Free Web NovelChapter 212: Chapter 211: Soul Ice Dao Lotus
The Main Vein Tribe’s foundation came from the structures left behind by their ancestors, and the faith the North Snow Tribe relied on for survival was the North Snow Tower, the tall building that had watched over the tribe’s development for tens of thousands of years.
No one would ever want to leave this place. It housed the heritage the North Snow Tribe had accumulated over tens of thousands of years, as well as secret legacies left by their ancestors.
The belief that as long as the North Snow Tower stood, the North Snow Tribe would never perish was deeply rooted in the hearts of its people. Lamentably, when Jiang Qiu arrived, the place was completely deserted.
He gazed at the empty shacks surrounding the North Snow Tower. Trampled planks, pots, and bowls lay strewn across the street. The cold wind howled desolately, and even the special stone slates, which were usually untouched by snow, were now covered in a layer of white frost.
"Where is everyone?"
Jiang Qiu froze, his heart pounding in his chest.
He had spurred his horse on, riding nonstop from the north. He hadn’t seen the rampaging Demon Race he’d expected, only vast swathes of burned houses, leaving behind nothing but the carbonized frames of roof beams. Many sections of the walls had collapsed, and the streets were shattered.
He didn’t see a single corpse. Most of the bloodstains were buried beneath the white snow, making the scene look like ruins that had been abandoned for many years.
He had only been away from the North Snow Tribe—the second-strongest tribe of the Human Race—for a year, only to return to such a sight?!
A torrent of rage surged into Jiang Qiu’s heart. His left fist crackled, and his right hand gripped the [Northern Snow Lance] so tightly that it hummed and vibrated.
"May your will stand with us when the tribe faces danger in the future. May your will shelter the children of our tribe when they fall into peril.
We take the ice and snow as our witness. As long as the snows of the Northern Boundary do not melt, this pact shall be without regret..."
The words of the pact, spoken by the Elder Witch Priest on the Altar that day, suddenly surfaced in Jiang Qiu’s mind, like fuel poured onto his blazing heart.
HUFF... HAH...
Jiang Qiu’s chest heaved. His eyes, sleepless for three nights, were bloodshot, and the veins on his arms bulged.
He had ridden his Blue-Hoofed Horse to its death just to rush back to the tribe, yet he still hadn’t been able to see the Elder Witch Priest one last time. Now, even all his people were gone!
"Cold Heaven Cliff! West Ice Tribe! I will make you pay for this debt of blood with blood!"
His roar thundered through the heavens, vibrating like a great bell. A subtle wave of emotional power washed over the towering North Snow Tower, causing the pure white snow to cascade down like a curtain.
SCREECH—
The blade of the [Northern Snow Lance] scraped across the bluestone tiles at his feet. Jiang Qiu walked alone through the ajar gates of the North Snow Tower. The beast-shaped statues were unchanged, but the places that once stored the Treasures of Heaven and Earth and the tribe’s weapons were now completely empty.
Suppressing his surging Qi Blood, Jiang Qiu ascended to the second floor, then the third. His breathing grew twice as heavy.
Empty. Everything was empty. All the Treasures of Heaven and Earth had been plundered, leaving only a mess behind. The North Snow Tribe’s heritage, built over tens of thousands of years, was destroyed just like that.
Only when he reached the fourth floor did Jiang Qiu finally let out a sigh of relief. Gazing up at the great door blocking his path, he placed his left hand upon it, and the words the Elder Witch Priest had once spoken came back to him.
"The North Snow Tower was left behind by the North Snow Tribe’s ancestor, the Primordial Ascendant. It anchors the destiny of the entire North Snow Tribe and also contains this ancestor’s legacy.
The first three floors store the tribe’s accumulations over tens of thousands of years, as well as some treasures passed down from ancient times, but for most people, these things are useless.
Only the fourth floor holds the legacy that generations of Witch Priests have yearned for. The previous Witch Priest told me that when the fourth floor of the North Snow Tower is opened, it means that the North Snow Tribe—or rather, the Primordial True Master—has finally found his successor, one who has a chance to achieve Transcendence from the Northern Boundary.
It’s just a pity that in tens of thousands of years, no one has ever been able to open it..."
’The ancestor’s great power is beyond doubt. The Primordial Ascendant must have left a powerful legacy for the North Snow Tribe; otherwise, the tribe wouldn’t have stood strong for tens of thousands of years.’
’But this crucial fourth floor has remained unopened. Even I, the Chosen One, couldn’t open it when the Elder Witch Priest brought me here that one time...’
CLICK—
With a sudden tremor, the majestic, heavy door before him creaked open, as if something had resonated with the legacy inside Jiang Qiu’s body.
’The Cyan Simurgh Technique?’
Jiang Qiu’s brow twitched. ’Do I have to obtain the legacy from the North Sea Palace first before I can inherit the North Snow Tower’s legacy in the North Snow Tribe?’
The North Snow Tower’s legacy naturally referred to the fourth floor, the legacy of the Primordial Ascendant. This was different from the Witch Priests’ kind of legacy; it wasn’t limited by the Spirit Charm-depleted Northern Boundary.
The Witch Priests were incapable of cultivating Spirit Charm. They merely borrowed the Spirit Charm left behind by the Primordial Ascendant to wield their power, and there were many restrictions. The moment they used this power, they would essentially be put on a countdown to death.
Therefore, they could not access the Primordial Ascendant’s true legacy; they were merely its guardians.
Jiang Qiu strode inside, his gaze locking onto an intricate flower of ice in the center, his expression dazed.
The vast fourth floor was empty, yet filled with cold currents of air. The slightest movement sent a bone-chilling cold surging in from all directions.
This cold air undoubtedly originated from a single Ice Lotus floating in the center. Blue streams of light circled around it, and the tower itself acted like a cage, sealing the aura emanating from the Ice Lotus.
’This thing... is it the Soul Ice Dao Lotus, which can be used to create Dao Forging Jade Sinews?’
The legacy he had absorbed in the North Sea Palace flashed through Jiang Qiu’s mind. The introduction to Soul Ice Dao Refining pointed out that this so-called Soul Ice Dao Lotus was not one of the Treasures of Heaven and Earth, yet it was far more precious. Compared to it, a hundred-thousand-year Fire Marrow was no better than a Pebble.
The materials required to create this thing had long since gone extinct. It also required Origin from the primordial era to act as a catalyst. It was impossible to create another one now.
Even back in the primordial era, when the Cyan Simurgh Palace still existed, this was not something an ordinary person could use. Only a direct disciple of an Ascendant would have had a chance to obtain one.
The Soul Ice Dao Lotus could be considered an equivalent to the Advanced Su Fragrance, the [Demon King Origin], used back when he first Cast his Jade Sinews. In essence, they were both vessels for carrying Spirit Charm.
In terms of potential, however, the Soul Ice Dao Lotus far surpassed the [Demon King Origin] he had used before. The difference was like that between heaven and earth.
After all, this was a special material that allowed one to follow the Cyan Simurgh Palace’s Dao Forging Cultivation Technique. There probably wasn’t a second one in the entire Northern Boundary!
’The Primordial Ascendant, the first among the four ancestors of the Northern Boundary Human Clan, was even mentioned in the North Sea Palace’s legacy. To think he was willing to leave behind such a precious Soul Ice Dao Lotus.’
Jiang Qiu sighed softly and reached with his left hand for the floating Soul Ice Dao Lotus. The North Sea Palace legacy deep within his soul responded, standing on end like iron filings drawn to a powerful magnet.
It seemed that if he devoured this Soul Ice Dao Lotus, completed its Refinement, and used the Cyan Simurgh Palace’s method for Forging Jade Sinews, he could step into the Jade Sinew Realm of the primordial era and would be able to practice the Cyan Simurgh Technique!
’Even the Elder Witch Priest, who could borrow Ancestral Power, failed to protect North Snow. The enemy’s strength is by no means ordinary. If I want to slaughter everyone in Cold Heaven Cliff and the West Ice Tribe, my current strength is definitely not enough.’
Jiang Qiu took a deep breath, his gaze as sharp as a spear’s tip. Ignoring the ice crystals that began to form on his left hand, he pushed onward, his blood boiling, and grabbed for the Soul Ice Dao Lotus. ’Only by breaking into the Forged Jade Sinews Realm can I avenge North Snow!’
