Profound Sky Continent, Blue Wind Empire, Extreme Ice and Snow Region.
Located in the extreme north of the Blue Wind Empire, this region was covered in snow and ice throughout all four seasons of the year. Eternal glacial mountains and white jade-like cliffs surrounded it on all sides. The coldness present there was at a level that words could not express; only by experiencing it personally could one understand. For any ordinary human, living there would simply be impossible.
Even so, this desolate and frozen land had become a sacred place for the profound practitioners of the Blue Wind Empire thanks to the existence of the Frozen Cloud Asgard.
Unlike the Divine Sword Village Mountain Range, the Extreme Ice and Snow Region did not originally belong to the Frozen Cloud Asgard. However, over the course of a thousand years, it had effectively become the sect's exclusive territory. When the name of this region was mentioned, the first thing that came to people's minds was the Frozen Cloud itself. And due to its presence, even other sects specialized in ice profound arts did not dare to establish themselves in the Polar Snow and Ice Region.
The reason why the Frozen Cloud Asgard was seen as a sacred land was not just due to its impressive strength. There was something even more striking: all of its disciples were world-class beauties. The most beautiful women in the entire history of the Blue Wind Empire, without exception, came from there. Even ignoring their impeccable faces, just the ice skin and jade bones, unique characteristics of the Frozen Cloud Fairies, would be enough to hypnotize men and arouse envy in women.
Within that world enveloped in eternal white, it was extremely easy to lose one's sense of direction. The sun and moon rarely appeared during the year, and the sky, always covered, offered not even a single point of reference.
In the depths of this white desert, where even the wind seemed to lament in silence, an overwhelming pressure suddenly exploded, distorting the frozen air as if melting space itself. A colossal shadow snaked between ice mountains, destroying everything in its path as if they were fragile snow sculptures.
".... Human! For having the impertinence to dare offend and invade this Emperor's territory, die!"
The roar of the Heavenly Ice Bull Python shook the entire Extreme Ice and Snow Region.
It was a deep and profound sound, as if the frozen sky itself were being torn in half.
The eternal ice mountains cracked in dozens of places, avalanches of translucent crystals collapsed like diamond cascades, and even the air seemed to freeze further under the pressure of that ancestral voice.
Its serpentine body, over one hundred and fifty meters long, coiled between the snowy peaks, each scale reflecting the faint light of the gray sky like blades of divine mirror. The bull-shaped head, crowned by two recurved horns of celestial blue ice, exhaled a mist so cold that the air around it froze and turned into visible fog. Its golden eyes, large as frozen lakes, fixed with murderous fury on the tiny female figure that dared to challenge it.
That figure seemed not to belong to this world.
Dressed completely in snow-white, with long black hair dancing like strands of lunar light, she floated dozens of meters off the ground. Her skin was exceptionally white, but not the pale white that would bother people. It was white like pure snow, with an impeccable and radiant whiteness. Although sunlight did not exist in that white world, the glow of her snowy skin was so perfect that it left people in awe, even though it was now stained by small splatters of blood that contrasted with her purity.
Her arm, partially exposed due to the torn sleeve, revealed deep marks of cuts and bruises spreading across skin as impeccable as transparent jade. The veil had been torn off during the battle, exposing her delicate cheeks, whiter than snow, but now tinged by fine scratches and an irregular flush caused by extreme effort. Her soft lips, of a beautiful pink shade that seemed to have been drawn by God Himself with the utmost care, were parted as she breathed rapidly and irregularly, trying to contain the breath that escaped her.
There was fatigue in her indescribably magnificent pupils, as if the essence of the world still resided there, but now laden with a trembling glow and an almost imperceptible layer of moisture that made her black and curved eyebrows seem even more fragile. Even so, that beauty remained capable of making the heavens and earth, the stars and moon, pale in comparison.
Her figure, wonderfully poignant and extremely delicate, trembled slightly. From afar, her complexion was still graceful, but the wounds marking her arms, legs, and the side of her waist betrayed the cruel price of the battle. Under the long white skirt of the dress she wore, one could vaguely distinguish her slender and exquisite legs stained with snow, blood, and spiritual dust. Her dress, torn in several places, fluttered with her slow and hesitant gait, while her jewels shimmered faintly on the surface of her wounded and feminine figure.
The perfect curves of her waist, breasts, and buttocks remained indescribably beautiful, but the slight tremor of her muscles and the painful stiffness of her movements made it clear that she had already surpassed her limits. Even so, she radiated an incomparable and poignant charm, and possessed that lofty and ethereal appearance that transcended this world.
Her black eyes shone with absolute coldness, without the slightest trace of fear, only a faint hint of resignation…
Xia Qingyue had never imagined that she would end up facing one of the profound beasts considered Rulers of the Polar Ice and Snow Region.
Was this fate…?
From the moment she learned of Yun Che's death in the Primordial Profound Ark during his adventure in the Divine Phoenix Empire, she decided to isolate herself to become stronger. Finding her mother.... that was her only goal. Even being extremely talented and having reached the Tenth Level of the Emperor Profound Realm in the two years following his death, she still could not break through the barrier to the Tyrant Profound Realm.
Feeling somewhat frustrated by her recent stagnation, she resolved to venture into the depths of the Frozen Cloud Asgard's territory in search of opponents that would help her refine her profound arts. However, inadvertently, she ended up invading the domain of the Heavenly Ice Bull Python, a Tyrant-level Profound Beast.
But she had not gone there of her own volition.
The Frozen Cloud Asgard knew well the Profound Beasts that inhabited the depths of their territories and knew which ones should never be provoked. The Heavenly Ice Bull Python was among the most dangerous.
The way she ended up in that creature's territory was, at the very least, strange. She was absolutely certain that she was maintaining a distance of at least ten kilometers from the area belonging to the Profound Beast. However, upon crossing a simple mountain, the world seemed to distort for an instant, and when she realized… she was already inside the forbidden territory.
Without any warning, she was attacked by surprise and had no choice but to fight for her life.
And so, she ended up engaging in a fierce battle against the Profound Beast, a creature that proved much stronger than she could ever have predicted. Each blow she received, each breath that became more difficult, reinforced a single and bitter certainty in her mind: "this is fate…"
Fate had taken her "husband," Yun Che. And now it seemed determined to kill her too, even before she could achieve the only goal for which she would be willing to sacrifice everything.
In truth, she had never really considered him a "husband." She didn't even know what she felt for him. If she had to name something… it would be gratitude. Yun Che had helped her immensely, and it was thanks to him that she managed to elevate her profound strength in such a short time. Only by becoming stronger could she find her mother, and that was all that mattered. Even so… It would be unfair, even ungrateful, not to recognize him as someone important in her life.
But none of that mattered anymore....
The two recurved horns of the Heavenly Ice Bull Python began to shine with a celestial blue light so intense that the gray sky seemed to become deep night. Between the horns, a sphere of pure ice profound energy condensed at a frightening speed, spinning like a small glacial sun.
The surrounding air was instantly sucked in, transforming into ice crystals that orbited the sphere like satellites of death.
"Freezing Heavenly Emperor… Annihilation!!"
The beast's roar made space tremble.
Xia Qingyue, with blood at the corner of her mouth, raised her trembling right hand. Her profound energy was mobilized without hesitation.
"Frozen End Divine Art.... Third Stage!!"
Her voice was hoarse, almost inaudible, but the world responded.
The [Frozen Cloud Art] was the foundation of all cultivation in the Frozen Cloud Asgard. Strongly tending toward Yin, it suited the female body much better, allowing female cultivators to progress more naturally.
Its most notable characteristic, however, was the way it refined the practitioner's body and features. Under its influence, the skin became like ice jade and translucent resin, while the facial features were honed to perfection. Those who cultivated from childhood manifested these effects even more pronouncedly. That is why the disciples of the Frozen Cloud Asgard were famous for their beauty, beauties capable of toppling cities.
Furthermore, the profound art was complete: it offered movement, defense, and attack techniques, everything a disciple of Asgard needed to fight, protect herself, and advance on the path of ice.
But the profound art that Xia Qingyue was using at that moment was not the common version practiced by the disciples of Asgard. It was an infinitely superior version, the [Frozen End Divine Art], and she was the only one in the entire sect capable of cultivating it.
This divine art possessed terrifying power: the ability to freeze anything, even profound energy.
As the icy energy accumulated around her, the air seemed to crack, and the world itself wavered under the absolute coldness emanating from her body.
Seven layers of translucent barriers, each denser and colder than the previous, rose instantly in front of her, forming a seven-petaled ice lotus over a hundred meters in diameter, shining in deep blue on each petal, emitting a crystalline sound that seemed like crystals being broken.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!
The ice sphere exploded against the lotus.
The first petal shattered into crystalline powder.
The second, the third, the fourth… all shattered in sequence, each gaining a few precious instants for Xia Qingyue.
When the seventh and final petal broke, the remaining shockwave was still enough to erase an entire mountain from existence: the snowy peak behind her simply disappeared, transformed into white mist that dissipated in the wind.
But Xia Qingyue was no longer there.
In the instant the barrier broke, she dodged to the side, activating the eighth stage of the [Frozen Cloud Art], the [Frozen Snow Dance Steps]. Her torn dress fluttered with the movement, revealing deep cuts marking her ribs, wounds that would have made any other person collapse.
Still in the air, with blood dripping from the corner of her mouth, she joined her hands in a seal and used all her remaining profound energy in her most powerful attack!
"Frozen End Divine Art… Fifth Stage… Frozen End Illusory Aurora!!"
From her fingers exploded a multicolored aurora of ice, not just blue, but with traces of violet, white, and silver, as if the boreal sky itself had been torn and transformed into a blade. The aurora condensed into a thirty-meter-long ice sword, thin as a hair, but capable of giving the impression of cutting through anything...
With an almost delicate movement, she launched the sword.
The invisible blade cut through the air without sound, but when it touched the scales of the Heavenly Ice Bull Python, the world seemed to scream.
A huge crack opened from the neck to the middle of the beast's body. Scales made of ice, capable of resisting attacks from High-level Rulers, flew into pieces like common glass. Dark blue blood, cold as liquid nitrogen, gushed in a cascade, instantly freezing everything it touched.
"GRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"
The python roared in pain and true fury for the first time. Its colossal body writhed violently, toppling three surrounding snowy peaks. Its eyes were now bloodshot, the aura of a Tyrant Profound Realm profound beast exploding out of control.
The colossal roar of the Heavenly Ice Bull Python echoed through the mountains, whipping up another snowstorm from the frozen ground. Its tyrant aura spread like a wave of absolute destruction, breaking entire plates of ice around it.
Xia Qingyue breathed with difficulty, her chest rising and falling in short, painful spasms. Her body trembled violently. The aurora she had released consumed almost all her profound strength, and the glacial sword that opened that monstrous cut in the beast's scales was her last truly powerful attack.
But the Python did not fall.
Wounded, yes. Bleeding, yes. Enraged beyond reason, yes.
But far from dead.
It raised its colossal head, its neck cracked, and charged using its tail to strike her.
"You dare to wound this emperor, die, you insect!!!"
The impact of the charge created a shockwave so strong that even grazing her and hitting the mountain beside, which was totally destroyed, Xia Qingyue was hurled dozens of meters back, spinning in the air like a leaf torn by the storm.
"Kh…!"
She couldn't hold back a small groan.
Blood gushed from her mouth and froze the instant it touched the air.
Her body plummeted.
The profound strength within her… was running out.
Her profound veins burned, aching, almost in collapse. The world around her began to lose definition, as if being covered by a veil of ice.
The Heavenly Ice Bull Python raised its body, preparing the final blow, condensing more profound energy between its horns. Even wounded, even staggering, it was still a Tyrant Profound Beast, and any attack from it had enough power to extinguish an entire city.
Xia Qingyue tried to move her fingers.
Tried to raise her hand.
Tried to gather any remnant of profound strength.
Nothing.
She was… at the end.
Her body continued to fall, crossing layers of frozen wind. Her blurred vision showed only white patches moving rapidly upward, the ground approaching.
It was then, in the instant her eyes began to close from total exhaustion, that she saw it.
Hidden among the fragments of a destroyed peak, almost invisible against the absolute white of the terrain, a butterfly of enormous size rested tranquilly. Its wings, translucent like ice crystal, displayed patterns that seemed like myriads of dreams swirling slowly. Each wingbeat released a slight spatial distortion, almost imperceptible, like ripples in a frozen lake.
It was the Glacial Myriad Dreams Butterfly!
A beast that never attacked directly, but created illusions that even someone with high perception would confuse with reality.
Everything made sense in a flash.
It wasn't coincidence.
It wasn't fate.
The butterfly had created a perfect illusion of distance, guiding her silently into the python's territory, like leading prey straight into another predator's trap. Perhaps it wanted the two to kill each other mutually… In any case, now Xia Qingyue finally understood why she had crossed the boundary of the Tyrant Profound Beast's domain.
But this revelation came too late.
She was going to die.....
Darkness was already taking over everything.
Xia Qingyue's dark eyes lost focus, her eyelids trembling like ice leaves about to fall.
The cold, which had always been her ally, now seemed to embrace her forever.
Was she really going to die?
Without finding her mother…?
Without accomplishing anything…?
But there was nothing more she could do. Her profound strength was exhausted, and her body… no longer possessed any remnant of vigor. All that remained was to accept. Accept that she would never find her mother. That she couldn't reunite her family.
Her father… her brother…
She had neglected them too much in her desperate search. That didn't mean she didn't love them, on the contrary. She just chose the wrong path, sacrificing time she could never recover.
Deep down, Xia Qingyue could only wish, with the softest and most sincere part of her heart, that both would be well after she departed…
Her heart, once firm as jade, finally accepted.
Yes, she accepted....
Finally accepted.
"…Mother… forgive me… Qingyue couldn't..."
The thought died before completing.
But the impact against the snow never came. But then, in the instant her eyelids were about to seal completely, the world stopped.
Her body, which should have collided violently against the unforgiving ice, was enveloped by something warm.
Instead, two strong arms wrapped around her in the air, one under her knees, the other on her back, holding her with a firmness that allowed not even the slightest tremor, holding her in the air as if she were the most fragile and precious thing in the universe. Her wounded body was nestled against a firm chest, and the subtle and intoxicating aroma that seemed to be the natural perfume of an immortal invaded her exhausted senses.
Her blurred vision flickered… and then fixed.
A few centimeters from her face, half obscured by white mist, a man held her in his arms as if she were made of fragile jade. Part of his face was hidden by a white mask that reached to his nose, but even so… even with half his features concealed…
He was too beautiful to be human, surely he was an Immortal who had descended from the heavens to save her. Only that explained his perfect appearance that surpassed any mortal definition or understanding....
His jawline was impeccably defined, his skin clear and without the slightest imperfection.
But it was the eyes that left her completely lost.
Eyes black as a starless night, deep enough to swallow entire worlds. So hypnotizing that, for the first time in years, something inside her… broke. Her ice heart, cultivated and hardened by the profound art that froze even her emotions, simply shattered.....
Those eyes were too beautiful.
Beautiful to the point of, even on the brink of death, making her soul—always cold, always distant, always untouchable—tremble and melt, like snow meeting the first ray of spring sun....
Those same eyes observed her for a brief second. Indifferent, as cold as the frozen world around.
But behind that absolute coldness… there was a spark. Minimal, almost nonexistent, and yet real. A tenuous concern, directed at her.
Xia Qingyue's fragile breath caught for an instant.
She was shocked at herself, shocked to feel her heart, impenetrable for so long, shudder just by contemplating those impossibly beautiful eyes. This reaction surprised her more than any blow she had received that day.
Her throat tightened.
Her chest burned with strange and mixed emotions.
Who…?
Who was this man…?
He lifted her a little higher, holding her carefully, as if she were something too fragile to be touched with force.
He spoke then.
His voice was calm, deep, so soft that it seemed to cut through her pain.
"You're going to be fine."
Xia Qingyue tried to respond.
She wanted to ask who he was, where he had come from, what he was doing there… and why he had saved her. She wanted to thank him for preventing her death from being so empty, so meaningless.....
But her throat produced no words, only a trickle of warm blood that dripped from the corner of her mouth.
Then she saw.
The masked man slowly raised the index finger of his hand toward the Heavenly Ice Bull Python, which still roared on the horizon, preparing the final blow with its horns shining in deadly blue, while pointing in her direction.
He didn't even look at the beast. He just murmured, almost bored:
"Endless Sword Art… Fragmented World."
In the following instant, the world seemed to have fallen silent....
Only a very thin streak, black as the void between stars, appeared in the air.
In the next instant…
The Heavenly Ice Bull Python, the mountain where it was, the sky above, the ground below, the entire horizon was cut into countless perfectly equal fragments, as if someone had taken a giant mirror and broken it with a finger.
Everything simply… disappeared.
Absolute silence.
Xia Qingyue saw all this with wide eyes, the shock piercing her exhausted body like a last ray of light.
What kind of power was that?
Her mind, already on the brink of collapse, couldn't formulate anything else.
His arm held her more firmly, as if sensing she was slipping.
And then, the world darkened.
Her eyes closed completely.
She fell, finally, into darkness, but it wasn't the darkness of death.
It was the warm and secure embrace of unconsciousness.
And, for the first time in a long time, Xia Qingyue felt protected.
__________________
(A/N: Did you enjoy the chapter? Then you should know that over on my Patreon you can read up to 20 chapters ahead for just 5USD! And yes—for that price, you also get full access to all of my content. That's right: cheaper than a snack… and with way more drama, action, and guaranteed emotional damage.
The link is right below. See you there!
My Patreon: patreon.com/Adam_Kadmon
Thank you so much for your support — you make all of this worthwhile.)