Chapter 156: Qian Xunji, Who Wastes No Food
"Since you're the first to break the terms of the agreement, you can stay here forever!"
With a wave of the Snow Empress's hand, the fierce blizzard centered around her suddenly halted. One after another, countless ice spears appeared out of thin air, and as if on command, they all shot toward Qian Xunji in a seemingly endless barrage. Each of these ice spears was powerful enough to kill an ordinary Title Douluo outright.
"Angel Domain."
Behind Qian Xunji, the six-winged Angel Martial Spirit flared with golden light. A holy, radiant golden domain spread out, instantly vaporizing all the ice spears before they could strike.
"You dare play around with a domain in the Extreme North against me?"
A trace of contempt appeared in the Snow Empress's eyes. Compared to the Angel God successor of the past—who had wielded the Angelic Holy Sword—she paid Qian Xunji little heed.
Suddenly, an ice-blue light erupted. The Snow Empress unleashed Emperor's Cold Heaven. The previously subdued blizzard instantly magnified in intensity more than tenfold. All the snow and wind around the Snow Empress whipped into a vortex, revealing a thick, solid layer of ice beneath. As the ice surface cracked, countless particles of ice, nearly invisible to the naked eye, were swept up by razor-sharp gusts, surrounding Qian Xunji.
Qian Xunji's Angel Domain, which initially extended a thousand meters, was compressed to just a few dozen meters under the power of the Extreme North. His field of vision had turned into a vast expanse of white—snow pulled under the Snow Empress's domain. All at once, that originally disorganized mass of snow began rotating clockwise, coalescing into a colossal white tornado, hundreds of meters high, the size of a mountain. It pinned Qian Xunji in place.
"This move will finish you once and for all, repaying our soul beast brethren's blood debt to the Extreme North!"
Within that white tornado, the Snow Empress seemed entirely unaffected by the raging winds. Her simple white gown, covering her long legs, did not flutter in the slightest. Her beautiful eyes were fixed on the center of the storm, where Qian Xunji's golden light flickered. Her originally fair, delicate left hand grew even smoother, white as snow, as though sculpted from a piece of white jade.
She charged at Qian Xunji, and wherever her left hand passed, even the air froze. The wind and snow abruptly paused in an indescribable stillness. In that moment, it was as though time and space both ceased to flow, every snowflake suspended in midair, the raging wind instantly silenced.
Without a sound, the suspended snowflakes shattered simultaneously, their power vanishing in an instant. Only a skyful of ice fragments remained, obscuring the view once more. All the cold in those snowflakes seemed to have been sucked away, leaving the air suddenly much warmer. This was a moment of gentle warmth—great cold yet no snow.
If Qian Xunji were struck by this blow, without a god's intervention, he would be frozen into an ice sculpture, dead beyond saving. But was he really about to be hit? Blood-red light burst from his left arm, and the gigantic figure of an octopus appeared. It was as large as a Titan Giant Ape, and it looked solid, not just an illusory projection.
The giant octopus took a deep breath. "Pffft!" With that sound, it spat out a huge amount of ink. Viscous and infused with powerful soul force, the ink spread, shrouding the massive octopus, Qian Xunji, and the great six-winged angel behind him. Anyone caught in it would have their mobility greatly hindered. Moreover, though the Snow Empress's spiritual power was great enough to scan a thousand meters, this dense cloud of ink reduced her vision drastically, limiting her to about a hundred meters per second of progress.
A Ten-thousand-year Soul Beast's life-saving skill could not contain the Snow Empress for long. She passed through the inky cloud, freezing it solid behind her as she went. Not a drop stained her snow-white dress. Even the ink within her domain gradually turned to ice.
When she broke free of the ink, Qian Xunji was already nowhere to be seen. Nor did he attack her. Instead, he had flown rapidly skyward. His strength was already slightly inferior to the Snow Empress, and this battlefield further empowered her. He had no desire for a direct confrontation that would mean throwing his life away.
As an Angel, the sky was his true domain. Up in the air, he would face far less suppression from the Extreme North's icy environment. In a way, the Extreme North was not just the Snow Empress's boost—it was also her constraint.
"Fifth Soul Skill, Holy Sword!"
Qian Xunji gripped his Holy Sword, instantly unleashing countless golden sword beams that rained down. Only a few targeted the Snow Empress directly.
"So weak! This generation's Angel God successor not only lacks strength but also fights so poorly?"
The Snow Empress couldn't help but sneer, effortlessly batting aside those few feeble sword beams like she was swatting flies.
"Oh, really? Do you think every soul beast in the Extreme North can fight as well as you?"
"What did you say?"
The Snow Empress's pupils suddenly contracted. Qian Xunji's sword beams rained down indiscriminately—not just on her, but also on the mountain peaks of the Extreme North. More precisely, on the soul beasts living in those peaks.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
As the sword beams struck the mountains, one avalanche after another roared down, shaking the region. Soul beasts could no longer remain hidden in their dens, fleeing in all directions. Those mere centuries- or millennia-old beasts faced a real risk of perishing under such terrible avalanches. Most of them formed the core links in the Extreme North's food chain—utterly vital.
"In this moment, every last soul beast in the Extreme North is my target."
Qian Xunji opened his arms wide and spoke loudly.
"You dare!"
Rage nearly burst from the Snow Empress's eyes, her killing intent almost tangible. As sovereign of the Extreme North, protecting it and its soul beasts was her sworn duty.
He answered only by activating the hundred-thousand-year soul ring beneath his feet.
"Ninth Soul Skill: Angelic Annihilation Light!"
Once again, Qian Xunji positioned both hands before his chest in an odd posture, thumbs locked together, index fingers aligned, the other six fingers splayed out on either side.
Boom!
A colossal golden beam erupted from Qian Xunji's hands, staining the sky for a thousand meters around him. The shockwave tore the clouds apart, allowing warm sunlight to shine down on the Extreme North's land below. Unlike the Angelic Annihilation Lightning, this was a single-target, high-damage attack that pummeled its target with shockwaves.
The Snow Empress did not dodge. Hovering in midair, she raised both arms, resolutely facing Qian Xunji's ninth soul skill head-on.
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Qian Xunji's mouth. He had merely been bluffing earlier. As a pope who refused to waste resources, he would never slaughter soul beasts so recklessly, given how precious they were. From the start, the only true target of his attacks was the Snow Empress. If some soul beasts died from the tremors in the process, there wasn't much a thrifty man could do about that.
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