Since Ye Wen had personally come to the Extreme North Ice Plains, he naturally didn't want Huo Yu'er to waste time by making another trip. Thus, for the next period of time, Snow Empress busied herself with arranging matters in the Extreme North Ice Plains.
Although Snow Empress had an adopted son, the Ice Plains Bear King Xiaobai, who was also a 200,000-year-old soul beast like the Titan Snow Devil King, Xiaobai deliberately slacked off to avoid being compared to his adoptive mother. There was no hope of him displaying any leadership abilities.
As such, the responsibility of governing the Extreme North Ice Plains fell to one of its three great rulers—the Titan Snow Devil King, who had fled in disgrace earlier.
Though its performance had been lackluster, it possessed the legendary bloodlines of both the Ice God and the Titan Giants. In terms of pure combat strength, it was only slightly weaker than Ice Empress.
In the end, beings with emotions were inevitably swayed by them. Snow Empress eventually requested that Ye Wen grant Xiaobai an opportunity to ascend to godhood.
Ye Wen had already planned to do so and readily agreed.
However, after careful consideration, Ye Wen decided to leave both Ice Empress and Xiaobai in the Extreme North Ice Plains.
After all, if the top-tier soul beasts of the Extreme North Ice Plains were to disappear, it would likely attract waves of human greed.
Moreover, Ice Empress still had room to grow stronger. Ye Wen directly killed the spirit of Tian Meng Ice Silkworm and allowed Ice Empress to refine it, hoping to deepen her cultivation so that when she sacrificed herself, Huo Yuer would also become stronger as a result.
Additionally, while the Extreme North Ice Plains was considered a life-forbidden zone by the three nations of the original Douluo Continent, in the eyes of the Sun Moon Empire, it was a treasure trove rich in mineral resources.
Coincidentally, Ye Wen had extensive knowledge in this area. The Extreme North Ice Plains were his stronghold, and he knew its mineral deposits better than anyone else. Since he couldn't openly mine in the human world, he decided to tap into the potential of the Extreme North Ice Plains instead.
After all, Ye Wen's expectations for Huo Yuer, the destined child of fate, were nothing less than becoming an empress who ruled over eternity. How could she achieve that without both strength and resources?
Ultimately, Ice Empress and Xiaobai were gloriously appointed as the supervisors and deputy supervisors of the Extreme North Ice Plains' mining operations.
All these discussions took place openly in front of the Titan Snow Devil King.
The Titan Snow Devil King knew that its earlier performance had been utterly humiliating, so it could only hope to fulfill its duty of protecting the Extreme North Ice Plains diligently in the future, earning a chance at godhood through hard work.
In the end, Ye Wen, who had originally traveled alone to the Extreme North Ice Plains, now had a beautiful woman accompanying him.
However, Ye Wen did not head directly to Shrek Academy. Instead, he made his way toward the Sunset Forest.
After all, he had promised Huo Yuer two months, and less than half that time had passed. Ye Wen intended to gather more resources to accelerate Huo Yuer's growth.
Upon stepping into the Sunset Forest, Ye Wen frowned. Ten thousand years had passed, and the landscape had changed drastically. Not only had the Star Dou Forest shrunk significantly, but the Sunset Forest, a secondary gathering place for soul beasts, had also diminished considerably.
Ye Wen sighed and shook his head. "Greed is humanity's greatest sin. Without restraint in hunting soul beasts, how will future soul masters obtain decent spirit rings? Eventually, the entire system of soul masters may collapse.
Year after year, they talk about protecting the ecosystem of soul beasts, yet every soul master acts like a madman, plundering these primal resources. Sigh… this chaotic era is truly disheartening."
Snow Empress remained silent. Though she belonged to the side of soul beasts, she nodded in agreement with Ye Wen's analysis.
Ye Wen naturally knew the location of the Yin-Yang Dual Eyes of Ice and Fire. He proceeded straight ahead, and with their combined strength, no soul beasts could stop them.
After traveling for some time, both Ye Wen and Snow Empress came to a halt.
"Damn Tang San," Ye Wen muttered in displeasure.
Ahead, a dense green mist enveloped the area. It didn't stop there—the green glow even spread across the ground. Clusters of green plants appeared scattered but completely covered vast stretches of land. Faint wisps of green mist rose upward, gradually spreading outward.
Seeing this apocalyptic scene, Snow Empress froze. Though she resided in the Extreme North Ice Plains, it didn't mean she disliked lush forests. However, this forest, though teeming with life, exuded a sense of death, as if all living things had been extinguished.
Suddenly, Snow Empress realized something. "Tang San? Could the person you mentioned be the Sea God Tang San who ascended to godhood ten thousand years ago?"
Ye Wen nodded and explained, "Exactly.
These flowers on the ground are called Jade Phosphorous Seven Deadly Flowers, among the most poisonous plants in the Douluo Continent.
Their potent poison has strong corrosive properties, earning them the title of 'Corrosion Supreme.' Moreover, they possess powerful neurotoxins. Once touched, not only does the body corrode, but one also experiences excruciating pain instantly. Don't even think of using soul power as a shield—it can corrode metal too.
But precisely because of this, these Jade Phosphorous Seven Deadly Flowers are extremely rare and precious, almost every plant-type soul master's dream. If a plant-type soul master could find one that has evolved into a plant-type soul beast and absorb it as a spirit ring, their spirit would gain the deadly poison of the Jade Phosphorous Seven Deadly Flowers.
However, I'm sure you've noticed—this abnormal abundance of such rare soul beasts isn't normal, is it?
By the way, Snow Empress, you must have heard of Tang San's story, right? My purpose in coming to the Sunset Forest is to find the Yin-Yang Dual Eyes of Ice and Fire, which lie within this area. You should now understand who arranged this spectacle."
Snow Empress nodded gravely. Over the years, humans had romanticized Tang San's story excessively, portraying him as a paragon of righteousness.
Furthermore, due to Xiao Wu's influence, Snow Empress didn't harbor much animosity toward Tang San. But seeing what lay before her, she felt that Tang San might not be as noble as depicted in the stories.
Just as Snow Empress was feeling disheartened by the shattering of this illusion, she suddenly saw Ye Wen walking forward and exclaimed in alarm,
"Master, be careful!"
Ye Wen turned his head and smiled.
"What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and follow me. What are you worried about? These are just some poisons."
Instantly, Snow Empress understood and blushed slightly. With Ye Wen's strength, how could he possibly fear mere poisons? She quickly dismissed the idea of forming an ice barrier to protect him.
Sure enough, as Ye Wen advanced, it was as if an invisible hand pushed aside the green toxic mist. The Jade Phosphorous Seven Deadly Flowers, as soul beasts, remained completely unaware of the intruder.
However, the deeper they went, the more alarmed Snow Empress became.
Outside, the millennium-level Jade Phosphorous Seven Deadly Flowers already created a desolate wasteland. Yet, the further they ventured, the more they encountered Jade Phosphorous Seven Deadly Flowers with cultivation levels reaching millions of years.
No, that wasn't quite right.
Just as many soul beasts gained titles like "King" or "Emperor" upon breaking certain thresholds, these million-year-old Jade Phosphorous Seven Deadly Flowers had evolved into something new: Jade Phosphorous Nine Deadly Flowers. Facing thousands of these Jade Phosphorous Nine Deadly Flowers, even a Titled Douluo would meet their demise.
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