On the Spirit Boat.
Jiang Huai slowly poured tea into the porcelain cup before Luo Yueguan. The two were traveling to the city where Ziyun Pavilion was located, situated between Linglong Continent and Aolai Continent. Ziyun Grand Pavilion itself was a city, which they had named Ziyun City.
Jiang Huai’s purpose for this trip was to sell his perfected Pill Formation alchemy method. Although some of the extremely detailed and ingenious techniques were currently only mastered by him, he had already compiled the remaining seventy percent into a booklet. He had estimated a price between three million and four million Spirit Stones. If Ziyun Pavilion could not meet this price, he would have to find other sales channels.
As for the Spirit Stones he would receive, Jiang Huai planned to use them to find medicinal materials to substitute for the Flower Spirit Physique and Ice Soul Profound Body. Besides these two medicinal ingredients, he also needed the Fire Luo for rebuilding the Qi Sea. He had only found the Fire Luo so far and had no news of the other two medicinal materials yet.
Restoring his cultivation level still seemed far off. Fortunately, there was still more than half a year left before the deadline he had agreed to with Chu Xianning. Jiang Huai occasionally had a wicked thought: if he gathered the Ice Soul Profound Body and those three medicinal ingredients, leaving only the Flower Spirit Physique… could he try asking his Master for nectar? Completing that mission, which would allow him to obtain the Flower Spirit Physique, would directly lead to rebuilding his Qi Sea.
But that troublesome mission required not one or two, but three retrievals, all of which he had to personally collect. Given Chu Xianning’s temperament, after Jiang Huai proposed it, her embarrassment would likely make her want to kill Jiang Huai first and then commit suicide. However, it was hard to say for sure. Jiang Huai realized he could no longer fathom Chu Xianning’s thoughts.
Often, his understanding of Chu Xianning’s intentions relied on guesswork. He always assumed he knew Chu Xianning’s hidden thoughts like the back of his hand, but in reality, many times, it seemed to be just his own imagination. He had too many illusions about Chu Xianning, shrouding her in a veil, which often prevented him from truly seeing what lay beneath.
Fortunately, there was still plenty of time. Jiang Huai believed that one day he would see clearly.
The tea in the cup before him was clear and bright, brought out by Luo Yueguan. It was a new tea brewed this year. Jiang Huai drank several cups and casually looked up at Luo Yueguan opposite him. Her long dress clung to her body, with a slightly cinched design at the waist that accentuated her slender waist while also making the curve of her chest more defined.
When the two were alone, Luo Yueguan always seemed to like crossing her legs. This posture drew her skirt together slightly, revealing a section of her jade-like, snow-white calf. Her little feet beneath her ankles swayed gently. The tips of her high heels were sharp.
*So cute.*
Jiang Huai thought this but suddenly felt his thoughts were becoming dangerous. When had he fallen into Luo Yueguan’s trap? From the very beginning, he had righteously refused her requests for kisses or embraces, yet last night, he had actually pulled Luo Yueguan into his arms and kissed her for a long, long time, lingering and repeating, stopping just short of complete intimacy.
Yet, Jiang Huai couldn’t pinpoint when his defenses had been breached by Luo Yueguan. It was as if everything happened so naturally, just as it had when Luo Yueguan, drunk, suddenly leaned in and bit his lips the first time he arrived at Qingxuan Sect this year… He even felt that it was surprisingly reasonable for such a thing to happen to her.
*Damn it.*
Once desire began, it was impossible to stop. Rather than escaping, it was better to face his desires. Jiang Huai suddenly felt an urge to test himself, so he inexplicably reached out towards Luo Yueguan, “Let me touch.”
“Touch what?”
“Let me touch your white silk stockinged feet,” Jiang Huai said, looking innocently at Luo Yueguan’s cheeks. At this moment, he felt no blush, not even a hint of shame. Even he was taken aback for a moment.
Had his thick skin become even thicker thanks to Luo Yueguan’s torment?
However, at the moment he uttered those words, Luo Yueguan’s snow-white cheeks flushed with two patches of red, and her eyes even began to avoid his gaze. “You say touch, does that mean I have to let you? Aren’t you being a bit unreasonable…”
“Let me, quickly,” Jiang Huai’s small hand hovered in the air, staring at Luo Yueguan without blinking.
This commanding tone made Luo Yueguan instinctively annoyed, but the words that came to her lips were, “If you want to touch… you can take my shoes off yourself.”
“No, I want to touch now. Hurry and lift your feet up.” Jiang Huai had a playful look on his face. Luo Yueguan took a deep breath, the annoyance in her eyes intensifying, but the words that had been on the tip of her tongue vanished. As if bewitched, she bent down and gently removed one high-heeled shoe. After a moment of hesitation, she extended her leg, and her white and tender little feet landed in Jiang Huai’s palm.
As her delicate jade foot was held in his hand, Luo Yueguan felt a peculiar sensation. A faint tingling from the sole of her foot made her eyelashes quiver slightly. Jiang Huai’s fingertips felt the smooth texture of the white silk stockings, as if a weak current was passing from his fingertips. He looked up, watching Luo Yueguan lightly bite her lips, her eyes filled with shame and annoyance, her face seeming to express utter reluctance.
Yes, it was precisely that disgusted yet seemingly helpless expression.
“The other one,” Jiang Huai extended his hand towards her again.
“You… don’t go too far!”
“Just touching,” Jiang Huai blinked innocently.
Luo Yueguan pursed her lips, bent down again, and removed the other high-heeled shoe. Reluctantly, she lifted her leg. Now, both her slender legs were suspended in the air, lightly held by Jiang Huai. Jiang Huai’s fingertips pressed lightly on the soles of her feet, causing her pink-painted toes to curl up.
“Why are you so obedient?” Jiang Huai looked up, blinking innocently at her.
Luo Yueguan’s exasperation seemed to manifest at that moment. She was about to withdraw her leg when Jiang Huai grasped her ankle. Seeing her embarrassed and annoyed state, Jiang Huai found it even more amusing, making him want to tease Luo Yueguan further.
“Be good and don’t move.”
This sentence seemed to possess a magical quality, and the scene shifted to Luo Yueguan crossing her arms, looking at him with disgust, yet still obediently keeping her legs suspended in the air, allowing Jiang Huai’s fingertips to knead and play with them. After a while, Jiang Huai withdrew his hands and looked at Luo Yueguan innocently, “Okay, I’m bored.”
Luo Yueguan withdrew her legs, her eyes fixed on the scattered high heels on the floor. She said, “Put them back on for me.”
Jiang Huai didn’t refuse. Instead, he leaned closer, grabbed her high heels, and knelt on the ground, diligently putting them back on for her. He then looked at Luo Yueguan, blinking innocently, “Are the white stockings pantyhose or thigh-highs?”
“Pantyhose.”
“Then what color are your underwear today?”
“You!”
Luo Yueguan’s breathing became rapid.
Previously, she had been the one teasing Jiang Huai, finding a subtle pleasure in seeing his flushed and flustered face. Now, the situation had completely reversed. The loss of control made her feel flustered and uneasy. But wouldn’t her increasing fluster only lead her deeper into his trap?
Luo Yueguan stood up from the chair, lightly holding the hem of her dress. A smile curved her lips, and she feigned composure, “Want to see?”
“Yes, yes, please do.”
So, Luo Yueguan slowly lifted the hem of her dress, first revealing her jade-like snow-white calf, then her rounded knees wrapped in white silk, and finally her slender, lustrous thighs, all tightly bound and encased in white silk. The white silk was made of a super transparent material, making the tenderness and luster of her skin completely visible. As she lifted the skirt hem further, Jiang Huai watched intently, but Luo Yueguan stopped her movements, leaving it in an awkward halfway position.
“Why don’t you guess the color first?”
“Is there a reward for guessing correctly?”
“If you guess correctly… I’ll take it off and give it to you now?” Luo Yueguan’s voice was soft and alluring. Jiang Huai’s heartbeat began to quicken. He sensed danger, but fortunately, his memory was excellent. When he had slept in Luo Yueguan’s room before, he had inadvertently glimpsed her wardrobe. All her underwear was either light purple or black, all extremely alluring and seductive styles, but there were no other colors.
Since it was a choice between two, with a decent chance of winning, Jiang Huai felt it was worth a gamble.
“Then I’ll guess light purple.”
The probability of choosing purple was very high. Because she was wearing white stockings, black would be too contrasting. Luo Yueguan had excellent taste in clothing; all her dresses and skirts were carefully chosen. Logically, it should be light purple.
“What if you guess wrong?” Luo Yueguan tilted her chin slightly, her eyes suddenly filled with disdain.
“You tell me?”
“If you guess wrong… I’ll take it off and give it to you too, but you have to dirty it and show it to me,” Luo Yueguan’s cheeks dimpled lightly. Despite her smile being incredibly gentle and dignified, Jiang Huai felt her eyes were sinister.
*No, her gaze is wrong!*
“No, I’m not gambling anymore,” Jiang Huai turned his face away, ready to withdraw.
“But you’ve already guessed the color. How can you back out now?” Luo Yueguan’s smile became increasingly playful. “Still not gambling?”
“I’m not gambling anymore.”
“Fine, then.” Luo Yueguan gently lowered her hand, and the skirt fell back down, fully concealing her slender, lustrous legs. Jiang Huai thought she would reveal the correct answer now that he wasn’t gambling, but she simply let down her skirt, making his heart feel as if it were being scratched by a kitten.
*So itchy.*
“So, what’s the correct answer?”
“Since you’re not gambling anymore, why should I tell you?” Luo Yueguan blinked innocently at him. “If you want to know, come to my room tonight and take it off yourself?”
“No way,” Jiang Huai turned his face away, but the more he thought about it, the more curious he became.
From Luo Yueguan’s confident and teasing gaze earlier, his intuition told him he had guessed wrong. But what if Luo Yueguan had tricked him, and he had actually guessed the correct answer? However, even if he won, it wouldn’t mean much, only obtaining a piece of Luo Yueguan’s personal underwear. Jiang Huai didn’t have such strange preferences.
“I really want to know,” Jiang Huai blinked pitifully at Luo Yueguan.
Luo Yueguan calmly took a sip of tea and, after some thought, said, “Do you remember when I went to my room right after we boarded the Spirit Boat?”
“I remember. What about it?”
What did that have to do with the correct answer?
“I took it off. If you had insisted on me lifting my skirt again just now… there would have been nothing there. Either way, I win,” Luo Yueguan said, looking innocently into his eyes.
