Chapter 18: A Breakthrough Six Thousand Jin of Strength
Despite his progress, Ye Wen didn't immediately rush back into training. First, he left the Northern Ice Plains and found a nearby city. There, he sent a letter to his grandfather, Ye Buyi, and to Ah Yin back in Saint Soul Village to assure them of his safety. He mentioned that he would be staying in the Northern Ice Plains for an extended period, so they shouldn't worry. Then he promptly threw himself back into training.
Within a month, his spirit power broke through to level 30.
At the same time, he didn't neglect his physical training. He ordered several new iron plates, each weighing hundreds of jin, and added them to his training weights. Before obtaining his second spirit ring, Ye Wen had sensed that his physical strength had reached a limit, capping around 1,300 jin. It felt as if he were restrained by an invisible shackle. But after absorbing the second ring, that restriction vanished. Within a month, his physical strength soared to an astonishing 3,000 jin.
However, Ye Wen didn't stop there. With no sign of another barrier, he suspected that his physical limits were tied to his level. He theorized that as he reached new spirit power milestones, his physical capacity expanded. This observation fit with his research: each ring added a certain ceiling that differed from person to person. Just as Ye Wen had been able to handle 600 jin with one ring while others struggled to reach 400, each person's limits varied based on their unique foundation.
In this world, those without such resilience might even explode if they tried to absorb high year spirit rings. Had Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang tried his theories on anyone but a prodigy like Tang San, his student would likely have perished upon absorbing the Mandala Snake's spirit ring.
Over the next six months, Ye Wen continued training his spirit power and body. Through daily exposure to the extreme cold, he even developed a kind of automatic cultivation method. Just as in Jin Yong's novels, where inner power could circulate on its own, Ye Wen's spirit power now moved automatically, strengthening his martial spirit without conscious effort. This background cultivation wasn't as efficient as direct meditation, but it allowed him to make progress at all times.
"Once I return, I'll set up a training environment like this for Ah Yin as well," Ye Wen thought. With a bit of saltpeter, creating an ice chilled area would be simple enough. Ah Yin could then cultivate more effectively, accelerating her maturation.
As six months passed, Ye Wen felt another bottleneck in his physical strength this time at a mind boggling 6,000 jin. With such power, he could shatter stone with a single punch.
"It's time," Ye Wen murmured, exhaling and straightening his posture.
Ready to hunt for his third ring, he reminded himself to exercise extreme caution. Despite his strength, he was still a lone spirit master in the treacherous Ice Plains. Relying on his second ring's camouflage skill, Ye Wen could avoid detection from more powerful creatures as long as he didn't venture too far into the territory of ten thousand year spirit beasts. But preparation was essential. Armed and ready, he set out once more for the Ice Plains.
Unbeknownst to him, a pair of distant eyes observed his every move.
In the distance, Snow Empress stood silently, watching. The only Ice Snow Maiden born of Heaven and Earth, she reigned supreme over all spirit beasts in the Ice Plains. A sworn enemy of humans, she couldn't understand why, months ago, she had felt an inexplicable urge to follow him and protect him.
She recalled the day she had witnessed Ye Wen slay a 1,200 year old Ice Silkworm. Normally, such an act would have driven her to eliminate him on the spot. Yet, when Ye Wen absorbed the ring, she'd felt... relief, even joy. These unfamiliar emotions had puzzled her to no end.
"Why?" Snow Empress murmured. "Why do I feel this strange impulse to protect him?"
Meanwhile, Ye Wen was making his way deeper into the Ice Plains, covering a distance of nearly ten kilometers. Given the Ice Silkworm's weakness, even those with 5,000 6,000 years of cultivation still lived in isolation, venturing out only when food was scarce in their burrows. Thus, his earlier search methods still proved effective.
Yet this time, luck seemed to elude him. After more than two weeks of searching, he found no sign of a 5,000 year old Ice Silkworm. Growing frustrated, he muttered to himself, "If only I had a beast spirit. If I could enhance my senses with a spirit possession, I'd find an Ice Silkworm in no time."
Suddenly, a calm, ethereal voice spoke out. "Looking for a 5,000 year Ice Silkworm? I know where to find one. Would you like me to take you there?"
Hearing this voice, Ye Wen's face lit up with joy, only to go rigid as the implications dawned on him. He was now nearly ten kilometers into the Ice Plains, where hunters typically worked in groups. Lone spirit masters were rare, for safety reasons, and the fact that he hadn't sensed anyone nearby could only mean that whoever spoke was of far greater strength.
Slowly, Ye Wen turned, taking in the elegant figure standing before him. Clad in white and radiating an otherworldly grace, the woman faced him unaffected by the cold, which even Title Douluo would need thick winter clothes to endure. In this era, where the peak of female spirit masters like Bibi Dong had yet to arise, such an appearance could mean only one thing she was not human.
Ye Wen's face stiffened with a trace of a wry smile as he understood. Before him stood the greatest threat in the Ice Plains: the Snow Empress, an entity with over 600,000 years of cultivation, powerful enough to rival a 99th level Ultimate Douluo.
Snow Empress's cold, regal gaze held a hint of amusement. "It seems you know who I am. Yet I remember that I am unforgiving to any humans who trespass in my territory. So, would you care to explain how you know me?"
She didn't seem hostile, but Ye Wen could feel her penetrating gaze, weighing his every thought. Lying would be impossible. In the presence of such a being, his heart rate alone would betray him. And in front of her, his body would be far more honest than his words.
Without recourse to any deception, he decided to face the truth head on.
(End of Chapter)
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