"Wait—a 100,000-year Ice Jade Scorpion sacrificed itself to you!?"
Zhi Yong stared at Huo Yuhao, utterly dumbfounded.
When he'd found Huo Yuhao, the boy had not only awakened his second martial soul but had already broken through to Level 31, becoming a Soul Master. Upon questioning, Huo Yuhao explained that his second martial soul came from a 100,000-year Ice Jade Scorpion that had willingly sacrificed itself for him.
"Yes, Elder Zhi Yong," Huo Yuhao said earnestly. "Don't believe me? Look."
He quickly removed his upper garment, revealing a vivid Ice Jade Scorpion tattoo spanning his back. His arms shimmered with diamond-like ice crystals, harmonizing with the tattoo's glow.
As a blood-red soul ring rose beneath his feet, the unmistakable aura of a 100,000-year soul beast radiated outward.
"It really is a 100,000-year soul ring," Zhi Yong muttered, awe-struck. As someone who possessed such a soul ring himself, he could verify its authenticity. Yet he couldn't fathom such luck—
'After being teleported away, he just happened to meet a dying 100,000-year Ice Jade Scorpion? And it made him swear two vows—avenge it against two 100,000-year Polar Ice Wolves and never harm its kin—before sacrificing itself?'
Even the wildest fiction wouldn't dare invent such a tale!
Yet everything before him screamed: It's true.
Huo Yuhao, seeing Zhi Yong's skeptical frown, felt his stomach twist with guilt. He silently called out in his spiritual sea:
'Tianmeng—doesn't this story sound too fake?'
"Fake? How?" Tianmeng Ice Silkworm replied distractedly, rolling around in distress. "We're not lying! You just… omitted my involvement and downgraded Bing Bing's 400,000-year cultivation to 100,000. That's all!"
"Really?"
"Absolutely!" Tianmeng wailed, burying his face in his coils. "But what if Bing Bing never speaks to me again when she wakes up!?"
Huo Yuhao decided not to disturb him further—but guilt for Ice Empress gnawed at him.
During their fusion, he and Tianmeng had revealed their sect's plan to capture a 10,000-year Ice Jade Scorpion. Enraged but powerless to undo the bond, the Ice Empress had no choice. She'd partially sacrificed herself to boost Huo Yuhao to Level 30, instructing him to claim a "100,000-year scorpion's sacrifice" to deter the sect from harming her kin—backed by his martial soul oath and the soul ring's power. Then, exhausted, she'd fallen into deep slumber.
Huo Yuhao's cheeks burned with shame.
They had deceived her.
Meanwhile, Zhi Yong—faced with irrefutable evidence—had no choice but to believe. Still, he subtly probed Huo Yuhao's aura, checking if he was a 100,000-year soul beast in human form.
The result?
Huo Yuhao was undeniably human.
"Your luck is unreal," Zhi Yong sighed, clapping Huo Yuhao's shoulder with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Yuhao—I had to verify you weren't a soul beast in disguise."
"No worries, Elder—"
Before Huo Yuhao could finish, a voice cut through the air—
"What 100,000-year soul beast?"
Ye Xuanji descended, having just returned from his clash with the Ice Devil Titan. His Sword Dao: Xuanji had caught the Titan off-guard, inflicting heavy wounds. Knowing he couldn't finish the fight quickly, Ye Xuanji had disengaged to rejoin his comrades.
"Elder Ye," Zhi Yong quickly recounted Huo Yuhao's story. Ye Xuanji's reaction mirrored Zhi Yong's initial disbelief.
"Big Brother," Zhi Yong began, turning to Ye Xuanji—
"The Sect Master will decide this matter," Ye Xuanji interrupted. Without further ado, he ushered Huo Yuhao back toward the sect.
---
Back at the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect
"A 100,000-year soul beast sacrificed itself!?"
Ning Bowen's eyes widened—but he swiftly composed himself. Seeing Ye Xuanji and Zhi Yong shake their heads (indicating they'd found no deception), he pivoted smoothly.
"Yuhao," he asked casually, "your third soul ring came from a thousand-year ice silkworm, granting you the Imitation soul skill, correct?"
"Yes," Huo Yuhao nodded, puzzled by the sudden shift.
"Then when using your second martial soul, hide that 100,000-year soul ring. Imitate it as a thousand-year one."
"Huh?" Huo Yuhao instantly understood: the Sect Master wouldn't pry into his second martial soul's origins. His prepared explanations died unspoken.
"Is there a problem?" Ning Bowen teased.
"No! No problem at all!"
"Good." Ning Bowen smiled. "Prepare yourself. Tomorrow, you join us in Sunset Forest. The sect needs your power."
"Yes, Sect Master!"
---
Sunset Forest – The Jade Phosphor Flower Sea
With Huo Yuhao's Ultimate Ice and his 100,000-year Ice Jade Scorpion soul skill, the sect tore through the toxic flower field like a blade through silk. Ultimate cold, amplified by ice-attribute fixed-ammo soul engineering shells and devices, transformed the sea of flowers into a frozen wasteland.
Both Absolute Seven and Absolute Nine Flowers clamped shut, their toxic mists dissipating.
"Yuhao, we owe you big time," Chen Junting said, watching his Master and the Elders clear the area of plant-based soul beasts. He turned to Huo Yuhao, who radiated chilling aura. "This wouldn't have been possible without you."
"I'm just serving the sect," Huo Yuhao demurred, flustered by the praise.
Suddenly, he froze—as if receiving a mental message. He glanced toward the valley ahead. "Senior Junting, Sister Xiao Tian… all this effort to enter here—what's the sect after?"
"You'll see soon enough," Chen Junting chuckled, deliberately cryptic.
Ning Tian played along. "Your second martial soul earned you a share of what's ahead," she added—then fell silent, leaving Huo Yuhao confused and slightly frustrated.
By now, the elders had eliminated most plant soul beasts. With the path clear, they lifted Ning Bowen, Chen Junting, and Huo Yuhao into the air, soaring into the valley.
After descending roughly 300 meters through the clouds—
the world opened up before them.
Lush, vibrant, and radiant with unparalleled spiritual energy—the valley was a paradise on earth.
Flowers of every hue bloomed in dazzling profusion; fruit-laden trees bowed under their bounty. Many plants glowed with faint halos of treasure-light—obviously extraordinary even to untrained eyes.
At the valley's heart lay a hot spring—but split into two distinct pools: one crimson, one pure white. Though sharing the same basin, the waters remained perfectly separated, like two colossal jade orbs embedded in the earth.
This was the legendary Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well—one of the continent's Three Great Treasure Basins, where heaven and earth converged their most exquisite essence.
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