"I'm going to continue cultivating!" Xiao Ning'er stated with a clear gaze directed at Nie Li, her expression cool and distant.
Xiao Ning'er didn't like being disturbed by others—a demeanor that kept others at arm's length.
She rarely interacted with classmates, especially the boys.
Without any friends, she seemed somewhat solitary.
"I'll be leaving soon!" Nie Li said with a faint smile, taking a cursory glance at Xiao Ning'er from head to toe.
Xiao Ning'er's delicate brows furrowed slightly; Nie Li's gaze felt impolite, making her a bit annoyed.
Many at Saint Orchid Academy pursued Xiao Ning'er, but she always dismissed them, focused only on her cultivation.
Nie Li's actions didn't set him apart from other boys, which was quite irritating.
"Why haven't you left yet?" Xiao Ning'er asked, clearly unhappy as Nie Li had been bothering her for a while.
Nie Li's eyes fell on Xiao Ning'er's bare feet—they were like jade, small, exquisite, and slightly reddish under the moonlight.
He said, "Doesn't it feel like your feet are on fire every night?"
Xiao Ning'er was slightly taken aback, "How do you know?" Due to the burning sensation in her feet, Xiao Ning'er typically didn't wear shoes while cultivating at night.
"Of course, I know!" Nie Li smiled.
"In fact, I know even more. Your feet burn like fire, but your body is extremely cold. Every night, it feels like you're falling into an ice cave. Isn't it difficult for you to cultivate your soul force?"
Xiao Ning'er's heart trembled.
These were burdens she had silently endured, never speaking of them, not even to her family.
How did Nie Li know?
Seeing Xiao Ning'er's reaction, Nie Li knew his assumptions were largely correct.
In her past life, Xiao Ning'er's issue stemmed from this condition, known as the Extreme Cold Syndrome.
Regular night cultivation introduced cold energy into the body, causing blockages in her meridians.
In mild cases, it could bring heavy illness, while severe cases could lead to death.
In her past life, Xiao Ning'er had been bedridden for only two years, which was considered quite fortunate.
"Besides these symptoms, there should be some bruises on certain parts of your body, persistent and painful, spreading more and more."
Nie Li said confidently, "You're not even at the Bronze one-star level, yet when you reach that point, you could become severely ill, lose much of your cultivation base, or worse."
Listening to Nie Li, Xiao Ning'er was momentarily stunned.
Her fists clenched, and her eyes reddened.
How could it be? No matter how strong-willed she was, hearing such news was unbearable.
Nie Li's ability to identify her condition meant what he said must be very close to the truth.
From a young age, she understood her family's intention to marry her into the Divine Sacred Family, to marry Shen Fei.
As she grew, Xiao Ning'er gradually realized what kind of person Shen Fei was.
She didn't want to marry such a flirtatious wastrel, so she desperately tried to become stronger and escape this cruel fate.
However, the heavens seemed intent on denying her wish.
Just as she was about to reach the Bronze one-star level, she heard such dreadful news.
Seeing the usually strong Xiao Ning'er on the verge of tears, Nie Li couldn't help but feel a tinge of pity.
"Nie Li, you know what's wrong with me. You must have a way to treat it, right?" Xiao Ning'er asked desperately, her protective shell broken, her tone imploring.
"Can you help me?" After all, Xiao Ning'er was only a thirteen-year-old girl.
Xiao Ning'er rarely asked for help.
Hearing her plea, Nie Li felt his heart soften slightly.
After a moment of silence, he said, "It's not without a cure. You can check the library at Saint Orchid Academy. This condition is known as Extreme Cold Syndrome."
"Really?" Xiao Ning'er felt a glimmer of hope.
"How do I treat it?"
"You'll need a special guiding technique to massage and disperse the bruises. Additionally, you'll need to take herbal medicines made with Golden Thread Grass and Sky Lotus Grass. Given your current state, you should heal in about a month, possibly even faster," Nie Li explained.
This was the method to treat Extreme Cold Syndrome.
"Guiding technique?" Xiao Ning'er's brows furrowed slightly.
Even as a member of a prominent family, she had never heard of anyone practicing such a technique.
"Besides the treatment, you must ensure you no longer cultivate soul force in the middle of the night!" Nie Li stretched out his hand.
"Show me your soul force cultivation technique."
Xiao Ning'er looked up at Nie Li.
If a stranger had requested her soul force cultivation technique, she would think they were trying to deceive her.
But seeing Nie Li's earnest expression, a strange sense of trust welled inside her.
Having heard so much from Nie Li, she decided to trust him fully.
She took out the soul force cultivation technique from her spatial ring.
It was a small piece of parchment, old and worn, covered with lines of dense script.
Nie Li took the parchment from Xiao Ning'er's hand, inadvertently touching her skin, which was as smooth as white jade.
However, Nie Li paid no mind to this and focused intently on the parchment.
After Nie Li's touch, Xiao Ning'er quickly withdrew her hand, her heart racing wildly.
If Nie Li had ulterior motives, what would she do? But when she looked up, Nie Li was absorbed in the parchment, not noticing her unease, which made her breathe a small sigh of relief.
Nie Li's focused study of the parchment had her momentarily transfixed until she snapped out of it, pondering deep thoughts.
"Such a large family, yet even the core disciples are cultivating such a lowly soul force cultivation technique. No wonder Glory City eventually fell…" Nie Li murmured softly.
"What did you say?" Xiao Ning'er widened her eyes.
She had caught only fragments of his words and hadn't clearly heard him.
"Nothing."
Nie Li smiled faintly.
"This soul force cultivation technique is very poor. It will inevitably harm your meridians when practiced. The reason you developed Extreme Cold Syndrome is closely related to this technique. Change 'Mind's Eye to Connected Soul' to 'Mind and Spirit as One' and 'Soul and Heart United'..."
Nie Li continued enthusiastically, altering the soul force cultivation technique beyond recognition.
Initially, Xiao Ning'er was resistant to Nie Li's changes; this technique was an ancestral heritage, ranking sixth among all her family's treasured soul force cultivation techniques.
How could Nie Li change it so casually? But as she listened, she began to see Nie Li's points, realizing the modifications made more sense and were much more complex than the original text.
Xiao Ning'er widened her eyes, looking at Nie Li in disbelief.
"Nie Li, could you say it again? I want to remember everything you've said!" Xiao Ning'er asked urgently.
"Alright!" Nie Li slowed his pace, carefully explaining each modification needed to the soul force cultivation technique.
Having practiced the technique, Xiao Ning'er had a photographic memory.
Although some parts confused her, she committed everything to memory.
As she continued to ponder Nie Li's corrections, she found his revised version to be incredibly profound.
Xiao Ning'er's gaze towards Nie Li changed from initial confusion to growing admiration.
To possess such vast knowledge of soul force to modify a high-level cultivation technique—could it be that Nie Li's understanding surpassed that of a Black Gold Demon Spirit Master, maybe even reaching the realm of a legendary demon spirit master?
To Xiao Ning'er, Nie Li's words were like a priceless treasure, and she ingrained every word into her heart.
Her feelings towards Nie Li were hard to describe—reverence? Awe?
Nie Li was just her age, yet Xiao Ning'er realized the vast gulf between them.
How laughable that she once thought Nie Li was the weakest in class.
Now she saw how ignorant Instructor Shen Xiu and their classmates were to mock him.
She was almost certain Nie Li would achieve his previously stated ambition of becoming a legendary demon spirit master.
The things Nie Li spoke of in class turned out to be true!
For the first time, Xiao Ning'er, always outstanding in talent and intellect beyond her peers, found herself looking up to someone of her generation.
Reflecting on Nie Li's vow to marry the most beautiful woman in Glory City, Xiao Ning'er found her thoughts tangled and unspoken.
A figure, Ye Ziyun, flashed in her mind.
Despite her self-assurance in her beauty, she couldn't deny that Ye Ziyun was perhaps her equal, if not superior, in appearance.
"What are you thinking about?" Nie Li asked, noticing Xiao Ning'er's peculiar expression.
"Nothing…" Xiao Ning'er quickly shook her head, dismissing her thoughts.
"Nie Li, do you know the guiding technique?"
"Of course."
Nie Li nodded, "But using the guiding technique involves massaging the bruised areas. It might be improper for me to do so."
Xiao Ning'er looked up at Nie Li's face, seeing the sharp contours, the piercing eyes, and the deep glint in his gaze, reminiscent of an unyielding elegance.
Her mind resonated with images, and she said, lowering her head, "I don't mind. You're just helping me heal, right? I don't want to become crippled."
Her latter words sounded as if she were consoling herself.
In front of Nie Li, Xiao Ning'er finally lowered her guard.
"Uh…" Nie Li hesitated for a moment.
Seeing that Xiao Ning'er was open to it, he decided not to dwell on trivialities.
He already had feelings for Ye Ziyun, and while he held some affection for Xiao Ning'er, it wasn't anything significant.
"Alright then, every three days, I'll help you with the treatment using the guiding technique. Meanwhile, take the herbs I mentioned, and you should recover soon."
"Okay," Xiao Ning'er nodded, remaining silent.
"Where are the bruises located?" Nie Li asked.
A bashful shade of red washed over Xiao Ning'er's cool countenance as she pointed to her foot, saying, "There's one here."
Nie Li looked down and saw a dark bruise on Xiao Ning'er's pale instep, quite severe.
"This is serious."
Nie Li frowned, "Luckily, it's on the instep; treating it here is convenient. It won't take long!" He squatted down, sitting cross-legged on the ground.
"Okay," Xiao Ning'er nodded, not mentioning that it was just one of the many bruises.
She quietly sat down, placing her foot on Nie Li's lap, her thoughts flickering with uncertainty.
(End of Chapter)