Gales howled, sweeping up flurries of snow. An enormous, snow-white palace of ice and snow towered amid them.
Outside the palace, the wind roared; inside, it was wonderfully cozy.
An emerald-green scorpion half as tall as a person nestled affectionately in Snow Woman's arms.
Her enormous scorpion head nudged against Snow Woman's breasts, making her blush.
"You shameless little thing," Snow Woman chided, tapping the scorpion's head with her index finger.
"Big sister, where have you been all these years? I've searched so hard for you," the emerald scorpion asked.
A look of recollection flickered through Snow Woman's aqua-blue eyes. "Back then, a strange phenomenon appeared over the Far North. The sky turned blood-red."
"How come I didn't know about that?" the emerald scorpion interrupted curiously.
Snow Woman wasn't annoyed at the interruption. Smiling, she said, "You said you were going to sleep soundly and grow stronger, so you could finally eat that stinking bug in the ice crevice."
Confusion first crossed the emerald scorpion's face, followed by realization. She, too, remembered the bug in the ice crevice.
"That bug! I'd forgotten all about it. What happened next?" the emerald scorpion asked.
Snow Woman gently stroked the emerald scorpion's head and said slowly, "There was a fiery-red bead amid that strange phenomenon. It flew west, so I went to investigate. I found that bead locked in a fierce battle with an Ice Staff.
"And that Ice Staff was the Ice God's inheritance. A white light shone from it, and I lost consciousness.
"When I woke up, I saw you."
"Big sister, you have no idea! When I found you, this man was taking liberties with you. I'll kill him right now!" The emerald scorpion stared at Cao De, who lay on the floor with an ashen face, cold light flashing