"Actually, what I'm looking for isn't a thing, but..."
Before he could finish speaking, a cry echoed through the sky.
The surrounding snow-capped mountains trembled, snowflakes fell intermittently, and the temperature dropped several degrees instantly.
Lin Xiuran's eyes narrowed slightly, and he immediately looked towards the source of the sound.
It was a large bird, or more accurately, an eagle. This eagle was entirely blue, its plumage smooth yet strong. Spreading its wings in the sky, its wingspan was a full two meters, and its most distinctive feature was the tuft of gray feathers on its head.
"A Gray-Headed Ice Eagle, and a ten-thousand-year-old one at that!"
Lin Xiuran immediately sensed the danger and ran towards the distance. A ten-thousand-year-old Gray-Headed Ice Eagle was no match for him.
"Sister Na, is this what you're looking for?"
Gu Yuena: "..."
She hadn't expected that releasing her bloodline power would attract a soul beast. But it seemed quite normal; it was perfectly normal for Lin Xiuran's bloodline to attract avian soul beasts.
Upon seeing Lin Xiuran, the Grey-headed Ice Eagle reacted like a cat spotting a mouse, letting out a loud cry and immediately giving chase.
Its grey pupils were filled with a bloodthirsty urge. Among the eagle-like spirit beasts of the far north, the Grey-headed Ice Eagle was considered one of the gentlest. Yet, this normally docile spirit beast now pursued Lin Xiuran like a madman.
How could Lin Xiuran, with his level forty spirit power, possibly outrun a Grey-headed Ice Eagle soaring in the sky? In no time, the distance between them was forcibly closed.
Lin Xiuran turned around, clasped his hands together, condensed fire element, and instantly unleashed it, attempting to disrupt its flight.
However, the difference in strength was too great. The Gray-Headed Ice Eagle was incredibly fast, its pincer-like claws ignoring the flames and reaching for Lin Xiuran.
The difference in cultivation level meant that Lin Xiuran's resistance was essentially futile; the Gray-Headed Ice Eagle's claws easily and without restraint seized him.
Lin Xiuran felt his entire shoulder being grabbed, and the next second he was lifted up, watching the ground recede into the distance. Without time to think, he unleashed a burst of flames, trying to scorch the Gray-Headed Ice Eagle and force it to release him.
But no matter how hard Lin Xiuran burned, the Gray-Headed Ice Eagle's claws remained firmly gripping him, soaring through the sky.
Pain was definitely felt; parts of its feathers were burned off, and the scorch had even reached the flesh beneath its thick fur.
Lin Xiuran had no choice but to seek help from Gu Yuena.
This time, however, Gu Yuena didn't help him immediately. Instead, she calmly said, "It doesn't seem to have any obvious killing intent; on the contrary, it seems anxious to do something."
"Don't rush, observe first."
After saying this, Gu Yuena fell silent, making no further sound. As the Silver Dragon King, she was perfectly capable of sensing the emotional changes of a soul beast.
Therefore, Lin Xiuran calmed down. Indeed, although the claws gripped him firmly, he didn't feel much pain.
He didn't know what the gray-headed ice eagle wanted to do, but Lin Xiuran was helpless at the moment.
Helpless, Lin Xiuran was thus carried away by the eagle towards the depths of the far north.
Not long after, before the footprints and other marks left where Lin Xiuran had been gripped by the gray-headed ice eagle were completely covered by snow,
a woman gracefully landed on a nearby mountaintop.
She frowned slightly, sensing the lingering aura and footprints at the scene, and wondered, "A human? And... a avian soul beast!"
She had rushed here with all her might after sensing that special bloodline aura that made her bloodline throb, but she was still a step too late.
Looking at the direction the aura disappeared, it was deep in the far north.
Could it be that a powerful soul beast had intercepted it beforehand?
The woman's heart tightened, a sense of crisis rising within her. She hurriedly transformed into a beam of light and chased after it into the depths of the far north.
Lin Xiuran was almost suffocating from the cold in mid-air. The far north was already frigid, and flying so rapidly at such a high altitude made it even colder.
He felt as if his blood had frozen. Even though he tried his best to mobilize fire and ice elements to resist, it wasn't very effective.
It was better not to move; wasting soul power like this would only cause his body temperature to drop faster.
The gray-headed ice eagle suddenly turned and glanced at Lin Xiuran below, its eyes flashing with blue light. The next second, a faint blue shield enveloped Lin Xiuran to resist the extreme cold.
This was something Lin Xiuran hadn't expected. The other party would actually protect him. Although the ten-thousand-year-old Grey-Headed Ice Eagle couldn't speak, its intelligence was quite high.
This action was understandable, but why?
A soul beast had captured Lin Xiuran, didn't intend to kill him, yet would protect him—it was truly incomprehensible.
After a while, the Grey-Headed Ice Eagle gradually descended, landing halfway down a snow-covered mountain, already in the core area. The temperature had dropped drastically; if it weren't for the Grey-Headed Ice Eagle's soul power shield, Lin Xiuran would probably have frozen solid.
Lin Xiuran was thrown down, falling to the ground, looking quite disheveled.
Slowly standing up, he surveyed his surroundings. He saw a deep cave halfway up the snow-covered mountain. The Grey-Headed Ice Eagle was calling softly outside the cave.
Its call was completely different from when it captured Lin Xiuran; it wasn't as high-pitched, but rather very low, yet it seemed to carry a hint of coquetry.
Lin Xiuran couldn't understand it, but he could roughly sense the emotional change in its call.
A short while later, a massive figure flew out of the cave—a gigantic, sky-blue ice bird.
She circled twice in the air before gently landing in front of the gray-headed ice eagle and Lin Xiuran.
She looked at the gray-headed ice eagle with affection, then noticed Lin Xiuran, the human.
Her eyes sharpened the moment she saw him; how could she not be wary of a human entering her territory?
In recent years, the soul masters of Douluo Continent, seeing the dwindling number of soul beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest, and later even being imprisoned and unable to fight, naturally turned their attention to the soul beasts of the far north.
Therefore, the soul beasts of the far north were now quite familiar with humans and instinctively became wary.
However, the gray-headed ice eagle beside her kept calling out and talking to the ice bird, causing the ice bird's gaze towards Lin Xiuran to change.
After what the gray-headed ice eagle and the ice bird said, the ice bird came before Lin Xiuran and let out a loud cry.
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