's martial soul."
Di Tian spoke.
Although this was only a transitional measure, it still could not be too inferior.
The bloodlines of the Ice Jade Scorpion Clan were also divided into different grades.
Since he could not secure the Ice Empress herself, he would choose an Ice Jade Scorpion whose bloodline approached that of an Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion.
"No."
The Snow Empress shook her head. "I must know everything about this child. Otherwise, I won't feel at ease letting one of Bing'er's people follow him."
The Ice Jade Scorpion Clan was already few in number.
There was only one Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion-the Ice Empress herself. As for those with slightly inferior bloodlines who had also reached the ten-thousand-year level, they could be counted on one hand.
Di Tian frowned, somewhat displeased.
Clearly, the Snow Empress's determination had left even this Beast God in a difficult position.
Unless it came down to the very last resort, Di Tian did not want to resolve the matter through force.
After all, the Far North was also part of the Soul Beast Clan.
The two sides remained at an impasse for a long time.
Di Tian looked at the Snow Empress and pondered briefly before transmitting his voice through his thoughts. "Snow Empress, knowing too much about certain things will do you no good."
"I must know."
The Snow Empress replied calmly.
"...This is our lord's will," Di Tian transmitted.
At those words, the Snow Empress's pupils contracted slightly.
She instinctively looked toward Gu Yunxiao, scarcely able to believe that this child was also connected to that sovereign of soul beasts.
Although Di Tian bore the title of "Beast God," he was only a guardian. The one who truly called the shots was the sovereign of soul beasts sleeping deep within the Star Dou Great Forest.
When necessary, even she had to obey that sovereign's commands.
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