Xiang Haikui sat resting against the wall, pushing aside all those messy, improper thoughts.

Today was an exception, and it would never happen again.

She had always worried that the dragon race’s “lust” would affect her, but now she realized there was no need for concern.

The dragons’ “lust” should be rather enjoyable, while her experience of “lust” was nothing but suffering.

With her meridians and energy points thoroughly cleared by her boss, she now had nothing more to do but close her eyes and relax her mind.

She relaxed quickly.

Across from her, Yin Changli leaning against the wall found it much more difficult to calm down.

Today’s unexpected events should have been anticipated, in fact.

Choosing Xiang Haikui to change his fate was precisely because she was “unpredictable.”

He had long been prepared—those who play with fate will inevitably be played by fate. This was perhaps his retribution.

Judging by her age, only about ten years had passed. He had awakened early, and apart from adding a waist injury, everything was fine. She must have been quite diligent in her care.

Yin Changli wanted to recover his memories from these ten years, but it was impossible at the moment.

Although reluctant to face the situation, he opened his eyes: “Miss Xiang, what exactly is our current predicament?”

Xiang Haikui, nearly dozing off, was startled by this “Miss Xiang.” The puppy-like boss hadn’t addressed her this way for years.

She opened her eyes abruptly, staring back at him without blinking.

To be honest, his hair was now disheveled, and near his left jaw close to his ear was a bloody bite mark. He looked quite miserable no matter how you viewed him.

Yet Xiang Haikui could still detect a certain elegance and nobility in his demeanor. This feeling…

With a buzz in her head, Xiang Haikui stared wide-eyed: “Who are you?”

Yin Changli: “What do you think?”

Xiang Haikui took a deep breath and held it for a long moment.

She straightened her back, pressing it firmly against the wall, wishing she could embed herself into the tree.

Every pore in her body seemed to open, and coldness seeped in through them, freezing her bones into icicles.

“Ha, S-Senior…” Xiang Haikui forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “When did you awaken?”

Just during meditation, perhaps?

But Yin Changli lowered his gaze, leaned forward slightly, and picked up a strand of hair Xiang Haikui had pulled from him, smiling: “Probably around this time.”

The strength Xiang Haikui had so painstakingly recovered instantly drained away again, nearly causing her to fall to her knees.

No wonder the wild energy had increased so joyfully. So…

The boss had stopped midway because he had awakened!

Xiang Haikui fearfully covered her neck, her eyes revealing terror. He had truly wanted to strangle her at that moment!

Seeing her frightened expression, Yin Changli wanted to explain that he had only been too panicked and embarrassed, that it hadn’t been intentional.

But such an explanation would be even more embarrassing.

Never mind, there was no need to explain.

“Miss Xiang,” he asked again, “what is our current situation?”

Xiang Haikui gave a confused, rambling account from the beginning.

Yin Changli only frowned when he heard about Han Qi sending his divided spirit to the mortal realm and Little Bai falling into the Underworld.

Regarding being cut in two, he seemed prepared for it and appeared unconcerned.

After she finished, the silence in the tree hollow was suffocating.

Xiang Haikui carefully observed his expression.

Yin Changli suddenly spoke: “You’ve reached the peak of the eighth rank, haven’t you?”

Xiang Haikui, still protecting her neck with both hands, nodded.

Yin Changli: “You’ve received my Original Yang. After secluding yourself for ten or more days, you can easily break through to the ninth rank.”

Having lost his Original Yang energy, his hibernation periods would now double in length, perhaps even more.

What was Original Yang? Xiang Haikui pondered for a moment, then was surprised—was her boss still a virgin?

Yin Changli seemed to hesitate: “Miss Xiang, though I’m not your master, I have nurtured your growth. Your father is currently only at the middle-to-late stage of the ninth rank. At your young age, such cultivation is extremely rare.”

Xiang Haikui nodded repeatedly. Her speed was truly like riding a rocket.

Yin Changli looked directly into her eyes: “I changed the fate of you and your father for my own purposes, so we can consider that settled. As for today’s dual cultivation to heal your injuries… consider it my thanks for your ten years of care. From now on, neither of us owes the other anything.”

Xiang Haikui could only nod again and again. Whatever the boss said was right.

She understood—her labor contract had expired.

The boss had paid her wages in the form of carnal compensation.

Yin Changli: “I need to regulate my breath for a while longer. Afterward, I’ll take you up, then I’ll go to the Underworld to find Little Bai. You needn’t worry about him.”

“Alright.” Xiang Haikui understood that he wouldn’t intervene in Jin Ling’s affairs.

It was never his concern anyway.

The only relevant matter was that Little Bai had been injured by Lu Xigu, who was now dead.

“Hmm.” After some hesitation, he asked, “Do you… have any other needs?”

“No, no, none at all.” Her head shook like a rattle drum as Xiang Haikui expressed her contentment and relief.

Xiang Haikui could vaguely sense that what had just happened had caused him immense humiliation. He was suppressing a belly full of anger, his usual fake smile gone, looking ready to kill at any moment.

Even so, that he could still speak calmly with her, merely maintaining a distant attitude, was beyond imagination.

Worthy of someone destined for greatness—his magnanimity and breadth of mind were truly extraordinary.

“During my amnesia…” Yin Changli began but stopped.

“Hmm?” Xiang Haikui looked over.

“Oh, nothing.” He closed his eyes again.

But Xiang Haikui suddenly had a question: “Senior, will I get pregnant?”

In this world, there were many half-demons; there seemed to be no reproductive barrier between humans and demons.

Though the chances were slim, what if she became pregnant from this one encounter?

They were about to part ways, and judging by her boss’s attitude, he wanted to cut all ties with her.

In the future, he would be elusive. Where would she find him?

This matter had to be clarified in advance; she couldn’t bear the risk alone.

Yin Changli kept his eyes closed: “You won’t.”

Xiang Haikui was curious: “You’re so certain? Have you been sterilized? Or are you too old to reproduce?”

Yin Changli’s mouth twitched slightly, aggravating the wound on his jaw and causing him to wince in pain.

He looked at her: “Between our Mountain and Sea races and humans, there has never been mixed blood offspring.”

That was good news. Xiang Haikui sighed in relief.

They still had some time. She needed to rest and recover her strength, as there was still a tough battle ahead.

Before closing her eyes, she noticed Yin Changli’s gaze, which seemed meaningful.

Xiang Haikui pondered for a while, reflecting on his earlier hesitation.

Suddenly she understood—he probably wanted to question whether she had tried to seduce him in his innocent, helpless state during his amnesia, plotting against him and seeking more benefits from him.

Damn, look at that ungrateful attitude.

All these years, she had steadfastly remained true to her principles, absolutely refusing to compromise with the puppy-like boss’s charm offensive, precisely because she knew she would eventually face this situation.

But Xiang Haikui did feel somewhat guilty.

She had indeed coveted him, wanting to extract more wild energy from him.

But Tian Kuang was his gift; he should understand that.

How unfair.

The Turbid Qi in the tree root node was increasing, causing the night pearl to grow progressively dim.

Darkness enveloped the small tree hollow. Xiang Haikui hugged her knees and buried her forehead in her arms as sudden melancholy washed over her.

The man across from her, who had cherished her for ten years, had become a stranger in the blink of an eye.

And he suspected her of malicious intent.

Throughout her life, no matter what beautiful thing she held, it never seemed to last.

This was also a reason why Xiang Haikui could resist temptation.

In this world, no one had ever truly cared about her feelings or considered her needs.

Even her current father was the same. He would worry about Xiang Tianqing’s various moods.

For herself, there seemed to be more guilt than anything else.

Xiang Tianqing had so many inexplicable little thoughts—wasn’t that because she had been spoiled by their father?

Some things shouldn’t be pondered too much, or one might, like Xiang Tianqing, enter a dead end with no way out.

Xiang Haikui had understood from a young age that looking at the positive side of things made life happier.

Yin Changli sensed her breathing had deepened, as if she were suppressing her emotions.

He looked over at her again. She had her head buried, so he couldn’t see her expression, only her bare, slightly arched feet.

Even though they maintained the greatest possible distance, the tree hollow itself was very small, so they were still quite close.

The air still smelled of desire. Yin Changli wondered if he had been too harsh.

Earlier, he had been like an impetuous young man rushing to take the imperial examination, focused only on reaching his destination quickly. His whip had struck fast and hard, with no consideration for the feelings of the horse beneath him.

Now, thinking back, he seemed to understand the source of that warm sea water that had provided him with total comfort when he broke through the ice upon awakening.

Yes, that was indeed a new realm of experience he had never felt before.

His jaw ached again. He reached up to touch it, finding a row of small tooth marks.

Looking at her feet again, for some reason he felt they were cold and had a strong urge to grab them and warm them under his clothes. This impulse was powerful—had he had such thoughts before?

Yin Changli noticed his body gradually changing, with his recently subsided desire rising again.

He awkwardly averted his gaze, attributing it to the lingering effects of the curse.

He stopped meditating. He wanted to quickly escape this embarrassing tree hollow, which was causing him unprecedented humiliation that came on strongly and was beyond his control: “Miss Xiang, let’s go.”

Xiang Haikui quickly composed herself and stood up: “Yes, Senior.”

Before leaving, she picked up the night pearl from the corner and handed it to him.

It was his property.

Yin Changli glanced at it: “Throw it away.”

“You don’t want it anymore?” Such a waste. Xiang Haikui put it into her storage ring instead.

…

Han Qi had been sitting in the civilian house above them, waiting from night until dawn.

He had expected to see a small snake emerge from the hole followed by a small flood dragon.

Instead, there was a flicker of shadows, and two human figures suddenly appeared before him.

“This…” Han Qi stood up, looking at Yin Changli in disbelief. “How did your magical power recover so quickly?”

Originally just a weak spark, it had now recovered at least forty percent.

Yin Changli glanced at him: “Surprised? There’s something even more surprising—I’ve broken your curse.”

Han Qi was shocked: “That’s impossible!”

“It’s true,” Xiang Haikui affirmed, picking up her sword and heading for the door. “You two seniors can chat; I have business to attend to.”

Han Qi paid no attention to her, focusing only on Yin Changli: “This can’t be possible! I conducted numerous experiments on breaking the curse… How did you recover?”

Yin Changli didn’t look at her either. Facing Han Qi, all his earlier embarrassment and awkwardness vanished completely. The corner of his lips curled slightly, restoring his usual casual and composed smile: “Just now, while burrowing underground, as I dug and dug, I suddenly remembered… In all your experiments, you never tried burrowing downward, did you?”

Han Qi: ?

Could it be that using one’s head forcefully in a dark environment could break the curse?

“Han Qi, go back and tell your master that his good days are coming to an end,” Yin Changli sneered, unwilling to waste words. “Your only chance to restrain me has been lost.”

He formed a spider lily in his hand, preparing to enter the Underworld.

Han Qi frowned: “You’re just leaving like this?”

“Aren’t you leaving?” Yin Changli asked. “Whose spectacle are you still waiting to watch?”

As the spider lily slowly unfurled and the Underworld teleportation array was about to open, Xiang Haikui returned.

Parting ways like this made her uneasy.

Yin Changli paused: “Does Miss Xiang have something else?”

“Oh, Senior, please leave if you wish. I’m not looking for you,” Xiang Haikui sent a mental message to Han Qi. “Senior Han, may I ask you a rather personal question?”

Han Qi: “Hmm?”

Xiang Haikui: “In all your years of competition with Senior Yin, have you ever compared who could dual cultivate with a woman for a longer time?”

Han Qi: …?

Han Qi actually replied: “No, we haven’t. Neither of us is given to indulgence.”

Xiang Haikui narrowed her eyes: “Then perhaps you should compete with him. I just dual cultivated with him, and he could only last about half an hour. His waist injury is pretty severe, so let’s give him a discount. If you can last an hour, you’ll have beaten him.”

Han Qi never expected her to be so forthright and showed a surprised expression.

He suddenly understood that Yin Changli had cleared his spiritual apertures through dual cultivation.

But he had done experiments with a couple, and it hadn’t worked.

Xiang Haikui narrowed her eyes again: “And as a woman, my experience was painful throughout. His technique can be described in two words: garbage. No matter how bad you are, you’d be better than him, truly.”

“Yet he still thinks he’s so desirable that everyone wants a piece of him. I don’t know where he gets such confidence.”

Having said her piece, she decisively turned and left with her sword on her back.

The light from Yin Changli’s spider lily extinguished. He hadn’t left yet, and after several moments of hesitation, he couldn’t help but ask: “What did she say to you?”

“Oh, she said you’re garbage.” Han Qi wasn’t one to lie, and he understood that Xiang Haikui had told him these things specifically for him to relay.

So he repeated everything word for word, watching as Yin Changli’s jaw gradually tightened and his expression worsened.

“I originally felt quite sorry for you, causing you to become entangled with a reckless Tian Kuang brute,” Han Qi pointed at her retreating figure, smiling. “But upon interaction, I find this young lady quite interesting.”