Chapter 183 - Chapter 183 Xue'er's Luck Won't Always Be This Bad, Right?

So... an illusion like this can't trap me either!In the next instant, the entire ice field began to crack. Those respectful faces peeled off piece by piece like shattered ice. Di Tian, Myriad Demon King, Brigitte, Xiong Jun... all the figures collapsed, turning into ice shards that filled the sky.The last to vanish was the figure of the Snow Empress, but when she also turned into ice shards, the Ice Empress inexplicably felt a sense of palpitation.The surrounding scenery changed once again, but as the ripples gradually settled, the Ice Empress suddenly realized she was still in the Extreme North Land.The biting cold wind sliced through the air like a blade, and the sky-filling snowflakes obscured the horizon. The ice beneath her feet was thousands of feet thick, radiating an eternal, unmelting chill.No... that's not right.The Heaven and Earth Origin Qi here... is restless.The Ice Empress's heart sank abruptly.She was all too familiar with this aura.It was the great tribulation that every Hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast must experience when breaking through the limits of their cultivation.It wasn't a Heavenly Tribulation at the level of a hundred or two hundred thousand years, but something even more terrifying, more violent, and more fearsome..."The 700,000-year Great Tribulation."A voice sounded behind her, cold as snow and calm as water.The Ice Empress spun around abruptly.The Snow Empress stood three steps behind her, her white dress fluttering gently in the wind and snow. Her long hair was blown back by the wind, revealing her cold and peerlessly beautiful face. Her gaze bypassed the Ice Empress and looked toward the distant horizon; her eyes, which were usually as calm as an ancient well, now reflected the rolling tribulation clouds."Xue'er?" the Ice Empress's voice tightened subconsciously. "You..."The Snow Empress did not answer.Her gaze remained fixed on the gathering tribulation clouds. The Origin Qi of heaven and earth seemed to be stirred by an invisible hand, slowly rotating around her as the center, forming a terrifying vortex visible to the naked eye."How can this be! Xue'er, there's clearly still some time before your 700,000-year Great Tribulation... it clearly shouldn't have arrived so soon!"Hearing this, the Snow Empress sighed softly and finally turned to face the Ice Empress: "None of that matters anymore. What matters is... I might not survive this great tribulation. If I perish, this vast Extreme North Land will fall onto your shoulders.""Bing'er, manage the Extreme North Land well for me.""Impossible!" The Ice Empress took a step forward, the ice beneath her feet cracking due to her emotional fluctuations. "You are the Dominator of the Extreme North Land, the Incarnation of ice and snow! Even if the 700,000-year Great Tribulation is terrifying, it's impossible—"At this moment, the Ice Empress seemed completely immersed in the tense atmosphere of the Snow Empress's impending tribulation, entirely forgetting that she was undergoing the trial of an illusion."Bing'er."The Snow Empress interrupted her.Just a soft call of her name was enough to choke back all of the Ice Empress's words in her throat.The corners of the Snow Empress's lips curled up slightly into a very, very faint smile."As early as tens of thousands of years ago, I had a premonition that I wouldn't be able to cross the 700,000-year Great Tribulation. You and I both know it in our hearts; now... I'm just a bit unwilling, that's all.""After I'm gone, you must shoulder the responsibility of the Lord of the Extreme North."The Snow Empress fell silent for a moment.Then, she did something she had never done in hundreds of thousands of years—She opened her arms and gently pulled the Ice Empress into her embrace.The hug was very light, as if she were afraid that a little more force would break something. The Snow Empress's body temperature was even lower than hers, but the Ice Empress felt an unprecedented warmth within that coldness."I'm sorry," the Snow Empress's voice sounded in her ear, very, very softly. "For leaving you all alone."The Ice Empress finally couldn't hold back her tears.Crystal teardrops slid down her cheeks, condensing into ice crystals in the freezing air, falling one by one onto the ice below with a crisp sound.She reached out and gripped the Snow Empress's white dress tightly, her knuckles turning white.The tribulation clouds grew thicker, and the pressure between heaven and earth became heavier. The distant horizon had been completely swallowed by ink-colored clouds, within which lightning flickered faintly, like some ancient and indifferent eyes watching this place.The Snow Empress released her embrace, gave the Ice Empress one last look, then turned around to face the boiling tribulation clouds.Then, she took her first step.When that step landed, the entire world trembled.The tribulation clouds seemed to be provoked, surging violently. A purple lightning bolt struck down from the clouds, tearing through half the sky and illuminating the Snow Empress's cold silhouette.The Ice Empress stood where she was, watching that back walk step by step toward the center of the tribulation clouds, a sharp pain faintly rising in her heart.The Heavenly Tribulation struck down suddenly, but the Snow Empress's posture remained upright, and her footsteps didn't even falter for a moment.But immediately after, multiple bolts of lightning crashed down.The Heavenly Tribulation became increasingly violent. What fell from the clouds was no longer just lightning, but a tide of destruction woven from ice, fire, wind, and thunder. The Snow Empress's figure grew more and more blurred amidst the sky-filling tribulation light, but her pace never stopped.Finally, when another bolt of Heavenly Tribulation fell, the Snow Empress's body visibly swayed.A corner of her white dress was already torn, revealing a wound on her shoulder deep enough to see the bone. There was no blood—the wound froze instantly in the extreme cold, showing a nearly transparent paleness. Her aura was clearly in disarray, and her breathing was no longer steady.At that moment, the Snow Empress turned her head to take a look back.Across the sky-filling tribulation light and lightning, across hundreds of thousands of years of time and bonds, she gave the Ice Empress one last look.There was no sadness or fear in that gaze, only a nearly tender... apology."No!!"The Ice Empress was grief-stricken, nearly losing her voice, but she was powerless to change any of it.Facing this terrifying Heavenly Tribulation, she could do nothing.A burst of intense panic instantly enveloped the Ice Empress's heart; she absolutely could not lose Xue'er!There must be a way... there must be a way!Right! Ao Yao!With Ao Yao's diary book and the diary rewards, he would surely be able to save Xue'er!At this thought, the expression on the Ice Empress's face suddenly froze, and her heart calmed down as if a bucket of water had been poured over it.She finally belatedly realized.Everything before her was just an illusion.She had almost truly become immersed in it... just now, she had even entertained the thought of dying along with the Snow Empress!The Ice Empress couldn't help but heave a long sigh of relief—now that she had obtained the Ice God's Legacy, the great tribulations of Spirit Beasts would no longer trouble her. And with Ao Yao's help and the rewards from the diary book, Xue'er would surely be able to cross her great tribulation smoothly.Such a thing was simply impossible to happen.However... for now, Xue'er still hadn't obtained the reward for crossing the Heavenly Tribulation.She couldn't rest easy just yet.She had to make sure that Xue'er indeed obtained the reward to survive the Heavenly Tribulation before she could feel at ease!It seemed... after the Third Trial ended, she would still have to work harder and get Ao Yao to write Xue'er's name a few more times.Xue'er's luck surely won't always be this bad, right?