Outside the cave, it had started to rain at some point. The sound of the water was constant and rhythmic.
The autumn rain was not as heavy as a summer downpour, but it was persistent and drizzling.
The cave was not deep. The chaotic sounds of the rain from the outside were clearly audible.
After Ling Feng spoke, a strange silence fell between the two of them. Their eyes met. Jiang Yueyi tried to see something in his gaze, but his eyes were clear and transparent. She could not detect even a hint of hesitation.
Jiang Yueyi understood. He really wanted to see her crawl out of here like a dog. It was not out of anger or any other emotion. His clear eyes showed no malice at all.
This made things difficult for Jiang Yueyi, but she did not want to lose this exchange.
"You really are no fun. I'm starting to wonder if you're even a man," she said, naturally changing the subject to a direction that favored her.
"If you aren't blind, you can tell from my appearance whether I'm a man or not."
"That isn't necessarily true. You are very beautiful."
Ling Feng remained silent until Jiang Yueyi spoke again. "Your reaction to flattery is the coldest I've seen among most people. You don't even offer a polite word."
"Because I am indeed good-looking. If I were a woman, I might be even more beautiful than you."
Jiang Yueyi felt the illusion that she was being led by the nose. Unfortunately, she could not refute his statement.
His physical appearance was indeed stunning. Anyone with a normal sense of aesthetics had to admit that his words were not exaggerated. Even Jiang Yueyi, who had absolute confidence in her own looks, had to acknowledge it.
Jiang Yueyi had rarely, if ever, met someone so difficult to describe.
She did not think he was being arrogant because she had lowered her posture. Instead, it seemed he truly believed his words and actions were natural.
It wasn't because he was ignorant of her identity. Although she had only arrived in the [Canghua Realm] three years ago, those who knew of her were certainly at the top of various factions. She had also displayed significant wealth and power.
From this, she could only conclude two things. Either he was playing dumb and pretending to be ignorant.
Or, he truly did not care about any of it.
Clearly, continuing this confrontation would only be disadvantageous for her. Jiang Yueyi had other cards to play, but at this moment, she felt it was unnecessary.
No matter how many times she steered the conversation to her advantage, if he did not take the bait, she was just playing a lute to a cow.
"I won't crawl or bark like a dog. You really have a mean streak."
"Then at least get off me." Things shouldn't happen more than three times. He had already told her to crawl out three times. Since she refused, he didn't bother mentioning it a fourth time. You can't wake someone who is pretending to be asleep, and since she had flatly rejected his proposal, there was no point in pressing further.
Jiang Yueyi stood up with a look of lingering interest. Her elegant clothes were mostly made of gauze. Since they were soaked in the medicinal liquid, the fabric clung to her skin, outlining her graceful curves. The wet gauze became semi-transparent, faintly revealing her porcelain skin in a hazy, tempting way.
Even though Ling Feng's heart was steady, his gaze inevitably strayed for a moment. But it was only for a moment.
Jiang Yueyi sat down on the edge of the stone pool opposite Ling Feng. This small pool was not large, so the distance between them remained very close.
After crossing her slender legs, Jiang Yueyi folded her arms over her chest. She carefully studied the person in front of her again.
She noticed that while he pretended to be indifferent, his ears were already quite red. The corners of her mouth curled up. She couldn't help but want to tease him. She lifted her slender leg and lightly pressed her foot against his lower abdomen, just above a more intimate spot.
His gaze changed for a split second, but the anomaly quickly vanished. Only his ears grew redder.
'So he isn't a block of wood. He isn't that cold either. He's just good at restraining himself.'
Jiang Yueyi felt the joy of discovering a new continent. If she could disturb his state of mind, it might not be impossible to win this round.
Her smooth foot, soaked in medicinal liquid, felt slick. Her carefully trimmed toes looked like exquisite carvings. They slid slowly down the boy's chest. Just as they were about to reach an intimate area, she quietly pulled back and repeated the motion several times.
Her provocative behavior finally earned her a dissatisfied look from Ling Feng. But she had no intention of stopping. She kept pressing and rubbing until her white ankle was suddenly grabbed.
"What exactly do you want? Can you just say what you need to say?" Even though Ling Feng had a decent temper, he couldn't help but feel a bit of anger.
Ling Feng secretly vowed that if she continued like this, he would make her suffer.
Seeing that her teasing had finally caused him to lose his cool, Jiang Yueyi laughed. After her body shook with laughter for a moment, she finally spoke. "So you aren't a block of wood. You have moments of restless desire too. I thought you didn't."
After saying this, Jiang Yueyi's other foot became restless. It broke the surface of the water, creating ripples, and finally lifted his chin.
The moment her toe touched his chin, Jiang Yueyi caught a strange light flashing in his clear pupils.
Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in the foot he was holding. Then, she was instantly dragged into the medicinal pool. He even lifted her and flipped her over. Before she could react, a palm landed heavily on her firm, peach-like buttocks.
That slap was exceptionally hard. The sound echoed through the cave.
This time, it was Jiang Yueyi's turn to be stunned. Her mind went blank for a few seconds before she felt the stinging pain in her rear.
"Don't think I won't hit you." Ling Feng didn't know if he had lost his cool or if his emotions were stable. He simply felt it was natural to hit this woman who kept acting out.
Jiang Yueyi's face turned bright red. Before she could even ask for mercy, several more slaps landed in succession. She even forgot to resist. She only let out muffled, mournful, and somewhat ambiguous cries.
Ling Feng hit her about ten times before he let go, feeling relieved.
'The texture is actually quite good. It's incredibly soft and elastic. If I hit her a few more times, I might get addicted.'
Ling Feng glanced at her. He saw that Jiang Yueyi's beautiful eyes were now filled with mist. Although she had acted like a big sister from the start, she was actually only seventeen or eighteen years old. She had probably never suffered such a humiliation. As a proud person, she was definitely ashamed and angry now.
Ling Feng prepared himself. The next situation might be a fight to the death.
But to his surprise, Jiang Yueyi only looked at him with tearful eyes and a glare. She climbed out of the medicinal pool without any intention of fighting. She just looked incredibly aggrieved, as if she had truly suffered a great injustice.
Ling Feng didn't fall for it. His conscience didn't hurt at all. He even felt he should have done this from the beginning. Who told her to keep teasing him?
Her buttocks burned like fire. Jiang Yueyi knew she had teased him too much, but she didn't expect him to be so ruthless. Since her birth, she had never been so humiliated.
"You are not allowed to tell anyone about this." Getting hit was the result of her own teasing. She accepted that. But she naturally did not want a third person to know about this great shame.
Ling Feng guessed her thoughts and was somewhat surprised.
"Fine. I understand."
Jiang Yueyi turned her back and slowly began to fix her messy hair and clothes. After tidying herself, she turned around. The corners of her eyes were still red. When she tried to sit down again, she hissed and jumped back up. Only then did she give him a resentful and mournful look.
Ling Feng sighed and spoke with a hint of helplessness. "What exactly do you want? You provoked me over and over. I don't want to be entangled with you. Just tell me your purpose."
Jiang Yueyi endured the pain and sat back down. The rock was hard. Since Ling Feng had built this stone pool temporarily, he hadn't polished the uneven and sharp parts of the stone. The stinging pain felt like countless needles. Jiang Yueyi let out a few more provocative hisses.
However, she finally put away her playful thoughts. After a deep breath, her gaze became serious. "I want to invite you to join the [Cangbai Pavilion] that I created. Everything until now has been a test."
Jiang Yueyi had to admit she had suffered quite a bit for this.
Ling Feng thought about it in silence. Forget the [Cangbai Pavilion]; he hadn't even heard of Jiang Yueyi before this. But judging by the wealth she displayed, she probably had a significant background.
"Why would you take an interest in a rogue cultivator like me?"
"Fate is a wonderful thing. I was able to find you because you once participated in the [Thunder Pole Secret Realm] as [Fuel]. You were the only [Fuel] to come out alive."
Hearing this, he remembered. He had indeed gone to a secret realm filled with lightning. That place was constantly struck by thunder. The ground was scorched earth, filled with scars.
But the lightning was not the most terrifying part. The worst thing was that the realm occasionally dropped something like dew. It was the essence of lightning, a extremely pure [Thunder Condensation]. One touch meant certain death.
The moment they entered the realm, the group of rogue cultivators with him had all turned to ash. Even if he wanted to save them, he couldn't.
"Just because I luckily survived a secret realm, you want to invite me to join your faction?" Ling Feng suspected it wasn't that simple.
"There are other reasons, of course. But you have already shown enough strength for me to invite you sincerely. A First Realm cultivator broke my Sixth Realm defense. I even suffered a [Heart State] collapse because of it."
Jiang Yueyi said the last part through gritted teeth. In the cultivation world, having one's [Heart State] damaged by another could have a huge impact on one's path. Killing the person to soothe the heart would be considered a lucky break, ensuring the [Heart State] wouldn't be damaged by the same thing again.
But Jiang Yueyi didn't plan to do that. This matter started because of her. She had created this bitter fruit herself, so she couldn't blame others.
Moreover, if she could get what she wanted, the [Heart State] problem wouldn't be an issue.
"If you hadn't come here without the intent to kill and kept yourself in check, I might not have found an opening."
"I'm not stupid enough to miss that you could have taken my life with that sword if you wanted. Even though you saw I was just testing you and stayed your hand, it doesn't mean you didn't have the ability to kill me. If that weren't the case, why do you think my [Heart State] was damaged? And why would you dare follow me back just for some compensation?"
"Even so, you clearly have many more choices. But you seem a bit... obsessed with me?"
He didn't know how to describe the attitude he felt from Jiang Yueyi.
He had humiliated her like that, yet she could swallow the bitterness.
He had to admit he was starting to admire her.
"Obsessed..." Jiang Yueyi repeated the word. After a short silence, her eyelids lowered slightly. "It is indeed an obsession."
"Because of your [Heart State]?"
"Maybe it has nothing to do with the [Heart State]. Maybe it's because of something else?" Jiang Yueyi narrowed her eyes.
Ling Feng felt an unprovoked chill.
"If I refuse, what will you do? Kill me?"
"If we fought to the death, I might have a chance of winning. But even if I won, I might pay with my whole life. I don't make such unprofitable deals. I would rather do some... [Ling Feng Nong Yue] things with you."
"It's quite a coincidence. You travel the world using the name Ling Feng. My name in the [Canghua Realm] is Jiang Yueyi. Although it isn't my real name, 'Chanting to the wind and playing with the moon'—Ling Feng Nong Yue—happens to fit our names perfectly."
"What do you mean?" Ling Feng's gaze became sharp. A cold intent gathered in his eyes.
Jiang Yueyi stopped smiling. Her phoenix eyes also showed a sharp edge.
"Three years ago, when I first came to the [Canghua Realm], I met a certain person. From her, I learned an interesting story."
"You once caused the [Heart State] of that peerless [Celestial Maiden] who rules the [Canghua Realm] to waver. She almost lost her life because of it."