When Ye Mo pushed open the heavy metal door of the training room, he was still holding the cold cup of coffee in his hand.
Water droplets condensed on the glass slid down his fingers and dripped onto the floor with a soft "plop".
The room was quiet, save for the low hum of the air circulation system. Emma Frost Thaddeus Ross stood in the center of the room, surrounded by countless tiny ice crystals. These ice crystals had an eerie grayish-white color, like frozen smoke, and trembled slightly with her breathing.
Her brows were furrowed, her face was pale, and a fine layer of cold sweat beaded on her forehead.
Something's not right.
Ye Mo put down his cup and stopped three steps behind her. He didn't speak, but simply watched quietly. As someone with " Sensory Enhancement," he could clearly see the trajectory of energy flow within Emma Frost's body.
Those icy fragments of her Mind Stone were frantically crashing against her mental barrier, trying to break through, but each impact was accompanied by a violent rebound. It was like two opposing air currents colliding in a narrow pipe, producing not fusion, but tearing pain.
"Still putting on a brave face?" Ye Mo asked, his voice flat, revealing little emotion.
Emma Frost suddenly opened her eyes, a flicker of panic crossing her pupils, which was quickly replaced by a suppressed arrogance. She turned around, her Diamond Form skin shimmering, but her gaze was somewhat unfocused.
"I want to try a new combination." Her voice was a little hoarse. "The mentors at the Hellfire Club said that combining Telepathy with elemental control could produce a qualitative change. But I... I'm always just a little short."
"It's the mindset that's lacking, not the skills." Ye Mo walked up to her and gently brushed aside an ice crystal that was about to go out of control beside her. The ice crystal melted into water at his fingertips without causing a ripple.
Emma Frost paused for a moment, then asked, "What do you mean?"
"You're trying too hard to control it." Ye Mo pointed to his temple. "You treat these two forces like two Beast that need to be tamed, and you're relentlessly whipping them. The result is that they're fighting in your head. You're in pain, and they're in pain too."
He paused, his tone becoming more casual. "Try to ignore them. Like breathing, let the ice cool naturally, let your heart drift naturally. The more you fear chaos, the more chaos you'll create."
Emma Frost opened her mouth as if to refute something, but in the end she just lowered her head in silence.
She knew Ye Mo was right. From the moment she left the Hellfire Club, she had become accustomed to suppression. Suppressing fear, suppressing desire, even suppressing her instincts. This habit was deeply ingrained, and even now that she was free, her body and mind remained tense.
"Close your eyes," Ye Mo commanded.
Emma Frost hesitated for a second, then slowly closed her eyes.
The surrounding ice crystals began to fluctuate violently, and the temperature in the air plummeted. Ye Mo did not retreat; instead, he took a step forward and walked directly into the center of the storm composed of ice crystals.
For ordinary people, this is a deadly combination of low temperature and mental shock. But for Ye Mo now, it's just another environmental parameter he needs to adapt to.
He immersed his consciousness into the " Gene Spiral Tower," activating the " Sensory Enhancement " ability that he had just honed the previous night. His vision became clear and sharp; he could see the texture on the surface of every ice crystal and hear Emma Frost's rapid heartbeat.
He established an Anchor on the edge of Emma Frost's spiritual realm.
This is not an invasion, but a form of support. Like throwing a stone into a rushing river, it provides a stable reference point.
"Relax your shoulders." Ye Mo's voice rang directly in Emma Frost's mind, clear and steady. "Don't try to 'create' ice, just feel the cold itself."
Emma Frost took a deep breath.
At first, that familiar stinging sensation returned. It felt as if countless needles were pricking deep within her mind, an instinctive reaction to the repulsion between two opposing forces. She subconsciously tried to contract her muscles, attempting to suppress it with willpower.
"Don't move." Ye Mo's voice carried a hint of sternness. "The pain is because you're resisting. Stop, let it pass."
Emma Frost gritted her teeth, sweat streaming down her face.
She forced herself to stop resisting.
The moment she lost control, something miraculous happened.
The previously raging energy vortex suddenly paused, then, as if finding an outlet, began to slowly rotate. The frost was no longer an external, aggressive force, but had become part of her perception. The cold was no longer an enemy, but a ally.
She felt her consciousness extend outward, touching every tiny water vapor molecule in the air. At the same time, these water vapor molecules were responding to her consciousness, condensing, taking shape, and freezing.
Without any deliberate guidance, the ice crystals automatically arranged themselves into complex geometric patterns, slowly rotating around her.
At the center of these ice crystals, gentle spiritual ripples spread out like waves.
At this moment, ice and heart achieved a delicate balance.
Emma Frost suddenly opened her eyes.
Her pupils were no longer a simple gray, but had turned into a deep ice blue, with a faint halo flowing in her eyes.
She raised her hand, palm up.
A crystal-clear ice crystal appeared out of thin air. Unlike the previous ice, which was sharp and pointed, it had a warm and smooth texture, with faintly visible flowing spiritual ripples inside.
As Ye Mo approached, he felt a chill that didn't emanate from the skin, but rather acted directly on his mind. It was " Mind Ice Crystal," capable of freezing an enemy's nerve reflexes and interfering with their judgment through a mental link.
"It's done?" Ye Mo raised an eyebrow.
Emma Frost stared at the ice crystal in her hand, a look of disbelief on her face. She tried to control it, and the ice crystal transformed into a delicate longsword, before scattering into a flurry of snowflakes.
"They feel... so light," she whispered, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "It's as if they were meant to be there."
"Because you are now the master, not the prisoner." Ye Mo withdrew his hand, turned and walked towards the equipment rack beside him. "Now that the new skill has been unlocked, I need to practice my accuracy. It's not enough to just know how to build; I also need to know how to use it."
Emma Frost put away the ice crystals, the Diamond Form faded, and her skin returned to its original color. She quickly caught up with Ye Mo, a smile unconsciously playing on her lips, "How do you want to train?"
"Moving target." Ye Mo picked up a training holographic projection generator, set the parameters, and said, "I run, you shoot. Don't use your eyes; use your heartbeat and airflow to judge my position."
Emma Frost was stunned for a moment. "Without eyes? How is that possible?"
"Didn't you just do that using your senses?" Ye Mo smiled, putting on his goggles. "Now, show me your confidence, Miss White Queen."
The test has officially begun.
Ye Mo activated his " Concealment and Phasing " ability, and his figure instantly became illusory. He moved quickly through the training room, sometimes passing through the walls and sometimes hovering in mid-air. His movements were erratic, sometimes fast and sometimes slow, relying entirely on instinct and muscle memory.
Emma Frost stood there, her eyes closed.
At first, she seemed a bit flustered. Several ice spikes were launched, but most of them missed or hit the wall, leaving ice holes.
"Three o'clock to the left, two meters high." Ye Mo's voice came from all directions, tinged with mockery, "Your ice pick is off-center by ten degrees."
Emma Frost frowned and took a deep breath.
She was no longer in a hurry to launch, but stood quietly, feeling the flow of the air around her. The wind Ye Mo stirred up as he passed by, the vibrations of his footsteps, even the faint sound of his heartbeat.
All the information came together, constructing a dynamic map in her mind.
She raised her hand, not aiming, but simply swinging it out of instinct.
A beam of icy blue light ripped through the air, striking precisely where Ye Mo had been standing. Although the spot was now empty, the beam's residual force still cut a deep gash in the steel plate behind him.
"Not bad." Ye Mo appeared behind her and patted her shoulder. "This time you didn't go off-center."
Emma Frost turned her head, her eyes full of laughter. "Again."
For the next hour, the training room became their playground.
They switched roles. Emma Frost displayed her ice crystal defense, constructing an indestructible ice wall; Ye Mo, on the other hand, tried to disrupt the stability of the ice wall with his penetrating ability, searching for a weak point.
During this process, the tacit understanding between the two reached an unprecedented level.
No verbal communication is needed; a glance, a gesture, or even a subtle movement is enough for the other person to understand your intentions.
When Ye Mo's heartbeat synchronized with Emma Frost's mental fluctuations, their coordination was flawless. Every advance Ye Mo made perfectly avoided the attack range of Emma Frost's ice crystals; and every defense Emma Frost made was formed instantly before Ye Mo was in danger.
It is a silent dance, dangerous yet beautiful.
By the time the training session ended, the sky was already beginning to lighten.
The New York skyline outside the window was turning a pale white, and the first rays of sunlight streamed into the training room through the high windows, illuminating the mess of ice stains on the floor and reflecting a dazzling light.
The two sat on a bench in the corner to rest.
Emma Frost toyed with a small piece of remaining ice crystal in her hand, watching it slowly melt in the sunlight until it turned into a puddle of clear water.
"Thank you," she said suddenly, her voice soft but unusually earnest.
Ye Mo unscrewed the water bottle, took a sip, and glanced at her sideways. "What are you thanking me for? I'd charge you for teaching you how to do something."
Emma Frost rolled her eyes at him, but wasn't angry.
"I mean it." She raised her head, looking directly into Ye Mo's eyes. "I used to think that power meant loneliness. With strong Telepathy, I had to be constantly vigilant against others' mental intrusion; with the Diamond Form, I had to shut myself off to avoid harming the innocent. I always thought that was the price."
She paused, her fingers gently stroking the bottle.
"But today I've discovered that if you have someone you can trust standing by your side, that strength is no longer a burden, but wings."
Ye Mo remained silent for a moment.
He recalled those nights he spent groping alone in the Gene Spiral Tower, that profound sense of loneliness. He also remembered Emma Frost's outstretched hand to him amidst the ruins during the airport battle.
In this chaotic world filled with superheroes and villains, sincerity is the rarest resource.
"True strength is never about being alone and helpless." Ye Mo put down his water bottle, stood up, and adjusted the hood of his hoodie, "But about having partners you can rely on."
He reached out and offered it to Emma Frost.
Emma Frost stared at the hand, paused for a moment, then broke into a bright smile. She grasped Ye Mo's hand and used it to stand up.
Their hands were clasped tightly together, the warmth of their palms seeping through their skin and into each other's hearts.
At that moment, no words were spoken, but something heavier than language had already quietly taken root between them.
Outside the window, the city's hustle and bustle gradually awakens. The sounds of sirens, engines, and pedestrians chatting intertwine, creating a vibrant urban scene.
Ye Mo looked out the window, his gaze calm and resolute.
He knew the storm was brewing, and the conflict over the Superhuman Registration Act would only intensify. But as long as he and Emma Frost stood together, nothing could stop them from moving forward.
"Let's go." Ye Mo withdrew his hand, turned, and walked towards the door. "It's breakfast time. I know a good pancake shop nearby; the owner is Russian, and his pancakes are especially hearty."
Emma Frost followed behind him, her steps light and quick.
"As long as it's not expensive, it's fine."
The two walked out of the training room one after the other, their figures disappearing at the end of the corridor.
In the training room behind me, the steel plate covered with ice crystals glittered in the sunlight, as if telling the story of everything that happened last night.