Mom, I Was Wrong

The thundercloud appeared without warning.

There was no buildup, no brewing. It was as if it had materialized out of thin air.

Purple lightning churned within the clouds, accompanied by low rumbles from time to time.

"Rumble—!"

In an instant, a bolt of heavenly lightning descended from the heavens without warning!

Carrying an aura capable of destroying everything, it pierced straight through the hundred-meter-thick ice layer above Ice Crystal Palace with overwhelming force!

The ice layer was like soft tofu, easily torn apart by the heavenly lightning.

Shattered ice flew everywhere, and frigid mist surged skyward.

The ancient ice layer, a hundred meters thick, was blasted clean through by the heavenly lightning.

The lightning passed through the ice without obstruction and struck Ling Xiao with unerring precision.

"Boom—!"

Thunder exploded within his body.

Its force was immense.

Carrying a trace of annihilating aura, the heavenly lightning pierced down from the crown of his head.

Ice Empress instantly woke from her rest.

"Watch out!"

Ice Empress's pupils contracted sharply, and she instinctively wanted to rush over and shield him.

However... a pale jade-like hand instantly seized her wrist.

"Xue'er, you..."

Ice Empress turned to Snow Emperor and found her staring intently at Ling Xiao. There was not the slightest panic in her eyes, only calm scrutiny.

"Don't move."

Snow Emperor's voice was remarkably calm.

Not only did she not release Ice Empress's hand, she simply watched as the heavenly lightning struck Ling Xiao.

Ice Empress widened her eyes in disbelief.

The next second, she froze.

Because after striking Ling Xiao, that terrifying bolt of heavenly lightning not only failed to harm him, but was completely absorbed by him.

Ling Xiao instantly straightened his back.

His body trembled slightly, not from pain, but from comfort.

The heavenly lightning circulated through his body, tempering his meridians, reshaping his bones, and strengthening his muscles.

"Mmm~"

Ling Xiao let out a soft murmur.

"This is the feeling."

Ling Xiao's voice was quiet, yet it reached the ears of both Ice Empress and Snow Emperor clearly.

Ice Empress stared at Ling Xiao in shock.

Such terrifying heavenly lightning had pierced through a hundred-meter ice layer and carried an aura that could annihilate everything, yet it had not harmed Ling Xiao in the slightest?

Even though she knew he was a congenital lightning spirit and had prepared herself somewhat, Ice Empress was still stunned.

She noticed Snow Emperor beside her.

Snow Emperor's brows were slightly furrowed, and a faint trace of confusion remained between them.

"Xue'er? What is it?"

Ice Empress asked in confusion.

Logically speaking, seeing Ling Xiao unharmed should have made Snow Emperor breathe a sigh of relief.

But Snow Emperor's expression clearly did not look like that of someone who had relaxed.

After pondering for a moment, Snow Emperor said, "Bing'er, if my senses are correct..."

"This heavenly lightning seemed to be somewhat weaker than the lightning when Ling Xiao was born?"

Snow Emperor recalled the scene from that day.

That bolt of heavenly lightning had not been particularly powerful, but the aura within it had been exceptionally pure. It had even made Snow Emperor feel a sense of pressure.

But what about the lightning just now?

Its display had indeed been spectacular. Visually, it had been far more magnificent than the one that day.

Yet the pressure it gave Snow Emperor was clearly not as strong as that strange heavenly lightning from before.

Ice Empress was slightly stunned upon hearing this.

If Snow Emperor was right, didn't that mean the little burden could become even stronger?

Ice Empress guessed, "Could it be because... the little burden is still too weak?"

"His ability to summon heavenly lightning isn't mature enough yet, so he can only summon ordinary heavenly lightning?"

After a moment of silence, Snow Emperor nodded slightly.

"That should be it."

"As the little one grows, the heavenly lightning he summons should become stronger and stronger."

Ice Empress nodded thoughtfully.

If that was really the case, then Ling Xiao's growth potential... was simply immeasurable.

But right now... they had an even more practical problem to deal with.

Snow Emperor slowly raised her head.

Ice Crystal Palace no longer had a roof.

The hundred-meter-thick ancient ice layer had been blasted open by the heavenly lightning.

Shattered ice littered the ground, while the frigid winds of the Far North howled continuously through the hole.

Through that enormous opening, they could clearly see the azure sky.

The sky stretched clear for thousands of miles.

Ice Crystal Palace had existed for who knew how many tens of thousands of years. Even Snow Emperor herself probably could not remember.

Yet no matter how many years it had stood, Ice Crystal Palace had never been damaged like this.

Snow Emperor took a deep breath, then walked toward Ling Xiao with a stern expression.

"Ling Xiao."

Her voice was frighteningly calm.

Ling Xiao, who was still savoring the feeling of the heavenly lightning, instinctively turned around upon hearing Snow Emperor's voice.

Snow Emperor was striding toward him aggressively, her eyes as cold as ancient ice.

Ling Xiao's little heart skipped a beat.

"M-Mom..."

Snow Emperor said to Ling Xiao, "Ling Xiao, look at the mess you've made."

"Humans have a saying that's quite right: if you don't discipline a child for three days, he'll tear the roof tiles off the house!"

"You didn't just tear off the roof tiles. You ripped off the entire roof."

Ling Xiao followed the direction of Snow Emperor's finger and looked up.

There was a huge hole. A hundred meters of ice had simply vanished.

Ling Xiao cried out inwardly:

I'm done for!

My butt's getting smacked again!

He instinctively tried to run.

But he had barely taken a step before Snow Emperor grabbed him by the back of his collar.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Mom, I was wrong!"

"Wrong? Do you know what you did wrong?"

Ling Xiao stammered, "I... I shouldn't have summoned heavenly lightning in Ice Crystal Palace..."

"That's not all."

Snow Emperor's tone became even colder. "You've also been secretly practicing for several days, haven't you?"

"..."

Ling Xiao fell silent.

He really had been secretly practicing for several days.

Ling Xiao had kept it from Snow Emperor and Ice Empress because he was afraid they would worry about him.

After all, summoning heavenly lightning sounded dangerous just by hearing about it.

But he had never expected his first attempt to cause such a huge commotion.

It had pierced through a hundred meters of ice. He admitted that he had underestimated the power of heavenly lightning.

"Ling Xiao."

Seeing Ling Xiao suddenly fall silent, Snow Emperor softened and crouched down.

"Whatever you want to do in the future, tell Mom beforehand. Don't secretly do things alone. What if something happens to you..."

Snow Emperor's voice suddenly stopped, and she did not continue.

Ling Xiao's nose suddenly stung.

"Mom, I'm sorry."

"I won't do it again."

Snow Emperor looked at his lowered little head and gently rubbed it twice.

"Mm."

"That's Mom's good boy."

Watching this scene from the side, Ice Empress crossed her arms over her chest, her emerald-green twin ponytails swaying slightly.

"Hm? You're just letting him off like that?"

Ice Empress muttered, "If it were me, I'd definitely give him a beating first."

As she spoke, Ice Empress even made a motion as if she were smacking Ling Xiao's butt.

But Ice Empress was only saying it. She knew why Ling Xiao had done this.

What he had said back then:

"I want to become really strong, strong enough to protect Mom and Auntie."

Now, it seemed that the little burden had truly meant it. He had not been joking.

Ling Xiao really was growing.

He was growing rapidly, in a way they had never seen before.