Darkness engulfed Lu Ying's senses. The raw blood energy she absorbed churned like a storm within her veins, threatening to tear her apart. Her muscles tensed. Her skin cracked. Thin streams of blood trickled from those ruptures, staining the ground below. Her breaths were shallow, her body frozen from the inside out. She couldn't scream. She couldn't move. It was as if her soul were bound and buried beneath ice and agony.
> "I… I don't want to die…"
Her desperate thoughts echoed in the void of her mind.
> "My mother's waiting for me. And… Su Yang… he's done so much for me—saved me again and again. I… I can't let him down now."
In the silence of her torment, fragmented memories flickered.
The first time she met Su Yang—how his eyes had looked at her not with lust, but with a strange and unfamiliar warmth.
In the cave, when she had nearly fallen into despair, and he had lifted her up without hesitation.
Countless times, when he had shielded her, risked his life for hers… and never once asked for anything in return.
It wasn't just gratitude. It was something more. Something that clung to her chest like warmth in the cold.
Suddenly, a voice broke through the suffocating haze.
> "Lu Ying, what's happening? Can you explain? Lu Ying, can you hear me?"
She wanted to respond—to scream for help—but her lips remained sealed by the overwhelming force within her.
> "Lu Ying…"
Su Yang's voice.
> "If you can hear this… I'm sorry. I have to do this to save your life."
Then came warmth—gentle, fierce, and familiar. Like the sun pushing through a blizzard. She couldn't see him, but she felt his hand upon hers.
And in that moment, the blood energy that had once surged violently began to flow smoothly through her body. The ice that had threatened to devour her heart calmed. Pain dulled into numbness. The storm had passed.
---
When Lu Ying awoke, her eyelashes fluttered. She took a deep breath. Her chest still ached, but she felt lighter—as if her entire body had been reforged anew. Her muscles no longer trembled. The pain that had once threatened to break her now only lingered as a memory.
And then, she saw her.
A middle-aged woman stood over her, arms crossed but eyes soft, filled with worry and strength.
> "Are you alright, my child?"
"Do you feel any pain in your body?"
The woman's voice was stern but unmistakably caring—so much like her mother's that Lu Ying instinctively responded.
> "I'm… okay," Lu Ying murmured. "My body feels better. Lighter. Stronger. But… ma?"
The woman gently stroked her cheek, and Lu Ying's breath caught in her throat. There was something in her eyes—something ancient, protective… maternal.
Then, the woman turned and gestured to the man nearby.
> "This is your grandfather," she said gently. "His name is Li Yong."
A tall man stepped forward, his gaze filled with pride and gentleness.
He smiled.
> "You look so much like your grandmother," he said warmly. "Seeing you makes me miss your mother even more."
Lu Ying's eyes widened. "Grandparents…?"
Her mother had never spoken of them. All her life, she thought she had only her mother and her sect.
> "I know it's hard to believe," Lu Wei said softly. "That's why your mother left something for you."
She reached into her robe and pulled out a sealed letter. Lu Ying hesitated—then took it.
With trembling hands, she opened the letter. Her eyes scanned the familiar handwriting.
---
> "Lu Ying, I know you have many questions. There are things I couldn't tell you before—not because I didn't trust you, but because the time wasn't right. Now, please, follow my mother's guidance. You're stronger than you know, and there are things only she can teach you. I trust you, my child. Always."
— Mother
---
Tears welled up in Lu Ying's eyes. It was real.
This woman—this fierce, noble cultivator—was her grandmother.
And the man standing nearby, smiling quietly with pride in his eyes… he was her grandfather.
> "My child," Lu Wei spoke again, her tone more urgent now.
"We don't have much time. Your ice bod
y still needs to be stabilized. If you want to say anything to him—" she gestured to Su Yang, "—say it now."