The Secrets of the Heart, Revealed in Frost

“Is this truly alright?” Lin Mo’s voice, light and laced with hesitation, drifted through the cool night air.

His gaze settled upon Ji Xue, imbued with a genuine sincerity.

“I… I felt it.”

“You could always return to your own dwelling, you know?”

“Should you find staying here genuinely unbearable.”

Lin Mo deliberately softened his voice, careful not to let Ji Xue misinterpret his intentions.

The sight of this imperial princess, a paragon of nobility, deigning to lower herself and step into his humble abode, filled his heart with a warmth profound enough to illuminate even this modest dwelling.

“Hmph! You greatly underestimate me,” Ji Xue scoffed. “I’ll merely grow accustomed to it.”

Despite her brave words, the golden phoenix, nurtured within the opulent jade palaces, had long been accustomed to unparalleled comfort and reverence, a lifestyle not so easily shed.

Within this somewhat cramped room, even as Ji Xue lay nestled in soft bedding and enveloped by warm brocade quilts, countless subtle details failed to escape Lin Mo’s keen perception.

He distinctly sensed the delicate body beside him, imbued with a quiet tension that, though unexpressed, stubbornly refused to dissipate entirely.

Though she did not toss and turn dramatically, a constant stream of subtle movements betrayed her unease.

Unlike her usual restful sleep, her body remained rigid and unsettled.

“Adaptation can proceed at its own pace,” Lin Mo gently offered. “If you force yourself into discomfort, the child in your belly would also… suffer needlessly.”

At this moment, Lin Mo had unequivocally embraced a profound sense of responsibility.

“As a member of the imperial family, how could I be so fragile!” Ji Xue retorted. “Do not speak so carelessly; tonight, this princess shall sleep right here!”

Realizing his words were futile, Lin Mo ceased his attempts to persuade her.

He simply and silently drew the bedding more snugly around Ji Xue.

For a considerable period thereafter, silence reigned between them, broken only by the faint whispers of their breathing echoing softly in the tranquil night.

“Your hand, extend it,” Lin Mo said, deliberately breaking the prolonged silence.

“Hmph hmph, what a clingy one you are,” Ji Xue declared with a hint of triumph. “Very well, this princess shall be magnanimous and permit you to hold my hand.”

Yet, despite her words, her hand remained motionless.

“Let’s be absolutely clear,” Ji Xue continued, “this is strictly for tonight. This princess is not some casual person; even if there were… it doesn’t grant you license to act wantonly! Otherwise—”

Ji Xue cast Lin Mo a pointed glance, a silent assertion that conveyed, ‘You know what will happen.’

Lin Mo’s face merely flushed.

“What nonsense are you imagining?” he countered. “I am not such a crude person.”

Lin Mo turned, gently unfolding Ji Xue’s hand, which had been clutching his own.

He then slowly withdrew his hand, using his index finger to lightly trace something upon Ji Xue’s palm.

“Oh, that’s ticklish~” Ji Xue giggled, instinctively trying to pull her hand away.

Yet, she suddenly became aware of the form Lin Mo was tracing within her palm.

It was a continuous stroke, maintaining an unbroken line to amplify its impression.

Ji Xue endured the slight ticklish sensation, as stroke by painstaking stroke, a character began to coalesce within her mind.

It was the character ‘Mo.’

And then, it concluded.

‘Lin Mo…?’

‘So, your name is Lin Mo?’

Ji Xue gazed at the exquisitely beautiful young man before her, a man whose looks surpassed even those of women.

At this moment, his face alight with a radiant smile, he murmured softly to her, “My secrets are now entirely in your hands; it seems I shall find it difficult to escape your grasp.”

‘Similarly confined within another’s grasp.’

‘But it’s not the same.’

‘If he had chained himself, willingly confined to her side, then Ji Xue… she held him in her hand, locking him with her smile.’

Heartbeats thrummed “thump-thump” in the dark night.

Yet, the pulsating rhythm did not emanate solely from Lin Mo’s chest.

“I am a cripple,” Lin Mo said, “is it truly alright?”

“Still spouting such nonsense, Lin Mo!” Ji Xue declared, her voice imbued with heavy emphasis, playing on his name ‘Mo’ and the word for dawdling.

She had deliberately stressed the pronunciation of ‘Mo.’

“Go to sleep early,” she added, “you’ve been rambling for ages.”

However, Lin Mo appeared disinclined to conclude their conversation so prematurely.

“It’s not over yet,” Lin Mo whispered.

“Don’t you wish to know my other secrets?”

At Lin Mo’s provocative words, Ji Xue instantly bolted upright.

“What else have you been concealing from me?!” she demanded.

Lin Mo sat up alongside her, yet remained silent.

He merely offered a mysterious smile, then guided Ji Xue’s hand to rest upon his abdomen.

Ji Xue’s face drained of color, her eyes wide with alarm.

“You… you… you also have… a child?” she stammered.

“No… it’s not…”

“How did you arrive at such a conclusion?”

“From any perspective, what I intended to convey was—”

“Spiritual energy, burst forth!”

The indoor air, which had been pleasantly mild just a moment prior, instantly—as if a colossal, unseen hand had violently plunged it into an abyss of profound ice, unmelting for ten thousand years!

“Crack… crackle…” The delicate, teeth-grinding sounds of condensation resonated, akin to ice serpents slithering.

With a terrifying speed visible to the naked eye, frost crept across the four walls, the white beams, and the window frames, blanketing every inch of the floor and walls.

In the span of a single breath, this modest chamber had utterly transformed into a crystalline prison, thoroughly cloaked in hoarfrost!

Yet, precisely at the heart of this violently surging cold wave, a frigid onslaught capable of instantly freezing any mortal being—only the space occupied by Ji Xue and Lin Mo remained untouched.

There, an absolute, vacuum-sealed sphere of warmth seemed to exist!

Not even the intricate weave of his garments, nor the most delicate tips of his hair at his temples, had been touched by a single speck of flying frost or snow!

The bone-chilling, suffocatingly abundant torrent of spiritual energy, akin to billions of subservient ice crystal sprites, savagely consumed the entire space.

Yet, at a mere hair’s breadth from his body, it docilely and precisely diverted, not even stirring a single corner of his attire!

“Where is the injury?!”

“Such a majestic explosion of spiritual power, like a surging tsunami!”

“Such exquisitely precise control over extreme cold, bending to his every thought!”

“This effortless command, this absolute dominion, allowing him to walk through the heart of an arctic storm as if strolling through a warm spring day!”

And Ji Xue, too, had felt it.

The surging spiritual energy within his abdomen was no longer gaseous; it had liquefied.

Lin Mo had achieved Foundation Establishment!

“You… you’ve achieved Foundation Establishment?!” Disbelief widened Ji Xue’s eyes.

“That very night, I reached the early stage of Foundation Establishment, much like yourself.”

Following this revelation, Lin Mo laid bare the entirety of his plan.

He explained his reasons for feigning injury: to deceive his adversaries and induce them into a critical misjudgment.

He reasoned that if even Ji Xue were to abandon him, his enemies would have even stronger grounds to believe his injuries were genuine.

Though he felt a pang of guilt towards Ji Xue, Lin Mo admitted he had also harbored suspicions about her.

He had surmised the true motive behind Ji Xue’s ‘sacrifice’ that night.

It was, he believed, a strategic move to win him over, a calculated agreement to a night of intimacy.

However, her knowledge of his true identity presented a formidable hidden danger.

If he were to lose his power and Ji Xue subsequently lost interest, his identity would, paradoxically, be temporarily secure.

Furthermore, this ruse allowed him to clearly ascertain Ji Xue’s true disposition towards him.

If her actions aligned with his predictions, he would be bound to serve as her subordinate during his time in the Hall of Clarity and beyond.

This servitude would continue until his eventual escape.

Having engaged in such an act with a young woman, Lin Mo also resolved to, at some future point, risk his life to aid Ji Xue once, thereby severing all ties between them.

Having spoken, he straightened his posture, bracing himself for either Ji Xue’s furious reprimand or a stinging slap.

Ji Xue’s genuine kindness towards him rendered his actions an undeniable laceration upon her heart.

He did not close his eyes in evasion; instead, he fixed his gaze upon Ji Xue’s eyes, observing the progression of her expression from stark astonishment to profound complexity.

‘It’s only logical.’

‘Such an expression.’

‘Surely, what would follow would be fury and heartbreak, perhaps then, like a character from a drama or anime, she would confront the deceitful boy with a torrent of accusations, profound disappointment, or perhaps even a resounding slap?’

‘It would all be well-deserved, wouldn’t it?’

‘After all, I—’

‘Since he’s willing to confess… could it be that he’s been completely won over by me? Hmph hmph~’

The anticipated surge of fury never materialized.

Instead, the young woman’s face blossomed into a radiant smile, and she lightly tapped her chin.

“So,” she purred, “you are now willing to follow this princess wholeheartedly?”

Her brilliant smile was so dazzling it felt as though Lin Mo had witnessed the radiant sun itself, shining brightly in the dead of night.

“You… aren’t angry?”

“Hmph, of course I am,” she scoffed. “Furthermore, you dared to deceive this princess. I wish I could exterminate your entire clan!”

“…Sister,” Lin Mo murmured, “could you truly escape if you exterminated nine generations of my clan?”

“However, this princess’s own thoughts are not entirely pure, so let’s call it even, shall we?” Ji Xue mused. “Moreover, the individual you must contend with… is indeed a formidable opponent. Rather than feeling sad, I am far more pleased that you are not a fool! Your mind is remarkably astute.”

“Furthermore, I recall my clothes suddenly being donned that night; so, it was you who put them on, was it? Your movements were remarkably swift~”

“But most importantly of all—it’s simply wonderful that you are unharmed.”

‘Princess… illuminating the night with such dazzling brilliance… it’s truly rather unethical.’

‘Who blinds someone’s eyes twice in a single night?’

“So, what is my answer?” Lin Mo prompted.

“Naturally, my Imperial Princess,” Lin Mo declared, “I pledge to follow you unto death.”

“Excellent! Such a reply perfectly aligns with this princess’s desires—” Ji Xue suddenly lifted her chin, her wide sleeves, embroidered with golden threads, sweeping out in a graceful, cloud-like arc.

With a delicate, regal gesture, she pointed a finger at Lin Mo.

“A reward!”

Stars abruptly ignited in Lin Mo’s eyes.

“My monthly stipend has been issued?!” he exclaimed. “Grant me more spiritual—”

The incomplete word ‘stone’ shattered unspoken upon his lips.

The young woman’s soft fingertips already pressed against his Adam’s apple, while her other hand gripped his chin, forcing him to look up.

As she leaned down, the golden hairpin tassels at her temples brushed his lightly trembling eyelashes, and a snowmelt-soft breath, laden with three words, crashed upon him: “Idiot, do you only care about money?”

Before he could react, Lin Mo felt a trembling warmth press against his lips, like the first peach blossom petal, suddenly falling into his palm when thin ice breaks in early spring.

Stunned for a long moment, Lin Mo finally regained his senses.

‘They… they did it again!’

“Wait, wait a moment! What if there’s another one? Wouldn’t that mean—”

“How many is too many? I can afford to raise them all!” Ji Xue wasted no more words, directly pouncing on Lin Mo!

But—

“Sister Wan’er! Ruyan is here to keep you company!”

A single cry abruptly shattered the intimate atmosphere.

Ji Xue’s face, which had just been flushed with springtime delight, immediately lost its color, replaced by a cold, stern expression.

“Oh~ I wondered why you weren’t eager for me to stay here? So—you already had a beauty for company, and feared I would disturb you?”

“I’m not! I didn’t!”

“Sister Wan’er, I’m coming in—Huh… why is Her Royal Highness also here? When did you return? What are you doing in this position? What game are you playing?”

Liu Ruyan stood at the doorway, clutching her bedding, looking somewhat surprised by the unexpected presence.

“Oh~ Sister Ruyan came to keep Sister Wan’er company…?”

“I came to sleep with Sister Wan’er~ I was afraid Sister Wan’er would be scared staying in a place like this alone, you know? Look, she’s trembling so much right now!”

…

‘Ruyan, oh Ruyan.’

‘Can’t you read the room?’

‘Is there anything I’m afraid of that you don’t know?’

‘In the past, I only found love triangles amusing, bursting into laughter at the sight of anime characters caught in such dilemmas, eagerly anticipating the plot’s development.’

‘Let’s see how this protagonist gets tormented!’

‘After all, if you’re not tormented, how can we, the audience, be entertained?’

‘It wasn’t until I found myself deeply embroiled in a love triangle that I truly understood… a love triangle… could be so terrifying?’

‘Especially a love triangle in the cultivation world.’

‘The yanderes here are certainly not to be trifled with.’