That Was...

Lin Xiao nodded, though he still felt as if he were lost in the clouds.

Still, he walked forward.

The Snow Empress followed behind him, a trace of complicated emotion in her eyes.

"I hope Xiao can succeed..."

Lin Xiao arrived beside the icy spring.

"That is the Ice God Spring, another relic of the Ice God and the true heart of the Snow Empress Palace."

"The entire Snow Empress Palace was built around this spring. If it were destroyed, we would have nowhere to call home!"

"That is also why I brought so many Snow Women here to guard it."

"In the Ice God Spring, the Snow Women can not only cultivate faster, but new individuals may also be born from time to time."

"And for ice-attribute Soul Masters, the benefits of this Ice God Spring rival those of your Immortal Herbs..."

The Snow Empress blinked.

"Want a taste?"

Lin Xiao's mouth twitched. Wasn't that just the Snow Women's foot-washing water...? Besides, he wasn't an ice-attribute Soul Master.

Still, he took out a small bottle and filled it.

Even if he couldn't use it, someone else could, right?

The Snow Empress lightly waved her delicate hand.

A bridge made of ultimate ice stretched across the Ice God Spring.

The farther he walked toward the center,

the more Lin Xiao felt a pulling force drawing him in.

It was just like the Ice God Pearl before.

The Ice God Spring was quite large. It took nearly a minute of walking to reach its center.

"That was..."

Lin Xiao's voice felt hoarse. He was utterly stunned.

The Snow Empress nodded and walked ahead of Lin Xiao.

There, at the center shrouded in thick, icy mist,

stood a creature with a dragon's head, deer's antlers, lion's eyes, deer's body, horse's hooves, and ox's tail.

Scales covered her entire body.

How could Lin Xiao fail to recognize her?

That was a qilin!

Although qilin in the Douluo Continent setting might not be as powerful as dragons,

a qilin was still a qilin.

"Heavenfrost Jade Qilin."

The Snow Empress spoke slowly.

"It's been a long time. Are you well?"

Moments after she spoke, Lin Xiao heard an ethereal female voice from deep within his heart.

"I'm well. Who is this human?"

The Snow Empress nodded, then answered her question.

"He is my husband. He was the one who bestowed the Ice God's divine seat upon me..."

"I see."

The Heavenfrost Jade Qilin nodded as well and forced herself to stand.

Only then did Lin Xiao notice that wounds covered her entire body.

Some of them even exuded an aura of death.

"What happened?"

He took two steps sideways, moving closer to the Snow Empress, and asked in a lowered voice.

"It's nothing. My time has simply come. Thank you for your concern."

The Heavenfrost Jade Qilin looked at him and answered before the Snow Empress could.

The Snow Empress then added:

"Yes. She was born long ago. If I am a part of the Far North's fortune, then she is the karma of the entire Far North."

"That is also why she is so grievously wounded.

"Karma power reaches into an unimaginable realm.

"Every move she makes could trigger a butterfly effect.

"Heavenly tribulations, disasters, even erasure at the level of the world's laws.

"The last time was a thousand years ago, when she sought to save a species in the Far North on the brink of extinction: the Far North Ice Viper.

"She forcibly altered karma, not only saving the last survivor's life, but allowing the entire species to flourish in the Far North once again.

"But the price was that her body was torn apart the instant she invoked karma.

"If a hundred-thousand-year spirit herb hadn't forcibly kept her alive until I arrived,

"if the Ice God Spring couldn't conceal certain things,

"she might have perished long ago."

"Xiao." A hint of pleading entered the Snow Empress's voice.

"Your martial soul is very different. I cannot understand it, but I know that wooden spear might also be able to reach that level.

"That is why I brought you here.

"Her very existence may be a loophole in this world. But she is also an indispensable part of the Far North.

"Just like the Emperor Auspicious Beast of the Star Dou Great Forest.

"So you are our only hope. Absorb the Soul Ring from her sacrifice, and carry on the karma and destiny of the Far North..."

Hearing this, Lin Xiao turned slightly to show his respect, but then hesitated.

He looked at that figure.

"Child, it's all right. I do this willingly..."

The Heavenfrost Jade Qilin saw his misgivings and spoke gently.

Then she dragged her grievously wounded body toward him, her steps faltering.

She gently pressed her forehead against Lin Xiao's.

It was like the Emperor Auspicious Beast's guidance of destiny.

Countless fragments of memory flooded Lin Xiao's mind.

They were all her memories since birth.

Every time she had changed karma, every time she had borne the consequences.

The sorrow and joy, the grief and happiness of the entire Far North.

Lin Xiao felt himself sink completely into those memories.

Powerful karma power enveloped him.

Gungnir was summoned of its own accord.

Every Soul Ring shone with dazzling light.

The red hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring was gradually being enhanced.

It transformed into something resembling the orange Ferocious Beast Soul Spirits in Douluo Dalu III: The Legend of the Dragon King.

A trace of reluctance and tenderness crossed the Heavenfrost Jade Qilin's face.

Her entire form became a streak of blue-green light and merged into Lin Xiao's body.

At once, the skies over the entire Far North changed dramatically.

Almost every Soul Beast in the Far North felt profound sorrow at that moment.

They instinctively wailed and cried.

Even though they had no idea what had made them feel this way.

A Soul Ring of an indescribable color settled onto Gungnir.

It was blue-green, yet also seemed gray, with the deepest black mingled within.

Perhaps that was the color of the universe.

It was the color of the universe's void.

Black-gray.

Over his left eye,

an external soul bone appeared.

It was the Truth-Piercing Eye, which could see through all truth and falsehood.

By the time Lin Xiao had viewed every memory,

the sacrifice had also reached its end.

Lin Xiao slowly floated down from the air.

A tear slid from the corner of his eye.

His soul power had reached level 65.

Seeing his Soul Rings and the external soul bone over his eye, he fell silent.

The Snow Empress stepped forward and hugged him without saying anything more.

Naturally, she understood that Lin Xiao had already seen all the Heavenfrost Jade Qilin's memories.

"Whew..."

He let out a long breath and lifted the Heavenfrost Jade Qilin's body into his arms.

She could not become a Soul Spirit.

Just like her ability, it was karma.

Sixth Soul Skill: Karma

Using this soul skill allows you to forcibly alter any karma, at the cost of yourself.

This includes resurrection, rebirth, and every action of all things in existence.

The price will be proportional to the magnitude of the karma altered.

External soul bone: Truth-Piercing Eye

Soul Bone Skill One: Truth-Piercing

Passive skill, active from the moment you use the external soul bone.

You will see through all falsehood in the world.

Every weakness, every piece of information, laid bare.

Soul Bone Skill Two: Modification.

You will be the master of karma. Using this soul skill allows you to make any modification that does not produce a butterfly effect.

Example: with the result unchanged, you can modify a difficult battle into an easy one.

Someone destined to be killed can instead be modified to die by falling into a cesspit.