Chapter 69: Great Cold, No Snow
The Snow Empress began her demonstration for Jiang Bai.
She offered no verbal explanation; she simply raised her right hand with a gentle motion.
In the midst of the icy, snow-swept landscape, that slender, jade-like white palm seemed to merge seamlessly with the surrounding ice and snow.
The very next instant, her body rose into the air, drifting upward like the lightest, most ethereal goose-down snowflake.
There was no trace of a Soul Power surge—she simply ascended into mid-air, floating there naturally and gracefully.
Jiang Bai held his breath and fixed his gaze upon her.
Immediately thereafter, the Snow Empress’s raised right hand underwent a transformation.
Her palm—already as lustrous as white mutton-fat jade—now became even more translucent, even more pristine.
Her entire hand appeared to have been sculpted from the purest essence of ice and snow, radiating a faint yet heart-stopping chill.
She turned that snow-white palm toward a nearby snow-capped peak and gave it a gentle wave.
The motion was light and soft—much like brushing a single snowflake from one’s shoulder.
Yet, in the very instant of that wave...
A strange sound echoed through the air—the distinct sound of ice and snow grinding and compressing against one another.
The snowflakes, previously drifting aimlessly through the sky—seemingly fragile and harmless—were suddenly imbued with both soul and will.
They ceased their chaotic descent; instead, they pivoted in perfect unison, transforming into a myriad of miniature ice blades that hurtled furiously toward the mountain peak!
This was no mere physical impact.
Each individual snowflake carried with it an extreme degree of frigidity and a concentrated will of ice; as they struck the rocky surface, they produced a rapid, staccato clinking—like a torrential downpour drumming against a sheet of metal.
Even more terrifying was the fact that these attacks were not a mere one-time outburst, but rather a continuous, ceaseless onslaught.
The Snow Emperor’s pristine white hand seemed like an inexhaustible fount of ice, continuously channeling snow and frost to unleash an endless barrage of attacks.
The accumulated snow blanketing the mountaintop was the first to succumb—pierced, frozen solid, and transformed into a layer of rock-hard ice.
Next came the exposed bedrock; battered by the relentless assault of sub-zero temperatures, the rock’s surface rapidly fractured. Frigid energy immediately seeped into the fissures, causing the stone to freeze and crumble from the inside out.
At that very moment, the Snow Emperor’s hand gesture shifted abruptly.
All the wildly swirling blizzard winds and howling gales came to a sudden, absolute standstill.
Every single snowflake froze mid-air, suspended in the exact position it had occupied the instant before; every wisp of frigid wind halted along its flowing trajectory, appearing like a frozen, transparent ribbon.
The entire world seemed to have been placed on pause—nothing remained in motion save for the mountaintop being consumed by the ice and snow, and that snow-white hand hovering in the air.
Yet, there was no thunderous roar, no explosive blast.
That mountaintop—towering dozens of meters high—was, amidst the absolute stillness and extreme cold, completely encased, permeated, and frozen solid by a layer of crystalline, deep-blue ice. This transformation occurred from the surface inward, at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Under the sunlight, the ice crystals refracted a magnificent yet perilous luster. The entire mountaintop had been transformed into a colossal sculpture of ice.
The Snow Emperor slowly lowered her hand.
She drifted gently down to the earth, her movements light and ethereal.
The frozen storm that had filled the sky vanished, and the surrounding landscape reverted to its original verdant hue—as if that terrifying moment of absolute stillness had never occurred at all.
She turned around to face Jiang Bai, a faint smile gracing her exquisite features: "I have now finished demonstrating the essence of the Emperor’s Palm. Its core principles lie in Guiding the Momentum, Condensing the Intent, Manifesting the Form, and Establishing the Domain. Take some time to thoroughly digest what you have seen and felt today; should any doubts arise, you are welcome to come and ask me at any time."
Jiang Bai took a deep breath of the crisp, cold air, suppressing the profound shock he felt within. He clasped his hands together in a solemn salute: "Understood. Many thanks, Snow Emperor!"
That palm strike just moments ago—though seemingly gentle—actually embodied an ultimate understanding and mastery of the Laws of Ice and Snow.
Compared to the razor-sharp edge of the Emperor’s Sword, the Emperor’s Palm appeared far grander and more all-encompassing; yet, in utter silence, it could freeze all creation and obliterate every trace of life.
The Snow Emperor nodded, just about to speak further, when suddenly her beautiful eyes shifted as if she had recalled something of great importance.
She hesitated for a moment before finally asking: "Jiang Bai, there is a question I wish to ask you. When your Ice Dragon broke through the 100,000-year mark... did it undergo the Heavenly Tribulation?"
Hearing this, Jiang Bai felt a flicker of surprise, yet he answered truthfully: "It did not. When Little Ice achieved her breakthrough, it took place within the spatial confines of my tower; it did not trigger any external Heavenly Tribulation."
A look of "just as I suspected" flashed through the Snow Emperor’s eyes as she exchanged a meaningful glance with the Ice Emperor, who stood not far away. The Snow Empress spoke softly, her expression turning serious.
"Jiang Bai, Bing’er and I... have an idea we’d like to discuss with you."
She paused briefly to gather her thoughts.
"For Soul Beasts, whenever we attempt to cross the monumental threshold of one hundred thousand years of cultivation, the heavens and earth unleash a Heavenly Tribulation upon us. If we survive it, our lifespans are vastly extended and our strength undergoes a monumental leap; if we fail, our souls are scattered into oblivion, and ten thousand years of arduous cultivation are reduced to naught."
"Moreover, every one hundred thousand years thereafter, such a Heavenly Tribulation descends once again—each one more terrifying than the last."
The Snow Empress’s voice was calm, yet Jiang Bai could discern the heavy weight of gravity embedded within it.
"My current cultivation base is approaching the seven-hundred-thousand-year mark, and Bing’er is nearing four hundred thousand years. Although we have been aided by the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow and feel reasonably confident in our ability to survive the next tribulation... still..."
She turned her gaze toward Jiang Bai; within those ice-blue eyes lay a rare blend of solemnity and anticipation.
"If we could somehow circumvent the Heavenly Tribulation and achieve our breakthrough in safety, that would naturally be the ideal outcome. Therefore, we were hoping... to enter the space within your tower to attempt our breakthrough there. We wonder—is such a thing possible?"
Not far away, the Ice Empress—who had been sitting atop a massive boulder, idly dangling her short little legs—also ceased her movements. Her emerald-green eyes fixed unblinkingly upon Jiang Bai, revealing an undisguised mixture of nervousness and hope.
"I cannot say for certain whether it will work," Jiang Bai mused aloud.
"While the space within the tower is indeed extraordinary, both of you possess immense cultivation bases; the sheer magnitude of energy you would unleash during your breakthroughs would far exceed that of the Ice Dragon. However..."
He lifted his head, his gaze now resolute. "It is worth a try!"
Upon hearing his words, a brilliant radiance simultaneously erupted within the eyes of both the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress.
"Excellent!" The Snow Empress allowed herself a rare, genuine smile—one tinged with a palpable sense of relief.
The Ice Empress, for her part, immediately leaped down from the boulder and darted forward in a few quick strides.
Although she still maintained that characteristic haughty demeanor, the slight trembling of her fingertips betrayed the intense excitement surging within her heart.
Jiang Bai spoke no further; raising his right hand, he focused his will.
Amidst a swirling cascade of shimmering light, the pagoda materialized above his palm—its crystalline body translucent and pure, radiating an aura of profound mystery. The Snow Empress and the Ice Empress exchanged glances, then simultaneously transformed into two streaks of light and entered the pagoda.
Jiang Bai sat down cross-legged to rest and replenish his soul power.
...
Inside the pagoda.
The figures of the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress materialized.
Sensing the dense, pure elemental energy of the ice attribute permeating the surroundings, an indescribable surge of joy welled up in the hearts of both beasts.
"The density of the energy here... seems to be increasing even further," the Snow Empress remarked softly as she looked around in admiration.
The Ice Empress clenched her small fists, her emerald eyes sparkling with excitement. "Xue’er, let me give it a try first! Stand guard for me!"
"Mm, be careful," the Snow Empress nodded, stepping aside with a look of intense focus.
Without hesitation, the Ice Empress immediately sat down cross-legged.
With a flip of her hand, several pieces of Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow—radiating a terrifyingly cold aura—appeared before her.
Showing not the slightest bit of stinginess, she grasped one piece in each hand and began to absorb the incredibly pure ice-attribute energy contained within them with all her might.
The Profound Ice Marrow visibly dimmed at a speed perceptible to the naked eye.
A surging torrent of extreme-cold energy poured into the Ice Empress’s body; her aura began to climb steadily, and the emerald-green radiance surrounding her grew increasingly intense.
In just a quarter of an hour, the energy within the several pieces of Profound Ice Marrow was completely depleted.
The Ice Empress’s aura, too, had reached a critical threshold—much like a reservoir filled to the brim, poised to burst its banks at any moment.
She took a deep breath, and her physical form began to undergo a transformation.
The emerald-green light flared brilliantly as the Ice Empress’s petite humanoid body expanded and shifted within the radiance.
Ultimately, she transformed into a scorpion approximately 1.5 meters in length, appearing as if it had been carved entirely from jade.
Her true form—the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion!
Its body was slender, its carapace as crystal-clear and translucent as jadeite, reflecting a cold, icy luster.
Its front pincers were massive and razor-sharp, while its tail stinger curved upward, exuding a chilling aura that struck fear into the heart.
With forty thousand years of cultivation fully unleashed, the terrifying pressure of this ferocious beast caused the ice and snow throughout the entire pocket dimension to momentarily freeze in place.
Yet, the Ice Emperor did not trigger a Heavenly Tribulation.
The rules governing the world within the tower seemed to have truly acknowledged this breakthrough—or perhaps... they had shielded it from external detection.