The Ice Empress understood, and she knew this was the only way to help the Snow Empress survive.
So she willingly began the sacrifice.
As for Huo Yuhao, under the relentless sweep of that biting cold, even his powerful Sea of Consciousness was beginning to freeze.
Seeing this, Tian Meng gradually released the million-year-old source life force within the skull, using it together with the Gold of Life to stabilize Huo Yuhao's body.
Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao's body was in utter chaos.
The Snow Empress's source power, the power of the hundred-thousand-year snow lotus, the portion that had already transformed into human source power, and the Ice Empress's power combined with the life force released by Tian Meng-
They were in utter disarray.
Seeing this, Electrolux released his divine sense and quietly sent it into Huo Yuhao's body, barely managing to help stabilize it.
The Snow Empress was suppressing the power of the hundred-thousand-year snow lotus on her own, something she could still handle.
But no matter how she tried to suppress the portion of power that had already transformed into human source power, she found it difficult to reverse. Instead, her own source power even seemed to be showing signs of transforming again.
Fortunately, the Ice Empress's power provided a buffer.
During this long and painful process, the Ice Empress gritted her teeth, and the tremendous power within her body surged into the torso bone the Snow Empress had become.
Once the powers within the torso bone reached a balance-
"Force the power into it!"
At Electrolux's urging, the Snow Empress forced the chaotic power into the torso bone. Yet even the combined power of the Ice and Snow Empresses could barely suppress the portion of source power that had already taken human form.
Fortunately, Tian Meng intervened in time, working with the Gold of Life to continually repair Huo Yuhao's body.
During this long and painful process, they gradually forced the power that seemed to have become a ticking time bomb into it.
After an unknown amount of time, Huo Yuhao felt as though his consciousness was gradually being torn apart, and his Sea of Consciousness seemed to have been frozen by the two sources of extreme Cold Qi.
Finally, the so-called first light of dawn arrived.
The source powers of the Ice and Snow Empresses slowly fused.
In the end, they became an entirely new power, and its level made even Electrolux turn solemn.
Together with Tian Meng's million-year-level life force and the pull of spiritual power-
They finally suppressed the human source power that had been on the verge of running wild. Or rather, in the course of suppressing it, this power actually showed signs of fusion.
As the cold filling the sky fused with the complex powers-
A new power finally seemed to become a pillar of light reaching the heavens.
It burst forth from Huo Yuhao's body!
The world-ending lightning tribulation also seemed to gather for an instant. It was not going to destroy the Far North or the Snow Empress; it seemed ready to destroy the entire world.
But it also seemed to have encountered some kind of bug, appearing for only an instant. In that moment, its world-ending threat made the entire continent wary!
In the end, the new power turned ice-blue, with a faint golden glow appearing around it.
When Huo Yuhao gritted his teeth and stood up again-
His back, or rather, the entire torso bone, had likewise changed color, its ice-blue wrapped in a faint gold.
The tattoo on his back was no longer either the Ice Empress or the Snow Empress.
Instead, it was a pattern of the two supreme Ferocious Beasts intertwined.
As he let out a breath of turbid air-
Huo Yuhao's Second Martial Soul was born.
It was no longer the so-called Ice and Snow Empresses, but an entirely new Martial Soul born from the fusion of the two into one, further nurtured and fused with Tian Meng's million-year life force and spiritual power.
It was a blurry figure of an icy hue.
If Huo Yuhao had to describe it, its face was blurred and impossible to make out.
But the moment it appeared, even time itself seemed about to freeze under that supremely biting cold.
Its body looked somewhat more like Huo Yuhao's.
Only its face had yet to become clear.
Was it something akin to a Body Martial Soul, formed from the condensed powers of the Ice and Snow Empresses?
Looking at this power, Huo Yuhao was briefly bewildered.
But he could also sense how high the grade of this Martial Soul was.
It even seemed faintly on par with his own Double Pupils, which had yet to fully awaken.
It was somewhat like a Body Martial Soul, yet it was not one.
After a brief hesitation, Huo Yuhao ultimately named his Second Martial Soul: Ice Master!
The absolute sovereign of ice.
As for the Soul Power in his body, it went without saying that it had long since broken through the level-forty bottleneck. As for exactly how much Soul Power he had, he would have to wait until later to find out.
The most eye-catching thing was naturally the Soul Ring beneath Huo Yuhao's Ice Master.
To be precise, there was an ice-blue ring covered in golden markings.
Huo Yuhao froze when he saw this unusually colored Soul Ring.
What on earth is going on?
Orange-gold is the color of a Ferocious Beast Soul Ring, and blood-colored markings signify a hundred-thousand-year foundation.
Just what is this Soul Ring?
As Huo Yuhao's heart filled with confusion-
The Snow Empress, now in his Sea of Consciousness, pondered briefly before speaking softly.
"This power should have undergone a qualitative change, but it seems your body can't withstand it."
Huo Yuhao paused at her words, a possibility coming to him instinctively.
"A... a Million-Year Soul Ring!?"
Although the Ice Empress's and Snow Empress's ages added up to more than a million years, the higher one went, the more their foundations were calculated in something close to multiples.
By rights, even if the Ice Empress and Snow Empress fused, they could not possibly reach that threshold.
"Hmm... could it be that this big worm's power helped in part? Its spiritual power briefly managed to condense half a portion of divine sense as well, and the fusion with that portion of power in this little girl's body that was close to human power led to this result?"
Electrolux watched for a long while before speaking softly.
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao still felt somewhat dazed.
Good grief, did their fusion really produce a Million-Year Soul Ring? And this seems to be my second Million-Year Soul Ring.
As he marveled, he noticed something unusual about his body and looked behind him.
I've grown a tail!?
While he was bewildered, the Ice Empress spoke up with an additional explanation.
"Hmm... although most of the power fused, there was still a small portion left, and since it would become a Soul Bone, it took this form. I suppose it counts as an External Soul Bone."
Huo Yuhao still felt a little awkward after hearing that explanation.
Other people's External Soul Bones were wings or something like that, but he had gained a tail-and an ice tail just like the Ice Empress's.
Wasn't that a little strange?
But as he was complaining-or rather, when he tried to unleash the Soul Skill within the ice tail-he instantly stopped looking down on it.
Beneath its emerald-green sheen, the Soul Skill granted to him by his External Soul Bone revealed itself. It was none other than Ice Empress Armor!