Time rewinds to not long ago.
On the vast icy plain, a streak of green light suddenly shot from afar. The green light moved extremely fast, carrying a terrifying chill, rushing wildly across the frozen land until it reached the palace, where it slowly descended and transformed into a delicate figure.
This delicate figure was the Ice Emperor, troubled and seeking comfort from the Snow Emperor.
It was well known that the Ice Emperor harbored unusual feelings toward the Snow Emperor beyond mere friendship. Of course, the Snow Emperor was fully aware of this, but she had always ignored and rejected the Ice Emperor's advances. No matter how much the Ice Emperor acted cute or coquettish, it never worked.
After entering the Snow Emperor's palace and seeing no sign of her on the throne, the Ice Emperor didn't think much and walked confidently toward a side chamber. But as she rounded a corner, she suddenly collided with a white figure coming toward her.
The Ice Emperor was distracted and, because of the place's unique nature, hadn't used her soul power to protect herself; her strength was almost fully retracted. Caught off guard, she stumbled backward two steps.
Rubbing her smooth forehead, the Ice Emperor looked up at Xu Jiujing and said, a little hurt:
"Xu Jiujing, you bumped me…"
No response came for a long moment.
The Ice Emperor slowly stood up, looking at the "Snow Emperor" before her who seemed somehow different. Something about her was off, making her look strange.
"Xu Jiujing…"
The Ice Emperor lightly sniffed the air and caught a trace of something unfamiliar, a distinctly different aura from the Snow Emperor's fundamentally unlike her…
In the next moment, the Ice Emperor's aura shifted abruptly. The sweet, girl-next-door suddenly became a fierce beast, terrifying beyond belief.
"Who are you? That is definitely not Xu Jiujing's aura."
The Ice Emperor looked up at the figure resembling the Snow Emperor, dark green soul power surging around her, and a chilling cold descended. A murderous intent filled the air, suffocating Xu Jiujing.
"Whoever you are, how dare you impersonate Xu Jiujing in the far north, disguising your aura so well you almost fooled me? Speak! Where is Xu Jiujing? If you don't tell me, I'll make you experience a death worse than freezing in this extreme cold…"
A murderous red gleam flashed in the Ice Emperor's eyes. Her right hand transformed into a silver-white scorpion claw, ready to strike Xu Jiujing down.
Clearly, she instinctively assumed Xu Jiujing was some imposter pretending to be the Snow Emperor, with ill intent. Worried for Xu Jiujing's safety, she acted without thinking.
Pressed by the Ice Emperor's aura, Xu Jiujing kept retreating. His Ice Heaven Snow Woman bloodline, resonating with the Snow Emperor's for a long time, was now active. The aura it released nearly masked his human presence completely, so the Ice Emperor didn't scrutinize him closely, or perhaps, relaxed since this was the Snow Emperor's domain and mistook him for her.
"Ice Emperor, this is a misunderstanding. As for where Xu Jiujing is, you can find out instantly with your spiritual power…"
Xu Jiujing's voice was low as he tried to explain, but just then a gentle blue wave swept in, dissipating the terrifying aura around the Ice Emperor. At the same time, the Snow Emperor's voice came.
"No, don't cause trouble."
The crisp sound of high heels echoed behind them. The Snow Emperor appeared gracefully, still carrying a sleepy laziness from just waking. She frowned slightly as she took in the scene, seeming to understand what had happened.
When the Ice Emperor saw the Snow Emperor, her eyes lit up and she hurriedly ran forward, about to jump into her arms.
The Snow Emperor sighed softly and put a hand on the Ice Emperor's forehead, stopping her.
Blocked by Snow Emperor's hand, the Ice Emperor's eyes flashed a visible hint of grievance. Then she whispered:
"Xu Jiujing, I was wrong…"
The Snow Emperor gently stroked the Ice Emperor's dark green hair, hesitated, then let go of her forehead, allowing the Ice Emperor to bury her head in her embrace with a triumphant look.
"You always act recklessly. This is the core of the far north — even Di Tian wouldn't say he could fully defeat me here. Are you worried I'd get into trouble here?"
Rare tenderness colored the Snow Emperor's voice. In her long, lonely life, the Ice Emperor was her only friend and confidante. Her feelings for No had even evolved from friendship into something almost familial, showing how important the Ice Emperor was to her.
Xu Jiujing watched the sisters' close bond with a helpless sigh.
Luckily the Snow Emperor arrived just in time, or else Xu Jiujing might have been beaten up by the Ice Emperor. This little potato looked cold and cute but was almost on par with a level 98 Super Douluo in strength. Her ice-controlling power was even stronger than the Snow Emperor's — arguably the strongest ice controller alive.
Sensing Xu Jiujing's gaze, the Ice Emperor slowly turned her head in the Snow Emperor's arms, looking back and forth between Xu Jiujing and the Snow Emperor. A trace of confusion flashed in her eyes, and she asked:
"Xu Jiujing, who is he? Why does he look so much like you, even with such a similar aura? I almost mistook him for you…"
The Snow Emperor gently pushed the Ice Emperor away and softly replied:
"He is one of my people, carrying the same origin Ice Heaven Snow Woman aura as I do. Naturally, his appearance resembles mine. Plus, this ice palace is full of my aura; mixed together, it's understandable you got confused."
Surprise flickered in the Ice Emperor's eyes. Forgetting her regret about being pushed away, she circled Xu Jiujing twice, inspecting him from head to toe, then murmured:
"He really looks alike. Except he's a bit taller than you, and his face is a little different… but otherwise he's almost identical to you. Only… his voice is strange — more like a man's, not as beautiful as yours…"
Xu Jiujing and the Snow Emperor exchanged a helpless glance. Clearing his throat, Xu Jiujing looked at the Ice Emperor and softly said:
"Is it possible that I'm actually a man?"
The Ice Emperor stiffened, turned her head awkwardly, then quickly shook it.
"No way. Ice Heaven Snow Woman can't be male — that's what Xu Jiujing said herself. If you really are a man, then Xu Jiujing must have been wrong…"
The Snow Emperor tapped the Ice Emperor's forehead and chuckled lightly, then said:
"Yes, Ice Heaven Snow Woman must be female. But No, have you considered that the Ice Heaven Snow Woman bloodline can appear in both males and females?"
The Ice Emperor tilted her head, pondering the Snow Emperor's words.
The bloodlines of soul beasts are nearly fixed, rarely showing two different bloodlines in one. When it happens, those beasts are extremely rare — like the Titan Snow Demon clan.
But the Ice Heaven Snow Woman is a pure, naturally born spirit of heaven and earth. In this age, only the Snow Emperor exists. If a new Ice Heaven Snow Woman were born in the far north, even she would notice.
One by one, the Ice Emperor ruled out possibilities. Finally, an absurd thought flashed through her mind. Stepping back in disbelief, she said:
"Possessing the Ice Heaven Snow Woman bloodline but being male… after excluding all else, there's only one explanation…"
"You… you're human…"
Xu Jiujing just nodded gently, slightly suppressing the Ice Heaven Snow Woman bloodline within him. His uniquely human aura gradually awakened.
The Ice Emperor stepped back again in disbelief. Her expression suddenly changed dramatically, and a colder, deadlier killing intent descended. She stared at Xu Jiujing and said word by word:
"How could a weak and lowly human possess such a noble Ice Heaven Snow Woman bloodline? No matter what dirty tricks you used to deceive Xu Jiujing and remain in the core circle, I absolutely won't let you continue your mischief. For the future peace of the far north, you'd better die…"
Without hesitation, the Ice Emperor struck. Though she'd noticed Xu Jiujing's soul power was only at Soul King level, she still cautiously unleashed her innate soul skill — the Ice Emperor's Claw. Its diamond-like brilliance shone dazzlingly amidst the surrounding ice crystals. But before the dangerous, magnificent claw moved half a meter forward, a jade hand firmly grasped the Ice Emperor's wrist.
The Snow Emperor rubbed her brow with one hand and held the Ice Emperor's wrist with the other, saying tiredly:
"No, you cannot touch him. He is my choice for the future. Your timing is perfect perhaps you should make your own choice too…"