The Man of Qingyuan Pavilion

"Stay still, don't move."

"It hurts, An Yi, it really hurts!"

"It's fine, you'll get used to it. Let me take a look first."

In the attic.

An Yi pried open Shen Muxuan's eyes with his fingers, carefully examining the color of her pupils under the beam of a flashlight.

After a moment, he turned off the flashlight, his expression turning grave.

"So... how is it?"

Shen Muxuan wiped her tears and rubbed her eyes as she asked.

An Yi forced a grin and boasted, "Just a minor issue! Since when has there been an illness I, An Yi, couldn't cure? Leave it to me!"

Shen Muxuan smiled sweetly.

Whenever An Yi spoke like this, he was usually just bluffing.

But just being able to see him again made her feel like everything was worth it. She was truly happy.

An Yi's face darkened.

He really couldn't cure her.

He had thought his maxed-out medical skills would make dealing with Shen Muxuan's condition a piece of cake.

But he never expected that Shen Muxuan wasn't actually sick—it was her innate spiritual veins causing the problem.

Like the natural cycle of life and death.

Her Heavenly Yin Veins were autonomously gathering spiritual energy, causing an alarming buildup of power within her body.

Yet, her constitution couldn't release this overwhelming energy.

If this continued, Shen Muxuan wouldn’t last another year—she would inevitably die a violent death.

Her blindness was just the beginning.

"An Yi, you know..."

Shen Muxuan held his hand, her expression complicated. "Master... Master got married."

Knowing she didn’t have much time left, she had once tried to set An Yi up with her master.

But who would’ve thought that Mu Qingyi would sacrifice herself for the sect, agreeing to a political marriage with the Tianxuan Sect?

After this separation, seeing her again would be difficult.

"Yeah, I know." An Yi chuckled lightly.

Mentioning this painful topic made Shen Muxuan’s eyes redden again. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

An Yi felt a pang of guilt and ruffled her hair. "Don’t worry, I’ll bring your master back."

Shen Muxuan: "…?"

Ahem. "Anyway, it’s getting late. Time to sleep."

An Yi quickly changed the subject.

He still wasn’t sure how to explain Mu Qingyi’s situation to Shen Muxuan.

Night deepened.

Shen Muxuan nestled in An Yi’s arms, eyes closed, breathing in his familiar scent as a faint smile graced her lips.

She had missed him—every single day.

Originally, she had planned to return to the sect for treatment and come back to the mortal world in three months.

But she never expected the Heavenly Yin Veins’ spiritual energy to invade her body, robbing her of her sight.

After this, death wouldn’t be far behind.

So, she had intended to quietly fade out of An Yi’s life.

Yet, against all odds, An Yi had come to the Immortal Sect himself.

It all felt like a dream—even now, she could hardly believe it.

Shen Muxuan opened her eyes, though she saw nothing.

Gently, she reached up and traced her fingers along An Yi’s face, trying to memorize his features by touch.

"Muxuan," An Yi called softly.

She smiled. "I can’t see you, so I just wanted to know if you’ve changed at all since we last met."

An Yi: "Stop poking. That’s my nostril."

Shen Muxuan: "…"

An Yi turned and wrapped an arm around her slender waist, pulling her soft, fragrant body close. "Don’t worry," he whispered. "I’ll heal your eyes. Everything will be alright."

Shen Muxuan swatted away the hand creeping toward her backside and nodded cheerfully. "Mm."

Before long, she clung to his arm and drifted into a deep sleep.

An Yi gazed at her breathtakingly beautiful face, peaceful in slumber, and sighed.

"Sleeping in clothes is so uncomfortable..."

Still, he couldn’t ignore the overwhelming softness pressed against him. Muxuan has really grown up...

Then, a bone-chilling cold suddenly swept over them.

Shen Muxuan’s body radiated an icy aura, freezing to the touch.

The arm she held was nearly numb, his blood turning to ice.

Midnight?

An Yi frowned.

Midnight—the hours between 11 PM and 1 AM—was when the Heavenly Yin Veins absorbed spiritual energy most intensely.

Sure enough, faint glimmers of light flickered around Shen Muxuan’s body.

Soon, her delicate frame turned deathly cold, frost forming on her long lashes.

An Yi’s arm had lost all sensation, frozen solid.

This is terrifying!

Even with his peak Void Realm cultivation, he could barely withstand it. Then what about Muxuan...?

"Cold... so cold..."

Shen Muxuan whimpered in pain, her brows furrowed. She released his arm and curled into a shivering ball.

An Yi turned and pulled her tightly against him.

Crimson flames of fire-attribute spiritual energy swirled around them.

"Shh... you’re warm now," he murmured.

Feeling the heat, Shen Muxuan’s tense expression softened slightly.

An Yi, now encased in ice like a statue, smiled faintly at the sight.

---

"The sky has cleared!"

Shen Muxuan stretched out a hand, basking in the sunlight with a sweet smile.

An Yi glanced around and couldn’t help but marvel.

The Qingyuan Pavilion is entirely made up of women!

The Immortal Sect’s pocket dimension was rich in spiritual energy, and perhaps because of the nurturing environment, every girl here was strikingly beautiful.

From budding young maidens to radiant teens, from voluptuous ladies to elegant mature women—each was a sight to behold.

Looking around, the scene felt like stepping into a spider den—no, even a spider den would be nothing, with just seven spiders at most!

However, with Shen Muxuan standing beside him, the other girls suddenly didn’t seem all that attractive anymore.

No surprise there. A girl rated 9 by the system had looks so overpowering that comparisons were pointless.

How could there be a man here?!

Exactly! Where did this man come from?!

Absurd! Since when could men enter the Qingyuan Pavilion? Aren’t we in danger?!

The women of Qingyuan Pavilion frowned, their expressions furious, yet their eyes kept stealing glances at An Yi, waves of emotion flickering in their gazes.

It couldn’t be helped.

This place was filled with women—a man hadn’t set foot here in centuries. They were practically starving.

And An Yi happened to be the exceptionally handsome type, his face and physique nearly flawless in their eyes.

Women rated 9 by the system were rare, and men were no exception. An Yi’s looks were a genuine 9.0.

"Shen-shimei, who is this…?"

A charming woman in her thirties eyed An Yi up and down, a smile playing on her lips as she asked.

Shen Muxuan clung to An Yi’s arm and declared proudly, "Aunt Wang, this is An Yi, my boyfriend."

"My, what a strikingly handsome young man."

Wang Yue stared at An Yi’s tall, well-built figure with a wolfish gaze, her body growing weak, her clothes practically soaked through.

An Yi gave her a sidelong glance.

On the surface, she was a woman in her thirties, but her mature charm was undeniable—a fine specimen of a cougar.

Too bad she stood no chance against his ironclad willpower.

His eyes lingered briefly on the curve of her waist and hips before he smirked dismissively.

Ahem!

Protector Yang, who had appeared the night before, cleared his throat.

Wang Yue snapped out of her daze and quickly said, "Protector Yang, what brings you here?"

"Elder Wang, the Pavilion Master requests your presence," Protector Yang said with a respectful clasp of his hands.

Wang Yue was notorious for her insatiable appetite.

And this young man in front of her looked fresh and tender—ripe for the taking.

"The Pavilion Master? Didn’t she get married?" Wang Yue blinked in confusion.

Protector Yang sighed. "She’s back."

"What? Shifu is back?"

Shen Muxuan’s face lit up with joy.