Chapter 124: Warmth

Chapter 124: Warmth

"I'm back, did you miss me?" Du Qianjue said with a bright smile, opening his arms towards the Xue LingLong

"It's been less than two months, should I have missed you?" The Xue Linglong looked at him playfully, yet still threw herself into his arms.

"Of course, you should miss me every day."

Holding the Xue LingLong soft body, Du Qianjue inhaled the familiar scent, speaking somewhat greedily.

"Alright, alright, I'll miss you every day." The Xue Linglong chuckled, leaning into his embrace.

The extreme cold of the far north didn't cool their warmth. Although they had only been apart for two months, they missed each other deeply. After a warm embrace, the Xue Linglong led Du Qianjue back to the ground, since it wasn't practical to always hang in the sky.

Returning to the Xue LingLong icy cave, Du Qianjue noticed that she had added many human-like furnishings and decorations during this time. There was a table and several chairs from Du Qianjue's courtyard, and a swing near the doorway. They all resembled the ones from Du Qianjue's courtyard but were made of ice, crafted by the Xue Linglong using her powerful ice attributes. She had locked the extreme cold inside the furniture's core, ensuring it wouldn't melt from temperature changes and that even ordinary people could use them without turning into ice blocks.

Seeing these familiar furnishings made Du Qianjue grip the Xue LingLong's hand a bit tighter. Wasn't this also a way of missing someone through objects?

"Even though you missed me, why didn't you come to Star Luo City to find me?" Du Qianjue asked softly.

"It would have been inconvenient, and besides, I knew you would come to find me right after the competition ended," the Xue Linglong shook her head, looking at Du Qianjue.

"So, you came to the far north right after the competition ended?"

"Of course." Du Qianjue nodded affirmatively, sitting down with the Xue Linglong on the icy swing.

The swing moved slowly. Although it lacked the relaxed feel of the swing in Du Qianjue's courtyard, it had its own charm amidst the icy landscape.

Neither spoke for a while, just holding each other, quietly feeling the warmth of one another. After a long moment, the Xue Linglong looked up at Du Qianjue.

"I want to eat something you cook," she said playfully, winking with a smile appearing on her lips.

"Order away, my dear customer," Du Qianjue replied earnestly.

"Um… let me think~" The Xue Linglong tapped her chin gently, her brow furrowed as if struggling to decide what she wanted to eat.

"Why don't you just cook something, I'll eat whatever you make."

The Xue Linglong gave up choosing. She wasn't well-versed in food, having barely eaten anything in the past.

"Then I'll start showing off my skills now," Du Qianjue chuckled, standing from the swing and moving to a clear area to pull out various bottles, jars, and ingredients.

He set up a stove, lit a fire, and boiled water. The Xue Linglong watched, resting her chin in her hands, her eyes full of love only for Du Qianjue, busy at work.

Having been alone for six to seven hundred thousand years, she had long discarded unnecessary emotions like loneliness, but after meeting Du Qianjue, that feeling seemed to resurface. She couldn't understand why.

Once, as the sovereign of the far north, she had stood at the heart of the icy plains, watching the ice form and snow fall. Her heart, unshaken for over six hundred thousand years, had been breached by Du Qianjue, who then audaciously took up the most important place in it.

But the Xue Linglong did not resist this feeling; she enjoyed that her heart was filled with thoughts of Du Qianjue. In just a few years, she too had changed.

Hadn't she?

"Snow, dinner is ready~"

Du Qianjue's voice brought the daydreaming Xue Linglong back to reality. Lifting her head, her perfect face broke into a stunning smile.

"I'm coming~"

Their meal was leisurely, eaten slowly, and with two masters of elemental control there, there was no risk of the food cooling down too quickly or losing its taste.

Du Qianjue described the scenes from the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Tournament to her, recounting his experiences over the month. Although mostly tales of his unchallenged victories, the Xue Linglong listened intently, her eyes soft and warm as she watched him.

Time slowly passed.

Du Qianjue's voice suddenly stopped, and the Xue Linglong looked up questioningly, only to find Du Qianjue, who had been embracing her, had fallen asleep. His breathing was even, a smile lingering on his lips.

"Goodnight," the Xue Linglong whispered, resting her head against Du Qianjue's shoulder.

…

When Du Qianjue next opened his eyes, his breath was filled with the scent of the Xue LingLong. Lifting the blanket off himself, he looked around somewhat bewildered, realizing he had unknowingly fallen asleep and hadn't even noticed when the Xue Linglong had moved him to her bed.

He had slept soundly, without any guard against the Xue LingLong, and her gentle movements had not woken him. It was probably the most peaceful sleep he had had in a long time.

Getting up and stretching to relax his stiff body, Du Qianjue surveyed the Xue LingLong room. The decor was simple, just a bed and a dressing table.

There weren't any cosmetics on the table, just an ice mirror and a small, lifelike ice sculpture of Du Qianjue.

Approaching the dressing table, Du Qianjue gently picked up the small ice sculpture, falling silent for a while. The sculpture depicted Du Qianjue as he first appeared before the Xue LingLong, confident and majestic in a fur coat.

After replacing 'himself' back in its place, Du Qianjue closed his eyes, his fingers moving slightly as threads of ice gathered in his hands. Eventually, he formed another ice sculpture.

It was of the Xue LingLong.

Beautiful beyond measure, regal and imposing in a flowing gown adorned with an ice crown. Placing the Xue Linglong sculpture beside his own, Du Qianjue smiled faintly.

"This makes it more harmonious."

As Du Qianjue had closed his eyes, the Xue Linglong had already appeared at the door, silently watching his actions. Naturally aware that Du Qianjue had awoken, she hadn't expected him to make an ice sculpture of himself to place beside hers.

"I seem to have not considered this," the Xue Linglong said softly.

"It's okay, it's never too late to add," Du Qianjue shrugged.

In front of the mirror, the two lifelike figures seemed to tell a story of their own.

(End of Chapter)