Chapter 14: Memories of the Past – The Ice Scorpion Clan Confrontation, Part 2
I was brimming with excitement as I shot forward, rushing straight toward the heart of the spiritual fluctuations.
The closer I drew, the clearer it became—the presence of several majestic, overwhelming auras.
A spirit beast of over a hundred thousand years was locked in combat with a formidable Spirit Master, its aura standing an entire level above the Spirit Master I had faced before my breakthrough.
Since I knew well who ruled this domain, it could only be the Ice Scorpion Empress—and her opponent, a titled Battle Spirit Master whose aura was only half as strong as it should have been.
In another direction, I sensed a human aura in retreat, with my mother in close pursuit.
The Ice Scorpion Empress required no aid; she was already suppressing her foe with absolute mastery, making his defeat nothing more than a matter of time.
But what truly seized my attention… was that third aura. The aura of another Spirit Master.
Though not on the level of the Empress or her opponent, his aura was nearly twice as strong as the Spirit Master I had fought before my breakthrough. Without a doubt, his rank had already stepped into the nineties!
When I finally arrived at the battlefield, I saw the Ice Scorpion Empress utterly overwhelming her opponent with ease that bordered on cruelty.
Just as I had expected, her foe was a titled Battle Spirit Master wielding the Dragon-Headed Turtle Spirit, his spirit pearl configuration refined to perfection.
Yet despite unleashing his full spirit body, his condition was utterly wretched.
And then… my gaze fell upon the other Spirit Master. He bore the Ice Sword Spirit, and around him, countless glacial scorpions formed a barrier, sealing him in.
In that instant, I didn't hesitate—I surged forward at full speed.
"Don't touch him. I'll deal with him myself!"
I landed several dozen meters before the Spirit Master and let out a fierce roar. At that very moment, my will spread out, delivering a sharp mental command to the Ice Scorpions encircling him.
After all, among the spirit beasts gathered here, only a scarce few had lived beyond ten thousand years. The rest were merely a thousand years old, or even less. Without my intervention, things would never have unfolded this way.
As my feet touched the ground, my gaze locked onto my future opponent. A Spirit Master at the ninetieth rank, armed with a complete set of spirit rings—such a foe could never be underestimated. Even as I tried to steady myself—as the saying goes—I could not suppress the thunderous pounding in my chest. A wild excitement surged within me, the burning desire to clash with a true powerhouse in a battle of life and death growing ever brighter.
Before me stood a man who appeared around fifty, gray hair streaked with white. At first, fear flickered across his face as his eyes followed my mother's passing figure, but he quickly masked it beneath a stern composure, bolstered by the scorpions circling around him.
Yet I could see the toll it had taken. He had already consumed an enormous amount of spiritual energy just to command dozens of Ice Scorpions beyond ten thousand years of age—not to mention those that had survived hundreds of thousands. Even so, he dared to look at me with faint disdain, as though my age—still shy of fifteen thousand years—was a weakness.
But what truly shattered his confidence was something far beyond his imagination. The spirit beasts—those very scorpions—were obeying me.
"Alright then… let's see if you really have the right to look down on me," I thought, a spark of anger igniting within me. Without hesitation, I unleashed my full spiritual power, surging at him with blinding speed.
Either he hadn't taken me seriously, or his confidence in his defense was absolute—for he merely summoned his Battle Spirit, the Ice Sword, forming a one-meter-long blade of frozen light in his hand.
But before his strike could even fall, my claws had already torn through his defense. In the same breath, the tip of my tail crashed into his chest, delivering a devastating blow that made the earth itself tremble.
(From the third-person perspective)
Before he could even grasp what had happened, his body was hurled nearly fifty meters through the air, slamming into a small hill with a thunderous crash.
My god! How could things have spiraled this far out of control?!
Coughing up blood, cursing under his breath, he clawed his way out from beneath the snow and ice that had buried him completely.
Everything had begun so well… It hadn't even been a month since the disciple's breakthrough, and already they had found a suitable spirit beast.
But the moment they approached, the disciple had been slain in an instant! After all, a spirit beast at the age of 99,990 years was no trivial matter.
The beast had then fled deep into its territory, and by the time they gave chase, it had already reached the gathering grounds of the Ice Scorpions.
At the time, they hadn't thought much of it.
Finding a spirit beast exactly at 99,990 years of age was an unbelievable stroke of fortune—but their burning desire to avenge the fallen disciple blinded them to the danger. They ignored the Ice Scorpions that had already begun to converge around them.
They struck first, and the battle began… only to realize far too late that this was a fatal mistake.
For who could have imagined that just fifteen minutes into the fight—right as they were about to deliver the finishing blow to the spirit beast—another creature would appear… one whose age had already surpassed one hundred thousand years!
They recognized it instantly… The Ice Scorpion Empress, whose age had already surpassed three hundred thousand years! One of the Four Northern Calamities—the Emerald Ice Disaster!
Had it only been an ordinary hundred-thousand-year-old spirit beast, the situation would never have been so dire.
Each of them bore the title of Master Martial Spirit. Even if none had reached the level of Titled Master Martial Spirit possessed spirit tools, a ninety-thousand-year-old beast was not something to be underestimated.
But… no! Instead of subduing the beast, they were being suppressed! When the second elder stepped forward to hold it back, they suddenly realized they had been completely surrounded, with no path of escape.
And then matters grew even worse. The first elder, consumed by rage, unleashed his full strength—and in that instant, a hundred-thousand-year-old Ice Dragon appeared!
Dragons…? But weren't dragons supposed to be extinct in this world?!
Before he could even process the thought, the fourth elder had already activated his elemental spirit—Wind—and fled.
He opened his mouth to shout, to beg them not to abandon him—but before the words left his lips, the reason for that escape became all too clear. The hundred-thousand-year-old Ice Dragon was soaring straight toward him!
After the first paralyzing shock of fear, an odd sense of relief crept in. At the very least… this gave him a chance to escape the terrifying grasp of the Ice Scorpion Empress.
A hundred-thousand-year-old Ice Dragon? In the sky?!
Impossible… utterly impossible. And yet, before he could even reassure himself that spirit beasts of such age surely had greater concerns, the dreadful truth struck him—the Ice Scorpions had completely encircled him.
Dozens of them were over ten thousand years old, while hundreds more had survived for thousands. He couldn't even begin to count how many had lived past a century!
His body stiffened, ice creeping into his very bones as he forced himself to focus with everything he had. The chances of survival were nearly nonexistent, but if he could somehow break through this suffocating encirclement… there might still be a glimmer of hope.
And then—another dragon appeared. This one was but ten thousand years old!
Its movements were reckless, wild… or perhaps it was simply the pride of the dragon race itself, refusing to lean upon the power of the Ice Scorpion clan. No, this beast meant to kill him with its own claws.
He glared at the oncoming dragon with disdain.
As he prepared to unleash his Battle Spirit, intent on severing the arm of that ten-thousand-year-old Ice Dragon, the creature surged forward, closing the distance in a flash. Now only dozens of meters away, its eyes blazed with an insatiable hunger for battle.
He was bewildered… Why had it come here? Spirit beasts that had lived for ten thousand years possessed intelligence enough to recognize an opponent far stronger than themselves. And yet this dragon had charged at him with astonishing speed!
Activating his Battle Spirit, he resolved to sever the dragon's arm—to teach this ignorant beast a lesson. But just half a meter before his strike could land, the dragon's tail lashed out with blinding force! The blow tore through the air and smashed into his chest. He noticed it at the very last moment, but there was no chance to evade!
His body was hurled more than fifty meters, crashing violently into an icy hill.
He staggered to his feet, spitting blood. The strike had been fierce, yet it left only minor internal tremors—no grave injuries.
That ten-thousand-year-old Ice Dragon… its strength rivaled spirit beasts aged twenty to thirty thousand years at the very least! Only now did he truly understand why the dragon clans were so proud of their power.
After a brief moment to steady himself, the bitter truth crashed down upon him… Everyone here was bound for death. Even the fourth elder would not escape alive.
And though the Ice Scorpions had yet to move, it was impossible they would remain passive for long.
Without hesitation, he unleashed his Battle Spirit once more and charged headlong into the fray!
Deep within, he swore an oath to himself: If I survive this… I will never again even dream of facing a dragon.
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