Chapter 240 Ice Emperor's telepathic message: Xue'er, it's me...
Xue Di walked to the edge of the pool and squatted down.
Her movements were very light, and her skirt hung on the rocks without getting wet.
She stretched out her right hand, fingers spread, and pressed it against the frozen patch of the acacia flower. There was no contact; there was a distance between them.
A thin layer of white, chilly air seeped from her palm, like the white mist exhaled in winter.
The chill fell on the ice surface without impact or tremor; it simply covered it, like a thin blanket.
The ice trembled.
It wasn't the trembling caused by an external force, but rather an instinctive reaction that seemed to recognize something, yet also to resist something.
The cracks on the surface of the ice began to widen, not because they were stretched open, but because they started to loosen from the inside.
Huo Yuhao knelt on the rock, watching this scene without blinking.
His lips were still trembling, but his hands had stopped shaking.
He stared intently at the ice, at the Snow Emperor's palm pressed against the ice, and at the widening cracks on the ice.
Within Huo Yuhao's spiritual sea of consciousness, the phantom of the Ice Emperor emerged from its silence.
Her gaze passed through Huo Yuhao's body and looked outwards.
She saw the Snow Emperor. The woman in the white dress, with white hair reaching her waist, was squatting by the pool, her palms pressed against the ice, and white, cold air seeped from her palms.
Hyotei's pupils contracted slightly.
"Xue'er..."
Her voice was low, carrying an indescribable complexity.
She hadn't seen Xue Di for a long time.
The last time we met was inside Mingde Hall, when Xue Di was sealed away by humans using the Fengshen Platform.
At that time, Xue Di was in extremely poor condition, her soul was weak, and she could barely maintain consciousness.
But now, the Snow Emperor that the Ice Emperor saw, although still far from her peak, had a steady aura and solid soul power, and had recovered to about 70-80%.
The voice of Tianmeng Ice Silkworm also rang out in the sea of consciousness, filled with obvious shock.
"How is this possible? How did she recover? The last time I saw her, she was sealed inside the Conferred God Platform and couldn't even move."
Hyotei did not answer.
Her gaze remained fixed on Xue Di, watching her every move.
She knew Xue Di too well; that aura, that way of circulating soul power, it wasn't something she was faking.
Xue Di has really recovered a lot.
Tianmeng Bingcan continued speaking, her tone carrying an indescribable bitterness.
"The last time we saw her, she looked like she was about to disappear. How long has it been? How did she manage to do that?"
Hyotei was silent for a moment, then spoke in a very soft voice.
"It's Liu Yuan."
Tianmeng Ice Silkworm paused for a moment.
"Liu Yuan? What ability does a Soul Emperor of just over level 60 have to help the Snow Empress recover? Even with Ilex, it shouldn't be this fast, right?"
Hyotei did not answer. She looked at Yuki-tei's palm, at the layer of white cold air seeping from her palm, and at the widening cracks on the ice surface.
She thought of herself.
She chose Huo Yuhao because she was misled by Tianmeng and wanted to take a gamble...
But if she had the chance to do it all over again, what if she had met Liu Yuan first...
Hyotei shook his head, dismissing the thought.
There are no "ifs".
At the edge of the pool, Xue Di slowly raised her hand.
The layer of ice sealing the love-sickness grass was lifted up along with her movement.
It wasn't shattering or melting; rather, the entire ice layer peeled off the plant's surface, like a piece of clothing being removed.
The ice layer hovered in mid-air, slowly rotating beneath the Snow Emperor's palm. White chill and golden divine power intertwined within the ice layer, emitting a faint hissing sound.
Xue Di frowned slightly.
She applied slight pressure with her palm, and the white, chilling aura intensified, enveloping the entire ice layer.
The golden divine power struggled for a few moments in the white mist before slowly fading away.
The ice sheet lost its support, fell from mid-air, landed in the hot spring, and sank to the bottom.
Huo Yuhao watched as the ice slid down, and then watched as the dark red Acacia Heartbreak Grass was exposed in the water again, its leaves unfurled and bright red.
His eyes reddened, something swirling inside, but he gritted his teeth and didn't let it fall.
He turned around, facing Xue Di, and slammed his forehead against the rock.
"Thanks."
His voice was hoarse, with an indescribable sob in it.
Xue Di glanced at him, said nothing, stood up, and stepped aside.
Huo Yuhao turned to Liu Yuan again, opening his mouth as if to say something. Liu Yuan raised his hand, stopping him.
"Stop kowtowing." Liu Yuan's tone was very calm. "I've said it before, I helped you because of Elder Yi. You owe Elder Yi a favor, not me."
Huo Yuhao's lips moved, but he didn't say anything.
He looked at the gray phantom behind Liu Yuan. Electrolux was still there. The phantom was faint, but the outline was clear.
Electrolux didn't look at him; he turned his head slightly to the side, as if looking elsewhere.
Huo Yuhao lowered his head and said nothing more.
He turned around, faced the love-sick grass, and reached out his hand.
His fingers were trembling, but this time not from fear or despair, but from blood loss and weakness.
He steadied his hand, then used the tip of the knife to make another cut on the wound in his chest, squeezing out fresh blood that dripped onto the dark red leaves.
The blood fell on the leaves, but it did not congeal or freeze. Instead, it seeped into the veins, into the flower stem, and into the roots.
The color of the entire plant changed from dark red to bright red, and then from bright red to a glossy deep red.
The flower slowly unfolds, its petals as thin as cicada wings, its stamens golden yellow.
A smile appeared on Huo Yuhao's face.
He carefully plucked the love-sick grass from the crack in the rock, holding it in his palm as if it were something fragile.
His eyes were still red, but the despair in them had faded.
Liu Yuan stood aside, watching Huo Yuhao holding the herb, and remained silent for a moment before speaking.
"For Old Master Yi's sake, I'll give you one last piece of advice."
Huo Yuhao raised his head and looked at him.
Liu Yuan's tone was flat and emotionless, but he spoke clearly.
"In the future, don't be too impulsive. Think twice before you act."
"If you had jumped into the hot spring today and no one had stopped you, you would be dead."
"If you die, what will happen to Wang Dong'er? Who will save her?"
Huo Yuhao opened his mouth, but no words came out.
Liu Yuan continued, "There's one more thing. When you get back, go and ask Wang Dong'er yourself if she's really sick."
Huo Yuhao was stunned for a moment.
"What do you mean?" His voice was tense.
"I didn't mean anything by it," Liu Yuan said in his usual calm tone. "I just wanted you to ask around. What's in the letter might not be true. What others tell you might not be true either. It won't hurt for you to check it out yourself."
Huo Yuhao remained silent for a long time.
He looked at the love-sickness herb in his hand, then at Liu Yuan's face, and finally nodded.
"I see."
The alternating sensation of hot and cold continued in the air of the Yin-Yang Well.
Steam rose from the left side of the pool, while cold air rose from the right. The steam and cold air mingled on the water's surface, forming a thin layer of mist.
Liu Yuan turned around and stopped looking at Huo Yuhao.
He walked to the right side of the pool, to the edge of the cold spring, squatted down, and tested the water temperature with his hand.
The water was cool, but not the kind of chilling cold; rather, it was a refreshing coolness that carried a hint of coolness.
Xue Di stood behind him, looking down at his movements.
"Will the cold air in this cold spring have any effect on you?" Liu Yuan asked.
Xue Di glanced at Leng Quan and nodded.
"It's useful. The cold air here is very pure. If I can cultivate here for a while, my recovery speed will be faster."
Liu Yuan stood up and took a step back.
"Then you can stay here and cultivate. We'll wait for you."
Xue Di glanced at him but did not refuse.
She walked to the edge of the cold spring, sat down, dipped her feet into the water, and closed her eyes.
A white, chilling aura emanated from her body, mingling with the coldness of the spring, making it impossible to distinguish which part was hers and which part was the spring water.
Huo Yuhao stood not far away, watching this scene without saying a word.
In his mind, Hyotei's voice rang out again, this time not to him, but to the outside world, to Yuki-tei.
"Xue'er, it's me."
(End of chapter)