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Inside the Ice God's Mystery Realm, Shui Wuya opened his eyes.
The communication with Shui Bing'er wouldn't be detected by the soul spirits, but Octagon would often ask why Shui Wuya's spiritual power kept decreasing the more he meditated.
Octagon even started to worry that Shui Wuya might be falling ill.
There was no choice; Octagon and Shui Wuya were now one entity. If something happened to Shui Wuya, Octagon would also suffer.
Finally, Shui Wuya used the excuse of communicating with the Ice God to put Octagon's mind at ease.
Octagon had no suspicions. It made sense that the person destined by the Ice God could converse with the Ice God herself.
Shui Wuya's aura trembled, and cold air spread out, freezing a large patch of ground instantly.
"Let's go."
Destination: the Extreme North.
"Wuya, are we going out now?" Octagon saw Shui Wuya getting up to pack things and immediately jumped out of Shui Wuya's spiritual space, landing on his shoulder excitedly.
She was now just a spiritual being. She could take any form she wanted, and Shui Wu Ya had seen her humanoid form before.
Surprisingly, it was that of a little girl, but Octagon still preferred her original form.
It was only after that incident that Shui Wuya confirmed that, although Octagon was also an Octagonal Ice Grass, she wasn't the Octagon that became Huo Yuhao's soul spirit in the original story.
"Yes, it's time to head to the Extreme North. I'm curious about what treasures the Ice God's map points to in the core of the Extreme North."
Shui Wuya opened the map and compared directions. Once they left, the map would be useless.
In the icy terrain of the Far North, there were no landmarks. Although finding the way was inconvenient, he was very excited.
What kind of treasures were hidden in the core circle of the Extreme North that the Ice God didn't keep in her Mystery Realm but specifically placed there?
There were no shortages of hundred-thousand-year soul beasts there.
Leaving the cave, Octagon immediately transformed into a curious baby, looking around and asking Shui Wuya every now and then about various things they encountered.
After walking a few steps, Octagon pointed at the black clouds in the sky. "Wuya, why are those clouds black?"
"That's a cumulonimbus cloud," Shui Wuya patiently explained to Bajiao.
"By the way, you awakened your consciousness after 100,000 years, right?" Shui Wuya continued.
"Yeah, we Ice Grasses only gain sentience after ten thousand years. It's common knowledge," Octagon replied without being distracted by the topic Shui Wuya brought up.
"How long did you stay in the Ice God's Mystery Realm?" Shui Wuya asked.
"Who knows? I don't move at all. After gaining consciousness, I just stare at the ceiling blankly. Who knows how long has passed? I can't remember, and I can't touch the ground either because the Ice God doesn't allow me to damage the Mystery Realm. What can I do?" Shui Wuya heard a tone of resentment in Octagon's voice and decided not to pursue the topic further.
It was his fault for being nosy. Since Octagon had seen the Ice God, she had been in the Mystery Realm for at least ten thousand years.
....
Entering the core area of the Extreme North, Shui Wuya had to be extremely cautious.
He didn't have the Tianmeng iceworm like Huo Yuhao, which could detect soul beasts. Wherever there were soul beasts, they would be blatantly marked for Huo Yuhao. Octagon was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, and her spiritual power was indeed strong, but she didn't know how to use soul skills like spiritual detection.
If Octagon were to use spiritual power to scout the path, Shui Wuya dared to say that he would be surrounded by a group of hundred-thousand-year soul beasts within minutes.
Thinking about the treatment the Tianmeng Iceworm received, Shui Wuya knew the temptation Octagon, a hundred-thousand-year Ice Grass, posed to other hundred-thousand-year soul beasts.
"Wuya, something feels strange?" Octagon looked into the distance from Shui Wu Ya's shoulder.
"What's strange?" Shui Wuya asked.
"Those creatures with strange tails, are they the scorpions you mentioned?" Octagon asked.
"Why are they surrounding you without making any moves?" Octagon's words made Shui Wuya feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
Stopping in his tracks, Shui Wuya realized he had unknowingly walked into the circle of soul beasts.
All around him were gigantic scorpions, their color similar to the snow. If it weren't for Octagon's size, Shui Wuya wouldn't have noticed them.
But strangely, these scorpions seemed to pay no attention to Shui Wuya and remained motionless.
Shui Wuya stayed still for a while, but the surrounding scorpions never approached.
Though puzzled, Shui Wuya knew it was not safe to linger here.
The core circle of the Far North was inhabited by soul beasts of high age.
Shui Wuya hastened his pace, but the scorpions still remained motionless.
"Are they still there?" After walking for an hour, Shui Wuya stopped to rest and asked Octagon on his shoulder.
"No, there's no spiritual fluctuation of soul beasts nearby," Octagon replied.
"What was up with those soul beasts just now?" Sitting on the snowy ground, Shui Wuya recalled the recent events.
Those scorpions were very similar to the memories he had of the Ice Emperor Scorpion, except for their color.
As soul beasts aged, their bodies underwent changes. Shui Wuya had a strong feeling that those scorpions were the Ice Emperor's kin.
"Because the Ice Emperor became Huo Yuhao's second martial soul, those Ice Emperor Scorpions lost their king. What kind of problem could have occurred within the clan?" Shui Wuya couldn't figure it out.
But soon, he stopped thinking about it. They were already very close to the location marked on the map. He wasn't willing to turn back now. The Extreme North had lost the Ice Emperor and the Snow Empress, making it the safest time to explore. It would be much more dangerous to come back in the future.
After another three hours, as the sky grew dim, Shui Wuya finally arrived at his destination.
Before him was a deep ice cave.
The huge entrance resembled a devouring monster. The darkness inside was intimidating.
Standing at the entrance, Shui Wuya felt his own insignificance.
"Are we going in? But it's so dark in there... maybe we should turn back. Even if it's the Ice God's instruction, who knows what dangers lie inside." Octagon hesitated.
Darkness represented the unknown, and all life forms were always afraid of unknown dangers.
While Octagon was still hesitating, Shui Wuya had already walked in.
"The Ice... the Ice God is very cautious. Since she gave me this map, she wouldn't lead me to my death." Just as he entered the ice cave, a chilling aura began to invade Shui Wuya's body.
This was not ordinary coldness but the extreme of ice.
Fortunately, the ice shield brought by Octagon was always effective, so this coldness didn't affect Shui Wu Ya.
The ground had already frozen, and the cave continued to descend. Shui Wuya had to use some soul power to stabilize his body as they descended deeper into the ice cave.
"The one destined by fate, I finally waited for you."
Before Shui Wuya could be surprised, a powerful force suddenly pulled at his body from deep within the cave. Shui Wuya felt that he had lost control of his body, and he was like a free-falling object, rapidly entering the depths of the ice cave.