Soul Emperor Awakening

"Is this really called Ice and Snow City, not the Ice and Snow Tower?"

Lin Xuan was dumbfounded. He had seen many towers, but never one with such a massive footprint. The first layer alone looked large enough to hold a city of several hundred thousand to a million people. Counting upwards, the tower stood a full ten layers tall.

Though it was only ten layers tall, each layer was immense, visually estimated to be hundreds of yards high. The entire gigantic tower pierced straight through the sky, reaching far above the clouds.

’The one who built this tower must have been a Great Power. Ordinary humans could never have constructed something like this; it had to have been a peerless expert. It would be impossible for mortals to build this brick by brick.’

’This Ice and Snow City wasn’t even built from stone, but from the extremely hard Profound Iron Stone. He was absolutely certain it was built by a peerless expert, not by people with low cultivation like them.’

’But what was the point of building it like this? It was certainly beautiful and majestic, but the effort involved must have been astronomical.’

"You can call it the Ice and Snow Tower or the Ice and Snow City; either is fine. It’s full of buildings, so it’s not wrong to call it a city," Hu Hong said. "Let’s head over now. You need to maintain my clan’s aura and avoid starting fights with other members of the Demon Race. At least, not out in the open!"

Hu Hong’s tone was extremely serious; she wasn’t joking in the slightest.

Lin Xuan gazed into the distance and could indeed see many members of the Demon Race moving about the snow-covered expanse. Representatives from nearly every clan could be seen here. Most traveled in groups; very few walked by themselves. But those who did travel alone all had high Cultivation, which was what gave them the right to do so.

Generally speaking, while wars between the clans of the Demon Race did exist, things were relatively peaceful, so large-scale conflicts didn’t break out often. The Demon Race were not like those mindless Demon Beasts that would attack any intruder without a second thought. They were capable of assessing situations, and negotiation was often the best solution.

With the Fox King’s Soul Possession active, Lin Xuan’s aura changed dramatically, making him seem like a genuine Demon Fox. Once they were ready, they set off for Ice and Snow City at a run, wasting no time.

Along the way, other members of the Demon Race watched them pass but showed no intention of attacking. Not everyone in the Demon Race was itching for a fight, especially when there was nothing to be gained. Most just gave them a casual glance before turning their attention elsewhere.

When they finally arrived at Ice and Snow City and saw it up close, Lin Xuan was even more awestruck. The tower pierced the sky, its base so vast its edges were out of sight. There was no grand gate at the bottom, but rather a massive iron chain dangling from high up on the tower. That chain alone was like a small mountain hanging in the air.

Of course, the chain didn’t run the full height of the tower; it merely led to the entrance. One only had to climb it to reach the proper entryway.

Lin Xuan looked up. The massive chain alone was easily a hundred *zhang* long, an intimidating sight. It was also dozens of *zhang* wide, like a broad thoroughfare capable of holding many climbers at once. And indeed, there were quite a few members of the Demon Race climbing it: members of the Minotaur Race, the Giant Bear Race, the Black Tiger Race, and more. They all bore the characteristics of their respective clans, though their bodies were shrunk down considerably, and they all stood upright in a humanoid posture.

They almost looked like half-humans, but it wasn’t human blood that flowed through their veins. Legend had it that humans were a devolved offshoot of the Demon Race, having lost many of their ancestors’ traits, which was why their strength and innate talent had become so poor.

There was no way to verify the truth of this legend. In any case, they looked like half-humans—they had fur and claws, but they walked upright. This posture was more convenient for combat; a smaller form allowed them to better concentrate their power and presented a smaller target.

In fact, human territories had people like this as well, whose bloodlines carried the blood of the Demon Race. Blood from Divine Beasts was especially precious. The blood of the Dragon Race, for example, granted truly astounding power.

Having absorbed both Phoenix Essence Blood and Dragon Blood, Lin Xuan understood this wonder firsthand. Humans might seem average compared to the Demon Race, but this very averageness granted them an infinite capacity for adaptation, allowing them to absorb and learn a great many things.

The Giant Bear Race, for example, would find it useless to absorb Dragon Blood, as their bodies would completely reject it. For humans, however, it was different. They could fully absorb it, fuse with it, and even use it to replace their own blood.

’Of course, every race has its own formidable strengths. When their Cultivation reaches its absolute peak, they too can be called gods!’

"Whoever managed a feat of this scale must have been a peerless Great Power!" Lin Xuan exclaimed in shock. ’My view of the world has been far too narrow. Only now, seeing this for myself, do I realize how truly insignificant I am.’

"Yes. The one who built this tower was a True God of the Demon Race," Hu Hong said, her eyes filled with reverence. "I don’t know the details, but it was built by a True God of our race for the purpose of protecting all of us!" The sight was clearly just as overwhelming for her.

"Let’s go up, then."

Lin Xuan took the lead and started to climb. The moment he gripped the iron chain, a powerful gravitational force pressed down on him. For him, however, it was still relatively easy, and he continued upward without much difficulty. But the higher he climbed, the stronger the gravity grew, until it felt like a mountain was pressing down on his back.

’No wonder there’s a chain here. This pressure alone would be enough to deter many members of the Demon Race. Without sufficient Cultivation, it’s impossible to reach the top.’ By the time Lin Xuan had climbed just over a dozen *zhang*, he could already feel a force of nearly tens of thousands of pounds pressing down on him.

However, for him, this was child’s play. His physical strength was already astonishing, so this weight was nothing to him. But just because he was fine as they climbed higher didn’t mean Hu Hong was.

Her strength was no match for Lin Xuan’s, so the climb was more of a struggle for her. Still, she gritted her teeth and kept going. The red fur on her body began to emit a faint crimson glow as the Elemental Power within her circulated furiously to increase her endurance.

At first, she managed, but that quickly changed. By the time they had climbed over eighty *zhang*, Lin Xuan felt a force of a full four hundred thousand pounds pressing down! For him, it was still easy, but Hu Hong was at her breaking point, her grip on the chain failing.

"I... I must make it to the top!" Hu Hong grit her teeth, trying to persevere, but she was already at her limit. As she forced herself to pull up one more time, her hand slipped. The crushing gravity overwhelmed her, her grip gave way, and she plummeted downwards.

But Lin Xuan was faster. He shot out a hand and caught Hu Hong. His arm immediately dipped under the weight; it felt like he wasn’t holding a petite woman, but a four-hundred-thousand-pound block of iron!

Apparently, the pressure here was cumulative, so the force Lin Xuan had to bear instantly doubled to eight hundred thousand pounds! Despite the terrifying weight, he managed to hold firm.

’This threshold is harder to cross than I thought...’ Lin Xuan’s nerves grew taut.