Chapter 47: The Ice Empress's Concern and the Uncrowned Queen
"What did you just say!?"
As soon as Xiao Qiang mentioned the Snow Empress, the Ice Empress, who was about to fall asleep, immediately widened her eyes, completely banishing any trace of drowsiness.
"Woo woo woo… If only Bing Bing cared about me that much," Tian Meng whimpered.
"Shut up! I'm not in the mood to talk to you right now!" Bingdi snapped and gave Tian Meng a swift slap with her tail.
"Xiao Qiang, what happened to Snow Empress?" she asked, her tone suddenly serious. As someone who had secretly admired Snow Empress for many years, Bingdi's feelings were no less intense than Tian Meng's obsession with her.
The difference was that, unlike Tian Meng, Snow Empress actually treated Bingdi with a degree of respect. If not for the example of the Titan Snow Demon Ape being brutally rejected by Snow Empress, Bingdi might have already confessed her feelings.
"Bingdi, I know you're anxious," Xiao Qiang said in a calm voice, speaking within the sea of spirituality, "but don't worry just yet. Snow Empress's situation isn't something that will unfold in a day or two. We still have time."
Hearing that, Bingdi—who had some understanding of Snow Empress's condition—gradually calmed down. "What exactly is going on? What did you want to say?"
"Well, you remember what I told you before? That my Sharingan sometimes shows me glimpses of fate I can't really explain?"
"Yeah, I remember. Are you saying you've seen something related to Snow Empress too? I thought you hadn't yet?"
"That's true, I haven't seen her specific fate directly. But… before you and I fused, I had a blurry sense of something—like a treasure that could greatly extend my life. It was vague, hard to grasp."
He paused, then added, "But after merging with you, that blurry feeling started to become much clearer. Now I'm sure—it's a treasure that could help me reach the level of a Title Douluo in a relatively short time."
"A treasure that helps one reach Title Douluo in such a short time?" Bingdi's eyes widened, her thoughts spinning rapidly. Then she exclaimed, "Could it be… the Ten Thousand Years Mysterious Ice Marrow!?"
"That's what I suspect," Xiao Qiang nodded. "I've never actually seen it before, and even in my vision it wasn't clear. But back then, it only felt possibly useful. Now, after fusing with you, it's extremely useful to me. I can't think of anything else it could be besides the Mysterious Ice Marrow."
"If it really is the Mysterious Ice Marrow… If I had it, I…" Bingdi's voice trailed off in awe.
"Bingdi, don't get too hopeful," Xiao Qiang said quickly. "I know for a fact that if you got it, you'd have a good chance of breaking through to 400,000 years. But soul beasts rarely have that kind of luck. Even the Titan Snow Demon Ape would likely end up as a soul ring and soul bone if he found it. Besides, you wouldn't even be able to locate it without my Sharingan guiding us."
Bingdi sighed. "You're right. In nearly 400,000 years, I've never found it myself. And the one time I finally did, some wretched bug ate it…"
She turned and stomped on Tian Meng's face.
"B-Bingdi, be gentle… It's in the past now, okay?" Tian Meng groaned.
"Ah! Bing Bing stepped on me! Her feet… they smell so good!"
Xiao Qiang: "…"
Tsk… This guy… Xiao Qiang clicked his tongue and decided to ignore him.
"Let's move on," he said, watching as Bingdi kicked Tian Meng away like garbage. He had thought of defending him for a moment, but really, what was the point?
"Where were we again?" Bingdi asked, brushing herself off.
"It doesn't matter. I'm thinking about something else now," Xiao Qiang replied seriously. "Bingdi, what if I helped Snow Empress pass her 700,000-year heavenly tribulation in exchange for her protection—until I become a Limit Douluo?"
"Absolutely not," Bingdi replied without hesitation. "Snow Empress isn't like me. She's the true uncrowned queen of the Extreme North, the supreme ruler. With her pride, there's no way she would lower herself to become a human's protector."
Xiao Qiang: "…"
He had just started to breathe a sigh of relief after hearing "not like me," but Bingdi's explanation made that breath stick in his throat.
If Bingdi was right, then Xiao Qiang's worst-case scenario was coming true.
He wouldn't be facing the softened, late-stage version of Snow Empress… but her early-stage self.
In the original timeline, Snow Empress first appeared in a transformed, gentle big-sister form. She was in a weakened state and treated her rescuer with warmth and grace. Most would assume that was her true nature.
Later, after being injured nearly to death by the Clear Sky Sect and reduced to a child-like state, she was still kind and approachable.
But that gentleness was only because she faced her benefactor—and her own status as a child of fate.
When Snow Empress's full consciousness returned, she was no longer gentle. The real Snow Empress was the one who nearly beat Liehuo Xingjiaoshu to death without a second thought. That was the true Queen of Ice.
The Snow Empress of the Peerless Tang Sect and Legend of the God Realm was not even comparable. The version Xiao Qiang would face was the original—the one from early in the timeline—unforgiving, prideful, and untamed.
Perhaps she did have feelings for the Ice Empress at that time, but how deep? Xiao Qiang had no way of knowing.
"Xiao Qiang," Tian Meng's voice came again, hesitant this time, "why don't we just not go looking for her? She's not someone you can mess with. If we make the slightest mistake, we could die."
Xiao Qiang: "…"
Not go after her? Then what? Not have a bodyguard at all?
If it were anyone else who might pose a threat, he could take his chances. But if it was Moon En who reappeared… that was a different matter entirely. With his terrifying early strength and speed, even Xiao Qiang's Martial Spirit might not be able to escape detection. And once Moon En saw it—
Death. Absolute death.
Even if Moon En followed the so-called "righteous" personality setup, Xiao Qiang was still a native of the Sun Moon Empire. That alone was enough reason to kill him.
So what if he tried to hide and grow stronger slowly?
What about his family, his friends in the Sun Moon Empire? In this world of chaos, it only took a single wrong move for everything to crumble. Even if he managed to live long and grow strong, would he be proud of the choices he made?
No.
He didn't want to be the kind of person who ran away from everything just to live, only to regret it all later.
"I must go find the Snow Empress," Xiao Qiang said firmly. "Even if I can't negotiate the best terms… I'll settle for less. If I encounter Moon En and don't even have the power to negotiate, I'm already dead."