At that moment, far away at Skywater Academy, Shui Bing'er sat on an icy rock beside Cold Ice Lake, staring absently at the blue sky and white clouds reflected on its surface.
"Ah-choo!"
She suddenly let out a tiny sneeze and rubbed her nose, her brows drawing together slightly. Strange. With her current cultivation, she was long past being affected by heat or cold. Why had she sneezed for no reason? Could someone be saying bad things about her behind her back?
"Big sis! Big sis!" Shui Yue'er came bouncing over and sat down beside her, tilting her head as she looked at her.
"What's been wrong with you these past few days? You're always distracted, and you keep zoning out while cultivating. Are you still thinking about that little brat from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"
"Don't be ridiculous." Shui Bing'er denied it instinctively, but the tips of her ears quietly turned red.
Shui Yue'er giggled and didn't call her out. Instead, she counted on her fingers. "Big sis, it's been... twenty-seven days since you came back! There are only three days left until that 'meet once a month' promise you made!"
At her words, Shui Bing'er felt something stir faintly in her heart. Had it been twenty-seven days already? Time... really did fly.
Without thinking, she touched the bracelet on her wrist, woven from Ice Silkworm Silk and imbued with a hint of cool Soul Power. Ning Xiaochun had given it to her. The inexplicable restlessness and emptiness in her heart seemed to grow a little clearer.
She parted her lips, wanting to ask something, but felt too embarrassed to say it. Just then, a student from Skywater Academy came hurrying over and called out from a distance:
"Senior Bing'er! Someone's looking for you at the academy gate!"
Shui Bing'er frowned. She wasn't in the mood to see anyone right now, and instinctively wanted to refuse. "I'm not seeing anyone. Just tell them I'm cultivating in seclusion."
The student hurriedly added, "But, Senior... that person said his name is Ning Xiaochun, and he's a... um, little brat?"
Shui Bing'er had been leaning lazily against the icy rock, but in an instant she sat bolt upright! Her ice-blue eyes seemed to light up with starlight!
She sprang to her feet almost at once, so quickly that even Shui Yue'er beside her jumped.
"I understand." Shui Bing'er's voice remained cool, but she headed toward the academy gates much faster than usual, with a hint of urgency she herself didn't even notice.
Watching her big sister's retreating figure practically "fly" away, Shui Yue'er gaped, then covered her mouth and giggled. "And you said you weren't thinking about him... Big sis, oh, big sis, look at you now!"
At the gates of Skywater Academy, Ning Xiaochun stood with his hands behind his back before the elegant blue-and-white entrance. He gazed up at the four characters "Skywater Academy," a look of anticipation and nervousness on his little face.
Today, he had taken special care to change into a brand-new moon-white brocade robe and comb his hair until not a strand was out of place. He looked bright and spirited, with something of a young sect master about him.
An elder from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect stood beside him, along with a carriage loaded with all sorts of exquisite gift boxes. The passing students of Skywater Academy glanced over and whispered among themselves.
"Young Master Xiaochun, are you sure you want to wait here? Should this old man go and let her know, so Miss Bing'er can meet us directly at our residence in Heaven Dou City?"
The elder asked quietly. In his view, it was beneath the dignity of the young master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to wait outside Skywater Academy.
"No need, no need, Elder Liu. We'll just wait here," Ning Xiaochun said with a grin, waving his hand. "When Bing'er-jie comes out, we'll go back to the residence together. I brought her all kinds of tasty treats and fun things!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a graceful, water-blue figure dart out of the academy like a gust of wind. In the blink of an eye, she appeared at the gates.
It was Shui Bing'er.
She was as cool and breathtakingly beautiful as ever. Her water-blue hair shimmered softly in the sunlight, and the instant her ice-blue eyes fell on the small figure by the gates, the faintest ripple seemed to stir within them. She was breathing a little hard, clearly having hurried all the way there.
"Bing'er-jie!" Ning Xiaochun's eyes lit up the moment he saw her. A huge smile spread across his face as he hurried over. "Long time no see! I missed you so much!"
Shui Bing'er looked at his delighted, affectionate little face and heard him make no effort to hide how much he had missed her. The inexplicable restlessness and emptiness that had built up in her over the past twenty-seven days seemed to be filled by something in that instant.
She felt as though her heart had skipped a beat, and her cheeks grew slightly warm.
She tried to maintain her cool facade and gave a light nod. Her voice held a hint of softness that was difficult to detect. "Mm. What brings you here?"
"Of course I came to see you!" Ning Xiaochun replied as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. Then, like a child showing off a treasure, he pointed to the carriage behind him.
"I also brought you lots of gifts! There are herbs I brought back from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect that are suitable for Ice-type Soul Masters, and pastries from the best bakery in Heaven Dou City. Oh, and I even had someone make you a cloak out of Ice Silkworm Silk. It'll keep you warm and look lovely!"
He chattered on and on, as though he wanted to say everything he had been saving up over the past twenty-seven days all at once.
Shui Bing'er listened quietly, watching his animated expression. The corners of her lips lifted ever so slightly—a tiny curve, but a real one.
"Mm," she answered softly again. Her voice was still cool, but her ice-blue eyes seemed to hold the warmth of snow melting beneath the first rays of spring.
She stepped forward and naturally took her place beside Ning Xiaochun, shielding him from the curious and inquisitive gazes around them. Then she turned her head slightly to look at him. "Let's go. We'll head back to where you're staying first."
Ning Xiaochun froze for a moment, then was overjoyed. "Bing'er-jie, aren't you cultivating today?"
Shui Bing'er didn't answer directly. She simply said, "I have some free time today."
She paused, then added in a quieter voice, almost as if speaking to herself, "I'll keep you company."
The smile on Ning Xiaochun's face instantly grew even brighter. He felt as if warm sunlight had wrapped around him, leaving him light as a feather.
"Mm! Then let's go! Elder Liu, please lead the way!"
He excitedly took Shui Bing'er's hand. His small hand could only reach around her fingers as he led her toward the carriage.
Shui Bing'er didn't pull away. She simply let him lead her, following in his footsteps.
Sunlight fell over them, stretching two shadows of different lengths across the ground, close together and nestled against each other.
The one-month promise had arrived right on schedule.
And the heart of the girl sealed in ice seemed, without her realizing it, to have quietly opened a crack.
The sunlight was just right at the gates of Skywater Academy.
Ning Xiaochun held Shui Bing'er's hand, his little face beaming with an incredibly bright smile as he chattered about the interesting things that had happened over the past twenty-seven days.
"Bing'er-jie, did you know? I had them rearrange the poisonous formation around the outskirts of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well and added a few warning Soul Tools. That way, even if Grandpa isn't around, we won't have to worry about anyone wandering in by mistake! And there's more—I had the sect craftsmen make me a set of ultra-precise carving knives. I'm going to see if I can carve a Soul Guidance Array onto metal..."
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