Chapter 426: Journey to the Extreme North
Ye Lao could only sense the general direction of the remaining fragments; he couldn't precisely pinpoint their exact locations. Only when a fragment was very close could he lock onto its position.
Based on this vague directional sensing, Huo Yuhao estimated that the fragment had likely fallen somewhere within the core of the Extreme North.
But with his current strength, trying to find such a tiny fragment in this endless frozen wasteland… was nothing short of impossible. Even with spiritual power scanning, the task would still be extremely difficult.
Still, difficulty alone wasn't the real problem. At worst, it just meant spending more time searching.
The real issue was that the Extreme North's environment was extremely hostile to humans.
Worse still, if he accidentally stumbled into a group of powerful soul beasts, he'd be as good as dead.
"Seriously, why did the fragment have to land here?" he grumbled, feeling frustrated.
Fortunately, he had a local guide.
Huo Yuhao felt that with a native soul beast leading the way, his journey wouldn't be as difficult as he initially imagined.
"Brother Tianmeng! Brother Tianmeng! Wake up! We're already in the Extreme North. Now it's your turn to lead the way!"
He called out to Tianmeng Iceworm in his mind.
His so called local guide, of course, referred to this fat ice bug, who was born in the Extreme North.
"Lead the way? Lead what way?"
Tianmeng's sleepy voice echoed in his mind.
But after a moment of realization, the iceworm suddenly froze in confusion.
"Wait, you're asking me to lead the way?! But… I don't know this place either!"
"WHAT?!"
Huo Yuhao was shocked.
"Brother Tianmeng, aren't you a soul beast from the Extreme North? How do you not know the way back home?"
Tianmeng Iceworm responded innocently:
"I really don't know the way! I used to live far northeast of the continent nowhere near here! Later, I got swept away by the ocean currents and drifted southward, eventually making my way to Star Dou Forest."
"But this place is in the central northern region of the continent what used to be the northwest of Douluo! Of course, I wouldn't know my way around here!"
Huo Yuhao suddenly felt like crying.
He anxiously asked Ye Lao:
"Ye Lao, what do we do now?! Even Brother Tianmeng doesn't know the way! If we wander around randomly, we might accidentally walk into a soul beast nest and then we're finished!"
But before Ye Lao could respond, Tianmeng Iceworm chuckled mischievously.
"Relax, kid! I was just messing with you."
"Yes, I don't know the terrain, but you're forgetting something!"
"I have immensely powerful spiritual power! I don't need to know the layout of this place. I can just scan ahead and avoid all the dangerous areas."
"With me around, it'll be impossible for you to run into any real trouble!"
Huo Yuhao finally sighed in relief.
"Alright then, Brother Tianmeng, I'll trust you!"
But just as he was about to continue forward, Tianmeng suddenly said something strange.
"Alright, now take off your clothes."
Huo Yuhao froze.
"…What?"
"Take off your clothes," Tianmeng repeated matter of factly.
"Brother Tianmeng, are you trying to kill me?! It's freezing out here! You want me to strip?!"
Tianmeng rolled his eyes.
"Just do it! If you don't, you really might freeze to death!"
"You think this is cold? Kid, this barely counts as chilly! Back in my day, this temperature would've made me sweat!"
"But the core of the Extreme North? That is real cold something far beyond your imagination."
"You need to strip now so I can help you prepare. Otherwise, in two days, your journey will be over because you'll be frozen solid!"
At this point, Huo Yuhao had no choice but to trust Tianmeng.
Reluctantly, he removed his thick coat.
The moment the icy wind touched his skin, his entire body shivered violently.
He could literally see steam rising from his exposed body due to the extreme temperature difference.
"H Holy… this is insane!"
Huo Yuhao gritted his teeth and quickly stripped down to his undergarments, jumping around in the snow in sheer agony.
It was an unbearable kind of cold.
Just as he thought he couldn't take it anymore, a warm golden glow emerged from his forehead.
The golden light spread out, forming a protective barrier that repelled the cold.
At the same time, a soft white light emerged from his chest separating from his body.
Huo Yuhao looked down in surprise, realizing that the white light was actually part of his own skin!
The light expanded outward, forming a thin, translucent layer that covered his entire body.
Within seconds, the unbearable cold was completely gone.
The freezing wind still blew against him, but it simply slid off without affecting him at all.
"Brother Tianmeng… what is this?!" Huo Yuhao asked in astonishment.
Tianmeng Iceworm laughed lazily.
"This? Oh, it's just my shed skin."
"You remember my original body, right? Well, that's what's covering you now!"
"I was born in these extreme cold lands, so obviously, I'm immune to the cold!"
"This shed skin is completely breathable, resistant to both fire and water, and perfectly conceals your aura."
"If you tried walking into the core of the Extreme North with just your human body, you'd be dead within days."
"Now, hurry up and put your clothes back on. You look ridiculous standing here half naked!"
Huo Yuhao was speechless.
"You were the one who told me to take them off!"
Still, he had to admit this was effective.
The moment he put his clothes back on, the shed skin felt nonexistent, as if it had always been part of him.
Suddenly, Tianmeng's tone became serious.
"Yuhao, I have a feeling this journey is no coincidence."
"The fact that the fragment landed in the Extreme North… might be fate."
"I had already planned to bring you here eventually, so now we can kill two birds with one stone."
Huo Yuhao's eyes narrowed.
"Brother Tianmeng… are you talking about making the Ice Empress sacrifice herself for me?"
He immediately thought back to the future video, where he absorbed the Ice Empress through a spirit sacrifice.
"But things are different now," Huo Yuhao hesitated. "The video exposed our future. Ice Empress might be on guard can we really pull this off?"
Tianmeng laughed confidently.
"Don't worry. I am still an irresistible temptation to her."
"As soon as I release my aura, she will come."
"Besides, the video never showed how we actually convinced her so that means we still have a chance!"
"If we follow the original plan, I'd say there's at least an 80% chance she'll fall for it!"
Huo Yuhao took a deep breath.
"Alright. Then I'll risk it."
If everything went according to plan, obtaining the Ice Empress' power would be an enormous boost…
And it was a risk worth taking.
(End of Chapter)
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