Chapter 269: Ye Chen Condenses His Soul Core
At that moment, a flicker of light appeared in the cave—Ye Chen had returned.
"Ye Chen!"
The Ice Empress's voice rang out in delight. In an instant, she leapt from the fur-covered floor like a bolt of emerald lightning, throwing herself straight into his arms.
Ye Chen chuckled softly and opened his arms to catch her, steady and familiar.
The Ice Empress clung to him, rubbing her face affectionately against his neck, her soft hums sounding like a contented cat greeting its long-lost owner.
Her cool touch carried the crisp scent of frost—and, faintly, that of cream and sugar.
"You little glutton. You've eaten all the snacks I brought," Ye Chen said, wiping a smudge of cream from the corner of her mouth, lightly patting her head in mock helplessness.
At the sound of her name, the Snow Empress opened her eyes.
She watched the Ice Empress's unabashed affection, her flawless, cold face flickering with a faint, unreadable emotion. Behind her snow-white gaze hid the tiniest trace of envy.
With a huff, she turned her head sharply, offering Ye Chen nothing but her proud, elegant profile.
Ye Chen glanced at her and smiled.
Thanks to the Ice Empress's coaxing—and their shared bond as host and spirit—the Snow Empress's hostility had almost completely faded.
Of course, as the most powerful of the three Northern Kings, she still possessed immense pride. She wasn't about to become another "love-struck fool" like the Ice Empress, and she certainly wouldn't debase herself for a few sweets.
But for Ye Chen, even this much acceptance was progress.
Her mindset had begun to shift. The rest would only take time… and a little "guiding."
He had patience to spare.
"Hmm? Ye Chen, are you hiding something tasty? I can smell it!"
The Ice Empress twitched her small, elegant nose, sniffing inquisitively against his collar.
"It's not food," Ye Chen said with a smile, flipping his wrist to reveal a smooth, luminous jade box. "Just a Hundred-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus."
Faint wisps of cold mist spiraled from the box even before he opened it.
When the lid lifted—
The cave filled with pure, numbing frost as a flawless crystal lotus shimmered within.
Its petals glowed like sculpted ice, a perfect bloom radiating gentle blue light.
The Ice Empress froze, golden eyes widening, her jaw dropping in disbelief.
And the Snow Empress—who had been looking away—jerked as though struck by lightning.
Her icy-blue pupils contracted sharply, locking onto the lotus with visible shock.
Every thread of energy within it pulsed with an ancient life force, its aura unmistakable.
"This… this is a Hundred-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus!!"
Her voice trembled with excitement and awe, breaking her usual composure.
Her regal demeanor vanished as she rose from her seat in an instant, crossing the cave in a gust of wind until she stood right before him, eyes ablaze.
"As expected of the Snow Empress," Ye Chen said calmly. "Your perception is sharp."
"Where… where did you find that?" she asked, her tone barely steady, her voice thick with disbelief.
For countless years, she had searched the Extreme North for treasures that might help her overcome her seven-hundred-thousand-year tribulation.
She had gathered numerous ten-thousand-year-grade herbs—but none strong enough to aid her.
Only a hundred-thousand-year treasure could make even the slightest difference.
But in the entire north, such things were rarer than myths. She had searched for ages without success.
And Ye Chen… had simply returned with one in hand.
"The Extreme North is vast," he said lightly, folding his arms. "If you know where to look, there's always something hidden in the ice. I just happened to find it in a deep fissure—picked it up along the way."
He kept his tone casual, deliberately skipping over Huo Yuhao's involvement.
"Picked it up…?"
The Snow Empress nearly choked on the words.
She had spent thousands of years scouring the land for even the faintest clue—and he spoke as if he'd found it by accident.
The difference made her chest tighten, her gaze on him unreadable.
Were spirit beasts cursed even in luck?
For the first time, doubt flickered in her heart. Maybe her centuries of pride and persistence had all been meaningless.
Ye Chen could feel her emotions swirling and sighed softly. "Snow Empress, don't overthink it. This thing wouldn't help you much anyway. Even before becoming a spirit, one Snow Lotus alone couldn't spare you from the seven-hundred-thousand-year tribulation."
"How would you know if you never tried?"
The Snow Empress glared, cheeks faintly flushed with anger. Her voice cracked slightly, trembling between fury and frustration.
She'd already been forced into servitude—and now he mocked her efforts!
"You're impossible!"
"Snow Empress, don't be mad~"
The Ice Empress quickly caught her hand, whispering soothingly.
"Ye Chen's right, though… even if you survived the seven-hundred-thousand-year tribulation, there are still the later ones—eight hundred thousand, nine hundred thousand, even a million. You know how few survive beyond this. Only the deep-sea beasts have shelter; for us land-bound spirits, there's no place to run."
She smiled encouragingly. "Now that we're Ye Chen's spirits, his growth means ours too. When he ascends to godhood, we'll follow him—and the Divine Realm won't be able to restrain us anymore. That's a good thing, isn't it?"
Hearing her words, Snow Empress's anger slowly receded.
"Hmph. Maybe. But he'd better spend more time cultivating instead of… wasting it with you."
She shot them both a frosty glare, her tone thick with disapproval—and embarrassment.
Her meaning was clear.
Ye Chen, indulgent as ever, merely smiled as she vanished, returning to his spiritual sea without another word.
He didn't stop her.
"See? That's your fault," the Ice Empress huffed, pinching Ye Chen's waist with mock annoyance. "I told you to be subtle, but no—you just had to mess around in front of her!"
After grumbling, she too disappeared back into his spiritual sea—likely to console the fuming Snow Empress.
"…How is this my fault?"
Ye Chen sighed helplessly.
It wasn't as if he'd told the Snow Empress to stay and watch.
She'd lingered on her own accord.
Still, shaking his head with amusement, Ye Chen sat down in a quiet corner of the ice cave.
He placed the lotus before him, its glow lighting the walls with soft blue radiance.
He wasn't after more power.
What he wanted was balance.
By absorbing this Hundred-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus, he would finally forge something even greater within himself—
His first Soul Core.
(END CHAPTER)
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