As she stared out over the waterfall, mentally calculating the exact ratio of sugar to yeast required to overpower a neurotoxin, she felt a subtle shift in the air behind her.
The ambient temperature didn't drop, but the damp, humid air of the miasma valley grew crisp, clean, and comfortably cool.
Ji'an didn't turn around.
She recognized that atmospheric signature anywhere.
"Shouldn't you be asleep by now, Wangchen?" Ji'an asked softly, leaning her chin on her hands.
Ten minutes prior, inside the luxurious, silk-draped corridors of the Azure Zenith Pavilion, Xie Wangchen had been experiencing a rare moment of confusion.
The Ice Demon had been standing outside Ji'an's designated quarters, his arms crossed, his ruby eyes narrowed in dark, brooding thought.
He had watched her walk out to the balcony alone. He had seen the rigid set of her shoulders and the unmistakable, sour tension radiating from her red robes.
