Douluo Continent: Heavenly Pill Demon Tiger

Chapter 49 The Snow Empress's Preparations: The Ten-Thousand-Year Ice and Fire Lotus

After absorbing the spirit ring, Youheng's spirit power was replenished, and his injuries were fully healed. Although his spirit power and mental strength had not returned to their peak state, he was completely fine.

At this moment, Little White, who had been holding her breath and carefully protecting her, finally dared to speak in a muffled voice. The huge ice bear's face was filled with confusion and worry, "Mother? You... how did you end up in this human's body?"

The Snow Empress's consciousness seemed to glare at it before briefly recounting what had happened: how she chose to transform under the pressure of the Heavenly Tribulation, how she was ambushed by the despicable human level nine soul master at her weakest moment, and how she ultimately had no choice but to entrust her essence to Dai Youheng, who happened to fall from the sky and kill the level nine soul master with a special physique.

After finishing her narration, the Snow Empress's mind instantly flashed with a thin layer of anger, and she harshly reprimanded, "You're also at fault in this matter, Little White! My transformation was at such a crucial moment, where were you, you unfilial son, playing around? If you had been by my side to protect me at that time, how could a mere ninth-level Soul Master have harmed me in the slightest? You've caused me to end up in this situation!"

Little White's huge head shrank back as it was scolded. Its once fierce bear eyes were now filled with grievance and guilt, and it let out a few low, whimper-like sounds.

Its massive, mountain-like body now looked somewhat helpless and clumsy, creating a comical contrast to its status as one of the overlords of the far north.

It loved its mother the most, and now that it learned of her misfortune and its inability to protect her, one can imagine the guilt and fear it felt.

Little White blinked its huge, ice-blue eyes. Although it breathed a sigh of relief that its mother was safe and sound, being honest did not mean being stupid.

It tilted its enormous head and spoke again in a deep, muffled voice, echoing in the empty front hall of the ice castle, "Mother, is there some other important matter that brings you back so suddenly?"

It gently pointed with its thick paw at the corpse of the Abyss Ice Tiger on the ground, which had lost its spirit rings and was completely dead. "Encountering this unlucky fellow seems to be an accident. You and Uncle Youheng came all the way to the core of the far north, surely not to find it, right?"

The Snow Emperor's thoughts rippled slightly in Dai Youheng's mind, carrying a hint of approval, "You silly goose, you're not so stupid after all."

At this point, there was indeed no need to hide it from Xiaobai any longer. Xue Di turned her attention to Dai Youheng, her clear and cold voice carrying a hint of solemnity, "Youheng, the 100,000-year soul ring I prepared for you is not from any giant beast on the ice plains, but from an extremely special, even unique, plant-type soul beast."

Dai Youheng's expression hardened, and he listened intently. A 100,000-year-old plant-type soul beast? That's extremely rare in the far north.

After all, very few plants can survive in this godforsaken place.

"Its name is the Ice and Fire Lotus," the Snow Empress continued. "Its true form is a huge and mystical lotus, with a single root that is deeply rooted in a rare earth fire vein beneath the extreme cold ice plains. But at its top, it branches out, simultaneously nurturing and blooming two completely different lotuses."

"A single flower, as blazing as the sun, like an eternally burning flame, displaying the purest crimson and brilliant gold, radiating astonishing heat."

"The other one is icy cold, as if it were carved from ice that has stood for millennia. Its entire body is a translucent icy blue, and its chilling aura is enough to freeze the soul."

"Ice and fire, two absolutely opposing forces, have achieved a certain extreme balance and symbiosis in this twin lotus, complementing each other and forming its unique origin."

A trace of reminiscence and emotion flickered in Xue Di's mind, "Initially, this balance sustained its growth. However, everything has its biases, and with the passage of time and cultivation, the influence of the environment gradually becomes apparent. It was born in the far north, where endless ice elements should have been dominant. Logically, the ice lotus should have gradually suppressed the fire lotus, absorbing more power, ultimately causing the entire twin lotus to lean completely towards the ultimate ice."

"When I traveled to the far north and stumbled upon it, I was overjoyed," said the Snow Emperor. "To me, this Ice and Fire Lotus is a supreme treasure. I didn't rush to pick it, but let it grow naturally. My original plan was to wait until I faced my tribulation and then devour its fully mature 'Ice Lotus Seed.' With the immense primordial power it contained, tempered by extreme ice, I could have a surge in power, break through to the next level, and safely overcome the tribulation."

At this point, Xue Di's thoughts revealed a hint of helplessness and confusion, "However, fate is fickle. For some reason, deep in this far north, in some unknown secret realm or stratum, lies an extremely ancient and powerful source of fire-attribute divine power. The roots of this Ice-Fire Lotus coincidentally touched that faint leak of divine power."

"It was this wisp of foreign, high-grade fire-attribute divine power that completely shattered the balance of the Ice-Fire Lotus. It was profoundly affected and infected, causing its attributes to drastically shift towards fire. Now, its core, the most precious 'Ice-Fire Lotus Seed,' is not the expected translucent, icy-blue 'Ice Lotus Seed,' but rather an incomparably blazing 'Fire Lotus Seed,' shimmering with crimson light!"

The Snow Empress's tone carried a hint of anger and regret, "I am the embodiment of wind and snow. If I were to forcibly devour this fire lotus seed, which is filled with the essence of violent fire, it would not only be of no benefit, but would also trigger a conflict between ice and fire within my body. The loss of power would be the least of my worries; damage to my foundation would be the real danger!"

"Left with no other choice, I had to take action. Before its power was fully stabilized due to the conflict of attributes, I captured it and brought it back to my ice castle. I sealed it in the deepest part of this castle and slowly nourished and harmonized it with my extreme icy power. I hope that with the help of the environment here and my power, I can gradually wear down the influence of the fire attribute divine power, allowing the ice attribute to regain the upper hand and reversing the fire lotus seed into an ice lotus seed."

She sighed, "Unfortunately, although that wisp of fire-attribute divine power is weak, its essence is extremely high and it is extremely stubborn. More than a thousand years have passed, and the effect is minimal. To this day, it is still a lotus with a fire-attribute bias and ice-fire intertwined. Fortunately, as long as you don't consume the Snow Soul Ice Condensation Pill, you are not an ice-attribute soul master. Whether it is fire-attribute or ice-attribute, it won't have much of an effect on you."

"Now that I have sacrificed myself for you, Youheng, this Twin Lotus of Ice and Fire is of no use to me," said the Snow Empress. "Youheng, I will give it to you. Your martial soul is not purely ice-attribute, and your cultivation technique is all-encompassing. Regardless of whether this twin lotus leans towards ice or fire, its immense primordial power accumulated over ten thousand years will be a great tonic for you. Absorbing its soul ring might bring you unexpected surprises, especially the special effect pill, which will most likely grant you abilities similar to those lotus seeds. At that time, it will surely solve your most pressing problem."

After listening to this long narration, Dai Youheng's eyes flashed with intense interest and anticipation.

A 100,000-year-old plant-type soul beast whose attributes have been altered by divine power? This was indeed far beyond his expectations, and far more challenging than hunting an ordinary 100,000-year-old soul beast, which also meant greater potential gains.

"Ice and Fire Lotus... Fire Lotus Seed..." he murmured to himself, a smile curving his lips. "Sounds interesting."

His gaze fell upon the deep passages of the Ice Fortress, as if he could already see the fiery miracle sealed within the extreme cold.

Little White listened from the side, seemingly understanding but not quite, but it grasped one thing: its mother had given a very powerful treasure, one that she herself couldn't use before, to this newly recognized Uncle Youheng.

It shook its big head and made a low purring sound, as if to indicate that it understood and would help.