"This place…"
A look of surprise passed through Xia Qingyue's eyes the moment she entered the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake.
"Heavenly Netherfrost Lake is the sacred ground of our Ice Phoenix Sect. Usually, only Sect Elders, Palace Masters, and gifted disciples are allowed to enter it. This time, the Realm King's Direct Disciple Test will happen here. Which means that the Realm King will also be present; make sure not to make any mistakes."
Standing beside Qingyue was Bingyun as she patiently explained everything to her.
"Except for you, Mu Feixue and Mu Hanyi will also be part of this test. I wanted to bring Yuechan, but she declined."
From the people that Bingyun had brought from the Frozen Cloud Palace, Xia Qingyue and Chu Yuechan were the most talented, especially Xia Qingyue, who absorbed everything like a sponge.
After further investigation, Bingyun found out that she possessed not only the Nine Profound Exquisite Body but also the Heart of Snow Glazed Glass.
That was two rare martial talents even within the whole Realm of Gods!
When Bingyun found out about this, she instantly informed her elder sister.
Even though the test hasn't happened yet, Bingyun already knew the result; Xia Qingyue will become the direct disciple of the Realm King.
"Sister Yuechan declined?" A surprised expression flashed over Qingyue's face.
Yuechan was known for her drive to become stronger. It really caught Qingyue off-guard that she would deny such an opportunity.
Bingyun sighed.
"She said there is no need for us sisters to compete with each other. Since Qingyue entered it, she will win it. There is no point for me to go and waste my time."
"I see…"
Qingyue returned her attention to the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake.
She hadn't reached it yet, but she could already feel dense ice laws circulating around her.
This place was heaven for people who cultivated ice laws, especially the lake. Qingyue could tell that she would benefit a lot if she cultivated inside it and absorbed those strands of ice affinity present inside.
"Sister Qingyue, let's go. The test is about to start soon." Mu Xiaolan grabbed Qingyue's hand and pulled her closer to the lake.
"Lanlan, don't be rude." Bingyun frowned, but Xiaolan, in reply, blew a raspberry towards her before running towards the lake with Qingyue.
"This girl…" Bingyun shook her head and sighed.
Heavenly Netherfrost Lake was built upon a dragon vein. Around it, the ground was filled with flowers releasing small ice strands around it. Small ice spirits danced around them.
When Qingyue and Xiaolan reached close to the lake, these ice spirits hurriedly started to gather around Qingyue, dancing and spinning around her.
"Woah! Junior Sister, your affinity with ice laws must be great! Maybe the best in your generation." Xiaolan exclaimed loudly.
"That's not true." Qingyue shook her head with a soft smile, her fingers playing with the ice spirits. "If Husband was here, no one would be able to match him in terms of ice affinity."
"Junior Sister, you always talk about your husband and how awesome he is. Won't you let your Senior Sister meet him?"
"If he comes, then sure." Qingyue nodded.
Just then, a young man walked towards them with an elegant gaze and posture.
He was a tall man with a perfectly handsome face. His steps were light and unhurried, as though he was treading on clouds.
"Junior Sister Qingyue, Junior Sister Xiaolan, Hanyi greets you."
Qingyue's expression turned blank, and she returned a simple nod, while Xiaolan pouted and said aggressively.
"Senior Brother Hanyi, how many times does Lanlan have to tell you that Junior Sister Qingyue already has someone in her heart? Why must you disturb her every time you see her?"
"You misunderstood me, Junior Sister Xiaolan. I have no such intentions. I just saw my junior sisters and wanted to greet them, that's all."
Mu Hanyi's expression did not change from an amiable smiling face. He looked at Qingyue and bowed.
"If Hanyi made you uncomfortable, then I apologize."
"No need." Qingyue's reply was cold and to the point, leaving no room for further discussion.
It made an awkward expression form over Hanyi's face, who didn't know what to say anymore.
"W-well, the Realm King should be coming soon, so I'll take my leave. Have a nice day, ladies."
"Humph! Brother Hanyi is good, but he doesn't know when to give up. Even though Junior Sister Qingyue has told him many times that she already has someone else in her heart, he still keeps pursuing junior sister."
"Lanlan, what do you think about him?" Qingyue's gaze trailed Mu Hanyi's back and questioned.
"You must be kidding, Junior Sister. I have no such feelings towards him!" Not understanding her question, Xiaolan immediately denied. "The only man I am interested in is Junior Sister's husband! So make sure to let me meet him."
…
Everyone had gathered inside the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake when suddenly a loud sound of air being split apart resounded.
A huge gust of wind appeared, blowing away all the snow around it. From the sky, a huge dragon appeared.
Its appearance instantly filled the whole Heavenly Netherfrost Lake with suppression; its draconic aura instantly engulfed the whole lake and everyone inside it.
At the top of the dragon's head, a woman stood.
She had long hair that stretched all the way to her waist, and it had a special kind of icy color. It wasn't pure white but a lustrous white that was freckled with ice crystals and gleaming with a bit of light blue. Her hair was dazzlingly beautiful beneath the sunlight.
She had a beautiful face, slightly slanted crescent brows, misty eyes, and gentle light pink-colored lips that could bewitch anyone's soul and contained an indescribable charm.
Her figure was alluring to the extreme. A snow-colored ribbon was tied around her willow-thin waist, and the snow robes covering her chest looked so round and full as if something would burst out of its trappings at any moment.
The buttocks beneath her slim waist were also rounder and firmer, her entire body was dripping with a kind of allure and charm that ate away at both bones and souls.
Her crystalline gaze stared down, briefly passing by Xia Qingyue, at everyone.
"Today, this Realm King will select a direct disciple for herself who will represent Snow Song Realm in the coming Profound God Convention."
The voice was filled with untold authority and suppression, chilly and cold enough to freeze anyone with her words alone.
The expression on her face was blank and cold, her eyes holding the same bone-chilling glint inside them.
The test itself consisted of two parts, first was to cultivate inside the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake and collect as much Ice Spirits as they could.
The number of Ice Spirits represented the potential of the person with ice affinity. So the more Ice Spirits one collected, the higher the potential would be.
The second test, on the other hand, considered diving inside the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake. Since the lake consisted of the Dragon Vein and gained the ice affinity from it, the deeper one went the colder the ice affinity became.
This test also checked the potential of the candidate. The one who dived deeper would be the winner.
"Everyone can enter the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake now." Once Mu Xuanyin finished, Mu Yunzhi, the elder of the Ice Phoenix Sect, appeared. "Your goal is to collect as much Ice Spirits as possible."
Mu Yunzhi finished and looked towards Qingyue, around whom Ice Spirits danced happily and sighed.
She was the master of Mu Hanyi.
And from the look at Qingyue, she knew she won.
After all, the test hadn't even started yet, and Qingyue already had gained a certain amount of Ice Spirits around her.
The result was obvious already.
"Hm?" The dragon below Mu Xuanyin suddenly staggered, and he instantly hid his draconic aura. A frown appeared over Mu Xuanyin's face at its sudden behavior.
Before she asked anything, her eyes instantly turned towards the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake.
The next moment, the surface of the lake parted, and a man appeared from it.
"Oh my, a grand welcome for me? I am flattered."
"..." Silence engulfed the Heavenly Netherfrost Lake; everyone stared at Yun Che with wide eyes.
Seeing the horrified expression on everyone's face, Yun Che pushed his wet hair behind his head with his hands and smiled.
"Guess not."
...
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