Forced Kiss

"Don't talk nonsense."

After listening to Ah Yin's explanation, Su Cheng lowered his eyes and said calmly.

He understood what she meant, but he was surprised that she would make such a suggestion.

Ah Yin's current form of existence is not purely human.

Whether it was when she regained her physical body back then, or when she was truly reborn in the Blue Silver Grass Forest later, it was all thanks to the Longevity Sword.

Based on the resonance between Su Cheng's Martial Soul's Talent Domain and the five elements of her Soul Ring, coupled with the continuous convergence of the same source energy in the small world of the Blue Silver Grass Forest, and combined with her already intact Soul Body and the powerful immortality of the Blue Silver Emperor, she was able to be reborn.

The body Ah Yin embodied after her rebirth was no longer as simple as Soul Beast Transformation. In essence, it was a physical body formed from the convergence of energy, naturally materialized from the void. Neither human nor beast, it was truly mysterious.

This is why Ah Yin was able to advance so rapidly in cultivating the Innate Skill, with almost no bottlenecks, because the power of her flesh and blood was originally transformed from Soul Power.

In this state, she could certainly re-integrate into the Longevity Sword, and if she wished, her Soul Ring could indeed be added to the Longevity Sword.

In fact, when Ah Yin was first resurrected, she continued to reside within Su Cheng's Martial Soul. It wasn't until after the battle in Spirit City that she completely severed her connection with the Longevity Sword.

However, re-integrating into the Longevity Sword would mean she would lose her freedom once more. And giving up the Soul Ring would mean her physical body would lose its foundation, reverting to her former Spirit Body.

Moreover, there was no possibility of regaining her physical body in the same way, because by then, she had completely become a part of Su Cheng's Martial Soul.

No one would willingly make such a sacrifice.

Su Cheng also did not believe he was entitled to make another free life make such a sacrifice.

"I'm not worth it."

Even if he doesn't need to find a way to continue his path Soul Master, he can simply look for other paths to cultivation and advancement, even if his path is truly cut off.

But I would never use this method to compensate for my own Martial Soul's deficiencies by sacrificing others.

If he really does that, wouldn't all his past insistence become a joke?

Compared to strength, the purity of mind and will is far more important.

"Why isn't it worth it?" Ah Yin thought differently.

She gazed at Su Cheng with her clear, watery eyes, "You were the one who resurrected me, you are my benefactor, so it is only natural that I want to repay your kindness now."

"Alright, stop saying things like that." Su Cheng frowned. "There's no need to use terms like 'benefactor' anymore. There's no such thing as a favor between us. I benefited greatly from your Soul Bone, and then you helped me find this forest. If there was any favor to repay, you've already done so."

"Who said it's all paid off! What debt of gratitude could be greater than the debt of saving a life? It's incomparable to what you're talking about. Besides..."

At this point, Ah Yin paused slightly, seemingly finding it difficult to speak.

But after glancing at Su Cheng, she gritted her teeth and continued, "Besides that, you've also brought me a lot of joy, feelings I've never experienced before."

"And there's torment and pain." Su Cheng leaned against the tree, took another sip of his Hundred Flowers Brew, glanced at her, and said calmly, "You told me that yourself a year ago, have you forgotten so quickly?"

Ah Yin was taken aback upon hearing this, and immediately recalled the scene when she had an emotional outburst in the Back Mountain Flower Garden Spirit City.

Although she felt a little embarrassed, she stubbornly said, "Fine, I'm willing to do it, it has nothing to do with gratitude. I treat you like my younger brother, and I don't want this to affect your future. With your talent and ability, you should have a much wider potential."

"..." Su Cheng fell silent this time.

After a long while, he finally looked up at Ah Yin, whose face was full of determination, and asked, "Do you know what doing this means to you?"

Ah Yin turned her face away, avoiding his gaze, and said softly as if nothing was wrong:

"Actually, it's nothing. It's just returning to the Longevity Sword. Besides, even merging into the Longevity Sword is countless times better than the previous state of a dazed and dormant soul. Moreover, I didn't really care about this kind of thing. I know my potential and abilities, and that's all I can achieve."

Seeing this, Su Cheng sighed softly, "You know what kind of person I am, Ah Yin. Don't be so impulsive anymore. Whether it's a sacrifice or anything else, when you make a decision, you'd better not let your future self regret it. The cultivation of Soul Beast is difficult enough, and it's even more so for you."

He lowered his eyes, looking at the clear wine in the jar. "Getting to where you are today, and achieving this peace and freedom, is hard-won. Don't take it for granted. Think things through before you speak."

"This isn't an impulse. Over the years, I've been deceived and helped, and I've seen many people and things I never truly understood before. Don't you remember? You taught me all of that." Ah Yin shook her head, looking directly into his face.

"Having spent so much time with you, of course I know what kind of person you are. I also know that you would rather take that sword yourself than let the two of them get hurt. As for everything else, it's none of my business."

Su Cheng frowned slightly and remained silent.

He seemed to be in a daze, or perhaps deep in thought.

"Could you... call me 'sister'?"

In the silence, Ah Yin suddenly said these words.

"Elder sister...?"

Upon hearing this, Su Cheng looked up and stared blankly at the other person.

He suddenly laughed with relief, "But I don't want to be your younger brother."

"..."

Hearing his answer, Ah Yin felt somewhat disappointed.

However, before she could say anything, Su Cheng spoke up again with a smile, "Alright, you don't need to worry about me anymore."

As he spoke, he gently raised his palm. "Do you remember what you said when you evaluated Innate Power? You were right back then. A state of enhancement is not a long-term solution, and a path that cannot be stabilized is incomplete. This time, I can say that I have turned misfortune into blessing, and truly achieved the goal of harmonizing the power within my body."

At this point, Su Cheng pointed his finger forward.

Without any apparent effort or exertion of power, this instant triggered a sudden sense of alarm in Ah Yin's heart.

Her senses told her that the attack posed no threat whatsoever, but her intuition told her that it could pose a great danger to her.

This unusual contradiction between reason and intuition made her, with her keen senses, extremely uncomfortable.

The next moment, a gentle breeze swept by, and dust drifted down from the huge blue stone that had been weathered by wind and rain for countless millennia, which stood not far in front of them.

A huge "silver" character, about a foot deep, appeared.

Seeing this scene, Ah Yin's eyes widened, and her pink lips parted slightly in shock.

A mix of emotions, including surprise, confusion, and joy, flashed through my mind.

This level of destructive power is nothing special; many High-level Spirit Master can do it easily.

But what's terrifying is that when this sword was unleashed, there was absolutely no warning, no fluctuation whatsoever. It was as if some inexplicable, ambiguous power was inexplicably generating within Su Cheng's body, and then he easily unleashed such a powerful strike.

While possessing destructive power, it also demonstrates astonishing control, even maintaining perfect uniformity in the depth of the handwriting, with not a single bit more or less.

"Xiao Xue's Sun Fire is quite powerful. In terms of its power when facing it head-on, even my Innate Power is inferior. It was Bibi Dong who saved my life at that time. But it was precisely because of the special nature of this flame that, while it burned my physical body Soul Power, it also promoted the fusion of various powers within me, allowing me to take a crucial step."

Su Cheng withdrew his hand and explained slowly, "In the past year, Bibi Dong has done her best to help me heal and recover, and with her help, I have gradually mastered this power, which I named 'True Power'. Although it is not as powerful as the explosive force of my previous Innate Power, and my combat power ceiling has been greatly weakened, this state is stable and lasting, and there is still huge room for improvement in the future. From a long-term perspective, I am actually far superior to the past."

"..."

Ah Yin glanced at the blue stone, then turned back to look at Su Cheng's palm, her eyes filled with confusion, as if she was trying to digest and understand the meaning of his words.

But as time went by, her expression gradually changed.

What began as surprise and bewilderment gradually turned into resentment and indignation.

Why didn't you say anything earlier?!

"Um?"

Su Cheng was taken aback upon hearing this.

But before he could say anything more, the beautiful woman sitting next to him suddenly stood up, her face flushed.

Perhaps because of the Hundred Flowers Brew she had just drunk, or perhaps for something else, Ah Yin's emotions became unusually agitated at this moment, and her cheeks turned blood red with anger.

"After all I worried about you, what was the point of lying to me?!"

"..."

"Yes, anyway, in your eyes, I'm just a transformed Soul Beast! Unlike Qian Renxue, even if she ruthlessly tried to kill you, you still tolerated her in every way! I was really presumptuous. What I just said was just a joke to you, wasn't it?"

"I just haven't had a chance to explain in detail yet..."

Upon hearing his explanation, Ah Yin's expression changed again.

She suddenly remembered that a similar situation had actually occurred before.

It's the same old trick again, using deception to commit fraud!

Her eyes were slightly red, and her gaze was watery as she stared intently at Su Cheng.

"Hey, hey, hey, is this some kind of overreaction?" Su Cheng's heart skipped a beat. "Why such a big reaction?"

"I understand. You still don't trust me and are testing me here, right?"

"I--"

"You don't need to deny it." Ah Yin's voice was unusually cold. "Yes, I'm not as smart as your Qian Renxue, and I don't have those messy thoughts, but don't treat me like a fool!"

As she spoke, she bent down, picked up the wine jar in front of her, and, suppressing her disgust for the taste of the wine, took a large gulp. "I don't understand why you're so wary of me? Looking down at me with such arrogance and prejudice! Su Cheng, are you really so heartless?!"

Seeing that she was truly angry, Su Cheng couldn't help but smile wryly, "No, don't get agitated, we've only just met—"

"You don't need to say things like that to me! Do you think I'm so easily fooled? So much time has passed since we met, you've had plenty of opportunities to explain, but you've kept avoiding the topic. Aren't you just testing me? What, do you want to see if I'll turn against you after you lose your power?"

"..." Su Cheng was speechless.

Actually, Ah Yin was right; he had indeed had such thoughts before.

When Ah Yin misunderstood that he had greatly lost his strength, he didn't even think about it and just acted on instinct.

Because of the other party's past, even if Su Cheng didn't say it, he always harbored a slight doubt about Ah Yin in his heart.

Even without the Longevity Sword restraining him, he could never fully trust it.

Even when they parted ways in Spirit City, he left an Innate Power on Ah Yin as a warning.

Although he possessed great power, he was not afraid of betrayal.

But as a man, I always hope that the other person can be sincere in this regard.

Before he could express his feelings, he needed to first ascertain whether the other person had other intentions—although given his position and complicated emotions, he had no right to do such a thing.

Ah Yin stood there, then gulped down another mouthful of Hundred Flowers Brew.

Under the influence of alcohol, her eyes became somewhat hazy, with a deep peach-pink hue at the corners, and even a faint smell of alcohol emanated from her body.

She carried a huge wine jar in one hand and pointed at Su Cheng with the other, "Haha, congratulations, you succeeded! How about it, are you satisfied now?"

At this point, Ah Yin's face showed a look of sudden realization. "No wonder you wanted to talk to me about researching Self-Condensed Spirit Ring at first. What, you thought I was using you? Heh, you really overestimate me! I was really stupid, worrying about you for nothing and wasting all this effort on you!"

After saying that, she slammed the wine jar in her hand down.

"Whoosh—"

The wine jar shattered with a crash, spilling out a large amount of wine, which then quickly seeped into the ground, filling the air with a rich aroma of wine and flowers.

"You're such a disappointment! I told you before, this wine wasn't made for you at all! You're right, you are that kind of person. I've been deceiving myself all along, and I've never really seen you for who you are!"

"..."

Su Cheng blinked, momentarily stunned by the other person's loss of composure.

But he quickly came to his senses and laughed, "Okay, you're right, but didn't you say you wanted to be my older sister?"

"?" Ah Yin was stunned for a moment, not understanding the connection between them.

Su Cheng stretched and stood up as well, saying, "Sister was born to be bullied by her brother."

"Then I don't want to be one."

"Now you have no choice."

As he spoke, he suddenly reached out and put his arm around Ah Yin's supple and slender waist.

Then he bent down, lowered his head, and sealed those soft, pink lips with his own.