Di Tian spat out a mouthful of icy blood as he fell, then slammed into the ice field, leaving a deep crater.
A layer of solid ice completely covered his body. His aura had weakened, and he could not move.
"The Dragon God Claw truly lives up to its reputation. Had I not condensed my Ice and Snow Godhood, I fear I could not have withstood that blow."
Snow Empress looked down at the icebound Di Tian and offered her sincere praise.
With the sparring match over, a warm green light brimming with vitality flashed.
Bi Ji took action.
Gentle emerald healing light enveloped Snow Empress. Under the combined effects of the healing light and ice and snow divine power, the three wounds torn into her body by the Dragon God Claw healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.
In the end, not even scars remained.
"Snow Empress, you won. Your strength has thoroughly won us over."
Bi Ji spoke gently, then turned into a streak of green light and descended beside the crater Di Tian had made, doing everything she could to expel the cold from his body and heal his injuries.
"You won! Snow Empress, you defeated Di Tian. From now on, you're the undisputed strongest Soul Beast on the Douluo Continent!" Ice Empress shrieked excitedly.
Ye Wuchen naturally linked his arm through his master's. "Master, congratulations on defeating the Beast God."
Hearing the congratulations from her disciple and her dear sister, Snow Empress broke into a smile that could topple cities and kingdoms.
At that moment, even the wind and snow of the Far North lost their color. Her icy features were peerless, her beauty breathtaking.
She patted the back of Ye Wuchen's hand and walked gracefully to the edge of Di Tian's crater.
As Bi Ji struggled to treat Di Tian, Snow Empress waved her delicate hand.
"Disperse." Her words became law.
The ice and snow covering Di Tian, which even Bi Ji had found difficult to deal with, instantly melted and receded. Snow Empress drew all of it back into her body.
Freed from the suppression of divine power, Di Tian caught his breath under Bi Ji's healing and opened his eyes.
As the proudest Beast God of the Soul Beast Clan, he had fought countless battles throughout his life and rarely suffered defeat.
But today, against this sovereign of the Far North, he accepted his defeat wholeheartedly.
"Snow Empress, I admit that I'm no longer your match." Di Tian's voice was weak.
"Your control over ice has surpassed the limits of Soul Beasts."
Snow Empress nodded, with little pride showing on her exquisite face.
With Di Tian conceding defeat, negotiations for an alliance between the two sides formally began.
With her superior strength and her godhood, Snow Empress naturally held the initiative.
Although Snow Empress was a Soul Beast, she had been born amid the wind and snow of the Far North and possessed a natural affinity for the ice and snow law.
The one she believed in was the Ice God.
Now, Firmament had bestowed "Ice and Snow Godhood" upon her.
Given enough time to integrate it and deepen her understanding, she would surely break the iron law that Soul Beasts could not become gods and become the next Ice God of the Douluo Continent.
The common sovereign of the Soul Beasts beneath the Lake of Life in the Star Dou Great Forest-Silver Dragon King Gu Yuena-had recognized precisely this.
Gu Yuena's main purpose in sending Di Tian and Bi Ji was to use the bonds of their shared kind and mutual interests to bind this future Ice God to the Soul Beasts' war chariot before she became a god.
This would give them more bargaining chips in their future struggle against the Divine Realm.
Since the other side needed something from her, Snow Empress naturally would not stand on ceremony.
"For the future of the Soul Beast Clan, I will not refuse an alliance against the Divine Realm." Snow Empress's cool voice echoed across the ice field.
Then her tone shifted, and her gaze settled gently on Ye Wuchen:
"However, my Far North lies in a remote corner, free from worldly strife. Personally, I have little interest in the resources of your Star Dou Great Forest."
"But my disciple Wuchen is twenty-four years old and a rank eighty-nine Soul Douluo, only one step away from becoming a Titled Douluo."
"Wuchen's physique and talent are both exceptional, but he still lacks a few high-quality Soul Bones. With the reserves of your Star Dou Great Forest, providing one or two Soul Bones over a hundred thousand years old shouldn't be a problem, should it?"
At her words, Di Tian scrutinized Ye Wuchen with a piercing gaze.
Twenty-four years old, a rank eighty-nine Soul Douluo.
Throughout the long river of human Soul Master history, such a cultivation speed was as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.
For human Soul Masters, a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone was a priceless treasure capable of stirring up bloody storms.
But to Soul Beasts, Soul Bones were merely the remains left behind by their fallen kin.
Apart from the very few that certain Soul Beasts could absorb and use, most were simply piled in treasuries as collectibles, serving little practical purpose.
"Agreed." Di Tian weighed the pros and cons and readily accepted.
"As long as it brings about an alliance, our Star Dou Great Forest can afford a mere two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bones."
Seeing Di Tian agree so readily, Snow Empress nodded in satisfaction.
She looked at the beloved disciple she had raised herself, her eyes full of affection:
"Wuchen, aside from Soul Bones, is there anything else you want? As long as they can meet your requests, I will formally agree to an alliance with them."
At her words, Ye Wuchen's thoughts began to stir.
In the era of Douluo I, the human Soul Master World had yet to discover the cultivation method of "condensing Soul Cores."
The vast majority of Soul Masters broke through to Titled Douluo through nothing more than accumulating Soul Power and adding Soul Rings.
As a Ferocious Beast of the Far North, Snow Empress deeply understood the fundamental principles of energy compression and qualitative transformation.
Under Snow Empress's careful guidance, Ye Wuchen had successfully condensed his first "Ultimate Ice Soul Core" in his dantian as early as his breakthrough to the Soul Emperor realm.
This was also the fundamental reason his cultivation progressed so quickly and his foundation far surpassed that of Soul Masters at the same rank.
Now, he was about to break through the great threshold of rank ninety and become a Titled Douluo.
According to the path he had planned for himself, he would condense a second Soul Core-a "Spiritual Soul Core"-in his Sea of Consciousness.
This would bring about a qualitative transformation in both his Soul Power and spiritual power.
But condensing a second Soul Core was extremely dangerous. The slightest carelessness could cause his Sea of Consciousness to collapse, ending both his life and his cultivation.
To ensure that nothing went wrong, he had to find a supreme treasure that could nourish his Sea of Consciousness.
The "gold of life" beneath the Lake of Life in the Star Dou Great Forest was a good choice.
"Master." Ye Wuchen glanced at Snow Empress, then looked at Di Tian and Bi Ji. "I want gold of life."
Di Tian's expression darkened. Beside him, the gentle Bi Ji paled and could not help exclaiming in alarm, "That won't do!"
Bi Ji stepped forward, her expression anxious. "Snow Empress, Ye Wuchen, there is something you don't know. Gold of life is the crystallization of the life force of heaven and earth, and it is indispensable to our lord's healing."
"We have no authority to decide what happens to the gold of life."
Snow Empress's delicate brows drew together slightly. Although she was protective of her disciple, she also knew how important gold of life was to the Silver Dragon King.
She looked at Di Tian, waiting for his answer.
Di Tian suppressed the fury in his heart and said gravely:
"Snow Empress, the gold of life is a matter of great importance. It truly isn't something Bi Ji and I can decide. How about this? Let us go to the Star Dou Great Forest together and meet our lord."
"As long as our lord agrees, I will present the gold of life with both hands. If our lord refuses, we will compensate your disciple with other heavenly treasures. What do you think?"
Snow Empress considered this for a moment and found the proposal quite reasonable.
Seeing Ye Wuchen nod as well, she made her decision.
"Very well. Then let us visit the Star Dou Great Forest."
Before you continue