Chapter 335: Laying It All Out, The "God Blind" Three Rulers
"Well, hello there! Such a warm welcome, huh?"
As the green radiance dissipated over the snowy castle's plaza, five human figures were revealed.
At the forefront, Han Li smiled and waved at the gathered soul beasts, greeting them casually. Oh, that ice bear over there was still a bit short of reaching the hundred thousand year mark. It probably hadn't gone through heavenly tribulation yet, but its presence was still quite imposing.
Yet, as he stepped forward, the beasts did not attack immediately.
The reason?
The man before them looked exactly like the figure they had seen in their minds two days ago.
"Who are you?"
Snow Empress took a step forward, stopping Ice Empress before she could speak.
"Spirit Hall, Han Li."
Neither he nor his companions showed the slightest concern for an attack, casually approaching as he spoke.
"That's not what I meant. How did you do it? And what do you want from me?"
Snow Empress frowned even deeper. Their complete lack of defensive posture made her even more uneasy.
"You want to talk about this out here? That's not a very polite way to treat guests, Snow Empress. We've come a long way surely taking a tour of your castle isn't too much to ask?"
Han Li halted a few steps away from them, gesturing toward the magnificent ice castle behind her. His eyes showed genuine admiration he had to admit, she had good taste.
Snow Empress took a deep breath.
He knew her name. That meant he had come prepared.
But allowing them into her castle? That was her domain. Did they really think they had the upper hand?
She scrutinized them carefully.
Han Li still wore a calm smile. The strongest one in his group remained silent. The three young women were looking around, whispering among themselves, completely at ease.
"Fine."
She nodded.
"Xiao Bai, stay outside. Bing'er, Ah Tai, come in with me."
Turning to her subordinates, she saw hesitation in their gazes but simply shook her head.
Whatever plans these humans had, once inside the castle, they wouldn't matter.
That was her confidence as the ruler of the Extreme North.
"Please."
Without waiting for a response, she turned and strode into the castle.
Ice Empress, in her human form, and Titan Snow Demon King, appearing as a young man, exchanged glances before following her inside.
The Ice Bear King remained outside as ordered.
Han Li watched them disappear into the castle, shaking his head slightly.
"That's an interesting way to invite someone in."
Then, turning to his group, he gestured toward the open but strangely dark entrance of the castle.
"Let's go."
With that, they stepped inside.
To an outside observer, it looked as though they had been swallowed by a black void.
Inside the Ice Castle
Calling it a castle wasn't quite accurate.
The interior was more like a grand temple vast and empty, where every footstep echoed.
By the time Han Li and his group entered, Snow Empress was already seated in the central throne, though notably, not on an elevated platform.
To her left, Ice Empress and Titan Snow Demon King sat in silence, observing their guests.
Han Li, without hesitation, led his group to the right, meeting Snow Empress's gaze.
White hair, blue eyes, a flowing white dress her entire presence exuded a kind of icy elegance.
Like a spirit of the snow, perfectly embodying her frostbound domain.
"Hey, human! What are you staring at?"
Just as Han Li was observing Snow Empress, the green haired girl beside her spoke up.
Her tone carried dissatisfaction, as though his gaze had somehow tainted a goddess.
Following her voice, Han Li shifted his eyes toward Ice Empress.
Ah, Little Scorpion was quite beautiful too.
Compared to Snow Empress, she lacked that ethereal purity, but made up for it with pride and an intense presence.
Between the two, she was more like a ruler but her attitude and expression somewhat ruined the majestic image.
"What a tsundere brat. Tie her hair into twin tails, change the color to blonde, and she'd be a perfect arrogant noble girl… maybe even a haughty queen."
Han Li blinked, forming an instant judgment.
But he didn't bother responding.
"Enough, Bing'er."
Before Ice Empress could say more, Snow Empress cut her off.
Though annoyed, Ice Empress fell silent, glaring at Han Li instead.
"Now, can we talk?"
Snow Empress's voice was calm and measured.
"Of course."
Han Li nodded, immediately getting to the point.
"I came regarding what appeared in your minds two days ago. More precisely, I need your cooperation."
Unlike other soul beast territories, the Extreme North was firmly under Snow Empress's control.
Her faction, along with Ice Empress and Titan Snow Demon King, dominated most of the region, along with their subordinate species.
Thus, they were the first to react to Gu Yue's faith announcement.
When Han Li began receiving faith energy, the Extreme North was the first to sever their connection.
Even now, areas that had once been lit up in his spiritual network were beginning to dim again.
This was their response a deliberate rejection.
Snow Empress silenced the two clan leaders beside her with a glance. She had noticed Han Li's choice of words "I require." No one would dare to speak so boldly in front of her unless they had absolute confidence.
"Your reason?"
She spat out the words, her gaze locked onto Han Li, watching for his reaction.
"The reason is simple. I am the Master of the Plane, and I am about to become a god. I need faith, and I have already made a pact with the Soul Beast Ruler. This is the soul beasts' only chance to escape their fate. Does that answer your question?"
Han Li glanced at Qian Daoliu before turning his gaze back to Snow Empress.
As his words fell, Snow Empress and the other two soul beast rulers froze in confusion.
Master of the Plane? Soul Beast Ruler? They had no idea what he was talking about. They only understood becoming a god, faith, and an agreement and even those were vague concepts to them.
Han Li had intentionally kept this information from those around him before. He worried that once they began their God Trials, they might unknowingly leak the truth. But after his encounter with Gu Yue, he had finally understood the nature of the God Trials. Now, he was at ease.
The Divine Realm Committee was watching. As long as Han Li was alive, none of the gods who had left inheritances would dare to manipulate them.
As for Qian Daoliu, hiding this from him was pointless. Han Li had other plans he needed to talk to the old man and figure out how to prevent him from sacrificing himself. It was about time he learned the truth.
Originally, Han Li had planned to force everyone into this path.
But unlike the soul beasts, the Qian Clan had treated him exceptionally well for years even agreeing to let him absorb faith energy.
If Qian Daoliu refused, Han Li would accept letting Qian Renxue walk a different path.
After all, his plan wasn't guaranteed to succeed. While he had prepared a way out, he couldn't deny that there would be consequences if he failed. Leaving Qian Renxue an alternative wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
This thought had formed after the Soul Master Tournament, when he absorbed his first batch of faith energy.
And it was a viable option after all, he had already replaced the Angel God's faith. It was a case of a cuckoo taking over another bird's nest.
The final decision would rest with the Qian Clan.
It was his way of repaying them.
If he succeeded, Spirit Hall would become immortal.
If he failed, a new Angel God would still rise, and Spirit Hall's dominance over the continent would remain unchallenged.
And frankly, even if he lost, he wouldn't die.
In fact, he would be treated better than the Golden Dragon King.
The Plane and the Divine Realm wouldn't dare absorb him not when there was a chance that, if they did, he could break through again.
Otherwise, why did they think the Divine Realm's attitude toward him was so ambiguous?
A newly ascended god?
Look at Sea God Tang San was he given the same treatment? Wasn't he strong enough?
Han Li waited for a long time.
But the three rulers of the Extreme North remained silent, still lost in confusion.
Compared to the Star Dou Forest, where Di Tian understood far more, the Extreme North rulers were like lost children.
Aside from knowing that soul beasts couldn't become gods, they were completely ignorant of the truth.
"Di Tian? And Tian Meng you've heard of them, right?"
Han Li took a deep breath, looking at their bewildered expressions.
He had failed to impress them.
It was like winking at a blind person their understanding was just too limited.
Snow Empress nodded slightly. She knew of the King of the Star Dou Forest and that lucky dream eating soul beast.
"Forget it. I'll just show you."
A surge of immense spiritual power swept over everyone present, instantly pulling them into a mental link.
For a brief moment, panic filled the minds of the three rulers.
But then they realized if this human had wanted to kill them, they would already be dead.
Within the shared spiritual link, images began to play the history of the Divine Realm, Han Li's encounters with Gu Yue and Di Tian, and the truths they had never known.
When the connection was severed, silence filled the castle.
Everyone was still digesting the flood of information.
Qian Daoliu was the first to recover, frowning slightly before quickly regaining his composure.
Now wasn't the time to discuss this.
"So the Ice God never existed, huh…"
Titan Snow Demon King was shocked.
He had spent his entire life proudly believing in their lineage's connection to an ancient Ice God and a primordial Titan.
Now?
He felt like his entire existence had been a joke.
"Damn those gods! I'd love to storm the Divine Realm and wipe them all out! Even the so called 'Million Year Evolution' was a lie!"
Beside him, Ice Empress's furious voice echoed through the hall.
Her delicate fist slammed into the armrest, shattering an entire ice chair beside her.
For countless years, soul beasts had endured heavenly tribulation, believing that reaching a million years was the key to godhood.
In reality?
They were just adding more ingredients to the gods' dinner plate.
"Would you like a side of Deep Fried Ice Jade Scorpion with that? I'm sure Rong Nianbing would cook it perfectly."
Han Li held back a chuckle, turning his gaze toward Snow Empress.
"Now, tell me what is your choice?"
His calm voice echoed across the empty hall, snapping Snow Empress out of her dazed thoughts.
She took a deep breath, then met Han Li's gaze.
"So from the very beginning… we never really had a choice, did we?"
(End of Chapter)
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