The Heroine's Potential Is Infinite!

Without a doubt.

Qin Lan Shan now faced an incomparably difficult choice.

Being intelligent, she had already understood exactly what Su Qing meant.

He did not merely want her body; he wanted control over her freedom of will as well!

The mature beauty tilted her head up slightly, her eyes carrying a faint plea.

Clearly, she wanted him to show mercy and spare her.

"Sister Qin, you know me. I've always believed in mutual consent."

"If you think this is too much, you can leave right now."

Su Qing spoke calmly.

That look in her eyes did not sway him in the slightest.

Cold-hearted and devoid of feeling—this was the truest description of him.

After hearing those words, Qin Lan Shan let out a soft sigh.

Her previously tense body completely relaxed instead.

As though... she had accepted her fate.

Unlike her earlier resistance and disbelief, she quickly recognized reality.

Things had already come to this, and she was even wearing a collar. What right did she have to choose?

Moreover, this was a mistake she had made herself.

The Tang State Residence could have stayed out of this, yet it had been dragged in because of her.

Whether it was atonement or something else, there was no turning back for her.

She said nothing more and merely nodded softly.

That somewhat obedient posture made it clear that she had accepted reality.

Su Qing was not surprised, since that was simply her personality.

As a virtuous wife and loving mother, she also had flaws in her character.

For example... she was extremely easy for bad people to coerce.

Though there were some things he had not said aloud, she had clearly understood their meaning.

It was probably—Sister Qin, you wouldn't want anything to happen to the Tang State Residence, would you?

After being threatened like this, she ultimately chose to compromise.

Thinking about it, the young man felt that he was being a little too wicked.

"Since you've agreed, start with a Recognition of Ownership Declaration."

Su Qing spoke with great interest.

Since he was a villain, he might as well play the part to the end.

"What... declaration?"

Qin Lan Shan looked slightly bewildered after hearing that.

What kind of seamless combo was this?!

Where had he learned so many different ways to torment people?

"A Recognition of Ownership Declaration. As for what it should say, cultured and sensible Sister Qin can think of that herself."

Su Qing said that he only cared about the result.

"Mm..."

Qin Lan Shan lowered her head and let out a whimper.

Being cultured and sensible was not supposed to be used for this sort of thing!

But she really had read similar books and knew how one was supposed to make... a Recognition of Ownership Declaration.

"Sister Qin, hurry up. I'm waiting."

"If you can't even do this, there's no need to proceed to the next activity."

Su Qing said with a smile.

Qin Lan Shan fell silent.

If this was not a threat, then what was?

But those words were simply too humiliating. She truly could not say them aloud!

She looked at the young man's expression, pressed her lips together, and finally made up her mind.

This cultured and sensible Daughter of a Great Clan did not speak. Instead, she rose onto her tiptoes.

The next moment, her clumsy first kiss landed on the young man.

She knew how the declaration should be spoken, but she also knew she could not say it aloud.

If she did, he might find it unsatisfactory and make up an excuse to force her to do it again.

To avoid being repeatedly humiliated, she could only use this method.

I'll shut your mouth. Then you won't be able to find fault with me, will you?

Besides, there was nothing that could better prove her attitude than this!

"Hm? This is rather beyond my expectations."

Su Qing felt the faint lingering warmth at the corner of his lips and was genuinely surprised.

"M-Master, are you satisfied now?"

Qin Lan Shan's voice trembled slightly.

After carrying out that entire series of actions, her heart was racing wildly.

"You barely pass. We can move on to the next stage."

After thinking for a moment, Su Qing nodded.

If this did not count as passing, that would truly be unreasonable.

After hearing that, Qin Lan Shan did not know whether she should feel relieved or nervous.

The demands he made of her were clearly progressing step by step.

They were becoming more excessive and increasingly difficult to accept.

Things had already reached this point. Would the next part be...?

The mature beauty was nervous to the extreme, constantly trying to comfort herself.

It was going to happen sooner or later. It would only hurt for a moment. I can endure it...

"Come with me."

Su Qing walked straight outside.

Qin Lan Shan, who had already prepared herself to undress and be violated, hurriedly followed him.

They were going outside?

Could it be... he wanted to bathe with her?

A few minutes later.

Qin Lan Shan was not soaking in water. Instead, she stood by a fire.

She stared at the enormous pill furnace before her, looking confused and at a loss.

The pale red flames reflected on her fair face, making her look somewhat adorably dazed.

"Hurry up. Time is limited. The ingredients and Pill Recipe are ready."

Su Qing urged her on.

He took out all kinds of medicinal ingredients and arranged them on the table by category.

Qin Lan Shan's heart was filled with questions.

How did he know that she could refine pills?

And what was this for? What kind of pill were they refining?

But after thinking for a moment, she did not ask.

He surely disliked her asking too many questions. She should simply carry out his orders as quickly as possible.

Once the refinement succeeded, he would naturally explain everything to her.

Watching Qin Lan Shan begin to work, Su Qing pulled over a chair and sat down.

This was the key moment for breaking the deadlock.

After taking in the Daughter of a Convicted Official, how could he regain the Tian Family's trust? That was a major problem.

Trying to persuade an emperor in his final years with loyalty and sincerity was utterly unrealistic. The Yan Emperor was no longer a wise ruler.

Only tangible benefits could move him and let him see their sincerity.

So what did the Yan Emperor lack the most?

The answer was... longevity!

In the game, there was basically no way to obtain life-extending pills in the early stages.

Only in another high-difficulty side-instance could one obtain such a practically useless recipe.

Why was it practically useless?

By the time one reached that level of difficulty, the game was already in its later stages.

Once one could clear it, there was no longer any need for it. When one needed it, one could not obtain it.

Fortunately, reality was not a game. He did not need to clear any instance.

As long as he knew the contents of the recipe, he could refine it!

As it happened, Su Qing remembered the contents, since that item was also one of a kind in the game.

All he needed was a suitable pill refiner, and then he could fire up the furnace.

Refining pills was not as simple as having the recipe and ingredients.

Like cultivation, it depended on talent.

The hidden class of Qin Lan Shan, the Shopkeeper, was precisely that of a pill refiner.

She had studied pill refinement under some master for a time, so she was completely capable!

With the right timing, place, and people, all that remained was for the pill to form.

He just did not know how long it would take to refine it successfully.

Very soon.

Qin Lan Shan cast aside all distracting thoughts and began refining pills.

Her expression was focused, her movements orderly, and her attitude exceedingly serious.

An hour later, a muffled boom came from inside the pill furnace.

"It failed..."

Hearing that sound, Qin Lan Shan dejectedly uttered those three words.

"It's fine. There are plenty of ingredients, so just keep trying."

"I can tell you in advance: whether your father can be saved depends on you."

Su Qing said this to motivate her a little.

"You mean?! I understand. I'll be even more serious!"

A trace of delight appeared in Qin Lan Shan's eyes as she hurriedly replied.

She took out another set of ingredients and began refining again.

A short while later.

With another muffled boom, another batch of pills was ruined.

Qin Lan Shan's expression became somewhat grave.

Though she was not an expert in pill refinement, she was certainly no novice.

But after two attempts, she discovered that this recipe was extremely difficult!

If she wanted to form the pill, she would have to devote even more effort.

"Sister Qin, is it a little difficult?"

Su Qing kindly asked.

"Yes, but I already have some sense of it."

Qin Lan Shan hurriedly replied, as though worried that he would not let her continue.

"Having a feel for it is a good thing. I want to help you too."

"But I know nothing about pill refinement, so I can only help squeeze out some of your potential."

"If you don't work hard, how can you save your father? Right?"

Su Qing spoke gently.

"How will you squeeze it out?"

Qin Lan Shan did not understand for a moment.

"Every time you make a mistake, I'll give you a special punishment."

"Starting from the third batch, you'd better be prepared."

Su Qing spoke seriously.

Qin Lan Shan: "..."

She had a feeling that this special punishment was not going to be anything good.

To avoid being dealt with, she pulled herself together and began measuring out and adding the ingredients again.

Then... boom!

It ended in failure once more, accompanied by a chill radiating from behind her.

Before Elder Sister could turn around, pain struck from behind.

"Don't treat my words as a joke!"

"Fail again, and it doubles."

The fourth batch, the fifth batch...

Qin Lan Shan was nearly beaten to tears on the spot.

She had never been beaten like this in all her life.

This was what he called squeezing out her potential?

Why did she feel like he had found an excuse to deliberately bully her?

Yet when she saw the serious expression on the young man's face, she simply could not bring herself to voice her doubts.

He seemed quite stern, as though he truly had no such intentions?

Even as Qin Lan Shan breathed a sigh of relief, she inexplicably felt a few traces of frustration.

He had hit her there—did he really feel nothing at all?

For the first time, she doubted her own charm.

No... what kind of nonsense was she thinking about?!

Her top priority now was to produce the pills as quickly as possible!

Qin Lan Shan pulled herself together, wiped the sweat from her brow, and threw herself back into refining.

Heat waves washed over her, and her body was already drenched in fragrant sweat.

Su Qing had to admit that she looked truly captivating at this moment.

But he had no interest in that sort of thing for the time being.

He was not an animal; he knew what mattered most.

The meat already at his mouth was not going anywhere. The important business came first.

Besides technique, pill refining also required luck.

For some relatively high-grade pills, it was perfectly normal to fail multiple times.

What was more... he was receiving positive feedback now.

Who knew what this Shopkeeper was thinking, but she kept giving him feedback in true qi.

Every time he drew it out, the feedback became even more apparent.

In just a few attempts, he had already accumulated a year's worth of true qi.

Although the amount he gained later on kept decreasing, small gains added up, and the total was still quite impressive.

Su Qing could feel that after absorbing it, he would immediately leave the ranks of Entry Level rookies.

That was right—he would soon reach the level of a Third-Rate weakling!

His talent was insufficient, and too much of the true qi was lost during absorption.

If he wanted to become an expert through this, he first had to focus on improving his aptitude.

So this was not the most important thing.

What mattered was... Qin Lan Shan's loyalty toward him had increased significantly.

That made this kind of interaction quite worthwhile.

Half a day passed in the blink of an eye.

Qin Lan Shan looked at the pile of discarded medicinal residue that had been cleared away, guilt in her eyes.

She knew very well that these medicinal ingredients were expensive, yet she had used up so many of them.

After making so many attempts, she had not produced a single finished pill!

Though she was a noble young lady, a Daughter of a Great Clan, she had ultimately been adopted.

Thus, she was the sort of Eldest Miss who was not well-off. When had she ever wasted so many things?

What was more... if she could not succeed, what would happen to her adoptive father?

Guilt and frustration filled her heart, making her feel deeply sinful.

"All right, we'll call it here for this morning. We'll continue this afternoon."

Su Qing said calmly.

"Master, I... I want to try again!"

Qin Lan Shan hurriedly said.

She did not want to waste time. She only wanted to refine the pills as soon as possible.

"I'll tell you what to do, and you'll do it. Why are you talking so much?"

"If you still don't succeed this afternoon, I'll whip somewhere else!"

Su Qing said, pinching Qin Lan Shan's smooth, tender cheek.

He knew that this thing did not have a high success rate to begin with.

Being able to refine it within a day was already quite impressive.

But he did not encourage her. He still had to keep pushing her!

The heroine's potential was limitless; it all depended on how it was developed.

It would be a waste not to properly develop this hidden profession!

"Somewhere else?"

Qin Lan Shan felt the intimate touch and asked in confusion.

The next moment, she saw the young man's utterly obvious gaze.

It had landed directly on her chest!

Instinctively, she raised a hand to cover her ample chest and lowered her head anxiously.

He... he would not really hit her there, would he? How could that be okay?!

"Take a bath and change your clothes. We'll go out for a walk together."

"We also need to buy some medicinal ingredients, so hurry up."

Su Qing smiled brightly as he spoke.

He had been here for half the day and had sweated quite a bit as well.

He planned to take a shower now and head out feeling fresh and clean.

It was not that he did not want this Little Slave to serve him while he bathed; the time simply had not come yet.

If he truly could not hold back, should he eat her or not?

If he really ate her, it would definitely affect his state while refining pills. He had to restrain himself.

Qin Lan Shan watched the young man's departing back and bit her lip.

Was he concerned for her, wanting her to balance work and rest?

Whew... pill refining really did require one to remain calm and avoid arrogance. Impatience would increase the chances of failure.

This afternoon, she had to succeed!

Her chest could not swell up again...