On the outer island, there stood a pavilion overlooking the sea, where emerald waters met the sound of the tides.
After settling Yang Kai in the pavilion, Yu Xueqing departed with the others, leaving a few lower-cultivation women of Ice Heart Valley to attend to his daily needs.
Just before leaving, Qing Ya shot Yang Kai a look that told him to stay calm and be patient.
Yang Kai understood perfectly.
Now that he had arrived at Ice Abyss Island and learned that Su Yan was only a few hundred li away, his yearning to see her once more surged more fiercely than ever. But he also knew that Ice Abyss Island was no ordinary place, and he naturally wouldn't barge in recklessly.
Seated cross-legged in the pavilion, Yang Kai held Su Yan's Ice Soul Pearl in his hand, perfectly still.
He hadn't released his Divine Sense, yet he could clearly feel it—several hundred li away, there was a presence intimately connected to his own, one that shared his joys and sorrows.
It was Su Yan's presence.
At the same time, Su Yan sat upright in her ice chamber, her beautiful eyes closed, her long lashes trembling ever so slightly.
Both could feel the other's existence, sensing the rise and fall of each other's emotions.
This silent, intangible spiritual communion had an eloquence beyond words, and a warm glow suffused both their hearts and minds.
At a certain moment, both smiled at the same time. A wondrous spiritual force erupted from within their bodies, transcending the barriers of time and space, and converged at the center of Ice Abyss Island.
Yang Kai seemed to see Su Yan standing before him, so beautifully present—the figure that had lived in his heart for over thirty years finally reappearing before his eyes today.
He could even feel her reaching out to touch him.
He responded in kind.
The spiritual bond between them grew ever tighter, gradually merging into one.
There was no verbal exchange, yet both could clearly perceive everything about the other—every experience of these past years—as if they had lived it themselves.
In a certain location on the inner island, in Ran Yunting's ice chamber, the Grand Elder suddenly frowned mid-meditation as though sensing something. She raised her head and gazed into the void, a look of confusion crossing her face.
Just then, the communication compass beside her emitted fluctuations of Divine Sense. She picked it up and channeled her own Divine Sense into it. After sensing the message within, her expression darkened. "Junior Sister Yu actually found that brat and even brought him to Ice Abyss Island? So that's it—this little beast has been disturbing Su Yan's mind!"
"The little beast is courting death!"
A vicious gleam flashed in Ran Yunting's eyes as her overwhelmingly powerful soul force suddenly erupted into the void, striking toward a specific location on Ice Abyss Island.
Yang Kai, in the midst of his spiritual communion with Su Yan, had never expected anyone to attack him.
Spiritual communion was fundamentally different from Divine Sense. The former possessed no offensive or defensive power whatsoever, while the latter could be wielded for both.
The moment Ran Yunting's power descended, Yang Kai felt his spiritual connection with Su Yan severed by brute force. Not only that, the shock to his spirit turned his face pale, nearly causing him to spit out a mouthful of blood.
"Who is it?!" Yang Kai's eyes snapped open, his expression ghastly.
He could naturally sense that the force severing his connection with Su Yan had carried a hint of lethal intent, as though whoever it was cared nothing for his life or death. Had his Divine Sense not been far stronger than an ordinary person's, that single strike would have left him severely injured.
Such a wound was a spiritual injury—one that no ordinary medicine or pill could mend.
Yang Kai's eyes turned icy cold for an instant, but soon after, he shook his head in helpless resignation.
His actions just now had indeed been somewhat rash. After all, this was Ice Abyss Island, the headquarters of Ice Heart Valley. In ten thousand years, he was the first man to set foot on the outer island, and to act so impulsively—he was indeed somewhat in the wrong.
Having come to this realization, Yang Kai calmed himself and let the matter go.
Still, that Divine Sense had been no ordinary force. It most likely belonged to one of Ice Heart Valley's top five Elders.
Having silently swallowed the grievance, he decided against any further rash action. There would always be another chance to see Su Yan. As for her safety, Yang Kai wasn't worried—she was the Grand Elder's disciple, after all. No matter which Elder had struck at him, none would dare lay a heavy hand on Su Yan.
In her ice chamber, Su Yan suddenly opened her eyes. Her face was pale as she called out softly, "Master!"
"I told you to reflect behind closed doors! If you make another move like that, I won't need anyone else to act—I'll personally take that little beast's head!" Ran Yunting's frigid voice echoed in Su Yan's ears.
Su Yan's face grew even paler. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but no words came out.
"You'd best watch yourself!" Ran Yunting seemed thoroughly disappointed in Su Yan. After dropping those cold words, she fell silent.
In Ice Heart Valley's council ice palace, the valley's senior leadership had gathered together once more after a full year.
"Valley Master, what is the reason you've summoned us sisters?" an Elder asked.
Bing Long smiled gently and nodded. "There is one matter of importance, though it is a joyous one."