The frost didn't knock.
It seeped.
Along the seam of the door. Through the stone. Thin as breath held too long.
Lu Yan didn't move at first. He stood where Su Mei had left him, warmth still ghosting the air, the room unsettled by contrast. Frost and heat arguing without sound.
The Heavenly Desire Manual hummed, anticipatory.
Primary target emotional response imminent.
"Come in," he said.
The frost thickened.
Then the door opened.
Lin Yue stepped inside without ceremony. No robe. Hair loose again, darker with damp night air. Her eyes were bright in a way that wasn't calm—sharp, reflective, catching too much.
She closed the door behind her.
Her frost surged.
The room cooled instantly. Su Mei's warmth recoiled, not extinguished, but pressed into the corners.
"You had company," Lin Yue said.
It wasn't a question.
"Yes," Lu Yan replied.
She took a step closer. Then stopped. The air between them crackled, temperature gradients colliding.
"You didn't deny it," she said.
"I don't lie."
Her jaw tightened. "You didn't stop her."
"No."
Silence. Heavy. Dangerous.
Lin Yue's frost crept further across the floor, delicate filigree blooming with intention. It didn't touch him. It circled.
"You told me you wouldn't catch me," she said quietly.
"I won't."
"And yet," she continued, voice steady but thin, "you let others step close enough to feel your heat."
Lu Yan leaned back against the table, unhurried. "You stepped away."
Her eyes flashed. "I stepped away from him."
"And from me."
She flinched—not visibly. Internally. He felt it.
The Manual chimed, badly timed.
[Jealousy Spike Detected]
Primary Bond Tension: Elevated
Compression Efficiency: Surging
Lin Yue exhaled sharply. "You enjoy this."
"I respect it," Lu Yan said.
"Don't pretend restraint is respect."
"It is when it's mutual."
She laughed, short and bitter. "Mutual? You let her in."
"She left."
"She was here."
"Yes."
Her frost surged again, sharper now. The room creaked as temperature dropped another degree.
Lu Yan's core responded immediately.
Foundation Establishment — Late Stage (Compression, Reinforced)
The pressure inside him tightened, layers locking into place. Not explosive. Controlled. Dense.
Lin Yue felt it. Her breath stuttered.
"You're using this," she said.
"I'm not wasting it."
She took another step closer, ignoring the way her frost recoiled from his heat.
"You said if I crossed a line, you wouldn't catch me."
"I said that."
"And you meant it."
"Yes."
She was close enough now that her frost brushed his sleeve, cold biting through fabric. He didn't pull away.
"Then why does it feel like you're standing exactly where I'll fall?" she whispered.
He leaned in—not touching. Close enough that their breaths tangled.
"Because I know you won't," he said softly.
Her eyes burned. "You don't get to decide that."
"No," he agreed. "You do."
Her control wavered. Frost thickened, then thinned, oscillating as emotion disrupted discipline.
"You didn't tell me she came," Lin Yue said.
"You didn't ask."
"I shouldn't have to."
"That's possession," Lu Yan replied calmly. "Not choice."
She recoiled as if struck. "Is that what you think this is?"
"I think you're afraid of what you'll choose," he said.
Silence.
Then, quietly: "She smells like herbs."
Lu Yan didn't respond.
"She left warmth behind," Lin Yue continued, voice low. "I can feel it."
"Yes."
"You didn't clear it."
"No."
Her frost snapped toward the corner where Su Mei had stood, crystallizing the air. The warmth vanished under ice.
"There," Lin Yue said. "Now it's gone."
Lu Yan watched her. "You didn't need to do that."
"I wanted to."
The admission hung between them.
She turned away abruptly, pacing a short arc, then back again. Restless. Contained fury.
"They'll talk," she said. "About you. About her."
"They already are."
"And about me," she added.
"Yes."
Her voice tightened. "I won't be made a spectacle."
"Then don't hide," Lu Yan said.
She stopped in front of him again. "You're pushing me into the open."
"I'm standing where you can see me."
She stared at him, searching for something that wasn't reassurance.
"You didn't even ask why I came," she said.
"Because I know."
"Say it."
"You felt the warmth," he said. "And it displaced you."
Her breath caught. "You make it sound small."
"It isn't."
She stepped closer—too close. Her frost pressed against his chest now, cold seeping through, testing his composure.
"You don't belong to me," she said.
"No."
"But you're not hers either."
"No."
Her voice dropped. "Then why does it feel like I'm losing ground?"
Lu Yan's gaze softened, just a fraction. "Because you're standing still."
She shook her head. "I'm holding."
"And I'm not pulling."
Her hands clenched at her sides. "Say you won't let her touch you."
He didn't answer immediately.
The pause stretched.
Lin Yue's eyes widened slightly. "You won't say it."
"I won't lie," he said quietly.
Her frost flared, sharp and sudden, slicing the air between them. Not at him. Around him.
"You're unbearable," she hissed.
"Yes."
She turned toward the door, frost trailing behind her like a torn hem.
At the threshold, she stopped.
"If she comes again," Lin Yue said without looking back, "I'll feel it."
"Yes."
"And I won't retreat."
"I know."
She paused longer this time. "You don't choose."
"I wait," he replied.
She left.
The door closed with a crack of ice.
The room settled slowly, temperature evening out, tension lingering like a held breath finally released.
The Manual pulsed, satisfied.
[Primary Bond Strain: Sustained]
Secondary Catalyst: Active
Emotional Yield: High
Lu Yan stood alone, frost melting at his feet.
Outside, footsteps hurried away—Lin Yue's, sharp and controlled.
And beneath that, another presence lingered. Not Su Mei. Not Wei.
Someone else had been listening.
Someone warm.
Someone curious.
Lu Yan smiled faintly.
The sect's jealousy wasn't narrowing.
It was spreading.
And his core—compressed, stable, heavy—welcomed the pressure.
Tomorrow would be worse.
He slept anyway.