Amidst the boundless storm of wind and snow—
Li Zhexian transformed into a streak of sword-light, crossing a thousand meters in an instant.
With the Snow Empress's token on him, he could move freely through the Extreme North.
"Brother Zhexian, I—I'm kind of nervous…"
"You don't know… the Ice Empress and I… have some history…"
Skydream Ice Worm's voice drifted through the snowstorm, hesitant and faltering.
Li Zhexian was just about to answer—
When he suddenly sensed something.
He lifted his head sharply to look forward.
A small smile curved his lips.
"Yiya—!"
A clear, ringing cry burst through the falling snow.
A moment later—
A beast over three meters long, born with a sword in its jaws, crashed through the curtain of snow and charged toward him with excitement.
In the blink of an eye, it was right in front of him—
And slammed affectionately into Li Zhexian's arms.
If his physical body were not already far beyond mortal limits, he might truly have been knocked flat by Liite Yazi.
"You've grown this big already?"
Li Zhexian rubbed its head.
Little Yazi shook its head vigorously, the hilt of a pale-golden ancient sword held in its mouth, nudging his waist again and again.
Li Zhexian understood.
He drew out the Qinglian Sword from its sheath.
Little Yazi's eyes lit up instantly, and it leaned forward, tapping its own sword against the Qinglian Sword with a series of crisp ding ding dang dang chimes.
"Brother Zhexian, this is the new generation of Yazi?
Why is it so close to you?"
Skydream Ice Worm asked in astonishment within Li Zhexian's spiritual sea:
"According to legend, a Yazi is born holding a sword, and only when a sword expert knocks upon its shell with their blade can it break free."
"Don't tell me… you were the one who knocked it awake?"
Li Zhexian nodded with a smile.
"Tsk tsk…"
Skydream Ice Worm grew even more shocked.
"A Yazi differs from other auspicious beasts. Their talent and future potential depend entirely on the person or beast who awakened them."
"Since you were the one who brought it into the world…"
"This little guy's future is limitless!"
Rustle—
Rustle—
Just as he grew more excited,
the howling wind and snow were suddenly interrupted by a series of crisp, ice-cracking sounds.
Like hardened knuckles tapping frozen ground.
The swirling blizzard abruptly fell still—
as if holding its breath in reverence.
A few breaths later—
a stunning figure broke through the snow.
It was an Ice Jade Scorpion—its crystalline jade body cold and flawless like sculpted divine jade, utterly unearthly.
"…" Skydream Ice Worm fell silent immediately.
Even his presence in Li Zhexian's spiritual sea shrank away, nearly vanishing.
"Senior Ice Empress."
Li Zhexian greeted her with a smile.
The Ice Empress' star-diamond eyes examined him carefully, a flicker of shock flashing within.
Unlike the Snow Empress, who had attended Li Zhexian's Titled grand banquet only half a year ago—
the Ice Empress had not seen him in nearly two years.
Now she realized—
in just two short years,
the white-robed youth before her exuded a faint pressure that even she instinctively feared.
Such progress was truly terrifying.
"Sister Xue is about to break through the 700,000-year threshold.
You have rendered great help to the Far North, so she invited you to witness it."
Before she finished speaking, she sensed something odd and frowned slightly.
Whoosh—
A sharp, icy wind swept past, stirring the loose strands of hair on Li Zhexian's forehead.
The next moment—
The Ice Empress suddenly stepped close, sniffing quietly with a focused expression.
A trace of confusion surfaced in her eyes.
"How strange…"
"There is a familiar aura on you…"
Her eyes fixed upon the Skydream Sword Shrine at Li Zhexian's waist.
"This is…"
"Brother Tian Meng, come out." Li Zhexian said helplessly: "It wasn't me who revealed your presence to the Senior Ice Empress."
"Sigh."
A long sigh resounded.
Snowflakes around them were swept up by a vast wave of spiritual power—
coalescing in an instant
into a large, plump crystalline ice worm.
Across the snowy air, Skydream Ice Worm stared at the Ice Empress and spoke softly:
"Ice Empress…
Do you still remember me?"
"Tian Meng…"
The Ice Empress' eyes narrowed.
Swish—!
She moved instantly—
lunging straight at Skydream Ice Worm.
The crown-shaped stinger above her head extended viciously, aiming directly at his body.
"I wanted to catch you back then, but you escaped!"
"If I devour you, my cultivation will skyrocket!"
"Then… I could finally catch up to Sister Xue!"
Skydream Ice Worm looked as though he was moved.
But in truth, he had been on full alert ever since he revealed himself.
The moment the Ice Empress moved—
He tried to flee.
But he was never built for combat; within a breath, she had already closed the distance behind him.
"Ice Empress!"
"Don't you... not even remember our past relationship!"
"All I have left now is my soul! My body was taken by those beasts in Star Dou ages ago!"
"Even if you swallow me, it won't help you!"
The Ice Empress' face remained icy cold.
She completely ignored his cries.
The stinger thrust forward—
cold light freezing the air.
Though she had abandoned its poison to pursue the ultimate ice attribute,
the stinger remained her sharpest weapon.
"Brother Zhexian!"
"Hurry... hurry and save me!"
At the critical moment—
a sword qi materialized.
It swept before the Skydream Ice Worm.
Clang—!
A crisp collision rang through the swirling snow.
The Ice Empress's expression shifted.
From that streak of sword qi, she sensed an attribute surpassing even her own ultimate ice… something beyond even the "ultimate sharpness" Li Zhexian once wielded.
"So you truly… are no longer who you once were."
The sword qi shattered.
Li Zhexian stepped forward.
"Senior Ice Empress."
"Brother Tian Meng is not lying."
"He really is only a soul now.
Even if you devoured him, it would bring you no benefit."
The Ice Empress slowly retracted her stinger, not sparing Skydream Ice Worm a glance.
She turned to Li Zhexian and said coolly:
"Come."
"I will take you to the place where Sister Xue will undergo her tribulation."
The two traveled one behind the other,
crossing endless white plains
until they reached a vast valley surrounded by four towering snow mountains.
They landed atop one of the snowy peaks.
The Ice Empress, Li Zhexian, Little Yazi, and the Skydream Ice Worm stood side by side, gazing into the void.
In Li Zhexian's vision—
a graceful, indistinct figure stood amid the dancing snow,
surrounded by extreme cold so dense it nearly became solid.
Even with his current strength,
the majestic energy radiating from the Snow Empress made it hard to breathe.
"Sister Xue consumed nearly half the heavenly treasures in the depths of the Extreme North.
Her cultivation has now officially stepped into the 700,000-year realm."
"With the auspicious energy of Little Yazi, she has some confidence in facing this tribulation."
"She needs to adjust her state to perfection."
"To welcome the descent of the heavenly tribulation."
The Ice Empress' voice echoed in his mind—cold and solemn.
Li Zhexian nodded, gaze firm.
Time flowed soundlessly beneath the eternal daylight of the Extreme North.
He didn't know how many days and nights had passed.
Until—
at the same moment,
the Skydream Ice Worm, Li Zhexian, and the Ice Empress simultaneously looked up, expressions tightening.
"It's coming."
The moment the words fell—
the Snow Empress' snow-robes fluttered without wind.
Brilliant, intricate frost patterns surfaced across her body, gathering above her head into a magnificent imperial crown.
Her 700,000-year cultivation erupted without reservation.
An indescribable pressure swept out from her slender body.
In an instant—
The entire Extreme North trembled.
The snow on the ground surged skyward, billowing like billions of ice-butterflies taking flight, forming a pale vortex that connected heaven and earth.
And in that same instant—
The sky darkened abruptly.