Inside the cave, the fire was dying.
The last embers struggled in the charcoal, much like Xue Yin’s crumbling composure.
Xue Yin leaned against the rock wall, her silver hair scattered across her shoulders.
She stared at the nearly extinguished flames, her lashes low, hiding the anxiety churning behind her eyes.
Ailia had fully recovered from the brink of freezing.
Her lips were pink again, her hands no longer trembling, though her voice was still a little weak.
“How long has he been gone?”
“Almost an hour now.”
Xue Yin’s answer was more urgent than usual.
“If Jin doesn’t come back soon…” She paused.
“I’ll prop up a barrier and go out to find him.”
“And then?”
Ailia asked softly.
Xue Yin tilted her head, puzzled by Ailia’s sudden question.
“Hmm?”
“You go out to find him, but the blizzard is huge. There’s a high chance you’d miss each other in the vast snowfield. If Jin returns safely during that time and finds that Xue Yin is gone—”
Ailia’s voice was calm, but it struck Xue Yin’s weak point.
“What would he do then? Would he also rush back into the storm looking for you, just like you’re doing now?”
Xue Yin instantly understood Ailia’s meaning.
‘I’m being so irrational. When did I become so insecure? I can’t even figure out such a simple truth…’
“I know you’re very worried.”
Ailia’s words were full of motherly warmth.
“But it’s precisely times like this that you need to keep your cool. You have to trust him, and also trust yourself. He’s your disciple, after all. So I’m sure nothing will go wrong.”
“You’re right. I was too anxious. I didn’t think it through.”
Xue Yin opened her eyes, replacing the turmoil with calm and gratitude.
“Thank you, Ailia.”
At that moment, Xue Yin’s Domain of Stillness suddenly caught a faint fluctuation.
That familiar, reassuring presence—steady, step by step—slowly approached the cave entrance through the wind and snow.
Xue Yin’s shoulders finally relaxed.
Jin stooped to enter.
Fresh snow covered his shoulders, and a dried bloodstain traced the corner of his mouth.
“You’re injured!”
Ailia propped herself up.
Jin was about to speak, but Xue Yin had already risen.
She took a small roll of bandages from her sleeve and carefully dressed his wound.
The soaked ointment melted on contact with skin, glowing faintly.
The wound visibly closed and scabbed, fading to pale pink under the silver light.
“How did you get hurt? Didn’t you use what I gave you before you left?”
“It’s nothing, just a flesh wound. The bandages you gave me, Master… I didn’t want to waste them.”
Jin spoke.
“I found a suitable shelter for us to rest and warm up. It’s not far, and there’s even a hot spring inside with running water.”
Xue Yin tied the last wrap of bandages tight.
Her tone had returned to normal, but a lingering trace of fear remained.
“How did you find that hot spring? You still haven’t answered how you got hurt…”
“I met a martial artist training in the storm.”
Jin said.
“His name is Helian. He’s a half-blood of the Rock Clan. I fought him, and he won, but he didn’t hurt me. He told me about this place and then went back to training.”
Jin thought for a moment.
“He said the fist wind does not deceive people. I believe him.”
Xue Yin was silent for a moment.
She had seen too many treacherous hearts, too many hidden daggers behind smiles.
But she trusted Jin’s judgment.
Ailia nodded as well.
“We don’t know when this blizzard will stop. If there’s a better place to rest, that’s even better.”
“Since no one objects, let’s set out.”
Xue Yin made up her mind.
The three gathered their belongings and stepped outside the cave.
Xue Yin raised a thin barrier.
The silver light was dim, but enough to block the wind and snow coming at them.
Before long, following Jin, they pushed aside a curtain of hanging ice vines to reveal a cave opening behind a rock crevice.
Xue Yin stepped forward.
Her thread-like Domain of Stillness spread silently, scanning the surroundings.
Only after confirming there were no traps did she withdraw.
“It’s safe. Looks like I was overthinking.”
Ailia clasped her hands and whispered softly, “That martial artist—was his name Helian? May the holy light bless those with kind hearts.”
Hot spring steam rose, reflecting the faint light of the rock walls.
The two women shed their cold, wet outer garments and slowly stepped into the water.
The warmth climbed past their knees, their chests, all the way to their collarbones, soaking heat deep into their bones.
Ailia leaned gently against the rock wall.
Ripples danced around her neck as she let out a satisfied sigh.
“That feels wonderful! It’s like coming back to life.”
Xue Yin rarely failed to respond.
She was silent, carefully choosing her words for what came next…
No more delays…
“Ailia, I want to discuss something with you…”
Xue Yin said earnestly.
“Jin walked all the way outside, got snowed on and bled. I’ve already set up the barrier—he can’t see inside. So, could we…?”
Ailia watched her stammer and cut her off before she finished.
“Xue Yin, are you feeling sorry for Jin?”
The tips of Xue Yin’s ears turned red.
She turned her face away, silver hair drifting on the water, hiding half her cheeks.
“I just think it’s too harsh to make him stand guard out in the storm.”
She paused, her fingers drawing unconscious circles on the water’s surface, the ripples spreading outward.
“So, Ailia, I mainly wanted to ask for your opinion…”
Ailia followed Xue Yin’s gaze toward the cave entrance, a knowing smile in her eyes.
“Then invite him in. Since you’ve already set a barrier, I don’t mind. Besides, we have Jin to thank for finding this place. I was actually worried you’d be the one minding if he came in and peeked… hee hee…”
Xue Yin’s face flushed, and she shot Ailia a glare.
“Ailia, stop teasing me.”
She took a deep breath and called out, “Jin, the storm outside is huge. Come in first. I’ve set a barrier around the hot spring. Just face away from it.”
Outside the cave, there was silence for a few breaths, only the howling of wind and snow.
Xue Yin bit her lip, about to call again, when footsteps finally sounded at the entrance.
Jin walked straight to the fire and sat down with his back to the hot spring.
Only then did the two young women in the water truly relax.
The water was as clear as molten moonlight, steam rising to gently wrap around them.
Xue Yin half-leaned against the rock wall, her silver hair hanging into the water, the tips shimmering faintly.
Her pale skin took on a light pink flush from the heat.
The Demon Rose was faintly visible beneath the water, rising and falling softly with her breath.
Ailia leaned beside her.
Damp, light golden hair stuck to the back of her neck.
Water droplets slid down her porcelain skin, disappearing into the hollow of her collarbone.
The cave fell quiet.
Only the gurgling of the spring and the soft crackle of the fire.
After a long while, a light splash.
Ailia shifted position, drawing closer, and whispered, “Xue Yin, how far have you two gone?”
“We’re… still on the way.”
Xue Yin answered vaguely, clearly unwilling to respond on this topic.
“On the way where?”
Ailia turned her head, a gentle mischief in her eyes.
“And I never even specified whose relationship I meant. Xue Yin, you admitted it yourself.”
“Then it hasn’t even started yet.”
Xue Yin said quietly, resigned.
“Hasn’t started?”
Ailia looked at her, her tone not surprised but gently probing.
“But I feel like you two started a long time ago.”
Seeing she couldn’t avoid the topic, Xue Yin confessed.
“Actually, I’ve been afraid. I’ve been running away. Even just now, when Jin was out in the storm, I was anxious and insecure. That feeling is really unbearable—a twisting pain in the heart.”
If you never possess, you never lose.
If you develop feelings of love, you must be ready to give them up.
And I…
I really hate this suffocating feeling.