Yang Yi stood up with a smile, straightened his collar, executed a perfect courtly bow, and then, with a roguish smirk playing on his lips, extended a hand. "This scoundrel is deeply honored to be invited to dance by such a beauty!"

"Scoundrel?" Xuan Yuanbing echoed the word, testing its sound.

"That's right, I truly am a scoundrel!" Yang Yi seemed energized by her acknowledgment, his smile broadening into something predatory.

Xuan Yuanbing extended her delicate hand, carrying a faint chill, and placed it in his. Yang Yi’s heart hitched involuntarily, and the expression on his face froze instantly. "What a powerful innate energy index. So this girl isn't just an Ice-element user; she's a Level-X user. I see now—it must be because she can't fully control that energy index that anyone who touches her ends up dead, just like before. That explains it!"

Seeing Yang Yi’s sudden petrification, a cold dread washed over Xuan Yuanbing. Fearing she was about to harm him again, she instantly tried to withdraw her hand before his body could be frozen solid by her touch. But just as she moved—

Smack!

Yang Yi suddenly gripped her hand tighter, his frozen expression melting away, replaced by a strange, almost unsettling smile. "What's wrong? Didn't you just invite me for a dance? You’ve already put up the stakes, so now, dancing one round with me is your compensation!"

"Ah!" Xuan Yuanbing hadn't time to react before Yang Yi pulled her forward, drawing her directly to the center of the dance floor.

Yang Yi braced one hand around her waist, exerting just a slight pressure, and Xuan Yuanbing found herself enveloped in his embrace. He took a deep breath and murmured in a thoroughly roguish manner, "Cold, yet carrying the faint fragrance of a maiden. Truly, an unparalleled, exquisite perfume."

"You!" At his words, Xuan Yuanbing's already flushed cheeks deepened to a crimson hue. Moreover, a complex emotion, one she had never experienced, flickered in her eyes for an unknown reason.

Meanwhile, near the entrance of the bar, several youths watched Yang Yi and Xuan Yuanbing with unconcealed annoyance. Among these youths was the one Yang Yi had previously pointed out as someone who would likely target him.

"Damn it, that bitch didn't give me any face just now!"

"Heh heh, don't rush things. Let them have their momentary joy. Mingzi has already gone to call for backup," said a youth with striking blue hair, lazily dangling a cigarette from his lips with a profoundly arrogant air.

"Come on, let's grab a few drinks first!"

"Good!" Three or four youths simultaneously headed toward the nearby bar counter.

Yet, just as they moved away, a middle-aged man appeared with unsettling abruptness right where they had been standing. The dim lighting and the fact that no one was paying attention to that specific corner made the man seem to materialize out of thin air.

"Who exactly is that man? How can he touch Bing'er?" The middle-aged man, though scornful of the youths' earlier conversation, felt a shock of alarm watching Xuan Yuanbing and Yang Yi dancing gracefully.

Xuan Yuanbing wasn't actually afflicted by any ridiculous curse. Roughly three years ago, while attempting to break through to the Level-X innate ability threshold, she suffered a qi deviation, causing her to lose control over her immense Ice-element energy index, which resulted in her current affliction.

If anyone touched her, they risked being overwhelmed by the intense cold and perishing. Some individuals with lower tolerances would instantly stiffen, their hearts ceasing to beat in that very moment.

Observing the slightly embarrassed yet cold expression on Xuan Yuanbing's face in the middle of the dance floor, the middle-aged man’s eyes suddenly shone with the protective light of a father. He murmured to himself, "Perhaps her happiness must be hers to command now. But who is that young man? Logically, no one without a Level-X innate ability index should be able to approach Bing'er, yet I sense no power radiating from him at all. That is strange."

What he didn't know was that Yang Yi was currently experiencing a dual sensation of ice and fire. On one hand, he felt the chilling cold radiating from Xuan Yuanbing’s hand and waist; on the other, he circulated his own profoundly yang internal energy to constantly resist it. Truly, dancing with a beauty was no easy feat.

"How long has it been? Three years, perhaps? Even my own father hasn't dared touch me. Who is this person who can touch me without consequence? And the warmth emanating from his hand—it’s so comforting, so serene." Xuan Yuanbing looked up, her beautiful eyes sweeping over Yang Yi. Seeing him staring back with that perpetual smile, a hint of girlish shyness crossed her face.

"My dear, you must know that this dance is not easy for me. The innate energy within you is running rampant. Though I don't know how your kind of ability users are categorized, I sense that if you don't resolve this soon..."

"You... how do you know?" Xuan Yuanbing was bewildered. He showed no signs of an energy index, nor did he display any known elemental affinity. How could he know? "Could it be??? No, even a master of the Ancient Martial Arts wouldn't necessarily resist my chill, let alone see through that I'm an ability user?"

"No need for speculation!" Yang Yi seemed to read her thoughts instantly. Shifting his position slightly, he smiled and said, "I don't know if I qualify as an Ancient Martial Artist, but I'm close enough!"

Xuan Yuanbing was stunned into silence. She couldn't believe this young man, seemingly her own age, could perceive her innermost thoughts.

"Heh heh, curious why I can see through you?" Yang Yi acted as if he had completely captured Xuan Yuanbing’s attention. Before she could formulate a response, he pulled her into a close, intimate embrace. The sudden influx of masculine scent caused Xuan Yuanbing, who had never been close to a man, to feel a wave of dizziness.

"To learn more about me, you must pay a price!"

"What—what price..." Yang Yi held her tightly, making her body flush hotly, as if she were about to melt. The icy chill she usually emitted began to slowly shift from cold to warm.

"Do you really want to know?" A strange, cold smile touched Yang Yi’s lips. He glanced deliberately toward the middle-aged man in the corner, noting his look of utter astonishment. Yang Yi immediately began wondering about that man’s identity.

"I... I... I don't want to know." Xuan Yuanbing frantically pushed Yang Yi away. For the first time in her life, she felt a strange panic and fear—panic that she might suddenly lose control and fall completely under his spell, an irreversible descent. Fear that if he held her so carelessly for much longer, she might suffocate or simply melt away.

"I'm sorry, I need a moment to rest." After pushing him away, Xuan Yuanbing was struck by an inexplicable sense of loss. The words she had meant to say vanished, and she silently cursed herself.

Yang Yi simply pouted slightly and chuckled, "No matter!"

They returned to their small booth in a strangely charged, ambiguous atmosphere. Yang Yi glanced back at the corner, noticing the middle-aged man had vanished. A cold glint flashed in his eyes. He mused inwardly, That man must have a significant connection to this girl. Heh heh!

Xuan Yuanbing took a deep breath, her flushed face snapping back to its usual icy composure, though she avoided looking directly at Yang Yi. She silently picked up her wine glass and took a slow sip.

Yang Yi found this amusing and quietly began sipping his own red wine. As their corner settled into that charged quietude, back near the bar's entrance—

The initial group of three or four youths had swelled to ten, clustered together, clearly plotting something. One handsome youth, the one who had already clashed with Yang Yi earlier, declared, "Tonight, we'll take that bitch down, and we'll share her!"

"Hell, is that chick really that hot? If she’s not, don't waste my time coming all this way!" barked a bald young man wearing a baseball cap, sounding aggressive.

"Relax, when has Mingzi ever lied to you? Look," a youth with bizarrely styled hair pointed toward Xuan Yuanbing sitting at the small booth with a lecherous grin, "Look at that little doll over there!"

"Holy crap, that girl is gorgeous!" the bald man exclaimed suddenly.

"Yeah, but she’s freezing cold. I just got slapped back when I tried to touch her earlier. And there's some kid next to her," the handsome youth said, a venomous resentment flashing in his eyes.

It is an established truth: when a man suffers humiliation in front of a beautiful woman, the blame must always be redirected at another male. Thus, this handsome youth channeled all the anger he received from Xuan Yuanbing onto Yang Yi. Regardless of the depth of his grudge, his resentful expression showed he genuinely intended to teach Yang Yi a harsh lesson.

"Alright, when do we make a move?" the bald man asked.

"Wait a little longer. This is someone else's turf, it’s bad to cause trouble inside. Besides, there’s only one entrance, and they’ll have to come out eventually," the blue-haired youth said, licking his lips.

"Good. Brothers, get your gear ready! If that guy resists, hit him hard! As for the girl... tsk tsk, I don't need to say more," the bald man instructed the group of young thugs behind him.

"No problem!" The group responded affirmatively and dispersed to find their tools.