As soon as Zhao Sheng finished speaking, the invisible pressure in the palace instantly surged by three points, frost spread across the ground, and ice particles rained down from the ceiling, making the atmosphere extremely heavy and oppressive, weighing heavily on people's hearts and making it hard to breathe.
Click!
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The light surrounding Zhao Sheng flickered, and a thin layer of ice crystals quickly condensed on its surface, pale yet extremely cold.
Bang!
With a thought, Zhao Sheng's blue light shield suddenly expanded outwards, instantly shattering the ice crystal.
Just then, the Ice King stood up, and his immense pressure expanded, instantly enveloping the entire palace.
At the same time, a chilling voice suddenly rang out in the palace: "Little fellow, you should have the surname Wang!"
Zhao Sheng brushed the frost off his sleeves, and under the increasingly powerful pressure, calmly said, "My name was given to me by my parents, and I have no habit of randomly claiming ancestors."
"Little one, do you know that the blood of the incomparably noble Spirit Clan flows in your veins? Where are your parents now? One of them must be a descendant of the Spirit Clan. A descendant of the Spirit Clan must not be allowed to wander outside; they must be brought back to the Spirit Abyss!"
As the Ice King descended the palace steps, the chill in the palace intensified with each step he took.
The Ice King is currently at the peak of the Golden Core stage. Once he survives the Tribulation of Three Nines, he will be able to advance to the Nascent Soul stage.
However, he had stayed at this peak stage for too long, to the point that he could hardly conceal his aura, and his every move would unintentionally reveal traces of supernatural power and pressure.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Sheng's expression changed, and he said in a deep voice, "I lost both my parents when I was young."
"Hmph, I see. What a youthful spirit! Little fellow, you're not even sixty years old yet, and you've already reached the late Foundation Establishment stage. Even among the younger generation of the Lingyuan clan, you're considered outstanding." The Ice King seemed to have the ability to see through people's hearts. He didn't doubt the truth of Zhao Sheng's words, nor did he press further. Instead, he praised him.
At this moment, Zhao Sheng had already activated his absolute rationality talent. His mind was as clear as ice, his will was unbreakable, and his expression was extremely indifferent.
Facing an ancient monster who has lived for countless years, he must go all out and be extremely careful.
Zhao Sheng was so cautious, yet he was unaware of how extraordinary he was beneath his absolute rationality.
This strange state of extreme rationality, abandoning emotions and desires, is a perfect match for the Spirit Clan's unparalleled martial art, the "Eternal Ice Heart Technique."
Coincidentally, the Ice King is the only member of the Spirit Clan in hundreds of years to have mastered the "Eternal Ice Heart Technique".
Imagine how excited the Ice King must have been to see a perfect successor suddenly appear before him.
Although the Ice King had almost completely suppressed his excitement and other emotions, Zhao Sheng was undoubtedly a gift from heaven in his eyes.
Suddenly,
The Ice King suddenly shouted, "Little fellow, no matter what your surname is, you will follow me from now on! When we return to the Spirit Abyss, your spirit register will be recorded in my lineage, and your status will be that of a third-generation spirit. Also, you must stop practicing that evil technique that shortens your lifespan. I will teach you the supreme martial art of my clan, the 'Eternal Ice Heart Technique'."
The secret of Zhao Sheng's cultivation of the Blood Soul Scripture could not be hidden from the Ice King at all. With a sweep of his divine sense, he could easily see that Zhao Sheng's lifespan had been greatly reduced.
The Ice King's voice remained cold and devoid of emotion. But even a fool could tell that he was extremely happy at that moment, expressing his affection for Zhao Sheng without reservation.
Ice King's statement immediately shocked Nine-Foolish Immortal standing to the side.
As one of the strongest kings below the Nascent Soul stage in the Spirit Clan, the Ice King not only holds a very high position within the Spirit Clan, but is also the lord of the 30,000-mile-long sea frontier.
For the first time in hundreds of years, the Ice King has accepted a disciple, and the recipient is none other than a wild spirit race child who has been living away from home.
This is unbelievable! For a moment, Master Jiuchi was completely dumbfounded.
Zhao Sheng couldn't figure it out for a moment, but under absolute rationality, his thoughts changed more than ten times faster than normal, with all sorts of ideas flashing by in an instant.
He suddenly realized something was wrong.
In an instant, Zhao Sheng broke free of his absolute rationality, and his eyes once again revealed a variety of emotions and desires.
He was about to speak when suddenly the sound of rushing water echoed through the palace.
Between him and the Ice King, a seemingly real yet illusory phantom of a great river suddenly appeared in mid-air. This river was deep, dark, vast, and ancient, as if it had flowed from the unknown void through countless worlds into the present world.
As soon as this illusory celestial river appeared, the ice crystals and frost in the palace melted in large swaths, condensing into delicate streams that flowed upwards into the celestial river and vanished in an instant.
"King Tianhe!" Jiu Chi suddenly exclaimed.
"Haha! Ice King, you've done something underhanded this time! We finally found a new member of our clan. I won't just stand by and watch this little guy be won over by you. His lineage must be decided by the elders."
As they spoke, a lifelike water figure suddenly rose from the Milky Way, leaping out of the void and landing on the ground. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a tall man in black robes.
This man has striking eyebrows and bright eyes, is handsome and dashing, and has a gentle and approachable demeanor that makes people feel as if they are bathed in a spring breeze upon first meeting him.
"You've come. You shouldn't have come."
"This is the Spirit Palace, not your Glacier Ocean. I can go wherever I want," King Tianhe said lazily.
No sooner had he finished speaking than a shout of approval came from the doorway: "Well said!"
Zhao Sheng turned around and saw a nebula slowly drifting into the main hall. Then, surrounded by the nebula, a handsome young man wearing a dark blue brocade robe walked in.
"Nebula King!" Master Jiu Chi roared again.
At this moment, the palace was filled with three different kinds of overwhelming pressure, and in the blink of an eye, the three spirit race kings had already exchanged divine senses hundreds of times.
This invisible confrontation is secretive and treacherous; once you fall into a disadvantageous position, you are easily mentally and physically injured.
All three have been at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage for many years, and their strengths are roughly equal. After hundreds of years of competition, none of them can defeat the other.
Thus, the situation remained deadlocked for only a moment before the three of them immediately withdrew their momentum.
"Xingdou, why are you getting involved in such a trivial matter?" Tianhe King broke the deadlock first.
Star King smiled and said, "This is no small matter. This little fellow's bloodline is extraordinary, probably a rare case of ancestral atavism. The purity of his bloodline is comparable to those juniors in the inheritance sequence. How could I, the king, let go of such a gifted new spirit race?"
"Regardless of what you two think, I'm determined to have this little fellow. If you want to compete with me, then come with me to the ancestral altar!"
The ancestral altar is a major site for the Spirit Clan. Besides ancestor worship, it also serves as a battleground for life and death. Whenever there are irreconcilable feuds among clan members, they can be resolved at the ancestral altar, where the victors are determined and life and death are decided!
"Ice King, are you crazy? Just for this little guy? Is it worth it?" King Tianhe's expression changed slightly after hearing this, and he asked excitedly.
The Ice King, always taciturn, remained completely silent. This made the two Elven kings realize that their old comrade was serious.
"Ice King, I will not contend with you for now. However, the ownership of this person must be decided by the elders. When I see Ancestor Lingyuan, I will certainly propose a divine judgment. Farewell!"
Having said that, King Tianhe waved his long sleeves, and his entire body suddenly transformed into a stream of water, merging into the emerging illusory image of the Heavenly River.
Suddenly,
The illusory image of the Milky Way vanished, and the King of the Milky Way also disappeared without a trace.
Star King hesitated for a moment, then turned his gaze to Zhao Sheng, giving him a deep look, his eyes sparkling with starlight.
That one glance sent chills down Zhao Sheng's spine, instantly triggering his sense of danger.
He was shocked to discover that a thick aura of death was emanating from Nebula King.
Zhao Sheng was startled and alarmed; the Nebula King harbored deep murderous intent towards him.
Nebula King withdrew his gaze, calmly looking at the icy figure, and said in a deep voice, "Ice King, you'd better watch yourself!"
After saying that, Star King vanished from the palace in a flash.
Seeing this, Master Jiuchi cautiously said, "Ice King, if there is nothing else, I will take my leave."
"Um!"
Upon hearing this, Jiu Chi felt relieved, glanced enviously at Zhao Sheng, and quietly withdrew from the room.
Only the Ice King and Zhao Sheng remained in the palace.
At this moment, Zhao Sheng finally had a chance to speak, saying, "I am grateful for the Ice King's kindness, but my foundation is already well-established and nearing perfection. I'm afraid I cannot cultivate this 'Eternal Ice Heart Technique' again."
The Ice King said nonchalantly, "It's alright! You're still young, even if you ruin your skills, you can still start over."
Zhao Sheng paused upon hearing this, but still refused to cultivate the "Eternal Ice Heart Technique".
Even though the "Eternal Ice Heart Technique" is a divine-level technique that points directly to the Great Dao, if one cultivates it to the end, they will all become like the Ice King, neither human nor ghost, a living dead whose emotions and desires have been almost completely extinguished.
Then what's the point of living?
In some ways, the "Eternal Ice Heart Skill" is even more sinister than the "Blood Soul Scripture".
Seeing that he was backed into a corner, Zhao Sheng decided to go all out and firmly refused, saying, "The divine skill is good, but I don't want to become like the Ice King. I won't learn it!"
Click!
A thick layer of frost suddenly condensed on the palace ceiling, the floor, the ice chairs, the jade beds, and every corner. The icicles grew thicker and longer at a visible speed, and in the blink of an eye, they became ice pillars supporting the palace.
At that moment, it began to snow in the palace.
Snowflakes fluttered down, and as soon as they landed on Zhao Sheng, they turned into large patches of frost.
In the blink of an eye, the light shield around Zhao Sheng condensed into a blue ice wall. The ice wall emitted an extremely cold icy aura. Streams of invisible, extremely cold icy aura entered his body through his pores, skin, and seven orifices, freezing his blood and spiritual power.
Zhao Sheng was extremely shocked. With his Foundation Establishment Level 8 cultivation, he couldn't even stop the Ice King's single thought.
Even if the other party is at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage, the difference in strength between the two is still too great.
Fortunately, it only lasted for one breath.
As soon as the Ice King made a thought, all the extreme cold icy energy instantly escaped from his body, the ice wall dissipated, and Zhao Sheng "came back to life".
"Hmph, in the past hundred years, you are the first life to survive my hand since I became angry."
"Then thank you for showing mercy, Ice King!" Zhao Sheng exhaled a breath of cold air and said in a cold voice.
"Someone come here!"
At the Ice King's command, a group of slender, delicate women in white quickly walked in from outside the palace.
These women, dressed in thin gauze, showed no fear of the chilling atmosphere of the palace.
They are a unique race living in the glacial ocean, called the Ice Maidens, who are naturally unafraid of the cold.
"Your Majesty, what are your orders?"
"Take this little fellow away and settle him in. Place him near my Ice Palace. Treat him as a disciple of my own."
"Yes, sir!" The leading ice maiden bowed.
Then, the Ice Maiden walked up to him: "Young Master, please come with me!"
Zhao Sheng adopted the attitude of "since I'm here, I might as well make the best of it."
Since we couldn't get away for the time being, we decided to stay there temporarily and wait for an opportunity.
...
Ten days later, a small, exquisite, elegant, and understatedly luxurious palace was built.
Zhao Sheng sat cross-legged on the Ten Thousand Year Warm Jade Stone, holding a mid-grade water spirit stone in each hand. He was closing his eyes and circulating his energy. The vortex of spiritual power within his body spun rapidly, and strands of extremely pure water spirit energy flowed along the Yin meridian of the hands and lungs, continuously being sent into his dantian to be refined.
Within his dantian, a vortex of spiritual energy resembled a divine pillar reaching to the heavens, with twenty-three crystal-blue "water spheres" suspended in mid-air, slowly rotating with the vortex.
Below the whirlpool lies a vast, turbulent ocean, where one can often see a shower of spiritual rain being flung out from the whirlpool and falling into the ocean below.
After an unknown amount of time, a crystal-blue water sphere suddenly rose from the place where the center of the ocean connected with the whirlpool.
The water sphere broke free from the vortex's grasp, floated up, and joined the other twenty-three water spheres in the sky.
As soon as the twenty-four transforming spirit beads came together, a wondrous change in their orientation occurred, eventually forming a spherical space with twenty-four sides, and at the center of the space was a vortex of spiritual energy.
call!
Zhao Sheng opened his eyes and exhaled a long column of air, which condensed and did not disperse, appearing very solid.
With a wave of his hand, Zhao Sheng disrupted the column of energy, a hint of joy appearing on his face. He had just broken through, successfully advancing to the ninth level of the Foundation Establishment realm.
When he condenses thirty-six transforming spiritual energy beads, it will be the time for him to complete his Foundation Establishment and advance to the Golden Core stage.
He had just finished his practice, stood up, walked to the door, and pushed it open to leave.
"Young Master!"
As soon as I stepped outside, two soft voices came from the doorway.
Looking at the two frail ice maidens before him, Zhao Sheng dared not underestimate them.
Based solely on the occasional wisp of chilling aura emanating from the Ice Maiden, Zhao Sheng was certain that the two were comparable in strength to Foundation Establishment cultivators.
In the past few days, he has met at least twenty ice maidens like her.
This alone demonstrates the immense strength of the Ice King's subordinate forces and suggests the formidable power of the Spirit Race as a whole, explaining their dominance over the oceans.
Zhao Sheng instructed, "I'm going to Dragon Head Island. Go and prepare."
The Ice Maiden didn't ask any questions, and nodded respectfully in agreement.
A moment later, a camel-shaped tortoise with a shell diameter of over twenty feet slowly swam upwards from the seabed.
It carried a crystal palace the size of a basketball court on its back, with four blue-armored men guarding outside the palace.
Deep within the palace, on a thousand-year-old coral chair, Zhao Sheng leaned back, his expression thoughtful.
Fifteen minutes later, the camel-shaped tortoise slowly crawled onto Dragon Head Island and finally lay down on a beach, where it remained motionless.
However,
Zhao Sheng walked out of the palace, lightly floating down from the back of the tortoise, followed by the Ice Maiden and four blue-armored guards.
"Young Master, where are you going? This servant will go and inform General Crab here immediately." Ice Maiden stepped forward and asked weakly.
Zhao Sheng turned to look at her and said calmly, "Go to the refugee city!"
On the surface, the surrounding security is not tight at the moment, and he may have a chance to escape.
But in reality, Zhao Sheng couldn't escape Dragon Head Island at all. This was because the Ice King had deliberately left a divine imprint on him.
Once he escapes more than a hundred miles away, the Ice King will be alerted and chase after him in an instant.
Just then, a huge tiger owl suddenly descended from the sky.
Master Jiuchi laughed heartily, leaped off the back of Tiger Owl, and in a flash appeared beside Zhao Sheng.
"Brother Zhao, it's only been a few days, but you're even more radiant than before!"
"Thanks to your kindness, senior, I'm doing alright. But the thought of how hard life is for the people on Dragon Head Island keeps me up at night," Zhao Sheng said indifferently.