"You attacked him," Wangchen said. His voice was calm, but it carried the weight of a collapsing mountain. "You swung your sword at him."

"It was a duel!" Lu Jianheng shouted, his competitive spirit flaring. "He is a cultivator! He can defend himself!"

"He was unarmed," Wangchen countered. He took a step forward. The temperature in the garden dropped another ten degrees. The "Weed Section" was now becoming the "Tundra Section."

"If you want to test your sword," Wangchen raised his blade, pointing it at Lu Jianheng’s heart, "test it on me. But if you point it at him again... I will shatter it."

Lu Jianheng stared at him. He felt the pressure. This guy... he was strong. stronger than the rumors.

A thrill of excitement went through the Sword Lord.

Finally. A real opponent.

"Fine," Lu Jianheng grinned, his eyes manic. "Let’s see if your ice is harder than my resolve!"

He readied his stance. Wangchen readied his.

The air crackled. A battle between the Top Sword Prodigy and the Flawless Ice Villain was about to erupt. It would destroy the garden. It would alert the Elders. It would be legendary.

"Nope."

A hand grabbed the back of Xie Wangchen’s collar.

Before the Villain could unleash his Glacial Dragon Roar, and before the Sword Lord could execute his Heaven-Splitting Slash, Lin Ji’an yanked.

"Bad dog! No fighting!"

Ji’an pulled Wangchen backward, throwing him off balance.

"Young Master?" Wangchen stumbled, his killing intent vanishing instantly as he looked back at her in confusion.

"We are leaving!" Ji’an announced. "My basil is wilting from the cold! And you—" she pointed at Lu Jianheng with her trowel. "Stop trying to fight everyone! Go meditate! Take a cold shower!"

"Wait!" Lu Jianheng stepped forward. "You can’t just leave! We haven’t finished!"

"We’re finished!" Ji’an grabbed Wangchen’s sleeve. "Run, Little Puddle!"

She activated her Shadow Step.

Wangchen, conditioned to obey her every command, sheathed his sword instantly and matched her speed.

They blurred.

One second, they were there, the next, they were a streak of gray and white dashing through the trees.

"Hey!" Lu Jianheng shouted, chasing after them for a few steps before realizing he couldn’t catch them in the dense woods without destroying the terrain. "Come back! Cowards!"

He stood there, chest heaving, sword still in hand.

Behind him, Gu Zhiwei poked his mud-covered head out from behind a rock.

"Wow," Gu Zhiwei sighed dreamily. "Did you see that, Brother Lu? Brother Lin grabbed the Ice Monster by the collar! And Brother Xie just let him! Their bond... it is so profound!"

Lu Jianheng turned slowly to look at the Holy Son.

"Shut up," Lu Jianheng snapped. "Go wash your face."

A mile away, deep in the bamboo forest near the Outer Sect kitchens, Lin Ji’an finally skidded to a halt.

She leaned against a bamboo stalk, gasping for breath.

"Safe," she wheezed. "No property damage charges. No Elder intervention."

She looked at Wangchen.

He was standing there, looking perfectly composed. Not a hair out of place. He looked at her with those big, dark eyes, waiting for praise or punishment.

"You," Ji’an pointed a finger at his chest. "How did you find me?"

"I smelled the ginger," Wangchen lied effortlessly. In reality, he had been stalking her energy signature since she left the kitchen.

"You smelled the ginger from the Eternal Cloud Peak?" Ji’an raised an eyebrow. "You have a nose like a spirit-hound."

"I sensed danger," Wangchen corrected, stepping closer. "He attacked you."

"He was just posturing," Ji’an waved her hand. "He’s a Tsundere. They bark loud but they just want attention. But you..."

She looked at his sword.

"...You blocked him. Lu Jianheng is in the middle of Foundation Establishment. He’s the top sword user in the sect. And you blocked him like he was a toddler with a stick."

Wangchen looked down. "He is weak. His foundation is shaky. He relies too much on his weapon’s grade, not his own Qi."

Ji’an stared at him.

’He’s growing too fast,’ she realized. ’The Villain Halo is terrifying. It’s only been a few days, and he’s already checking the Protagonists.’

But then, she saw the way his hand was trembling slightly, not from fear, but from the adrenaline of needing to protect her.

She sighed. The lecture died in her throat.

She reached out and straightened his collar, which she had messed up during the drag.

"Thanks," she said softly. "For the block. My basil would have been toast."

Wangchen’s eyes softened. The cold killer vanished, replaced by the obedient youth.

"I will always block for you," he whispered. "Basil or not."

Ji’an felt her face heat up. ’Damn it. Stop being so smooth.’

"Right. Well. Good job." She patted his chest awkwardly. "Now, go back to your cave before Elder Qin realizes you’re gone. I have to go make... ’Trauma-Healing Ginger Soup’ for myself."

"Can I come?" Wangchen asked immediately.

"No! You have training!" Ji’an pushed him gently toward the mountain path. "Go! Become a god! Then come back for soup!"

Wangchen resisted for a second, leaning into her touch, before finally nodding.

"I will be back," he promised.

He disappeared into the shadows, heading back to his peak.

Ji’an stood alone in the bamboo forest. She touched her neck, shivering slightly.

"Goosebumps," she muttered, remembering Gu Zhiwei’s speech. "Actual goosebumps. ’Don’t fight for my sake.’ Who writes this stuff?"

She shook her head and walked back to her kitchen.

She didn’t know that back in the garden, Lu Jianheng was currently staring at the footprints she left behind, muttering to himself about "rematches" and "spatulas," while Gu Zhiwei was writing a diary entry titled: "The Day I Stopped a War with My Charisma."

The plot was broken. And Lin Ji’an was the hammer.

The morning mist clinging to the Eternal Cloud Peak was usually thick enough to hide a dragon, but today, it was pierced by the sharp, rhythmic crunch of boots on snow.

Xie Wangchen descended from the forbidden grounds of the Elder’s peak. He looked... expensive.