NOVEL NEXT Chapter 97: Unexpected
As for the position of the ruler of the Extreme North…
After a long contemplation, she ultimately entrusted it to the Titan Snow Demon King.
By all reasoning, this position should have been taken by the Ice Empress, whose strength was second only to her own. However, during her absence over the past year, the Ice Empress had mysteriously disappeared. Whether it was the Ice Jade Scorpion clan or other hidden realms, they searched every corner of the Extreme North but could not sense her presence.
Finally, as she felt the onset of her heavenly tribulation approaching, the Snow Empress had no choice but to let go.
Under an unassuming snow-covered peak...
The Snow Empress pressed her slender hand into a few seals, and suddenly, a booming sound reverberated across the peaceful mountain. A stone door emerged within the snow peak.
She stepped forward, her delicate, jade-like forefinger pressing lightly on the door.
The door opened, and a faint, radiant glow seeped out, revealing a deep and dark passage, lined with tiny gleaming blue lights on either side.
The entrance was about a meter wide, but it reached a height of three meters, and the end could not be seen at a glance.
Without hesitation, the Snow Empress entered the passage with her slender, graceful figure.
As she disappeared inside, the mysterious stone door slowly closed, concealing its true form once again.
This was a secluded retreat that she had intentionally prepared. Rebuilding herself as a human was a serious matter, so to avoid any mishaps, she had begun carving out this underground cave half a year ago, a kilometer away from her usual residence. Aside from herself, no one knew of its existence.
The snow-covered peak and the stone door offered a double layer of security.
Here, the chances of being disturbed were practically nonexistent.
Inside the chamber, the Snow Empress sat cross-legged.
A soft blue glow radiated from her body, making her appear as pure and ethereal as an ice fairy.
She extended her right hand, and a lotus flower appeared in her palm.
It was crystal clear, resembling a flawless sphere, extraordinarily beautiful.
The glow from the lotus flower highlighted the Snow Empress's transcendental beauty, like an immortal goddess descending from the heavens—otherworldly, ethereal.
This was the hundred-thousand-year snow lotus, the very essence that allowed her to transform into human form.
"The essence of the snow lotus is concentrated in its nine petals. With my seven hundred thousand years of cultivation, I must fully merge all nine petals to seal my original power. I hope this fusion process goes smoothly this time…"
The Snow Empress sighed softly, her gaze lowering slightly.
Then, she formed hand seals, and a faint radiance began to spread around her.
In a fluid motion, she lifted her delicate hands, and the snow lotus was now floating in the air, radiating gentle beams of light.
"Humm—"
A petal detached from the lotus stem and floated before her.
As it drifted, a rich fragrance filled the air, intoxicating and refreshing.
At that moment, a hazy mist surrounded the Snow Empress.
Simultaneously, the translucent, art-like petal of the snow lotus burst into a concentrated, milky-white light, enveloping the Snow Empress, making her white dress appear even purer, as if crafted from snow and ice—a dreamy and otherworldly sight.
Her fingers moved quickly.
Guided by her, the milky light surged toward her brow, as the essence of the snow lotus gradually merged into her body, the source energy being directed back into the petal.
And so it went, cycle after cycle, until the first petal was filled. Then, she began merging the second.
As her original power continued to be sealed, her aura gradually weakened, and her figure slowly began to shrink.
...
...
The Snow Empress had been in secluded cultivation for five days.
In the core region of the Extreme North, beneath the snowy peak where she was in seclusion, a location rarely visited by any, even by powerful human spirit masters, an unexpected visitor had appeared today.
"The place my dreams guided me to is here."
Amidst the swirling snowstorm, an old man in a black robe stood at the foot of the peak.
He murmured softly, his deep-set eyes fixated on the mountain before him, glimmering with a flicker of recognition, as though trying to verify something.
Although the snow peaks around him appeared quite similar to one another, this old man seemed certain that the one before him was the secluded retreat of the ruler of the Extreme North—the Snow Empress.
"Yes, this is the place!"
Casting a glance around, his expression turned resolute.
This was the very peak he had seen in his dreams; every detail of the surrounding landscape matched exactly.
This old man, known as Shu Qu, was originally an eighth-ranked soul engineer from the Illustrations Virtue Hall of the Sun Moon Empire. However, a month ago, he experienced a strange 'dream,' through which his soul power had advanced explosively, allowing him to break through to a Titled Douluo, becoming a ninth-ranked soul engineer!
Indeed, all thanks to that mysterious dream.
In his dream, he inexplicably devised a ninth-ranked soul tool, the God Sealing Altar. Then, on his journey to the Extreme North, he stumbled upon a hundred-thousand-year soul beast on the verge of transforming into human form. He quickly captured it in its embryonic form using the God Sealing Altar he had crafted.
At the dream's end, he absorbed the soul beast, turning it into his second martial spirit, making him invincible across the continent.
And then...
The dream abruptly stopped there.
Although it was just a dream, it felt vividly real.
Every action, every step, was etched in his mind as if branded there.
It was as if a voice in his head continually tempted him to make the attempt.
So, with a "why not try" mindset, Shu Qu began replicating the God Sealing Altar from his dream.
To his astonishment, he succeeded!
Since the platform could be created, it was only natural that he should also pursue the matter of the hundred-thousand-year soul beast. Driven by the voice in his mind, he followed the path from his dream to the Extreme North, and, miraculously, found himself at the very snowy peak where the Snow Empress was secluded.
"If…"
"If the dream is correct, this place should open like this."
Shu Qu murmured, then, mimicking the Snow Empress, formed seals with his hands. The mountain before him rumbled, and a stone door rose from the ground.
"It's really here!"
His expression turned feverishly excited at the sight.
Without hesitation, Shu Qu stepped forward and pushed open the stone door, revealing the dark passage once more.
His eyes gleamed with excitement as a faint crimson light flickered in them. In his mind, a voice urged him onward, urging him to descend quickly.
With no further hesitation, he leaped into the passage.
...
...
Meanwhile, deep within the passage.
The Snow Empress had already sealed most of her original power within the nine petals of the snow lotus.
Now, she had reached the most crucial step!
She intended to refine the snow lotus, which held her original power, into a Snow Core and seal it within her body.
This way, over time, the Snow Core would gradually release its power, accelerating her cultivation progress after transforming into human form and hastening the recovery of her peak strength.
This step was critical.
Any mistake could lead to complete failure.
Thus, every movement she made from here on had to be executed with the utmost caution.