"Junior, I would like to continue this conversation in private. Follow me."
The Palace Mistress remained standing where she was, doing her utmost to suppress her inappropriate anger with her Ice Heart Art.
Meanwhile, the great mistress and I ended up in her room, where there was only a bed made of ice, a table made of ice, and a couple of chairs—guess what they were made of.
"So, Junior, I admit that if someone else were in my place, your game would have been flawless."
I merely raised an eyebrow, making it clear I didn't understand what she meant.
"About seventy years ago, I happened to be flying over the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range. There was one rather remarkable village near some ancient ruins. Shall I continue?"
To say I got a little scared would be an understatement. That's what happens when you imagine yourself the smartest person in the room.
On the other hand, I hadn't been wrong. I'd just gotten unlucky. I had to use that bluff so these ladies wouldn't crush me under the weight of their authority. Who could've known that a hot milf with an icy aura had accidentally learned about our village many years ago?
Bad luck, and I simply had no backup plan. My own oversight. I'd just been painfully flicked on the nose. I was now in this woman's power, and we both knew it.
"I don't understand what village you're talking about."
"Do you know what gave you away? Your level. Tenth level of the Elementary Profound Realm. Everyone in that village was at the same level. No, wait. You're talented. Your peers should be around the seventh or eighth level. You simply have a little more talent. That anomaly was what gave you away. I know it's a stretch, but it was enough for me to figure everything out."
"And what happens next?"
"Next, we continue our conversation about the calamity."
"If I deceived you about one thing, what guarantee do you have that I'm not deceiving you about everything else? Though, for the record, I never actually said anything. Technically, there was no deception at all."
"Of course. An omission instead of a direct lie. Clever. But you're overlooking one important detail."
"And what would that be?"
"My age. Do you know how many disciples have stood in front of me and wriggled around the truth no worse than you? That same Yu Xian lied straight to my face, then ran off to her beloved until he broke her heart."
"What age, Senior? You're young and beautiful."
"And yet that isn't true. My enormous experience will be the guarantee that you're telling the truth. You simply aren't capable of deceiving me."
"Why not just throw me in a dungeon and torture me until I tell you everything you need?"
"You know, I can't blame you for thinking so poorly of us. In a sense, we truly have become an evil sect in the eyes of the outside world. But not by choice. For the most part, we continue the work begun by the Founder: we give shelter to girls destined for death or something worse. But if we aren't strong, we'll be swept away, and all those girls we gave shelter to will meet an unenviable fate."
"I understand. A no-win situation."
"Almost. I thought the same way until I met you. And that's another reason we won't throw you in a dungeon and torture you."
"Enlighten me, Senior."
"Again, you're forgetting my colossal experience. Do you know how many times I've examined my girls' profound veins when they were unwell? Thousands? Tens of thousands? Hundreds? I can feel you. Right now I can plainly see that you've stopped shivering. Your body adapted to the cold profound energy. It happened gradually, but I noticed it. You are the answer to our problem with accumulated cold profound energy."
"Oh. Then all the more reason to throw me in a dungeon..."
"And you'll adapt. Even to torture. Don't think I can't see how tough your body is. And losing an opportunity like this if you grow stubborn and choose death would be foolish."
"So you'll negotiate with me nicely. Except now you need more than information about the calamity."
"Exactly."
"No problem. I'm willing to give you the technique that lets me do this for free."
"But there are complications."
"Right on the mark. You really are smart, Senior. There's a four-in-ten chance that a practitioner will simply explode because of this technique. And even if she doesn't, only one person in a million could learn it."
"You're not lying."
"I'm not lying."
"But I still have to verify it."
"Just invite someone you won't miss. I'll pass the technique on to her."
"No need. Just show it to me now."
I focused and summoned the pagoda. Cold profound energy began gathering from all around and flowing into my body after being processed by the technique. And that was when I noticed something very important, though I preferred to keep quiet about it for now.
"This technique is too mysterious and too tightly tied to body development. You're right, our girls can't handle it. What a pity. I truly thought this was the solution."
The Palace Mistress visibly wilted.
"Don't rush to conclusions. Maybe all isn't lost yet. We can think about it some more later."
"Very well. The millennium calamity."
"Let me tell you about the first scenario."
"The price?"
"Allow me to study the Frozen Cloud Art and the Divine Art of Absolute Ice."
"Only if you agree to become a disciple of my palace."
"Only if you agree to marry me."
"What?"
"What? Marry me."
"Bad joke, Junior."
"No joke. I've finally found at least one person who knows how to use her head. Of course I'm not letting a stroke of luck like that go. Marry me. I'll be a good husband."
"And my age doesn't bother you?"
"Your hair will turn dark again after you break through. Don't be insecure about it, Senior."
"It isn't about my hair. I don't have that long left to live."
"All right. May I have your hand, Senior?"
"Why?"
"I want to check something. After that, you'll give me the only correct answer—a yes—and we'll live happily ever after."
"Enough of that, Junior."
"No. So, may I have your hand? It won't hurt, and I can't harm you. I'm nowhere near strong enough."
"Fine." Feng Qianhui held out her hand, and I took it in mine.
Then, slowly pulling a simple but fairly sharp knife out of my ring, I made a deep cut in the hand holding the milf's hand and activated the Great Way of the Buddha.
This was the flaw in their technique. Their profound veins weren't adapted to such extreme cold. They couldn't digest all of the cold profound energy, and some of that undigested energy accumulated inside their profound veins and bodies. That was where all the side effects came from.
My technique, on the other hand, sucked in and digested any wild energy, then used it to temper the body and profound veins.
So, I couldn't drain her own energy, because she kept her own profound energy under control. But the accumulated energy was a completely different matter. Feng Qianhui had no control over that cold energy.
That was why my technique easily and effortlessly pulled that cold energy in like a black hole.
Of course, I couldn't completely cleanse her body and veins in a single session. In practice, everything happened more slowly. Given her level, it would take months of sessions like this. But even that was salvation.
"Amazing!" the excited milf exclaimed when my wound closed and the technique stopped working.
I wasn't thrilled myself. More energy again, and more discomfort along with it. I couldn't suppress my breakthrough for much longer.
"The fact that my age doesn't bother you doesn't mean your youth doesn't bother me."
"So we schedule the wedding for the moment I turn eighteen? Deal."
"Why are you so fixated on this wedding? My palace is full of beauties, yet you've latched onto an old woman."
"Senior, ordinary people have a riddle. Do you know what a husband and wife do before going to sleep and early in the morning after waking up?"
"I don't know." And the way her eyes flashed dangerously. Ooh!
"They talk, Senior. What did you think I meant? And talking to an intelligent person is always more pleasant. That's what attracts me."
"Just drop it."
"No. But I agree to wait until I turn eighteen."
"Why exactly eighteen? As far as I know, people in your village married at thirteen."
"My personal principles. Don't worry about it. Anyway, I'm not backing down, Senior."
"As you wish. It's so hard to deal with children, even geniuses. Let's continue. I'll allow you to study our techniques if you become our disciple. Now finally tell me about the calamity."
"The Blue Wind Emperor is ill."
"Everyone knows that. At my level, everyone does."
"But it isn't an illness. In reality, his sons are in league with his personal physician. Some kind of parasite was attached to his heart, and it's eating away his life force."
"What does that have to do with us?"
"Here's how it could. The Xiao Sect and the Burning Heaven Clan are fighting over the throne. Meanwhile, the emperor's protectors—the Heavenly Sword Villa—aren't reacting at all. They're waiting for the other forces to weaken each other enough in the war so they can destroy them themselves and usurp power. Once the swordsmen become the legitimate authority in the empire, they'll have the right to ask the Sacred Grounds for help. Especially since their leader has connections to the Sacred Grounds. And now remember what connects the leader of the swordsmen to your palace."
"Yuechan."
It wasn't hard to guess. Everyone knew about it. Ling Yuefeng lost all dignity and acted like a lovesick puppy whenever Chu Yuechan was involved. Once, he stood before the gates for several months just to catch a glimpse of his love from afar. Fucking Hachiko. In canon, this was the first calamity, if I'm not mixing anything up.
"Correct. That cretin is in love with Fairy Chu and will do anything to have her, even by force. And if things reach that point, your palace won't survive either."
"It sounds reasonable. But..."
"Every fact can be checked. The swordsmen's inaction in this situation, Ling Yuefeng's preparations and his efforts to build ties with his wife's relatives, and the fighting between the Xiao Sect and the Burning Heaven Clan."
"We'll check. And if it's true, then..."
"You'll agree to become my wife."
"Dream on. You'll become a disciple of the palace."
"And then I'll have the right to become your husband. Clever."
"Yes, yes. Whatever you say. We'll see whether you change your mind once you meet the fairies of the palace."
"Outer beauty is nothing. Intelligence is everything."
"Fine. Whatever you say. For now, you'll stay with us as a guest while we verify your words."
"Deal. Think about an engagement while you're at it. It's too early for marriage, but perfect timing for an engagement."
At my words, she only groaned and summoned some disciple. It was fun pestering this paradoxical milf. Why paradoxical? Because how could such an icy beauty be so damn hot?