Shortly after Ice Empress and Lu Ren left, Huo Yuhao slowly woke up.
He sat up holding on to the ice, the dull pain from before coma still lingering on the back of his head.
The pressure released by Ice Empress just now was too strong. The sense of oppression unleashed by Four Hundred Thousand Years without any reservation was simply not something Soul Grandmaster, who was level 20, could withstand.
Huo Yuhao lost consciousness almost instantly.
"Brother Sky Dream, are they gone? Didn't they kill us?"
Huo Yuhao looked around, Ice Valley was only left with the howling wind and snow and the dim golden spiritual body of Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.
The figures of Lu Ren and Ice Empress had long since disappeared into the vast snow, and even their footprints were covered cleanly by the new snow.
"----No killing, they left."
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice was muffled, as if someone had taken something important away from his mental body.
Huo Yuhao breathed a long sigh of relief and sat back on the ice.
Then he scratched his head in hindsight, with a puzzled face. "It's strange that they let us go, but that's right. We had no conflict with them in the first place. At most, we just lost Ice Empress----"
"Isn't this a conflict? He stole my Bingbing!"
Tian Meng Swimming Silkworm's mental body fluctuated violently, and his voice was out of tune.
Huo Yuhao shrank from the roar, but still thought about it seriously, and then said, "Brother Sky Dream, strictly speaking, Ice Empress seems to have never belonged to us, right?"
Hearing this, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm misfired.
There is no doubt that Huo Yuhao is right. Ice Empress never agreed to it from the beginning. It used Remains to trap her and used threats to force her to compromise. It was all wishful thinking from the beginning to the end.
The human named Lu Ren at least gave Ice Empress an equal contract and allowed Ice Empress to make his own choice.
After a long silence, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice suddenly dropped, with a solemnity that Huo Yuhao had never heard before. "Yuhao, you have to remember that the powerlessness at this moment is because we don't have enough power, so we don't even have the ability to have what we want to fight for."
"If you were Titled Douluo today, would we be so passive? Would we let others take away our opportunity in person?
With this time, there will be a next time!"
"----I know." Huo Yuhao nodded, keeping Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's words in mind word by word.
"So you must become stronger quickly, and then win back the breath you have today from the future! Let Bingbing know what the price will be for her not choosing you!" Sky Dream Ice Silkworm said angrily.
"Brother Sky Dream, I understand how you feel." Huo Yuhao shook his head in an extremely rare manner, "I will become stronger as soon as possible, but I do not intend to teach the other party a lesson after becoming stronger in the future."
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was so anxious that his mental body swelled. "Why? He made a mistake in bullying you!"
"He didn't bully me. He just ignored me at most. But this is normal. I'm too weak now. Without Brother Sky Dream, I wouldn't even be qualified to see him."
Huo Yuhao shrugged, and a trace of freedom and ease that was inconsistent with his age appeared on his face that was still a bit childish.
"Also, Brother Sky Dream, I believe you also know that Spiritual System Soul Master's intuition is very keen. I can feel that the other party has no malicious intent and has no murderous intention towards us from the beginning to the end."
"He clearly has the power to crush us, but he didn't even say a harsh word to us."
Huo Yuhao paused and looked at Sky Dream Ice Silkworm seriously. "As for Ice Empress, I can only say that my skills are not as good as others, there is nothing to say."
"The other party didn't use any despicable means. He is stronger than me, more confident than me, and he offers better conditions. Ice Empress should choose him. If it were me, I would choose him the same way."
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was dumbfounded.
He had never seen a twelve-year-old kid who could say such words so calmly, "I'm not as good as others, there's nothing to say" after being deprived of a huge opportunity in front of him.
He is only two years old, so it would be okay if he hits a wall in front of his peers, but the situation just now——can the boy in front of him be relieved so quickly?
After all, that is a huge opportunity that I am about to get!
"Yuhao, you are mature." Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's tone became complicated, and it suddenly realized that this boy was more worthy of trust than it thought.
"Brother Sky Dream, don't worry, I will become stronger as soon as possible."
Huo Yuhao stood up from the ice, patted the ice particles on his body, straightened his back and looked into the distance.
The wind and snow have gradually subsided, Far North's gray Sky Manipulation has revealed a corner, and the faint aurora flows through the gaps in the clouds.
His self-light crossed Ice Valley, crossed the continuous snow-capped mountains, and landed at the end of the sky.
"One day, I also want to see what kind of scenery I will see from his height."
He took a deep breath. "Brother Sky Dream, I want to be Douluo Continent the strongest Soul Master, and then avenge my mother!"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm hesitated to speak.
He wanted to say, "You are Child of Destiny. You will definitely be able to do these things in the future. You are destined to stand at the top of this world."
But he couldn't. Instead, he kept these words deep in his heart, not daring to say a word.
Because Sky Dream Ice Silkworm knows the weight of this sentence all too well.
If Huo Yuhao is allowed to know information that he should not have known in advance, and knows that he is Child of Luck in this world, no matter what he does, he will never really die, and no matter what difficulties he encounters, he will think that Fortune will take care of him----
Then this young man will lose his awe for everything.
For example, the fear of death and the instinct to survive in desperate situations will be uprooted by this sentence.
By then, Huo Yuhao's state of mind will probably be completely destroyed by this information.
How can a Soul Master, who thinks he will never die no matter what he does, break through the limits between life and death?
Perhaps, this was that person's intention.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm suddenly felt a chill. Before leaving, the human named Lu Ren said, "Don't tell your little master anything about this." He had already expected this.
He knew that once the secret of Fortune was revealed, it would destroy Huo Yuhao, so he specially reminded it to keep the secret.
So, that person actually helped them?
Thinking of this, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm felt better, but he still had no intention of forgiving the other party.
Because his Bingbing was taken away!
"Yuhao, don't worry, I will definitely help you!" Sky Dream Ice Silkworm suppressed the complex emotions surging in his heart, regained his mental strength, and regained his usual confidence in his voice.
"Thank you, Brother Sky Dream." Huo Yuhao showed a bright smile.
Far North, Extreme North Core Circle.
The blizzard reached its peak at Extreme North Core Circle, and every snowflake seemed to be frozen into an ice blade, carrying a strong wind that could tear steel and raging on Wasteland.
The environment here has become so bad that even the powerful Soul Beast can hardly survive----
"It's strange, it's really strange - you said Snow Empress would get into trouble if she was here at Extreme North Core Circle, but why can't I sense where Snow Empress is?"
--
Ice Empress's huge Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion body is following Lu Ren. Now her Spiritual Power has spread to the limit. Her Far North Heavenly King identity and the entire Far North's ice attribute Soul Beast are all in her perception network, and any disturbance in any corner cannot be hidden from her.
But no matter how hard she searched, she could never feel the breath of Snow Empress.
Spiritual Power in Far North, Ice Empress is stronger than Lu Ren.
Every inch of ice and snow here is an extension of her power. In most areas, she can sense extremely long distances regardless of the wind and snow environment.
But Lu Ren's Spiritual Power was weakened to the extreme here. The physical interference of the snowstorm, the erosion of Spiritual Power by the extreme cold, and the rejection of other attribute powers by the rich ice attribute energy in this world were all constantly consuming his perception accuracy.
If it were inland, its Spiritual Power would be enough to cover several miles in radius, but here it could only maintain a range of nearly a thousand feet at most.
The weakening of Far North, Lu Ren and Spiritual Power is really miserable.
"It's normal that you can't feel it." Lu Ren stopped, rubbed his temples that were stiff from the cold wind, and thought for a while before speaking, "According to normal development, you have now become Huo Yuhao's Soul Spirit."
"That is to say, you cannot find Snow Empress on your own now, or in other words, there will be a mysterious force that prevents you from finding Snow Empress."
"Fortune again!"
Ice Empress instantly understood what Lu Ren meant, and his voice was full of uncontrollable annoyance.
Fortune This kind of thing can't be seen or touched. She has lived for hundreds of thousands of years and never believed in such illusory things.
But not long ago, she personally experienced two strange incidents of Rift falling into the ice for no apparent reason, and coupled with Lu Ren's warning of "it can be done once, but not again," she had no choice but to believe it.
If you don't believe it, then there is something wrong with your brain.
It turns out that it was not just the killing of Sky Dream Ice Silkworm that was blocked by Fortune. Now, she should have appeared next to Huo Yuhao and become his Soul Spirit.
Now he accompanied Lu Ren to Extreme North Core Circle to find the fate of Snow Empress, but was also blocked by Fortune.
She was excluded from her original destiny by Fortune. It is normal that she cannot find Snow Empress.
"So my destiny is to help Child of Luck grow up smoothly?" Ice Empress's voice had a hint of unexplainable emotion.
"That's right."
"Then why did you cut off your beard?"
Ice Empress turned his head in confusion, his own light filled with confusion.
"Aren't you afraid of being Heavenly Tribulation when you go against Fortune? You have also seen the fate of Tian Meng. He is protected by Fortune and cannot be killed no matter what."
"You don't have Fortune Protection. If you offend Fortune, aren't you afraid of being chopped into coke by Heavenly Tribulation while walking on the road one day?"
"It doesn't affect me."
Lu Ren shook his head, but his tone was not indifferent.
What does Fortune in this world have to do with him, a migrant?
Huo Yuhao is the biological son of Douluo Plane, and Plane Will devoted all his resources to cultivate him.
But Fortune's Rule can only restrain people in this world, and does not exist for him, a time traveler.
What's more, if Huo Yuhao loses Ice Empress, Fortune will naturally use other opportunities to make up for it.
After all, Douluo Plane's Compensation Mechanism is there. If you lose a Ice Empress, there is a high probability that he will make up for his opportunities later.
Huo Yuhao's treatment will not be bad, but the route will be adjusted.
Even if an ice attribute Soul Beast with similar cultivation to Ice Empress appears out of nowhere and becomes Huo Yuhao's Soul Spirit, Lu Ren will not feel any strangeness.
"When I heard you say that the owner of Tian Meng is Child of Luck, to be honest, I regretted it." Ice Empress was silent for a while, curled his lips, and said with a hint of awkwardness in his tone, "This means that he has a high probability of becoming a god in the future. If I follow him, I can also enjoy the blessings and obtain eternal life."
"Although that guy Tian Meng is annoying, after all, he is Soul Beast just like me. From Soul Beast's point of view, at least we are familiar with each other. The worst outcome is to continue to endure his entanglement."
"But following a human like you, I always feel a little uneasy. After all, you humans are so insidious and cunning. I'm afraid you will take advantage of me."
"Then you can go back now and find Tian Meng." Lu Ren didn't look back, and his tone was unconcerned.
"Oh? You really let me go?" Ice Empress felt even more surprised.
"I can't keep a disloyal partner by my side to fight side by side." Lu Ren said calmly, "So if you really regret it, then leave. You don't have to stay with me."
"I said it, I showed my sincerity and let you make your own choice instead of forcing you to stay."
He stopped, turned around, and looked directly at Ice Empress calmly. "Your Majesty, Ice Empress, you can figure out one thing: it is you who need human help, not that I have to do it with you."
"I don't lack your partner. If you leave, the worst I can do is find other Soul Beasts to cooperate. Anyway, what I have in my hands is Soul Spirit Contract, which is unique in the entire continent. Do you think there will be fewer Soul Beasts willing to cooperate with me?"
"If you can't find someone who is hundreds of thousands of years old, then look for a few hundred thousand years old. I just found you more pleasing to the eye and you have a higher probability of becoming my partner, so I came to you first."
"That won't work. I've made a decision. I'm going to stay with you!"
Ice Empress snorted, his tone more firm than ever.
"We Soul Beast are not as cunning and unloyal as you humans!"
"We will never go back on our word! If we say we'll stick with you, we'll stick with you, and that won't change in this life."
"Lu Ren, if you want to use this to test my determination, you will be really disappointed. We Soul Beast are not so narrow-minded!"
Lu Ren turned around and continued walking forward, his tone still nonchalant. "It's best this way."
"Also, I think you are more mysterious than Child of Luck." Ice Empress quickly kept up with Lu Ren's pace, and the huge scorpion body made crisp ice fragments on the ice. He said, "After all, I have never seen anyone who insists on going against the other party even though he knows that the other party is Child of Luck. And I can see that you don't seem to be afraid of being sanctioned by Fortune at all."
"Speaking of which, do you want to stay like this all the time?" Lu Ren did not answer her words. Instead, he turned around and looked at Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion's huge scorpion body that almost covered half of Sky Manipulation's face. The corner of his mouth twitched.
"This is my body, this is the most comfortable way----what's wrong?" Ice Empress said matter-of-factly.
"It's okay." Lu Ren looked away and continued walking forward aimlessly.
However, his Spiritual Power had already been rolled out, searching as much as possible for any possible traces of Snow Empress in the wind and snow.
"The next step is up to you. I can't stay here Extreme North Core Circle for too long by myself. The extreme cold here is too taxing on Spiritual Power."
"If you want to successfully find Snow Empress, I have the greatest chance. If you are blocked by Fortune, there is a high probability that you will not be able to find her by relying on your perception."
"We need to ensure our survival until Snow Empress appears. I need stable food and shelter here."
"I'll give you food!"
Ice Empress immediately promised, with a positive tone as if he had been assigned an important task. "Then I will give you a warm place to live, so that you can rest peacefully, and you will not be wronged in the slightest at Far North!"
"You are our distinguished guest, so I can still provide you with this kind of treatment."
Lu Ren frowned, and then a passage from the original novel suddenly flashed in his mind.
Before Recultivation into a Human, Snow Empress went to Ice Empress specifically, hoping to help Ice Empress at the last moment and let her survive Heavenly Tribulation.
"Can I go to your Clan territory?"
"Yes, you are a distinguished guest of our tribe, of course there is no problem." Ice Empress replied matter-of-factly.
"Then go, I remembered, Snow Empress will most likely go to your territory to look for you." Lu Ren spoke a little faster, "Before she Recultivation into a Human, she wants to help you survive the next Heavenly Tribulation, so she will definitely go to your territory to look for you, and you can only be found there."
He raised his head and looked at Ice Empress: "This is our biggest chance to see Snow Empress."
When Ice Empress heard this, her eyes suddenly burst into dazzling light. She didn't say a word, and her huge scorpion body suddenly lowered. A large ice crystal pliers gently clamped Lu Ren's waist and placed him firmly on her broad scorpion back.
Although the surface of the ice crystal carapace was extremely cold, she deliberately suppressed the release of extreme cold, keeping the temperature of the carapace just within a range that humans could bear.
"Let's go! Let's leave now! Wait for Snow Empress to come see me!"
"No, wait----"
Before Lu Ren had time to sit still, Ice Empress sped out on Ice Plain like a bolt of lightning.
The blizzard left a long trail of ice mist behind them.
She had never run so fast in her life, her claws pedaling frantically on the ice.
The low-level ice attribute Soul Beast along the way felt the aura of Ice Empress and fell to the ground one after another, waiting for the light and shadow to pass by before they dared to raise their heads tremblingly.
Lu Ren was sitting on the back of Ice Empress, and his hair was blown backwards by the strong wind. He closed his eyes with an expressionless face, and silently moved Blood Manipulation, forming a blood film in front of him to block the wind.