Evan and the Emerald Immortal Empress stepped out of the room and onto the vast martial field of Frostbane Imperial Palace. Many disciples were practicing their own martial arts on the field, and all were astonished to see Evan appear.
Especially the unfamiliar woman walking beside him drew everyone's attention. The disciples were all curious about her identity, and most assumed she was yet another one of Evan's wives. Who else in the Immortal Realm could be so blessed? All they felt was envy—and even more, respect.
By rights, Frostbane Imperial Palace should have its own foundational martial art for disciples to cultivate, so it can truly become a great sect. But Evan still hasn't devised such a technique—all the arts he knows are far too heaven-defying for ordinary people to practice.
If they want a martial art suitable for direct transmission, it’ll probably have to wait until the Emerald Immortal Empress finishes her tribulation.
"Everyone, please clear out for now—or at least stay away from the center of the martial field. Lightning tribulation will descend soon, and I don’t want anyone getting caught in the blast. Don’t blame the palace if you weren’t warned." Evan spoke to the crowd. His voice wasn’t loud, but everyone heard him clearly.
The disciples stared at Evan in confusion. The sky was perfectly clear—there wasn’t the slightest sign of tribulation—so they couldn’t understand why their palace lord said such a thing. But they trusted him completely. Despite their doubts, they quickly scattered to the edges of the martial field, waiting anxiously for the lightning tribulation to appear.
The Emerald Immortal Empress couldn't help feeling nervous. A fine bead of sweat appeared on her flawless face, and Evan noticed it all.
"Elara, don’t worry. You’ll get through this just fine. No matter how fierce your tribulation is, it can’t compare to the artifact tribulation my Frostbane Divine Sword drew back then. That was pure Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder—almost killed me! But my luck and life force were strong, so I pulled through. So trust me, you’ll be fine." Evan comforted her.
The Emerald Immortal Empress nodded and said, "Master, I believe you’ll succeed. Elara has faith in you."
"Elara, you don’t have to call me ‘Master’ anymore. Just call me Evan. ‘Master’ sounds too formal—I’m not used to it. We’re friends, so don’t be so distant." Evan said.
"Master, even if you don't want me to call you that, at the very least let me address you as 'Young Master.' I really can't bring myself to call you by your name, Evan. Please don't force me." said the Emerald Immortal Empress.
Evan could only give in helplessly. He glanced up at the sky—just moments ago it was perfectly clear, but now clouds were slowly gathering, and they were coming together faster and faster. In less than half an hour, the sky had already turned dark, as if night had fallen early.
Evan didn’t care much about the gathering clouds, but the rest of Frostbane Imperial Palace was shocked. No one expected the palace lord’s warning about lightning tribulation to come true so quickly. Watching someone undergo tribulation in person was a rare event—everyone stared wide-eyed at the sky.
Evan smiled. "Elara, once you get through this tribulation, I have a lot of questions for you. After I’m done asking, you should go into seclusion. I’m sure when you come out, you’ll bring me huge surprises."
"Young Master, don’t worry. I’m completely confident. Right now I just need to focus on surviving this tribulation. We’ll talk about everything else after it’s over," said the Emerald Immortal Empress.
Evan glanced up at the clouds overhead. The sky was growing darker and darker, and a faint, suffocating pressure filled the air. But he was confident—if this tribulation matched the one he faced at Skyshade Hall, he was sure he could withstand it head-on.
This time, he wouldn’t need to hide inside an elemental cocoon and slowly recover his body. Thunder rumbled overhead, and arcs of lightning began to flicker in the clouds. Each bolt carried a terrifying, overwhelming power.
Evan knew the first strike was about to fall. He shot into the sky in a flash, ready to meet the lightning head-on.
Normally, no one else can casually intercept another person’s tribulation. Heavenly lightning only targets the destined one, ignoring everyone else no matter what they do.
But Evan had personally helped the Emerald Immortal Empress restore her body. That made him a co-bearer of this tribulation, able to draw all the lightning onto himself and withstand it alone. If someone else—like Roxanne Lin or Yvonne Xuan—had just assisted, the lightning would have ignored them no matter where they stood.
Everything happens for a reason; lightning tribulation never appears without cause. The entire world is governed by laws—only truly supreme beings, like the creators of worlds, might escape those laws. Evan wasn’t at that level yet; he could only experience the tribulation head-on.
Everyone watched Evan tensely, not knowing what kind of tribulation he was facing this time. Quite a few disciples knew about the artifact tribulation he survived, so their curiosity was even stronger now.
Gradually, a vortex formed in the clouds above. The first bolt of lightning speared down—a fire-attribute strike. With Fireshift at third layer and Thundershift at second, Evan was completely unharmed; he absorbed the fire-lightning directly, increasing his elemental power.
If anyone realized Evan was actually absorbing the tribulation’s power and turning it into his own strength, they’d be so shocked they couldn’t speak. But facts were facts—there was no denying it.
Soon the second bolt fell—a water-attribute lightning strike. Evan absorbed it just as easily, standing in the sky like a war god, awe-inspiring and untouchable. The disciples below could only look up at him in worship.
Time passed quickly. Evan realized this was a Five-Element Lightning Tribulation. For him, it was basically an appetizer—far too easy, and a stroke of great luck. He absorbed every bolt completely, and while he couldn’t push Thundershift to the third layer, his foundation still improved.
Just as Evan expected, there were only five bolts. Each one came with terrifying force and pressure that left the onlookers pale, but Evan handled them all with ease. What kind of strength did that take? No one dared imagine.
Gradually, the clouds dispersed and the sky returned to normal. The Emerald Immortal Empress finally relaxed. She hadn’t expected Evan’s defenses to be so strong, able to absorb all that lightning directly. All she could feel was gratitude.
Evan briefly explained the reason for the lightning to the crowd. When everyone realized the beautiful woman before them was an ancient immortal, they were left speechless. At the same time, they felt pride and awe for Frostbane Imperial Palace’s strength.