After consuming the immortal herb and acquiring her soul ring, Shui Bing'er had advanced from level 14 to level 23, and was on the verge of breaking through to 24.
It was worth noting that her growth rate wasn't quite as fast as Dugu Yan or Ye Lingling—but that was largely due to the evolution of her Martial Soul into the Extreme Ice Phoenix.
Soul masters with extreme-type Martial Souls were essentially invincible among their peers and could easily defeat higher-ranked opponents. The downside, however, was their slower cultivation speed…
Well, slower compared to monsters like Lin Xiao.
In truth, her pace still far surpassed that of average soul masters. But the soul power required to level up—and the purity it demanded—was exponentially higher than normal.
In summary:
She was incredibly powerful early on, would be even more fearsome later—but her "growth phase" would simply take longer.
Which wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
After successfully performing their Martial Soul Fusion once, Lin Xiao suggested they try again the next morning—this time with Shui Bing'er taking the lead.
They also needed to familiarize themselves with the fusion's rhythm and process, ideally gaining precise control over its power output.
A rare sunny day. The snow had stopped.
A clear sky after a storm.
"Bing'er, Lin Xiao—come back early!" Shui Shengxiao called out, reluctant to see his daughter leave.
But she simply followed behind Lin Xiao like a little duckling—obedient and adorable beyond reason.
He sighed and reminded them again:
"Don't do anything dangerous!"
"And be back before sundown!"
Wrapped in a sky-blue winter coat, Shui Bing'er waved back sweetly.
"Got it, Daddy!"
"Don't worry—I've got Brother Lin Xiao with me!"
Shui Shengxiao: "…"
He wanted to say: You know, it's exactly because you're with Lin Xiao that I can't help worrying a little. After all, who in Tianshui City would dare provoke the Shui Clan?
"Fine, Lin Xiao—take care of Bing'er."
"Of course, Uncle Shui. Leave her to me."
With a sigh, the doting father watched them disappear down the road.
"Brother Lin Xiao, when do you have to leave?" Shui Bing'er asked softly.
"I'll stay a bit longer. At least until you go back to school."
"Thank you, Brother Lin Xiao!"
"No need to thank me for that…"
Lin Xiao and Shui Bing'er walked ahead, while Granny Shuiyuehua and Uncle Li followed at a steady pace behind them.
The sight of two youthful figures striding side by side, trailed by two aging elders… it made even the old folks feel young again.
Granny Shui and Uncle Li exchanged a knowing smile.
Their destination: the secluded mountain valley Lin Xiao had scouted previously—the same place he had practiced his Flame Burst Technique.
"Focus, Bing'er," Lin Xiao said gently, taking her hand.
She still blushed, but no longer panicked like before.
Flames and frost wove together—brilliant red and icy blue. The snow piled on the ground swirled into the air. In an instant, the skies darkened with flurries, and a wave of extreme cold blanketed the area for a hundred meters in every direction.
In the midst of the snowfall, ice and snow coalesced in midair—forming a majestic, ethereal figure.
She had waterfall-like silver-blue hair, an icy crown, and a frost scepter in hand.
Her aura was noble and unapproachable—a true empress of winter.
Off in the distance, Uncle Li raised an eyebrow.
"That little girl was such a sweet kid growing up. And now she's turned into a queen? Girls really do change when they grow up…"
Granny Shui chuckled.
"Being 'sweet' isn't the most important thing. A girl only needs to be sweet to those she truly cares for. I actually feel safer knowing Bing'er keeps her distance from others."
From the moment the Ice Empress manifested, it was as if the wind and snow in the world had found their master.
Each snowflake seemed alive—obedient and loyal to her command.
The Ice Empress raised her scepter and tapped the ground.
A wave of cold energy rippled outward.
Within a hundred-meter radius, the air itself froze. Any living being caught in this zone would be turned into a frozen statue, incapable of moving.
Luckily, there wasn't anyone nearby this time—so it was a clean test.
Lin Xiao and Shui Bing'er withdrew from the fusion.
Learning from their previous experience of being totally drained, they had practiced limiting the output this time—so both still had some soul power left, and neither looked too battered.
"Another domain-type attack," Lin Xiao muttered.
"Bing'er, why don't you name this one?"
Shui Bing'er thought for a long moment, then looked up.
"Brother Lin Xiao… why don't you name it?"
"I'm not good at naming things."
What she really thought was:
If he names it, then every time we use it in the future, I'll be reminded of him. It'll be sweet and warm—like a shared secret.
And besides, Brother Lin Xiao is so smart… he'll come up with something much better.
Lin Xiao thought for a moment.
"How about… Absolute Frost: Realm of Winter Sovereignty?"
He imagined her future self: regal and serene, crowned in ice and wielding a frost scepter, ruling her snowy domain like a true queen.
"It suits you," he added.
"Yay! I love it!" Shui Bing'er beamed.
Honestly, anything he said was perfect in her eyes.
Lin Xiao did a quick comparison between the two fusion skills.
His Imperial Flame: Scorching Heaven, Boiling Sea started with a devastating flame beam for single-target annihilation, followed by a wide-area explosion—blanketing the field in demonic, hellish fire he could control at will.
Hers, Absolute Frost: Realm of Winter Sovereignty, unfolded a domain of frost. Within it, every flake of snow was hers to command. The entire area froze at her will, chilling and immobilizing everything within.
They were perfectly complementary.
One a sovereign of flame, ruling a sea of fire.
The other an empress of frost, reigning over endless winter.
Both were domain-type fusion skills, and though their soul power was still low—each skill could only be used once or twice—when they grew stronger, their power would become overwhelming.
A single opponent facing Lin Xiao or Shui Bing'er individually would already face a genius-level challenge.
But facing them together?
One had to choose: fall into the fire sovereign's burning domain, or be entombed in the empress's frozen realm.
"Bing'er… just now, in your domain, I felt like you were completely in control of the snow and ice," Lin Xiao said thoughtfully.
"They moved with your will—like you gave them souls."
Shui Bing'er nodded sweetly, her eyes glowing with pride.
She adored mimicking the people she admired—especially Lin Xiao.
Whether it was a shared catchphrase, a matching scarf, or even a soul skill that resembled his—anything that made them more alike made her happy beyond words.
Lin Xiao, meanwhile, had a more practical thought:
"If I use Flame Burst in Sovereign Flame mode…"
"Or Bing'er uses Ice Burst while in Empress Frost form…"
"…Wouldn't that be like…"
"A cow flying a plane?"
"So OP it's basically broken?!"