One Summer on the Snowy Mountain

*** A/N: Based on Brilcrist's (agikun) "WenZhou Underwater Smex" Challenge on Twitter.

Thank you, Bril, for trusting me with turning your fabulous illustrations into a story. I hope everyone will enjoy our first ever "10k words worth of pwp." 😘❤️💙

P.S. Please ignore all science and biology and pretend that everything in here is possible.

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The snowy mountain was eternal.

In the distant land away from the transient world of mortals, it had stood for centuries, unshaken in perpetual might. The summit was blanketed in frost, a place where delicate rain of pure white found rest after falling from the Heavens.

Few would find the sight of the snowy mountain shifting day after day, for no man ever managed to live long enough on its freezing peak to observe the change brought about by the nature.

No one, except a pair of immortals whose souls were bound to the frosty summit.

In the past, Wen Kexing and Zhou Zishu were not unlike those who lived beneath the towering height. Different their stories might be from others, but at the end of the day, they were also just a pair of mortals who could only look upon the lofty summit and wonder at the sight visible from above. It was not until the two of them became immortals themselves that they finally noticed the small, trivial changes taking place on the mountain every day.

The thickness of snow piling at their feet.

The crumbling rocks at the edge of the cliff.

The cloudy sky on snowy days, the clear blue sky on sunny days.

And the landscape of the transient world below that continuously moved on ahead without them.

Some changes they eventually took as part of their life. Some changes gave birth to regret and sadness. They were inevitable; even if the two of them had become a pair of otherworldly beings, it did not mean that they now possessed the power to alter the course of nature, and neither did they lose their hearts as humans.

But sometimes, some changes were not so difficult to fathom that they needed to think and reflect too deeply. And even if their time was already frozen, life could still somehow find a way to send unexpected little gifts to paint their colorless days.

"Lao Wen, are you sure about this? Is this really alright?"

"Of course. Have no fear, A-Xu. I won't let you drown. This, I promise you."

In front of them, a lake as vast as a small village sat quietly within the protection of a natural barrier made up of rocky walls covered in frost. It was unknown whether this reservoir was first created by an emerging spring or was the result of melting snow pooling at the bottom of the cliffs over the years. The water was clear and pristine; the mesmerizing expanse of blue seemed to glimmer under the sun. Flawlessly clean and untainted, one could easily look at the bottom of the lake, a combination between solid ground and rocks with weed-like plants growing sparsely all over the place.

Indeed, it was considerably shallow as a lake, a perfect place for a swim. Due to its hidden location, even though the pair of immortals had been living in the snowy mountains for some time, it wasn't until recently did they discover this gem.

The reason for this was that all this time, the lake had been covered under layers of frost on this height known for its eternal snow. Wen Kexing was the one who first found the existence of this lake during one of his casual saunters around the vicinity to ease his boredom — for having too much time on one's hands could often be mentally taxing. He quickly returned to the armory then, beaming and full of excitement like a child who had just stumbled upon a magic treasure, to call Zhou Zishu over and examine this discovery of his together.