. Ten days is nothing more than a nap for these ferocious beasts.
The Snow Empress and Ice Empress, who were initially quite worried, felt somewhat relieved seeing Ma Hongjun's confident demeanor.
Ma Hongjun had made his stance clear: "I'll be here with you. If anything happens, with the three Heavenly Kings here, are you worried about not being able to deal with me?"
Most importantly, Ma Hongjun had asked about breaking through realms. Did this mean that Xiao Bai was undergoing a realm breakthrough in Ma Hongjun's unknown soul space?
The Snow Empress knew Xiao Bai's cultivation was roughly at the peak of 170,000 years, but according to her observations, Xiao Bai was still some distance from a breakthrough.
Even in an environment like the extreme ice layer, it would take another two or three years.
Of course, this was just speculation, because realm breakthroughs are very mysterious. When power accumulates to a certain level, a breakthrough often only requires a thought, an epiphany, a fortuitous encounter—in short, a trigger.
Breakthroughs depend on talent and fate.
Clearly, if Ma Hongjun's actions were genuine, then Xiaobai had very likely found this opportunity.
Therefore, while worried, they also felt a sense of anticipation.
If this were true, then this soul space would be incredibly beneficial for soul beasts!
Breakthroughs for soul beasts are not easy, even for a small one.
Having cultivated for hundreds of thousands of years, they knew how difficult it was for soul beasts to cultivate.
However, while the Ice and Snow Emperors could trust Ma Hongjun, the Titan Snow Demon King was not.
It was still somewhat stubborn; the inability to sense the Ice Bear King's aura, this unbelievable situation, filled it with panic. It was genuinely worried that the Ice and Snow Emperors had been deceived by Ma Hongjun and accepted that ridiculous contract.
Another point was that Ma Hongjun instilled a deep fear in it.
Yes, his strength was too great!
In the previous battle, the Titan Snow Demon King had already deeply felt Ma Hongjun's power.
This was only a portion of Ma Hongjun's strength, yet it had so easily crushed it.
The Titan Snow Demon King believed that it wasn't that it was too weak, but rather that Ma Hongjun was too strong!
So much so that it began to doubt whether even the Snow Empress could be a match for Ma Hongjun.
If this human truly harbored ill intentions towards them, the soul beasts, he might actually annihilate the Far North!
Thinking of this, the Titan Snow Demon King felt a deep sense of dread.
Its towering, imposing, and domineering physique, so full of power, evoked such fear in the face of this human, who appeared like an ant to it.
At this moment, the Titan Snow Demon King actually hoped that Ma Hongjun was truly as friendly as he seemed, despite its slight dislike for him.
But fear subdued its thoughts!
This was a world where the strong reigned supreme; strength was the only justification!
In truth, the Titan Snow Demon King deeply disliked the constraints of a contract.
Becoming someone's pet was something it had never imagined.
It was so powerful; it didn't have the fear of being killed and having its soul rings taken by human soul masters at the drop of a hat.
It was the free king of the Far North, with no reason to feel aggrieved.
And most importantly, there was another reason:
jealousy, resentment, and bitterness!
Clearly, the Snow Empress had the urge to become this person's soul pet.
This was what the Titan Snow Demon King found most unacceptable.
It is even more difficult to accept than it being someone else's soul pet.
For so many thousands of years, the Snow Emperor has been an existence that no man or beast can desecrate in its heart.
It was hard to imagine that after Snow Emperor became Ma Hongjun's soul pet, whether the aloof ice and snow goddess in her impression could still exist.
The person you like suddenly becomes someone else's pet.
This is an invisible green hat!
Although the Snow Emperor has never seen it directly, this does not affect the Titan Snow Demon King's own imagination.
In the far north, even if it is just a conjecture, only it, the Titan Snow Demon King, can conjecture about the Snow Emperor.
Although he had thousands of complicated thoughts in his heart, in the end, the Titan Snow Demon King still did not speak out.
But its fist-like eyes looked at Ma Hongjun full of resentment.
There is no way, here, its strength can only be ranked fourth.
Moreover, it had just been beaten once by the person it wanted to attack, and it had no right to speak.
Unlike the Titan Snow Demon, the Ice King is actually quite conflicted.
She also has some resistance to being a pet.
Even more contradictory than becoming a soul.
But, in fact, becoming a soul pet is much more beneficial.
Previously, if she had become Ma Hongjun's soul pet alone, she would have inevitably followed him out of the far north and into the human world.
That would have distanced her further and further from the Snow Empress!
In the far north, the Snow Empress was the reason for her longing.
Otherwise, during her time with Ma Hongjun, the Ice Empress had already been tempted by his offer of sacrifice and contract.
It was a chance to go to the God Realm and achieve immortality.
However, she lacked a crucial point to make a decision.
At this time, the Snow Empress's arrival gave the Ice Empress a thought.
If the Snow Empress was also willing, she could go with her.
That way, she could be with the Snow Empress forever.
So, the Ice Empress, whose thoughts were already stirring, handed the decision over to the Snow Empress.
Before, the Ice Empress, as an intermediary, had spoken well of Ma Hongjun in various ways. In fact, deep down, she was biased towards Ma Hongjun and wanted to fulfill her own desires.
Waiting was the longest.
Ma Hongjun led the Snow Empress and the others into the cave of Xuanbing Marrow.
At this time, there were still eighteen ice pillars of ten-thousand-year-old Xuanbing Marrow remaining.
Shui Bing'er and her four teachers had already absorbed enough.
The Ice Empress and the Dragon Soul had also reached saturation.
In fact, the Dragon Soul could still absorb more, but it was unnecessary. Having absorbed over a hundred, it had reached saturation; its ice-attribute power had reached its limit.
Further absorption would be a waste of such a precious ice-attribute treasure!
"Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow!"
The Titan Snow Demon King exclaimed in surprise. As a renowned soul beast of the far north, it was extremely sensitive to and familiar with these ice-attribute treasures.
They frequently roamed the icy lands of the far north, searching for treasures in this region.
The Titan Snow Demon King would occasionally encounter a piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow.
And here, it had formed pillars, and more than one.
Suddenly seeing so many, the Titan Snow Demon King was overjoyed.
Its enormous body lifted the summit of the mountain.
Taking large strides, it approached the Profound Ice Marrow pillars,
as excited as a child weighing tens of thousands of pounds.
Its massive hand grasped the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow pillars, stroking them affectionately!
Ma Hongjun kicked it, saying,
"Don't get so excited, it's not for you."
The Titan Snow Demon King froze, its excited expression turning to disappointment.
Ma Hongjun ignored it and turned to the Snow Empress. He
said gently,
"Snow Maiden, you can absorb these Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrows if you need them!"
"No, I don't need them right now."
Upon hearing the Snow Empress say no, the Titan Snow Demon King's expression immediately changed. Its massive body bent down, its large face looking at Ma Hongjun and the Snow Empress with hopeful eyes!
In the far north, there were practically no soul beasts unmoved by treasures like Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrows.
Especially the Titan Snow Demon King, whose enormous body had an exceptionally high need for such extreme ice-attribute treasures. As
for the Snow Empress, she was currently facing a seven-hundred-year tribulation, and the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrows wouldn't be of much use to her. Moreover
, there were many such treasures in the extreme ice layer, which the Snow Empress had absorbed in her early years.
As the ruler of the far north, the darling of ice and snow, the Snow Empress's ice and snow power was naturally at its peak!
Ma Hongjun rolled his eyes at the Titan Snow Demon King and pushed its large face away. He
continued speaking to the Snow Empress,
"I'll save these for you too. Absorb them whenever you need them."
The Snow Empress seemed indifferent, but then she suddenly remembered something.
"We can leave them for Little White. It really needs these Xuanbing Marrow Pillars.
They should be enough for it to reach the bottleneck of 200,000 years of cultivation."
"That's right, leave them for Little White!"
Ma Hongjun also realized. Treasures like the 10,000-year Xuanbing Marrow Pillars are like elixirs.
They need to be used at crucial moments. This pure ice-attribute treasure is exactly what's needed for breakthroughs and reaching new realms.
The Ice Bear King is about to break through to the 180,000-year level. After absorbing these 10,000-year Xuanbing Marrow Pillars, it will definitely reach the 200,000-year level.
"Hmm!"
Ma Hongjun sighed softly, reflecting on himself.
He had only thought about pleasing the Snow Empress and had neglected Little White.
Now, in truth, Little White was his soul pet and his future partner.
Why hadn't he thought of Little White?
Xue Di immediately thought of Xiao Bai—no wonder she's Xiao Bai's mother!
Ma Hongjun realized he wasn't a good enough father. He
needed to be more careful in the future!
Xiao Bai was his child now too!
And so, time passed day by day!
Titan Snow Demon King stared longingly at the Profound Ice Marrow every day, secretly drooling!
The tenth day arrived!
Early in the morning, Ma Hongjun probed the soul space with his divine sense.
In the milky white world, Little White was already enveloped in a red halo, and it had reached the crucial final moment.
"Little White, you must hurry!"
Ma Hongjun urged in his heart.
Today was the tenth day, and Little White still hadn't broken through and emerged from seclusion. How was he going to explain this to the Snow Emperor later?
"Don't rush, and you can't disturb it at this time.
Actually, breakthroughs in the soul space are very fast. It's just that this little white bear's power hadn't been fully accumulated before. But after entering the soul space, it entered a state of enlightenment during cultivation and touched a bottleneck.
So it's absorbing energy while breaking through."
The Dragon Soul came out to explain. It had also misjudged at first, thinking that Little White had already begun to break through.
"Will it wake up today?"
"It's hard to say. Breaking through realms is different for every soul beast. It's difficult to judge which stage it has reached!"
Ma Hongjun was somewhat troubled.
However, he felt relieved after a moment.
He couldn't be so impatient for quick results; he had to consider things from Xiaobai's perspective.
This was his soul pet, his partner!
Now was the most crucial time for Xiaobai, and as its master, he shouldn't be thinking about how to prove himself.
Instead, he should be thinking about how to protect Xiaobai and ensure its breakthrough wasn't disturbed.
Since Xiaobai had trusted him enough to break through in his soul space on its first attempt, Ma Hongjun wouldn't betray that trust.
At this moment, Xiaobai's state of enlightenment was like a breakthrough in a dream; being disturbed wouldn't just mean failure, but could very well result in a backlash, or even death!
Having made up his mind, Ma Hongjun stopped worrying and withdrew his consciousness from the soul space, not wanting to disturb it.
If Xiaobai succeeded in its breakthrough, he would naturally sense it.
Today, the Titan Snow Demon King had been watching Ma Hongjun for ten days.
It wondered if Ma Hongjun could escape from the clutches of the three Heavenly Kings of the Far North! It
seemed unlikely!
Ma Hongjun might be able to fight the Snow Emperor without defeat, but with the Ice Emperor and itself added to the mix, the Titan Snow Demon King didn't believe it couldn't defeat Ma Hongjun!
Indeed, it was true; Ma Hongjun was no match for the three Heavenly Kings of the Far North.
Time passed slowly.
Both people and soul beasts gradually quieted down, even able to hear each other's breathing.
Finally,
night fell. The tenth day had passed, and Little White still hadn't emerged!
"Heh heh, Ma Hongjun, what else do you have to say?"
Titan Snow Demon King couldn't help but sneer, questioning Ma Hongjun.
Its towering body stood upright, soul power emanating from it, its aura imposing.
Ice Emperor and Snow Emperor also stared intently at Ma Hongjun.
They formed three groups, surrounding Ma Hongjun in the center.
The other group of Ice Scorpions and Ice Jade Scorpions also surrounded Shui Bing'er and the other five.
"Why can't Little White come out? What explanation do you have?"
Snow Emperor asked coldly, the surrounding air suddenly turning cold, and the snowflakes in the sky grew larger.
It was as if a domain was pressing down!
Ice Emperor didn't say anything more. Over these ten days, they had gradually lowered their guard against Ma Hongjun.
Because they couldn't sense the aura of Ice Bear King Xiaobai from beginning to end.
This made it difficult for them to remain calm. This incomprehensible method, that inability to sense it, was a constant source of panic that was eroding their spirits.
"You've been lying to us all along!"
Ice Emperor said with a hint of disappointment.
"No, no, Ice Emperor, you have no reason to lie to you.
Xiaobai is really alright. It's breaking through its cultivation level, and this is a crucial time.
I can't interfere with it!
Didn't you say that soul beasts usually break through in about ten days?
Only ten days have passed!
I was too confident when I said it would be out in ten days, but I didn't lie to you. Let
's wait a little longer..."
"Ma Hongjun, stop making things up. Where did you take Xiaobai? Ten days is the time limit for our soul beasts to break through a minor cultivation level, and someone of Xiaobai's level doesn't need that long.
Besides, whether it breaks through or not, it can stay conscious, and a short pause won't cause any problems.
If Xiaobai is really alright, you can summon it for a short while, which won't affect it."
Titan Snow Demon King interrupted Ma Hongjun, confronting him directly.
What it said was true; the Ice and Snow Emperors had expressed similar concerns.
However, Xiao Bai was breaking through during a moment of enlightenment, a wondrous state that cannot be disturbed.
If it weren't a breakthrough, interrupting it would at most mean losing a golden opportunity for cultivation.
But interrupting a breakthrough not only prevents success but could also leave lasting effects or even endanger his life.
The state of enlightenment experienced by soul beasts is rare in the Douluo Continent.
This state itself is difficult to achieve, and this world's understanding of enlightenment is not as profound as that of the Five Elements Continent. They
don't even have the concept of it.
This is something the Dragon Soul understands; otherwise, it might have harmed Xiao Bai.
Therefore, it's difficult to explain to the Snow Emperor and the others.
"Snow Emperor, let's subdue him first, then have a spirit-attribute soul beast examine his soul!"
Titan Snow Demon King suggested!
The Ice Emperor nodded in agreement.
"Freeze!"
The Snow Emperor uttered two words crisply, and with a light wave of her hand, snowflakes instantly flew towards Ma Hongjun.
The snowflakes adhered to Ma Hongjun's body.
"Snow Empress, you must believe me..."
Ma Hongjun shouted, but the snowflakes connected to form ice crystals, about to freeze him.
"Bang!"
Ma Hongjun's fiery wings unfurled, breaking free from the freezing power.
Now Ma Hongjun couldn't be controlled by them. If they really found a spirit beast with a spiritual attribute to probe his soul, it would directly affect Xiaobai.
"Snow Empress, Xiaobai is really alright. Forcing me to fight like this will only harm Xiaobai!"
"How is Xiaobai? Summon it!"
The Snow Empress cared most about Xiaobai. Unable to see or sense Xiaobai, she had lost her patience.
She and Ma Hongjun had just met, and her trust in him wasn't very deep yet.
Even the Ice Empress, who initially trusted him, now had doubts about Ma Hongjun!
"I really can't summon it now. I can't disturb Xiaobai. Give me a little more time, it's also giving Xiaobai a little more time."
"Humans shouldn't be trusted!"
Titan Snow Demon King punched at him.
Ma Hongjun quickly dodged.
At the same time, he summoned the Fire Phoenix Martial Soul!
Five red spirit rings unfolded.
"So many red spirit rings, how many hundred-thousand-year spirit beasts have you killed? Are
we your targets too?"
Titan Snow Demon King was surprised and even more shaken.
Ma Hongjun had only shown his Dragon Soul Martial Soul before taking it down.
At this moment, the Dragon Soul transmitted its voice: "My soul is closely connected to yours, so I can't attack, otherwise it will affect Xiaobai.
However, I sense that Xiaobai is about to break through, so stall for time."
The Dragon Soul was the foundation of Ma Hongjun's soul space, belonging to one of his souls. Xiaobai was also a link in this soul, filling the position of the fifth spirit ring.
"It's alright, at such a crucial moment, let's protect Xiaobai through this first."
Fortunately, Ma Hongjun was a dual cultivator of spirit master and spirit pet master.
Now his mental energy was all focused on the Dragon Soul Martial Soul.
Using the Martial God Spear and the Fire Phoenix did not affect his mental sea.
With the Dragon Soul stabilizing his soul space, Ma Hongjun could safely use his other two Martial Souls.
What he needed now was to stall for time.
Without the Dragon Soul's help, Ma Hongjun's ability to deal with ice attributes was greatly reduced.
The ice attributes of the Three Heavenly Kings were so powerful that they had completely suppressed the Fire Phoenix Martial Soul.
This greatly weakened his strength! With
his Firewing Wind Wings flapping rapidly, Ma Hongjun quickly flew into the sky, dodging the Titan Snow Demon King's fist.
However, the Snow Empress's domain was too powerful; snowflakes turned into ice crystals and rained down from the sky.
Ma Hongjun summoned the Martial God Spear.
The Extreme Shadow Flying Dragon Spear pierced through the domain.
But the Snow Empress had also reached the sky; she was like an ice and snow sprite, controlling countless snowflakes, each one a manifestation of her power.
"Ma Hongjun, quickly release Xiaobai!"
the Snow Empress said coldly.
She felt somewhat guilty; Xiaobai had gone in her place.
"Snow Empress, Xiaobai is really alright. We can't affect it now."
The Snow Empress no longer believed his words; ten days had passed, and she still hadn't seen Xiaobai. Saying more would only be meaningless.
The Snow Empress shook her head and said in a deep voice,
"What's the point of doing this?"
She didn't understand why Ma Hongjun, while speaking kindly, would make Xiaobai disappear like this.
She still needed to convince them.
Was he after the soul rings and soul bones?
The Snow Empress suspected Ma Hongjun might have some special methods, deceiving soul beasts to enhance his own strength.
She suspected that the Heavenly Dream Ice Silkworm, the Purple-Backed Profound Ice Centipede, and the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus had all been tricked into this way.
"Meaning? Snow Empress, I've already told you my thoughts. I have no reason to deceive you.
Otherwise, why didn't I just kill the Ice Empress earlier?"
Ma Hongjun continued to explain.
"No need to say more, I want to see Xiaobai!"
The Snow Empress still didn't believe Ma Hongjun; she needed to control him first.
"Emperor Sword: Ice Extreme Peerless!"
(End of Chapter)