Chapter 734: Chapter 160: The Opening of the Ancient Ice Glacier
Confronted with the Extreme Cold Netherworld King’s sudden enthusiasm, Zhou Yan felt something was off in his heart; this person’s demeanor, in Zhou Yan’s view, tended towards the feminine, exuding an air of softness and bewitching charm.
Additionally, with a beauty that rivaled an extraordinary woman’s, if it were not possible to discern his true gender from his soul aura, Zhou Yan would suspect he was a woman who had transformed.
However, precisely because he could determine that the Extreme Cold Netherworld King was a man, Zhou Yan felt an inexplicable chill in his heart.
He instinctively stepped back, discreetly activating his Nine Orifice Exquisite Heart to "unintentionally" take a glance at the Extreme Cold Netherworld King. Immediately after, Zhou Yan’s heart jolted!
He slightly bowed his head, concealing the momentary shock, and modestly said, "The strength of Young Master of Seven Cosmos is feeble, and his resolve is lacking, not suitable for devouring such Divine Body Energy for now. If he forcefully devoured it, it might instead affect his temperament and destabilize his realm."
Zhou Yan’s words made the Extreme Cold Netherworld King look at him with new respect; he took the initiative to move a few steps closer to Zhou Yan, and with approval said, "Good, I didn’t expect that despite your young age and exceptional talent, you also possess such a calm and composed temperament, truly a figure worthy of cultivation! I, the Extreme Cold Netherworld King, am indeed a lover of talent. How about you follow me? If you do, I can give you the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone right away."
As the Extreme Cold Netherworld King spoke, he waved away the lingering energy from the deceased Mi Luo.
"Oh, let’s not, a gentleman does not seize what others enjoy. The Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone is so important to you, Your Majesty. I’ll go look for it in the Ancient Icefield instead; after all, that would also be a form of training for me."
Zhou Yan quickly said.
After the Nine Orifice Exquisite Heart revealed the Extreme Cold Netherworld King’s feminine constitution, Zhou Yan immediately kept his distance. Moreover, even if he hadn’t figured it out, the Extreme Cold Netherworld King’s behavior was unsettling enough for Zhou Yan.
This was a man who fancied other men!
Although Zhou Yan held no prejudice against any peculiar cultivators and even maintained a certain respect, if such a person also showed affection towards him, he would start to shudder in fear.
The Extreme Cold Netherworld King clearly showed great interest in him, which caused Zhou Yan’s expression to darken.
"Qingyan really didn’t mention this to me, truly setting me up. But thinking about it, given the Extreme Cold Netherworld King’s peculiar traits, it’s likely that not many know of it and even if they do, they probably wouldn’t go around talking about it."
Zhou Yan pondered inwardly.
Although he was somewhat apprehensive of the Extreme Cold Netherworld King, he still managed to appear entirely composed. Such a person could be very sensitive, and a misstep could easily make things worse.
The source of the Extreme Cold Netherworld King’s "strange" character was probably related to this aspect.
"To be so reasonable, truly so reasonable! I hadn’t expected that Young Master of Seven Cosmos, not only are you talented and a good person but also possess such an open and magnanimous heart, it actually makes Ji Han feel somewhat ashamed. I, Ji Han, practice the True Void Sword Dao and have encountered a bottleneck; my heart often becomes agitated or enraged, sometimes even driven to do deranged things, and if it were not for the help of the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone to purify my ghostly soul, I might have already fallen under the control of the Demon Heart and become a Walking Dead obsessed with slaughter."
The Extreme Cold Netherworld King sighed, with a face full of melancholic sorrow, looking like a sentimental little woman. This expression, along with the demeanor and that hint of effeminacy, made Zhou Yan’s emotions fluctuate greatly.
As he said this, he also reached out and gently patted Zhou Yan’s shoulder. Zhou Yan felt a chill in his heart, and his skin went goosebumps all over, even a bit of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
Thankfully, after patting Zhou Yan’s shoulder, the Extreme Cold Netherworld King withdrew his hand and continued, "During my madness, I offended the Lei Yan King, I mocked and ridiculed him and he slashed away half of my soul with his sword. If it had not been for that, my realm would not have stagnated. So the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone is important for healing my soul’s injuries and for suppressing the backlash of the Demon Heart, and I truly cannot give it to you, I am very sorry.
However, although I cannot give you the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone, we do seem to have an instant connection, and I will help you in other ways."
The Extreme Cold Netherworld King said, and he cast a coquettish smile at Zhou Yan.
His bewitching appearance combined with his similarly delicate and graceful figure, coupled with that smile, was simply devastating.
Zhou Yan’s pupils contracted, but he steadied his body without moving back. He thought to himself, "Mock the Lei Yan King? You were probably flirting with him, right? Now you’re getting your karma, aren’t you? And you’re way too presumptuous, right? Who the hell feels an instant connection with you? If you really want to help me, just let me go!"
"The Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stones come in two types; one contains Immortal Divinity, and the other does not. This is something only I know. As for how to discern them, it’s complicated yet simple. You need only extract a strand of energy from the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone and refine it into a thread of soul. If this thread of soul is capable of Dual Cultivation with you, then it is a Soul Stone with Divinity. If the refined soul is lifeless, then the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone is devoid of divinity, and is useless. If the refined soul is sentient, but unable to engage in Soul Dual Cultivation with you, it means it can be considered an Ice Soul Stone, but not as an Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone."
"This? This is the way to discern it?"
Zhou Yan’s face showed a strange expression, refining a soul to dual cultivate with oneself? Could it get any more indecent? Wasn’t this ’self-comfort’?
"Indeed, that is the way to discern," continued the Extreme Cold Netherworld King. "The nature of the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone is Yin, and the soul refined from it is always a pure Yin female body with independent consciousness. Some may be the souls of extraordinary women who died in the Ancient Times, others might be supreme beauties who perished in the Tai Chu era, what were you thinking?"
The Extreme Cold Netherworld King spoke irritably.
"Dead queenie, would it kill you to speak normally?!"
Inwardly cursing, Zhou Yan feigned sudden comprehension on the surface and exclaimed, "So that’s how it is, Young Master of Seven Cosmos is enlightened."
"Mm, the reason I can control the Ancient Ice Glacier is actually due to the Immortal Divine Energy from the Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone in my hand originating from an ’Ice Woman’ of Ancient Times. She was an ’Ice Palace secret technique Sword God.’ It was because of her that I could open the Ancient Ice Glacier from the Ancient Times. Of course, this secret is known only to you and no one else. You must keep it safe for me, okay?"
"I will."
Zhou Yan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and immediately agreed.
"Mm, I also sense a strong masculine Sword Body characteristic on you, but after you enter the Ancient Ice Glacier, it’s better to show a feminine Sword Body characteristic. If possible, transform your masculine cultivation to feminine, which will greatly benefit you. Alright, the others are also waiting, and I’m tired. I’ll send you into the Ancient Ice Glacier, so those cultivators can go in and search for opportunities."
The Extreme Cold Netherworld King was halfway through speaking when suddenly his complexion turned crimson, and his entire being became somewhat disorganized. He abruptly changed the subject, ready to open the Ancient Ice Glacier.
Only then did Zhou Yan notice that the Extreme Cold Netherworld King seemed to be experiencing an outbreak of some hidden ailment.
Despite being somewhat effeminate and liking men, Zhou Yan felt his nature wasn’t bad through their interactions. Moreover, his current condition was the result of being beaten by Lei Yan King. He also notably targeted the Jiang family... The enemy of an enemy can be a friend. Zhou Yan thought briefly and took out half a tome of the Taiyin Talisman Scripture, handing it to the Extreme Cold Netherworld King, "Netherworld King, this is half of the ’Taiyin Talisman Scripture,’ containing the essence of the ’Undying Rebirth Technique’ secret technique. It should be miraculously effective for you. You might want to study and cultivate it to recover from your injuries sooner."
"Ah? The ’Taiyin Talisman Scripture’ from Ancient Times? Great, this is just wonderful!"
When the Extreme Cold Netherworld King saw this, he trembled, his expression extremely excited. His eyes were full of a strange light, as if he had an impulse to embrace Zhou Yan, which astonished Zhou Yan.
Fortunately, the Extreme Cold Netherworld King did not do so. Instead, he took the ’Taiyin Talisman Scripture,’: bowed deeply to Zhou Yan, and said, "Brother of Seven Cosmos, I cannot thank you enough for this favor, Ji Han will remember it. Ji Han’s hidden ailment has flared up, and it’s inconvenient to stay longer, so I will take my leave now."
As the Extreme Cold Netherworld King spoke, he waved his hand and lifted the mysterious prohibition—It turned out that he had set up a shielding enchantment in the Void while talking to Zhou Yan, something Zhou Yan hadn’t even sensed.
This revelation left Zhou Yan quite shaken; the methods of the Extreme Cold Netherworld King were much more powerful than he had imagined.
With the prohibition removed, Ji Han, the Netherworld King, waved his hand to summon a soul of cold ice, violently stirring the void to reveal a bizarre channel glittering with waves.
"I’ll open it for just ten minutes; anyone who wants to enter, feel free to do so. But if you haven’t been marked by my cold ice brand, don’t bother entering, for it’ll be a path to certain death."
"The Ancient Ice Glacier offers three months of usage time inside, and normally, after three months, you would naturally be teleported back here. However, I don’t want you to kill each other and compete for resources, so I’ve changed the rules. After three months, you will be randomly teleported away, to any place in the Peaceful Realms. Then what you do is up to you and has nothing to do with me."
Having said his piece, the Extreme Cold Netherworld King transformed into a streak of light and disappeared.
At that moment, Zhou Yan’s body suddenly shimmered with a touch of azure blue ice luster.
Zhou Yan noticed that the space here was not very crowded, but as soon as the Extreme Cold Netherworld King left, suddenly, thousands of cultivators, radiant with azure blue ice light, appeared—both males and females, each with a tremendously frightening aura.
Zhou Yan had no time to observe further as countless streaks of blue light surged into the glistening void lake, causing it to grow unstable with the entrance of the cultivators, clearly not enduring the full ten minutes!
Zhou Yan’s heart tightened, and without any more hesitation, he transformed into a streak of light and flew in.
...
Time and space shifted.
The land was no longer the Ancient Ice Glacier, but resembled more the Feathered Cold Ice Cave of the Ancient Times.
This feeling was so powerful that Zhou Yan wondered if the Feathered Cold Ice Cave on the Sword Burial Ancestor Star was built in imitation of this place.
The earth was covered in flying snow, dressed in a coat of silver.
Beneath the vast expanse of heaven and earth, the cultivators seemed incredibly insignificant.