Too Much Practice

Xiao Yan's eyes were currently close as she was relaxing. However, her rest was interrupted by the constant splashes of water she was hearing.

She opened her eyes just in time to see Mu Yue fall to the pond.

"Mu Yue, are you alright?!" She exclaimed as she quickly ran to the shoreline that was the nearest to where Mu Yue fell.

"I am fine..." Mu Yue said as she stood up. She then walked to the shoreline and continued practicing.

The pond's deepest part was only until Mu Yue's chest. Even if she fell, she could easily get out. The downside was there would be more mud that will stick to her and her clothes.

Xiao Yan saw another failed attempt of Mu Yue. She quickly held her lover's shoulder, stopping her from trying again.

"Mu Yue you should stop. Rest for a while."

"No, there's still plenty of time left before nightfall. I better use all the time and learn my ability as early as possible." Mu Yue said as she removes Xiao Yan's hand.

She then slowly walks to the pond. As soon as her foot touches the water, she quickly freezes the water to ice. She would then need to wait for a while for the ice to get stronger, enough to hold her weight. A part of the ice was also connected to the shore. Because of this, the ice platform will not drift away.

She then lifts her other foot. The moment it left the ground, the ice made some noises. Fortunately, it was not destroyed and she was now standing in her ice. This was the first time this happened.

Delighted about her success, she then continued. The ice then broke and she fell again. Xiao Yan quickly avoids the splash of water and mud that went in her direction.

Mu Yue gritted her teeth. A simple solution was to increase the thickness of the ice. But it was easier said than done as she would need to spend more time freezing the water. What she wanted to achieve was to run across the pond, each step freezing the water to ice.

She wants the ice to be able to support whatever force she might emit. She also prefers if each patch of ice were not connected to each other. Currently, she needs to maintain the connection of the ice to the shore. This expends additional energy, just for her to cross through the pond.

Xiao Yan saw that the air Mu Yue was exhaling was appearing as smoke. This means that the air and the environment's temperature has a huge difference.

"Mu Yue, rest."

"I still can go some more."

"Rest."

"After a while, maybe until I can step thrice into the ice."

"You left me no choice."

"There wasn't any tho- oh..."

Mu Yue saw Xiao Yan smiling. But this sent shivers to her spine. She can now differentiate Xiao Yan's smiles, and this particular type was scary if it was directed to her.

"Mu Yue~ can you go rest now?" Xiao Yan asked kindly.

"Okay..."

Being able to step twice to the pond. It was better than achieving nothing.

Xiao Yan then held Mu Yue's hand and frowned. "You are too cold. Make sure to take a warm bath."

"I will."

Mu Yue was now relaxing inside the tub. She had to stay for a while to warm herself.

Xiao Yan was in the kitchen, preparing a hot soup.

"I think this should be enough... Did I do bad?"

She then tasted what she cooked. Although it was not as good as Mu Yue's, for her it was already great as long as it does not destroy tastebuds.

She then remembered that Mu Yue was still in the bath for a long time. She then quickly went to the bathroom's door and called out, "Mu Yue, are you not finished yet?"

She kept on repeating it yet Mu Yue never responded. Since there's only the two of them living in the house, they never locked the door. This made it easier for Xiao Yan to enter.

She then saw Mu Yue sleeping at the tub.

"You are that tired yet you insist on practicing..."

She grabbed a towel and placed it on her shoulder. She then pulled Mu Yue out of the tub and dried her with the towel before covering her with it.

She carried her to the bed and murmured, "You are now sleeping. I might as well drink the soup I made for it to not get wasted..."