Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San

Chapter 440: The Ice Maiden Clan's Problem

"What exactly are you trying to do?" Huang Bingbing asked, her gaze icy as she watched him.

Asura spread his hands and said, "I'm not trying to do anything. If you think I want to harm the Ice Maiden clan in any way, then you don’t have to listen to me; we can end the discussion now. But I can truly provide solutions based on the situation of the Ice Maiden clan. If you think my suggestions are unreliable, we won't cooperate. Consider the five thousand naturae coins a gift; I won't take them back. With this money, you should be able to deal with the financial crisis for quite some time. So, there's no harm in listening to my advice."

Huang Bingbing had regained her composure by now, but the news of a human inheriting the Ice Nymph Transformation had clearly impacted her.

Sitting back down on the sofa, her gaze at Asura became somewhat different, more relaxed compared to before. At least now she knew that this so-called Asura's offer to help the Ice Maiden clan had a reason behind it.

"Our clan's finances are indeed in trouble. This problem stems from our origins," Huang Bingbing said calmly. "Our Ice Maiden clan was born from Eternal Black Ice, emerging as ice spirit bodies. We are naturally pure and flawless!"

She emphasized the last four words deliberately.

"Mm-hmm," Asura nodded repeatedly, knowing better than to provoke her now.

Huang Bingbing continued, "After gaining spiritual intelligence, we naturally could control ice elements, becoming masters of ice. Our clan members were born one after another, and after countless years, we formed a clan. We are one of the oldest clans in the Solstice Empire, living in the northernmost part of the Daemon Continent."

"Our Ice Maiden clan members are all female, though we don't know why. We reproduce by splitting a small part of our divine consciousness and combining it with Eternal Black Ice to nurture a spirit embryo, which is born after years of gestation."

Asura suddenly understood what was going on. "...How many years, exactly?"

Huang Bingbing replied, "About a hundred."

Asura was speechless. A hundred years to give birth? This might be the longest pregnancy period ever.

"So the Ice Maiden clan must be very powerful when they are born?" Asura said.

Huang Bingbing said proudly, "Of course. We are naturally attuned to the ice element, and we are born at the third order. We can reach the sixth order as adults even if we sleep the entire time."

Asura thought to himself, This doesn't sound particularly strong, but once more, he knew better than to voice his words.

Huang Bingbing continued, "Our Ice Maiden clan has always passed down their inheritance this way. How could we have any entanglements with humans and even produce offspring?"

Asura asked, "How many members does the Ice Maiden clan have now, and why is there a problem with your inheritance?"

Huang Bingbing listened to his question, then fell silent for a moment before saying, "Because we don't have money. We need to find Eternal Black Ice with enough age to give birth to offspring. But this requires traveling to the northernmost part of the continent, which consumes many resources for transportation and other needs. Additionally, cultivation requires resources. Although we live in the north, where the ice element is abundant, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth isn't rich enough. The densest spiritual energy is here in the Ancestral Court. So, Eternal Black Ice with a spiritual nature is becoming rarer. We need to split more of our divine consciousness to give birth to offspring. With our cultivation also facing problems, it becomes increasingly difficult to reproduce, making life harder for our clan."

Her explanation was somewhat confusing, but Asura understood enough.

"So, your original living area had sufficient spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Eternal Black Ice absorbed this energy and could naturally nurture clan members. Also, when you split your divine consciousness to produce offspring, you needed Eternal Black Ice with sufficient spirituality. But now, the quantity of this ice is decreasing.

"Additionally, for the Ice Maidens to reproduce, I understand that you must reach the tenth order, because only gods have divine consciousness to split. However, due to the insufficient spiritual energy where you live, your cultivation has slowed down, resulting in fewer gods and naturally fewer newborn Ice Maidens. And given that you lack the money to purchase natural treasures, you are stuck in a vicious cycle."

"Exactly!" Huang Bingbing nodded. Asura sure understood the crux of the issue.

He suddenly furrowed his brow, releasing his spiritual power to isolate the room from the outside.

Huang Bingbing raised an eyebrow but then relaxed, understanding what he was doing.

After isolating the room, Asura said, "I understand the problems you're facing. And... I actually know where the issue lies."

Huang Bingbing asked in surprise, "You do?"

Asura sighed. "You said our Ice Maiden clan used to be self-sufficient, right? The Eternal Black Ice was enough, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was sufficient for you to cultivate to the tenth order and continue producing offspring."

"Yes, that's right." Huang Bingbing nodded.

Asura asked, "Have you ever wondered why the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in your area suddenly started to drop?"

Huang Bingbing was stunned and silently shook her head.

From their conversation, Asura could sense that the Ice Maiden clan was very pure-hearted, just as Huang Bingbing herself had said—pure and flawless.

"The reason is simple: the fortune of the continent is gathering toward the center. Since you are on the continent's edge, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is naturally the thinnest there," Asura said with a bitter smile.

This situation was different from that of Kali City. As a prominent city, Kali City was also where fortune gathered. Although Kali City didn't have as much spiritual energy as the Ancestral Court, it still had no significant issues. The emperors of the Ancestral Court probably accounted for this when they built the main cities.

However, the Ice Maiden clan didn't belong to any main city, and the fortune of the extreme north was being siphoned toward the continent's center, making the spiritual energy increasingly thin.

This was the reason behind the Ice Maiden clan's problem.

"What do you mean?" Huang Bingbing asked, staring at him with wide eyes.

Asura explained, "In simple terms, the Ancestral Court is gathering fortune, pulling the fortune of the entire Daemon Continent and even the whole Falan Planet toward the center. This increases the fortune here, but as a result, the fortune at the edges of the continent, like in the extreme north where you live, naturally decreases. Consequently, the spiritual energy there also decreases because it follows the flow of fortune and gathers toward the center. This is the key issue you are facing."

Huang Bingbing understood this time and stared at Asura with wide eyes. "You mean to say that the Ancestral Court has been plundering our resources, causing problems in our inheritance?"

Asura nodded and said, "In principle, yes."

"Damn it! I knew it; our spiritual energy had been getting thinner and thinner," Huang Bingbing snarled, her icy face showing a rare expression of indignation. She stood up abruptly, ready to rush out.

From their previous conversation, Asura had gained some understanding of her personality and anticipated such a reaction. He quickly moved to block her path.

"Move!" Huang Bingbing raised her hand to strike him. Asura drew an arc with his right hand, deflecting her palm aside.

"Clan Leader, please don't get angry. It won't help!"