First Soul Ring

The Soul Core couldn't be condensed in a short time, but with the methods everyone had explored back then, the time required was greatly reduced.

Two days later, Huo Yuhao took out the rations he'd brought with him and began to eat.

"Grandpa, why are you eating that?" Xiao Bai asked, puzzled as he looked at the rations in Huo Yuhao's hand. After all, he'd tasted Huo Yuhao's cooking before, and he could only say that he wouldn't eat the rations in front of them under any circumstances.

"I'm just eating them for convenience. And Xiao Bai, you should still call me Yuhao," Huo Yuhao said as he ate.

Just then, when Wolf King and Raven heard a Soul Beast with a Cultivation of over a hundred thousand years call a human girl "Grandpa," they were extremely curious about what was going on. Ice Empress and A-Tai, however, thought Xiao Bai was talking nonsense again and felt it was very embarrassing, especially in front of outsiders.

A powerful aura swept past, and Snow Empress opened her eyes. "That method and those insights are actually real. I really did condense a Yin-Yang Reversal Soul Core. That human didn't lie to me."

"Snow Empress, how do you feel? Did you succeed?" Seeing Snow Empress awaken, Ice Empress hurried to her side and asked.

"I succeeded. I'm absolutely certain I can survive the next Heavenly Tribulation." Snow Empress smiled as she answered Ice Empress. Ice Empress then told Snow Empress what had happened over the past two days. After listening, Snow Empress went over to Huo Yuhao.

"I apologize for my attitude earlier. You kept your promise." Snow Empress was much friendlier now and no longer as hostile as before. After speaking, she turned to Evil Lord and asked, "What brings you to the Far North, sir?"

"Ask her to explain. She can answer your questions." Evil Lord pointed at Huo Yuhao beside him.

"Human, I still don't know your name."

"My name is Huo Yuhao. Just call me Yuhao."

"Very well, Yuhao. The method you gave me was correct, but I still have questions. What help are you seeking from us that this Evil Lord can't provide? And why do you have my Origin Power? Why did you come to the Far North? Surely you didn't give us these benefits for nothing."

"I came to the Far North specifically to find you. The reason you can sense Origin Power from me may be that it comes from my Martial Soul." As he spoke, Huo Yuhao activated his Snow Maiden Martial Soul. Snow Empress was astonished to see it; after all, she herself had been born of heaven and earth, and she was the only one of her kind on the entire Douluo Continent.

Huo Yuhao continued, "As for your belief that the method of condensation was a gift from me, that's mistaken. Your own efforts were also part of why the method succeeded. Oh, and there's this, too." As he spoke, Huo Yuhao drew a ball of light out of his Sea of Consciousness.

"This is for you, Ice Empress. It's what I wanted to give you earlier. It'll definitely be useful to you." Huo Yuhao held the ball of light out in front of Ice Empress.

Ice Empress, standing nearby, glanced at Snow Empress. Only after Snow Empress nodded did Ice Empress accept the ball of light and ask, "What's inside?"

"The Ice Explosion Technique, along with some of our insights into Ultimate Ice."

Ice Empress was astonished. The Ice Explosion Technique was a skill even she didn't know. She hurriedly absorbed the ball of light right there. Before long, she had finished absorbing it. "This really is the Ice Explosion Technique." As she spoke, she detonated a distant block of ice with a casual gesture. Seeing this only made Snow Empress more confused about why this human was being so good to them.

Seeing that the atmosphere between both sides had grown less tense, Xiao Bai stepped forward and told Snow Empress that he wanted to call A Ling over so Huo Yuhao could help her survive the Heavenly Tribulation. Snow Empress instinctively wanted to refuse, but remembering all that Huo Yuhao had done since he appeared, she agreed. Xiao Bai immediately ran off in the direction of A Ling's home.

Before long, Xiao Bai returned to the group with a snow-white peacock whose tail feathers were shaped like ice crystals.

"This is A Ling, an Ice Feather Peacock. She's about to reach a hundred thousand years as a Soul Beast. Her body is frail, so she can't withstand the Heavenly Tribulation. And her body isn't strong enough to condense a Soul Core, so she doesn't have much time left. What is this Soul Spirit Method you mentioned? How does it work, and why can it help her survive the Heavenly Tribulation?" Snow Empress asked Huo Yuhao.

"This method was originally created by my teacher to let a Soul Beast retain its consciousness when it became a Soul Master's Soul Ring. Later, I improved it so that a Soul Beast could form a contract without giving up its body. That way, it wouldn't have to undergo a Heavenly Tribulation, while the Soul Master could still obtain a Soul Ring. After the Soul Master dies, the contracted Soul Beast won't be affected." Huo Yuhao explained the Soul Spirit Method to Snow Empress. Ice Empress, Wolf King, Raven, and A-Tai looked at him as they listened. After all, the Heavenly Tribulation was always the most troublesome problem for Soul Beasts.

After speaking, Huo Yuhao walked over to A Ling. "Hello, I'm Huo Yuhao."

"Just call me A Ling. If what you said is true, I'm willing to give it a try." A Ling's gentle voice reached everyone's ears, conveying her willingness to try.

"Okay. This is the Soul Spirit Contract. Read it carefully, and if you think it's acceptable, leave your mark at the bottom with your spiritual power." As he spoke, Huo Yuhao used his spiritual power to display the contract in A Ling's mind.

A Ling read the contract carefully. It was indeed an agreement that treated both parties equally, so she signed it. In the real world, the human and the peacock stood facing each other. Then Huo Yuhao felt the contract take effect and felt power flowing to him through it. He activated his Snow Maiden Martial Soul, and a red Soul Ring gradually took shape in front of him. Before long, he had finished absorbing the Soul Ring of a hundred-thousand-year Ice Feather Peacock. A Ling also opened her eyes and sensed that her body felt no different, while her Cultivation had truly reached a hundred thousand years.

"Thank you, Yuhao." A Ling thanked Huo Yuhao, and he nodded in response.

Everyone nearby except Evil Lord and Xiao Bai found it unbelievable. They could truly sense that A Ling had completely broken through to a hundred thousand years of Cultivation, yet the Heavenly Tribulation had not descended. This proved that what Huo Yuhao had said was true: the Heavenly Tribulation that all Soul Beasts feared had been avoided just like that.

"Yuhao, how do you feel?" Evil Lord asked.

"My Soul Power has broken through to level twelve. A Ling gave me two skills. One is the 'Ice Feather Mark,' which lets me apply my own state to other creatures. I can use spiritual power to increase the number of creatures it affects. The other is 'Ice Feather Wings.' When I use it, a pair of Ice Feather Peacock wings appears behind me, giving me the ability to fly and increasing my speed by forty percent. The duration depends on my Soul Power."

Just then, Xiao Bai walked over to Huo Yuhao and said, "Grandpa, Li Ya still remembers you. Should I call her over too?" Huo Yuhao was delighted to hear that. "Li Ya still remembers me?"

Before Huo Yuhao could finish speaking, Ice Empress grabbed Xiao Bai by the ear. "Why are you calling him Grandpa? How could a little girl call you, a bear, Grandpa? Besides, he's a girl."

Snow Empress joined Ice Empress in "teaching" Xiao Bai a lesson. By now, everyone had let down much of their guard around Huo Yuhao, and he had helped them so much. From the method for condensing a Yin-Yang Reversal Soul Core to the Ice Explosion Technique and the Soul Spirit Contract, these were all things that genuinely helped them survive. With Xiao Bai still calling him that, it seemed rather inappropriate. Faced with the two Empresses, Xiao Bai could only beg for mercy from the sidelines, while A-Tai seemed delighted to see Xiao Bai getting scolded.

"Alright, let Xiao Bai go. From now on, just call me Yuhao."

"Fine, Yuhao," Xiao Bai said reluctantly.

"Alright, Xiao Bai, let's call Li Ya back together."