On this day, Zhu Ziyang came to a halt beside an ice lake in the third layer of the Extreme North. He was truly astonished. This was the core circle of the Extreme North, where the average temperature lingered around minus fifty degrees Celsius—yet here lay a lake, a lake that had not frozen over!
The lake wasn't large, less than a hundred meters in diameter and irregularly circular in shape. At its center stood a small island no wider than ten meters.
Zhu Ziyang cautiously approached the lake, amazed to find that the water was crystal clear yet seemingly bottomless. It was as if nothing existed within the lake water at all. The central island was actually the tip of an iceberg rising out of the lake. The summit of that icy mound stood barely a meter above the lake's surface, and at the very center of it... there seemed to be a large tree!
Such a bizarre sight immediately made Zhu Ziyang wary, but curiosity surged in equal measure. There was no mention of such a lake in the Silver Dragon Wolf's memory.
"Ziyang, this lake seems to be composed of Source-less Water!" Electrolux spoke with heavy astonishment and disbelief.
"Source-less Water? Teacher, are you sure?" Zhu Ziyang's expression turned incredulous as he stared at the lake, eyes filled with scrutiny and doubt.
"Why not test it yourself?" Electrolux replied.
"True." Zhu Ziyang nodded, extended his hand to hover five centimeters above the lake surface, and instantly released the chill of Ultimate Ice. The cold aura pierced into the lake like a sword through glass—yet not a single ripple formed.
"It really is Source-less Water!" Both Zhu Ziyang and Electrolux gasped aloud.
Source-less Water, a mythical substance said to exist only in legend, had actually appeared before them. It referred to water with no discernible origin. In this world, all water came from a source—whether rain, groundwater, or seawater. But Source-less Water? That could only be water formed from pure elemental energy. Therefore, it was also known as Pure Water.
To think the lake before them was filled entirely with Pure Water—what an incredible feat of elemental manipulation! Only Heaven and Earth itself could forge such a marvel.
Legends held that Source-less Water was a critical ingredient for refining divine artifacts and the primordial liquid for nurturing the spirits of the world.
Zhu Ziyang was shaken to his core, and his curiosity toward the island intensified. He deliberated for a moment before deciding to investigate. After all, he wasn't the kind of person to leave a treasure mountain empty-handed.
Still, he didn't act recklessly. He sent the Lich King ahead to scout the way.
The Lich King quickly flew to the island without incident. He circled it once and found no soul beasts, which delighted Zhu Ziyang—but also left him puzzled. A treasure trove like this, unoccupied? Something didn't feel right.
However, he didn't dwell on it. Perhaps the place had only recently formed, and he had simply been lucky enough to discover it first. Without hesitation, he crossed the lake under the escort of the Hell Knight and arrived at the island's center.
The island wasn't large, but its terrain was quite peculiar—high along the edges and low in the center. The outer rim of the island rose like a guardrail, enclosing the middle. At the island's core lay a flat clearing, bare except for a single towering tree roughly four to five meters tall. The entire tree—trunk, branches, and silver-white leaves—was sculpted entirely of ice and snow.
Zhu Ziyang stood before the icy tree and immediately understood its nature and function. It was a barrier.
He flew into the air and landed atop the icy tree. A bone-piercing chill surged from beneath his feet straight to his skull. As the possessor of Ultimate Ice, it had been a long time since Zhu Ziyang felt such cold. He shivered involuntarily before his eyes lit up with greed and awe.
There was definitely a treasure within that barrier!
Without hesitation, he backed away and ordered the Hell Knight and Lich King to strike. Both undead beings at Titled Douluo level unleashed their energy, bombarding the icy tree barrier. Slowly, the top of the tree began to melt.
The melting was slow—after a full hour, only a person-sized opening had been revealed. Though dissatisfied, Zhu Ziyang couldn't do much about it. After all, the Hell Knight and Lich King didn't use soul power, making them ineffective at breaking a barrier forged from it.
Gazing at the small opening, Zhu Ziyang stopped their attacks and instructed the Lich King to scout the interior.
The Lich King obediently entered. Outside, Zhu Ziyang and the Hell Knight waited anxiously.
Roughly fifteen minutes later, the Lich King returned, clearly unscathed. As it turned out, there had been no creatures inside—just some unknown plants and an ice house. No living beings had emerged from within.
After hearing the report, Zhu Ziyang chose to enter himself.
Passing through the barrier, Zhu Ziyang finally saw the island's full layout. On the flat terrain grew numerous plants—green leaves, large white blossoms with tawny-yellow stamens, emitting a faint fragrance.
"So many Snow Lotuses!" Zhu Ziyang exclaimed in amazement. "No wonder I didn't see any on the way here—they're all here!"
He was joking, of course, but the sheer quantity was no exaggeration. The Snow Lotuses were arranged in an orderly fashion—century-old ones at the edges, thousand-year ones further in, and ten-thousand-year Snow Lotuses at the center. There were over a hundred of the century-aged ones, thirty or so thousand-year ones, and at least eight or nine ten-thousand-year Snow Lotuses.
Such a concentration of Snow Lotuses would cause a frenzy if sold on the market—especially the ten-thousand-year ones, which were priceless holy herbs.
"Strange. With such density, there should've been a hundred-thousand-year Emperor Snow Lotus. So where is it?" Zhu Ziyang muttered in confusion. "Could it be... there?"
His gaze fell upon the ice house nestled near the icy tree—crafted entirely of ice and resembling a work of art.
Zhu Ziyang approached it slowly. With every step closer, he sensed a faint life force emanating from within. Someone—or something—was inside. Perhaps a soul beast. But the life force was odd: weak like a newborn child, yet also aged like someone nearing death.
Soon, he stood outside the ice house. The presence inside grew stronger. Just as he was about to open the door, a cracking sound rang out—as if something shattered.
The next moment, the entire ice house collapsed with a thunderous crash. A stream of pure white energy burst forth, shooting straight toward the barrier's exit.
"What the hell is that!" Zhu Ziyang was startled and instinctively stepped back. Then he spotted the fleeing energy stream and immediately shouted, "Hell Knight, Lich King—block it!"
The two undead immediately unleashed their powers, sealing the exit. The white stream halted abruptly and turned, flying toward the icy tree. It wanted to close the barrier!
Zhu Ziyang instantly understood its intention and, in a flash of urgency, prepared to use the right arm bone soul skill of the Silver Dragon Wolf to stop it.
But just then, Electrolux floated out from Zhu Ziyang's spiritual sea. Raising his phantom-like right hand, he gently grasped at the stream—and to Zhu Ziyang's shock, the high-speed energy flow was caught and held still, completely subdued.
Zhu Ziyang was dumbfounded, then exclaimed, "Teacher, that was incredible!"
"Hahaha! Just a lucky trick," Electrolux chuckled, clearly pleased with his disciple's admiration. "If it had already formed a physical body, I wouldn't have caught it so easily. But it's just a soul now."
"What exactly is it?" Zhu Ziyang asked, eyes fixed on the white stream. Aside from a faint life aura, it also radiated intense cold.
"If I'm not mistaken," Electrolux said with a look of amazement, "it's an embryo."
(End of Chapter)
---
This Fanfiction Has Been Completed on Patreon, There is 2 Chapters Ahead of Release for Free Memebers on my Patreon.
Support me if you like this Fanfiction.
Patreon,com/Fallen_Archangel_
(Remove comma for dot.)
Leave a 5 star Review and a Power Stone.