"Hum..."
The mysterious patterns writhed, coalescing into a teardrop-shaped pearl with countless tiny facets, radiating an ancient chill.
This was the Ancient Ice God's divine artifact, the Ice God Pearl!
Because the Ice God Pearl had always been inside Beiming Yuan, he had never feared the cold and could move freely through the Far North.
Since Beiming Yuan had the Ice God Pearl within him, his identity was obvious.
He was the Ancient Ice God's inheritor, the next Ice God!
Both the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress had realized this.
The way they looked at Beiming Yuan slowly changed, and the awe in their eyes grew ever deeper.
Under the Ice and Snow Empresses' watchful gazes, Beiming Yuan subconsciously opened his right hand. An object nine and a half inches long took shape in his palm, seemingly a folding fan, with ice-blue and ice-white light intertwining around it.
The folding fan opened. Its front was ice-blue, with ice-white surging across it like a raging blizzard; its back was ice-white, with ice-blue swirling across it like a shower of ice shards.
"That's a Martial Soul, a fan?" The Snow Empress and the Ice Empress paused, somewhat puzzled.
"Whoosh-"
Suddenly, the Ice God Pearl descended toward the fan in Beiming Yuan's hand and merged into it, becoming a teardrop pendant hanging beneath it.
With the Ice God Pearl's power, the fan gave off an ancient, sacred presence and no longer looked like an ordinary object.
Ice formed its sixteen ribs, snow formed both faces of the fan, and the divine pearl formed its pendant.
"Ice and Snow Fan."
Beiming Yuan looked at the Martial Soul before him and subconsciously reached out to take it. With a slight movement, he folded it shut, and information about it appeared in his mind.
Before he could be surprised, another presence abruptly descended upon the Far North. Unlike the Ice God's power, this was the power of fortune, and it belonged to the entire Douluo Plane.
This terrifying force made the Ice and Snow Empresses subconsciously retreat, unable to approach.
"World Will, Heaven and Earth Blessing!"
The Snow Empress stared at the golden vortex that had appeared in the sky, utterly shocked.
The Ice Empress stared blankly at the scene.
They had thought Beiming Yuan was the person chosen by the Ice God. They had not expected him to also be the one chosen by the Douluo Continent's World Will, destined by heaven.
"Whoosh!"
A beam of golden light shot straight down and struck Beiming Yuan between the brows. It merged with the Ice God's ancient pattern, forming a blue-gold snowflake mark that vanished into his body.
The World Will seemed to convey some message to Beiming Yuan before disappearing. The golden vortex in the sky dispersed, as though nothing had ever happened.
Gradually, everything returned to calm.
Beiming Yuan opened his eyes. A glimmer flashed through his deep black eyes, then vanished.
"One more blessing, one more responsibility." Beiming Yuan was lost in thought. He immediately understood what the Douluo Plane's World Will intended.
Simply put, he was the one chosen by the Douluo Plane. He was no longer merely a child of fortune, but the one to whom heaven's mandate belonged.
The Douluo Plane intended to break free of the Divine Realm's control and become a realm of its own.
"Xiao Yuan, how are you?" The Ice Empress stepped forward, examining Beiming Yuan's body.
"Do you feel any discomfort anywhere?" The Snow Empress's sky-blue eyes swept over Beiming Yuan, as though she wanted to see right through him.
"Sister Ice, Sister Snow, I'm fine." Beiming Yuan shook his head and smiled. "There's just too much information. I need to sort out how to explain it."
The Snow Empress and the Ice Empress exchanged a glance and did not disturb Beiming Yuan again.
A long while passed.
"How is it?"
The Snow Empress asked.
Beiming Yuan nodded and smiled. "First, the Ice God Pearl has completely merged with my Martial Soul, the Ice and Snow Fan. It can provide an endless supply of energy."
"In other words, my Soul Power has no limit. Not only can I keep my Martial Soul manifested at all times, I can also use all kinds of Soul Skills an unlimited number of times."
"Besides that, the Ice God Pearl can also assist cultivation. Any living being with an ice or cold attribute can cultivate faster by coming close to me."
"It actually has other functions too, but I'm too weak to use them right now."
Hearing this, the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress nodded and discreetly moved closer to Beiming Yuan, sensing the presence coming from him.
Sure enough, even without actively cultivating, the energy in their bodies circulated on its own, helping them cultivate.
"What about the Heaven and Earth Blessing?"
The Snow Empress pressed.
"This kind of blessing should be similar to a deity's blessing. Unfortunately, Lord Ice God has already fallen and can't give you a blessing. Otherwise, you could have two divine-level blessings."
The Ice Empress sighed, somewhat regretful.
Judging by the Ice God's presence that Beiming Yuan had drawn forth when awakening his Martial Soul, if the Ice God were still alive, he would surely have granted him an "innate advantage."
"The Heaven and Earth Blessing gave me an empty Martial Soul slot."
Beiming Yuan suddenly spoke.
"An empty Martial Soul slot!" The Snow Empress and the Ice Empress cried out, their expressions turning visibly shocked.
Beiming Yuan smiled faintly and continued, "There are restrictions, though. It has to be a Beast Martial Soul with an ice or cold attribute. Other attributes and Tool Martial Souls won't work."
"Also, the Soul Beast has to become my Martial Soul willingly. 'Forcing it to be willing' would work too, but I'd have to leave it unable to resist."
"Then have one of the powerful ice-attribute Soul Beasts in the Far North that has reached the end of its lifespan become your Second Martial Soul. It would be a way for its life to continue," the Ice Empress suggested.
"No."
Beiming Yuan and the Snow Empress spoke in unison.
The two looked at each other in some surprise, but quickly turned their heads away, their gazes drifting.
"Why not? What's wrong?" The Ice Empress looked puzzled.
"Xiao Yuan is highly talented, so the choice of his Second Martial Soul calls for even greater caution. There's no need to rush for now," the Snow Empress explained softly.
"Mm."
Beiming Yuan nodded. "The Ice and Snow Fan Martial Soul is powerful enough. I don't need a Second Martial Soul for now, so it's better to keep the ice-attribute Martial Soul slot open."
"If a suitable Soul Beast or the right opportunity comes along later, this Martial Soul slot could be put to great use. There's no need to waste the chance now."
"It's like having 'an opportunity that can't slip away' in my hand."
The second ice-attribute Martial Soul slot would determine the upper limit of his future potential, and Beiming Yuan did not want to spend it in advance.
"Xiao Yuan is right." The Snow Empress nodded in agreement. "The ice-attribute Martial Soul slot is an opportunity that can't run away. The choice must be considered carefully, not made casually."
Having seen the Ice and Snow Fan Martial Soul, as well as things like the Ancient Ice God and the Heaven and Earth Blessing, the Snow Empress expected Beiming Yuan to become more than a powerful Soul Master.
Beiming Yuan had the potential to become a god!
As long as he did not fall, Beiming Yuan would surely be the next Ice God!
"I see..." The Ice Empress thought for a moment, then suddenly came up with a terrible idea. "How about I become Xiao Yuan's Second Martial Soul?!"
"Bang!"
"Impossible!"
The Snow Empress smacked the Ice Empress on the forehead, while Beiming Yuan flatly rejected the idea. The smack and the refusal came almost simultaneously.
"Bing'er, you're not allowed to have that idea again." The Snow Empress looked serious and did not seem to be joking.
"Sister Ice, that's a dangerous idea." Beiming Yuan looked at the Ice Empress too, with little trace of a smile on his face.
With Beiming Yuan and the Snow Empress looking at her like that, the Ice Empress felt a sudden, inexplicable panic and nodded repeatedly. "I understand. I won't do it again."