Chapter 14: Ice Crystal Turtle!

【Ding, Goddess Ling Luochen detected. Unlock the "Capture Goddess" quest by gaining her favor!】

Shrek student... Ling Luochen?

Xu Nian'an felt like he had heard the name Ling Luochen somewhere before, or perhaps he had seen it.

"Wait... I think I remember now."

Someone from Shrek, I think I recall her appearing in the original work, though her role was small.

She belonged to the same generation as Ma Xiaotao.

But when she first appeared, wasn't she a Soul King?

Why is she appearing here at this point in time?

Has she broken through to Soul King already?

After carefully observing her appearance for a moment, Xu Nian'an attempted to analyze her age based on her features.

Her skin was fair, her figure petite, her face full of collagen... wait, it's a bit confusing; the more he looked, the younger she seemed...

At first glance, she looked sixteen or seventeen; looking again, thirteen or fourteen; looking once more, Xu Nian'an felt she was about his own age.

"Hmph!"

Whether it was because Xu Nian'an's gaze was too intense, Ling Luochen noticed him staring at her face and let out a cold snort.

Her voice was icy, as if it could freeze time.

"Young Sect Master, this won't do. If you really can't help yourself, shall I find someone for you in a moment?"

Hearing Xu Jianzong's voice beside his ear, Xu Nian'an frowned.

"No need. I just saw the Shrek emblem, that's all. Hurry up and check us in."

On the other side.

"Hehe, it seems the reputation of our Junior Sister as the 'Ice Beauty' of the Outer Court remains undiminished even outside of Shrek."

"Look at how she's got that little guy infatuated."

A woman wearing a luxurious ice-blue long dress with a prominent Shrek emblem on her chest looked at Ling Luochen with a smile.

"Senior Sister!"

The one addressed as Senior Sister put away her smile, glanced at the clothes Xu Nian'an was wearing, and then her gaze fell upon Xu Jianzong and Xu Jianyang.

She sensed that these two were not simple, and not only were they not simple, but the seven people following them were not simple either.

They were all at least at the Soul Saint realm.

It seemed that some noble disciples from a hidden sect had come out.

"Two distinguished guests, please come with us."

Soon, the hotel manager walked out from the front desk and bowed to Ling Luochen and her companion.

"Wait, it seems we were here first, right?"

Xu Jianyang looked at Xu Jianzong and the others who were still checking in ahead and immediately couldn't sit still.

No, they were clearly here first; why should they be allowed to go in directly?

Is it just because they are women, because they are pretty, or because they are from Shrek?

Who are you looking down on?

Hearing Xu Jianyang's challenge, cold sweat broke out on the hotel manager's forehead.

"I'm sorry, sir. Our manager graduated from Shrek Academy, so... these two are his alumni. I hope you can understand."

"Hahaha, everyone who comes to stay at my Luoyang Hotel is my friend. I am truly sorry for the neglect. How about I give you all a thirty percent discount on all future stays at our hotel?"

On the second floor, a middle-aged man with a smile on his face slowly walked down the stairs.

The middle-aged man nodded at Xu Jianyang, and Xu Jianyang also nodded and turned around, signaling that the matter was settled.

What else could he do? They knew each other; they were alumni.

If someone gives you face, you take it; if someone gives you a step down, you take it.

Inside the hotel VIP room.

"Why did you get into a conflict with them?"

The middle-aged man said after slowly lighting a cigarette for himself.

"Senior Brother, it's not that we wanted to cause trouble..."

Inside the room.

Xu Nian'an let out a long breath.

A chance encounter with no interaction meant no favor, and naturally, he couldn't unlock the "Capture Goddess" quest.

Ling Luochen... sigh, forget it. Once he reached Shrek Academy, he believed all problems would be solved.

In a daze, Xu Nian'an fell asleep.

In his dream, after the soul ring hunt was over, he successfully joined Shrek Academy, met Jiang Nannan again, their favorability soared, they successfully confirmed their relationship, hand in hand, a rented room, time passed, holding hands, kissing, hugging, rubbing, but not going all the way...

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In the dream, the figure he was so familiar with was constantly rising and falling.

Just as it reached the critical moment, a series of urgent knocks on the door suddenly rang out.

Startled awake from his sweet dream, Xu Nian'an slowly opened his eyes.

Leaving the luxurious, soft bed, he opened the door to see Xu Jianzong's old face.

"Young Master, get up and eat. It's time to set off."

Inside the five-star Luoyang Hotel, there was not only a place to stay but, of course, a place to eat as well.

As for the taste... I don't know if it's because it's the first time eating Soul Beast meat prepared in such a special way, but Xu Nian'an felt it was truly amazing.

"Young Sect Master, look."

Just as Xu Nian'an was eating with gusto, Xu Jianzong suddenly leaned over and poked Xu Nian'an with his large elbow.

With a slight frown, Xu Nian'an looked in the direction of Xu Jianzong's gaze.

"It's them..."

The people who had arrived were none other than the two from Shrek, Ling Luochen and her companion.

However, what surprised Xu Nian'an was that following beside them was the middle-aged man from yesterday, the manager of this hotel.

Besides this manager, there were seven or eight people following behind, wearing mismatched clothing, yet each of them looked extraordinary.

"Shrek is truly worthy of being Shrek; they can summon a Soul Saint squad in such a short time."

Hearing Xu Nian'an's mutterings, Xu Jianzong smiled.

"Perhaps we might even see them again in the Extreme North."

Upon hearing this, Xu Nian'an did not speak again and tightened his coat; Luoyang City was near the Extreme North, and the temperature was extremely cold.

In the hotel, inside the room, Xu Nian'an hadn't felt much, but while eating by the window, he was so cold that even snot bubbles froze out of his nose.

He circulated his soul power to warm his body, which made it a bit better.

The Extreme North, outer perimeter.

"Black Ball! What kind of hellish place is this? It's truly freezing."

Listening to the complaints coming from beside him, Xu Nian'an didn't know why, but he suddenly felt it wasn't cold anymore.

"Young Sect Master, are you not cold?"

Seeing Xu Jianzong leaning over with a grin, constantly paying attention to his physical condition, Xu Nian'an shook his head and was just about to explain when Xu Jianyang's voice rang out.

"Nian'an's bloodline awakened, and his martial soul evolved into the Ice Black Tortoise, possessing the Extreme Ice attribute."

"Arriving in the Extreme North is no different from returning home for him; if you really have nothing to do, go find a suitable Soul Beast for Nian'an sooner."

After hearing Xu Jianyang's words, Xu Nian'an was stunned.

Right... that's right, was he stupid? He had been using his mortal flesh to resist the cold wind all morning, when he clearly possessed the Extreme Ice attribute.

At the very least, at the very least, he still had his Vermilion Bird martial soul; the Extreme Fire attribute was a given, right?

No wonder Xu Nian'an had been walking through the Extreme North for an entire morning, and as it was about to be noon, he hadn't felt cold at all; it turned out the reason was this.

"Alert, we have a situation!"

Arriving before a forest frozen by ice, Xu Jianyang signaled to stop because there was a situation.

His gaze swept over the few caves not far away, then landed on the lake in the center of the forest that had been broken open.

That's right, there was actually a lake in the Extreme North; absurd, right?

Very absurd; logically, with the temperature here, a lake shouldn't appear at all.

But it had appeared nonetheless.

The surface of the lake rippled, and after a short while, a turtle-type Soul Beast covered in ice crystals appeared.

It cautiously poked its head out of the water, took a look around, and after finding no enemies, it slowly emerged from the water, followed by more than twenty little ice crystal baby turtles behind it.

They weren't very big, only a few dozen centimeters, which was a far cry from the five-meter-long ice crystal turtle in front.

"Fourth Elder, Fifth Elder, according to sect records, the ice crystal turtle is an ice-attribute turtle with extremely strong defense, and it grows slowly."

"Ten years in, its size won't exceed one meter; after a hundred years, its size usually won't reach two meters; only after reaching a thousand years will it grow by one meter every thousand years."

"In other words, the age of this lead ice crystal turtle has already reached five thousand five hundred and fifty-five years!"

PS: (I probably need to write about two more chapters for the Extreme North, ensuring that I maintain the plot progress before chapter twenty to enter Shrek Academy, and then I can show off.)

If I write something poorly, feel free to point it out; if there are typos or similar things, you must say so if it looks uncomfortable. I can't guarantee anything else, but I am one thing: I listen to advice.)

(End of this chapter)