The Extreme North.
Swish—
A ripple spread through the void.
Following closely, a spatial rift tore open.
Chen Junting and his two companions stepped foot into the Extreme North one after another. The howling northern winds, laden with snowflakes, blanketed them in mere moments, draping them in a layer of silver.
"This is my first time in the Extreme North," Chen Junting remarked. With a slight tremor of his body, the accumulated snow on him silently evaporated. No matter how the biting wind blew, not a single flake could settle on him again.
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
A clear yet joyful voice rang out. The Snow Empress gracefully descended onto the snowy ground. The peerless beauty stood solitary in the snow, her proud and aloof demeanor forming a breathtaking vista.
However, before a response could be given, the Ice Emperor and the Tianmeng Ice Worm poked their heads out of Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Sea one after another. Even the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Imperial Tooth Sea Lion joined in on the fun.
"Beautiful."
The praise was late, but it arrived.
Yet, right after this compliment, Chen Junting changed the subject.
"Snow Empress, it's time to call them back."
"Mhm."
The detachment on the Snow Empress's face vanished, replaced by solemnity.
Saying, "Wait a moment," her body suddenly shot backward, floating into the air like a phantom.
Like a willow caught in the wind, she merged with the blizzard.
As she drifted into the sky, her body danced amidst the clouds, actually treading upon the void itself, waltzing with the wind and snow.
A few breaths later, heaven and earth seemed to transform.
Chen Junting and the other two noticed that the Snow Empress's aura was slowly unfurling, like a gently flowing stream. Though not overbearing, it harmonized perfectly with the Extreme North, reaching a realm where it moistened things silently. It caused everything around them to dim.
In that instant, the world's original pristine whiteness vanished. All the ice and snow actually turned blue, leaving only her dancing figure in the sky as the sole patch of pure white.
Her long sleeves fluttered as white ribbons twirled around her, like a veil of clouds descending from the heavens, making her figure faintly discernible while causing patches of blue snowflakes to surge and ripple around her.
At this moment, the Snow Empress was an elf of the snow. Her graceful dance seemed to fuse her as one with the Extreme North before them.
The fierce astral winds in the sky softened, and even the temperature rose a few degrees. It wasn't warm, but it was no longer freezing cold.
There was only a pure, refreshing coolness.
The blue stretched further into the distance; as far as the eye could see, the entire region seemed to have turned blue. In this moment, sky and ground became indistinguishable. The dreamlike scene intoxicated Chen Junting, his companions, and even the Spirit Souls.
Though they snapped out of it quickly, it left an unforgettable impression.
This was the Dance of the Ice and Snow Maiden!
...
Meanwhile, outside Yu Bei City.
To retreat, or not to retreat?
A difficult choice lay before the soul beasts. But from the retreating gazes of many 100,000-year soul beasts, it was obvious that their desire for life had overridden the anger in their hearts.
However, just at this moment, "Mhm?!"
Almost simultaneously, all the soul beasts snapped their heads around. Their gazes unanimously shot toward the rear—toward the direction of the Extreme North.
The next second, the beast tide that had been entrenched outside Yu Bei City, completely suppressed by Du Busi alone, unexpectedly boiled over with renewed vigor!
But this time, they were not attacking.
Rather... they were retreating!
Like ocean waves, it was an ebb, not a flow.
In mere moments, only a mess of wreckage remained outside Yu Bei City, along with the corpses and soul rings left behind by the dead soul beasts.
At this time, Ye Xuanji and Du Busi had unknowingly arrived atop the ruined city walls of Yu Bei City. Watching the beast tide of the Extreme North rapidly withdraw, Ye Xuanji couldn't help but chuckle lightly, "It seems the Snow Empress's prestige in the hearts of the Extreme North's soul beasts is truly not to be underestimated."
Others might not know, but as an Ultimate Douluo who had interacted quite a bit with the Snow Empress, Ye Xuanji could clearly sense a unique aura originating from the direction of the Extreme North.
The essence of this aura was exactly identical to the Snow Empress's.
"Looks like this matter can be smoothed over."
Du Busi had long since canceled his Martial Soul True Body, reverting to his short stature. His eyes looked into the distance, a sharp glint flashing within them.
"Old Ye, should we take a trip deeper in?"
Ye Xuanji raised an eyebrow, instantly guessing his intentions.
"If we go there now, I'm afraid we won't find any clues."
"Heh—I don't think so."
Arms folded across his chest, a cold smirk tugged at the corner of Du Busi's mouth.
"If someone is deliberately provoking this, they will absolutely leave a trace behind."
But just as he finished saying this, Du Busi immediately changed his tune, "But then again, even if we find a trace, it's meaningless."
These words immediately made Ye Xuanji look at him sideways. Because in his understanding, Du Busi was not someone who would say such a thing.
Sure enough…
The next second, Du Busi's tone turned vicious, "I suspect right now that the Sun Moon Empire is behind this! Since they want to stir up trouble, I'll make them peel off a piece of their own flesh first!"
Without another word, Du Busi delivered the final verdict. As for whether it was a misunderstanding... obviously, that wasn't important to him!
In other words, he was already planning to directly do something to the Sun Moon Empire and retaliate for this incident as quickly as possible.
When it came to revenge, Du Busi never let the sun go down on his anger!
This scene couldn't help but make Ye Xuanji raise an eyebrow again.
"Old Poison, what are you planning to do?"
Du Busi's mouth stretched wide, instantly revealing a wicked smile full of gleaming white teeth. "Do something similar to what we did before."
...
The wind stopped, the snow scattered, and the solo dance concluded.
Right at this moment, Chen Junting's gaze looked off into the distance. Gu Tianchen and Huo Yuhao turned to look in that direction one after the other.
Because they sensed that a massive cluster of life force auras had appeared in the distance. Soon, these life auras were approaching them at an astonishing speed, just like roaring waves crashing ashore.
Out of a sliver of curiosity, Huo Yuhao activated his Spiritual Detection Sharing. As it swept across the distance, he also linked his vision to the Spiritual Seas of Chen Junting and Gu Tianchen. Instantly, they saw a scene far more shocking than the beast tide from before!
At least tens of thousands of soul beasts were converging in this direction. Their numbers and varieties far exceeded those of the beast tide's eruption.
Moreover, every single soul beast was incredibly agitated, sprinting toward them at the fastest speeds they could muster. They gathered from all directions, solely to pay homage to their uncrowned king.
The Snow Empress stood there quietly, gazing into the distance, as a beautiful arc gradually formed on the corners of her lips. Because within this horde of beasts, she could feel familiar auras rushing wildly toward her!
From afar, the massive swarm of soul beasts grew closer and closer.
The Ice Emperor's eyes also began to fill with excitement.
The first to arrive were the soul beasts who had "stayed behind in the Extreme North."
At this very moment, this colossal beast tide was charging toward them at an astounding speed. These soul beasts only came to a halt when they were still a thousand meters away from the Snow Empress and Ice Emperor.
Upon reaching this position, every soul beast of the Extreme North would slowly prostrate itself on the ground, facing the direction of the Snow Empress and Ice Emperor with their most reverent postures. Gradually, the distant soul beasts formed a circle—a circle with a diameter of two thousand meters. And its thickness grew greater, its numbers increasing by the second.
Yet, even so, the Snow Empress just stood there quietly.
The expression on her delicate face shifted from joy back to icy indifference. She just stood there in her solitary pride. Aside from the Ice Emperor, not a single soul beast present dared to stand tall and proud like she did.
They were all worshipping, worshipping their own king.
To these soul beasts who were unaware of the truth, the Snow Empress had simply vanished. But even after being absent for so long, no one in the Extreme North dared to forget her aura. In the past, it was she who guarded this blessed land; it was she who forced all the soul beasts of the Extreme North to submit, and no powerful soul beast had ever dared to rebel.
As time passed, the number of soul beasts on the outer perimeter grew, but the entire ice field remained incredibly quiet. One had to listen closely to hear the panting of the soul beasts. Their breathing was fervent. For the vast majority of soul beasts, being able to see the Snow Empress with their own eyes was the greatest honor of their lives.
Soon, "They're here."
A soft voice rang out, seemingly shattering the tranquility. In this moment, the ground beneath everyone's feet began to tremble. The Snow Empress, the Ice Emperor, and even Gu Tianchen and the others knew exactly what this meant.
The beast tide... had retreated! They had returned!
At the very front, a giant white bear led the charge.
Upon its appearance, the soul beasts prostrate on the ground swiftly parted to make a path for it. It walked all the way to the inner circle, and facing the Snow Empress, it also prostrated itself, its massive rear end stuck high up in the air while its upper body lay flat against the ground.
Its huge bear head swayed gently as it let out soft whimpers toward the Snow Empress. That sound was like a pet seeing its master, brimming with reverence. Its current behavior showed none of the majesty and dominance it possessed when launching the beast tide.
Seeing this, the Snow Empress revealed a faint smile.
She gave a gentle wave of her hand toward the Ice Bear King. Immediately, the massive crowd of Extreme North soul beasts prostrate on the ground fixed their eyes on this ice bear, their gazes filled with undeniable envy.
Overjoyed, the Ice Bear King stood back up, threw his head back to let out a cheerful roar, and then came sprinting toward the Snow Empress like a carefree child. As it ran, it looked like a small hill bouncing across the Extreme North ice field. Every time its incomparably plump body landed, it left deep imprints on the ice.
A distance of a thousand meters was but a blink of an eye for him. When it got to about fifty meters away from the Snow Empress, it abruptly decelerated. For this final fifty meters, it actually crawled on its belly, creeping all the way to the Snow Empress.
It nudged its large head forward, letting out a whimper that sounded like a grievance.
"What's wrong? Does it hurt?" The Snow Empress looked at the patch of missing fur and bruising on the white bear's body. Seemingly out of tender affection, she reached out and rubbed the edges, as if to alleviate his pain.
This caused the white bear to instantly light up with joy, letting out another whimper.
But this time, it was purely out of happiness.
The corners of the Snow Empress's mouth turned up, and her smile was like a proud winter plum blossoming on the ice field. It made all the Extreme North soul beasts present—who hadn't even dared to breathe heavily—heave a collective sigh of relief.
The Snow Empress raised her hand and gently placed it on that giant nose, stroking it as she said softly, "Little White, you've gotten fat again."
Little White said nothing, merely wearing an expression of pure enjoyment under the Snow Empress's stroking, occasionally letting out gentle, low hums. His massive, snow-white bear butt swayed from side to side—it was the very picture of bliss, completely devoid of any trace of a Beast King.
Watching this scene, Huo Yuhao and the others' mouths twitched. Even Chen Junting averted his gaze, not intending to interrupt.
But it was honestly a bit awkward.
Right at this moment, the circle of soul beasts—which now had a thickness of several hundred meters—parted once more. A colossal figure entered the eyes of Chen Junting and the others. And following the arrival of this massive figure, several other soul beasts with equally astonishing auras arrived one by one behind it.
The Extreme North soul beasts that had formed the circle swiftly separated, clearing a wide path. The massive figure at the front strode with large steps into the inner circle, with the others following closely behind.
"Snow Empress."
After the Titan Snow Demon King at the front entered the inner circle, he did not advance further. Instead, he dropped to one knee on the ground. He called out respectfully, speaking in the human tongue.
However, his gaze couldn't help but dart toward Little White, a mix of jealousy and disdain in his eyes: *This idiot bear is truly shameless. Running fast just so he could be the first to complain in front of the Snow Empress. It's just a patch of scraped skin and a little bruising. I literally had my arm broken!*
While the Titan Snow Demon King was harboring his disdain,
"We greet the Snow Empress!" ×N
One voice fell, followed by several others.
The few 100,000-year soul beasts behind the Titan Snow Demon King also prostrated themselves on the ground. Just like subjects meeting their monarch, they lost all the imposing manner of 100,000-year soul beasts, appearing entirely respectful.
"Ah Tai, long time no see."
The Snow Empress nodded at the Titan Snow Demon King, then turned her gaze to the other 100,000-year soul beasts. However, because of this, a sliver of doubt rose in her heart.
The numbers seemed to be a bit lacking.
In the end, however, she suppressed this doubt and instead said, "Are you all well?"
The soul beasts kept their heads bowed in silence, their gazes complex.
Only the Titan Snow Demon King hastily and respectfully said, "Snow Empress, it has been a long time. And of course, you too, Ice Emperor." His gaze quickly fell upon the Ice Emperor, who wasn't far behind the Snow Empress.
The Ice Emperor nodded at the Titan Snow Demon King but did not speak. With the Snow Empress presiding over the scene, it naturally wasn't her place to speak. Even though the soul beasts roughly knew that the Snow Empress had become a Spirit Soul, her majesty in the Extreme North still could not be violated.
The light in the Snow Empress's eyes was like an ancient well without ripples as she said calmly,
"Ah Tai, you may rise first."
"Yes."
Though the Titan Snow Demon King was massive in size, he was not stupid. After detecting the shift in the Snow Empress's tone and recalling her current state, he only slowly stood up and then jogged over to the Snow Empress's side.
Seeing this, Little White, who was currently enjoying the Snow Empress's strokes, squinted his eyes into slits and shot a glance at the Titan Snow Demon King, clear disdain in his gaze. Obviously, the true relationship between him and the Titan Snow Demon King wasn't that harmonious.
Their earlier cooperation during the beast tide was likely just a temporary expedient.
With a *thump-thump-thump*, the Titan Snow Demon King ran to the Snow Empress's side and sat down cross-legged right next to Little White. The sheer volume of these two massive creatures was simply too large; they were like small hills.
Sitting on the left and the right, they looked like two guardian deities.
Off to the side, Chen Junting took in the scene before him.
Up to this point, the soul beasts of the entire Extreme North still revered the Snow Empress. Even those 100,000-year soul beasts and the Titan Snow Demon King—who roughly knew of the Snow Empress's current state—still didn't dare to act presumptuously in front of her, continuing to support her.
As if she were still the sovereign ruler of this land.
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