Chapter 128: Skydream Iceworm: ?

"They all have connections to the Sea God Tang San…" Ice Emperor muttered thoughtfully. When it came to matters related to herself, she was not one to be careless. She quickly grasped the meaning behind Skydream Iceworm's words. "You're gambling on this human child becoming a god and then reviving you?"

"Exactly, Bing Bing," Skydream Iceworm said cheerfully. "Soul beasts cannot become gods, and without divinity, there is no immortality. So, I choose to create a god. That way, even if I can't become a god myself, I can follow this deity and gain endless life alongside them."

"Perhaps you're unaware of the details… The Azure Bull Python and Titan Giant Ape of Star Dou Forest sacrificed themselves for the Sea God Tang San. Now, not only have they been resurrected by the Sea God, but they also possess strength surpassing even Ultimate Douluo, freely roaming the Douluo Continent. Even Di Tian may not be able to defeat the two of them…" There was a subtle emotion in Skydream Iceworm's voice as he spoke. "Back then, they were just two lucky youngsters with only a hundred thousand years of cultivation—not even qualified to be considered true savage beasts. Yet after their resurrection, they gained such immense power and are free from the constraints of heavenly tribulations…"

Within Star Dou Forest, no beast was convinced by this.

Truthfully, the Azure Bull Python and Titan Giant Ape weren't even among the strongest soul beasts in Star Dou back then. Without Tang San, they might not have even survived their first heavenly tribulation.

Even if the Azure Bull Python and Titan Giant Ape had some special bloodlines, so what? Every hundred-thousand-year-old soul beast had something unique about them. But how many of them had fallen to their first heavenly tribulation, reduced to mere dust?

Not to mention, those two didn't even live with their kind—they were raised under the protection of a rabbit.

The lone soul beasts who clawed their way to a hundred-thousand-year lifespan endured far more blood and carnage, while these two had the Soft Bone Rabbit shielding them from most dangers. They had always dwelled in the outer regions of Star Dou, where weaker soul beasts lived, and only later grew into beings capable of dominating an area. Compared to what other soul beasts had experienced, they might not have even gone through as many life-and-death struggles as Skydream Iceworm. They got to where they were simply because they had bet on the right person a thousand years ago.

In Star Dou, there were countless soul beasts with greater cultivation and ability than them, yet only those two obtained immortality.

It was like a company where the senior and more capable employees constantly feared being laid off, while two mediocre newcomers got promotions through nepotism… Frustrating, isn't it?

Call it envy or jealousy, but it was simply the nature of intelligent beings.

"And look at my current state. Although I've become a spirit ring, I still retain my consciousness and can exist as a spiritual entity… I'm not even truly dead," Skydream Iceworm spoke solemnly, his usual unserious tone replaced with determination. He stared intently at Ice Emperor. "I am an unprecedented million-year-old soul beast. I can grant this child four soul skills and a blank ice-attribute martial soul. I hope you will join us and give this blank ice martial soul a soul. That way, she will possess the most powerful Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion martial soul, along with an equally strong spiritual-type innate martial soul! Her martial souls are far stronger than Tang San's were. She is a peerless genius among humans—why can't she aim for godhood? And by existing as her martial soul, with me here, your consciousness will never fade. You'll simply be without a body for a while, only able to see the world through this child's eyes… A hundred years of lost freedom is nothing to us, is it?"

"Soft Bone Rabbit, Azure Bull Python, and that Titan Giant Ape all achieved immortality. Why can't we?" Skydream Iceworm fixed his gaze on Ice Emperor.

Ice Emperor's sharp silver mouthparts twitched a few times, but she didn't speak immediately. A flicker of deep contemplation crossed her crystalline eyes.

Clearly, she had taken Skydream Iceworm's words seriously. The soul beasts who gained immortality by following the Sea God made Skydream's plan far more convincing… However, she hadn't yet considered the possibility that Skydream might be deceiving her. Perhaps it was due to pride, or maybe she simply believed Skydream Iceworm wouldn't dare lie to her.

"I'm inviting you to join me in creating a god. Ice Emperor, are you going to admit defeat? Do you think you're weaker than a rabbit, a bull-headed snake, and a gorilla?" Skydream Iceworm didn't give her much time to think, seizing the opportunity to provoke her. "You have the noble bloodline of the Ice God and have survived for 390,000 years in the harshest environment of the Extreme North. That's longer than the combined lifespans of those three! Do you really think you're inferior to them?"

"Impossible!" Ice Emperor immediately snapped, her voice sharp. "Those three soul beasts are only fit to be my food! Even if they combined their strength, they couldn't defeat me! If they can do it, then so can I!"

"Of course, of course," Skydream Iceworm said with a hint of a smile.

Ice Emperor let out a cold snort, her six-sided amber eyes shifting to examine Huo Yuqing, her gaze filled with scrutiny.

Though her golden eyes were warm in color, her gaze was colder than the ice and snow of the Northwestern wilderness. This time, she wasn't filled with killing intent, but the chilling cruelty in her stare still created immense pressure on the one being scrutinized.

No matter her current disadvantage, Ice Emperor remained an ancient killing machine from the savage era—an existence beyond human comprehension. Though she was immobilized by Skydream's discarded husk, she didn't need to exert any soul power. The sheer pressure from her presence alone was millions of times stronger than that weakling, Skydream Iceworm.

Huo Yuqing stood firm, meeting Ice Emperor's gaze with neither arrogance nor fear. However, fine beads of sweat began forming on her forehead. She clenched her fists tightly, refusing to yield even an inch to the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion.

She knew little about Ice Emperor. She hadn't dared to speak before, as she couldn't help Skydream persuade her. But at the very least, she couldn't show weakness now and let Ice Emperor look down on her!

Ice Emperor stared at Huo Yuqing for a while before finally averting her gaze.

Even her own kind wouldn't dare meet her eyes for this long. This human, though nothing more than an insignificant ant, seemed to have some substance after all.

"Hmph, your choice of candidate isn't too bad," she admitted.

"Of course! I only pick the best, and that includes you." Skydream Iceworm, sensing Ice Emperor's softened attitude, pushed his luck.

"Get lost." Ice Emperor ignored his usual nonsense and coldly asked, "How certain are you?"

Skydream Iceworm confidently replied, "Sixty percent. If you join us, that chance rises to eighty."

"That high?" Ice Emperor was surprised. "Becoming a god is such an elusive thing—how can you be so sure?"

"Because Star Dou Forest is also betting on this child. They will provide resources to nurture her," Skydream explained. "The Emperor Auspicious Beast of Star Dou needs to create a god, and the resources this child will receive are beyond anything any human could ever imagine."

"But why?" Ice Emperor was confused. "The Emperor Auspicious Beast is blessed by heaven and doesn't even face heavenly tribulations. Why would it need to create a god?"

Skydream Iceworm smiled mysteriously. "Do you know who truly calls the shots in Star Dou Forest now?"

"Isn't it Di Tian?"

"No." Skydream Iceworm shook his head. "The one who determines Star Dou's future, aside from…" He deliberately swallowed his words, "Most of the time, the savage beasts must obey the Auspicious Beast."

Ice Emperor was stunned. "That's impossible! The Emperor Auspicious Beast has only been around for 15,000 years!"

The most intelligent soul beast is clearly the Ice Snow Maiden, born with a human form and blessed with the essence of heaven and earth!

The Ice Emperor was somewhat displeased. She wanted to refute this, but Skydream Iceworm didn't give her the chance to speak and continued, "The Auspicious Beast predicted that humans would invent a powerful weapon capable of allowing soul masters to easily kill soul beasts across levels… He was right. Humans brought soul tools."

The Ice Emperor uneasily moved her mouthparts. She knew about soul tools. While they posed no threat to her personally, they were indeed powerful enough to kill her younger clan members.

"However… if that's what you mean, Snow Empress already gave the order—whenever human soul masters step into the Snowfield, high-level soul beasts will kill them," she said coldly. "The soul tools you speak of cannot harm powerful soul beasts. If we kill humans in time, they won't threaten our kin."

"But humans evolve, Bing Bing." Skydream Iceworm spoke patiently, though this patience irritated the Ice Emperor. She felt as if he was talking to a clueless little scorpion. "One day, human soul tools will develop to a level we can't contend with… By then, it will be the end of soul beasts. Don't believe me? Think back to the humans you've recently captured who carried soul tools, and compare them to the first ones you caught. Were their soul tools the same?"

The Ice Emperor fell silent.

No, they weren't.

The earliest humans her clan captured carried small metal boxes that could fire metal spikes—those were enough to pierce the shell of a hundred-year Ice Jade Scorpion… But the humans who had recently dared to enter the Extreme North carried weapons strong enough to punch a hole through a ten-thousand-year Ice Jade Scorpion.

"The Auspicious Beast has already begun directing hundred-thousand-year soul beasts to study soul tools, but this takes time… That's why the Star Dou Forest wants to cultivate a deity to stand on the side of soul beasts, buying the forest enough time to develop. First, to deter poachers who dare to invade soul beast territories, and second, to gain benefits from humans. You've heard of the Sea God's former alma mater, Shrek, haven't you? Even in a remote place like the Extreme North, you must know a little about it."

The Ice Emperor nodded along with Skydream Iceworm's words.

"So, the interests of Star Dou and us align. They will also provide resources to help this child become a god."

"And one more thing—I have a secret to tell you."

The Ice Emperor took a moment to realize that Skydream Iceworm was speaking directly in her sea of consciousness. "What?"

"That little girl is special." Skydream Iceworm let out a sly chuckle.

"Cut it out with that tone! It's disgusting!" The Ice Emperor was thoroughly repulsed, as if her mind had been stuffed with oily, slippery blubber.

"Alright, alright. This generation's Emperor Auspicious Beast, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, possesses a power called 'Fate's Authority.'"

"Fate's Authority?" The Ice Emperor had never heard of this term, but from the name alone, it sounded incredibly powerful.

"It allows him to observe and even regulate destiny, altering the fortune of a person or soul beast—for better or worse. I don't fully understand the details," the golden figure shrugged. "But the Auspicious Beast told me that this girl has the strongest fate he's ever seen in a human. Her fortune surpasses even Tang San's when he became a god ten thousand years ago. The connection between the Auspicious Beast and this human girl is far closer than you can imagine."

The Ice Emperor gave him a deep look but said nothing. She was carefully weighing the pros and cons.

"You see, Ice Emperor," Skydream Iceworm continued at an unhurried pace, no longer speaking through her sea of consciousness, "if it were just me, the chances of success wouldn't be that high. After all, I'm not skilled in combat and can't provide her with enough protection. But you're different—you possess terrifying offensive power. Together, we make a perfect match!"

Seeing that the Ice Emperor remained silent, seemingly hesitant, Skydream Iceworm turned to Huo Yuqing and said, "Qing, show Ice Emperor your third eye."

A thin slit appeared on Huo Yuqing's forehead, and a cyan-gold vertical pupil slowly opened.

That eye carried an ancient and majestic force. It merely glanced at the Ice Emperor before closing wearily.

Yet, even such a light gaze made the Ice Emperor feel a deep sense of fear. It was as if a few delicate yet inescapable threads had fallen upon her body—light as a feather, seemingly harmless, but somehow capable of binding her and controlling her actions.

Her beastly instincts screamed at her that this unfathomable, irresistible power was likely the so-called "Fate's Authority."

If even someone who could wield this power couldn't become a god, then perhaps no one in this world could.

Perhaps because Skydream's explanation was now more logical and well-supported, or perhaps because he had actually provided solid proof—more importantly, he hadn't threatened her like in the original timeline—the last traces of doubt in the Ice Emperor's heart vanished.

Good news: The Ice Emperor believed Skydream's plan would succeed.

Bad news: The Ice Emperor believed in Skydream's plan a little too much… to the point of absolute conviction.

"You want to add a soul to that empty martial soul… Wouldn't it be best if it were as powerful as possible?" she asked, somewhat conflicted.

"Of course! Why else would I come to you?" Skydream Iceworm replied.

"Xue'er… I mean, the Snow Empress." The Ice Emperor took a deep breath, as if she had made some great decision. "The Snow Empress's tribulation is fast approaching, and I know she likely won't survive this one… But I don't want her to face death. She is far more deserving of immortality than I am."

"I want the Snow Empress to take my place and join your plan."

Skydream Iceworm: Huh? Wait, what? I mean—huh??

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