The wind howled like a hungry wolf at the entrance of the cave. Outside, everything was an endless white, as if the world had decided to cover every inch in an eternal layer of snow. In the distance, the horizon blurred where the grey sky met the frozen sea, a sea that didn't move like the ones I remembered, but breathed slowly through the crackling of ice floes and the lazy drift of massive icebergs.
My eyes shifted from the scenery to the thing floating a few meters away: a white ring, ethereal, calmly spinning above the crystallized remains of the worm I had frozen minutes ago. Its presence was almost hypnotic, a silent reminder that I no longer belonged to the world I was born into… nor to the body I had once inhabited.
I crossed my arms, not because of the cold.
"Great…" I muttered with dry irony. "I'm a soul beast."
An awkward silence stretched as I stared at the worm's corpse. I couldn't resist blurting out the first stupid thing that crossed my mind:
"I hope I didn't kill the younger brother of the Iceworm of the Heavenly Dream… that would be ironic. Imagine Huo Yuhao looking for a spirit and I, by accident, ruin the plot for him."
A short, hollow laugh escaped me—though deep down, I wasn't sure if my joke was actually funny or if I had just cursed myself to have that legendary bug show up and rip me apart. Thinking about it, the bigger worry was that I didn't even know when I was in the timeline. This could be before the events of Soul Land 1, in the middle of Soul Land 3, or worse, during that disaster called Soul Land 4. The mere thought of running into some future soul master and ending up as a decorative "spirit" made my stomach turn.
My gaze met my reflection in the ice wall. It wasn't a face I wanted to see, but I couldn't look away. Long hair, white as fresh snow, interrupted by a silver strand with a faint bluish glow. Silver eyes, cold and… unfamiliar. Soft, feminine features that reminded me far too much of the Snow Empress from the donghua, but with subtle differences: not fully white hair nor icy blue eyes, but something in-between. I looked like an edited copy, a version touched up by a capricious artist.
And it wasn't just my appearance that had changed. I wore a winter dress, snug against my body, simple yet elegant, adorned with tiny silver stars instead of snowflakes. Being "born" clothed was unsettling, but at least I hadn't materialized naked in the middle of a blizzard. I guess even the universe has limits to its sense of humor.
I took a deep breath, though my body didn't seem to need oxygen. It was more out of habit than necessity. And as I did, my attention returned to the white ring above the worm's corpse. From what I vaguely remembered from wikis and novels, these rings lasted about an hour before vanishing. I wasn't sure if a soul beast could absorb one… but why not try? My instincts told me it held something that could strengthen me.
I crouched and reached out. The moment my fingers brushed its surface, a surge of cold pierced through me. It wasn't like the cave's temperature; this was a living cold, dense, seeping into every fiber of my being. It felt as if my body were a vessel, and the ring was pouring a sharp, icy torrent into it. The pain was deep and dull, mixed with the sensation of thousands of needles pushing from the inside out.
Minutes passed like hours. I could barely think—only endure. At some point, I understood why soul beasts rarely absorbed rings: they weren't made for it. The risk was too high. If I hadn't also been of ice, I'd probably be dead. And I don't even want to imagine what would have happened if the ring had been fire-aligned… I might have been the first soul beast to die as a burnt ice statue.
When the ring finally dissolved into my body, I felt a faint current of energy running through me. My control over ice had grown—slightly. It wasn't a dramatic power-up, more like my "muscles," if elementals even have them, had adapted better to the environment.
I exhaled slowly and stood. The worm's body crumbled into crystal fragments, as if it had never existed.
I explored the cave. My steps were silent on the ice, and every time my skin brushed the walls, I felt an odd familiarity, as though I were part of them. The main tunnel split into two: one ending in a solid wall, the other opening into a large circular chamber. In the center was a shallow lake of crystal-blue water, surrounded by white stones that shone as if tiny stars were trapped inside.
Leaning closer to one, I sensed a steady, cold flow of energy.
"Ice essence…" I murmured, almost fascinated. This place wasn't just a cave—it was a nest of energy.
I lingered by the lake. It was so clear it reflected my face like a perfect mirror. That was when I noticed—I didn't feel hunger or thirst. Perhaps being an elemental meant I didn't need food. A part of me appreciated it; another part mourned the memory of a good barbecue.
I decided to step outside. The island was small, a white blot surrounded by a frozen sea. I spent hours walking through gentle snowstorms and across fields of untouched snow, finding no trace of other animal-type soul beasts. Only strange plants that thrived in the cold—crystal shrubs and ice mushrooms glowing faintly at night. Maybe the worm had been the only predator here… which explained why its lair was so close to the shore.
Far away, a dark strip broke the whiteness: mainland. The distance was great but not impossible. However, without knowing what year this was, throwing myself into the continent might be suicide. If I'd landed in an era of powerful soul masters or ongoing wars, my life would be worth less than a snowflake in a blizzard.
When the sun began to set, I returned to the cave. The sunset light streamed through the entrance, tinting the ice in golden and blue hues that looked like something out of a painting. For a moment, I forgot where I was. It was… beautiful, in a cruel way. A beauty that wouldn't forgive weakness.
I sat by the lake, closed my eyes, and let the frozen silence envelop me. I didn't know how much time I had before this world tried to kill me. But one thing I knew for certain: I wasn't going to follow this plane's rules. If this world was built so the strong could feed on the weak… I was going to find my own way. Even if it cost me my life.