Xia He and Qiu Lan were far more than decorative ornaments adorning the Young Master's palace. At twenty years old, both had already entered the Enlightenment Realm, a feat of cultivation that would have crowned them as peerless prodigies within any lesser sect or kingdom.
They wielded power sufficient to crush armies, yet in the colossal shadow of the Ye Family, their brilliance was dimmed, purposefully repurposed to serve a singular master. They were Ye Qian's sword and shield, his maids and bodyguards, raised alongside him since childhood with their lives inextricably bound to his every whim.
For days, a heavy cloud of sorrow had hung over them, etched deep into the lines of their delicate brows. They had kept a sleepless vigil outside his door, consumed by a gnawing, suffocating guilt. The Young Master's reckless attempt to break through and his subsequent, catastrophic Qi Deviation had happened on their watch.
Though the Family Head—Ye Qian's terrifying father—had spared their lives out of consideration for his son's preferences, the weight of their perceived failure crushed them. They knew their place with painful clarity: to the outside world, they were unattainable goddesses. But within these walls, they were mere instruments of service, living and dying for Ye Qian.
When the heavy, ornate doors finally creaked open, breaking the silence of the corridor, the two maids stiffened. They expected a senior elder, a supreme physician, or perhaps the grim news of their master's passing.
Instead, they saw him.
Ye Qian stood bathed in the golden sunlight, alive, upright, and radiating a terrifyingly healthy aura.
For a heartbeat, time seemed to freeze. They doubted their own exhausted senses, fearing this was a cruel hallucination born of fatigue. Then, reality crashed in with overwhelming force.
"Young Master!" their voices harmonized in a cry of sheer disbelief and ecstatic joy.
Abandoning all the strict decorum ingrained in them since birth, they rushed forward. Their hands fluttered over his arms and shoulders, desperate to confirm the solidity of his flesh, terrified he was a fragile illusion that might shatter at a touch.
Ye Qian looked down at them, his new, deep eyes seeing far more than just their devastating beauty. The System interface flickered into existence, overlaying reality with cold, hard data.
[Name]: Xia He
[Age]: 20
[Cultivation]: Enlightenment Realm (Early Stage)
[Physique]: Profound Yin Physique
[Loyalty]: 100 (Betrayal Impossible)
[Name]: Qiu Lan
[Age]: 20
[Cultivation]: Enlightenment Realm (Early Stage)
[Physique]: Profound Yin Physique
[Loyalty]: 100 (Betrayal Impossible)
Profound Yin Physiques.
A rare and powerful constitution, capable of gathering yin energy with frightening efficiency. In the outside world, sects would wage wars to claim a single disciple with such a body. Yet here, in the monstrous heritage of the Ye Family, two possessors of this gift were merely his attendants. It was a silent testament to the Ye Family's hegemonic power.
But what struck Ye Qian most wasn't their talent—it was the loyalty score.
100. Betrayal Impossible.
It wasn't fear, nor was it simple servitude; it was absolute, unshakeable devotion that transcended logic. In a cultivation world teeming with vipers, backstabbers, and schemes, these two women were his unassailable fortress.
The realization brought a genuine, relaxed smile to his lips. To the masses, they were ice empresses, untouchable and proud; to him, they were devoted shadows. It was a deeply satisfying dynamic.
Suddenly, the initial shock wore off, replaced by a surge of panic in Xia He's eyes. She recoiled slightly, her face paling.
"Young Master, are you alright?" Her voice trembled, losing its usual composure. "Why are you out of bed? You suffered a severe Qi Deviation only days ago! You need rest, you cannot strain yourself!"
Qiu Lan nodded frantically beside her, her eyes brimming with unshed tears of worry. "Yes, Young Master! Please, return to the jade bed immediately. The physicians said your soul was unstable. If anything happens to you..."
Their concern was raw, unfiltered, and piercingly genuine. To the wider world, Ye Qian was a tyrant, a scoundrel who leveraged his family's might to trample the weak and seize what he desired. But to Xia He and Qiu Lan, he was their entire world, their sun and moon. Their devotion blinded them to his faults—or perhaps, they simply didn't care.
Ye Qian felt a warmth bloom in his chest, a sensation entirely foreign to the cold, arrogant memories of his predecessor. Without overthinking it, he reached out and pulled both women into a gentle, reassuring embrace.
"Alright, alright," he soothed, his voice low and magnetic, vibrating with a confidence that surprised even him. "Do I look like a man on death's door? Don't worry. I'm fine. Lively as a dragon and fierce as a tiger."
The two maids went rigid in his arms. Their eyes widened to the size of saucers, breath hitching in their throats.
This tenderness... it was alien.
In the past, the Young Master had been cold to them, his gaze always fixed on distant horizons, chasing a specific woman who had captured his obsession. He had barely spared a glance for the flowers blooming in his own garden, treating their devotion as nothing more than air—essential, but unnoticed.
Ye Qian sifted through the memories, recognizing the object of his predecessor's obsession, but dismissed the thought with a mental scoff. He was not the fool who had died for unrequited lust.
He was Ye Qian, the Great Villain, and he would not ignore the exquisite treasures standing right in front of him.