Chapter 24-2: The First Person She Slept With / Chapter 25-1: Fragrance That Captivates ...

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Chapter 24-2: The First Person She Slept With

Thinking about it that way, Shuxuan suddenly didn't seem so appealing anymore. She focused intently on her thoughts until Shuxuan called out to her, and only then did she realize it was already nearly eleven.

"Xiangyi, I have work tomorrow, so I'm going to bed first. If you get tired, come sleep with me." Shuxuan told Xiangyi how the bed was arranged, speaking so naturally that it was clear the two of them really were close.

At the very least, they'd probably slept in each other's beds before.

Xiangyi hummed, set down her phone, which was full of notes, and looked up at Shuxuan. "Sister Shuxuan, why don't we sleep together? I'm tired too."

Shuxuan seemed surprised and joked, "Not going to chat with your little girlfriend?"

Xiangyi laughed too and joked back, "How could she be more important than my wife?"

Girls often teased each other by calling one another "husband" and "wife." As expected, Shuxuan showed no particular reaction. She put an arm around Xiangyi, who was slightly shorter than her, and continued, "All right, husband. Let's sleep together."

They laughed, then headed into the bedroom.

Shuxuan's bedroom was very simple, with a faint fragrance lingering in the air. Seeing Xiangyi standing there in a daze, she pointed to the bed. "Are you going to sleep on the left or the right?"

Xiangyi thought it over and decided on the left. Shuxuan seemed a little surprised, then laughed. "You look so gentle and delicate, Xiaoyi, but you're pretty domineering."

Xiangyi was confused, and Shuxuan continued to explain. "Generally, the person who sleeps closer to the door likes taking care of others. They make people feel safe... Oh, judging by that puzzled look, I'll put it more simply. Like when a couple walks down the street, the guy usually walks closer to the road... Anyway, it just makes people feel safe."

Shuxuan's explanation had a bit of a girlish romanticism to it. Xiangyi thought carefully, and sure enough, she remembered seeing scenes like that before. For someone who lacked a sense of security, that kind of gesture really did feel heartwarming.

"Hehe, Xiaoyi, you don't seem to realize what you're doing at all. But don't worry. If you ever fall in love, big sister can teach you everything, step by step." Shuxuan kept joking as she pushed Xiangyi down onto the bed, looking as if she planned to do something to her.

Xiangyi played along, grinning as she spread her arms. "Sure. Come teach me."

Shuxuan had only meant to tease Xiangyi, but ended up being teased herself. She said helplessly, "You're no fun, as always. Can't you ever get embarrassed?"

Her words seemed to imply that this sort of thing had happened before, too. Xiangyi didn't dare say much. She climbed into bed slowly, pulled the comforter over her stomach, then said, "It's just that your acting is so bad, Sister Shuxuan. You can't make anyone feel that way."

Shuxuan sounded a little hurt. Annoyed, she pounced on Xiangyi again. "Then I'll really kiss you a few times, so your future husband will regret it!"

As she spoke, Shuxuan lunged like a hungry wolf. Xiangyi easily pinned her with a swift turn. The dominant and submissive positions had switched again, and Xiangyi wore an easy, confident smile.

She'd never been in a relationship, but she'd read thousands of romance novels. She knew exactly what she had to do in a situation like this: make Shuxuan understand one thing.

"Sister Shuxuan, I want to tell you that women can be dangerous too." She smiled down at the pinned Shuxuan, trying to create an atmosphere that might lead to a kiss. But she couldn't actually kiss her. Instead, she wanted to make Shuxuan imagine it, and so shift the balance between them.

"You..." Shuxuan froze and stared at Xiangyi. She felt that this was Xiangyi, yet also that she was different from the Xiangyi she knew. It was as if she'd hit her head and somehow grown a second Xiangyi.

But just as Shuxuan began to feel pressured, Xiangyi smiled, let go, took off her glasses, and prepared to go straight to sleep.

The whole sequence of movements was so swift and smooth that Shuxuan hadn't even had time to calm her racing heart. She looked at Xiangyi again and saw her breathtaking beauty without her glasses.

Her features still resembled Xiangyi's usual face, but they were so exquisite that words couldn't describe them. Her aura, especially, had an ethereal liveliness, as if she were a visitor from another world.

If they still used the same beauty scale, Shuxuan would score 90, while Xiangyi before her would score 180. She was even more beautiful than Hua Nu, who scored 150, though still not as beautiful as the Flower Goddess, Huangquan.

"Sister Shuxuan, did I scare you?" Seeing Shuxuan staring at her again, Xiangyi thought she'd gone too far just now and left a bad impression on Shuxuan, who claimed to hate Chosen Ones.

If that was the case, it would be even harder for Xiangyi to kiss Shuxuan. Anxious, Xiangyi tried to move closer and apologize, but Shuxuan suddenly raised a hand to stop her. "It's fine. Let's sleep, let's sleep. I have work tomorrow."

After saying that, Shuxuan turned and switched off the light beside her, plunging the room into darkness. Only then did her heart feel a little calmer.

But it was still beating too fast. That face made her feel a strange sort of longing.

The thought made her cheeks burn. She had been the one teasing Xiangyi, so how had Xiangyi's face bewitched her instead?

What was worse, Xiangyi didn't realize that she was the cause of all this. Hearing Shuxuan's heart beating so hard, she grew worried about her health.

"Sister Shuxuan, are you really okay?"

"I'm fine. I'm tired. Go to sleep." Shuxuan gave a perfunctory reply, then felt the person behind her drawing closer and even touching her waist.

If the other person had been a man, she probably wouldn't have let him into the room at all. But the other person was a woman, someone Shuxuan knew very well—a little sister. Only now, this little sister had suddenly become so charming that Shuxuan realized something about herself had started to change.

"Then good night. Oh, I don't think I sleep very well, so if I do anything bad, just wake me up." Xiangyi added politely.

She had never slept with anyone in this world before, so she didn't know what she was like in her sleep.

"Huh? Xiaoyi, you've always slept very quietly." Hearing that, Shuxuan turned around and nearly bumped straight into Xiangyi's face. Fortunately, her reflexes were quick. In that instant, lit by the faint light from outside, Xiangyi's eyes were still captivating in the moonlight.

"A lot has happened recently, so..." Xiangyi didn't panic when her lie was exposed. She simply said that recent events had changed her.

Hearing that, Shuxuan calmed down too, feeling that she was the one acting strangely. Xiangyi was just a girl; how could she be thinking so many weird things? At that moment, Shuxuan settled down and pulled Xiangyi toward her with her other arm.

But at the same time, Shuxuan regretted it...

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Chapter 25-1: Fragrance That Captivates

That face, so close to hers, was impossible to miss. Maybe it was just Shuxuan's imagination, but as she drew closer, she could even smell a lovely fragrance.

She couldn't say what it smelled like, but after breathing it in once, she found herself wanting to take another breath.

They used the same shampoo and body wash, yet Xiangyi smelled better than she did. The strange sensation made Shuxuan's heart race again. She tried to stop herself from acting strangely, but that only made it harder to control herself.

The torment made her want to let go of Xiangyi, but she was also worried that doing so now would make Xiangyi overthink things.

Her mind sent her a signal that she was tired and exhausted, but her body was strangely excited by that fragrance. Thinking of the work waiting for her tomorrow, Shuxuan decided to talk to Xiangyi. Before she could say anything, though, she could already hear the rhythm of Xiangyi's breathing.

It was so steady and peaceful that it seemed she had really fallen asleep in Shuxuan's arms. Shuxuan groaned inwardly, then remembered everything Xiangyi had been through lately and felt her heart ache for her. In the end, she stopped resisting and fell asleep like that.

After tossing and turning for over ten minutes, Shuxuan was completely worn out, and her breathing finally evened out.

Just then, Xiangyi's eyes snapped open. She quietly slipped free of Shuxuan's embrace and got out of bed. Worried that Shuxuan might wake up, she called for Hua Nu.

Xiangyi: Hua Nu, do you have any of that sleep-inducing incense from last time?

Hua Nu: Of course, but if you want to use it on an ordinary human, you'll have to dilute it first.

Xiangyi: How long will that take?

Hua Nu: A few minutes.

Xiangyi figured that meant a few minutes in real-world time, as measured inside the Flower God Ring. She waited patiently for a few minutes. Then Hua Nu drifted over, holding a small ceramic bottle.

The bottle was exquisite, and looked like an antique. But Xiangyi couldn't understand how Hua Nu could conjure so many things when there was nothing inside the Flower God Ring.

Hua Nu: Does the Flower Master have any other questions?

Xiangyi: I'm curious. You don't have much stuff, but you can always produce all sorts of strange things.

Hua Nu replied, "Each of us has a storage ring. The things inside are frozen in time, and we only take them out when we need them."

Xiangyi understood. She thought of how many novels had storage rings or Cosmic Bags and similar things. But if each person had one, that meant they must hold an awful lot—or that Hua Nu was actually rich.

Seeing the gleam in Xiangyi's eyes, Hua Nu smiled. "Does the Flower Master need money? Gold is very valuable here, but where we come from, it's just a supplementary material for weapons. If you want some, just ask."

Hua Nu's tone was extremely respectful, but from the way she spoke, it was clear that she had plenty of valuable things in that storage ring.

In Xiangyi's understanding, Hua Nu had lived the longest and was the Flower Goddess Huangquan's housekeeper, so it was easy to imagine how vast her wealth and stockpile of materials must be.

Xiangyi: We can talk about it when I need money. Right now, what I lack is strength. There's only about half an hour until dawn, so I plan to train.

With that, Xiangyi opened the Flower God Ring and went inside. Shaoyao stayed behind to keep watch over Shuxuan, in case she woke up while Xiangyi was focused and caused a strange misunderstanding.

Hua Nu was very pleased with Xiangyi's attitude. Since they were inside the ring, she didn't need to communicate with Xiangyi using her mind, so she said, "Flower Master, you're the most diligent human I've ever met."

Xiangyi smiled. She wouldn't tell Hua Nu that she knew she was destined to be pinned to the ground by a villain in Heaven City—and that the clash would be extremely brutal. Xiangyi was timid and hated pain, so she naturally planned to work hard before entering Heaven City.

"Hehe, I'm just worried that I won't be strong enough to protect you all." Xiangyi was still very polite.

Hua Nu smiled in response, her expression growing more meaningful. "But I can't help feeling that the Flower Master always seems to know what's going to happen."

Xiangyi smiled but didn't answer, putting on the air of someone with a deep, unfathomable plan. Hua Nu seemed kind and gentle, but aside from the Flower Goddess Huangquan, she was the hardest flower being to win over. If Xiangyi wanted her to truly respect her, she would have to put in twice the effort.

Once she had Hua Nu's true loyalty, Hua Nu would become Xiangyi's capable assistant, rather than merely acting obedient while secretly remaining wary of her.

"All right, enough talking. Let's get to work. The technique I'm teaching you is the simplest sword art."

As she spoke, Hua Nu casually waved her hand, and a long sword appeared. It was beautiful, and its craftsmanship alone suggested it had cost a fortune. More remarkably, the sword glowed faintly, but not with the cheap light of a toy sword. Its glow radiated power. With a light touch from Hua Nu, the sword moved as if it had a mind of its own.

Xiangyi was extremely curious, but Hua Nu then plucked a branch from a nearby tree. Even more amazingly, she only had to wave it a few times for the branch to suddenly grow longer. A light sweep sent a powerful gust of wind blowing toward them.

"Granny Hua, aren't you supposed to be good at medicine? How come you're so good with a sword too?" Xiangyi asked, even more puzzled. Concealing her displeasure, Hua Nu continued, "I used to know martial arts, but someone didn't like that, so they crippled me."

She spoke calmly, but there was a stillness beneath it like the calm before a storm. Xiangyi took note of that, figuring that if Hua Nu ever betrayed her, this would have something to do with it.

Hua Nu was neither wholly good nor wholly evil. She seemed like the sort who would turn against them.

"All right, enough talk. I'll demonstrate it once. How much you understand is up to you." As she spoke, Hua Nu tossed her the long sword.

This left Xiangyi confused. She'd thought the branch was for her to use, but Hua Nu had given her a real sword instead. Still, as Hua Nu began to perform the sword forms, Xiangyi focused completely on every detail.

The Eidetic Memory she'd copied from Shaoyao helped her enormously. It was as if she would never forget a detail after seeing it just once. Her memories were like a recorded video she could replay over and over, every detail preserved exactly. By the time Hua Nu finished her demonstration, Xiangyi had absorbed nearly all of it.

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Chapter 26-2: You're Acting Strange

"Have you learned it?"

"Yes, Granny Hua."

Xiangyi answered, and saw the disdain in Hua Nu's eyes, as if she thought Xiangyi was exaggerating. Smiling, Xiangyi clumsily raised the long sword. The moment she drew it from its sheath, she nearly collapsed under its weight.

Even after improving her physique for thirty months inside the Flower God Ring, she still couldn't wield a sword.

"Looks like the marrow cleansing did help a little. At least you didn't fall over." Hua Nu showed a hint of approval, then added sternly, "Starting today, you'll learn this sword art."

Struggling to hold the sword, which seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, Xiangyi asked, "Granny Hua, you still haven't told me what this sword art is called."

Hua Nu stopped and thought for a moment before answering.

"This is Falling Leaves Plucking Flowers, from the Flower Cherishing Record. If you can master its essence, you won't need a sword to kill. Anything in your hands can become the strongest weapon. As for this sword, it's just to build your strength." Hua Nu's words were full of malice, as if she didn't believe Xiangyi had what it took.

Perhaps it was because women tended to clash with one another, and Hua Nu wasn't being particularly polite. Regardless, Xiangyi could only accept her fate and continue.

One day, two days...

Xiangyi found that the sword was getting lighter. At first, she'd needed both hands to hold it tightly. Now she could wield it easily with one hand, and her movements were beginning to flow smoothly.

Still, the sword seemed too slow to use for killing.

Five days, six days...

Hua Nu was surprised and taught her a few more moves. Xiangyi's progress grew even faster.

Then Shaoyao sent a reminder, and Xiangyi even heard a notification from the system.

System: Congratulations, user has acquired Swordsmanship Specialization. From now on, your learning rate for all sword techniques will increase by 10%.

If the Flower God Ring created an environment for learning, then the system provided additional assistance. As long as Xiangyi worked hard inside the ring, there was nothing she couldn't learn.

"Flower Master, Shuxuan is about to wake up." Shaoyao reminded her again, and Xiangyi left the Flower God Ring without hesitation. But she was a moment too late: when Shuxuan opened her eyes, Xiangyi was standing right beside the bed.

After learning swordsmanship, Xiangyi had an even more impressive air about her. Shuxuan looked at her a few times, apparently thinking she was dreaming, then smiled and went back to sleep. Xiangyi breathed a sigh of relief, went back to take a shower, and before Shuxuan got up for real, quietly climbed back under the covers.

But because of her enhanced physique, she only needed to close her eyes to enter a state of false sleep while absorbing Spiritual Energy from the world around her.

After some time, Shuxuan opened her eyes properly and noticed the distance between herself and Xiangyi. She seemed a little puzzled, but didn't think much of it. Instead, she stared fixedly at Xiangyi, feeling that the person before her seemed different again.

"Why does she seem different?" Shuxuan murmured softly. If she hadn't had some self-control, she thought she might not have been able to resist pinching Xiangyi's little cheek.

But she didn't dare. She kept staring blankly for a few more minutes, until she decided she really needed to get up, and slowly climbed out of bed.

Xiangyi finally let out a sigh of relief. She glanced over and saw Shuxuan changing with her back turned.

Her professional outfit and elegant updo showed off the mature charm of an urban woman. But Shuxuan seemed to deliberately make herself look older, often wearing heavier makeup. That was why her beauty score had only been 85.

Today, she seemed to be making herself look even plainer on purpose, perhaps because something unpleasant had happened at work.

For example, workplace harassment.