Snow Empress looked toward the Ice God Bead, her red lips parting slightly. "Strictly speaking, I wasn't the one who discovered this Divine Tool. Two Titled Douluo who had come to the Extreme North for research found it. At the time, they wanted to take it away and nearly came to blows over it. But the moment they touched the Ice God Bead, the cold currents within invaded their bodies, struck their hearts, and killed them. I merely reaped the spoils."
An ownerless Divine Tool that had killed two Titled Douluo simply by being touched was indeed overbearing, strictly speaking. An ordinary person truly couldn't claim it.
Yet Huo Yuhao was not surprised in the least.
The Ice God Bead's energy was extraordinarily pure—the purest form of the ice attribute. The ambient temperature around it stayed year-round between minus two hundred and minus two hundred and thirty-seven degrees Celsius.
For Ultimate Ice, a temperature below minus one hundred and fifty degrees could already be considered the ultimate, yet the temperature surrounding the Ice God Bead was far lower than that. Judged by this, its inner core energy, even if not absolute zero, was not far off.
Moreover, in Huo Yuhao's memories, the intensity of the ice-attribute energy inside the Ice God Bead was enough to serve as the core of a God-Slaying Soul Cannon Shell; taking the lives of two Titled Douluo was nothing surprising.
At least it was better than originally, when nine Titled Douluo had died because of it...
Snow Empress continued, "According to researchers' hypotheses, the Ice God Bead could be used to manufacture a Rank 12 God-Slaying Soul Cannon Shell. However, the energy inside this Divine Tool cannot be channeled through any Soul Tool or Soul Formation at all, so that was deemed impossible.
"Even setting aside such applications, it is an unquestionable Divine Tool. Its energy is pure ice, making it the most suitable Divine Tool for you."
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao drew a deep breath and instinctively reached to pull out something to give in return.
Before he could act, however, a slender, pale hand gently pressed down on his wrist.
Snow Empress looked at him calmly. The smile that had graced her face ever since they met had vanished. Though she exerted no power, an inexplicable pressure settled over him.
"Reunited after so long, don't be so distant. I have no use for it. Though I don't know why you chose to re-cultivate, whether for protection or self-advancement, the Ice God Bead is exceptionally suited for you. Take it!"
Her tone hardened slightly on those last two words.
Forced to stop, Huo Yuhao recalled what Snow Empress had said earlier, his expression turning subtle.
He couldn't give a return gift... Wait, he already owed her so much. If it went on like this, wouldn't he only fall deeper into debt?
"Yuhao, take it," Ice Empress chimed in via sound transmission from the side after exchanging a glance with Snow Empress. "Reunited after ten thousand years, Xue'er is in a very good mood today. Don't make her angry."
Hearing that, Huo Yuhao hesitated no longer and put the Ice God Bead away.
If he didn't take it, he felt like he would get beaten up—and it would be a gang beating where he wasn't allowed to fight back... Besides, with Snow Empress's current cultivation, nothing in his possession could offer her any notable improvement anyway.
He had to find a gift she couldn't refuse.
With that in mind, Huo Yuhao communicated briefly with the Divine Throne. "If I pass the trial, can I transfer the right of use?"
The Lord of Eternity: "..."
You actually want to give away the Divine Throne as a gift?
Dream on!
On the other side, Snow Empress withdrew her hand, the expression on her face softening once more. As if recalling something, she said softly, "If you truly feel bad about it, how about giving me that Tower of Eternity you made?"
Huo Yuhao snapped back to reality and shook his head. "That was originally meant as a trump card to protect you just in case."
The Tower of Eternity was the last Soul Tool he had crafted ten thousand years ago, a Rank 10 Soul Tool left behind as a trump card for Snow Empress. As for materials, it was primarily made of Extreme Ice Divine Crystals unearthed from the Ten-Thousand-Year Mysterious Ice Cave.
The Extreme Ice Divine Crystal was both the hardest and the most ductile ice-attribute metal. It looked like crystal, but possessed the malleability of metal, making it a top-tier rare metal.
Some Extreme Ice Divine Crystals possessed Ice Spirits with sentience and life, making them naturally Soul Refined metals. Ten thousand years ago, they were already first-rate materials. Originally, they were meant to be forged into Extreme Ice War God Armor, but Huo Yuhao had not used them that way.
The Extreme Ice War God Armor... in terms of Battle Armor, could at most be considered Three-Word Battle Armor. What's more, it couldn't nourish itself, and upon reaching the God rank, it would automatically be rendered useless. Rather than using them that way, it was better to keep those Extreme Ice Divine Crystals with Ice Spirits and wait until Battle Armor technology matured.
Huo Yuhao had taken only a portion of the Extreme Ice Divine Crystals possessing Ice Spirits, using a Rank 10 Soul Formation, Radiant Undead Magic, and spatial power to craft the Tower of Eternity and an Extreme Ice Divine Sword. Of the remaining Extreme Ice Divine Crystals, part stayed with him, and part was left to Snow Empress.
Snow Empress's Battle Armor likely had Extreme Ice Divine Crystals incorporated into it.
Among them, the greatest function of the Tower of Eternity... was its ability to trigger the contingency plans he had planted within Soul Spirits, preventing the Spirit Pagoda from turning into what it once was and turning against Snow Empress.
Although activating the Tower of Eternity would expose the hidden vulnerabilities of the Soul Spirit Contract and might cause the Spirit Pagoda to disband, Snow Empress was far more important than the continuation of the Spirit Pagoda. Her safety was all that mattered...
Hearing Huo Yuhao's words, Snow Empress said gently, "That belongs to you. Without proper status, it isn't mine."
Strictly speaking, the Spirit Pagoda in the Extreme North was the true birthplace of the Spirit Pagoda, its original headquarters; the headquarters in Mingdou had been established later.
The contingencies left behind by Huo Yuhao and Elder Yi were mostly housed inside the Extreme North's Spirit Pagoda, serving both to protect her and to build up a foundation...
"You just told me not to be polite, but aren't you doing the exact same thing?" Huo Yuhao laughed. "Every arrangement in the Extreme North isn't just mine—it belongs to you as well."
Snow Empress's eyes rippled, the corners of her mouth curving upward as she shifted the subject. "Speaking of arrangements, do you want to return with me to the Extreme North to see them?"
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "No, not until the promised time arrives. If I go see them now, there's nothing I can do."
Snow Empress gave a slight nod, a touch of a smile appearing in her eyes.
"Then it is time for you to take me as your master, Yuhao."
Her other purpose in meeting Yuhao was to grant him the identity of a disciple of the upper echelons, giving him more freedom to act in the future.
Today's Spirit Pagoda was no longer dominated by any single faction, and Snow Empress did not know what Di Tian was thinking either.
If Huo Yuhao rashly resumed his former identity, he might run into trouble. Waiting until he reached a certain level of strength to return as the first Pagoda Master was the best course of action.
Until then, she could simply provide cover for him. In any case, a genuine master-disciple bond existed between them; she had even taught Yuhao two techniques from the Snow Empress's Three Extremes, lacking only the formal title of master and disciple.
"..."
Huo Yuhao did not refuse. He stood up, walked over to Snow Empress, and bowed.
"Honored Master, please accept your disciple's bow."
It was clearly a solemn gesture, but in Snow Empress's eyes, there was a touch of humor to it.
Huo Yuhao had re-cultivated and currently looked like a mere child; acting so solemn was strangely amusing.
Yet, this Yuhao did bear some resemblance to how he had looked when they first met ten thousand years ago...
A trace of nostalgia flitted across Snow Empress's eyes.
"At ease. It's only cover, so don't be so solemn. We didn't establish a formal title ten thousand years ago, and I certainly have no desire to take the Spirit Pagoda's first Pagoda Master as my disciple now. Besides, there's nothing I can teach you anymore."
With that, Snow Empress rose and stepped before Huo Yuhao, pressing a finger against his glabella.
Her finger was as cool as jade. The moment it touched Huo Yuhao's glabella, a freezing aura seeped through his skin and into his body.
The chill was not biting; instead, it carried an extraordinary gentleness, like a ray of warm sunshine amid ice and snow. Her fingertip trembled faintly, and an ice-blue radiance blossomed at Huo Yuhao's glabella, leaving behind a snowflake pattern that gradually sank into his skin.
"All I can give you is the Snow Empress Token. When you encounter danger, it will transmit power through spatial force to protect you."
Chapter 84