Chapter 160: The Battle of Emotions

So, after Huo Yuqing slaughtered countless Hundred-Eyed Beasts underground—thanks to the Evil Emperor, the time flow in the plantation chamber was vastly different from the surface due to the influence of the time-space attribute magic array, preventing her from being late for school—she absorbed her second spirit ring and finally climbed out of the underground, returning to the surface.

And the first thing she saw at the entrance of the ant nest was Wang Rui, standing there with a foul expression, while a little white-haired girl clung desperately to his arm, being peeled off repeatedly only to latch back on each time.

The little girl looked exceptionally adorable, with snowy white hair and eyelashes. Her pale eyes resembled the purest glaciers of the Extreme North. When she grew up, she would undoubtedly become a stunning beauty.

Hmm, a case of the falling flower longing for love while the flowing water is indifferent... No, wait—considering their ages, that wouldn't be quite right. Right now, a five- or six-year-old and a twelve- or thirteen-year-old seemed worlds apart, but after a few decades, people might find them well-matched.

Still, the scene looked far too much like an eager puppy persistently approaching an exasperated owner.

Huo Yuqing: …

That was certainly a rather offensive but incredibly apt analogy.

But considering the person being pestered was her Spirit Fusion Technique partner and her crush, she wasn't sure if she should at least pretend to be a little displeased.

"Xiaoqing!" Wang Rui spotted her, waved, and strode toward her. The only thing ruining the harmony was the little white-haired shadow closely tailing him.

Huo Yuqing smiled.

Looking at her smile, Wang Rui suddenly felt sentimental.

For soul beasts, a year was fleeting, but Huo Yuqing looked completely different from a year ago. She had grown much taller, and there was a newfound brightness to her, making it hard to associate her with the frail, pale child he had met on the outskirts of the forest a year before.

"Ruirui!"

Huo Yuqing took two steps forward and leaped at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and clinging to him like a baby beast. She rubbed her cheek against his in an intimate gesture.

A cool breath brushed against him. Wang Rui instinctively wrapped an arm around her waist. Their spirit powers fused—extreme heat met newborn extreme cold, forming a new equilibrium. A vast, fresh energy burst forth from their merging polarities, creating an almost ethereal sense of fulfillment.

Wang Rui let the newborn power course through him, relaxing for once, and absentmindedly blurted out, "You've gotten so much heavier."

Huo Yuqing, still smiling, maintained her expression but stomped heavily on Wang Rui's foot.

She had absorbed Ice Empress' energy—a 400,000-year spirit ring, along with a complete torso bone and an external tailbone spirit bone. Her body had been transformed by the energy of the spirit ring, significantly increasing her bone density. Of course, she had gotten heavier!

But who just casually comments on a girl's weight, you idiot?!

… Though, to the thick-skinned Wang Rui, her stomp probably only came across as playful flirting.

"Who are you?"

A little white-haired girl, clearly oblivious to the concept of not interrupting a couple, tugged at Wang Rui's sleeve, stood on her tiptoes, and curiously observed Huo Yuqing.

Huo Yuqing withdrew half a step, her expression a half-smile.

"And who is this little one?" she asked sweetly.

Wang Rui broke out in a cold sweat.

"Tsk tsk, now this is what you call the dignity of the main wife… Hm?"

The gossip-loving Skydream Iceworm in her mind had been awakened by the unmistakable tension of a brewing drama. He muttered excitedly before suddenly freezing, his eyes locked onto the little white-haired girl.

"Hiss—why does this little thing feel so…"

Huo Yuqing ignored him.

"Uh, this is Lianxue. Her identity is a bit… special. She's newly reincarnated and doesn't know much yet. Don't take her too seriously," Wang Rui explained.

"She… she's a reincarnated hundred-thousand-year soul beast?" Huo Yuqing's eyes widened. "Like Senior Xiaowu?"

With Xiaowu as precedent, reincarnated hundred-thousand-year soul beasts carried a certain legendary aura.

Huo Yuqing had spent a long time in Jade City and had met many transformed fierce beasts, but this was the first time she had encountered a reincarnated one.

Transformed fierce beasts were all handsome men and beautiful women, but a reincarnated hundred-thousand-year soul beast…

This one was so short! She looked barely five or six years old!

Seeing no one answer her, Lianxue's face filled with confusion. Her large, round blue eyes fixed on Huo Yuqing.

"Who exactly are you? You feel… really comfortable to me," she murmured.

With that, Huo Yuqing finally noticed that Lianxue's presence gave off a faint pull—something similar to the precursor of a Spirit Fusion Technique. It was much weaker than the pull she felt toward Wang Rui, but it was definitely there.

Hesitating, she reached out and touched Lianxue's soft cheek.

At that moment, two forces of ice-cold energy instantly fused.

A blade-like chill radiated outward from their point of contact, freezing the moisture in the air into translucent, razor-sharp ice flakes that hovered silently in the air.

—The Pride of the Twin Empresses of Ice!!!

With a soft "hum," a green scorpion phantom emerged behind Huo Yuqing, while a similar ice-blue silhouette appeared behind Lianxue.

"Xue'er…"

Awakened from her slumber, Ice Empress stared intently at the phantom of Snow Empress. She instantly realized that Snow Empress now existed in a similar state as herself—residing within the reincarnated Lianxue.

It seemed Snow Empress' plan had succeeded, but she had failed to completely take over the snow lotus' reincarnated body, instead merely retaining her consciousness.

Still, without the mental attribute abilities of Skydream Iceworm, the fact that she had retained her awareness at all was already remarkable.

Regardless, Snow Empress was alive. And her host was being fiercely protected by the Ruibeast. That was enough for Ice Empress.

"Bing'er!"

Snow Empress also stared at the phantom of the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion behind Huo Yuqing.

Her voice was filled with urgency.

"What happened to you?! Who ambushed you?!"

Even with her strong will, the sight of a long-lost friend after a life-and-death ordeal left her shaken.

Ice Empress was silent for a moment before calmly recounting everything that had happened.

"Xiaoqing may be young, but she is a true genius, even among humans," Ice Empress said solemnly. She did not mention that she had originally wanted to give the chance to Snow Empress. "Perhaps she really can reach that level... And if she does, Xue'er, maybe there will be hope for you too."

Snow Empress gave a self-deprecating laugh.

She knew she had been too impulsive in attacking the Rui beast. Maybe it was years of thinking she could challenge Ditian by relying on the extreme cold of the Extreme North, combined with her hatred of humans, her wariness of the Rui beast, and her desire to keep the Ice God's divine inheritance a secret…

But in the end, she still refused to bow her head to her opponent.

Meanwhile, in Lianxue's mind, she was desperately trying everything she could to force the "old hag" back into the spiritual sea, terrified that she and Ice Empress might join forces to take over her body.

For the first time, Snow Empress felt deeply embarrassed.

She had always carried herself as a powerful, guiding figure before Ice Empress. When had she ever appeared so pitiful before her?

For a brief moment, she even considered self-destruction.

And then, in a casual, almost offhanded manner, Ice Empress asked the one question she had always wanted to know the answer to.

"Xue'er, did you trust the Ice Bear King more than me?"