Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

“Wasn’t she able to control her power? Why was she considered a heretic?” Mo Fan gasped.

“The Magic Association has always been like this. They are afraid of powers unknown to them. Those who possess power the Magic Association is unfamiliar with, either innately or purposely, are treated as heretics. The truth is, we all know many powers aren’t listed in the Magic Index, such as the Totem Beasts. They exist, but the Magic Association has never acknowledged them. Their existence was even erased from history!” Mu Ningxue explained.

“The Magic Association… They might have existed for humans and Mages’ sake at first, but that’s not necessarily the case now. It’s more about politics,” Mo Fan sighed.

The Magic Association was huge. Its branches were scattered across the world.

Not every Magic Association had diverted from their main goals. Many local Magic Associations still obeyed their rules of conduct. Mo Fan had witnessed all this in person: the higher authorities, especially the continent-level Magic Associations and the two greatest arbitration organizations, the Holy Judgment Court and the Heresy Judgment Court, had tyrannized people on more than one occasion.

To Mo Fan’s surprise, Qin Yu’er was targeted by the Heresy Judgment Court too. She was considered a heretic!

“The Heresy Judgment Court has too much power. No faction or organization dared to stand on Qin Yu’er’s side, except Chief Military Instructor Zhan Kong…

“Chief Military Instructor Zhan Kong was a disciple of a renowned clan back then. His objection was meaningless. Instead, he was expelled by his clan, hence why a great talent like him was assigned to our Bo City. Qin Yu’er didn’t tell me that, I heard it when I was in the Mu Clan. If it weren’t because of the Heresy Judgment Court, Chief Military Instructor would have held a high position on the national team. He might even have been the advisor of our batch,” Mu Ningxue went on.

The advisors of the national team had great power. Even the local Councilmen had to nod their heads and bow around the advisors. It was Mo Fan’s first time hearing this about his Chief Military Instructor’s past. He could imagine how impressive the Chief Military Instructor had been from the few words, including the pain he had gone through.

“The Heresy Judgment Court sealed Qin Yu’er away in the Scar of Tianshan Mountain, the deserted place that had tortured her for seven years. They wanted her to fall into eternal slumber in the Valley of Glaciers that has been around since forever!” Mu Ningxue’s lips were trembling as she spoke.

Seven years, seven years were gone in the blink of an eye. It sounded so simple when Qin Yu’er told her what had happened, yet Mu Ningxue knew how much of a torture it was to spend seven years alone.

Mu Ningxue was familiar with the problems of cultivating with their Innate Ice Magic. Qin Yu’er had practiced diligently for seven years so she could control the Ice Magic in her body, allowing her to return to a normal life.

However, the Heresy Judgment Court had sealed her back in the land of ice that was her absolute nightmare, even though she could already control her power. The Scar of Tianshan Mountain was beyond anyone’s reach. It was crueler than executing her!

“‘He said he would come, even if his hair had turned white… it was the only thing that kept me alive’, Qin Yu’er told me,” Mu Ningxue repeated the phrase softly. She could deeply relate to Qin Yu’er.

Mo Fan was completely lost for words.

He was extremely touched when he heard of Qin Yu’er’s past from Mu Ningxue. He had experienced how cold and cruel Tianshan Mountain was himself now, so he could easily relate to what Qin Yu’er had gone through.

It was why Zhan Kong insisted on visiting Tianshan Mountain even after becoming one of the living dead!

Was that the promise that helped Zhan Kong preserve his consciousness when the Qin Emperor’s soul tried to devour him?

When Chief Military Instructor Zhan Kong lunged at the black mantle, the greatest pain he endured was not losing his flesh, but the fact that he was unable to see Qin Yu’er again.

“Qin Yu’er said she saw Chief Military Instructor Zhan Kong when she was freed from the ice, but he turned around and left. She couldn’t understand…” Mu Ningxue said.

Mo Fan looked at the frozen valley. He recalled Zhan Kong’s half-dead face.

Mo Fan could relate to Chief Military Instructor Zhan Kong’s feelings when he chose to turn around.

Mu Ningxue did not speak, as if she was lost in the story. She could feel an endless sorrow pouring into her chest. She felt sorry for the couple.

Mo Fan was recalling everything that had happened on Tianshan Mountain. He suddenly had an urge to go back in time and change the past, to relieve Chief Military Instructor Zhan Kong from the Qin Emperor’s Curse so he could reunite with Qin Yu’er and tell her with a smile, “I’m here!”

The two remained silent for quite some time.

After a while, Mo Fan finally recalled the question he meant to ask at first. He cleared his thoughts and asked, “What about your Third Element? What happened to it?”

“People like us will face a serious problem, in that there is a possibility that our new Elements are unusable. You can think of it as some kind of deformity. Their Star Dust won’t grow like other Elements, but die prematurely. I asked Qin Yu’er about it. She told me she had the same problem. She only had a single Element even after she reached the Advanced Level. She never Awakened a second Element,” Mu Ningxue said.

“How could that be?” Mo Fan wondered.

“Even though I’ve Awakened the Third Element… A Tianshan Scar Ice Spirit dies prematurely because of me,” Mu Ningxue said.

“Dies prematurely?”

“I was too eager to grow stronger. Qin Yu’er already told me there might be some problem with my Third Element, yet I still signed a Contract with a little Tianshan Scar Ice Spirit. In the end…” Mu Ningxue’s face turned gloomy.

Back then, Mu Ningxue and her family were cast out because of Mu He. She was also disqualified from the national team and forced to leave the clan. She desperately wanted to grow stronger.

The little Tianshan Scar Ice Spirit’s death had woken her up. She realized she was being too impatient. If she did not calm herself, her recklessness was only going to hurt the people around her.

Qin Yu’er spent seven years on Tianshan Mountain controlling her power so she would not hurt others. Mu Ningxue realized she could not afford to lose control of herself and act irrationally.

Mu Ningxue grieved over the death of the Tianshan Mountain Ice Spirit, but she managed to recover from her obsessions. Her path forward was much smoother after that, and paying an unforgettable price!