Only after killing the Polar Ice Fox did Xu Zhengyang truly breathe a sigh of relief.
Xu Zhengyang had fought this Polar Ice Fox for four or five days straight, matching wits and courage with it, and had finally killed it.
Apart from its somewhat weak physical constitution, this Polar Ice Fox ranked among the best hundred-year Soul Beasts in every respect. Not only was its offensive power extremely strong, but its claws and teeth were so sharp that it could even claw through ordinary ice.
Its small body also gave it incredible speed. Without using Soul Tools, he faced an opponent whose combat strength was certainly at the Grand Soul Master level.
Even harder to anticipate was its unique charm ability. Had Xu Zhengyang not experienced its effects twice before, and possessed a firmer will than others, he would probably have fallen prey to it easily.
There was another point, of course: Xu Zhengyang distinctly felt that after using his Soul Skill, his body seemed to grow burning hot, as though it contained the ultimate masculine Yang Qi, which naturally suppressed sinister things that bewitched the mind.
Only after resting for a full half hour did Xu Zhengyang begin dressing the Polar Ice Fox's carcass. Whatever else might be said, it was still a hundred-year Soul Beast, and its roasted meat would be highly nourishing.
But just as Xu Zhengyang peeled away the fox's skin, a trace of shock appeared in his eyes. He seemed to have touched something exceptionally hard.
Delight appeared on Xu Zhengyang's face, and he quickly cut open the Polar Ice Fox's head. Sure enough, there was actually a crystal-colored object inside.
"My luck is incredible. A Soul Bone actually dropped."
At that moment, Xu Zhengyang held an exceptionally beautiful Head Soul Bone. The entire bone was crystal clear, giving off wisps of ice-cold Soul Power, with even a faint trace of charming power. It was a rare Polar Ice Fox Head Soul Bone.
"A rare Head Soul Bone, no less. What a shame its age is a little too low. It hasn't even reached a thousand years, but it should fetch quite a bit of money."
Without hesitation, Xu Zhengyang put the Head Soul Bone away in a lead box.
The Head Soul Bone might be precious, and it was even a rarely seen mental-type Head Soul Bone, but its age of less than a thousand years left Xu Zhengyang with no desire to absorb it. Still, he intended to give it to his father after returning home. Perhaps it would help his father. He certainly would not simply sell it for money; this Head Soul Bone was worth more than a Class 5 Soul Tool.
After killing the Polar Ice Fox, Xu Zhengyang continued northwest. This was the true Ice Sea, where the ice floes grew ever more numerous and larger, and even stronger Soul Beasts lived.
There were not only Sea Soul Beasts here, but also large numbers of land-dwelling Soul Beasts. All these Soul Beasts, however, leaned toward the ice attribute.
Whenever Xu Zhengyang sailed across the sea, enormous shadows would faintly appear beneath the water. These were no ordinary hundred-year or thousand-year Soul Beasts. Among them were large numbers of ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts, and even more ferocious hundred-thousand-year Soul Beasts.
Time flew, and before long, Xu Zhengyang had spent a full year traveling across the Ice Sea.
Over that year, Xu Zhengyang encountered all sorts of dangers. While crossing the sea, enormous Sea Soul Beasts attacked his Soul Tool sailboat, including gigantic octopuses over a hundred meters long and enormous sperm whales dozens of meters long.
On the enormous ice floes lived all sorts of exceptionally fierce Soul Beasts, including various bear-type Soul Beasts, as well as seals and sea lions of varying sizes. Even amid this bitter cold, there were rare Ice Silkworms and scorpion-type Soul Beasts.
These Soul Beasts were not only exceptionally ferocious, but also extremely fast and adept at concealing themselves. The slightest lapse in attention could get a person killed.
In just one year, Xu Zhengyang's body had gained countless wounds, some from Soul Beast bites or claws, and he had even been afflicted with frost poison several times.
He had also found himself in desperate straits countless times. Once, for instance, a ten-thousand-year Ice Dragon pursued him. Had he not reacted quickly enough, had he not immediately flown away using a Soul Tool, he would probably have been killed long before.
Several times, Xu Zhengyang had run desperately for his life, throwing caution to the wind and even exhausting his Soul Power before barely escaping. Each time, he was left in an utterly sorry state.
Yet it was precisely through this year of repeatedly fighting with his life on the line and escaping death that Xu Zhengyang greatly improved both his combat experience and his physical constitution.
The greatest change, however, was in his body's instincts. In the Ice Sea's extreme cold, especially after he had plunged straight into the freezing seawater several times to escape for his life, his entire body seemed to be caught in a constant struggle between ice and fire.
Xu Zhengyang could distinctly feel that his body seemed like a blazing fire, brimming with explosive strength. An attribute of ultimate masculine Yang gradually grew and erupted within him, contending against this extreme cold.
Xu Zhengyang now began to understand why tigers were said to possess a pure Yang physique. On one hand, their blood was exceptionally hot, leaving them unafraid of bitter cold. On the other, tigers possessed an attribute of ultimate masculine Yang. Their bodies recovered especially quickly after injury, and when faced with setbacks, they only fought more fiercely.
Xu Zhengyang could vaguely sense that his body seemed to be changing somewhat toward a pure Yang physique. He was becoming increasingly combative, increasingly brave and ferocious.
After this year on the Ice Sea, Xu Zhengyang now stood over 1.7 meters tall, with long black hair. Through his prolonged struggle against the cold, his muscles had become harder, like iron. In addition, the boyishness on his face had gradually faded, and he looked exceptionally untamed.
As the scorching heat within his body contended against the Ice Sea's bitter cold, his Soul Power cultivation had not slowed. Instead, it had grown a little faster.
Xu Zhengyang was only ten now and had left home just a year ago, yet his Soul Power had risen by three levels. He had now reached a full level twenty and was already a prospective Grand Soul Master.
It had to be understood that Xu Zhengyang's innate Soul Power was only half a level. Normally, he would encounter an enormous bottleneck when cultivating to level twenty. Yet through these repeated bloody battles, these repeated clashes with Soul Beasts, these repeated escapes from death, and the process of using his body to resist the bitter cold at every moment, his Soul Power cultivation had not slowed. Instead, it had become considerably faster.
This cultivation speed was already in no way inferior to that of some cultivation geniuses. Only four short years had passed since his awakening, yet his Soul Power had risen by a full nineteen and a half levels.
Moreover, Xu Zhengyang felt that the Soul Power within him was exceptionally condensed, his foundations were exceedingly solid, and his physical constitution far surpassed that of his peers. There was none of the superficial weakness that came from using drugs to advance.
"What a shame. I've spent a whole year in this Ice Sea, yet I haven't seen any tiger-type Soul Beasts. Otherwise, I'd want to stay another year."
"The entire Ice Sea is like an enormous furnace. Those bone-piercing, frigid gales seem to temper my body, stimulating it to become even hotter, like the Sun."