Ye An woke with a shaky breath as a piercing chill traveled through her body.
She was in a bed covered in thick blankets, yet the chill didn't go away. She breathed heavily, looking at the still-lit fireplace with a pot of boiling water above. Grumbling under her breath, she stood up, pulled the covers off, and released a cold, steamy breath that caused the water particles to freeze mid-air.
By now, this had become routine. Ye An walked close to the fire, swiped her hand over the flames, and felt a bit of warmth on her skin. But it wasn't anything special. There was no fire or anything else that could warm her easily. Even now, with her hand on the fire, the flames grew weaker until they almost died out.
Ye An lived in one of the many tiny stone houses within Whitewall Town.
Since the fight with Song Song, she had nowhere else to go. Despite using her strongest defense technique, Song Song's attack had been monstrous. Ye An was supposed to have an advantage since her Qi had an element due to her Extreme Physique. Still, there were always monsters like Song Song who could exploit every slight difference in level to their overwhelming advantage.
She took her hand off the fire and pulled down the clothing around her shoulder, revealing a bruised shoulder with dark spots.
"One day, I will kill that bitch," Ye An cursed.
During times like these, she thought perhaps joining the Blazing Sun Sect had been a mistake. The Blazing Sun Sect was known for its Yang element treasures. Maybe they had something that could extend her life or even suppress her condition completely, left behind by the Blazing Sun Immortal.
Of course, such dreams had been crushed by the harsh reality that there were people like Song Song in the Sect.
Ye An sighed, breathing her frosty breath onto the fire, extinguishing the flames and covering the leftover wood in a thin layer of frost in an instant.
Impressive-looking, but this was not a good sign. It showed that Ye An's body was absorbing and creating an extreme abundance of Yin Qi, and her roots were duplicating and doing the same.
In an instant, the room was covered in a smoky cold mist that quickly obscured her vision.
A part of Ye An had already accepted her death. Perhaps it would have been better to accept it and live the rest of her life peacefully. There was still time for her to get married and even have children.
Ye An walked out of the door, stepping barefoot on the snowy ground. Even the snow felt warm compared to her feet. But Ye An was releasing such extreme cold that it froze the snow and everything else.
No, Ye An refused to accept her fate. Even though she was born to die young, she would fight her fate every step of the way! No matter what she had to do! Even if she had to kill a thousand people a day, bathe in their blood, and eat their hearts, she would do it. This mentality was the least she could do to somehow increase her chances of survival, and there were many other things she would be willing to do.
Though her body was colder than ice, Ye An's eyes were lit aflame with an unwavering fire and an unbreakable will. Her whole being radiated danger.
No matter who she had to kill or what she had to do, Ye An wanted to live!
Her Qi, influenced by her feelings, bubbled under her skin.
She winced and forcefully stopped the breakthrough that was about to begin. There was a better time to break through to Foundation Establishment. She had to wait until summer, at least, because with her condition, breaking through in winter could cause her to explode. In the best-case scenario, her spirit roots would be crippled, and her cultivation destroyed. Though with her Extreme Physique, she would recover eventually, but by then it might be too late, and she would already be at the end of her lifeline.
She walked through the relatively empty town; most people were in their houses during such cold. Some curious onlookers stared out their windows, and some children's gazes followed her. At the same time, some of the men looked at her bashfully, like little girls seeing their first crush.
Ye An knew she was absolutely gorgeous, but it was annoying to receive so much attention on her all the time.
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She finally heard the cries of the sellers in the marketplace, proving that at least some people were still braving the cold. The town's market seemed quite rowdy even during these times.
As always, she caught the attention of many people, especially the men. None of them dared to approach her, which was a smart decision on their part since she could easily decapitate them and would do so without a second thought.
"Why is she walking around barefoot?" one of the women running a fish market whispered to a friend.
The woman who spoke was overweight and looked to be in her fifties, and she seemed like an average woman for these times. Ye An didn't want to bother her, nor did she mind the comment, so she didn't turn toward the woman or show any sign that she had heard it.
Thankfully, Whitewall Town didn't have many cultivators. Hopefully, the woman would be more careful with her words in the future. Even whispering when a cultivator was around meant there was a good chance the cultivator could hear unless there was too much background noise.
Ye An stood in front of a fish stall that sold frozen fish and other strange marine creatures, such as crabs and translucent squids.
"How much for five fish?" she asked.
The man in charge of the stall stared at her like an open-mouthed baboon. He had a balding head and a few strands of hair on his chin that could hardly be called a beard.
There was a time when even Ye An had been insecure about her appearance. She used to think that perhaps her skin was too pale, and it might be off-putting to some people just how perfect she was.
Of course, those were the thoughts of a silly girl. Whenever people now acted like this around her, she got irrationally annoyed.
She sighed, levitated the fish using her Qi, and put them in a leather bag. Her movements were flawless and done with practiced ease, and she sent the merchant into daydream land again.
Ye An didn't care and walked away from the stall without paying. With people so desperate, she thought no one had the time to act like a fool.
As she was about to leave the market, a lanky man wearing a golden yellow outfit approached her. Ye An didn't know much about the situation in Whitewall Town, mostly because she didn't care about a place in the middle of nowhere. But even she learned the basics, like who the Patriarch of the Hong Clan was. The Hong Clan was one of the ruling powers in Whitewall Town, which still meant they were trash in Ye An's eyes.
"I bet it can be quite annoying having to deal with the mortals constantly. Just give me the word, and I could have my best servants cater to all your needs," the Hong Clan Leader offered. His smile suggested they were old friends to anyone who might not know them.
Ye An didn't care about the friendly smile, nor did she believe a word he said. Instead, she contemplated whether to murder this guy.
Since Ye An didn't greet him back and just stared at him coldly, an awkward silence followed. The Hong Clan leader didn't know her thoughts, but even he could sense the uncomfortable atmosphere.
"Did you hear about some rumors from the Blazing Sun Sect?" he asked.
"Why should I care?" Ye An replied in a neutral voice.
"The rumors were about your two friends, Liu Feng and Song Song," the Hong Clan Leader said enticingly. "This could be your chance to return to the Sect and shake things up a bit."
"What do you get out of this?" Ye An asked nonchalantly as she walked past him with her fish still in hand. The man followed her like a dog.
By following her, the Hong Clan Leader was close enough to feel the cold her body naturally released. He couldn't stop his teeth from chattering due to the extreme cold.
Despite this, the man kept chatting away, telling her about all the benefits she would gain by following his advice. Ye An zoned him out most of the time.
"So what?" she asked as they approached her house.
"This could be your chance to take over everything!" he insisted. "Song Song was the talented one, the golden child. But—"
Ye An interrupted him. "How would you know something like that?"
"Excuse me?" The Hong Clan Leader seemed confused by her question, interrupting his charade.
"How would someone in the middle of nowhere know about Song Song being the golden child, or whatever you called her? The only thing that doesn't make sense here is how someone like you knows something like this," Ye An smirked and stared at him dangerously. "Are you a spy or something?"
"No, of course not!" The Hong Clan Leader refuted her claims. He knew the punishment for something like that, and he could no longer keep the fake smile on his face as his eyes narrowed. "I have my own sources."
Ye An also thought that the chances of this guy being a spy were slim to none. He had no valuable information to offer to any enemy Sect. Also, it was clear that this guy was an unknowing tool.
As for who sent him? If she were to guess, it would be someone from the Blazing Sun Sect, specifically the Inner Sect.
Ye An couldn't help but let her mind wander how easy it would be to kill this guy. She could easily create a sharp coating of ice around her hand and decapitate him in a split second. Or she could make a sharp ice spear and run it through his mouth—maybe that would finally shut him up.
She finally reached her house and entered through the unlocked door. The place was cold as always, as her constant presence had turned it naturally chilly.
The Hong Clan Leader was about to follow her. But just as he was about to step through the door, Ye An turned toward him and released her overwhelming Qi, making him stop in his tracks.
She kept looking at him, and the Hong Clan Leader's fake smile slipped off his lips as he realized he should back off.
After stepping back, Ye An closed the door in his face. She then walked toward one of the windows, peeking out, waiting for the Hong Clan Leader to give her any reason to kill him.
She looked through the reflection in the window and saw the Hong Clan Leader open and close his mouth before sighing and walking away.
With that done, she returned to her tasks.