Unfurling her external soul bone, Qian Renyue spread a pair of ice-blue phoenix wings behind her and flew upward. Frost swirled through the air, and before long, nearly all the ordinary herbs she had planted were frozen and withered by the descending chill.
"..."
Qian Renyue fell silent for a moment, then twisted her mouth. What was this nonsense?
With a helpless sigh, she had no choice but to fly back down, take out more herbs, and arrange them neatly again.
This time, she had learned her lesson.
She bestowed a covering layer of red light over the herbs, then spread her wings again and flew straight toward the place where Dugu Bo had sent his signal.
After absorbing the two immortal herbs, Qian Renyue's constitution had improved considerably. Although her external soul bone had barely changed, her magic treasure had received an enormous boost. She had yet to test its power after the transformation, and this fifty-thousand-year Netherworld Flower Emperor would make a perfect test subject.
Qian Renyue could not guarantee that she would defeat this fifty-thousand-year soul beast today. Absorbing the immortal herbs had not raised her soul power level, so she was effectively still only at level thirty-five.
For a level-thirty-five Soul Elder to challenge a fifty-thousand-year Netherworld Flower Emperor alone was undoubtedly like smashing an egg against a rock. Still, Qian Renyue figured it did not matter if she failed this time. At worst, she could return at level one hundred. There was still some time left before the deadline for the God of Kindness's First Trial.
An icy aura descended from above, and a girl dressed in red, with phoenix wings spread behind her, appeared before Dugu Bo.
The girl's appearance and bearing differed somewhat from the Qian Renyue he had seen earlier. If he had not spotted the Frost Sword in her hand, Dugu Bo would have suspected that the person before him was someone else entirely.
"Senior."
Qian Renyue glanced back at Dugu Bo. His eyes narrowed. "It's over there."
In the gloomy surroundings, a massive, dark-red flower lay on the ground in a broad forest clearing, flickering in and out of sight. Its bud was tightly closed, its petals countless. Golden markings flashed along the outermost ring, with slender white lines etched across them. The gold and white against the dark red made Qian Renyue's eyes feel rather uncomfortable.
While asleep, a fifty-thousand-year Netherworld Flower Emperor emitted a scent that bewitched the heart, and its petals changed before releasing it. Qian Renyue frowned slightly and took two gas masks from her soul tool. She tossed one to Dugu Bo and put on the other. "What is this thing?"
Dugu Bo asked.
"A gas mask."
Qian Renyue explained.
"A gas mask?" Dugu Bo examined the rather strange-looking mask curiously. "This thing can keep poison out?"
He looked at Qian Renyue, utterly unconvinced.
"Put it on, and you'll find out." Qian Renyue had no intention of explaining at length. She had gone to great lengths to make these things. If they had not happened to encounter this situation today, she would never have brought them out.
Dugu Bo: "..."
Though highly skeptical, he put it on anyway.
A fifty-thousand-year Netherworld Flower Emperor kept its bud tightly closed while asleep, and its defenses were exceptionally powerful in that state. Unless Qian Renyue woke it, she would have no way of finding its weakness.
Still, it was best to wait until it had finished releasing its bewitching scent. Otherwise, if it released the scent over a wide area, it might draw in every soul beast within a hundred meters. Unable to distinguish friend from foe, they would turn the whole place into a chaotic battlefield.
The Netherworld Flower Emperor's specialties were invisibility and bewitchment. Its offensive power was not actually that strong, and its body was rather large, though it did look far prettier than the Man-Eating Flower they had encountered earlier.
The Netherworld Flower Emperor was also known as the Other Shore Flower Emperor. In truth, it was an Other Shore Flower growing deep within the Sunset Forest. Normally, Other Shore Flowers should grow in places with abundant water, such as riverbanks, but this one was different. It was born with a powerful ability to survive. Its outer petals not only protected it from harm but also emitted a scent that assailed the heart, capable of controlling both soul masters and soul beasts. According to the Soul Beast Encyclopedia, the Netherworld Flower Emperor would only accept a soul master with whom it shared an exceptionally strong affinity. Otherwise, when faced with an opponent it could not defeat, it would rather self-destruct than be killed, solely because it was a soul beast guaranteed to drop a soul bone.
Red light suddenly flashed at her chest. Startled, Qian Renyue lowered her gaze. Her heart thumped, and the light radiating from it was exactly like the glow she had seen when she encountered the Ice Crystal Phoenix in the Star Dou Great Forest. She felt no discomfort, but the light filled her with warmth.
What was going on?
Qian Renyue's brows knit slightly.
Just then, a childlike voice suddenly sounded behind her.
"Master, it's me."
"Who?"
Qian Renyue whipped around, only to find Dugu Bo standing on a distant branch. That voice had certainly not come from him.
Had she fallen under an illusion?
Qian Renyue was puzzled.
She was clearly wearing a gas mask, so how could she still...
"Master, it's me."
The childlike voice sounded again, still from behind Qian Renyue.
Qian Renyue turned around. Apart from the flickering Netherworld Flower Emperor before her, there was nothing else. Where exactly was that voice coming from?
"Master, I'm the Ice Crystal Phoenix. I'm in your wings. You can't see me."
The childlike voice explained, and only then did Qian Renyue realize that she had neither fallen under an illusion nor encountered a ghost.
But...
The Ice Crystal Phoenix?
Wasn't that the little fellow who had willingly sacrificed itself back in the cave? How could it still speak now?
The Ice Crystal Phoenix explained, "That's because your bloodline is highly compatible with me, Master. After being nurtured within it for a while, I began to show signs of awakening. But what truly awakened me was the two immortal herbs you absorbed just now."
"You can read minds?" Qian Renyue frowned slightly. That was hardly a good thing!
"No. I just noticed that you seemed a little confused, Master, so I explained."
"..."
Qian Renyue was rather speechless.
Why had the script gone off track?
How could a soul beast that had willingly sacrificed itself be nurtured back to consciousness within her bloodline?
Could the original owner of this body have been more than she seemed?
Other than that, Qian Renyue could think of no explanation.
"Master, please don't worry. I won't hurt you. Once we little phoenixes recognize a master, we swear loyalty unto death and never betray them!" As though afraid Qian Renyue might misunderstand, the Ice Crystal Phoenix immediately explained its existence. As Qian Renyue's external soul bone, it could not freely manifest or fly. All it could really do was provide her with certain attribute bonuses. Because her bloodline was an excellent vessel for nurturing it, it had regained its self-awareness and now resided within the Ice Phoenix Wings on her back.
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