The Extreme North stretches out as far as the eye can see, a vast expanse of white! Occasionally, sunlight loses its way and spills onto the Ice Plains, casting a golden glow over this white world, decorating the Ice Plains like Glazed.
Snow Mountains stand tall, snowflakes drifting down through their crevices, adding a new layer to the perpetually frozen ground.
Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng had already been walking for over half a month. Aside from a very few ice-attribute Magical Beasts, they hadn't seen any signs of life.
A Thousand Mountains, Birds Cease to Fly; Ten Thousand Paths, Human Footprints Vanish.
This poem perfectly captures the reality of this place, even more so than the words themselves suggest.
This wasn't Zhao Li's first time in the Extreme North. As early as when he "saw" the suspected presence of Outer Realm Demons here from within the Starfall Pavilion, he had kept this place in mind. Later, after his Cultivation Level improved, he came to investigate once. At this point, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was revisiting an old place.
But when he came before, he hadn't ventured deep into the Snow Plains. He had only used his Soul Power to scan the area. At that time, he hadn't felt such a strong sense of desolation.
Now, returning to this place, he had a feeling of utter silence, as if this entire region had been abandoned by Heaven and Earth.
Half a month!
Ye Yunsheng and Zhao Li had been walking in the snowy Ice Plains for over half a month!
Although their bodies didn't feel any cold, the mist that billowed from their nostrils with each breath instantly turning into tiny ice shards was a clear indication of the bitter cold here.
Moreover, because the sky and land were the same color, for over half a month, all they had seen was white, and more white. Now, they seemed to be experiencing some visual fatigue from this vast white world.
"This truly is a Bitter Cold Land."
Ye Yunsheng reached out to catch a falling snowflake, a hint of emotion in her voice.
Even with her Profound Yin Physique, which naturally felt a sense of affinity for energies on the Yin side, she felt almost none of that on these Extreme North Ice Plains.
It was simply because not only was Life Force scarce and the area desolate, but the Dou Qi within it was also extremely thin. Although there was cold, it was a chilling, biting cold devoid of any Life Force, which was harmful rather than beneficial for Cultivation.
It was no wonder that despite the intense cold of this Ice Plains, it hadn't become a paradise for ice-attribute Cultivators.
Zhao Li heard her words, stopped, and slowly withdrew his Soul Power. He also sighed slightly. This time, it was very likely they would return empty-handed again.
With his current Soul Power, this Ice Plains could be tens of times wider and still not be enough for him to fully explore. Although he had come and gone in a hurry last time, that was relative. He had indeed scanned the Ice Plains thoroughly at that time. For others, years or even decades of exploration might not yield results as detailed as his few days.
Fortunately, this time, he had a companion in the snow, which gave him a little more patience. Seeing Ye Yunsheng's lack of enthusiasm, he suddenly smiled:
"Heh heh, thankfully my Wife knows how to make herself suffer, otherwise, alone in this Ice Plains, I wouldn't have such good patience."
Ye Yunsheng heard his words and didn't dwell on that topic with him. He was always finding ways to try and get her to leave anyway.
She furrowed her brow slightly, getting to the point, and asked:
"Husband, how likely do you think what you saw back then is? Could it be that you were overly worried?"
"I don't know either. That was just one possibility. Moreover, I suffered a Backlash at the time and didn't tell Yao Chen what I saw as I originally intended. It's very likely that the scene I saw won't happen again."
Zhao Li shook his head. What he saw was just one of many possibilities, and after feeling the threat, he had abandoned his original plan.
Afterward, he thought that since Yao Chen had suffered a fatal calamity just as in the original timeline, perhaps he was being too sensitive. But when it came to such matters, it was better to believe it might be true than not. Spending more effort and gathering more intelligence now, even if it turned out he was overly worried, was far better than having no one capable of resisting when the Outer Realm Demons descended.
But after two investigations, he still found nothing. He was truly starting to doubt. Because this time, although he wasn't a Dou Di, he was no longer comparable to himself from decades ago. If there was anything unusual, it shouldn't be able to hide from him, unless...
The possibly existing Outer Realm Demon was more than just a Dou Di!
This possibility was extremely small. If he truly had such ability, he wouldn't have needed to trick Yao Chen into making a sacrifice to summon another existence more powerful than himself.
"Sigh, the environment on this Ice Plains changes drastically almost periodically, and the Heavenly Flame riot at that time also caused earth-shattering changes in its birthplace. Otherwise, finding that place might have yielded some clues."
Zhao Li's initial goal was to head towards the place where the Bone Chilling Flame erupted. But what frustrated him was that the Ice Plains were completely unstable. Avalanches and other events were constantly happening, already changing the appearance of the Ice Plains.
"Are you talking about it?"
Just then, Ye Yunsheng pointed at a White Bear in front and asked Zhao Li.
Zhao Li looked. The White Bear was covered in white fur, perfectly blending into this world. Even when Zhao Li had scanned the area earlier, he hadn't discovered it.
Because there was absolutely no Life Force on its body. Although it could move, it was a dead thing!
And this was the main reason it could evade Zhao Li's detection. If he only relied on Soul Power perception, in this vast snowy landscape, even if he "saw" it moving, it would only be mistaken for a snowball sliding down the snow.
"This is... a Soul Puppet! Wife, you truly are my lucky star."
Zhao Li recognized it. As his first Heavenly Flame, the Bone Chilling Flame was also what set him on the path of using the connection between Heavenly Flames and Heaven and Earth to comprehend the Origin of Heaven and Earth Rules. He understood it perfectly. This White Bear was clearly a Soul Puppet of the Bone Chilling Flame!
He was overjoyed and kissed Ye Yunsheng's face without a second thought. Then, with a thought, the Bone Chilling Flame appeared in his hand. He flicked his finger, and a wisp of Flame flew towards the White Bear. Then, a hint of bone-white flashed in his eyes.
"Hmm? Not its Soul Puppet? Could there be a second Bone Chilling Flame here?"
Zhao Li discovered that the wisp of Soul Flame he had sent out had Devoured something within the White Bear's body, and only then did the White Bear come under his control. Before that, it wasn't its master.
Zhao Li frowned tightly, sensing something unusual. He remembered seeing the Bone Chilling Flame being Devoured twice in its Origin.
During the time of the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor, it destroyed more than half of its Soul Puppets to preserve a wisp of its Origin and escape. After that, it Devoured all the remaining Soul Puppets to barely recover. Since then, it hadn't dared to go out and had been recuperating. Later, it was Devoured by Yao Chen. There shouldn't be any Soul Puppets left.
"Since there are two Fallen Heart Flames, it makes sense for there to be two Bone Chilling Flames. Let's go take a look first."
With this thought, Zhao Li moved his mind, and the White Bear wobbled and turned back, passing through the Mountain Gorge, climbing over the Snow Mountain, and finally heading down a seemingly bottomless Mountain Gorge.
"This..."
Zhao Li was stunned. This Mountain Gorge seemed to be in a different Space. In his Soul Perception, there was clearly no discontinuity here; both sides of the gorge were still a flat Ice Plains!
His heart tightened. He didn't even know if his current Soul Power could still be considered within the Emperor Realm, yet he was still affected by this place. He had only experienced this kind of deception of Soul Power within the Heavenly Evolution Grand Formation.
"Here, there is a Formation no less significant than the one that enveloped the entire Continent!"
-----------
Machine Translation by: beta.randomtranslator.com
Read 1400+ original & fanfic translations and Translate for Free at: www.randomtranslator.com