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Gong Yuxian slowly lowered her ice sword.
She looked at the pink lotus in Sam's hand, then looked at the tears shining in Chu Yueli's eyes.
The Sect Master's strict, icy heart finally cracked.
"If you truly have a cure,"
Gong Yuxian whispered, her voice breaking.
"Please... show us."
Sam smiled warmly. He let the pink lotus fade away and reached into his spatial ring.
He pulled out several beautiful jade bottles and handed them to the Sect Master.
"Take the red pills first,"
Sam instructed, his voice echoing clearly across the quiet courtyard.
"Those are pure Yang pills. Pass them out to everyone. They will safely melt the dead ice that is crushing your organs."
Gong Yuxian carefully opened the bottle. A wave of rich, comforting heat washed over her face. She took out a glowing red pill and swallowed it.
Instantly, her eyes went wide. The deep, heavy pain in her chest—a pain she had lived with for decades—melted away like snow in the summer sun. A healthy, warm pink color returned to her pale cheeks.
Seeing their master heal, the other women quickly shared the red pills. Gasps of shock and tears of relief filled the courtyard.
"The pain is gone!"
One young disciple cried happily.
"I can feel my heart beating so strongly!"
An older elder wept, holding her chest.
Sam didn't stop there. He pointed to the second set of bottles.
"Now, take the golden pills,"
Sam said gently.
"Those are Longevity pills. The ice stole many years from your lives. These pills will give all of those years back to you."
Gong Yuxian took a golden pill. The moment it touched her tongue, a massive surge of pure, ancient life force exploded inside her body.
The older elders in the courtyard gasped as their gray hair slowly turned back to a deep, healthy black.
Their tired bodies filled with youthful energy. They felt like they had just been reborn.
"This... this is a miracle,"
Gong Yuxian whispered, falling to her knees in the snow.
"I have read ancient scrolls, but I never believed such miraculous pills actually existed in this world."
"They don't exist in this world,"
A sharp, bossy voice interrupted.
Everyone looked down at little Jasmine.
The red-haired girl was staring at the empty jade bottles with her jaw hanging open.
"Senior Sam,"
Jasmine said, looking up at him in total disbelief.
"Do you have any idea what you just did?"
"I cured their illness,"
Sam answered simply.
"You gave away priceless treasures!"
Jasmine yelled, waving her small arms.
"Even in my home, the absolute highest Realm of the Gods, a single pill that grants pure life force would start a massive, bloody war! Realm Kings would murder each other for just one of those golden pills! And you just handed out dozens of them for free?!"
The women of Frozen Cloud Asgard stared at Sam in absolute shock.
They suddenly realized the true, terrifying weight of the gift they had just swallowed.
"They are too precious,"
Chu Yueli whispered, covering her mouth.
"How can we ever repay you?"
Sam just chuckled and patted
Jasmine on her red hair, calming the angry little girl down.
"Jasmine,"
Sam said, looking down at her.
"What good is a healing treasure if it just sits locked inside a box forever? I can make these pills easily. To me, giving these women long, happy lives is worth much more than a pile of gold."
Sam looked back at Gong Yuxian and the weeping women in the courtyard.
"You do not owe me any payment,"
Sam smiled, his voice full of deep kindness.
"Just live your lives. Smile. Be happy. That is the only payment I need."
Sam looked at the beautiful, snow-white courtyard. He looked at the faces of the women standing around him. He knew exactly what kind of sect this was.
"Now,"
Sam said, his voice becoming a little more serious.
"The pills have healed your bodies. They gave you your time back. But we still have a problem. If you keep practicing your old Frozen Cloud arts, the ice will eventually come back to kill you."
Gong Yuxian, the Sect Master, stood up slowly.
"Then what should we do, Senior Sam?"
She asked respectfully.
"Our ice arts are the only way we can protect ourselves from the men outside. The men in this world are cruel, greedy, and wicked. That is why our ancestors built this hidden palace. That is why we hate them."
Sam nodded. He completely understood their fear and their anger.
"You have every right to protect yourselves,"
Sam told her kindly.
"And I know what you might be thinking right now. In many old stories, when a powerful man comes to a sect full of beautiful women, he offers a 'dual cultivation' technique to save them."
Many of the women in the courtyard suddenly stiffened. They gripped their ice swords tightly, looking very uncomfortable and scared.
Sam immediately shook his head.
His eyes were perfectly clear and honest.
"Let me be very clear,"
Sam said, his voice firm and completely safe.
"I find that approach disgusting. I am a married man, and I deeply respect women. I would only do dual cultivation with the women I loved. I will never ask any of you to compromise your bodies, your dignity, or your rules."
A massive, collective sigh of relief washed over the entire Frozen Cloud Asgard.
The heavy tension in the air completely vanished.
The Sect Master looked at him with deep, genuine respect.
"Then what is your path, Senior?"
Chu Yueli asked softly.
"My path is about the truth of the universe,"
Sam explained, opening his hands.
"Right now, your sect pulls pure, freezing Yin energy into your bodies. You treat ice like a weapon of death. But you are fighting the natural balance of the world. That is why your bodies break."
Sam raised his hand again. The glowing pink lotus appeared, spinning gently.
"Ice is not just death,"
Sam taught them.
"Ice is also preservation. It is the quiet, peaceful sleep of winter before the spring arrives. My cultivation technique will teach you how to absorb the natural energy of the world to protect your own hearts."
He looked at Xia Qingyue, who was listening to every single word with bright, eager eyes.
"You will still have your ice,"
Sam promised the crowd of women.
"In fact, your ice will be ten times stronger than it is now. But it will never freeze you from the inside out again. You will be completely free."
Gong Yuxian closed her eyes. A single tear of pure joy fell down her cheek.
For hundreds of years, the Frozen Cloud Asgard had lived in constant fear.
Fear of men, fear of the outside world, and fear of their own deadly power.
But this stranger from another universe had just offered them a perfect, clean way out.
Gong Yuxian opened her eyes and bowed deeply, her head almost touching the snowy ground.
"We are women who have hated men for our entire lives,"
The Sect Master said, her voice shaking with heavy emotion.
"But today, Senior Sam... you have completely changed our world. Please. We beg you to teach us your path."
In a beautiful, sweeping motion, every single woman in the courtyard dropped to their knees in the snow.
They bowed their heads to the man from Earth, completely ready to learn the true way of cultivation.
"Please, stand up,"
Sam said gently, raising his hands.
"You do not need to kneel to learn. Friends stand face to face."
Gong Yuxian and the rest of the women slowly stood up, brushing the snow from their white dresses.
They looked at Sam with trust.
"The path I am going to give you comes from a very distant world,"
Sam explained, looking around the courtyard.
"It is called the Northern Sea Ice Palace Cultivation technique."
"Northern Sea Ice Palace,"
Chu Yueli repeated softly. The name alone felt ancient and powerful to her ears.
"Is it very different from our Frozen Cloud arts?"
"It is different in the way it treats your heart,"
Sam nodded.
"Your old arts forced you to swallow the cold. It turned your blood into ice. But the Northern Sea technique is built on a very simple truth: no matter how thick the ice is on the surface of the ocean, the water deep down below is always flowing and full of life."
Xia Qingyue stepped forward, her bright eyes filled with curiosity.
"So, the cold becomes our armor, not our poison?"
She asked softly.
"Exactly, Qingyue,"
Sam smiled, proud of how quickly she understood.
"With this technique, you will build a warm, bright core inside your body. That warm core will protect your life force and keep your organs safe. Meanwhile, your profound energy will project the most absolute, terrifying cold outward. You will wear the winter, but you will not freeze in it."
The Sect Master's eyes widened in amazement.
"To separate the cold from the life force..."
Gong Yuxian whispered.
"It is such a brilliant concept. We always thought we had to become the ice to control the ice."
"That is a very common mistake,"
Sam said kindly.
"If you become the weapon, you lose your humanity. But if you hold the weapon, you remain the master."
Sam closed his eyes for a brief moment. A soft, glowing blue light gathered at the tip of his index finger.
"Close your eyes, Sect Master,"
Sam instructed gently.
Gong Yuxian closed her eyes without any hesitation. Sam gently tapped the center of her forehead with his glowing finger.
A rush of ancient, beautiful knowledge flowed directly into her mind. She saw a vast, dark northern sea.
She saw massive glaciers floating peacefully.
She felt the heavy, biting cold of the air, but she also felt the deep, warm, protective currents of the water underneath.
The full Northern Sea Ice Palace Cultivation technique unlocked inside her head.
Gong Yuxian opened her eyes.
Tears were falling down her face once again, but she was smiling brighter than ever before.
"It is perfect,"
She cried softly.
"It fixes every single flaw in our old technique. It is so deep, so profound... and yet, it feels so natural."
Sam then raised both of his hands.
The soft blue light expanded, washing over every single woman in the snowy courtyard.
Xia Qingyue, Chu Yueli, and all the disciples and elders closed their eyes as the knowledge gently entered their minds.
Within seconds, the air in the courtyard began to change.
Instead of the harsh, dead, biting cold that the Frozen Cloud Asgard usually radiated, the air became crisp, clean, and refreshing.
It felt like standing on top of a beautiful snowy mountain on a bright, sunny morning.
The women opened their eyes.
They looked at their own hands, feeling the new, balanced energy flowing safely through their profound veins.
"I feel so light,"
Chu Yueli whispered, creating a small snowflake in her palm. It danced beautifully, completely under her control.
"My chest doesn't hurt when I use my profound energy anymore."
"This technique will easily take you all to the Emperor Profound Realm, and even higher,"
Sam told them, crossing his arms with a satisfied smile.
"But more importantly, you can practice it without fear. You can be strong, and you can be safe at the exact same time."
Gong Yuxian stepped forward and placed her hand over her heart, bowing deeply.
"Senior Sam,"
The Sect Master said.
"You have given us our lives, our time, and our future. The Frozen Cloud Asgard will forever be in your debt. If you ever need a place to rest, this palace is your home."
Sam smiled and nodded.
"Thank you, Sect Master,"
Sam said gently.
"I think I will take you up on that offer. It has been a very long day, and I would love a quiet place to drink some tea."