Chapter 90: The Path to Deification, Soul Contract (4K)

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"Despicable and shameless humans! Perish before my might!"

The woman's shrill scream accompanied the shattering of the Ninth-Level Spirit Artisan's Deity Sealing Platform. Ultimate Snow instantly erupted in the Snow Mountain Lotus Pool, the bone-chilling cold sweeping over Ling Bai's body.

Throughout his journey, Ling Bai had used Ultimate Death to kill the Ice Element, barely suffering from the extreme cold of Ultimate North. Now, however, he could actually feel the cold, his body and soul seemingly frozen, and the soul power flowing within him becoming sluggish.

The white vapor burst out of the Deity Sealing Platform and immediately transformed from an embryo into the Snow Empress's original form, her skin as fair as snow, embodying the essence of the north, like a winter plum blossom blooming in the frigid Ultima Thule.

Feather-like snowflakes drifted down, and the Snow Dance Radiant Sun descended. Ling Bai stood on the head of the Death Prison Bone Dragon, his expression as calm as water, showing no emotional波动 in the face of the ultimate ruler of the north, the Snow Empress. However, the crimson soul fire in the eyes of the Death Prison Bone Dragon burned more fiercely, the blood-red light spots standing out in the snowy world.

"Snow Empress, your posturing is futile. Forcibly terminating your reformation has inevitably injured your essence. How much soul power do you have left in your body now?"

Ling Bai's clear voice spread in all directions, and in the swirling snow, came the Snow Empress's furious roar.

"The soul power I have left is enough to slay you!"

The Snow Empress had ruled the Ultimate North for nearly 700,000 years, and all beasts bowed to her. When had she ever been provoked by a human? The Snow Dance Radiant Sun began to contract, the speed of the falling snow tripling, the edges sharp like blades, swirling towards Ling Bai. Even a slight graze from the snowflakes would be enough to strip the flesh from his bones, let alone the Death Prison Bone Dragon, which would lose a layer of bone powder!

The Death Prison Bone Dragon raised its head and let out a dragon's roar that shook the heavens. The intense Ultimate Death, combined with the Death Prison Spider Emperor's innate Realm of Death, forcibly carved out a blood-red territory within the Snow Empress's innate realm.

The Snow Empress felt an immense humiliation. In her white jade-like palm, a sky-blue long sword condensed. The Snow Empress's three supreme techniques: Imperial Sword Ice Supreme!

The ice supreme unleashed a hundred-meter-long sword beam, and the Death Prison Bone Dragon's blood-red dragon claws, fused with the Death Prison Scythe, condensed the mark of the Nether Emperor's Extreme Punishment. The two extreme attributes collided fiercely.

The earth was torn open by a crack of sky-blue and blood-red, as if a single sword had split the perennial ice of the Ultimate North in two. From his position atop the Death Prison Bone Dragon, Ling Bai could clearly see the cross-section of the earth. At this moment, the Snow Empress's figure, hidden within the Snow Dance Radiant Sun, suddenly appeared above the Death Prison Bone Dragon, her fair hand glowing with a brilliant light!

The Imperial Palm, Great Cold Without Snow!

"Snow Empress, think carefully. If you strike with this palm, the conflict between the Ultimate North and me will be to the death."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Snow Empress actually paused. She silently gazed into his pitch-black eyes, seeing a sea of corpses and a surging wave of killing intent.

The nearby air pressure seemed to drop, and the Snow Empress knew it wasn't an illusion. It was a real phenomenon, as if a monster far more terrifying than the Death Prison Bone Dragon was quietly watching her, waiting for the Great Cold Without Snow to land, and then it would unleash a疯狂的复仇,不惜一切代价地报复她和极北.

"人类有句老话叫再一再二不再三,我卖你一个面子,希望你不要把我的面子踩在脚下当成鞋垫子."

Great Cold Without Snow's light had not yet faded, and the Snow Empress snorted coldly, saying, "Do you think the Empress will be threatened by a human?"

"You should understand that your essence is severely injured, and your soul power is in chaos. Even with the advantage of the Ultimate North, you still cannot defeat the Death Prison Bone Dragon, who shares the same extreme attribute."

Ling Bai exuded a deathly aura of disaster and misfortune. He did not panic or flee but boldly walked down the skull of the Death Prison Bone Dragon to stand just one meter away from the Snow Empress. The two of them stared at each other, one smiling and the other coldly angry.

"If it weren't for me, this despicable and shameless human, you would have been sold to the human world in your most vulnerable embryonic form, becoming a soul ring or soul bone for some soul master. Theoretically, I am your savior, am I not?"

Ling Bai's smile was colder than the raging snow and wind of the Ultimate North. "To forget kindness and repay it with enmity, your race will pay the price in blood."

The Snow Empress fell silent. A gentleman judges by actions, not intentions. Ling Bai's tone was forceful, but he had indeed saved her.

"Why don't you just let it out and strike with the Great Cold Without Snow?" Ling Bai counted on his fingers, calculating for the Snow Empress, "The Ice Empress will face her fourth Heavenly Tribulation within a hundred years, with almost zero chance of survival.

Your 700,000-year Heavenly Tribulation should have come earlier than the Ice Empress's, otherwise, you wouldn't have absorbed the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Heavenly Snow Lotus and failed to re-form as a human, suffering a severe injury to your essence. To be honest, you don't even have the Ice Empress's chance; the word 'death' is already shining brightly on your forehead.

I will return to the Douluo Continent and devote myself to cultivation for a hundred years. By the time you and the Ice Empress die in the Heavenly Tribulation, do you think the Titan Snow Demon King and the Ice Bear King can stop me?

You can rest assured, I guarantee that the Ultimate North will cease to exist, and I will shake each soul egg until the yolk is scattered."

As he spoke, the Snow Empress's slender figure trembled for a moment, and the light of the Great Cold Without Snow that had been building up vanished. Instead, she summoned her soul power and threw the remaining seven Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Heavenly Snow Lotus from the lotus pool to Ling Bai. Calming down, she sighed, 

"You may leave. I will act as if you never came to the Ultimate North."

The Snow Empress conceded defeat. In her current poor state, the Great Cold Without Snow could not kill Ling Bai and the Death Prison Bone Dragon, and Ling Bai's threat hit the mark.

After a hundred years, when the Ice and Snow Empresses fall, Ling Bai will break through to the 99th level of soul power, and the ultimate Douluo of Ultimate Death will be terrifying beyond words. The Ice Bear King and the Titan Snow Demon King would certainly be whipped and beaten, and a rash move could bring a catastrophic disaster to the Ultimate North, which is not what the ruler of the north wants to see.

"Plop."

The snow lotuses fell back into the Snow Mountain Lotus Pool, splashing up several water droplets. The Snow Empress's sky-blue eyes showed a hint of confusion as she said, 

"This is the ice snow lotus I spent tens of thousands of years cultivating, containing the ultimate ice attribute. There is no more precious natural treasure in the entire Ultimate North. Consider it a small token of my gratitude."

She thought Ling Bai did not recognize its value and was disdainful of the ice snow lotuses.

"The snow lotuses are rare, but thinking of the one who cultivated them being gone, holding them seems meaningless."

Ling Bai slowly revealed his true intentions. To plot against a soul beast emperor like the Snow Empress, one must use both threats and kindness, gradually building a relationship, which is the best strategy.

Hearing this, the Snow Empress actually shook her head and smiled, saying, "You are an interesting human. My death would be a great blessing for humans, eliminating a formidable enemy."

"Yes, so you should consider your afterlife. What will happen to the Ice Empress when you die?

With the successive falls of the Ice and Snow Empresses, what will happen to the Ultimate North?

As human soul conductors rapidly develop, soul masters will eventually invade the Ultimate North with their soul conductors. The Titan Snow Demon King and the Ice Bear King cannot hold out, and they will likely end up as test subjects for the Deity Sealing Platform and other soul conductors, just like you almost did.

Snow Empress, you don't want the Ice Empress and the Ultimate North to meet this fate, do you?"

Mentioning the Deity Sealing Platform, the Snow Empress felt a tinge of melancholy. The ninth-level soul conductor, which even prevented her from self-destructing, left a deep impression on her. She and Ling Bai could be considered acquaintances after their initial confrontation, and she asked tentatively, "Can you tell me about the current development of human soul conductors?"

"Rapidly advancing. If you are gone, the Ultimate North will surely fall within ten thousand years."

"Ten thousand years..."

Ten thousand years seems long, but for soul beasts, it is but a blink of an eye.

Ling Bai said solemnly, "The path of reformation is now cut off. Snow Empress, have you considered another path?"

"What do you suggest?" the Snow Empress asked curiously.

"The Ultimate North is connected to the sea. Have you heard of the King of Mighty White Sharks, one of the sea's rulers?"

The Snow Empress's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly. "A Deity-protected holy beast, accompanying two generations of Sea Gods in their growth."

"Ten thousand years ago, when the heavens changed and the Deity emerged, the mighty white sharks became the sea's holy beasts, and two Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest gained immortality alongside the Deity."

Pausing here, Ling Bai continued in a deeper, more seductive voice, "Snow Empress, the life of a deity is infinite, but the Divine Realm has placed a Bloodline Restriction on soul beasts, forever preventing them from becoming deities! Even the ten great beasts, the ice and snow maiden of the Ultimate North, and the 100,000-Year Beast God Di Tian, are destined to die in the Heavenly Tribulation!

I know you want to change, to re-form as a human and change your race to fight for a sliver of hope for yourself and the soul beasts of the Ultimate North. Unfortunately, you failed.

But Snow Empress, you have met me. This is your fortune and mine as well. Together, we can open the path to deification!"

Behind him, the snow clouds spread like a tide across the sky. Ling Bai stood atop the Death Prison Bone Dragon, immovable in the blizzard, like a towering mountain.

At this moment, the Snow Empress's beautiful face showed little expression, cold as ice, making one feel she would spit out a 'get lost' at any moment. But the breathtaking, ethereal beauty could not be concealed. She said slowly, "The path to deification, you speak of it so lightly. I do not deny that soul beasts cannot become deities, but how many deities have humans produced throughout history? If you want to cooperate with me, show some sincerity."

Ling Bai suddenly smiled, for the Snow Empress was moved. Two beams of light rose behind him, a golden six-winged angel and a purple-black Death Prison Spider Emperor. Though his soul power was a mere drop in the ocean compared to the Snow Empress's, the suppression from the life essence made the Snow Empress exclaim involuntarily, "Divine... Might!"

"You know your stuff."

Ling Bai dissipated the light, and the Snow Empress subconsciously raised her hand, as if trying to grasp the fleeting moment of divinity. She was completely moved and asked, "Are you a deity's successor? What deity? How can we cooperate?"

The Snow Empress, nearing the end of her life, was concerned about the Ice Empress and the Ultimate North she had guarded for a lifetime. Ling Bai's offer of hope was too bright, and it was no wonder he stood here with such confidence. He had found her weak point!

"Cooperation is based on trust. I don't intend to hide anything from you to avoid future conflicts," Ling Bai said. "My Divine Majesty includes the Angel Deity and the Raksha God. The Angel Deity's position shattered ten thousand years ago, and the Divine Realm is unlikely to have any deity willing to pass on their position to the direct lineage of another deity. The Raksha God's position still exists, but the previous Raksha God died an unnatural death, and I am not sure where the position is.

Rebuilding the Angel Deity's position and finding the Raksha God's position may not be easy, but at least there is a direction and a hope.

Follow me and become a unique... rare Intelligent Soul Ring in the history of the Douluo Continent. Provide soul skills while preserving your soul, and together, we will walk the path to deification. If we lose, consider me your Heavenly Tribulation. If we win, the Ultimate North will be a land of peace, and you can forever protect the land you love."

The Snow Empress fell into deep thought, her teeth lightly biting her red lips. There is no free lunch or great bargain in the world. Before reaping the rewards, one must make sacrifices. Her 700,000-year Heavenly Tribulation would descend in ten years, and that time was not enough to restore her essence. Becoming an Intelligent Soul Ring and cooperating with this human, who possesses Divine Majesty, seemed like an excellent method.

"We can cooperate, and I can become an Intelligent Soul Ring."

The Snow Empress made her decision decisively, her sky-blue eyes shining brightly, and she said firmly, "On the condition that you must sign a Soul Contract with me.

First, you must guarantee that everything you said is true.

Second, you must not harm any soul beast in the Ultimate North without cause.

Third, if we fail to become deities together, I will not blame you; it will be our destiny. But I ask you to guard the Ultimate North for another hundred years, and if you can help the Ice Empress through her 400,000-year Heavenly Tribulation, it would be much appreciated.

By the Ice Deity, the Snow Empress swears by the name of ice that if these conditions are accepted, we will be comrades. If I violate them, may all that belongs to ice be stripped away by the Ice Deity."

The soul beasts of the Ultimate North are the children of the Ice Deity. The Snow Empress made the heaviest oath a soul beast could make. As the ruler of the Ultimate North, her life was secondary; she wanted to secure more protection for the Ultimate North.

Ling Bai chuckled, removing the disguise of his charming appearance, revealing his true face with golden hair and golden eyes. The Snow Empress's eyes widened. Seriously, do humans have so many tricks up their sleeve that they change their faces when they go out?

"My name is Ling Bai. Since we will share life and death, it is only right to show my true face."

The aurora seemed to coat Ling Bai's golden eyes with the color of the heavens. When their gazes met, the Snow Empress saw the rising golden sun in his clear eyes.

The image of the sun rising in the east.

Great talent.

For a moment, the Snow Empress suddenly felt, without any reason, that Ling Bai was destined to become a deity.

Ling Bai drew a gray scroll in the air, inscribing the three conditions of the Snow Empress.

Necromancy, Soul Contract.

The Snow Empress nodded lightly after reading it, indicating no issues. Subsequently, the two left their mental imprints on the Soul Contract and swore together, "Ling Bai (Snow Empress) wishes to sign a Soul Contract with Snow Empress (Ling Bai).

Snow Empress will become an Intelligent Soul Ring, assisting Ling Bai on the path to deification.

Ling Bai will not betray Snow Empress and will not harm the people of the Ultimate North. If we fail, he will guard the Ultimate North for a hundred years, and if he has the strength, he will help the Ice Empress through her Heavenly Tribulation.

I will swear solemnly, willing to give up my life. If I betray, may the heavens, the earth, and the spirits punish me severely!"

(End of Chapter)