"To begin with, I assume Hazeon explained constitutions to you?"

I nodded, and she returned the gesture.

"Good. I'll skip the basics then.

The Primordial Ice Coffin Body is even more of a curse than the Elemental Unity Physique that you and Hazeon share. While your constitution is truly awful, it only prevents you from cultivating your spirit and cuts off your path to immortality.

The Primordial Ice Coffin Body is much more akin to a curse. It's name is not for flowery effect. The physique lays dormant until its victim grows powerful enough, or old enough. It then continually releases primordial ice affinity qi—the most potent variant of ice qi—while locking the victim's positive emotions away. It leaves them to wither and die and allows their negative emotions to fester and propagate like a disease. If the victim is unable to break through the physique's hold on their emotions, they lose them forever."

I paled at her words.

Jia was going to lose her positive emotions?? What did that even mean? How did that work?? What could we do??

Sect Leader Bing must have known what I was thinking as she held up a hand and continued.

"This is where my apology must come in. As someone who overcame the same malady afflicting Jia now, and noticed it blossoming within her when I first met you two, I thought I would be able to walk her through how I overcame the constitution's effects, but I made a miscalculation…"

I held my breath, waiting for what would come next.

"This isn't your fault, Astra, but due to Jia cultivating both her body and spirit, the grasp the physique has on her is much more pronounced than it was for me.

Even with my teachings, her mental state spiraled from her complex feelings and regrets and she fell into its grasp almost fully. Even I don't know if she will ever truly return to how she was previously, and for that I have to apologize to you, though I have nothing to be sorry for."

I hung my head, my heart tight in my chest.

Jia had been struggling this whole time against a constitution she couldn't control. And If I had never been in her life, she might have had a much easier time dealing with it?

I felt my heart tighten further. The demons of my past worming their way through my every pore and wriggling into my brain. I tried to remember Rin and Alexis's words, tried to console myself that it wasn't my fault, but if I had doomed Jia to losing all of her positive emotions? I thought back to the myriad smiles, laughs, and expressions from her I might have stolen with my actions and my breath hastened. I felt lightheadedness creeping in and was vaguely aware of multiple voices yelling at me and feelings of confusion, fear, and concern flooding through me from Shimmer as darkness clouded my vision and one phrase pounded in my head over and over.

It's all your fault.

***

I woke up some time later, my head pounding and Shimmer curled up on my chest. I wouldn't even think the H word when thinking about her laying on me, but she was very H at this moment.

I slowly lifted up the blanket that had been draped over me, doing my best not to disturb the silly little fox in her dreams. Luckily I was able to transplant the cutely snoring Shimmer to the bed as I stood up and looked around.

I was in a simple room with a bed, a table with two chairs, and a dresser, but nothing else save the door to the room. The absolute silence of the room was eerie and I felt uncomfortable with my own thoughts being the loudest thing around me. I did my best to ignore the niggling in my head and decided I should go try and find someone.

I left the room and stepped into the hall. It was the same crystalline material as all of the gigantic Rimewood trees, and the long hallway curved to the side and slightly down or up in both directions I looked, with not a single living soul in sight.

I walked straight from the door and found myself looking out over the Celestial Rimewood sect from one of the holes in the side of the tree. Looking down, I could see people going about their days, though any sounds I could have heard from up here were drowned out by the howling wind ripping past the window.

I stepped back once again, the sound of the gale outside cutting off immediately, though I didn't know how. I was again plunged into silence and my heart tightened.

Not knowing what else to do, I walked in a direction that felt correct and tried to find anyone in this tower. I moved upwards, the eternal curve of the hallway making my brain twist in knots trying to keep track of how high I was or what direction I was facing.

It was eerie just how empty this place was, though I was beginning to wonder if there was a reason no one was around. As I moved upwards, that feeling of something being up ahead that I was moving toward increased significantly. I had a bad feeling I knew what waited for me ahead, but I couldn't stop my feet. They rebelled against my thoughts and moved inexorably to the last person I wanted to see right now.

Not long after, I arrived in front of a large set of double doors at the end of the stairs and stood frozen in place in front of them.

I tried so hard to move myself back down the stairs but, as if mocking my attempts, my body pushed open the door and gave way to the room.

The training room was wide and tall, giving plenty of room for a fight between a single pair of combatants.

In the center of the room, a white haired beauty moved at speed through various sword forms, flowing smoothly into each form one by one. She didn't notice me coming in, or she pretended not to nice me, as I watched her, unable to speak.

As she sliced back and forth with her training sword, the collected sweat and moisture from her exertions were slung off the edge of the blade, freezing immediately and clinking against the floor, creating a melodic symphony of tinkling as she trained.

As I watched her get into a flow state, she moved on to using her various spirit techniques and incorporating them into her combat style. Then she began using her body cultivation as well, intermixing them with her swordplay and creating an entrancing dance of martial prowess.

She slowed down, doing one more circuit of the sword forms at mortal speeds and ending with a speedy diagonal slash, her body creating an incredible amount of steam as she breathed heavily. Then she grabbed a towel to dry off some and spoke after drying her face before moving to her alabaster hair.

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"Astra."

"U-um…Hi Jia…your sword forms were really pretty!" I tried, hoping I could maybe help her and fix my mistake with nice words. My heart tightened at the thought, knowing how wishful that thinking was.

"I told you to go back to your sect."

"R-right, you did…but I came all this way to see you. Can we…talk?"

"There's nothing to talk about. You'll return to your sect, or you can stay in the Celestial Rimewood sect—where it is safe—until the war with the demons is over. That way you can cultivate slowly, and grow stronger, at least until you're strong enough that I can be confident you're no longer in danger."

"Well how long would I have to be for that to happen??

Maybe it would be a level I could reach quickly and she'd—

"The peak of the transcension realm should be enough, there are no god level powerhouses in the universe as far as I'm aware so that would be enough."

I blinked rapidly, unsure if I had heard her correctly.

"So, what? You'd have me holed up in a sect for the rest of my life just cultivating? How many cultivators even make it to the peak of the transcension realm??"

"If doing so would keep you safe while I get our revenge? Then yes. I would have you locked away if I could."

I felt my awkwardness giving way to anger as I listened to her so casually speak of locking me away like some bird in a cage.

"I'm not some powerless animal you need to protect, Jia. Why are you even so concerned with keeping me safe anyway??"

She paused, and her placid face morphed into a deep frown for nearly half a minute before she broke free from her trance and shook her head.

"I was unable to protect you before, during the competition, and I failed as your friend to counsel you against being so trusting with others. I knew I should have, but I couldn't. Never again. I'll resolve the issue of the demons, defeat the Inferno Scorpion sect, and then we can finally be together again."

The way she talked was scaring me a little, an edge creeping into her words. Then I realized she didn't know how much more complicated the demon problem was. I had to tell her…but then she'd just want to keep me locked away even longer. But maybe since I'm an inheritor, she'll accept me being involved? I really didn't want to tell her, but not telling her would be dangerous for her, and I had already done enough damage to Jia for a lifetime.

I gave a short explanation about the Aurion sect, the trial Rin and I participated in together, and then the inheritors of the Divine Elements. I hoped it would make Jia understand how important it was that we worked together, and that I couldn't just be kept hidden away, not when the fate of humanity seemingly rode on me finding the other inheritors and working together with them.

"Who is Rin."

Despite sounding like a question, the tone she said it in made me feel it was more like a command, and she didn't pitch her voice up when saying it.

"Uh…Rin is a new friend from the sect. She…helped me a lot in the trial with working through some stuff and, um… she helped me a lot, I'm really glad she was there. I'm excited for you to meet her! I think you two will get along!"

For some reason, Jia frowned again.

"I'm glad you seem have a new best friend." She said, and I tried really hard to not roll my eyes. Great, now she was pouting! I felt a mix of frustration and guilt flow through me as I remembered it was my fault her negative emotions were amplified.

"She is a new friend, Jia, though I don't know about 'best', but that doesn't mean you aren't my best friend anymore either way. We've been through so much together, Jia, and I'm going to need your help in the war against the demons. Please, let's work together." I pleaded, hoping I could break through the primordial coffin within her.

For a moment—the briefest of moments!—I thought I saw something sparkle within her eyes, some spark of the old Jia hiding within the girl, but as soon as it appeared, it vanished and the complicated expression she wore dissolved, her face once again frozen in placidity.

"No! Jia! C'mon, I know you're in there somewhere. You're not thinking straight because of the Primordial Ice Coffin Body!"

I tried to reach out for her, but she stepped back quickly.

"No, Astra. My thoughts have never been this clear. The demonic threat may be more dire now, but what I must do has not changed. I will grow stronger, and I'll fight off the demonic threat. What you must do has not changed. Go back to your sect, Astra. Once the demons have been dealt with, we can finally be together again."

She turned away from me then, and returned to the center of the room, dropping into a set of stretches.

I wanted to argue with her more, try to convince her to stop this weird protective obsession she had, but what right did I have to do that? It was my fault the side effects were as pronounced as they were, and maybe I'd only be making it worse by staying by her side.

I hugged my left arm with my right hand, rubbing up and down to try and make myself feel better. I felt myself spiraling down again. It was my fault she was like this, and I had no idea what I could do to fix it. The guilt warred with my feelings of impotence and I struggled to keep myself calm amid the swirling thoughts and emotions within me. I had to fix Jia—needed help her return to her old self—but how? And could I even do it?

What if it was too late and I had doomed my closest friend to a life without positive emotions? What if we had come earlier? What if we had never gone to the trial and instead came straight here, could I have stopped this? What if I had insisted on Elder Hazeon taking me here right when we returned? Surely if it was just he and I we could have made it safely? Did he purposefully hold me back to make Jia fall further? What if—

I was teetering on the edge of a full blown panic attack when the door to the training hall screeched open, the discordant sound grating on my ears, impossibly loud.

I turned to see a Celestial Rimewood sect disciple standing in the doorway, relief flooding their expression when they saw me, and then they looked to Jia, fear replacing it. My heart twinged at the sight. Jia was so kind, and caring, and didn't deserve to be looked at like that…like she was scary.

I wanted to yell at the girl, tell her that Jia would do anything for those she cared about and that she was bright, and strong, and incredible, but I couldn't speak. The weight of my guilt crushed my throat.

She turned back to me and hurried over, casting furtive glances toward my friend, the friend I cursed.

"Lady Astra, it is good to see you've recovered, Fairy Bing requires your presence immediately in the audience chamber." She remitted, casting one final aspersive peek at Jia, and then rushed out of the room, looking back in long enough to check if I was following her.

I grit my teeth and felt my anger flaring. What did she know?? She didn't see how different Jia was, how her natural light was being doused by a deluge of my own making. She should be looking at me that way…I was the monster.

Despite how angry and upset I was, I followed the girl. I needed to get away from Jia, and ask Sect Leader Yuefan what could be done. Hopefully she'd have a plan, because I wouldn't stop at anything to get my friend back.

***

The nearly half hour walk through the crystalline trees, zigzagging between the behemoths using the beautiful bridges of ice was peaceful, contrasted with my current feelings on the matter. We finally reached the main palace where Sect Elder Bing waited in her audience chamber along with Alice, Wei Lin, Shimmer for some reason, and…Zi Fu?

The group turned to look at me when I entered. Wei Lin looked relieved at seeing me. Alice looked…well she looked like she always did when she wasn't freezing. Sect Leader Bing looked down to me sympathetically, as if she knew what I saw in the training room, and Zi Fu looked to me with a complicated expression on his face.

I ignored everyone else and addressed the Sect Leader.

"Sect Leader Yuefan. Please tell me what I need to do to help Jia."

Zi Fu looked to the Sect Leader,

"Bing Bing, what is she talking about? What's wrong with Jia?"

She looked between the two of us and sighed.

"Firstly, there isn't anything you can do save for finding another miracle like what you found for Hazeon. The Primordial Ice Coffin Body isn't an illness. It is an affliction that plagues the host until their death, or until they overcome its hold on them. It's up to Jia to break free from its grasp.

I ask that you trust her care to me. I'll try to help her in any way I can, but she's on her own path now. You need to focus on what you must do now, which brings us to why little Fu is here."

She motioned for senior Zi to speak and he nodded, though he looked like he wanted more details about Jia's condition which warmed my heart somewhat. He looked to me and clenched his fingers and looked like he wanted to be anywhere else and doing anything else than being with us in that moment.

"Astra, Artorius is unwilling to sell the fuel for the ship unless he speaks to you first."

I frowned.

"Why would Artorius Beltigo need me there?"

"He wouldn't say, but if we want the fuel for the ship, you're going to have to go to Beltigo HQ personally."

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