"I don't know..."
Xue Chen shook his head, looking somewhat lost.
He had suspected he was a Soul Beast and suspected he was human, but he had never imagined he was a saber.
The Dragon Slaying Saber!
Ten thousand years later, in the era of the Legend of the Dragon King, it had become the human Sima Jinchi and even acknowledged Tang Wulin as his lord.
Could he have replaced Sima Jinchi and taken human form ten thousand years early?
"Don't overthink it. If you really were formed from that Dragon Slaying Saber, why would you have a second Martial Soul?"
Snow Empress's somewhat illusory form reached out to stroke Xue Chen's head, but her hand abruptly stopped just as she extended it.
She was now Xue Chen's Soul Ring. Without a physical body, she could no longer touch him.
A faint trace of loss flashed across her face, and Snow Empress continued:
"Chen'er, what is your Second Martial Soul?"
"My Second Martial Soul is the Five Elements Qilin."
Snow Empress's words had not reassured Xue Chen.
He knew his own circumstances-his Second Martial Soul had been a system reward!
Taking a deep breath, Xue Chen suppressed all the chaotic thoughts in his mind before giving a low shout.
"Martial Soul Possession!"
The enormous phantom of an Auspicious Beast appeared behind Xue Chen.
It had a dragon's head, deer antlers, a lion's tail, and ox hooves. Five-colored light shimmered across the scales covering its body, and even beneath its feet, five-colored flames of light surged.
With Martial Soul Possession, a qilin mark shimmering with five-colored light appeared on Xue Chen's forehead, while tiny dragon scales suffused with radiant light spread across both cheeks.
Most striking of all was the blood-red Soul Ring beneath Xue Chen's feet, bearing seven golden markings.
"What powerful pressure... what a powerful Martial Soul!"
Looking at the qilin phantom behind Xue Chen, Ice Empress felt that the pressure originating from its bloodline actually affected even her a little.
"The Five Elements Qilin is born with the power to command the five attributes of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth."
Pointing at the Soul Ring beneath his feet, Xue Chen explained:
"Because of Sister Snow's sacrifice, my Five Elements Qilin Martial Soul gained an additional attribute: Ultimate Ice."
"Not just Ultimate Ice."
Snow Empress added from beside him:
"Your Martial Soul is very unusual. After I sacrificed myself, you actually gained only one Soul Skill."
"What? Only one Soul Skill?"
Hearing this, Ice Empress immediately bristled.
"A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast should grant a Soul Master two Soul Skills, let alone a seven-hundred-thousand-year Heavenly Snow Woman like you!"
Snow Empress chuckled and winked at Ice Empress.
"This Soul Skill is called Ice Extreme. It allows Chen'er to use all my abilities and fully command the power of Ultimate Ice."
The Five Elements Qilin was extremely special. After absorbing a Soul Ring, it did not produce any specific Soul Skill, but instead gained complete mastery over the attribute power represented by that Soul Ring.
It was just like Tang Yuge in the Ultimate Douluo era: her first through fifth Soul Skills were Wood Escape, Fire Escape, Metal Escape, Earth Escape, and Water Escape.
These five escape arts had no specific Soul Skill effects, yet they allowed Tang Yuge to fully command the powers of these five attributes.
"Gasp!"
Ice Empress sucked in a breath of cold air.
"Th-this world actually has such a miraculous Martial Soul?"
No Soul Skills, only mastery of attributes-Ice Empress had never even heard of such a Martial Soul, let alone seen one.
"Sister Snow, why don't you return to my Sea of Consciousness and rest?"
Hearing the growing weariness in Snow Empress's voice, Xue Chen hurriedly withdrew his Martial Soul.
"There's one more thing."
Snow Empress collected herself and lightly waved a hand toward Xue Chen's feet.
The red Soul Ring with its seven golden markings instantly vanished, replaced by an extremely ordinary-looking Yellow Soul Ring.
"Chen'er, your Dragon Slaying Saber Martial Soul is too ferocious. You cannot fully control it yet."
"When you enter the human world, you will have to show others your Five Elements Qilin Martial Soul."
Snow Empress sighed softly. The weariness in her voice deepened, but she still forced herself to stay alert as she said:
"Humans have a saying: an ordinary man is innocent, but possessing a jade makes him guilty!"
"A seven-hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring is enough to bring a fatal disaster upon you!"
Xue Chen was no naive innocent ignorant of the world. Naturally, he knew Snow Empress was absolutely right.
Hadn't that fellow Huo Yuhao been targeted by a Titled Douluo just for revealing a trace of Ice Empress's presence during the Soul Master Tournament?
"I've changed the Soul Ring's color. It won't affect your use of Ultimate Ice."
"Sister Snow!"
Hearing this, Xue Chen felt warmth well up in his heart. Snow Empress's kindness toward him was almost entirely unreserved.
He moved forward a couple of steps, seemingly wanting to hug his Sister Snow again, but after taking just one step, he stopped dejectedly.
The current Snow Empress was only a spirit.
"Cultivate diligently. Once you become a god, I'll be able to recover."
Smiling fondly at Xue Chen, Snow Empress then turned her gaze to Ice Empress.
"Bing'er, I'll leave that hundred-thousand-year snow lotus to you."
"With that hundred-thousand-year snow lotus's help, you should be able to safely survive your four-hundred-thousand-year heavenly tribulation."
Ice Empress trembled all over, and even her voice became somewhat choked.
"Xue'er..."
"Don't be like that. It's not as though I'm really dead."
Snow Empress shook her head and gave a bitter chuckle.
"I'll need to rest for quite a while now. Both of you must take care of yourselves!"
After saying this, Snow Empress could no longer hold on. She turned into a streak of white light and slipped back into the space between Xue Chen's brows.
For a time, only Xue Chen and Ice Empress remained on the vast snowy peak, facing each other in silence.
"Brat, what do you plan to do next?"
After a long silence, Ice Empress finally turned her somewhat vacant gaze toward Xue Chen, but soon turned sideways again to look at the distant, unbroken snowy mountains.
"Go to the human world."
Xue Chen likewise remained silent for a long while before speaking:
"I'll cultivate hard and find a way to become a god as soon as possible. Only then will I not let Sister Snow's sacrifice for me go to waste."
"Thanks to Sister Snow's sacrifice, my Soul Power has already surpassed rank twenty."
"I need to obtain my Second Soul Ring as soon as possible... the Far North has no Soul Rings suited to my Martial Soul's attributes."
Ice Empress glanced sideways at him, knowing that what Xue Chen said was true.
The Five Elements Qilin Martial Soul he had awakened required Soul Rings compatible with the five elements.
Most Soul Beasts in the Far North had the ice attribute, with the occasional water attribute, but Soul Beasts of the metal, wood, fire, and earth attributes were almost nonexistent.
To add suitable Soul Rings to the Five Elements Qilin, he had to leave the Far North.
"When do you plan to leave?"
Pressing her lips together, Ice Empress asked further.
Snow Empress had sacrificed herself. If Xue Chen left too, she would no longer have anyone to talk to.
Even though she was not such a sentimental Soul Beast, she still could not help feeling somewhat distressed.
"I'll wait a little longer."
Looking at Ice Empress, Xue Chen suddenly smiled.
"No matter what, I have to stay with you for a while, Sister Ice."