Douluo Continent: I possess astonishing wisdom as I control energy!

Chapter 42 Why does the Snow Empress seem so easy to fool?

Generally, when a woman tells you, "I'm willing to pay any price," she usually only really wants to pay one price.

But Xue Di is not human; she is a soul beast.

She truly wanted to give everything in exchange for the protection of the far north and for the Ice Emperor to survive the tribulation.

Kongming quietly watched the Snow Empress, and seeing her posture as if she were about to sacrifice herself for her people at any moment, a strange sense of surprise arose in his heart.

This ruler of the far north is undoubtedly powerful, but his temperament is a bit too simple and straightforward.

This completely unguarded entrustment gave him the feeling that he could easily control and manipulate her at will. Did she seem so easy to fool?

Indeed, compared to humans, soul beasts are actually more pure. Well, this purity is both a compliment and a criticism.

but

"I reject."

Under the expectant yet resolute gaze of the Snow Empress, Kong Ming'an calmly rejected her proposed deal.

These three simple words were like an ice pick piercing the Snow Empress's heart, which had just begun to ignite hope. A look of astonishment flashed across her beautiful face, and then the light in her icy blue eyes dimmed at a visible speed.

Her long eyelashes drooped slightly, Xue Di pursed her lips, and her eyes showed disappointment, but no resentment.

After all, she herself knew that her own worth was not enough to pay for the "promise to protect the far north" and the "method for the Ice Empire to survive the heavenly tribulation".

Her so-called "giving everything" was just her way of taking a gamble, but clearly, the other party wouldn't lower the price just because she was going all in.

Seeing Xue Di's emo expression, Kong Ming'an smiled slightly and softened his tone a bit:

"Disappointed already?"

"..."

The Snow Emperor remained silent, only slightly raising her icy blue eyes.

Those eyes were still cold and pure, but their light was visibly dim, and they seemed inexplicably broken.

Kong Ming'an's gaze was calm, yet he took the initiative to move slightly closer, his voice soft and gentle:

"Actually, you are capable of possessing enough value to pay for everything."

"Can I?" Xue Di murmured, her icy blue eyes filled with confusion.

Undoubtedly, the Snow Empress is extremely powerful, but in certain matters, she seems unusually clumsy, or perhaps naive.

Tsk. How come he seems even easier to fool! And why do I feel inexplicably guilty?

Kong Ming felt a strange unease, but he quickly dispelled it and calmly met Xue Di's eyes, continuing to speak with a slightly serious tone.

"Snow Emperor, my refusal is not a denial of your value, nor is it an unwillingness to make a deal."

"Your current value in my eyes barely matches my promises, but that's only your current value."

"If you want more, if you want not only the safety of the far north, but also the safe passage of the Ice Emperor through his tribulation, then you need to show me more corresponding value."

"More, in value?" Xue Di's eyes brightened slightly.

“Yes, value,” Kong Ming’an explained patiently, as if guiding a student.

"It could be you becoming stronger and a more reliable asset to me, or it could be the knowledge you gain that is unique to you, or it could be the indispensable help you can give me in the future."

"All of the above can be converted into the value you use to exchange for the necessary chips."

Xue Di's eyes brightened slightly, and she quickly understood Kong Ming'an's meaning. If she was not valuable enough now, then she should work hard to improve herself until she was valuable enough. Then, she could give everything she had to get what she wanted!

She looked at Kong Ming'an, a genuine gratitude showing in her cool eyes, "...Thank you."

"No need, it's just mutually beneficial."

Kong Ming'an smiled slightly, extending his right hand, palm up, in an inviting gesture, his tone slightly gentler.

"So, are you willing to make this deal?"

Xue Di's gaze fell on his outstretched hand, and she was slightly taken aback. But as if possessed, she raised her own hand and gently placed it in Kong Ming'an's palm.

Just as she was about to answer, Xue Di suddenly noticed something was wrong.

She lowered her gaze to the hand that was gently resting in someone's palm.

Contrary to expectations that the boy might be affected by her coldness and thus involuntarily withdraw his hand,

She didn't notice any discomfort in the boy; on the contrary, she felt the warmth from his palm.

That wasn't the usual sweltering heat, but rather an indescribable, inclusive, and peaceful temperature.

The extremely pure and potent ice and snow energy within her body not only did not produce the slightest suppression or rejection reaction, but instead emitted a strange sense of harmony.

It seems that her ultimate ice and snow do not reject the boy in front of her; in fact, she seems to favor him.

The Snow Empress's expression changed slightly. She had only vaguely sensed this kind of harmony before, when facing the Ice Empress, who was the ultimate form of ice.

But that's because of the natural affinity between energies of the same origin.

Why would she feel this way about a human? After all, the boy in front of her isn't even an ice-attribute soul master!

Xue Di fell into thought, watching the two clasped hands with a hint of inquiry in her eyes.

Kong Ming'an was unaware of the Snow Empress's change; at that moment, his attention was completely drawn to her hand.

The first sensation of Xue Di's hand was that it was icy cold, but not bone-chillingly cold. Instead, it was a unique touch that was smooth, soft, and delicate, like a piece of fine jade that had been nurtured for a long time and was worthy of being played with.

Well, it's roughly a bit softer and cooler than Miss Meng's hands.

But that's not what drew his attention.

What truly attracted him was the incredibly perfect and harmonious energy structure of the Snow Empress's body, which he could perceive more clearly from an "energy perspective" through contact and the unintentional fusion of energies.

He was somewhat mesmerized, as if appreciating a unique work of art, his eyes revealing pure inquiry and admiration. But in Xue Di's eyes, this seemed to carry a slightly different meaning.

Xue Di suddenly seemed to remember something, her eyes brightened slightly, and she looked intently at Kong Ming'an, her tone carrying a hint of probing.

"Are you perhaps a spirit beast that has undergone a transformation?"

Kong Ming'an, who was immersed in admiring the perfect energy structure, was taken aback by this abrupt question.

"what?"

He instinctively tried to let go and step back, but Xue Di didn't release him. She grabbed him back and took a step closer.

With a mixture of curiosity and anticipation, Xue Di's tone held a hint of joy at seeing her own kind, along with a strange sense of aggression, as she asked again.

"Did I just say you're a soul beast who has undergone rebirth?"

Kong Ming'an heard clearly this time, and unconsciously blinked.

Am I not human-like?

And why does Xue Di seem a little off?

Chapter 43 Snow Empress: When are you going to test me?

Xue Di's logic was actually very simple: since her soul power had created a harmonious connection with the boy, then...

Perhaps the boy is similar to her, the Ice and Snow Maiden, a kind of naturally born soul beast, and the reason he looks human now is perhaps because he is a soul beast in human form.

When Kong Ming'an heard Xue Di's strange reasoning, he didn't know how to respond, but he guessed that it was due to the special nature of his own martial soul.

After much explanation, Kong Ming'an finally managed to clarify to Xue Di that he was indeed human, but possessed a special martial soul.

The Snow Empress offered no comment, her icy blue eyes still holding a look of skepticism.

Clearly, Xue Di didn't completely believe Kong Ming'an's explanation, but she eventually nodded slowly, temporarily accepting it.

After the brief interlude, a contract, provided by Electrolux and personally drafted by Kong Ming'an, slowly fell before Xue Di.

Xue Di blinked, her gaze falling on the contract in front of her.

The terms of the contract are very clear, mainly consisting of two parts. The first part, which is the most important, is Kong Ming'an's promise to provide protection for the far north.

In this part, she will need to continue acting as Kong Ming'an's bodyguard, eliminating any potential threats to his life.

At the same time, she would also serve as Kong Ming'an's observation subject and as a sample. She didn't quite understand this, but Kong Ming'an explained to her that all she needed to do was sit quietly, and he would sit to the side. It sounded quite simple.

The most important part of the contract was fine, but Xue Di did not breathe a sigh of relief. Instead, she continued to look down at the equally important supplementary clauses.

This part of the terms is a bit more complicated.

In short, she needs to submit information on all the "soul skill modules" she possesses, regularly provide samples of soul power, blood, and other body tissues, and assist Kong Ming'an when requested to do so.

All of the above is entirely voluntary; she has the right to refuse. However, as long as she does these things, her efforts will be recorded and converted into specific "value" points.

Once these values ​​accumulate to a certain amount, Kong Ming'an will fulfill her request and help the Ice Emperor overcome the Heavenly Tribulation.

According to Kong Ming'an, she had become his employee, and these values ​​were equivalent to wages.

Roughly calculated, even if she takes the lowest salary, without any commission or bonus, she only needs to "work" for about ten years to get Kong Ming'an to help the Ice Emperor overcome the Heavenly Tribulation.

For her, ten years is just a blink of an eye, and she can accept it completely.

She carefully "read" the contents of the contract, which was formed from spiritual power, and read it over and over again, a complex expression flashing across her delicate face.

These terms were much more lenient than she had expected. In fact, the other party could have easily drafted a much harsher contract, or even secretly laid traps.

Can.

It seems not?

She raised her eyes to look at Kong Ming'an, her tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible confusion:

"Are you really not one of my kind?"

"No, it really isn't."

Kong Ming'an's tone was slightly helpless.

Xue Di stared at him silently for a moment, a flicker of light in her icy blue eyes. She glanced at the contract, then at Kong Ming'an, and with a hint of suspicion, she suddenly asked in a low voice:

"Really?"

".real."

Kong Ming'an's tone was more serious this time.

Xue Di remained silent, but her doubts lingered in her heart.

According to her logic, if you weren't different from me, would you have to be so fair to me?

If she were human, wouldn't it be right to kill her, take her spirit ring, and extract her spirit bone? Even if that's not the case, finding a way to enslave her would be the normal thing to do, why be so fair?

Snow Empress was influenced by stereotypes about humans, but when she looked at Kong Ming'an, she inexplicably had the thought that "he might be different from other humans."

She pursed her lips, a slight conflict stirring within her, yet she inexplicably missed Hyotei.

If Hyotei were with her right now, she could at least discuss things with him instead of having to think for herself.

Shaking her head, Xue Di finally decided to put the matter aside for the time being. After all, she would always be by his side in the future, and there would always be time to explore it.

Ultimately, she was able to see the real him.

She stretched out her hand, and a wisp of her soul power, imbued with the essence of ice and snow, adhered to her fingertips. Then, she gently left her name on the contract in front of her.

Instantly, the contract took effect, radiating a dazzling golden light, which then split into two streams of light that entered the bodies of Kong Ming'an and Xue Di respectively.

Xue Di sensed it briefly and could clearly feel that a connection had been established between her and Kong Ming'an. At the same time, the contents of the contract were clearer than ever before.

Almost instinctively, Xue Di breathed a sigh of relief.

At this moment, she has already accomplished one of the two things she cared about most, and the other only requires her to work hard!

Beside him, watching Xue Di's eyes burning with fighting spirit and full of energy, Kong Ming'an nodded slightly, a hint of satisfaction showing in his eyes.

If you want your employees to work wholeheartedly for you, you naturally need to motivate them. For example, giving them half of their bonus upfront can be extremely effective.

After a short while, once they were sure there was nothing more for them to do, Kong Deming and Electrolux left one after the other, leaving the laboratory to Kong Ming'an and Xue Di.

With Xue Di, a being comparable to a Limit Douluo, acting as their protector, Kong Ming'an's safety was almost completely assured, and the two of them could now peacefully go into seclusion.

Meanwhile, the Snow Empress had recovered somewhat from the weakness she had just experienced after breaking the seal of the God Sealing Platform.

In the original novel, the Snow Empress was sealed by the Conferred God Platform for a long time. Only after Huo Yuhao forcibly smashed the outer shell of the Conferred God Platform was the Snow Empress finally able to break the seal and see the light of day again.

Under these circumstances, Xue Di's own strength had declined drastically, and she couldn't even deal with Du Busi, a level 98 Super Douluo, so she had no choice but to self-destruct.

But the current Snow Empress is obviously different. She was not sealed by the Conferred God Platform for too long, and the way she left the Conferred God Platform was not by forcibly breaking the seal from the inside, but by Kongming An actively releasing her from the outside.