Yun Lian once rescued a boy who was nearly frozen to death on a muddy road amid wind and snow.
His face was a cold, almost translucent white from the frost. Beneath his long, curled lashes were pitch-black eyes, strikingly beautiful.
Yun Lian scrimped and saved, took odd jobs, and shared her few cotton dresses, hairpins, and food with him, hoping he would stay by her side so she wouldn't be lonely anymore.
On her birthday, she split a mandarin-duck wooden pendant she'd just carved in two and carefully placed half in his palm. Her bright eyes curved into a smile. "This is a token of our love."
Sadly, the boy left without a word.
She didn't know that men and women were supposed to keep their distance. He had never liked wearing her dresses or her hairpins.
And he had no intention of marrying her.
Twelve years later.
The opportunities along the path to immortality are vast and mysterious. After only decades of cultivation, the Venerable Swordmaster Tianheng had become the fastest-rising talent in the immortal sects, a genius sword cultivator and the beloved disciple of the leader of Tianyan Sect, the foremost sect in the immortal mountains.
At his side was the sect leader's daughter, a gifted young woman doted on by all and pursued and fawned over by the finest talents of the immortal sects.
His friends were scions of prestigious families, renowned for their cultivation and promising futures.
He named himself Xie Fuxue, brushing the ties of the mortal world from his robes like a snowflake.
Then, in a secret realm during a grand contest between the sects, he unexpectedly encountered Yun Lian again.
By then, beneath the icy sword intent of a sect leader whose sword shone cold as light, she had fallen into the mire and become a female cultivator of the Hehuan Sect, despised by every respectable cultivator.
She was nothing but a burden he'd chosen to abandon.
So why did he keep watching the upright, impeccable male cultivators who had once shared his path fan their feathers like peacocks in front of her, even trying to become her cultivation partner?
Beneath his calm, detached exterior, the blaze of jealousy and possessiveness burned so fiercely that his Dao heart nearly shattered.
[Bonus Scene 1]
Xie Fuxue had always thought he was the knot in Yun Lian's heart.
So when everyone entered Yun Lian's memory illusion together, he sprawled on the roadside in a starfish pose, sighed, and resigned himself to reenacting the past to help her overcome it.
But nearby, a certain young sect leader turned sideways, half-revealing his abdominal muscles, and timidly clutched Yun Lian's sleeve as he looked up at her. "Big sister, my heart is almost frozen. Don't believe me? Feel it for yourself."
Xie Fuxue: Six.
[Bonus Scene 2]
A certain young sect leader accidentally saw something private he wasn't supposed to.
Good heavens! He'd even suspected that the two greatest sword-cultivator geniuses of their generation were lovers.
He never imagined Yun Lian had given two men the same token of love.
[Bonus Scene 3]
Xie Fuxue had always thought Yun Lian was pretending not to know him.
That was until he found out that he and another equally renowned genius sword cultivator had the same mandarin-duck pendant!
Suddenly, he began to wonder: Foundation Establishment isn't exactly a high level of cultivation, but Yun Lian is a Hehuan Sect disciple. How did she reach Foundation Establishment? Hmm?
1. Content warning: The female lead will have intimate contact with both the male lead and the other male characters!
2. The female lead, male lead, and other male characters all see things differently, making for a deliciously angsty push and pull.
3. A female lead adored by everyone x a battlefield of rival male characters x competition among men.
Plot notes saved on January 14, 2026. The complete novel is in progress. If you're interested, please add it to your favorites. I'll send out a gift when it's posted!
Theme: Cherish the beautiful things you have
