Looking at the unconscious Snow Empress in Chen Jie's arms, the Ice Empress walked up to him, the pink rings of light in her eyes still spinning endlessly.
She tilted her head slightly and blinked at Chen Jie, looking sweet and obedient as she spoke softly:
"Master, isn't it a little too cruel to put Xue'er through this...?"
Chen Jie looked at the unconscious Snow Empress and spun his tale. "She's about to face her seven-hundred-thousand-year lightning tribulation. She has no chance of surviving it on her own. We're not hurting her-we're helping her cultivate. You probably couldn't find another person as warmhearted as me in this world."
The Sumeru Micro-World.
After quite some time, the Snow Empress slowly opened her eyes.
She looked around and found herself lying in an exquisitely furnished room. She tried to summon her soul power, but her dantian was empty. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't muster even a trace of soul power.
Just as she tried to struggle upright, she realized something was wrong. Her hands and feet were securely tied to the bed, and another loop of rope was wrapped tightly around her chest, pinning her entire body in place. She couldn't move at all.
"Oh~ ho, ho, ho~"
Just then, a series of soft moans came from next door.
Unease filled the Snow Empress's delicate face, and panic churned inside her. That sounds so much like Bing'er! What is this place? Where did Bing'er go? Is she all right?
A voice came from next door. "You wouldn't want the Snow Empress to get hurt, would you?"
Then came the Ice Empress's choked voice. "Please, don't hurt Xue'er. I'll do anything for her..."
Chen Jie's voice rang out coldly. "On your knees. Lower your head."
"Oh~ ho, ho, ho~"
Hearing this, the Snow Empress grew frantic.
The Snow Empress's heart sank. She had lived for a full seven hundred thousand years and had heard something of all manner of worldly affairs and secret dealings.
Putting the sounds together, she instantly understood what was happening next door and screamed inwardly, No! He's forcing Bing'er! Bing'er, you can't do this!
A chill pierced her to the bone as she thought, How could the Sea God's inheritor be this evil?
Next door, Chen Jie's voice sounded again. "Just as I thought. Only talking about the Snow Empress gets you excited."
The Snow Empress's eyes stung. Tormented beyond measure, she pleaded silently, Please stop. My heart hurts so much...
"Oh~ ho, ho, ho~"
"Sweet brother~"
Two hours quietly passed.
The heat in the next room had yet to dissipate. The Ice Empress was drenched in a fine sheen of fragrant sweat, her normally cool, fair skin covered in tiny beads that glistened translucently.
She was utterly spent, her limbs limp and aching. After being taut for so long, her body had no strength left to sustain her. Sweat had soaked her long hair, leaving strands clinging to her neck and cheeks.
She slumped limply in Chen Jie's arms, her breathing shallow and a little hurried. Exhausted from head to toe, she had completely lost her usual air of icy purity and aloof pride.
Chen Jie lowered his head to her ear and whispered, "Well? Doesn't mentioning the Snow Empress get you excited? I could feel it all."
Nestled in his arms, the Ice Empress muttered in a faint, soft voice tinged with helplessness and grievance, "The only reason I got excited was because of your twisted tastes, Master..."
In the Snow Empress's room, every moment of those two hours had been agonizing for her.
Bound tightly to the bed, she struggled in vain as the sounds reaching her ears tormented her without cease.
Anxiety seared her heart, and her whole body felt feverishly hot. A fine layer of sweat emerged, soaking her clothes and slowly trickling down her skin.
Scalding tears streamed down her cheeks. Filled with self-reproach, she thought bitterly, I'm so useless. I've lived for seven hundred thousand years, yet all my cultivation is gone, and I can't even protect Bing'er...
Before long, Chen Jie made his way to the room where the Snow Empress was confined.
He pushed open the door and looked toward the bed. The Snow Empress was flushed with heat and drenched in fragrant sweat, her soaked clothes clinging tightly to her body.
Noticing someone enter, the Snow Empress abruptly raised her head. Her eyes were red, and she forced down the surging fear within her as she demanded sharply, "What have you done to Bing'er? Where is she now?"
"Her? Very wet."
Chen Jie walked slowly to the bedside, a hint of amusement on his face, and said casually, "She's somewhere very nice right now, enjoying herself immensely. As long as you behave, she won't suffer the slightest mistreatment."
The Snow Empress stared fixedly at him, her chest heaving. Grief, fury, and helplessness filled her heart, yet she couldn't summon even a trace of soul power. She could only remain trapped helplessly in the ropes.
Her taut defenses finally crumbled. Tears poured from her eyes, and her voice trembled as she begged desperately, "Please, spare Bing'er. Whatever you want, do it all to me. I have more to offer than Bing'er. I won't disappoint you!"
The Snow Empress's tears kept falling. She humbled herself to the utmost, hoping only to secure Bing'er's safety.
Looking at her disheveled, helpless state, Chen Jie curled his lips into a cold smile and said slowly, "Fine. If you want me to spare Bing'er, you must not resist at all from now on."
The Snow Empress stiffened at his words. To protect the Ice Empress, she abandoned every shred of dignity and nodded faintly, allowing despair to envelop her. She no longer entertained the slightest thought of resistance.
In an instant, a soft pink halo appeared out of thin air. Countless intricate Contract Runes flowed and danced within it. The runes slowly drifted down, carrying an irresistible binding force, and branded themselves firmly on the right side of the Snow Empress's chest.
A strange, warm, tingling sensation swept through her entire being. The Pink Contract fully activated, not only sealing her cultivation and freedom but also quietly prying open her mind.
The next moment, Chen Jie summoned the light power within him inherited from Electrolux.
Soft, gentle light power slowly enveloped the Snow Empress, resonating with the Pink Contract mark on her chest and activating the secret art of soul spirit transformation. This secret art was unusual: her physical body, appearance, and memories would all remain unchanged, and none of the cultivation she had accumulated over seven hundred thousand years would be lost.
Divine light power wrapped around her body and worked with the contract patterns to transform the Snow Empress herself into a special humanoid soul spirit.
Under the divine power's subtle influence, the resistance and despair lingering within her slowly faded, while affection and dependence arose uncontrollably in her heart.
Before long, the transformation was complete.
The Snow Empress's body remained intact, and her strength was still at its peak. Through the secret art powered by Electrolux's inheritance, combined with the Pink Contract's Divine Soul Binding, she officially became Chen Jie's second soul spirit.
As the Snow Empress fully transformed into a soul spirit and merged into his body, dazzling radiance suddenly burst from Chen Jie.
Five Soul Rings slowly rose from within him and revolved around him.
The first was snowy white throughout, with a faint strand of gold twining around it;
The second was blood-red, with four golden patterns flickering across its surface;
The remaining three were all dazzling orange-gold Soul Rings.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for successfully subduing the soul spirit Snow Empress!] [Reward obtained: Ice God Inheritance, 50%] [Reward obtained: Soul power increased directly by five levels] [Reward obtained: Compatibility with the Ice God Position has reached 100%. Once your cultivation surpasses the peak of level 99, you can ascend directly to godhood. This God Position can be transferred to someone else.] [Additional reward: Ice Empress's affection increased by 20%]
"Oh~ ho, ho, ho~"
Before you continue