Imperial Emperor Xi Yu assigned one hundred thousand Heavenly Palace Realm zombies to each of the four major clans and the Bat Ancestor. Firstly, it was so that his trusted aides could work on their cooperation with the zombies. Secondly, he sent out these five hundred thousand zombies to search for the ice spirit.
Imperial Emperor Xi Yu still cared a lot about the ice mountain.
Countless bats and the four major clans immediately mobilized. Naturally, their first clue was the tunnel in Gu Hai’s manor.
The tunnel extended all the way out of the city.
The Bat Ancestor and Archduke Xi Kang showed sullen expressions when they found the other end of the tunnel.
“Gu Hai came out here. However, where did he go after coming out?” The Bat Ancestor frowned.
Archduke Xi Kang showed a fierce expression.
“Humph! Freezing to death from the ice mountain is too easy a death for him. When we find the ice mountain, I will destroy his entire clan for killing my son. There will be signs of his escape around the city’s vicinity. Didn’t you send out all your bats? Did you find anything?” Archduke Xi Kang said with a sullen expression.
“I have a report! Primogenitor! Primogenitor, I found it!” A loud, excited cry came from the distance.
It was Chang Ming’s second uncle running over excitedly.
“Let’s go!”
The Bat Ancestor and Archduke Xi Kang took to the sky, with thousands of zombies in their wake.
The two followed Chang Ming’s second uncle to a valley east of the city.
“Primogenitor, there is a similar tunnel to that in Major Metropolitan City. Gu Hai and that woman escaped using this!” Chang Ming’s second uncle said excitedly.
“Where does this lead?” the Bat Ancestor asked.
“I took a look already. It leads to a river in the east!” Chang Ming’s second uncle reported excitedly.
“To the east?” Archduke Xi Kang narrowed his eyes.
“Inform everyone. Start searching towards the east. They can’t have gotten far. That Bing Ji is injured as well. Gu Hai is dead for sure. They must be hiding somewhere. Humph! Find them!” the Bat Ancestor said in a deep voice.
“Yes!”
The Bat Ancestor, Archduke Xi Kang, and the Chang Clan focused on searching to the east.
——
At Mo Yike’s residence in the city:
“Milord, the Bat Ancestor and Archduke Xi Kang already found some clues. Mister Gu should have gone east,” a guard reported respectfully.
Mo Yike stood upright with his hands behind his back, frowning heavily. After thinking for a while, he said, “There is a tunnel to the east of the city? Ha! Mister Gu might not have headed east. It is just a tunnel, and he diverted most of the people searching for him?”
“Huh?” That subordinate appeared confused.
“You can withdraw for now,” Mo Yike said.
“Yes!”
After that subordinate left, Mo Yike stood on a floating island and looked west.
“Mister Gu, are you still alive? If you are still alive, you are an enormous potential threat to my Yuan Nation’s future. How am I supposed to face you? Hah!” Mo Yike said with a bitter smile.
——
In Gu Hai’s water deity palace:
Boom!
A loud report rang out. Gu Hai’s water-attributed Veritable Essence suddenly gathered and formed a blue nascent embryo.
As Bing Ji’s nascent soul hugged the nascent embryo, it showed a complicated look in its eyes. “He formed a nascent embryo?”
After a few days, Gu Hai made another breakthrough in his cultivation.
There was a strand of Gu Hai’s consciousness in the nascent embryo. At this moment, this consciousness’s feelings were also complicated.
“The second one already?” the water-attributed nascent embryo said bitterly.
The Nascent Soul Realm’s sixth layer.
“Your…Your Majesty? You are awake already?” The expression of Bing Ji’s nascent soul changed.
Gu Hai remained silent. It is not that I woke up. I have been awake all the while.
“Bing Ji, many thanks!” Gu Hai’s voice came from the nascent embryo.
Bing Ji’s nascent soul remained silent.
“Do you want to refine this ice mountain’s souls?” Gu Hai’s voice rang out.
“Yes!” Bing Ji’s nascent soul nodded.
“Then, continue. If you extract its souls, perhaps I will be able to digest the ice mountain.”
“Alright,” Bing Ji said very softly.
“This time, I will be driving my cultivation technique with all my might.”
“Your Majesty, your coital cultivation technique…” Bing Ji’s nascent soul appeared slightly confused.
“What’s wrong?” Gu Hai asked.
“It’s…it’s quite incredible,” Bing Ji’s nascent soul said with its head lowered, apparently too embarrassed to speak.
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
The circulation of the Worldly Sorrowful Endowment suddenly intensified when Gu Hai took the initiative outside.
The energy exchange between the nascent embryo and Bing Ji’s nascent soul accelerated to an exceptionally fast rhythm.
Rumble…!
The two absorbed a large amount of energy from the ice mountain above. As the surging energy poured in, Gu Hai’s and Bing Ji’s cultivations grew rapidly.
This continued for a further five days.
Boom!
Suddenly, the nascent embryo gave off a loud sound.
The nascent embryo suddenly broke open, revealing a small nascent soul in the shape of Gu Hai.
“The Nascent Soul Realm’s seventh layer?” The small nascent soul slowly opened its eyes.
Bing Ji’s nascent soul appeared much larger as it held the small nascent soul in its embrace. Its absorption of the ice mountain’s cold energy seemed to have reached a limit already.
Suddenly, Bing Ji’s nascent soul raised its head and landed a palm strike on the ice mountain.
Buzz!
Blue energy from the palm of Bing Ji’s nascent soul grabbed at the ice mountain. Then, it seemed to have caught hold of something.
“Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!”
The ice mountain immediately trembled violently, as if it was alive and struggling frantically.
“You nearly consumed me earlier. What huge souls you have, ice spirit king!” Bing Ji’s eyes opened wide.
Whoosh!
Gu Hai’s little nascent soul was a little water deity. It imitated Bing Ji, stretching out its hand to grab. Then, two streams of energy pulled on the ice mountain’s souls.
“Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!”
The ice mountain tried to resist, sending out even colder energy.
However, the ice mountain did not know that Gu Hai and Bing Ji’s coital cultivation required even stronger cold energy now.
As the surging cold energy poured into the two nascent souls, it not only failed to hurt them but even drove their coital cultivation even faster.
This stalemate lasted for another two days.
Boom!
A huge clump of blue energy suddenly came out of the ice mountain.
“Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!”
The clump of blue energy struggled wildly. Shocked and frightened faces even appeared on it. These were the ice spirit king’s souls.
Chomp!
Bing Ji’s nascent soul opened its mouth and swallowed the souls in one mouthful.
After swallowing the souls, Bing Ji’s nascent soul left slowly.
Without the souls’ control, the ice mountain finally became a masterless item, under the water deity’s complete control.
Cold energy immediately surged into the water deity palace and rushed towards the water deity.
Boom!
A loud report rang out, and the water deity grew larger.
“The Nascent Soul Realm’s eighth layer?” the water deity said in shock.
The surrounding cold energy withdrew into the ice mountain. Since the water deity could now control the ice mountain, it temporarily sealed the ice mountain. Then, Gu Hai’s consciousness slowly returned to his body.
Just as Gu Hai was about to open his eyes, Bing Ji’s voice suddenly rang out. “Don’t open your eyes.”
Gu Hai’s eyelids twitched but did not open. Although Bing Ji coital cultivated with him to save him, resulting in a mental bond, she had to…
Rustling sounded as Bing Ji left the room.
Only now did Gu Hai open his eyes. He was in a room in an ordinary house.
The room looked messy, and he was completely naked.
There were also some vibrant red bloodstains on his lower body. Gu Hai showed a faint, bitter smile as he put on his clothes, which were at the side.
Gu Hai felt that his injuries had fully healed.
Not only that, but his cultivation had even reached the Nascent Soul Realm’s eighth layer. However, how should he face Bing Ji, who was outside?
——
Outside:
Bing Ji walked to a small brook and used the water to wash her face. As she looked at her reflection in the water, she showed a faint, bitter expression.
“The ice spirit’s souls? I obtained them. But…but…” Bing Ji bit her lip.
“I thought that His Majesty would die. But…but…” Bing Ji’s face alternated between red and white.
After a while, Bing Ji took out an empty bowl. Then, she took out a small bottle and poured its contents into the bowl.
Looking at the medicinal fluid in the bowl, Bing Ji showed a torn expression. After some silence, it looked like she would pour this bowl of medicinal fluid away. However, she stopped, and her complexion paled.
Two lines of tears flowed out of her eyes. As she looked at this bowl, she felt conflicted.
After a while, she bit her lip and wiped away her tears before carrying the bowl into the room.
In the room, Gu Hai had already dressed himself and sat up.
When he saw Bing Ji enter, a slightly complicated expression flashed across his face.
“Your Majesty!” Bing Ji said respectfully.
“Bing Ji, thank you,” Gu Hai said seriously.
Bing Ji said with a faint, bitter smile, “It is this subject’s responsibility.”
Gu Hai shook his head and said, “Don’t be the Third Corps commander anymore in the future. We will take care of you in the Han Nation.”
Bing Ji’s expression stiffened. Then, she looked at the medicinal fluid in the bowl and shook her head while biting her lips. “There’s no need. Your Majesty, just forget about what happened previously. This subject is still the Third Corps commander. What happened did not happen.”
“Oh?” Gu Hai frowned as he looked at Bing Ji.
Bing Ji lowered her head and did not say anything while she approached.
“Your Majesty, this is the recuperating soup I made. Although this subject does not know how Your Majesty’s injuries healed, this recuperating soup will nourish your body. Please drink it.” Bing Ji handed over that bowl of medicinal fluid.
Gu Hai looked at the medicinal fluid and received it while nodding. Then, he brought it to his mouth.
Buzz!
Gu Hai suddenly felt a sharp pain in his ribs. The Life Ender Saber trembled, appearing resistant to this medicinal fluid.
“Hmm…?” Gu Hai raised his eyebrows.
Is the Life Ender Saber rejecting this medicinal fluid?
Then, the Life Ender Saber even formed some bones in Gu Hai’s throat, preventing him from drinking.
Poison?
Gu Hai’s pupils constricted.
“Your Majesty, why are you not drinking?” Some anxiety flashed in Bing Ji’s eyes.
Gu Hai frowned slightly.
Given the Life Ender Saber’s resistance, this is nothing good even if it is not poison. It might even be harmful to me.
However, why does Bing Ji want to harm me?
“Your Majesty, what’s wrong?” Bing Ji clenched her fist tightly, appearing extremely nervous.
Gu Hai pressed his tongue against the root of a tooth, where he had a small storage enchanted treasure that he bought in the past for contingencies.
“Nothing’s wrong.” Gu Hai smiled faintly.
Then, Gu Hai opened his mouth and drank all of the medicinal fluid in one go. However, it poured into that small storage enchanted treasure; he did not swallow it.
“Unfortunately, I drank too quickly and did not manage to taste it,” Gu Hai said.
A faint look of guilt flashed in Bing Ji’s eyes when she saw Gu Hai finish the medicinal fluid.
“It doesn’t matter whether you taste it,” Bing Ji said while biting her lips.
“I still feel somewhat unwell, so I’ll sleep for a while.” Gu Hai rubbed his temples.
Gu Hai did not know what the effects of that medicinal fluid were, so he only pretended to be dizzy for now.
Bing Ji nodded. “Your Majesty, please rest. I will protect you.”
Gu Hai nodded and pretended to sleep.
Install Bing Ji as an empress? Gu Hai set this thought aside for now.
