Winter City, nestled at the very edge of the human world, standing like a final outpost frontier against the encroaching endless tundra—was a land of harsh winds, icy plains, and biting silence.
Beyond its northern border stretched nothing but snow-laden wilderness of tundra trees. After crossing this forest of tundra one will come across icy plains and if even this is crossed one truly reaches the Extreme North, the domain of the legendary Snow Empress and Ice Jade Scorpion King.
The people of this era couldn't even imagine that soul beasts might exceed 100,000 years of cultivation, let alone guess at the ancient terrors slumbering beyond the horizon.
Within this frozen frontier, three figures descended.
Two men and one little girl.
The girl was wrapped in a soft snow-white coat lined with silver fur. A thick scarf covered the lower half of her face, but her ethereal presence still radiated beneath it. Her hair, like strands of sunlight touched by frost, shimmered in platinum gold under the wan light of the northern sky. Her eyes, half-lidded from the chill, glowed faintly with a mysterious purple-gold hue—eyes that held too much wisdom for someone who looked no older than six.
This was Qian Renxue.
Beside her stood an imposing figure—Qian Daoliu, Grand Worship of Spirit Hall. His calm yet dignified presence made people naturally step aside, his silver-white robes fluttering like clouds, unaffected by the bitter cold. He was here not as a guardian, but as a bulwark—an anchor in case anything in the North tried to take his precious granddaughter from him.
The third was far more unusual.
A short man—no, a child at first glance, with rosy cheeks and a mop of snow-white hair—stretched and yawned exaggeratedly as he took in the cold air like it was spring breeze. Guang Ling Douluo, one of the few elders of Spirit Hall Qian Renxue addressed as "Fifth Grandpa," had a uniquely bizarre appearance for a Titled Douluo: youthful, cheery, and always claiming he was bored.
"I wanted to go on vacation! Not a freezing expedition to the end of the world!" he had whined earlier, flailing dramatically.
But Qian Renxue had her reasons.
Guang Ling Douluo's martial spirit, the Glowing Feather Bow, was an ice-type weapon spirit that harmonized with cold environments. His power could very well be enhanced in these frigid lands, and should any unexpected soul beast attack or power surge occur… an extra powerhouse on her side was more than welcome. And she also had enough of his whining about going on an adventure.
They didn't linger at the city gates. After a brief discussion, the group rented a modest inn in the city center—cozy enough to warm their bones before plunging into the wilderness.
As they sipped on hot soup and warmed themselves beside the fireplace, Qian Renxue listened carefully to the ambient conversation of other guests.
This place, though remote, was lively—hunters, mercenaries, and soul masters gathered here for one purpose: to hunt soul beasts. Winter City, much like the outskirts of Star Dou Forest, served as a checkpoint—a gathering ground for those targeting ice-type soul beasts.
"...Saw a snow fox yesterday. Almost a thousand years old."
"Hah, that's nothing. We're tracking a frost fang tiger near the glaciers. It's supposed to be 3,000 years old!"
" The city is very lively" exclaimed Qian Renxue.
Guan Ling Douluo finished his soup and said " Of course this Winter city is a place where many soul hunting teams thrives. As this place is an ideal place to hunt ice attribute soul beasts."
After resting for a full day in Winter City, the trio departed into the frozen heart of the North. Their journey took them deeper and deeper into a land forgotten by the sun, where icy winds howled like wolves and the cold could chill the soul. The vast expanse of white snow stretched endlessly in all directions. There were no roads, no signs of life, only white, white, and more white.
For fifteen days they pushed forward, crossing frozen valleys, sleeping in magical tents protected by barrier arrays, and constantly scanning the environment.
Near the border of the Extreme North, the found the local living creatures.
A cluster of 10,000 years snow soul beasts—Snow Fur Wolves and Frostback Lizards—had sensed the presence of humans in their territory. Their howls echoed through the hills as they charged forward.
Guang Ling Douluo stood ahead of the group, a bored look on his childish face as his small hand extended outward.
"Alright, alright. Let this old man stretch a bit."
His martial spirit—the Glowing Feather Bow—materialized in his hand with a ripple of icy blue light. The elegant bow curved like the horns of a snow deer, humming with the essence of the cold. He nocked a glowing arrow of condensed spirit power and pulled back the string.
"Third soul skill: high explosive penetration!"
Fwip!
The arrow exploded midair into a cascade of glowing feathers, each one slicing through the incoming beasts like blades of frozen light. Blood spurted in the snow, and the wolves yelped in pain before falling limp. A Frostback Lizard tried to flank him from the side, but Guang Ling vanished with a shimmer and reappeared behind it, tapping it on the back.
"Boom."
An instant detonation of compressed soul energy sent the beast flying twenty meters into a snowdrift.
"Hmph. Still no challenge," he muttered, pouting slightly.
On the side, Qian Renxue wasn't paying attention. She knelt on the ground, her delicate gloved fingers carefully embedding the final bone spike into the snow to complete the formation.
A necro array—a soul resonance detection formation, crafted with bones, metal, and spiritual ink—began to hum softly. Electrolux's voice echoed in her mind.
"This is the tenth site… the ice fissures here resemble a collapse. But no sign yet."
Qian Renxue frowned. "We've tried ten locations. Ten."
She gritted her teeth slightly. "If I don't find it here… do I really have to enter the Extreme North?"
The thought made her stomach twist.
The Snow Empress, a terrifying existence with a cultivation no less than 690,000 years, resided there. She was the absolute queen of the North. Even her grandfather, Qian Daoliu, may not defeat her in a direct confrontation.
"Going beyond the border might provoke her," she whispered. "And that… is not a storm we want to wake."
Behind her, Qian Daoliu stood like a mountain, undisturbed.
To him, this journey was far from a waste. Finding a specific soul beast often took weeks, even months. He had lived through centuries—he knew patience. Besides, he was curious about the soul beast mentioned in the oracle for Qian Renxue . The soul ring he had chosen years ago for Renxue—a 400-year-old pureblood Golden Eagle, seemed so underwhelming now compared to the majesty of the 12-winged angel martial soul.
Suddenly—
Buzz!
The necro array pulsed.
The embedded bones shivered. The compass needle at the center spun wildly, then jerked downward—pointing below the ice shelf beneath them.
Renxue's eyes widened.
A soft smile spread across her lips, barely contained by the scarf she wore.
"…I've found you," she whispered.
She turned toward the others, her eyes bright with anticipation.
"Below us… he's here."