"To thank the Young Lord of the Pavilion, Huo, for saving my daughter's life during the beast tide in the Far North, I'm willing to open the Earth Dragon Gate's Forbidden Land, allowing him to cultivate there for a time. The Forbidden Land is an exceptional place for ice-attribute soul masters to train, and I believe it will greatly benefit the Young Lord."
—
The next morning, bright and early.
Nan Shuishui summoned Zhang Lexuan, the other girls, and Nan Qiuqiu to her side to privately announce the matter.
It was only shared in confidence, not revealed to the other sect members.
Today, Nan Shuishui was as dignified and stunning as ever, her cheeks glowing with a healthy flush, making her appear even more alluring.
What she said shocked Zhang Lexuan and the others. First, they hadn't expected the Earth Dragon Gate to possess such an ideal environment for ice-attribute cultivation—after all, the sect wasn't known for that affinity. More surprising was that Nan Shuishui was willing to open this place for Huo Yuhao out of gratitude for saving her daughter.
After a bit of thought, Zhang Lexuan deduced the deeper reason from Nan Shuishui's choice of words.
The news of Huo Yuhao becoming the Young Pavilion Lord of the Sea God Pavilion wasn't exactly a secret. Any powerful faction with some reach could easily learn of it. Clearly, Nan Shuishui was already aware.
Gratitude was merely a pretext—what she truly intended was to do Shrek Academy a favor and strengthen ties with them.
Coincidentally, Zhang Lexuan had heard from Nan Qiuqiu during a casual conversation yesterday that Earth Dragon Gate was planning to set up businesses in Shrek City and had already begun early construction. That was likely the real reason behind all this.
To take, one must first give.
As long as Huo Yuhao truly benefited from the Forbidden Land, Shrek Academy would be indebted. The greater the benefit, the greater the debt of gratitude.
Once Huo Yuhao returned and reported back to the Elders, they would surely grant Earth Dragon Gate favorable treatment in Shrek City.
Furthermore, considering Nan Qiuqiu's feelings for Huo Yuhao, Nan Shuishui might even be harboring hopes of a future marital connection.
Zhang Lexuan quickly figured all this out and silently acknowledged Nan Shuishui's political savvy. Her impression of the woman improved considerably.
She already saw her as half an ally.
After all, Nan Shuishui was a Titled Douluo, and forging ties with her and Earth Dragon Gate would benefit Shrek Academy.
However, Nan Qiuqiu became visibly anxious.
"Mom, this is way too dangerous!" she blurted, drawing puzzled looks from the other girls.
Since becoming a Titled Douluo, Nan Shuishui had begun gradually having Nan Qiuqiu take over Earth Dragon Gate's affairs in Tianlong City, which was why she'd been at the Earth Dragon Hotel recently.
Nan Shuishui was preparing to move to Shrek City—to be closer to Huo Yuhao.
Because of this, Nan Qiuqiu had learned many of the sect's secrets, including the Forbidden Land known only to successive sect leaders. She understood what it entailed.
She quickly explained to the others, "The temperature in the Forbidden Land is terrifyingly low. Even Titled Douluo can't last long in there. Yuhao is only at the Soul Emperor level—if he goes in, it's far too dangerous!"
Even Titled Douluo couldn't withstand it—how could a mere Soul Emperor?
The girls' expressions shifted. They hadn't expected such a perilous place to exist and immediately turned to Nan Shuishui for clarification.
Nan Shuishui simply smiled and nodded, acknowledging it. "That's true. Even I can only remain inside for a short time."
Over its thousand-year history, Earth Dragon Gate had produced more than one Titled Douluo. Even the current 'Rouge Douluo,' Nan Shuishui, wasn't the first of her line.
Naturally, the Forbidden Land had been tested before.
"But," Nan Shuishui's smile remained as she shifted the conversation, "the Young Lord of the Pavilion is different—he possesses Ultimate Ice. He's already tried entering the Forbidden Land, and its extreme cold has no effect on him. I believe he's already begun cultivating inside."
"What?!"
"Mom, how could you!"
The girls were stunned. They had assumed that Huo Yuhao wasn't called here because the discussion might involve awkward emotional matters. They hadn't expected him to already be inside the Forbidden Land!
Anxiety overwhelmed them. Even with Nan Shuishui's assurance, how could they truly rest easy?
"Your Grace, may we go to the Forbidden Land to check on him?" Zhang Lexuan asked urgently.
"Alright, alright," Nan Shuishui said with a smile and a shake of her head, feigning helplessness. "Since you're all so worried, come with me."
"Thank you, Your Grace!"
The girls quickly thanked her and followed Nan Shuishui toward the Forbidden Land.
—
In truth, the entrance to the Forbidden Land wasn't hidden—it was located right in the garden at the rear of Earth Dragon Gate.
It was a cold spring well at the garden's center.
Only the successive sect masters knew of the Forbidden Land and its entrance. Currently, only Nan Shuishui and Nan Qiuqiu were aware of it. Letting Huo Yuhao in required no consultation with others.
Even if it had, with Nan Shuishui's authority and strength, no one would dare object.
As they walked through the garden, Nan Shuishui casually shared the cover story she had prepared.
"I spoke privately with the Young Lord last night. He was very interested in the Forbidden Land and wanted to give it a try. We tested it then. Had it failed, I would've given him another gift in thanks."
"But to our surprise, the Forbidden Land suited him perfectly. He began cultivating there last night."
Hearing this made the girls breathe a little easier, though they still felt annoyed with Huo Yuhao.
Couldn't he have at least said something beforehand?
"Maybe it was just too perfect for him, and he got a bit carried away," Vena offered gently.
Ma Xiaotao and Zhang Lexuan nodded in agreement.
Nan Qiuqiu, discovering her sect had a treasure capable of drawing in Huo Yuhao, felt excited. It felt like fate was guiding her.
Only Zhang Lexuan frowned slightly, sensing something odd. She thought to herself, Why did Your Grace go to him at night? Was it really that urgent? Couldn't this have waited until morning?
"We're here," Nan Shuishui said, cutting off Lexuan's musings. She brought them to the cold spring well and pointed to its surface. "The Forbidden Land is just beneath this spring."
She then gave a brief explanation.
"This well contains a cold spring, rich in spiritual energy. Drinking it has a nourishing effect on a soul master's body. You may try it later if you like."
Because the water was only mildly beneficial and not particularly rare, the entrance was left unguarded and blended seamlessly into its surroundings.
Simplicity is the best disguise.
"May I enter to check on Yuhao?" Zhang Lexuan asked.
But Nan Shuishui shook her head. "I know you're concerned, but below the level of Titled Douluo, even a high-level Soul Douluo would freeze in seconds. Only Titled Douluo can endure the cold for a short time."
"If you're still worried, you may wait here for the Young Lord to return. The garden is quite lovely. I'll have food and drink sent over."
"…Alright then. Sorry to trouble you, Your Grace," Zhang Lexuan replied after exchanging looks with the others. They all decided to remain and wait.
"Of course. You're all friends of my daughter and exceptional young women. You're welcome at Earth Dragon Gate anytime," Nan Shuishui replied warmly.
"Mom, I want to stay too," Nan Qiuqiu said quickly.
Nan Shuishui looked at her daughter and nodded. "Alright. But Qiuqiu, you must learn as much as you can from these outstanding students of Shrek Academy. I want you to become a better soul master, understand?"
"Y-yes, understood…"
Caught off guard, Nan Qiuqiu instinctively shrank back. Her lively nature was no match for her mother's stern and commanding presence.
Beneath the Cold Spring, at a depth of 25 to 30 meters, lies a dwelling left behind by predecessors. It wasn't built by the ancestors of the Earth Dragon Sect—they discovered the dwelling as it already existed when they first found this place.
Ever since, the dwelling had been sealed off with mechanisms set up by those ancestors, making it difficult for outsiders to find.
A peculiar force seemed to protect the entrance, preventing the spring water from entering, keeping the inside completely dry.
This inner sanctum was where the Ice Extreme Divine Crystals were harvested. Large amounts of them had formed along the walls.
At this moment, Huo Yuhao was seated cross-legged, adjusting his state.
The reason he entered the cave at night was simple—he couldn't wait any longer. Spending an entire day yesterday had already felt too long. Even with Nan Shuishui's help in alleviating his inner fire, Huo Yuhao remained restless. So he decided to come here right after.
The sooner he emerged from the Myriad-Year Ice Cavern, the sooner he could head north to the Extreme North and subdue the Ice and Snow Empresses.
Not only had Brother Tianmeng waited long enough—Huo Yuhao was ready to settle things with them too.
Breaking through to Titled Douluo was, in fact, the least of his goals.
After all, for Huo Yuhao, soul power levels were merely a difference in the number of soul rings—they didn't impact the advancement of his cultivation realm or strength. He would never be held back by it.
The Earth Dragon Sect ancestors had originally believed this was merely an ore vein, never realizing this was the legendary Myriad-Year Profound Ice Cavern, where at the deepest part of the spring, the incomparably precious Myriad-Year Profound Ice Marrow was born. The ice-type ores they found in the dwelling were actually Ice Extreme Divine Crystals—merely the companion products of the Ice Marrow.
Those early discoverers must have been unable to reach the spring's true depths. They could only carve out a dwelling in the spring's midst to aid in cultivation.
Even so, the benefits were tremendous.
For an ice-type soul master, Myriad-Year Profound Ice Marrow was as valuable as the Lake of Life is to soul beasts. The first person to discover this might have been an ice-type soul master. Unfortunately, the Earth Dragon Sect was not an ice-type sect. Otherwise, this place would surpass even the Golden Tree's importance to Shrek Academy.
The companion material, Ice Extreme Divine Crystal, was comparable to Living Gold—a top-tier material.
Even more astonishingly, Ice Extreme Divine Crystals could nurture life force—they could produce "Ice Spirits."
The reason these crystals remained was not because their value was unknown, but because they were extremely difficult to mine.
The Earth Dragon Sect ancestor could only barely extract one with Titled Douluo-level strength. But no Titled Douluo would spend their life as a miner—especially in such a cold, inhospitable place. Thus, these divine crystals were mostly left untouched.
Nan Shuishui had been able to harvest them because she was protected by the centipede-leg clone, which carried Ultimate Ice soul power.
After Huo Yuhao arrived at the cave, he harvested all the Ice Extreme Divine Crystals in one go.
Despite their immense hardness, they were easy for him to mine.
He could simply soften them using his Ultimate Ice, extracting them with ease—this was the proper way to mine them.
However, not all harvested Ice Extreme Divine Crystals could be used directly by Huo Yuhao.
In the original story, Huo Yuhao forged a suit of armor using these crystals.
Now, he intended to fuse the Ice Extreme Divine Crystals directly into his bones—to strengthen and further modify his physique.
Unless it's a life-linked weapon, all other items are external. True power must be internal—it's the foundation.
Importantly, soul bones and Ice Extreme Divine Crystals are not mutually exclusive. In fact, these crystals could imbue soul bones with ice attributes and increase their toughness—though they wouldn't increase soul bone age.
To fuse with Huo Yuhao, the crystals had to possess Ice Spirits. As long as he communicated with the spirit, fusion would proceed smoothly.
These Ice Spirits were easy to persuade—Huo Yuhao's Ultimate Ice soul power was their favorite.
The only catch: Ice Spirit-bearing crystals were rare.
Even after absorbing all such crystals, Huo Yuhao couldn't fully infuse every bone. He could only prioritize his upper body—focusing on ribs and skull.
The ribs protected his chest cavity, and the skull protected his brain—his two most vital areas.
Now, as long as these two regions weren't shattered, even if the rest of his body suffered, Huo Yuhao wouldn't easily die. Even in cases of serious injury or disability, he might still regenerate limbs.
Never underestimate the power of the Snow Lotus. And now he had the support of a Level 99 Healing Angel puppet spirit as well.
The remaining Ice Extreme Divine Crystals were mostly fed to the Ghost Banner Martial Soul, Huo Yuhao's life-bound weapon.
The stronger the Ghost Banner became, the stronger he became.
At that moment, the Ghost Banner Martial Soul hovered slowly above his head, absorbing the crystals and steadily evolving—its domain was beginning to take form.
Last time, fusing Living Gold into the Ghost Banner awakened the Devour Life Domain. This time, fusing a material of equal tier—the Ice Extreme Divine Crystal—it was only natural for a new domain to awaken.
The remaining Ice Extreme Divine Crystals were saved for reforging the Evil God Spear. Once infused with these crystals, the spear's quality would rise dramatically, and it would become more compatible with Huo Yuhao—potentially becoming his second life-bound weapon.
Within just an hour, Huo Yuhao had absorbed all the Ice Extreme Divine Crystals. His aura grew colder, his physique stronger—he had even begun to evolve toward a higher-level spiritual form.
At the same time, the Ghost Banner Martial Soul had consumed a massive amount of the crystals. Its domain prototype had now become a true domain, exuding an intense chill of Ultimate Ice.
A New Domain—Ice Extreme Domain!
Effect: Releases extreme cold that freezes all!
A simple and brutal effect.
But what it froze was not just the physical body—it could also freeze mind and soul, given that the Ghost Banner was a weapon focused on the soul.
Within its domain, Huo Yuhao moved like a fish in water. It was like having a terrain advantage—his strength would rise accordingly.
Now, his Ghost Banner possessed two innate domains—Devour Life Domain and Ice Extreme Domain.
And it could also merge with the Bloodslaughter Bead to activate a third domain: Bloodslaughter Domain.
At full strength, wielding three major domains, one could easily claim to be invincible in the mortal realm.
As for reforging the Evil God Spear, that could wait. He could refine while training—it wasn't urgent.
And besides, the Ice Extreme Divine Crystals in this dwelling?
They were just an appetizer.
The real treasure was still ahead—the Myriad-Year Profound Ice Marrow!
Huo Yuhao exited the cave, dove into the spring, and began diving deeper.
The temperature of the water below grew colder and colder—even his Ultimate Ice struggled to endure it. If he didn't have his current cultivation, his body would've frozen long ago.
In the original story, Huo Yuhao had to rely on the combined strength of four soul spirits to reach the bottom.
This sparked a question in his mind.
Back then, when the Skydream Iceworm fell into the Profound Ice Marrow's cavern, he didn't seem that powerful—and he hadn't yet evolved into Ultimate Ice.
So how exactly did he survive the cold?
Could it be that soul beasts were inherently different from humans?
That ice-type soul beasts didn't feel the cold?
He continued diving deeper.
The pressure mounted rapidly—it was a region no one had ever touched before, giving off an incredibly fresh and unfamiliar sensation.
The icy spring's water pressure, coupled with the pervasive cold, felt like countless tiny hands probing Huo Yuhao's limits, attempting to halt his progress.
Yet, relying on his powerful physique and deep cultivation, Huo Yuhao withstood the disturbance and pressed on with full focus.
Finally—
After descending more than fifty meters—
"Plop—"
Huo Yuhao suddenly felt his body lighten as the pressure around him abruptly dropped. He slid sideways into a small cavern.
There was no light at such depths, leaving the cavern pitch-black. Like the chamber above, this space contained no spring water.
Huo Yuhao tried taking a breath—and instantly, an unimaginably frigid chill surged into his body. In just a split second, his body shuddered, and two golden beams shot from his eyes.
He couldn't help but exclaim, "As expected of the Myriad-Year Profound Ice Cavern!"
Just inhaling the air here caused his Ultimate Ice soul power to increase slightly, despite the extreme cold.
If one could cultivate here normally, the elemental ice energy of the world would continuously pour into the body, strengthening one's ice attribute and even transforming their physique.
With long-term training here, even an ordinary ice-type soul master could cultivate at a speed surpassing that of someone born with full innate soul power—and might even evolve into an Ultimate Ice soul master.
Of course, that's assuming they could even survive long enough to train here.
Regardless, this place was undoubtedly a treasure on par with the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well or the Lake of Life!
According to the books, this Myriad-Year Profound Ice Cavern was smaller than the one the Skydream Iceworm had fallen into. Moreover, leakage of Myriad-Year Profound Ice Marrow from within had led to the formation of many Ice God Crystals in the cave above.
Even so, it was enough to give Huo Yuhao such a profound experience. It made complete sense that the Skydream Iceworm, by relying on a larger cavern, could cultivate to over 900,000 years and even gain the potential to break through to a million years.
That it didn't become even stronger could only be blamed on the Skydream Iceworm itself. The potential of the iceworm species was inherently limited.
No matter how much a Blue Silver Grass mutates, it will never become a dragon—unless it was never truly Blue Silver Grass to begin with.
And across the entire Douluo Continent, perhaps no one else had ever encountered such an incredible opportunity as the Skydream Iceworm.
"Maybe I should explore underground further in the future," Huo Yuhao mused.
His Centipede Leg Clone could burrow into the ground—who knows, he might discover similar treasures.
Then, he got down to business.
Activating his Evil Eye Martial Soul, Huo Yuhao pierced the darkness, taking in the cavern's details.
The Skydream Iceworm's spirit also emerged, floating beside him under Huo Yuhao's protection. As it observed the surroundings, it commented, "This place is way smaller than the one I found back in the day—but since it ended up in Brother Hao's hands, it's going to be put to proper use. One day, these treasures will spread across the continent in Hao-ge's name."
Huo Yuhao: "…"
He had to admit, the Skydream Iceworm had improved—though maybe not in terms of combat power.
This Myriad-Year Profound Ice Cavern was tiny, only around ten square meters, with a ceiling under 1.5 meters high.
To Huo Yuhao, it felt cramped.
Adding to that were over a dozen bizarre ice pillars of varying sizes, crisscrossing through the cave. Each one was jade-white, slightly translucent, and filled with swirling liquid inside. They radiated a terrifying, unfiltered cold that made even the air feel viscous.
"So this is the Myriad-Year Profound Ice Marrow," Huo Yuhao murmured in awe.
Beautiful, yes—but also deadly.
The chill saturating the cavern approached absolute zero, to the point of affecting one's soul and spirit.
Even the Skydream Iceworm's spirit struggled to handle it without Huo Yuhao's protection.
The Golden Tortoise peeked its head out curiously—only to instantly retract it, trembling, "Dear heavens, it's freezing!"
Ah Hui and Ah Tai also tried to approach. Although they were ice-type soul beasts and had already been assimilated into Huo Yuhao's Ultimate Ice, they still couldn't adapt to the intense cold.
This cavern was much smaller than the one Skydream Iceworm had originally fallen into, but because all the frigid energy was concentrated, it reached near-absolute zero temperatures—far colder than the larger cavern ever had.
That partially explained how the Skydream Iceworm hadn't frozen to death back then and was instead able to eat and sleep its way to power.
According to the Ice Empress, Ultimate Ice began at around -150°C, still far from absolute zero.
From his past-life knowledge, Huo Yuhao recalled that the theoretical absolute zero was -273.15°C.
(Though who knows if Douluo Continent follows the same physics.)
Currently, Huo Yuhao's Ultimate Ice was composed of:
The million-year Skydream Iceworm's ice attribute accumulation,
The hundred-thousand-year Snow Lotus's snow-ice power,
The alien-variant Frost Centipede Martial Soul, and
The Titan Snow Demon King's special bloodline.
Combined, they formed his "starter-level" Ultimate Ice—capable of reaching approximately -180°C.
Weaker than in the original novel, perhaps—but still strong enough for him to function here.
"Brother Hao, shall we start eating?" the Skydream Iceworm offered to share some of his experience.
"Not yet. I want to try something first," Huo Yuhao said seriously.
"What is it?" the Iceworm asked curiously.
Huo Yuhao, enveloped in his own energy, sat cross-legged in the Myriad-Year Profound Ice Marrow, expression solemn.
"I suspect this cavern is similar to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and the Lake of Life—it may share their unique traits."
"Traits? What kind of traits?"
The Skydream Iceworm and the others paused in confusion.
"Concealing auras."
The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well could block ten-thousand-year beast tribulations, and the Silver Dragon King had hidden in the Lake of Life from the divine realm. The Skydream Iceworm had likewise avoided tribulations inside the larger ice cavern.
This Myriad-Year Profound Ice Cavern, though smaller, possessed a cold approaching absolute zero—perhaps it offered similar protection.
"I want to try fusing a soul bone here."
Fusing a soul bone and upgrading its spirit would normally draw a heavenly tribulation. But this cave might be able to conceal it, allowing Huo Yuhao to merge one secretly.
As expected, the Skydream Iceworm and the others lit up with excitement.
"But what if you fail—and the tribulation descends anyway?" Electrolux suddenly asked.
"Then I'll just take it head-on. I'll start with the skull soul bone—it'll only draw a ten-thousand-year tribulation. A mere ten-thousand-year tribulation—I can handle that," Huo Yuhao replied with a smile.
"What about the people in the city above?" Electrolux pressed.
Huo Yuhao answered calmly:
"Sacrificing one city to benefit myself—that is a greater good."
"..."
Electrolux wanted to say more.
But Huo Yuhao added,
"Old Yi, only if I become stronger, will fewer people die in the future."
"…Sigh." Electrolux gave a heavy sigh and said nothing more. He had long since accepted Huo Yuhao—but still couldn't help feeling uneasy. In the end, he chose to turn a blind eye.
From now on, he would no longer speak up about such matters.
Truthfully, he had no power to stop it either.
After all, Huo Yuhao was the Chosen of the Plane's Will. Even the plane itself said nothing—how could Electrolux have the right to object?
So who could he blame?
Naturally, the Sea God!
Electrolux: If not for the Sea God's threat, would the Chosen One have had to walk this bloody road?! Damn that Sea God!!!
Neither he nor Huo Yuhao mentioned Ma Xiaotao and the others—because with Nan Shuishui there, they would be fine.
Currently, the soul bones on Huo Yuhao's body were as follows—
Fully fused soul bones:
Left arm: Fully fused into one soul bone; Bone Spirit Ahui; over 200,000 years; Ice + Light attributes.
Right arm: Fully fused into one soul bone; Bone Spirit Atai; over 300,000 years; Ice + Strength attributes.
Right leg: Bone Spirit Tyrannosaurus Rex; 150,000 years; Strength attribute.
Left leg: No bone spirit; 100,000 years; Wood attribute.
Torso: No bone spirit; 300,000 years; Devour + Destruction + Dark Water attributes.
Skull: No bone spirit; 70,000 years; Spirit attribute.
External soul bones:
Golden Heartguard Mirror: 110,000 years; Water + Earth attributes.
Right scapula (Titan Snow Demon Right Hand): 100,000 years; Ice + Strength attributes.
Left scapula (Windfury Ape Left Hand Soul Bone): 9,000 years; Wind attribute.
Colorful Butterfly Eyeshadow Soul Bone: 10,000 years; Spirit attribute.
Colorful Scale Butterfly King Antennae: 100,000 years; Spirit attribute.
Additionally, there were external secret soul bones on his lumbar spine, cervical spine, five vertebrae, and left ankle.
Among his core soul bones, the skull, torso, and left leg still lacked bone spirits.
On Fusion:
The initial soul bone fusion requires two soul bones with at least one matching attribute, regardless of location. A soul is used as a bridge for the fusion process.
Upon successful fusion, the bridging soul transforms into a Bone Spirit, whose power corresponds to the age of the fused soul bones. However, since bone spirits are still considered special soul beasts by the laws of the Douluo Continent, they are subject to tribulation.
Huo Yuhao feared that such a heavenly tribulation might draw the attention of the God Realm, so he sought a place where tribulation could be shielded, to safely perform the fusion.
Soul Bone Fusion Rules (Quality Conversion):
Below 200,000 years: Age simply adds up.
Above 200,000 years: 2 years from fused soul bones = 1 year gain for the original.
Above 300,000 years: 3 years = 1 year, and so on.
This time, Huo Yuhao planned to fuse his skull soul bone, which required a spirit-attribute bone. His choice was the 100,000-year Colorful Scale Butterfly King's Antennae external bone.
Although not powerful in appearance or skills, the antennae were well-suited for fusion.
With the Fusion Soul Bone Secret Technique, adjacent external soul bones can be fused with primary ones if connected physically. Huo Yuhao's arm soul bones were an example of this—his fingers and palms (external bones) were connected and ultimately fused with the arm bones for greater strength.
Choosing the Bone Spirit:
Huo Yuhao had already prepared one in his Ghost Banner.
Ideally, like with Atai, the spirit of the beast that produced the soul bone would be used, but the beast kings were unwilling to yield. So he sealed their sentience, refusing to use them as bone spirits due to their deep animosity.
Instead, he selected a loyal spirit—one of his own Yaozi Yaosun ("Demonic Children and Descendants").
He summoned a spirit from the Ghost Banner—a Ghost-Faced Centipede.
This was no ordinary centipede spirit, but one that he personally raised and had undergone a demonic transformation, the very first of its kind among its kin, and the most talented.
It was already handpicked by Huo Yuhao to become his Bone Spirit.
Because it was a demonic beast, it retained its sanity even after death, unlike other soul beasts that turned into mindless wraiths.
More importantly—it was absolutely loyal, and capable of cooperating in the fusion process.
The Ghost-Faced Centipede also carried a spirit attribute, which made it the perfect choice.
Huo Yuhao activated the Fusion Soul Bone Secret Technique, and a flood of luck poured down upon him. He began fusing his skull soul bone with the antennae, using the Ghost-Faced Centipede's spirit as the bridge.
The process was painful—for both the centipede and Huo Yuhao—but he calmed the spirit with Buddha Light, ensuring it wouldn't collapse.
After two full hours, the centipede successfully evolved into the Ghost-Faced Centipede King, reaching a level equivalent to a 170,000-year soul beast.
This also meant the fused skull soul bone was now a 170,000-year-level soul bone.
Though Huo Yuhao didn't gain a massive boost in spirit power this time—since both soul bones were already his—the transformation was a success.
The antennae vanished, and under Huo Yuhao's careful shaping, they turned into demonic horns extending from his hair—like a demon sovereign.
He didn't immediately examine the soul bone, instead staying alert for any signs of heavenly tribulation.
But—nothing happened. No pressure. No locking. No omen.
"As expected, I bet right! This place really does shield against tribulation!" Huo Yuhao was thrilled.
And so—
He continued!
He still had another spirit-attribute soul bone left—the 100,000-year skull soul bone left behind by Mu En.
"Old teacher, one more time!"
A new fusion began.
Another two-plus hours passed.
This time, there was a noticeable boost to Huo Yuhao's spirit power.
But more importantly—
He obtained a 240,000-year spirit-attribute skull soul bone.
Skull Soul Bone (Post-Fusion):
Bone Spirit: Ghost-Faced Centipede King
Age: 240,000 years
Attribute: Spirit
Soul Bone Skills:
Fearstorm: Unleashes a spiritual tempest that induces overwhelming fear in all caught within it. Causes persistent, hard-to-heal mental damage.
Dream Harvest: Traps the target in an illusory dream, steadily draining their spirit. When spirit power drops below one-third of their peak, it reaps their consciousness, causing mental death. The stronger the target's spirit, the longer it takes. If the target's spirit exceeds the user's, the dream state remains but no harvesting occurs. Unless awakened externally, the dream persists until the target's spirit drops below half, at which point they wake naturally.
Bone Spirit Skills:
Demon's Mask: Condenses spiritual power into a terrifying mask, boosting the user's spirit power by 50%. Enhances all spirit-based abilities. Blocks spirit-based probing and detection.
Broken Mask Curse: When the Demon's Mask shatters, any who see the true face beneath it are cursed—falling into eternal sleep. Only lifting the curse can awaken them. If within the user's spiritual network, their spirit power can be drawn and used by the soul bone's owner.
New Fusion Trait:
Whispering Mind: Connects spiritual power to a target, letting them hear sinister whispers that subtly disrupt their mind. Over time, it infiltrates their spiritual sea.
This ability is similar to Spiritual Sharing, but while that requires consent or overwhelming power, Whispering Mind is stealth-based. Though it takes longer, once successful, it infiltrates the target's mental core.
Like the difference between kicking down a door versus picking the lock.
And what can one do inside someone's spiritual sea?
A lot, actually.
Hypnosis. Brainwashing. Twisting common sense… cough cough.
In short: many, many possibilities.
Huo Yuhao didn't rush into fusing the next soul bone. Instead, he quietly left the Ten-Thousand-Year Mystic Ice Cavern, emerging from the Cold Spring to test the outside world.
Naturally, this was to test whether leaving the Mystic Ice Cavern would cause him to be detected by the Heavenly Tribulation.
By this time, night had once again fallen outside.
Zhang Lexuan and the other girls, having waited for a while without seeing Huo Yuhao return, eventually went back to rest. They still held a decent level of trust in Nan Shuishui—after all, if she had any malicious intent, she wouldn't have used such a weak excuse to cover it up.
Huo Yuhao's experiment yielded promising results—he wasn't locked onto by the Heavenly Tribulation. The presence of the Ghost-Faced Centipede King's soul spirit within the soul bone wasn't detected at all.
Even when Huo Yuhao activated the soul bone's power, the Heavenly Tribulation still didn't react. However, the moment he tried to summon the Ghost-Faced Centipede King out into the open, a strong sense of danger surged in his heart.
An instinctual warning!
He immediately stopped the summoning and, after some quick thinking, came to a conclusion:
"So that's how it is. I can use the soul bone's power, and even tap into the Ghost-Faced Centipede King's strength—but I must not let it leave the soul bone and appear in the outside world, or it will trigger the Heavenly Tribulation!"
This outcome greatly pleased Huo Yuhao.
It was far better than the restrictive limitation placed on immortal herbs from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, which couldn't leave its domain.
He simply couldn't summon the Ghost-Faced Centipede King to assist him in battle—that wasn't a big deal. After all, the primary role of a soul spirit was to stay within the soul bone and help channel its power, enhancing the soul bone's techniques.
Besides, even while remaining within the bone, the soul spirit's abilities could be manifested through Huo Yuhao's body.
And if summoned into battle, they could only act as support at best.
Weak enemies didn't need assistance; against strong enemies, assistance wouldn't help much.
So it didn't make much of a difference.
After finishing his testing, Huo Yuhao returned once more to the Ten-Thousand-Year Mystic Ice Cavern to continue the soul bone fusion process.
Compared to everything else, fusing soul bones and strengthening himself was the real priority!
Another two days passed.
Of the five soul bones left by Mu En, three were now successfully fused.
A hundred-thousand-year strength-attributed left arm bone was fused into his right leg bone, upgrading it to a 230,000-year soul bone. The soul spirit, the Tyrant Dragon, also evolved into a 230,000-year ferocious beast. While the soul bone skill and properties didn't change, their power was greatly enhanced.
A hundred-thousand-year light-attributed torso bone and an eighty-thousand-year light-attributed right arm bone were both fused into his left arm bone, upgrading it to a 310,000-year soul bone. The soul spirit Ice Radiance Dragon "Ah Hui" also advanced to a 310,000-year ferocious beast. The light attribute was further enhanced. Again, the soul bone skill and traits didn't change, but the Ice Radiance Dragon Strike skill received a massive power boost.
The Fusion Bone Secret Technique can sometimes alter the original traits and techniques of a soul bone, but only if the newly added bone brings a powerful soul bone skill of its own that's strong enough to replace or change the original.
Clearly, none of the recently fused bones had stronger skills than the originals, so they merely served as nourishment, strengthening what was already there.
As for the fire-attributed left leg bone and lightning-attributed right leg bone, they didn't align with Huo Yuhao's soul bone attributes or his own soul power.
So, Huo Yuhao directly fed both bones to his Ghost Banner martial soul.
These were the highest-quality soul bones he had ever fed to it, and he was curious to see what kind of new powers the Ghost Banner would develop after digesting them.
Over those two days, it wasn't just three bones that were fused.
He also had to merge the large quantity of soul bones collected during the mass slaughter of soul beasts across three mountain ranges.
These soul bones varied widely in quality—from the high-tier hundred-thousand-year Golden-Eyed Ant Emperor bone to basic century-level beast bones.
After all, three entire mountain ranges were slaughtered, and many century-level soul bones dropped. There were no mythical ten-year soul bones, though.
The attributes were equally diverse.
There were also leftover soul bones from the Titan Snow Demon Clan and its two vassal species, all needing to be fused into his right arm bone. These bones were of generally high quality, with several hundred-thousand-year bones included.
After this fusion—
His right arm bone upgraded to a staggering 550,000 years, and the Titan Snow Demon King "Ah Tai" evolved into a 550,000-year ferocious beast. Though the bone's technique and traits remained unchanged, they were significantly enhanced. Since all the fused bones came from the Titan Snow Demons and their kin, the outcome matched expectations. The soul bone's year level was converted at a 5-to-1 ratio.
Thanks to some strength-attribute bones and the Golden-Eyed Ant Emperor's bone, his right leg bone reached 320,000 years. Its traits and skills stayed the same, just stronger.
His left leg bone needed wood and life-attributed soul bones. Though its quality improved, the limited quantity of appropriate bones meant it only rose to 150,000 years. He also fused the soul of the Thorned Centipede as its soul spirit. Once it broke through 100,000 years, it evolved into the Thorned Centipede King.
The Thorned Centipede was one of several special centipedes Huo Yuhao raised. Considered relatively rare, it had a massive grey-green body with sharp edges along its shell. It lived in forests and was skilled at camouflaging itself as thorny brambles to ambush prey. It had a wood attribute and a violent temperament.
After fusion, the left leg bone gained a trait called Thorned Forest—an area-of-effect skill that creates a battlefield of brambles by consuming soul power.
Its soul bone skills changed to Thorn Control and Thorn Holy Sword.
Clearly influenced by the Thorned Centipede King, the original plant control and wood-blade holy sword abilities now manifested through thorn-based techniques.
Though this narrowed the range of plants he could manipulate, the synergy with Thorned Forest made the skills more powerful.
The Thorned Centipede King retained two abilities: Thorn Sky Earth (a wide-range attack skill) and Bloodthirsty Thorns (a life-stealing skill). Their strength was average.
Neither the Thorned Centipede King, the original Forest Deer King source of the bone, nor the other fused spirits had particularly strong bloodlines—at most, they were high-level soul beasts.
So the resulting soul bone abilities were, by Huo Yuhao's standards, fairly mediocre.
One point of interest: the Forest Deer's external left wrist-attached soul bone also fused into the leg bone, preserving its enhancement of ankle strength and boosting Huo Yuhao's kicking power.
As for the torso bone, Huo Yuhao ultimately chose not to upgrade it for now.
Mainly because he didn't have any suitable high-tier soul bones that could instantly push it past 400,000 years.
His current 300,000-year torso bone was already sufficient.
Furthermore, this bone originated from the Hell Demon Dragon Clan to which Zi Ji belonged and carried a unique devouring attribute, giving it the ability to self-evolve—a trait similar to that of external soul bones.
Because of that ability, even without any fusion, the 200,000-year bone from Zi Ji had already grown to 300,000 years on its own.
Thus, with all soul bone fusions complete, Huo Yuhao now possessed an incredibly strengthened physique. The leftover bones were all fed to the Ghost Banner martial soul, none of them particularly valuable.
After clearing out the remaining soul bones, Huo Yuhao checked his physical condition.
He now had complete confidence in absorbing the Ice Empress's soul ring. However, to absorb the Snow Empress's soul ring, he would still need to make further preparations.
Looking at the reservoir of Ten-Thousand-Year Mystic Ice Marrow in front of him, Huo Yuhao spoke:
"Begin absorption!"