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Inside the laboratory of the Hall of Worship in Capital City, the atmosphere was thick with the scent of ozone and metal. The cool-toned spirit tool lights cast an even glow across the room, and a faint metallic cold light shimmered from various instruments, creating an atmosphere of meticulousness.
Kong Mingan was currently bent over a large workbench, meticulously carving a metal template with his sharp engraving tool. From time to time, he would look up to observe the slowly rotating black spirit ring floating beside him.
This was a ten thousand year spirit ring, and its dark energy pulsed with a steady rhythm. A faint blue current of light flickered in his eyes, which remained calm and focused. His spirit power slowly flowed from his fingertips into the tip of his engraving tool, then, following the pre-designed structural patterns, he left winding, profound lines on the metal plate.
After a long while, the final stroke fell, and the entire array diagram briefly lit up before naturally fading away. Kong Mingan raised his hand, and a surge of spirit power was immediately injected into it, activating the spirit tool array diagram.
In the next moment, the array diagram glowed brightly. Complex matrix patterns connected and outlined themselves, revealing a unique geometric beauty that was both scientific and magical.
However, the light did not last long. It flickered a few times, and then an unstable hum abruptly sounded from the center of the plate. In just a few seconds, the entire spirit tool array diagram dimmed. Even the core crystal in the center developed a slight crack, signaling that the experiment had failed.
"Failed again... Tsk, the energy structure still needs a bit more optimization," Kong Mingan murmured softly. There was not much disappointment on his face. It was just an experimental failure, and he was used to it.
As long as he could find the cause of the failure, it was equivalent to trial and error. This was just laying the groundwork for his future success. When doing experiments, a person's mindset is very important.
He knew that getting frustrated would not help him solve the problem. He raised his hand and tossed the metal plate into the recycling area, then began to record his findings in his experimental log.
After his bounty was canceled and there were no longer any occasional material refreshes, his research focus temporarily shifted. He was now working on the development of imprint spirit tools. For him, the creation of spirit tools itself was not very difficult. The so-called spirit tool array diagram was essentially the inscription of an energy operation structure onto a specific carrier.
The greatest difficulty in replicating a spirit ability onto a spirit tool lay in how to perfectly and stably solidify the unique energy structure. After all, a spirit ring and a piece of metal were quite different from each other. Because of this, the energy structure also needed modification and optimization. This was a painstaking process that required a significant amount of time and effort.
He was about to continue working while his current state was good, but in the next moment, Kong Mingan's movements paused slightly. As if sensing something, he turned around to look at the center of the laboratory. There, the space rippled like water. A gray door radiating a sacred yet dead aura silently appeared in the middle of the room. Then, two figures stepped out from it, one after the other.
"You're the human who tricked the Snow Empress?!"
Before Kong Mingan could clearly see who had arrived, a clear voice rang out first. Then, once his vision cleared, a pair of golden eyes occupied his entire field of vision. They were filled with questioning and scrutiny. The sudden closeness made Kong Mingan retreat slightly. Then the figure of the young girl in front of him became complete.
She had long emerald hair and golden eyes. She was dressed in an exquisite white and green gown. Her delicate, doll-like face carried an undisguised hint of pride. Coupled with the girl's petite stature, she looked somewhat cute.
Kong Mingan completely ignored the terrifying aura emanating from the girl. A faint blue current of light flickered in his eyes as he looked at the girl's energy structure. Combined with the girl's previous words, he easily recognized her identity. She was the Ice Empress, one of the three overlords of the Extreme North.
Without answering the Ice Empress's question, Kong Mingan looked at the white-gowned figure behind her. It was the Snow Empress, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
"You returned a bit later than I expected," he said.
"After passing the 700,000-year Heavenly Tribulation, I arranged some matters in the Extreme North Land. That took a little time," Snow Empress said softly. She moved and arrived beside the Ice Empress. Her ice-blue eyes were still calm, but her cold and beautiful face seemed to have a faint, dewy glow compared to when she left. It was clear that her breakthrough had been successful.
The Ice Empress looked back and forth between them, feeling confused. She couldn't believe what was happening.
"No, are you two just going to ignore me and chat? You haven't answered my question yet!"
The Ice Empress couldn't help it. She stepped forward and directly blocked the space between Kong Mingan and the Snow Empress. Her golden eyes were full of vigilance.
"Human! You are not allowed to get so close to Snow Empress!" she shouted.
"Who's getting close to whom?" Kong Mingan muttered to himself. Although he had guessed the possibility of the Ice Empress returning with the Snow Empress, he hadn't thought about how to deal with it. Without answering her, Kong Mingan simply turned his gaze back to the Snow Empress.
Snow Empress's ice-blue eyes met his. Without a word, they roughly understood each other's meaning. They had a level of understanding that didn't require words. The Ice Empress watched this and felt completely left out.
"No! I'm still here!!!"
Watching the inexplicable tacit agreement between the two, the Ice Empress felt a surge of anger. At this moment, she felt like an outsider who was unable to interject at all. She felt like she was the one who was there first, yet they were acting like she didn't exist. A strange sourness welled up in her heart, and she couldn't hold back anymore.
"You two! Don't ignore me!"
Kong Mingan remained silent, looking at the Snow Empress again. The Snow Empress sighed softly and calmly explained the situation.
"Bing'er was worried about me and insisted on coming to see you with her own eyes. I have already helped her pass the 400,000-year Heavenly Tribulation, and her current state is very good. It's just that she is a bit impatient."
"Who's impatient?! I'm not impatient! I'm absolutely not impatient!"
The Ice Empress looked indignant, but because the Snow Empress was right there beside her, she ultimately stopped speaking. She just pouted and glared at Kong Mingan.
Kong Mingan nodded knowingly and glanced at the Ice Empress. He then said calmly, "In that case, Snow Empress, you should rest for a few days. I'll make arrangements for you to take the Ice Empress around the city so she can get familiar with it. You can also adapt to your newly acquired power. Then, shall we proceed with the plan as we discussed before?"
The Snow Empress shook her head. A trace of seriousness flashed in her ice-blue eyes.
"No need, let's start now. I've already familiarized myself with my power in the Extreme North Land after passing the 700,000-year Heavenly Tribulation. My current state is very good. Besides, if we don't quickly make Bing'er believe you, I don't think she will settle down. I also don't really want to send Bing'er back to the Extreme North Land."
She glanced at the Ice Empress beside her, who was already bristling and hissing at Kong Mingan. The girl looked like she was almost ready to bite him. The Snow Empress's tone carried a hint of helplessness.
"Hmm?"
The Ice Empress's eyes cleared slightly as she heard this. She wondered what the Snow Empress meant. Why would she be sent back to the Extreme North Land if she didn't believe this guy? She was clearly here to protect the Snow Empress. How did it turn out that she was the one being viewed as a problem?
"Is that so..."
Kong Mingan chuckled unconsciously, then nodded slightly. "I understand."
As his voice fell, something changed. In the next moment, an aura of extreme ice and snow emanated from his body. It was an aura identical to the Snow Empress's own power. His body began to glow with a faint ice-blue light as Kong Mingan entered a perfect elementalization state.
The Ice Empress was frozen in place. She stared intently at him, feeling his aura of extreme ice and snow. It was impossible, yet it was happening right in front of her. Kong Mingan smiled and extended his hand towards the Snow Empress. His eyes, now tinged with ice-blue, held a hint of a smile as he softly invited her.
"Then let us begin, to forge the spirit core."