Chapter 17: The Art of Subjugation
"It's really the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow!"
The Ice and Snow Empresses exclaimed in unison, their blue and green eyes locked tightly onto the small ice spike in Di Tian's hand. Their gazes were burning with desire.
Even though Di Tian had completely sealed the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow with spatial force, preventing even the slightest aura from leaking, Snow Empress and Ice Empress still recognized it instantly.
There was no helping it—the allure of the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow to ice-type soul beasts was simply too overwhelming!
If anything in the world could truly resolve their current predicament, it would undoubtedly be this.
How could they not know of it?
Of course they did! The problem was—it was nowhere to be found!
Ice Empress had once been lucky enough to find the Profound Ice Cave, but by then, the cave had already been drained dry by Tianmeng Ice Silkworm. That guy ended up benefiting the entire Star Dou group of fierce beasts, having all his soul power absorbed save for his origin.
Now that they saw the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow again, how could the Ice and Snow Empresses not be thrilled?
At this moment, they fully believed what Lin Yun had said earlier.
When he claimed he could save them—it wasn't an empty promise!
He was the real deal!
Watching the fiery hunger in their eyes, Lin Yun smiled faintly.
Heh. You really think I can't control you two?
The Profound Ice Cave beneath Earth Dragon Gate had yielded forty-five stalks of Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow—all of which Di Tian had packed and brought back. Aside from the Ice Extreme Divine Crystal, almost nothing was left behind.
Originally, Lin Yun had wanted Di Tian to take the Ice Extreme Divine Crystal too, but without extreme ice-type soul power, mining it would be extremely troublesome. Since he didn't need it right now anyway, he just left it there.
He could always come back for it later. The more urgent priority was the Profound Ice Marrow.
Forty-five stalks—more than enough to drive the Ice and Snow Empresses mad!
"Respected One! This…" Snow Empress changed her tone immediately. Her beautiful eyes shimmered with longing as she looked at Lin Yun.
The Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow was far more useful than a hundred-thousand-year Snow Lotus. At most, a Snow Lotus could help her seal her origin and take human form. But the Profound Ice Marrow could repair her soul core—and even help her advance toward a second soul core!
"Don't worry. Now that you're under my command, I won't treat you unfairly." Lin Yun smiled and looked at Snow Empress with a deep gaze. "But this king always rewards and punishes clearly. You just joined my camp and haven't made any contributions yet. You understand that, right?"
"I understand," Snow Empress nodded reluctantly, eyes lingering longingly on the Profound Ice Marrow in Di Tian's hand.
"However…" Lin Yun's tone shifted, and Snow Empress's heart tensed again.
"What is it? Please enlighten us, Respected One," she asked nervously.
Ice Empress had the same anxious look.
After all, this concerned their next tribulation—it was a matter of life and death!
"Heh, regardless, you're now my subordinates. And with heavenly tribulation looming over you both at any moment, that won't do," Lin Yun said with a chuckle.
He wasn't the kind of heartless boss who only made empty promises. How could you expect a horse to run if you don't feed it?
"So I've decided to give you both the Profound Ice Marrow first. Get through your tribulations. The contributions you owe can be repaid later."
"Thank you, Respected One!" The Ice and Snow Empresses were overjoyed. They bowed deeply and respectfully to Lin Yun.
Lin Yun nodded, tilted his chin toward Di Tian, and instructed, "Di Tian, give it to them. Ten stalks for Snow Empress, five for Ice Empress."
Ice Empress lacked the confidence to face her tribulation because she had damaged her origin during the thirty-thousand-year tribulation, and was no longer able to withstand the fortieth-thousand-year one.
Snow Empress, however, was in an even more serious condition.
She was not only far stronger than Ice Empress, but her internal injuries were also more severe. After all, she had failed to condense her second soul core—not only damaging her origin, but also leaving irreparable cracks in her first soul core. She needed far more Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow than Ice Empress.
However, Snow Empress also possessed something Ice Empress didn't—a hundred-thousand-year Snow Lotus. With that in hand, ten stalks of Profound Ice Marrow should be enough for her.
Maybe...
"Respected One… ten stalks might not be enough," Snow Empress said awkwardly.
Since it concerned her life and the tribulation ahead, Snow Empress didn't let pride stop her. She straightforwardly stated her dilemma.
"Five stalks may be enough for Bing'er, but for me, ten is still lacking. I need to restore my origin, heal my injuries, and condense a second soul core. Even with the Snow Lotus as support, ten stalks still won't be sufficient," Snow Empress explained sincerely.
"I see. Then how many do you think you'll need?" Lin Yun simply threw the question back to her.
How much do you want? Just say it yourself.
Snow Empress raised a hand, hesitated briefly, then curled one finger.
"Di Tian, give her five more," Lin Yun said with a wave of his hand, without the slightest hesitation.
"Yes, Respected One." Di Tian nodded, handing over a total of twenty stalks of Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow—fifteen to Snow Empress, five to Ice Empress.
These treasures had been obtained by the Respected One. Di Tian was merely safeguarding them temporarily. However Lin Yun chose to distribute them, Di Tian had no objections.
Receiving the Profound Ice Marrow, Snow Empress cast a grateful glance at Lin Yun. Together with Ice Empress, she bowed deeply.
"Thank you, Respected One, for your generous reward!"
With the treasure in hand, even the usual pride on Ice Empress's face faded. She stopped acting haughty and, like Snow Empress, fully pledged her loyalty to Lin Yun.
One stick, one date.
The Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow couldn't be given to them too easily. They had to understand that if they wanted benefits from Lin Yun, they'd need to offer something in return. And Lin Yun wasn't stingy—if he had good things, he would reward those who served him well.
By giving them a stern preface and then breaking the rules to reward them anyway, Lin Yun subtly showed concern for his subordinates. This created a sense of gratitude in the two who had initially felt a gap between expectations and reality.
That gratitude would, over time, transform into loyalty toward Lin Yun.
In the world of soul beasts, there was no such thing as psychological tactics. Everything was decided by strength—whoever had the power, had the say.
But how could they have imagined a superior like Lin Yun—already strong and highly ranked—would even employ such tactics to win their hearts?
I share a bond with Respected One, and Respected One's playing mind games with me!
But no doubt, Lin Yun's methods had worked. His move paid off. At the very least, the Ice and Snow Empresses' attitude toward him was now approaching that of Di Tian—Douluo's most loyal follower.
"Did I forget something?" Lin Yun murmured, falling into thought.
(End of chapter)
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