"Senior Ice Empress, you wouldn't want the Snow Empress to fail her heavenly tribulation and perish beneath it, would you?" Lin Xuanchen raised an eyebrow. "Besides, the hidden injuries she's carrying can't be left untreated much longer, can they?"
At Lin Xuanchen's words, the Ice Empress froze.
The Snow Empress was her weakness. One could also say that the Snow Empress was the person she cared about most, bar none.
"Senior Ice Empress, this deal is absolutely worth more than its price. Holding off your heavenly tribulations for another ten years or so would be no problem at all." Lin Xuanchen continued, "Your chance to survive is right before your eyes. Are you really going to give it up just like that?"
"Of course, don't even think about killing me and taking the ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow. If I die, you won't get a single piece," Lin Xuanchen added.
The Ice Empress said nothing after hearing his words. She merely bit her soft pink lower lip and silently watched Lin Xuanchen and Wang Dong'er beside him.
"Whew."
After a long while, the Ice Empress let out a long breath. "This empress can go with you, but you must give me ten pieces of ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow first!"
"That won't do." Lin Xuanchen shook his head. "You haven't even started working, and you already want an advance on your wages? Where would you find such a sweet deal? Besides, what if you take those ten pieces and turn on me?"
"Human, you're courting death!" An icy trace of murderous intent suddenly flashed through the Ice Empress's amber eyes. "Do you really think I wouldn't dare kill you?"
"Then you're welcome to try." Lin Xuanchen smiled lightly. "If I die, you and the Snow Empress will lose your chance to survive anyway. In the end, you'll only perish beneath your heavenly tribulations and turn into heaps of yellow earth."
At those words, the Ice Empress fell silent. At that moment, she truly had nothing to say.
Every word Lin Xuanchen spoke stabbed straight into her heart. It was all true, and she could find nothing to refute.
"Ah." The Ice Empress sighed helplessly and raised her eyes to Lin Xuanchen again. "This empress will go with you. I agree to serve as your guardian for ten years."
"However..." The Ice Empress raised a slender, jade-like finger and pointed at the piece of ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow floating above Lin Xuanchen's head. "You must give me that piece first!"
"That's easy enough, but..." Lin Xuanchen shifted tack. "Since I've already sworn on my martial soul to prove that I really do possess forty-five pieces of ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow, how will you prove that you won't harm me while serving as my guardian, Senior Ice Empress?"
"Human, agreeing to become your guardian is already an enormous concession on this empress's part. Don't take an inch and reach for a mile!" the Ice Empress said, her gaze turning cold.
"No, no, no." Lin Xuanchen shook his head. "You aren't making a concession. You need the ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow I have. If I didn't possess such a priceless treasure, you certainly wouldn't be standing here calmly negotiating with me."
"Then what do you want?" the Ice Empress asked coldly.
"I want you to swear by the Ice God that you won't harm me during your time as my guardian." Lin Xuanchen gave a faint smile. "Otherwise, I'll turn around and leave right now. I'm sure you can sense it too-from the aura radiating from the phantom behind me, you know you couldn't possibly stop me."
Lin Xuanchen was brimming with confidence now. I refuse to believe the Ice Empress can resist the temptation of ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow.
What was more, the Ice Empress needed it to heal her hidden injuries, and so did the Snow Empress. With their lives under threat, the Ice Empress could not possibly refuse.
As for why he wanted the Ice Empress to swear by the Ice God, that was naturally to add another layer of protection for his personal safety.
Although the divine consciousnesses of the Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction in his Sea of Consciousness were enough to keep him safe, and, failing that, Wang Dong'er's Sea of Consciousness should also contain Tang San's divine consciousness, he would avoid triggering them whenever possible.
Whether it was the divine consciousnesses of the Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction in Lin Xuanchen's Sea of Consciousness or Tang San's divine consciousness in Wang Dong'er's, it was best not to trigger any of them.
If he triggered them and drew their frequent attention, how could he carry out his wicked plans and keep teasing Wang Dong'er?
He certainly did not want that old bastard Tang San putting some sort of chastity lock on Wang Dong'er. He did not have the willpower to only look without getting a taste.
Having read the original work thoroughly, he naturally knew that the soul beasts of the Far North had always held deep faith in the Ice God. As long as the Ice Empress swore by the Ice God, she could be trusted completely.
In the end, the Ice Empress compromised.
"Fine! You win!" The Ice Empress gritted her pearly teeth resentfully and glared at Lin Xuanchen.
She could not refute what Lin Xuanchen had said. She desperately needed the ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow now, and so did the Snow Empress, so she had no choice but to compromise.
It was only an oath, anyway. All she had to do was refrain from harming this human boy, and she had never intended to cross the river and tear down the bridge behind her in the first place.
The Ice Empress's expression slowly grew solemn, and she said in a low voice, "With the Ice God as my witness, I, the Ice Empress, swear by the Ice God that during my time as guardian, I will never harm..."
Halfway through her oath, the Ice Empress stopped.
"Hey, humans, what are your names?" the Ice Empress asked, looking at Lin Xuanchen.
"My name is Lin Xuanchen." Lin Xuanchen smiled slightly, then pointed at Wang Dong'er. "And she's my girlfriend, Wang Dong'er."
"Mm." Upon hearing this, the Ice Empress nodded and swore, "With the Ice God as my witness, I, the Ice Empress, swear by the Ice God that during my time as guardian, I will never kill Lin Xuanchen or Wang Dong'er like a donkey slaughtered once the grinding is done. Otherwise, may I perish beneath my heavenly tribulation!"
"Good." Seeing that the Ice Empress had completed her oath, Lin Xuanchen smiled slightly. With a beckoning motion of his hand, the piece of ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow floating above his head turned into a streak of icy-blue light and flew toward her.
The Ice Empress did not dawdle either, immediately putting away the piece of ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow.
"Senior Ice Empress, here's to a pleasant partnership." Lin Xuanchen smiled faintly.
"Remember! This is strictly a partnership!" the Ice Empress said coolly.
"Understood, understood. A partnership." The corners of Lin Xuanchen's mouth slowly curled into a meaningful smile. "There's still one more destination I need to visit on this trip, so please accompany me, Senior Ice Empress."
"Hmph!" The Ice Empress snorted softly. "I'll follow you from the shadows. Remember, this is strictly a partnership!"
As she spoke, emerald light flashed, and the Ice Empress vanished before Lin Xuanchen and Wang Dong'er.
Tch, is there any need to keep stressing that it's a partnership? Lin Xuanchen curled his lip and muttered inwardly.
"X-Xuanchen... did you just hire a ferocious beast as our bodyguard?!" Wang Dong'er asked dazedly, as though she still had not recovered from the shock.
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