Chapter 7: I Shouldn’t Have Been Born

“What’s different?” Li An asked in confusion.Frosty calmly replied, “I don’t need any resources to cultivate.”“As long as I’m alive, my realm can naturally improve.”Li An’s pupils contracted suddenly. “What kind of heaven-defying talent is that!?”Frosty remained calm. “But my progress is slower than others.”“Then you could absorb resources while cultivating naturally, doubling the speed,” Li An suggested quickly.Frosty shook her head. “I can’t absorb resources.”“Ah” Li An didn’t know what to say.Suddenly, Frosty pointed to information on the front page of the Tianyi Daily and asked, “Do you really need this item?”“Yes,” Li An nodded seriously.“I’ll ask my father to get it for you,” Frosty said, pulling out her communication device to contact the Grand Marshal.Li An quickly stopped her. “No need!”“Having you here to protect my safety is already an unexpected blessing for me,” Li An added. “I can’t ask for more, especially not something so valuable!”Frosty didn’t understand. “Why waste effort when you can obtain it directly?”Li An said earnestly, “My dad always told me that everything in this world comes with a price.”“The most expensive things are always free.”“He also said that hard work is the smallest price to pay, requiring only time and effort.”“So, if I can achieve something through effort, I won’t pay an unknown price for it.”“Oh.” Frosty opened her small, round mouth, looking unexpectedly cute and innocent.“By the way,” Li An asked, “how long are you planning to stay by my side?”Frosty replied, “My father hasn’t told me to return, so I’ll stay.”“Not even attending school?” Li An was puzzled.“I only attended half a year of first grade in primary school. After that, I never went back and stayed at home.”“Since childhood, you’ve been home alone?”“There’s the housekeeper, and sometimes my father comes back, but most of the time, I’m alone.”Frosty’s voice was emotionless, almost robotic.After speaking, she sat still, like an ice sculpture.No anxiety, no stress, but also no happiness—bearing pain that no one else could understand.Li An stared at Frosty, his brows furrowed. Can this still be called a living person?Humans have self-awareness, thoughts, and emotions.But she had none of these; even her actions followed her father’s orders. She was likeThat’s it!Li An finally found the words to describe Frosty.She had no vitality, just a moving blue doll.Suddenly, Li An raised his eyebrows.Frosty’s condition wasn’t due to personality flaws but because of her talent!Because of the cold!Her body couldn’t be warmed; she’d said that if her whole body heated up, she’d die.But maybe Li An could make her consciousness unaware of the cold.Dreams!He could pull her into a dream.In dreams, he could do anything!This was related only to consciousness and shouldn’t harm her body.Li An immediately shared his idea with Frosty.After listening, Frosty quietly replied, “My father has many friends.”“They can all alter other people’s consciousness.”“But none of them can enter my mental world.”“Because my mental world is also an icy wasteland.”“If someone forcibly tries to break the ice, I’ll die.”Hearing this, Li An frowned and sat on the sofa.Right.She was the daughter of Frosthan, the Grand Marshal who held control over all military forces of the human realm.At that level, there was no shortage of superpowerful individuals around. Talents on par with dreams were plentiful.With similar effects no.Li An’s thoughts halted.No talent was truly equivalent to dreams.Throughout history, there had only been two humans with the Dream ability: Ye Tianwen and himself.Now, Dream was a unique talent!Wait!Li An’s eyes narrowed.In the battle for the throne, Ye Tianwen contributed the most, and the Grand Marshal was the second-greatest contributor.Last night, Frosty also mentioned that her father and his ancestor were life-and-death friends.The Grand Marshal, of all people, would know how extraordinary this talent could become in later stages!If it were merely for protection, he wouldn’t need to send his daughter.Any of the Grand Marshal’s personal guards would be a divine-level expert!Protecting someone like him was as simple as eating or drinking.Thus, there had to be a deeper reason behind the Grand Marshal sending Frosty to him.“Did your father say anything to you before you came here?” Li An asked.Frosty nodded. “Yes.”“He told me that all human experts today are helpless against my illness.”“The only possibility he could think of was Ye Tianwen.”“If Li Dingtian were still alive, he’d surely have a solution.”“But he’s gone, and then you appeared—someone with the same talent as Li Dingtian.”“You’re my only hope for survival.”Li An sat on the bench, pondering for a while.“Your father ultimately chose the person—or talent—he trusted most.”“But I can tell you clearly, I have no idea how to save you.”Frosty lowered her head. “It’s okay.”Li An asked again, “You said I’m your only hope for survival. What does that mean?”Frosty murmured, “Two years and seven days remain.”“Ten years ago, my father asked an elder to extend my life by ten years.”“Now, only two years remain.”“What!?” Li An’s heart clenched, and he straightened up.He’d thought Frosty was just different from ordinary people.He’d never imagined she was fighting against death!What did it mean to extend her life by ten years?Did it mean she should’ve died ten years ago?Li An asked her again about this.Frosty calmly said, “I wasn’t supposed to die ten years ago.”“In fact, I shouldn’t have been born.”“My talent rune formed even before I was born.”“My mother, before the tenth month, already had to suppress my power while providing me with nutrients, just to sustain me until I became a complete fetus.”“She held on until that day.”“But she realized that even if I were born, I wouldn’t live for more than a day.”“So my mother came up with a solution—to trade her life for ten years of mine.”“I’ve never seen my mother.”“These are words I heard others say while I was still in her womb.”“When I opened my eyes to see the world, my mother had already been gone for a long time.”