After what seemed like an eternity of waiting in the biting cold, the snow field near Tian Meng began to vibrate subtly. The tremors intensified gradually, creating concentric ripples across the pristine white surface. I held my breath, muscles tensing beneath the Ice Bear fur as my hand instinctively moved closer to my weapon. The silence of the frozen wasteland was broken only by the soft crunching of ice crystals shifting beneath the surface.
Without warning, a brilliant green jade claw erupted from the snow, its emergence sending crystalline fragments flying in all directions like a miniature blizzard. The claw moved with deliberate slowness, as if testing the environment before committing to a full appearance. Gradually, it revealed a giant Jade Scorpion King's body—the legendary Ice Emperor herself.
The sight was more magnificent than any description could have prepared me for. Her exoskeleton was covered with structures shaped like perfect hexagons that shone with an incomparably bright luster. They resembled diamonds in their geometric precision, refracting light in mesmerizing patterns as they covered the front section of her body and her six slender, articulated legs. Beneath the pale green sky of the Extreme North, these structures emitted an incomparably brilliant radiance, almost as if they'd become independent sources of light, reflecting a myriad of colored rays that danced across the snow field.
Her two massive pincers extended a full meter in length, both similarly adorned with the strange diamond-like hexagonal protrusions that characterized her species. The foremost parts of these formidable weapons were covered in a mirror-like silverish-white coloration that matched her mouth parts exactly, creating an unsettling symmetry that spoke of evolutionary perfection.
However, what truly captured my attention—as it would any observer who valued their survival—were her eyes. Two hexagonal yellow orbs, resembling perfectly cut yellow diamonds, were embedded within her eye sockets. They flickered with crystal-like yellow light, giving off an impression similar to that of the finest gemstones glistening under expert illumination. Those eyes held ancient intelligence, calculation, and unmistakable predatory intent.
If her upper body could be considered sufficiently resplendent, her lower body—particularly the long, yet upward-pointing tail—was the true crown jewel that dazzled everything in its vicinity. Unlike the finely segmented tail of ordinary scorpions, the Ice Emperor's tail consisted of just five distinct segments. Each segment radiated an alluring jade-green light filled with inner luster that seemed to pulse with her life force. All five segments shared identical coloration, with the segment nearest to her upper body being the widest; they tapered gradually, becoming narrower the further they extended from her body. The final segment was also inlaid with the diamond-like protrusions, and the very tip of her tail similarly flickered with that distinctive mirror-like, silverish-white luster that marked her most dangerous anatomical weapons.
For several heartbeats, nothing moved. The Ice Emperor surveyed her surroundings, those yellow diamond eyes scanning methodically across the landscape until they fixed upon Tian Meng's butterfly form. I remained perfectly still beneath my camouflage, barely daring to breathe as the tension built between the two ancient beings.
When the Ice Emperor finally spoke, her voice resonated with power that seemed to vibrate through the very air itself, causing minute ice crystals to dance in the atmosphere around us.
"Who are you?" she demanded, her tone imperious and suspicious. "I haven't seen you before in my domain." Her massive pincers clicked together in what I recognized as a threat display. "And why do I feel that ice bug aura from you? Did you consume my prey? Answer quickly, butterfly, before I decide you're not worth the interrogation."
Tian Meng fluttered his magnificent wings once, sending tiny prisms of light dancing across the snow. His posture showed no fear as he faced the much larger soul beast. When he responded, his voice carried a confidence that surprised even me, who had witnessed his enthusiasm firsthand.
"Ice Emperor, you haven't died yet, so why can't I be still alive?" His tone held a strange mixture of reverence and familiarity. "Don't you remember what I said that year? If I don't die, there will be a day when I will become your partner." His wings glimmered with subtle patterns that seemed to intensify as he spoke, perhaps reflecting his emotional state.
The Ice Emperor's posture shifted slightly, her tail arching higher in what might have been surprise. "That voice..." she murmured, almost too quietly to hear. "Impossible. You were nothing but an insignificant Ice Silkworm. How could you—"
Tian Meng didn't allow her to finish, pressing his advantage while she processed his identity. "I've lived for a million years, and I've spent a large majority of them sleeping in the deepest cold, dreaming of this moment." His voice grew more passionate with each word. "However, the only thing within the depths of my heart that I can't control is you. Ice Emperor, do you know why I've chosen to come back at a time like this?"
He moved closer, his wings creating small eddies in the frigid air. "It's because I've found a way to survive and become god without any problem. If you don't accept my method, by the time of your next breakthrough, you'll disappear in this icy world forever, leaving nothing but frozen memories." His voice dropped to an almost tender tone. "That's why I've come back. I can't wait anymore, and an endless life has no more meaning to me. I don't have much longer to live in this form. I've come back to let you continue living and let us truly be together, transcending the limitations of our current existence."
Fuck, I couldn't believe someone could propose to their natural enemy in such a passionate way. This would definitely be saved in my memory as 'How to purpose your enemy in the most passionate way possible.' I had to admire his audacity, even as I questioned his sanity.
The Ice Emperor remained motionless for several long moments, those yellow diamond eyes fixed unblinkingly on Tian Meng. When she finally responded, her voice carried a mixture of disbelief and growing anger.
"So you are Tian Meng," she said slowly, her pincers opening and closing methodically. "I never believed that you could have evolved your bloodline beyond your pitiful limitations. A million years... truly impressive for one of your kind." Her tail swayed hypnotically behind her, its tip gleaming dangerously in the pale light. "I don't know what plans you have concocted during your long sleep, but since you've come all the way here with such presumption, you have to die."
The temperature around us dropped precipitously as she gathered her power. Frost patterns spread outward from where her legs touched the snow, creating intricate fractal designs that raced across the ground. "After absorbing your energy, I'll become the strongest soul beast in the entire continent. Perhaps then I'll finally surpass that woman..." Her voice trailed off momentarily before hardening again. "Your evolution makes you a worthy meal, at least."
Without warning, she launched herself forward with astonishing speed for her size, her stinger aimed directly at Tian Meng's delicate form. I tensed, preparing to intervene if necessary, though Tian Meng had insisted I remain hidden until the precise moment.
Tian Meng didn't attempt to dodge the attack. Instead, he remained perfectly still as the stinger pierced through his butterfly body. A white ray of energy erupted from the point of contact, but instead of dissipating, it began spreading through Tian Meng's golden body, appearing to destroy it in a berserk manner.
However, Tian Meng displayed no signs of pain or distress. Instead, he spoke with a tone of mild regret that seemed entirely incongruous with being impaled by a massive stinger. "I was originally planning to chat with you for a while, since I didn't want to be so heartless after our long separation. However, I'll have to start it now, so that we can truly be together as destiny intended."
Having cultivated to her current level, the Ice Emperor could discern danger with preternatural accuracy. She instantly recognized that something was wrong—terribly wrong—as Tian Meng's body suddenly turned blurry and indistinct, like a mirage shimmering on the horizon. In the next heartbeat, he vanished completely, only to reappear directly before her, mere inches from those hexagonal yellow eyes.
There was no reason to doubt the Ice Emperor's legendary speed and reflexes, but in this critical moment, she found herself inexplicably slowing down. The air around her seemed to have suddenly transformed into a viscous substance, offering resistance to her every movement. Tian Meng's terrifying spiritual power had manifested as a vast ocean of energy that trapped her within its currents, limiting her mobility in ways she had never experienced before.
The Ice Emperor's gaze instantly transformed from calculation to ferocity. Forcefully waving her jade green tail, she caused it to erupt with a brilliant light that momentarily outshone everything else in the frozen landscape. The energy release was so powerful that the snow beneath her vaporized instantly, revealing the ancient ice below.
"Tian Meng, you're courting death!" she roared, her voice causing small avalanches in the distant mountains. "You actually dare to use spiritual power in this manner? Aren't you scared of being unable to return to your original body? Such techniques consume the user as much as the target!" Her pincers slashed through the air with incredible force despite the resistance. "Moreover, regardless of how hard you try, it won't change the fact that you're trash compared to me. How long can you even keep me here for? One or two seconds at most before your power is exhausted?"
Tian Meng's response came with gentle confidence, his voice somehow managing to sound both intimate and detached simultaneously. "Not much time is needed, Ice Emperor. One second is more than enough for what must be done."
While they conversed, a membrane composed of pale white light slid noiselessly across the ground, expanding outward in concentric circles from where Tian Meng hovered. Despite her incomparable power and senses, the Ice Emperor remained completely oblivious to this subtle yet crucial development—her attention fully captured by the immediate threat before her.
Indeed, a single second proved sufficient for Tian Meng's purposes. The Ice Emperor was channeling all of her formidable strength in preparation for the moment when Tian Meng would inevitably exhaust his spiritual power. However, she suddenly felt her massive body tighten inexplicably, as if invisible constraints had materialized around her. With mounting horror, she realized she had lost the ability to move freely.
Astonished by this unexpected development, the Ice Emperor immediately began twisting about madly, her entire body contorting in desperate attempts to break free. White and green energies intertwined and flickered around her form as she released all of her tyrannical skills without reservation, holding nothing back in her frantic struggle.
However, this powerful soul beast—one who had roamed the Extreme North unhindered for hundreds of thousands of years—experienced genuine fear in the next instant. No matter how violently she struggled against her invisible bonds, her efforts proved futile. The sensation of constriction strengthened at an astonishing rate, causing a gurgling sound to emerge from her mouth parts as her exoskeleton creaked under the pressure. Regardless of how desperately she fought, the strength of her bindings continued to intensify relentlessly. She found herself with no effective means of resistance for perhaps the first time in her long existence.
The frontal pincers she'd raised threateningly into the air were gradually forced downward as if by an immense weight, and her proudly raised tail was pressed firmly against her body. The Ice Emperor, one of the Extreme North's Three Emperors, had actually been restrained this completely. What she failed to realize was that she had been ensnared by Tian Meng's Spiritual Prison—a technique that had evolved dramatically following his bloodline transformation.
After evolving his bloodline through centuries of effort and sacrifice, Tian Meng's original physical form had completely transformed into an imaginary or mental construct, rendering him essentially immune to conventional physical attacks while remaining vulnerable to elemental and mental assaults. This transformation had elevated all his abilities to entirely different levels of effectiveness. This explained why subduing the Ice Emperor—despite her legendary power—had proven relatively straightforward for him. His bloodline now matched or perhaps even slightly exceeded the Ice Emperor's in potency, definitively establishing Tian Meng as the strongest mental-type practitioner below god-level beings in the entire continent. Only the Silver Dragon King might surpass him in this domain, though she was generally classified among divine entities rather than mortal soul beasts.
"No, no! This isn't possible!" The Ice Emperor's voice had lost its imperious quality, now tinged with genuine panic. "Tian Meng, how could trash like you be able to restrain me this way? What skill is this? Why can't I access my energy? This defies all natural laws!"
The golden light surrounding Tian Meng's butterfly form gradually dissipated, and he reverted to his humanoid appearance before her. With an expression of indifferent satisfaction on his face, he gazed upon his captive. "I've truly waited for this day for far too long already. You don't know exactly what's happening? That's understandable—few beings have ever witnessed these techniques and survived to speak of them." A smile played across his lips. "I'll provide a complete explanation, but not now. First, we have other matters to address."
Facing the endless sky above, Tian Meng released a profound sigh that seemed to carry the weight of countless years. "I never imagined that I'd eventually be able to employ abilities I wouldn't have dared attempt in my previous incarnation. Unfortunately, that exertion represented my only opportunity to utilize them at full strength. Ice Emperor, oh Ice Emperor," his voice softened to something almost resembling tenderness, "I sincerely hope you won't disappoint me after all this effort."
Meanwhile, I remained hidden beneath my Ice Bear fur, sheltered from the extreme cold by the ingenious heater I had crafted specifically for this expedition. While Tian Meng handled the Ice Emperor, I utilized the soul guide device I'd constructed to maintain my body temperature at a sustainable level within my concealment. The confrontation between these ancient beings played out before me like some primordial drama—beautiful, terrifying, and utterly beyond normal human experience.