Preparations

Three people flew through the air, thousands of miles away. Beneath their feet stretched the boundless ocean. They had set out from the Sun Moon Continent several days ago.

"Hey, Brother Wolf, where exactly is Evil Lord taking us?" Even after flying for days, Raven still had no idea where Evil Lord was taking them or what he wanted them to do. Raven was full of questions, but didn't dare ask Evil Lord directly. So, to butter up the Silver Moon Wolf King, he had started calling him Brother Wolf instead of Dog.

The Silver Moon Wolf King was very pleased to hear himself called Brother Wolf. He was a two-hundred-thousand-year-old Soul Beast who had lorded it over the Jingyang Mountain Range, but now Evil Lord ordered him around however he pleased, which left him feeling rather aggrieved. Now that Raven, who had the same two-hundred-thousand-year Cultivation, was calling him Brother Wolf, the Silver Moon Wolf King felt enormously gratified.

"Right, and you'd better keep it up from now on. As for where Evil Lord's going and what he's doing, why don't you ask him yourself?"

"How could I dare ask him? If he thinks I'm being nosy, I can't beat him. That's why I'm asking you, Brother Wolf." Raven smiled ingratiatingly.

Seeing Raven's attitude put the Wolf King in a difficult spot. It would be too embarrassing to tell Raven he didn't know either, but he didn't dare ask Evil Lord himself. Faced with the choice between losing face and facing Evil Lord, the Wolf King didn't hesitate for long before saying, "I don't know either." What a joke. How much face did he have to go ask Evil Lord? Evil Lord was always the one asking others questions. Who would dare ask him? If Evil Lord happened to be in a bad mood, the Wolf King would lose his life.

Raven's ingratiating smile instantly turned into a look of utter disdain. "You useless guy. I wasted all that affection on you."

"Who are you calling useless?"

"You, obviously. Who else could it be?"

"You Poor Bird, if you've got what it takes, go ask him yourself."

"If I had what it takes, I wouldn't need to ask a Stupid Dog like you."

"Poor Bird, who are you calling a dog? Say that one more time!"

"Gladly! Don't think I can't beat you, Stupid Dog."

"Ah!!! I'll pluck you bald, Poor Bird!"

"Come on, then! You really think I'm easy to bully, Stupid Dog?"

Hearing the argument behind him grow more and more heated, Evil Lord's face filled with helplessness. He was beginning to regret bringing these two along. He thought he should have killed the pair of them back on the Sun Moon Continent. But since they had come all this way, he could only turn around and look at them.

By then, the two had gone from arguing to getting ready to fight. Elemental energy gathered in the Wolf King's hand, while waves of Spiritual Power rippled around Raven. The moment they saw Evil Lord turn to look at them, the Wolf King's raised hand, which had been gathering energy only a second earlier, dispersed it, and he gently lowered his hand. Raven immediately put on an ingratiating expression, and the Spiritual Power rippling around him vanished without a trace.

Seeing them silently withdraw their power, Evil Lord finally spoke. "Is there anything you want to ask? Ask quickly while I still have patience."

At his words, Raven sneakily glanced at the Wolf King and used Soul Power to send his voice directly to him. "Hurry up and ask him what he's taking us there for!"

The Wolf King said nothing, pretending he hadn't heard.

"Are you deaf? Hurry up and ask!"

The Wolf King remained unmoved, though he had already cursed Raven from head to toe in his heart.

Seeing them act this way, Evil Lord didn't call them out. He only said in a calm, authoritative voice, "If you have nothing to ask, then keep following me. And you two, behave yourselves." With that, Evil Lord turned around and continued on his way. Threatened by his words, the two shuddered and hurried after him, not daring to slack off.

In the Core Area of the Far North, Snow Empress woke after finishing her cultivation, as she did every day. Seeing White Bear sleeping soundly beside her, she couldn't help feeling worried. A few days ago, because Xiao Bai had been talking nonsense, she had sent him out for a walk. After Xiao Bai came back, he had stopped talking nonsense, but now he loved sleeping whenever he had nothing to do. That wouldn't be a problem in itself, but Xiao Bai hadn't reached his hibernation period yet. Snow Empress had raised Xiao Bai from a cub and was still very worried about him. The string of strange behaviors he had shown lately made her uneasy, but Xiao Bai's condition didn't seem to have anything wrong with it, leaving Snow Empress unsure how to deal with the situation.

Snow Empress got up and came over to Xiao Bai, stroking his fluffy head with her hand. "What's wrong, Mother?" Xiao Bai woke, feeling the touch on his head.

"Xiao Bai, you should get up and move around more. You can go play with Bing'er or A-Tai. Don't sleep all the time. You haven't even reached your hibernation period yet, so this isn't good for you."

Xiao Bai nodded after hearing her. He was only bored and following Li Ya's suggestion to sleep for a few days while waiting for his grandfather to arrive, but seeing Snow Empress's worried expression, Xiao Bai really wanted to explain it to her. Still, he knew she wouldn't believe him, and that explaining would only make her worry even more. So he got up, ready to go wander around for a few days and then come back. After leaving Snow Empress, Xiao Bai wandered across the vast snowy plain.

After leaving Dou Ling City, Huo Yuhao had hurried north without stopping. Although she hadn't figured out what had happened to her earlier, she couldn't afford to delay her journey to the Far North.

Three days later, in Skywater City, the city within the Heaven Dou Empire closest to the Far North, Huo Yuhao was heading out of the city with the supplies she had bought. It was the last place on her journey north where she could buy a large quantity of supplies.

The northern border of the Heaven Dou Empire lay close to the Far North. The cold winds blowing down from the Far North, along with the lack of the warm climate found in the south of the continent, meant that large numbers of pine trees grew here. After leaving Skywater City, Huo Yuhao arrived at a cave. It was some distance from Skywater City and closer to the Far North. Huo Yuhao entered the cave, put the supplies on the ground, and used branches to conceal the entrance. Inside the cave stood a furnace that Huo Yuhao had made from dirt and stones the day before. She placed pinewood inside, and the flames warmed the cave. Huo Yuhao began sorting the supplies she had bought in the city: clothing commonly used for keeping warm in the north and some portable dry rations. The rest were iron blocks and tools she had bought in Skywater City. The final thing she needed to do before heading to the Far North was to refine metal and make Soul Tools, which was why she had come to the cave.

Huo Yuhao recalled the movements of Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer that Dong'er had used against Qiu'er during the competition in Mingdu. Then, once, twice... The clang, clang, clang of hammering rang out from inside the cave. Huo Yuhao repeatedly struck the iron block with a hammer while activating her Spirit Eyes Martial Soul to observe its condition. As she swung the hammer, she adjusted her stance to channel force with force.

Before long, several pieces of Refined Iron were finished. Huo Yuhao picked one up and examined it carefully. The Refined Iron was more densely structured than before it had been forged, and its Soul Power conductivity had improved after the impurities were removed.

Seeing this, Huo Yuhao hurriedly began making Soul Tools. In the end, she made a Storage Soul Tool bracelet with a capacity of five cubic meters, a second-tier Soul Tool Shield, and a Soul Guidance Ray Gun, as well as a Godly Zhuge Crossbow, which she could use in case her Soul Power ran out.

The night was already past its midpoint. Huo Yuhao packed up all the supplies and went to rest. Tomorrow, she would enter the Far North.