Chapter 18

While this conversation was undergoing, Yuhao noticing that he wasn't in danger any longer, was currently circulating his spiritual energy to try and recover from the damage the impact of hitting the tree had done to his body.

"I am surprised you didn't suffer more damage from that hit, little Yuhao. She is almost 700,000 years in age and arguably the one of the most, if not the most, powerful spirit beast on the Douluo planet, being able to fight on par with the Golden Eyed Black Dragon up here in the Extreme North." Amra commented as he assessed his host's body. "You have begun the healing process now and I can keep it going on your behalf. Why don't you head on out of here. And just so you know, I used a considerable amount of energy protecting you from that attack so I will be resting for a few days to recover."

Yuhao double-checked his body's situation before agreeing with Amra and exiting his mindscape.

As he was exiting, he overhead the Ice Empress shouting, "You can��t consume it yet Snow Empress. People will capture you!"

This greatly shocked not only the Snow Empress herself, but also Daydream and Yuhao who couldn't believe she would give up that secret that she had been told earlier in confidence.

Daydream admonished her, "How could you say that Ice Empress. That was not for you to say!"

The Snow Empress shocked and now equally confused questioned, "What do you mean people will capture me? How do you two know that that will happen?"

The Ice Empress went to reply again however Yuhao quickly exerted his authority as the host of her energies and spiritual body to put a silence to her before she could expose anything else. The scorpion quickly noticed she couldn't speak and looked back at her host sulkily and nervously.

Seeing this look, he said "You know that you were not supposed to say it. I can't trust you to keep my secrets at the moment so you can just stay silent."

The Ice Empress looked at him as if she was going to attempt to argue back but instead just looked towards the floor sadly.

"So have all your questions been answered?" Yuhao asked the Snow Empress.

The Snow Empress looked at him seriously, before sighing, "Yes they have. I am sorry for attacking you, but I thought you had somehow killed my closest friend."

"It is alright. There was no permanent damage thanks to my spirit. So what are you going to do now?" He inquired.

"I will still consume the herb as planned. I will take Ice Empress' warning and consume it somewhere very safe, away from any possibility of being found by either spirit beasts or humans. I wish you luck Yuhao." The Snow Empress replied before she turned into snow and disappeared from his sight.

Yuhao released his hold over the Ice Empress' energy allowing her to speak once again. Instead of staying out and talking she straight away returned to his mindscape, closely followed by Daydream.

Sensing the scorpion's downcast expression, he spoke softly to her, "You have to understand where I am coming from, Ice Empress. If we tell anyone we come across of my past and our respective futures, eventually it will spread, and our enemies will hunt us down."

"I know Yuhao, I know. It is just that I couldn't in good conscience let her follow through with her plan, knowing that she will be captured and sealed."

Yuhao nodded sympathetically, "I understand how you feel. But sadly, sometimes to protect ourselves, we need to keep others ignorant. In my past life, this was true, and this is even more so true in this world. While it may seem bad and distasteful, we know that she will turn out fine eventually. By the time the auction comes along, I will easily be able to buy her and 'save' her then. Oh well, who knows what will happen now but no point worrying on it. Let us go find this second spirit ring for my steel space dragon."

Yuhao packed up his things that had been scattered around the area from the Snow Empress' attack and set out once again into the Icebound Forest. He only had two and a half weeks left until he needed to make the journey back to Shrek Academy and even though his luck in the past has been extremely good, who knows what will happen next.

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As Yuhao was making his way into the Icebound Forest, several kilometres away the Snow Empress could be seen reforming from the snow.

The snow spirit pulled out the Life Goddess' Spirit Orchid from her spiritual sea and looked at it with a determined and steely gaze. However, an image of the Ice Jade Empress appeared in the back of her mind, spurning her to look back in the direction of where she and her host were. Her gaze quickly changed, softening to one of hesitancy and confusion.

As she stared into the distance, the Snow Empress audibly sighed before returning the herb, which was previously the only viable route available to godhood and a longer life, to her spiritual sea. The Snow Empress shook her head softly before once again disappearing into snow, only this time, moving back the way she came, back into the Icebound Forest and in the direction of Yuhao and her soul-sister.