"How could the timing be so coincidental?" Tang San frowned deeply. Just now, the Golden Dragon King in the Forbidden Land had begun attacking its seal.

As a law enforcer of the God Realm, he had to inspect things personally.

But in just that short time, so much had changed in the lower world—Huo Yuhao had slipped from his grasp!

Time passed differently in the God Realm; one day there equaled a year below.

Though he'd only checked the seal briefly, much had changed below.

With the feedback from the Golden Tree and Wang Dong, Tang San understood what had happened.

He had already started guessing at Snow Empress's sudden display of power; she was the first to break free of his calculations, which was not unexpected.

As for his divine sense clones left on the Golden Tree and Wang Dong, they would only act if those two were truly threatened.

Now that his plans had gone astray, Tang San's face grew darker, but his experience kept him calm. He quickly began working on a new solution.

But with the God of Destruction watching, he had to take things one step at a time.

…

"Tang San must be very confused right now."

Lu Jingming received news from Mobius about Huo Yuhao being taken away by a Holy Spirit Hall powerhouse, and couldn't help but smile slyly.

"That Golden Dragon King is interesting—even sealed, it keeps building strength. If it breaks free, it'll take several God Kings to stop it. It's much more powerful than your little silver dragon."

Herta tilted her trademark witch's hat, speaking with interest.

"Well, the Golden Dragon King inherited the Dragon God's power, so it's naturally stronger. But Herta, how did you do it?"

Lu Jingming tilted his head, curious.

He wondered how Herta had managed to let the Golden Dragon King attack its seal, forcing Tang San to respond.

"It was simple. I just fed it some Honkai energy to perk it up." Herta looked relaxed, as if it was nothing special.

Lu Jingming checked his own Honkai energy reserves and grimaced.

Not to mention how Herta had gotten into the heavily guarded Forbidden Land, but the point was—this was not a little Honkai energy. His reserves had dropped by half.

Still, if it distracted Tang San long enough to derail his plans, it was worth it.

Now that Huo Yuhao was in the Holy Spirit Hall, Tang San's plans were completely off course.

And Lu Jingming knew that after all these changes, Huo Yuhao was no longer the naive boy he had once been.

Thinking of the pseudo-Herrscher gem, Lu Jingming grimaced again.

He'd given it to Mobius to help her pick a World Serpent executive, but she'd ended up handing it to Huo Yuhao.

He knew Mobius would never give out such an item without a reason. The gem must be full of traps.

"Your little Snow Woman is here."

Suddenly, Herta spoke up. With a wave of her hand, space itself twisted and folded.

Within this spatial distortion, Lu Jingming vanished without a trace.

…

In Haiyuan City, outside a luxury villa on the sea cliffs, Snow Empress was quietly searching for Lu Jingming's aura. The moment he appeared, she sensed him and flew over like a streak of white light.

Before, Lu Jingming had been in Herta's lab, which was shielded from detection.

"Lu Jingming, I have something to ask you!" Snow Empress landed in front of him, straightforward and urgent.

"It's about the Ice Empress, right? Mobius told me. I can help her rebuild her body."

Lu Jingming glanced at the white orb in Snow Empress's hands—the Ice Empress' pure soul origin.

The Ice Empress hadn't known Huo Yuhao for long, so she chose Snow Empress with no hesitation.

But Huo Yuhao hadn't lost out—he still had the Ice Jade Scorpion martial soul and its rings and bones.

"What do you want? I'll agree to any condition."

Seeing Lu Jingming not immediately act, Snow Empress offered.

Lu Jingming smiled gently. "You misunderstand. For me, helping Ice Empress is just a bit of soul power—not worth asking for payment. We're on the same side, aren't we? But I do have a better idea."

His words were sincere. With his Black Abyss White Flower, helping the Ice Empress was nothing.

"What idea?" Snow Empress, realizing her mistake, blushed, covering her embarrassment by asking.

"You've heard of Ten-Thousand-Year Mysterious Ice Marrow, right?" Lu Jingming said softly, admiring the rare blush on her usually cold face.

"Of course. It's an ice-type treasure. Why do you ask?" Snow Empress frowned, puzzled.

She knew its reputation well—the Skydream Iceworm had become a million-year soul beast after swallowing a great deal of it.

"If I use Mysterious Ice Marrow to rebuild Ice Empress' body, the effects will be even better. She'll recover her power faster."

Lu Jingming explained patiently.

"I know, but Mysterious Ice Marrow is extremely rare. It's hard to find even a piece anywhere on the continent."

Snow Empress frowned. She understood its value. With it as the foundation, Ice Empress could easily reach Limit Douluo, and with a Stigmata, prepare for godhood.

"I know where there's plenty of it."

Lu Jingming got straight to the point.

"Really!" Snow Empress's eyes lit up, her usual coolness forgotten in her excitement.

If there was truly a large amount, not only would Ice Empress benefit, but Snow Empress herself could speed up her own progress toward becoming a god.

"Why would I lie?" Lu Jingming rolled his eyes.

He did know—there was a large reserve in the Dragon City of the Heavenly Soul Empire, deep underground.

It was accompanied by top-tier soul metals.

The Mysterious Ice Marrow would be valuable to many, so he had already planned to collect it at the right time.

"Where is it? I'll go now."

Snow Empress was impatient, her usual aloofness gone.

"Don't rush. It's in territory that belongs to someone else. We need to plan. I'll make a temporary body for Ice Empress first." Lu Jingming said seriously.

With Snow Empress's power, she could steal it by force, but he had a better plan.

"Why bother? I'll do it myself. Even if it was in Shrek Academy, the Body Sect, or the Star Dou Forest, I could take it."

After single-handedly subduing Shrek, Snow Empress had grown confident—her tone was full of dominance.

"Listen to me." Lu Jingming's gaze was firm and commanding.

His words, though few, brooked no argument.

Under his gaze, Snow Empress felt her heart flutter for some reason. She quickly looked away, hesitated, then nodded softly. "Alright."

"Don't worry, you'll get the Mysterious Ice Marrow. No need to rush. Give me Ice Empress' soul origin."

Seeing her compliance, Lu Jingming smiled gently, back to his usual kind demeanor.

"Mm."

Snow Empress handed over the white orb, showing her complete trust.