Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 270 The Origin of Ice (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

If Yuan Muyu heard this, he'd probably be strutting around like crazy.

See? He really cares about me!

When Yuan Muyu came to sign the alliance agreement, he was well aware that one of the conditions for the alliance was that he would need to assist the Ice Prison Sect's Han Chuan exploration, which might require his intervention. However, Yuan Muyu was arrogant and had no reliable advisor to remind him, so he never thought there was anything wrong with the alliance condition. It was only natural for an ally to intervene, and the Frozen Moon Han Chuan was unrelated to the Yama Palace's strategy.

Unwittingly, her sister and Lu Xingzhou's impersonation of her this time actually helped her clean up her mess...

Ye Tinglan stared coldly at Ling Qixuan. Based on their conversation just now, she had absolutely no liking for this kind of demonic disciple who disregarded the common people. If Lu Xingzhou had said he would kill someone, she might have done it.

Sensing the murderous intent emanating from "King Yama," Ling Qixuan was covered in sweat: "How dare we trick King Yama? He didn't even ask last time..."

Lu Xingzhou: “…”

Stupid woman.

If she had asked before and then asked again, there was a risk of giving herself away, requiring her to come up with excuses later. Now, all the excuses she prepared are useless; she simply didn't ask... Even a foolish woman has her uses.

Ye Tinglan spoke up at the opportune moment: "Since I didn't ask last time, did you think you could just brush it off and not need to say anything?"

“Absolutely not, absolutely not,” Ling Qixuan hurriedly said. “The problem is that we don’t have much information about the Ice Demon either… To be honest, we are here to worship the Ice Demon, not to have Yama and the Ice Demon face each other.”

"Well, tell me more."

"King Yama should know that innate spirits may be called demons or spirits; these are human terms, and the main point is whether they possess destructive power."

"You mean, this Ice Demon isn't a demon?"

"Once water meets the conditions for freezing, the temperature becomes unbearable for humans, so judging whether it's demonic or spiritual based on that is unreasonable. Of course, the ancient ice demon points to the source of extreme cold and icy conditions, which are naturally ten thousand times more severe than the climate required for ordinary water to freeze..."

That's just demonic... Lu Xingzhou scratched his head, somewhat convinced.

Judging this thing solely by human standards of adaptation seems unfair... We should at least consider the initiative behind its destructive actions. Calling it a demon simply because it's passively cold seems a bit inappropriate.

Ling Qixuan said, "What we pursue is the origin of this coldness. So, to us, the Ice Demon can even be considered a god we worship. Welcoming the Ice God to descend into the world has been our clan's dream for ten thousand years. If humans want to call us demons, then I will accept it."

In the end, his voice carried a hint of firmness and coldness, as if even if Yama did not approve, he would not waver.

At this moment, he had a bit of the aura of a demonic overlord, a stark contrast to his previous cold sweat and forced smile.

Ye Tinglan, on the contrary, held it in higher regard because of this, and slowly said, "According to what you said, if this Ice Demon is an innate spirit, representing icy frost... then it is probably the formless realm mentioned in ancient times. Once it is born, let alone me, even if all the supreme beings in the world joined forces, they would not be a match for it. Does it know you? What makes you so sure you won't die?"

A fervent glint flashed in Ling Qixuan's eyes: "As long as I can see the source of ice in the world, I will die without regret."

Lu Xingzhou finally couldn't hold back anymore: "You want to die, why are you dragging us along? Alliance? Do you think we're as crazy as you?"

It seems like the fish's brain is abnormal.

Ling Qixuan said, "But the Ice Demon has been sealed for so long, it's impossible that it still had the ability of formlessness when it was first released from prison."

"This is just your conjecture; we need to verify it."

Ling Qixuan hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "To be honest, Lord Yan, based on our research over the years, it is almost impossible for the Ice Demon to achieve its current signs of breaking free on its own. There is only one possibility... If it can divide its divine soul, it may be possible to break free from the suppression and leave the ice layer with the intent of nothingness. And this ethereal divine soul may have started cultivating from scratch until it awakens... The suppressed body senses the divine soul growing stronger, and the two pull each other together, which may lead to the body breaking through the ice."

Lu Xingzhou and Ye Tinglan exchanged another glance, their hearts skipping a beat.

Lu Xingzhou pressed further, "Are you sure what left was just the meaning of nothingness?"

“It’s certain. Only the void can escape the suppression of this ten-thousand-foot-long ice. No one with a physical body can.” Ling Qixuan said, “Yan Jun has cultivated to this point and should also be very clear about the principle that the body is limited but the will is infinite.”

Lu Xingzhou hissed as if he had a toothache, and remained silent for a long time.

According to him, that's exactly like Little White Hair.

Just after Little White Hair broke through to the third rank, something strange happened here. Doesn't this correspond to "mutual attraction after the divine souls have grown stronger"?
But if it is nothingness, how did it condense into a human body, and why couldn't Ye Tinglan find out the problem?
Furthermore, the little white-haired girl possesses the Ice-Cold Sword Body, which is related to sword strength. Swords are typically made of metal, an attribute that ice demons don't seem to have. To this day, the little white-haired girl is still a martial arts practitioner; her icy aura comes from her sword intent and the inherent effect of her Ice-Cold Sword Body, not from magic. The ice demon doesn't know ice magic, isn't that a bit strange…?

Without understanding these key points, we cannot arbitrarily conclude that it is Little White Hair.

Is it possible that it was possessed? The Ice Frost Origin broke free from suppression, only to be absorbed by the little white-haired guy? So what was originally just an ordinary sword body became the Ice Frost Sword Body?

If that's the case, it would be a wonderful thing, but is it even possible for it to be that good...? Seeing that neither of them spoke, Ling Qixuan secretly sighed and said, "We are all cultivators, and we all know very well that if one's own origin is gone, or even if one's soul has left the body, then the body is at most at the Qian Yuan level. And after being suppressed for so long, it would be an overestimation of its power to be able to unleash the power of Huiyang for a while. Of course, that's still a super grade. My Ice Prison Sect might not be able to deal with it, but Yama can certainly. This is all the reason why I need Yama's help. This time, I've laid everything out."

What he said was all true. This alliance was only formed after Yuan Muyu reached the Super Grade level. Before that, the Ice Prison Sect might not have looked up to the Yama Palace, much less fawn over it like they do now. Ling Qixuan genuinely believed that having a Super Grade member was enough to accomplish this.

However, these are all just Ling Qixuan's guesses. When the Ice Demon is truly freed, things might be completely different from what he imagined. Ling Qixuan had been keeping quiet as much as possible, and since Yan Jun didn't ask him in detail, he wouldn't reveal everything on his own.

I was quite nervous about revealing the truth this time, wondering how Yama would react.

Ye Tinglan did not react, still pondering the relationship between this matter and Dugu Qingli.

Lu Xingzhou said, "Sect Leader Ling probably hasn't fully revealed his secrets yet..."

Ling Qixuan was taken aback: "What do you mean by that, sir?"

Lu Xingzhou said, "First of all, if the Ice Demon is freed, you must have a way to subdue it or establish a connection with it. Otherwise, what are you expecting? Do you really just want to see the Ice Frost Origin and die without regret? I don't believe it."

Ling Qixuan: "..."

"Secondly, you say the Ice Demon escaped simply because it was drawn to the source outside, but I don't believe that either," Lu Xingzhou said. "This must have required the intervention of some force, whether it was the source itself or you... In short, it's impossible for the body to escape without the source's knowledge or any external force. That makes sense in physics..."

Ling Qixuan: "..."

Lu Xingzhou said, "I suspect that you have somehow determined that the source has separated and actively activated some kind of summoning array, which is why the Frozen Moon River has changed. Is that right? Also, because you determined that its body lacks the source, you are confident that you can control it with some kind of secret technique, and the main purpose of controlling this body is to seek the source through it, is that right?"

Ling Qixuan was sweating even more profusely than when he received the Super Grade Intimidation before.

What kind of monster is this?

Is it because this monster wasn't there last time that Yama specially brought him back this time?

Lu Xingzhou, however, was very amiable: "Actually, the reason you concealed these things was simply because you were afraid we would compete with you for them. But Sect Leader Ling, rest assured, our Yama Palace's cultivation has absolutely nothing to do with frost, and we are not interested in it. If we were to say we were interested, it would be in the event itself. How did Sect Leader Ling manage to pull the Ice Demon's body, which was buried ten thousand feet deep in ice, out of its predicament? Could you demonstrate it?"

Ling Qixuan hesitated for a moment, then said, "We do have some ancient formations, but they haven't been very effective. After all this trouble, they've only caused some instability. However, there's another method now, but I dare not do it directly... Since Yama has come, perhaps we could give it a try?"

Ye Tinglan said, "Oh?" and then asked, "What method?"

“The Tianyao Holy Land has a direct descendant named Dugu Qingli, and I discovered today that she actually possesses the Innate Ice-Cold Sword Body. If she were to serve as the core of the formation, the effect might be quite good… However, I dare not touch her background. The Yama Palace is already opposed to the Tianyao Holy Land, so the Yama King should have no problem dealing with her…”

"Bang!" Ye Tinglan's teacup shattered instantly, and the force of the impact surged wildly.

Ling Qixuan didn't even have time to react. As a dignified cultivator at the peak of the first-grade upper level, he was sent flying like a cloud by Ye Tinglan's flick of her sleeve, crashing heavily into the wall of the hall, causing spiderweb-like cracks to appear.

Ye Tinglan's voice was like that of Yama himself: "You want me to deal with the Ice Demon Body, and out of consideration for our alliance, I agreed. Now you want to use me to deal with the direct descendant of Tianyao and fight to the death with the Tianyao Holy Land? Do you really think I'm a fool you can just do whatever you want with me!"

Ling Qixuan nearly had his bones shattered, collapsing to the ground and vomiting a mouthful of blood. He exclaimed in horror, "Lord Yama, please calm down! This was merely a suggestion; I had absolutely no intention of instigating anything... I thought... I thought Lord Yama was against the Tianyao Holy Land..."

"Even if I oppose Tianyao, I have no blood feud. Why do you immediately ask me to deal with their direct descendants?" Ye Tinglan waved his sleeve and said, "Even if I were to deal with Tianyao's direct descendants, it would be to uncover the secrets of the Tianyao Holy Land, not to use someone as a pawn for your petty matter. Where is she?"

"In...in the guest quarters."

Ye Tinglan grabbed a disciple of the Ice Prison Sect and said, "Lead the way!"

Ling Qixuan watched helplessly as "King Yama" went to the guest courtyard, picked up the white-haired girl like an eagle catching a chick, and left with his entourage.

"Sect Master!" An elder helped Ling Qixuan up and whispered, "Yan Jun's arrival is strange, and his questions are odd. Could he be an imposter?"

"Imitation my ass!" Ling Qixuan roared, "I secretly saw her just now when she lifted a corner of her mask to drink tea. That chin, those lips, who else could it be but Yama?"

"Uh……"

"Do you think anyone can injure me with a single blow, leaving me no chance to retaliate? Yan Jun's strength is actually stronger than I imagined..." Ling Qixuan took a few breaths and said in a low voice, "Her strength is one thing, but the man beside her is truly outrageous. Although his cultivation is low, he can see right through people. With his combined literary and martial skills, who can stand against him?"

The elder pondered and said, "I heard that there used to be a judge by Yama's side who had the same attributes and was just as handsome as this man. Now that the judge is gone, has Yama taken a new judge as a substitute?"

"...It's clear that even the most ruthless and powerful woman has needs."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: 10,000 words delivered, please vote with monthly tickets!
(End of this chapter)