127: Chapter 127 If I cannot overcome this tribulation, I will offer myself as a sacrifice to you, what do you say?

Snow Empress walked forward slowly, coming to the edge of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, feeling the strange energy field—where ice and fire intertwined yet did not interfere with each other—rushing towards her at close range.

She watched for a moment, frowning slightly, and asked: "How was this place formed? Ice and fire are mutually exclusive; this is a fundamental law of heaven and earth. To be able to bind two extreme forces in one place and form such a stable balance is definitely not something that can be easily achieved by natural creation."

Her question went straight to the core, clearly extremely curious about the origin of this treasure land.

Lu Jing shook his head gently upon hearing this, his gaze cast into the depths of the red and white spring water, as if he could penetrate the spring and see the earth vein core beneath it.

"I don't know the specific cause either. Perhaps it was the handiwork of some great power in ancient times, perhaps some special formation of heaven and earth, or perhaps it's a miracle produced by changes in the earth veins... None of that matters."

He withdrew his gaze, looked at Snow Empress, and asked with a serious tone: "What matters is, Big Sister Snow, can the cold spring here truly help you and give you a bit more certainty when you face the 700,000-year tribulation?"

Although he knew the origin of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, it wouldn't be of any use to tell Snow Empress.

Snow Empress did not answer immediately.

She slowly squatted down, extended that slender hand—fair as jade, as if carved from ten-thousand-year cold ice—and cautiously, tentatively approached the milky white surface of the cold spring.

Her fingertips were still an inch away from the water surface when a layer of visible ice crystals rapidly condensed and spread on her fingertips.

She did not retreat, but continued to slowly submerge her palm into the cold spring.

In an instant, an indescribable, extremely pure icy energy, like a torrent that had found an outlet, surged into her palm!

This energy was not simply cold; it contained fragments of the ice laws that were ancient, primitive, and seemingly originating from the beginning of heaven and earth!

Snow Empress's beautiful body trembled slightly, and her ice-blue eyes suddenly lit up with a brilliant radiance!

She could feel that her 700,000-year cultivation, which had been silent for a long time and had almost reached a bottleneck, actually began to show signs of loosening under the stimulation of this origin chill!

That layer of hard ice barrier that stood before her, blocking her from advancing further, seemed to have developed a tiny crack under the washing of this power that was of the same origin but at a higher level!

"It can."

Snow Empress withdrew her palm and stood up. Her beautiful face remained calm, but there was more certainty and a hint of irrepressible fluctuation in her voice as she replied: "The power of the cold spring here is incomparably pure and contains the origin of ice. If I can go into seclusion here to practice, using its power, my cultivation can at least advance by another notch, and my foundation will be more solid. The certainty of passing the 700,000-year tribulation... can be increased by at least thirty percent."

"That's great!"

Wang Donger could not help but clap and cheer upon hearing this, her azure eyes full of joy, and urged: "Sister Snow Empress, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and enter the cold spring to cultivate! Lu Jing and I will protect you from the side, and we guarantee that nothing will disturb you!"

However, facing Wang Donger's urging, Snow Empress did not act immediately.

She stood quietly in place, slightly lowering her head, her long ice-blue hair falling down to cover half of her face, making it impossible to see her expression at this moment.

Only a faint yet clearly discernible heaviness and hesitation radiated from her.

The smile on Wang Donger's face gradually faded. She looked at Snow Empress with some confusion, not understanding why the other party hesitated after confirming it was effective. She looked at Lu Jing in doubt.

Lu Jing sighed softly, took a step forward, stood side by side with Snow Empress, and his gaze also fell on the milky white spring water bubbling with cold air.

He asked softly, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching Snow Empress's ears: "Big Sister Snow... are you worried that even with the help of this place, you still don't have full certainty for the 700,000-year tribulation, right?"

Snow Empress raised her head, and Lu Jing's concerned gaze was clearly reflected in her ice-blue eyes. She did not hide it and nodded frankly, her cold voice carrying a hint of imperceptible heaviness: "The 700,000-year tribulation is no small matter. Its power far exceeds any previous one. Even with the help of the cold spring here, I only have a sixty or seventy percent chance of success. The remaining thirty or forty percent... is total annihilation of body and soul."

Her words were very calm, as if stating a fact unrelated to herself, but the risks contained within made Wang Donger's heart sink suddenly.

"Then... what should we do?"

Wang Donger was anxious. She grabbed Snow Empress's cold hand and said urgently: "How about... how about we don't improve our cultivation! Sister Snow Empress, just stay as you are, okay? Anyway, anyway, Xiao Jing and I have a great hope of becoming gods! When we become gods, we will definitely be able to take you to ascend to the Divine Realm together! You don't have to take this risk!"

Lu Jing also nodded from the side, looking at Snow Empress with sincere eyes: "Donger is right. Big Sister Snow, if you really aren't sure, don't force it. After becoming a god, it's not impossible to take one or two people into the Divine Realm. If you go with us, we will definitely not leave you behind."

Hearing the sincere words of the two, the frozen lake of Snow Empress's heart could not help but ripple with a trace of warmth.

She looked at the two young people she had watched grow up, one with sincere and fiery eyes, the other with firm and trusting eyes.

She shook her head gently, and the corners of her mouth seemed to curve into an extremely faint, almost invisible arc.

"I still want to try."

Snow Empress's voice was very light, but it carried an unquestionable firmness: "As a Spirit Beast, pursuing the ultimate power is our instinct. 700,000 years is a crucial threshold. If I can cross it, my strength will undergo a qualitative leap. Moreover..."

She paused, a flash of complexity in her ice-blue eyes, and said: "I also don't want to... always be the one protected by you, the one who needs you to take me into the Divine Realm. I hope that one day, I can rely on my own strength to stand side by side with you."

Lu Jing was silent for a moment. He knew Snow Empress's pride and understood her pursuit.

But what he was more worried about was the risk of failure.

"But what if... you fail? The tribulation is ruthless. Once you fail, it's total annihilation of body and soul, with no room for turning back."

Hearing this, Snow Empress suddenly raised her head and looked at Lu Jing, a strange light flashing in her ice-blue eyes.

In that light, there seemed to be determination, relief, and a kind of indescribable... trust?

Her red lips parted slightly, and she said a term that made both Lu Jing and Wang Donger freeze instantly, even doubting if they had heard it wrong:

"If that moment really comes, and I see that the tribulation truly cannot be passed... I will sacrifice myself to you, how about that?"

"Sacrifice?!"

Lu Jing and Wang Donger exclaimed almost in unison, their faces filled with disbelief!