Chapter 147: Anything But Marriage
"Senior, please save Xiuying," Meiling begged, her forehead nearly touching the ground as she knelt before Xiang Yu.
Xiang Yu sighed inwardly. Even after skipping the dialogue and cutscene of this scenario, he had still ended up exactly where he feared. Extending his hand, he helped Meiling to her feet gently.
"No need to be so formal," he said, his tone measured. "Just explain the situation clearly, and I’ll see what I can do."
Behind his composed expression, Xiang Yu calculated his options. Perhaps this wasn’t entirely bad—there might be benefits to extract from this situation. A small, calculating smile tugged at his lips as he reasoned with himself: as long as it wasn’t something excessive like marriage, everything would be fine.
Meiling, now standing, bowed deeply once more. "Please marry Xiuying," she stated with unwavering conviction.
Xiang Yu’s entire body froze. His smile remained plastered across his face, now looking decidedly unnatural. After several heartbeats, he forced a hollow laugh.
"Hahaha, it seems I’m hearing things," he said, tapping his ear theatrically. "What did you need help with again?"
"Please take Xiuying as your wife," Meiling repeated, her voice even more confident than before.
"Hahaha, I’m really going deaf," Xiang Yu insisted, his laughter growing increasingly strained.
On the sidelines, Xiuying blushed deeply at Meiling’s bold proposal. She glanced down at her hands, then tentatively at her chest, remembering the strange warmth she had felt when touching him inside the ice. If it was with him... her blush deepened even more. Perhaps she wouldn’t mind such an arrangement after all.
"You female demon!" Elder Huang interjected, materializing between Meiling and Xiang Yu like a protective barrier. "You actually dare to poach the Sect Master’s husband?"
"Sect Master’s husband?" Meiling echoed in confusion. Was the dynamic of this sect truly so bizarre? Nothing made sense anymore.
Recovering her composure, Meiling addressed Xiang Yu directly. "Grand Elder, forgive my bluntness."
"It’s fine," Xiang Yu replied. "I can help you with anything else as long as it doesn’t involve marriage." His tone left no room for negotiation on this point.
"Umm, well..." Meiling faltered, her thoughts racing.
She had suspected Xiang Yu possessed a pure yang body, making him an ideal match for Xiuying’s pure yin condition. Glancing at Xiuying’s unmistakably interested expression, Meiling had thought this solution perfect—the girl would be paired with someone she seemed genuinely attracted to, and the sect master wouldn’t care about disrupting the original arrangement since the outcome remained the same.
But what did he mean by "except marriage"? Did he intend to take advantage of Xiuying without proper commitment? She couldn’t allow such disrespect toward the sect master’s precious daughter.
"Can I examine her condition?" Xiang Yu asked, interrupting Meiling’s spiraling thoughts.
"What?" Meiling asked, caught off guard.
"I have some medicine skills," Xiang Yu explained patiently. "Perhaps I can help her without resorting to... other arrangements."
He remembered detecting something unusual when frozen with Xiuying. If his suspicions proved correct, this could become a valuable opportunity—securing high level resources for the sect and potentially forging an alliance with a high-ranked faction.
"Ah, okay," Meiling relented, gesturing for Xiuying to approach.
The girl stepped forward, standing before Xiang Yu with bashful anticipation. Her cheeks flushed with color as she whispered, "If it’s you, Xiuying doesn’t mind."
"Doesn’t mind what? If you want to die that badly, don’t take me with you," Xiang Yu thought irritably, though his expression remained carefully pleasant. They were valuable customers, after all—best to maintain appearances.
Without responding to her comment, Xiang Yu gently removed one of her gloves and took her bare hand in his. Ice immediately began spreading along his arm, crystallizing in delicate patterns across his skin. Just like before, he absorbed the cold energy, neutralizing it as quickly as it manifested.
Internally, he noted the usefulness of this energy, though it wasn’t nearly as concentrated as when he had been completely encased in ice. Pushing these observations aside, he focused on his primary goal—diagnosing her true condition.
After several moments of careful examination, a satisfied smile spread across his face. His suspicions had been correct...
...
Meiling observed intently as Xiang Yu held Xiuying’s hand, her brow furrowed with skepticism. They had already consulted countless renowned physicians about Xiuying’s condition, yet none had offered any meaningful solution. This was to be expected, after all, the problem wasn’t an illness that could be cured, but a fundamental issue with Xiuying’s physique. Unless one could somehow remove or replace her entire physique, how could there possibly be a simple remedy?
"Take this," Xiang Yu said, extending a dark pill toward Xiuying.
Meiling’s first instinct was to intervene—who knew what this pill contained? Yet after a moment’s hesitation, she decided not to interfere. It would be disrespectful to reject the Grand Elder’s assistance after specifically requesting his help. Besides, despite her reservations, a tiny spark of hope flickered in her heart. What if it actually worked?
Xiuying accepted the pill without question, her trusting eyes fixed on Xiang Yu as she swallowed it in a single gulp. For several heartbeats, nothing seemed to happen. Then, miraculously, the frost that had been continuously forming where Xiang Yu touched her hand simply... stopped.
"This is..." Meiling couldn’t complete her sentence, stunned by what she was witnessing. She tentatively reached for Xiuying’s hand, expecting the familiar bite of cold that had accompanied every touch since the girl’s early childhood. Instead, her fingers met warm, normal skin. Not merely absence of cold, but genuine human warmth. Her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Don’t get too excited," Xiang Yu cautioned, his voice tempering their growing elation. "Although she’s normal for now, it’s just a temporary solution."
Internally, Xiang Yu was glad that he had refined another qi absorption pill earlier. Xiuying’s dangerous physique, though seemingly untreatable, ultimately operated through qi mechanisms. During his battle simulation against her, he hadn’t suffered the freezing effects despite making contact with her.
He concluded that when qi was actively being utilized, as in combat, there was no excess energy to overflow and manifest as ice.
Of course, he couldn’t expect her to remain in perpetual combat mode. That’s where his qi absorption pill proved invaluable—it continuously drew in her excess qi, keeping it actively engaged rather than free to form ice. The principle was simple once understood.
"Only temporary?" Disappointment clouded Meiling’s features, her brief moment of jubilation fading. "How long will it last?" she asked anxiously.
"I don’t know either," Xiang Yu admitted. He gestured toward the table where his spirit food still steamed invitingly. Despite being frozen earlier, the dishes had retained their spiritual potency perfectly. "Why don’t we find out together?"