Black Charcoal

Wind drove thunder and lightning, shaking the riverbanks; the fierce and steadfast White Snake tempered her Dao body.

Before a heavenly tribulation, perseverance mattered most.

Lightning fell again, splitting flesh and tearing skin to reveal blood-soaked snake bones. Electric serpents and sparks crawled over her body before dispersing into the earth. The immense pain continuously battered White Snake's soul, nearly making her faint. She knew she absolutely could not lose consciousness now, or death would be certain.

The vortex of black clouds in the sky was still gathering power. White Snake could feel that the final bolt of lightning was coming. If she endured it, the sea would be broad and the sky boundless; if she failed, this would be her end.

All she could do now was raise her stubborn snake head and let Heaven know that on the ground below was a tiny White Snake who refused to submit!

She opened her jaws and issued a warning toward the sky, exposing two sharp venomous fangs!

Xu Ling, Yang Mu, and the others watching from afar were dumbstruck. They feared the might of Heaven, yet admired even more the unyielding White Snake standing between Heaven and earth. In that hazy moment, everyone's state of mind unknowingly rose...

"Hiss!"

Her savage hiss summoned innate thunder and lightning. A mysterious violet bolt descended from the vortex of dark clouds, instantly smashing White Snake's raised head to the ground and driving her into a pit. The violet lightning directly burned White Snake into a charred mass!

The vortex dispersed, and sunlight spilled through gaps in the dark clouds.

Xu Ling, Yang Mu, and the others hurried up the hill, then stood staring helplessly at the blackened object in the pit.

"Waaah... Big White has been burned into charcoal..."

Tender-hearted Xu Ling burst into loud sobs. Yang Mu also felt that things had gone somewhat beyond expectations. That long black object in the pit—wasn't it just charcoal? He had never expected Heaven's might to roast Big White alive.

"Big White has turned into Big Black... waaah..."

Yang Mu's face darkened.

Suddenly, the sound of something cracking rang out.

Crack...

Yang Mu raised a hand to stop Xu Ling's crying. He pricked up his ears and stared intently at the long black charcoal in the pit. That sound had been faint, but it had appeared too abruptly. Could Big White possibly still be alive?

Then everyone heard it.

Crack, crack.

The sound truly came from the charcoal. Black cracks split open across what seemed to be the snake's head, revealing white snake scales within, fine and lustrous as jade!

The charcoal shattered apart, revealing a snake head. It was White Snake. After fighting with all her might, she had successfully passed the tribulation.

Xu Ling happily wanted to rush forward, but Yang Mu was quick enough to grab her.

"Don't move recklessly."

White Snake was shedding her skin. Within the lightning tribulation, Heaven actually gave more than it took—her physique had strengthened, and her cultivation had advanced further. For snakes, the most direct sign of progress was shedding their skin. Simple and clear, it signified transformation.

The charcoal broke apart, and a larger White Snake emerged. Having escaped death, White Snake was overjoyed. From now on, she could at least live for a very, very long time without worrying about ascension. It was best not to expect too much from such things anyway. Besides, even if ascension brought another heavenly tribulation, who knew how many years from now that would be?

Her snake head lifted high. She had succeeded in passing the tribulation!

In truth, this tribulation had been a Form Transformation Tribulation. It meant that after passing it, she could wield the Transformation Technique. Most commonly, demons transformed into human form and walked among the mortal world. Those countless tales in unofficial histories of Fox Spirits and scholars, or Wild Boar Demons coming to the door to become sons-in-law, were about precisely this. Of course, most demons would not idly run into the human world to show off. Otherwise, sooner or later, they would be demon-subjugated and have their heads hung from city gates.

The disturbance caused by the tribulation soon settled down. White Snake still guarded the gate or went to eat Failed Pills every day, occasionally sneaking onto Zuowang Peak to learn by watching. Xu Ling and Yang Mu, however, perhaps frightened by Heaven, became far more earnest and diligent in their cultivation. Their changes were immense, greatly pleasing Yu Rong.

As for transformation, she had to figure it out herself. The idea that one would be struck by lightning and immediately turn into a human made little sense. After suffering that much pain, how could anyone have time to control every bit of flesh and skin across their body into changing shape?

After being struck by lightning, one merely gained more proficient control over energy and could use it to adjust one's body into another form. Permanently abandoning a beast's form to become human was even more meaningless. Everything under heaven had its reason for existing. There was no need to abandon one's own race and become something neither human nor beast. Humans were humans, demons were demons—unchanged since time immemorial.

White Snake also knew she could transform after passing the tribulation, but she was in no rush. Whether she changed or not did not matter. She had already spent sixty-five years in this xianxia world and had long grown accustomed to the habits of a reptile. She took it all lightly.

There were no cultivation methods for demon beasts within Chunyang Palace, so White Snake simply switched to cultivating Chunyang Daoist techniques—and achieved considerable success.

If the Chunyang Patriarch learned that a snake was cultivating his techniques, who knew what expression he would wear.

Qingxu Palace's main hall.

Yu Rong sat in the seat of honor while Xu Ling and Yang Mu stood respectfully before her.

"After witnessing Snake Child's tribulation, what insights have you gained? Ling'er, you speak first." Yu Rong's expression was stern.

Xu Ling cautiously glanced at her master, feeling that she could not possibly get through today by acting cute.

"This disciple... feels that Big White had it very hard..."

"Mm. What else?"

"And... and..."

Xu Ling looked up at Yang Mu with pleading eyes, hoping her senior brother could help draw their master's attention away. Unfortunately, Yang Mu remained cold and motionless, with no intention whatsoever of covering for her.

"Mu'er, you speak."

"Yes, Master."

Yang Mu first saluted, then calmly sorted through his thoughts before speaking.

"First, one can easily be disturbed while passing a tribulation. One must prepare a foolproof plan, or make the other party wary enough that they dare not act rashly. Second, my junior sister and I lack Jianghu experience. We did not even notice those people lurking behind us."

"Third, cultivation is cultivation against Heaven. What we cultivate is that single thread of life. No matter how difficult it becomes, we cannot give up."

"Fourth, heavenly tribulations are tests for cultivators like us. We must gather our courage and face them. If we do not even have courage, then what immortality are we cultivating for?"

Yu Rong nodded, very satisfied. Though there were slight shortcomings, it was already excellent for someone his age to say so much.

"Very good. Cultivation is not easy, and Snake Child has had it even harder than you. The human race lives in comfort and possesses abundant resources. Even when cultivating, you need not worry about a Form Transformation Tribulation, much less fight and struggle to survive every day. Humans are Heaven's favored children. Do not become arrogant because of it. Snake Child has experienced countless crises to survive until now. The more setbacks she faced, the braver she became. You must study this carefully."

The two young people nodded in agreement.

"Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. In a few days, you will go down the mountain for experience."

Yu Rong had originally thought that her two disciples would be miserable and unwilling to leave if she sent them down the mountain. Who would have thought that the moment Xu Ling heard the words "down the mountain," her eyes shone and her face lit up with excitement? Even Yang Mu, with his iceberg expression, revealed a smile at the corner of his mouth. For a moment, Yu Rong could hardly believe it. Were these two really her personal disciples?

"Then... when are we going down the mountain?" Xu Ling asked carefully.

Yu Rong could not help sighing that once children grew up, they no longer stayed home. She rose and left, her words drifting into her two disciples' ears from afar.

"When Snake Child can transform, the three of you will go down the mountain together."

"Yay~! Hurry and find Big White. Tell her to transform quickly so we can go down the mountain and have fun. I've wanted to see Chang'an for ages."

In a flurry of motion, Xu Ling dashed toward Lingxu Palace. At this time, Big White should be waiting there for the disciples of the Lingxu branch to fail at alchemy so she could eat the Failed Pills. Probably the only wish in all of Chunyang Palace that left the Lingxu disciples speechless was White Snake's.

Lingxu Palace.

The steward managing Failed Pills and Medicinal Dregs looked at the Failed Pills in his hand and shook his head. For some reason, the failure rate had risen considerably lately...