Chapter 84 Snow Melts and Soldiers Collapse

Overnight, the Frozen Plains completely changed.

The once vast, white world of ice and snow had turned into a muddy black land, with melted snow gathering into puddles of various sizes, leaving one knee-deep in mud with every step.

The barbarian snow-warhorses could barely move in the mud, slipping and falling from time to time, while the soldiers cursed and grumbled, their morale hitting rock bottom.

Bing Lingtian's eyes were bloodshot, his hair disheveled; there was no trace left of the Ice Emperor's majesty.

He hadn't slept all night, his eyes filled with bloodshot veins, and he gripped the now lusterless ice god spear tightly, like a beast driven into a corner.

"Pull yourselves together!" he roared at the soldiers, forcing a show of bravado to hold things together. "So what if we lost two lousy magical treasures? I am the reincarnation of the ice god; the power of my bloodline is the true strength! As long as I am here, I can freeze heaven and earth and freeze Emperor Cao Xukun's five hundred thousand troops to death!"

"Once we kill Emperor Cao Xukun, the gold, silver, treasures, beauties, and fertile land of the Central Plains will all be yours! Anyone who dares to take a step back will be executed!"

Under his coercion and inducements, the one hundred thousand barbarian cavalrymen reluctantly formed their battle lines.

Although they were dejected, seeing Bing Lingtian's ferocious face, no one dared to say a word of dissent.

"All troops, charge!"

At Bing Lingtian's command, he spurred his horse and charged out first. The one hundred thousand barbarian cavalry followed behind him, stepping through the muddy ground, sluggishly charging toward the Great Xuan military camp.

The once lightning-fast cavalry charge had turned into slow motion, with mud splashed up by the horses' hooves covering the soldiers' faces, making them look utterly pathetic.

In the Great Xuan camp, Li Tieniu lay on the stockade wall, watching the barbarian cavalry sluggishly charging from afar, laughing so hard he slapped his thigh: "Hahaha! It's killing me! This isn't a cavalry charge; it's clearly donkey-driving in the mud! That brat Bing Lingtian is so miserable; yesterday he was still showing off on his snow-warhorse, and today he's turned into a mud-footed peasant!"

"He brought it upon himself." Emperor Cao Xukun, clad in the ice gods armor with ice wings spread behind him, slowly flew into the sky.

The sunlight shone on the ice-blue armor, reflecting a dazzling light, as if a god had descended to the world. Five hundred thousand Great Xuan soldiers shouted in unison, their morale soaring like a rainbow.

When Bing Lingtian saw the ice gods armor on Emperor Cao Xukun, his eyes turned red, and he pointed at him, roaring sternly: "Emperor Cao Xukun! Return my ice gods armor to me! That belongs to me!"

"Yours?" Emperor Cao Xukun sneered, raising his hand to touch the armor on his body. "Whoever gets it, it belongs to them. Now that it's worn on me, it's mine. If you have the ability, come and take it."

"You're courting death!" Bing Lingtian was shaking with rage, suddenly plunging the ice god spear into the ground and forming hand seals. "Power of the ice god, heed my command! Ice-Sealing Ten Thousand Li!"

He used all his strength to summon ice spikes that filled the sky, shooting them toward Emperor Cao Xukun. The ice spikes were dense, blotting out the sky, looking quite imposing.

"Is that all you've got?" Emperor Cao Xukun shook his head, too lazy to even dodge. His Chaos Spiritual Power erupted from his body, forming a protective barrier of black spiritual energy. All the ice spikes collided with the barrier and instantly melted into water, dripping onto the ground.

"Impossible! This is absolutely impossible!" Bing Lingtian's face was filled with disbelief. "I am the reincarnation of the ice god! How can I not even break your defense!"

"Reincarnation of the ice god? You? Do you deserve that title?" Emperor Cao Xukun slowly raised his right hand, a ball of golden Chaos Spiritual Power gathering in his palm. "Do you think only you know how to play with ice? Today, I will show you what true power is."

Before the words left his lips, he slammed the spiritual power in his palm onto the ground. In an instant, a warm current swept across the entire Frozen Plains. The remaining ice that hadn't melted vanished instantly, and the muddy land became dry and soft. Even more terrifyingly, the cold air on the barbarian soldiers was swept away, and their ice-based abilities, which they relied on for survival, had all failed!

"My ice power! My ice power is gone!"

"What's going on? Why can't I summon ice spikes anymore!"

"It's over! Our abilities are gone!"

The barbarian soldiers were panic-stricken and in chaos. They had grown up on the ice plains and relied on their ice abilities to make a living; now that their abilities were ineffective, they were no different from ordinary people. The snow-warhorses also became anxious and restless due to the sudden rise in temperature, pawing at the ground incessantly, and many soldiers were thrown off their horses.

"Charge! Kill!"

Li Tieniu seized the opportunity and gave the order. The five hundred thousand Great Xuan troops rushed out of the camp like a tide. The cavalry galloped, and the infantry, holding long spears, charged toward the chaotic barbarian army.

On one side was the high-spirited, well-equipped Great Xuan army, and on the other were the panic-stricken barbarian soldiers who had lost their abilities; the battle had almost turned into a one-sided massacre. The Great Xuan soldiers reaped the enemies' lives like cutting vegetables, while the barbarian soldiers cried for their parents, threw away their armor and weapons, and fled in all directions.

"Don't run! All of you, come back!" Bing Lingtian swung his spear, killing a few fleeing soldiers, but he couldn't stop the routed army at all. The one hundred thousand barbarian cavalrymen were completely routed in less than an hour; some died, some surrendered, and some fled.

Bing Lingtian looked at the tragic scene before him and completely broke down. He charged toward Emperor Cao Xukun like a madman, roaring: "Emperor Cao Xukun! I'll fight you to the death!"

He used his last ounce of strength to thrust the ice god spear fiercely toward Emperor Cao Xukun. The spear carried a faint chill, but it couldn't even touch the corner of Emperor Cao Xukun's clothes.

Emperor Cao Xukun grabbed it casually, holding the ice god spear. He applied a little force, and the spear instantly snapped in two. Immediately after, he kicked Bing Lingtian in the chest, sending him flying over a dozen zhang, where he landed heavily in the mud.

Bing Lingtian struggled to get up, only to find he had no strength left in his body. Emperor Cao Xukun walked slowly to him, looked down at him from above, his eyes cold: "I said it before; in the face of absolute strength, any destiny is a joke."

"You... you can't kill me!" Bing Lingtian was scared out of his wits, begging for mercy repeatedly. "I was wrong! I was really wrong! I am willing to submit to Great Xuan and serve you like an ox or a horse! Please spare my life!"

"Spare your life?" Emperor Cao Xukun sneered. "When you went south to plunder and killed thousands of my commoners, why didn't you think about sparing their lives? Me keeping your dog's life is already the utmost benevolence."

As he spoke, he flicked his finger, and a streak of black spiritual energy shot into Bing Lingtian's dantian.

"Ah—!"

Bing Lingtian let out a shrill scream; his dantian shattered instantly, and his cultivation vanished into nothingness. He lay paralyzed in the mud, his face ashen, no longer having his previous arrogant aura.

"Drag him away and lock him up," Emperor Cao Xukun said indifferently.

The soldiers stepped forward and dragged Bing Lingtian away like a dead dog. This once arrogant Ice Emperor ultimately ended up with his cultivation completely destroyed, becoming a prisoner.

The battle ended quickly; the one hundred thousand barbarian cavalry were completely wiped out, with over seventy thousand surrendering. Li Tieniu led the soldiers to clean up the battlefield, grinning from ear to ear: "Emperor Xuan is awesome! This battle was too easy! It was resolved in less than an hour; it was simply a crushing victory!"

"Basic operation, don't get excited." Emperor Cao Xukun put away the ice gods armor. "Without the Ice God's Heart and the Ice Formation, Bing Lingtian is just a toothless tiger, vulnerable to a single blow."

Just then, the sound of horse hooves came from afar. A cavalry troop of several thousand soldiers slowly approached, led by a woman wearing a white animal-skin skirt. Her skin was fairer than snow, her features were like a painting, her long silver hair fluttered in the wind, a scimitar was tucked at her waist, and her temperament was as cold and elegant as ice.

[Ding! Detected female with purple luck: Empress Bing Yao]

[Identity: Barbarian Queen, co-ruler of the ten great barbarian tribes]

[Cultivation: Peak of Soul Formation Stage (can battle at the early stage of Void Refinement with the blessing of barbarian bloodline)]

[Favorability: 50 (Awe)]

[Special Bonus: After submission, can obtain the luck blessing of the entire barbarian tribe; offspring born will definitely have purple luck!]

Emperor Cao Xukun's eyes lit up; as expected, she had come.

Empress Bing Yao rode her horse to Emperor Cao Xukun, dismounted, and knelt on one knee, her voice cold yet carrying a trace of respect: "Barbarian Queen Empress Bing Yao, leads the entire tribe to submit to Great Xuan! I implore His Majesty Emperor Xuan to accept us!"