A brilliant aurora hung in the night sky, unfurling like silk.
It cast a gentle light over Ling Luochen's pretty, porcelain-white face.
Her black hair fell across Yu Tianqing's face, tickling him.
For a moment, Yu Tianqing was entranced.
After he had gazed at her for some time, Ling Luochen seemed to realize she was sitting astride his waist. A little embarrassed, she lowered her head as a blush crept up to the roots of her ears.
The ice and snow had only just begun to melt,
And nothing was as tender as that lowered head,
Like a water lily too bashful to bear the cool breeze.
Yu Tianqing couldn't tell whether it was because of Nan Shuishui's request, or because the night was so beautiful and she was so gentle.
Almost on instinct, he sat up, brushed his hand over Ling Luochen's face, and kissed her red lips.
With a soft whimper, Ling Luochen was caught completely off guard. He forcefully parted her pearly teeth, and his scorching breath swept over her face, hot enough to melt ice.
She felt her awareness gradually grow hazy, and her body refused to obey her. It went limp, leaving her to let the man before her take what he wanted.
A long while later, their lips parted. Ling Luochen lay limp as mud in Yu Tianqing's arms, gasping for breath.
It took her quite some time to regain her clarity.
She should have been full of vigor after absorbing her Soul Ring, but now she couldn't muster a shred of strength. That had been her first kiss, and the feeling was one she thought she would never forget for the rest of her life.
Yu Tianqing looked at the breathless woman in his arms and smacked his lips, as if savoring the taste.
Aunt Nan was right. Guys really do like aloof beauties like this.
Especially an Ice Fairy like Ling Luochen. Watching the fairy descend to earth, he felt a peculiar sense of triumph well up in his heart.
Aunt Nan gets me.
Noticing that Yu Tianqing was a little distracted, Ling Luochen raised her small fist and gave his chest a thump.
It was soft and weak, more like a lover's playful gesture.
Yu Tianqing smiled, took her smooth, delicate hand, and brought it to his lips for a gentle kiss.
"You..."
Ling Luochen didn't know what to say. She could only bury her face in his chest, too shy to look at him, and let Yu Tianqing hold her as they felt each other's warmth.
After they had spent a good while cuddling, Yu Tianqing helped Ling Luochen up from the snow and drew her into his arms. Smiling, he asked:
"How do you feel?"
"Mmm~ It feels pretty good~"
Ling Luochen was still a little dazed. It took her quite a while to realize that Yu Tianqing had been asking about her fifth Soul Ring, but when she saw the hint of a smile in his eyes, she could only suppress her embarrassment and speak with a serious air:
"Tianqing, I really must thank you and Aunt Nan."
"Oh?" Yu Tianqing's interest was piqued.
"My ice element should have reached the level of Ultimate Ice. I can feel that the Soul Power in my body has reached rank fifty-three, but it's compressing on its own. I'll need to consolidate my cultivation properly, and I'll probably drop a few ranks."
"I'm afraid I won't be able to leave the Far North for a while."
Ling Luochen's voice gradually softened. There was a hint in her words as she looked at Yu Tianqing expectantly.
Yu Tianqing shrugged, seemingly unconcerned.
"Didn't Aunt Nan tell you to visit often from now on? Just think of this as your own home."
Hearing Yu Tianqing's answer, Ling Luochen lowered her head. As she did, a trace of disappointment flashed through her eyes.
"Of course, I hope you'll stay too," Yu Tianqing added.
Ling Luochen instantly raised her head, her somewhat sharp brows and eyes curving into crescents.
The two embraced and cuddled, whispering sweet nothings and getting up to all sorts of things.
Ling Luochen wanted to stay at the Earth Dragon Sect partly to cultivate her Martial Soul, and partly because she and Yu Tianqing were certainly in the throes of passion and could spend some time clinging to each other.
How could Yu Tianqing not understand what she meant? He played hard to get before agreeing, but heaven knew what he was thinking:
If I get all lovey-dovey with Ling Luochen under Nan Shuishui's gaze, that would be...
Way too exciting!
Yu Tianqing felt his scalp tingle!
Nan Shuishui had kept urging him to win Ling Luochen over. That would have been fine before, but Nan Shuishui and he already knew each other intimately, yet she still stuck to her original idea.
Yu Tianqing didn't believe she had no unusual thoughts about it.
But who the hell knew what women were thinking?
In his previous life, he had been nothing more than an innocent engineering student. To him, this was far harder than linear algebra.
A woman's heart is a needle at the bottom of the sea!
While Yu Tianqing's thoughts ran wild, Ling Luochen suddenly leaned close to his ear.
"Tianqing, the Soul Skill I got this time is really powerful!"
"Hm?"
"It's the Ice Explosion Technique!"
"Hiss-"
Yu Tianqing sucked in a breath of cold air. He was no stranger to the Ice Explosion Technique's formidable reputation. It could be called a Soul Skill that ice-attribute Soul Masters dreamed of, and even the Ice Empress hadn't mastered it.
At an auction held in Star Luo City, a Soul Bone with the Ice Explosion Technique had fetched over twenty million Gold Soul Coins on the strength of that skill alone.
Compared with her counterpart in the original story, the Ling Luochen before him could be said to have been reborn anew.
With Ultimate Ice and the Ice Explosion Technique, wouldn't the academy elders treat her like a holy maiden if she returned to Shrek Academy?
Looking at the girl's beaming smile, Yu Tianqing felt that no matter how jealous Nan Shuishui might get, he had to take the initiative.
It wasn't that he had transferred his affections to someone else. Ling Luochen's growth would certainly play a crucial role in his future endeavors.
Peerless Tang Sect was a world dominated by ice attributes and the spiritual system. Of his Yin Yang Thunder Dragon, only the Yin Thunder Dragon had anything to do with the ice attribute. Moreover, after receiving the Heavenly Venerable's guidance, his current cultivation had completely departed from the realm of lightning.
Instead of supplementing the two original attributes with lightning, he now supplemented the corresponding five elements.
He was determined to win over the girl before him.
As for Huo Yuhao?
Huo Yuhao relied entirely on cheats to get by. His growth had been built up through all sorts of fortuitous encounters; if even one link in that chain of cheats broke, his cultivation would inevitably grind to a halt.
The Heavenly Venerable had given him only ten years, not to mention that the current Huo Yuhao couldn't even be considered a Soul Master.
"Luochen, you're amazing!"
Making no attempt to hide his excitement, Yu Tianqing took Ling Luochen by both hands and lifted her high, spinning several times in the snow. Then he set her down, hugged her, and spun several more times.
Ling Luochen could tell that the man she loved was sharing in her joy, and she openly wrapped her arms around Yu Tianqing's neck.
Only after the two had given vent to their excitement did Ling Luochen look toward the Ice Jade Scorpion that had sacrificed itself.
"Tianqing, do you think this Ice Jade Scorpion will drop a Soul Bone?"
Yu Tianqing wanted to cut it open and take a look, but after glancing at the Far North in the dark of night, he reluctantly shook his head.
"Forget it. We should be content with what we have. Luochen, let's hurry back to the sect. Aunt Nan and the others are waiting for us."
"Mm, whatever you say."
Ling Luochen nestled into Yu Tianqing's arms. Now that she had a man, everything seemed different.
After the two entered Dragon City, an Ice Jade Scorpion five meters long appeared and dragged the other Ice Jade Scorpion's corpse into the Far North Ice Plains.