Above the Sky Screen, in the scene of the Black World on the left, wind and snow howled.
[Black World, Core Area of the Far North Land.]
[After more than twenty days of arduous trekking, Huo Yuhao finally stepped into this forbidden zone of life recognized by the Douluo Continent.]
[This is the core of the Far North Land, where temperatures are constantly below minus one hundred degrees, the wind and snow are like knives, and visibility is less than ten meters. Even experts at the Spirit Saint level dare not venture deep inside easily.]
[And here, the three great kings of the Far North reside—Snow Empress, Ice Empress, and Tai Tan Snow Demon King. Among them, the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress are ranked as two of the continent's ten great fierce beasts, controlling the attribute of Ultimate Ice.]
[In this world of ice and snow, their strength is magnified to the extreme. Even if other fierce beasts were to step into this place, they would be no match for the Snow Empress.]
[Wrapped in the remains of the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm, Huo Yuhao moved forward with difficulty in the boundless white, like a tiny ant.]
[When hungry, he would gnaw on dry rations frozen harder than stone; when thirsty, he would grab a handful of snow and stuff it into his mouth. The remains of the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm helped it insulate against most of the cold and also masked his human aura, allowing him to evade countless fatal crises.]
[But the most dangerous moment still occurred.]
[That day, as Huo Yuhao was passing through an ice valley, he suddenly felt the ice surface beneath his feet tremble slightly. He looked up, and his pupils suddenly constricted—]
[A mountain was moving.]
[No, that was not a mountain. That was a terrifying giant beast over a hundred meters tall—the Tai Tan Snow Demon King!]
[Huo Yuhao froze in place, his breathing even stopping. The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm warned him frantically in his sea of consciousness: "Don't move! Absolutely do not move! The remains can mask your aura; as long as you don't move, he won't be able to discover you!"]
[Huo Yuhao gritted his teeth tightly, watching helplessly as that "mountain" approached him step by step. With every step, the ice surface trembled, and cracks spread outward. That massive body passed over his head, blocking out the sky and sun, casting a huge shadow.]
[A few breaths of time felt as long as several centuries.]
[Finally, the figure of the Tai Tan Snow Demon King gradually faded into the distance. Huo Yuhao collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, only to realize his back was already soaked with cold sweat.]
Black World, Douluo Continent.
In the tavern, there was a chorus of gasps.
"The Tai Tan Snow Demon King?! That's one of the three great kings of the Far North!"
"A Spirit Master without even a second ring survived under the feet of that kind of monster? This luck..."
"It's not luck, it's the remains of the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm. If that thing hadn't masked his aura, he would have died eight hundred times over."
Someone murmured: "This is dancing on the tip of a blade..."
[After walking for another three days, the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm finally spoke: "We've arrived, right here."]
[Huo Yuhao stopped and looked around. This place seemed no different from anywhere else; it was still a vast expanse of white, with the wind and snow continuing as before.]
["The next part will be very difficult to endure." The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm's voice became serious, "I need to retrieve my remains. Without it, you will be directly exposed to the extreme cold. You must hold on, hold on until that guy arrives."]
[Huo Yuhao nodded: "I understand."]
[The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm said nothing more. The next moment, the layer of remains that had been protecting Huo Yuhao suddenly detached on its own and floated into mid-air.]
[Then, a ball of golden flames ignited.]
[The remains, which contained the million-year cultivation of the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm, turned into ashes in the flames, transforming into streams of golden light that spread in all directions.]
[And Huo Yuhao was instantly exposed to the extreme cold of nearly minus one hundred degrees.]
[The chill was like thousands of steel needles, piercing every inch of his skin and every bone. His blood seemed to be freezing, and breathing became a form of torture. He curled up on the ground, his teeth chattering, his body shivering violently and uncontrollably.]
[But he did not collapse.]
[He gritted his teeth and used his last bit of willpower to hold on tightly.]
[Because he knew this was a trap set for him by the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm. The burning remains were sending a signal to a certain existence.]
[He had to hold on until that existence arrived.]
Black World, Douluo Continent.
"Too miserable... how cold must that be?"
"Minus one hundred degrees, an ordinary person would freeze to death in a few breaths. That he can hold on is truly thanks to his willpower."
"The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm is gambling here; what if that existence doesn't come?"
"There is no 'what if'. It is betting that that existence will definitely come."
[I do not know how much time passed—perhaps a quarter of an hour, perhaps an hour, Huo Yuhao's consciousness had begun to blur—when a terrifying aura suddenly descended.]
[That aura was cold, domineering, and carried a suffocating pressure. The wind and snow seemed to freeze at this moment, and between heaven and earth, only that slowly descending figure remained.]
[It was a scorpion. Its entire body was crystal clear, as if carved from ice crystals, and it was a full one and a half meters long. Nine ridges rose on its back, each emitting extreme chill. The most terrifying part was its tail—a jade-green tail hook that was exceptionally striking against the snow.]
[The second of the three great kings of the Far North—Ice Jade Empress Scorpion, Ice Empress!]
[Huo Yuhao's pupils constricted slightly. He wanted to struggle, but found he didn't even have the strength to move a finger. He had only one thought in his heart:]
["Heavenly Dream... you lied to me..."]
[However, the Ice Empress did not attack him. Her cold eyes swept over Huo Yuhao and then landed on the golden flames burning in mid-air.]
["Heavenly Dream, is it you?"]
[A golden phantom emerged from the flames, exactly in the image of the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm. It looked at the Ice Empress and chuckled: "Bing'er, long time no see."]
Black World, Douluo Continent.
"Bing'er?! The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm calls the Ice Empress Bing'er?!"
"They know each other?!"
"Nonsense! Both are Million-Year Soul Beasts, of course they know each other!"
"But didn't the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm escape from the Far North? They knew each other before?"
No one could answer.
[The Ice Empress snorted coldly: "You are lucky to have survived for so many years after escaping the Far North. What, are you back today to die?"]
[The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm shook its head: "Die? I'm here to bring you an opportunity."]
[It pointed at Huo Yuhao, who was curled up on the ground: "See that kid? My host. I sacrificed myself to him, and now, it's your turn."]
[The Ice Empress was stunned at first, then seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world: "You want me to sacrifice? To this human? Heavenly Dream, have you gone mad?"]
["I haven't gone mad." The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm's voice became serious, "Bing'er, how much longer can you live? One hundred thousand years? Two hundred thousand years? Your deadline is coming soon, right? The four hundred thousand-year tribulation, can you survive it?"]
[The Ice Empress fell silent.]
[The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm continued: "If you can't survive it, you will have your soul scattered, without even a chance for reincarnation. But if you sacrifice to him, your origin will remain in his body. We can cultivate him together and let him become a god. The day he becomes a god, we will be able to resurrect with the power of Divinity."]
["This is your only chance."]
[The Ice Empress stared at Huo Yuhao, her gaze cold: "Just this trash? Innate rank one spirit power, Spirit Eyes Martial Soul? You want me to pin my hopes on him?"]
["Although he is trash, our origins are both in him; even if he is trash, he will become a genius." The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm's tone carried a hint of cunning, "Besides, you can cultivate him yourself. With your Ultimate Ice, how bad could he possibly get?"]
[The Ice Empress was silent for a long time.]
[Finally, it let out a cold snort: "Heavenly Dream, you remember this. If this kid cannot become a god, I will not let you off even as a ghost."]
["Deal." The Heavenly Dream Ice Worm smiled.]
Black World, Douluo Continent.
"The Ice Empress agreed?!"
"She just agreed like that? Because her deadline is approaching?"
"What else? Wait for death? Although sacrifice is risky, at least there is a glimmer of hope."
"But she said Huo Yuhao is trash... that really hurts to hear."
Someone sighed: "So, it's really not easy for Huo Yuhao to have made it to today. Even the Ice Empress looked down on him; it was all made possible by the efforts of the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm."