Chapter 9: The Fragility of Jade
The silence inside Su Yan's private pavilion was different from the silence of the snowy woods. It was a weighted silence, smelling of sandalwood and the sharp, medicinal tang of cold-pressed herbs.
Su Yan sat behind a low table of dark cedar, her movements as fluid as flowing water as she poured two cups of tea. The steam rose in thin, trembling ribbons, but as it neared her, the vapor crystallized into tiny diamonds of frost before falling back into the cup. Her condition was stabilizing, but the "Grateful Yin Qi" she had unknowingly shared with Ye Jun had left her spiritually sensitive.
Ye Jun stood near the doorway, his hands tucked into his sleeves. He was acutely aware that he was no longer just a servant to her. He was a variable she couldn't solve.
"Ninety-two percent," Su Yan said, her voice barely a whisper. She didn't look up from her tea. "There are Grandmasters in the capital who struggle to hit that mark consistently with Grade-2 materials. A 'moment of insight' does not grant that level of control, Ye Jun."
"The graveyard is a harsh teacher, Elder," Ye Jun replied. He remained in the shadows, his dual-colored eyes tracking the way her fingers trembled slightly as she held the porcelain cup. "When you have only one chance to turn scrap into a meal, you learn not to waste a single spark."
Su Yan finally looked up. Her pale blue eyes were piercing, searching for the lie. "You are Level 7 now. Two days ago, you were Level 1. If the Law Hall Elders realize the speed of your growth, they won't just arrest you. They will send you to the Soul-Scouring Pavilion to have your memories peeled back layer by layer to find your 'secret'."
She set the cup down with a sharp clack. "I protected you today because I owe you my life. But I cannot protect you from the Sect Leader's curiosity if you continue to show off."
Ye Jun felt the sincerity in her warning. Underneath the cold exterior of the "Ice Phoenix" was a woman who had spent her life navigating the treacherous currents of sect politics. She was lonely, surrounded by sycophants and enemies, and for the first time, someone had reached through her ice and touched her soul.
"I had to show them something," Ye Jun said, taking a step forward into the light. "If I had produced a 60% purity pill, Magistrate Chen would have taken me. He didn't want justice; he wanted a scapegoat. I gave him a miracle instead, because people are afraid of miracles they can't explain."
Su Yan's gaze softened, just a fraction. "You are too clever for your own good. It reminds me of..." She stopped herself, a shadow of pain crossing her face.
"Of who?"
"My brother," she said, turning her head toward the window. "He was a genius of the sword. He thought he was untouchable. He challenged the status quo of the inner court, just as you are doing. Now, his name is forbidden in these halls, and I am the only one left to carry the weight of our family's 'shame'."
Ye Jun felt a pulse from the Second Chamber—the Moon Pavilion. The silver structure inside his soul resonated with her sadness. He realized then that Su Yan wasn't just a cold beauty to be conquered; she was a survivor.
Suddenly, Su Yan let out a sharp, pained gasp. She clutched her chest, her face turning a ghastly shade of white. The temperature in the room plummeted. The tea in the cups froze solid, shattering the porcelain.
"The rebound..." Ye Jun hissed.
He didn't wait for permission. He crossed the room in two strides and knelt beside her. Her skin was like ice, and he could feel the chaotic, jagged flow of her Qi through the air. The "Pure Glacial Moon Body" was acting up again, triggered perhaps by the stress of the morning's confrontation.
He reached out to grab her shoulders, but as his hands touched her, a vision flashed through his mind—not from the cauldron, but from her.
He saw a young Su Yan, crying in the snow. Beside her was a small child, a toddler with silver hair and eyes that matched hers, shivering in the cold. "Protect him, Yan'er," a dying voice whispered in the vision. "He is the last of the bloodline. The sect must never know about his physique."
Ye Jun shook his head, clearing the vision. A child? Su Yan was hiding a child?
"Ye... Jun..." she gasped, her eyes unfocused. "The... the hidden room... behind the screen... he's... he's waking up..."
Ye Jun looked toward the back of the pavilion. Hidden behind a heavy silk tapestry was a small, concealed door. From behind it, he heard a soft, rhythmic thrumming—a sound that matched the heartbeat of the Third Chamber's Earthen Forge.
He realized then why Su Yan was so desperate to protect her position. She wasn't just hiding her own weakness; she was hiding a "forbidden" heir, a child born with a physique that would make him a target for every power-hungry elder in the sect.
"Master," the cauldron's voice boomed in his head. "The child is the Second Essence. The Yin of the Bloodline. If he dies, the Ice Phoenix's heart will shatter, and your path to the Fourth Chamber will be blocked forever."
Ye Jun looked at Su Yan, who was slipping into unconsciousness. He had a choice. He could save himself and flee the peak before the Law Hall returned, or he could dive deeper into the web of her secrets.
He looked at the small, rusted cauldron at his belt.
"I told you," Ye Jun whispered to the unconscious woman. "I'm the only one who knows what's actually growing in the dirt."
He picked her up—she was as light as a frost-covered leaf—and carried her toward the hidden door. As he pushed it open, he saw a small, silver-haired boy sitting on a bed of spirit-stones. The boy's skin was glowing with a terrifying, translucent blue light, and the air around him was so cold it was turning into liquid.
The boy looked up at Ye Jun with eyes that were ancient and terrified.
"Is... is Sister okay?" the boy asked, his voice a tiny, shivering bell.
Ye Jun set Su Yan down on the rug and turned toward the boy. The golden spark in his heart flared, pushing back the absolute zero of the child's aura.
"She's going to be fine," Ye Jun said, kneeling before the child. "But first, you and I are going to have to do some 'alchemy' that isn't in the textbooks."
Ye Jun reached out his hand, the Frost-Fire Qi swirling around his fingers. To save the sister, he had to stabilize the brother. To stabilize the brother, he had to use the cauldron to bridge their souls.