Am I Fated with Heavenly Tribulations? (Bonus Chapter for Rewards, Late

Inside the ice cave Ye Qing had casually carved out, Gang Zong used his body to block the cold wind outside. Ye Qing found his sycophantic manner rather amusing. After all, this was his first time encountering this type of Spirit Beast, and apparently his first time dealing with a male Spirit Beast countless times weaker than himself.

"Gang Zong, didn't you say Woolly Pigs live in groups? Why are you alone?"

"None of my kin are as clever as I am. Who knows which ravine they're hiding in now? As long as I can rob enough food once, I won't have to worry for the entire blizzard season. When spring comes, I can challenge the Woolly Pig King."

"Are you strong?"

"Hehe, I can't compare to super Spirit Beasts like you, sir, but among the younger generation, I'm quite strong..."

As they chatted idly, the sky gradually darkened, and the White Hair Wind Gang Zong had mentioned had more or less passed. Gang Zong rose, shook the ice crystals from his fur, and led Ye Qing back onto the journey.

Several days later, atop a Profound Ice Platform in the Core Area of the Extreme North, a humanoid woman stood there. Her long hair was flawlessly snow-white, falling straight behind her from her head all the way to her feet. Her sky-blue eyes were ethereal and clear, as though they contained not the slightest emotion. Nothing on the ice plains seemed capable of hiding any secret from those eyes. Her slender, exquisite figure was flawless. Though her white dress bore no decoration whatsoever, it made her seem so noble and peerless. Impeccable, like a cold plum blossom in winter snow, exceptional and proud, defying frost and snow.

This was the Snow Empress, foremost among the Extreme North's Three Heavenly Kings. Her true form was the Heavenly Snow Woman. As a Spirit Beast, her birth had been extraordinarily difficult. The purest ice element of the Extreme North had nurtured her. Compared to a Spirit Beast, she was more like an elemental Elf. As a daughter of heaven and earth, she had been born with ultimate ice affinity. Yet compared to other Spirit Beasts that possessed intelligence from birth, the formation of her consciousness had taken far longer, scarcely less than the time it took for her to be born.

At that moment, the Snow Empress stared expressionlessly at the black clouds slowly gathering in the sky. She knew they were a Heavenly Tribulation, the tribulation marking her six-hundred-thousand-year limit. Yet within those eyes that had never shown the slightest ripple lay an indescribable loneliness. Born of heaven and raised by earth, she had known nothing of family from the moment of her birth. Only ice, snow, and solitude had accompanied her.

The heavens were her mother. Did the Heavenly Tribulation mean her mother disliked her? The thought rose in the Snow Empress's mind, but this was not her first Heavenly Tribulation, and the feeling quickly passed. Still, for some reason, she felt that this tribulation was somewhat wrong.

"Gang Zong, are we at the Core Area?"

"More or less. The Core Area is up ahead. Sir, are you going to challenge Lady Snow Empress?"

"Yeah, just spar a little... Gang Zong, do you have something called Black Hair Wind here?" Ye Qing suddenly interrupted himself with this question. Gang Zong had never heard of it. Black was rare here; in some years, they would not see darkness even once. The entire world was a boundless expanse of white.

"No. What's that?"

"No? Then that really is a Tribulation Cloud. Am I really this fated with Heavenly Tribulations?" Ye Qing sighed as he watched the Heavenly Tribulation slowly gather in the distance. When he had first left the Star Dou Great Forest, the first thing he encountered had been a Heavenly Tribulation. Later, Di Tian and the others had also begun undergoing tribulations, and he had even been caught in the crossfire.

And now that he had come to the Extreme North, another Heavenly Tribulation was right in front of him. Though this one was not striking him, what if he got caught in it again? Ye Qing wondered whether he would encounter more Heavenly Tribulations if he ever went to places like the Evil Demon Forest or Sunset Forest. But then he noticed Gang Zong had suddenly stopped walking.

"Why did you stop? Didn't you say the Snow Empress was about to undergo a Heavenly Tribulation? It's probably hers. I won't take advantage of someone in trouble, so don't worry." Ye Qing thought Gang Zong was worried about the safety of Northland's strongest Spirit Beast.

"No, sir, I'm not worried about that. I just think this Heavenly Tribulation seems to be coming for you!" After hearing Gang Zong's words, Ye Qing looked up. Sure enough, the dense Tribulation Cloud was moving toward him. He immediately felt that things were not looking good.

"I'm just passing through. Is this really necessary?" Just then, a thick bolt of lightning struck down from the sky.

"Gang Zong, stay put and don't move. If you run around and get cooked by lightning, don't blame me!" With that, Ye Qing leaped into the air to meet the Heavenly Tribulation. Otherwise, Gang Zong really would become a roasted suckling pig.

Perhaps because he had already undergone Shape Transformation, this Heavenly Tribulation was not like the one he had experienced before. It was far more powerful, and when it struck him, it left his body painfully numb. But it did not affect him much. He was even using his innate talent to Devour the Heavenly Tribulation and nourish his flesh.

But that was only for Ye Qing. His seven-hundred-thousand-year cultivation could be called false; his true cultivation was far beyond that. For the Snow Empress, however, this was a disaster.

The Snow Empress had only six hundred thousand years of cultivation. Even though she had been born from the Spirit Qi of heaven and earth, she was still a native creature. Because Ye Qing had accidentally entered the range of the Heavenly Tribulation, its power far exceeded the Snow Empress's expectations and what she could endure.

Under the bombardment of such a Heavenly Tribulation, the Snow Empress gradually became unable to withstand its terrifying power. Her snow-white hair had turned charred black, and streaks of blood flowed from the surface of her body. Worst of all, she could clearly sense that her origin had also been damaged by the Heavenly Tribulation.

The Heavenly Tribulation had no emotions. Even so, it continued to fall upon the Snow Empress without pause. She could feel that if this continued, her origin would completely shatter. For an elemental Elf like her, that meant death.

"Am I ultimately unable to cross this step?" The Snow Empress closed her eyes. Yet soon afterward, the pain caused by the Heavenly Tribulation no longer came from her body. Then, a figure appeared in her sky-blue eyes. It was Ye Qing, who had rushed over to bear the remaining Heavenly Tribulation for her.

"Is this... what it feels like to be protected?"

"Sorry. If it weren't for me, the Heavenly Tribulation wouldn't have become this powerful. Are you alright?" Ye Qing had realized the problem from the tribulation's power. Once he had been locked on as a target, the Heavenly Tribulation's power had been calculated for two people. He was only able to withstand it because of his extraordinary talent; someone else might not have been able to endure it.

"I'm fine. You came at just the right time."

After Ye Qing blocked several successive bolts of Heavenly Tribulation aimed at the Snow Empress, the Tribulation Cloud in the sky slowly dispersed. Then Ye Qing discovered that the Snow Empress's body was gradually shrinking, changing from a cold and aloof mature beauty into a young little girl.

"My origin was injured. If I don't do this, the loss of my origin will accelerate. Once my injuries stabilize, I'll slowly recover. You don't seem to be a Spirit Beast from Northland."

"That's right. I came to challenge you. I didn't expect this to happen."

"You want my position in Northland? Stay and accompany me, and I'll hand it over to you willingly."

"No, no... that's not what I meant." But the Snow Empress had already fallen unconscious. Seeing this, Ye Qing decided to see his good deed through and began helping her replenish her energy. After all, the Heavenly Tribulation's power had risen because of him.

"Xue'er! I'm here! How are you... Who are you?! Where's the Snow Empress?! And who is she?! Don't tell me she's your child with the Snow Empress?!"

Thank you to Mr. Monthly Ticket for the 1,500-point reward.

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