Fierce Therapy

"I was just asking. Why are you so fierce? Be careful, or no one will dare marry you in the future." Xian Wu rubbed the red handprint on his right cheek with his left hand.

That little minx had hit him way too hard. He'd only asked whether she'd washed her feet. Why had she reacted so strongly?

Hmph. She was clearly guilty. She definitely hadn't washed them!

"You still dare say that!" Xiao Ning'er glared at him, wishing she could pin the bastard to the ground and beat him senseless.

She had never let any man other than her grandfather and father touch her—not once in her entire life.

Now he'd taken such a huge liberty with her, and he actually... actually had the nerve to complain about it. It was so humiliating.

Seeing Xiao Ning'er raise her hand, Xian Wu shrank his neck and hurriedly said, "All right, I won't say another word. My treatment method is very intense, and I'll have to use a lot of force. Just bear with it."

His right hand clamped tightly around Xiao Ning'er's delicate foot. Soul Force surged from his left hand like water gushing from an open faucet.

His Soul Force forced its way through her skin and into her meridians, like a power drill slamming into the solidified Yin energy.

"Ah!!!" Xiao Ning'er let out a bloodcurdling scream and reflexively kicked out with all her might.

Xian Wu had been ready for that.

He gripped Xiao Ning'er's ankle tightly with his right hand and crossed his legs into a figure eight, trapping her other leg.

"Stop screaming!" Xian Wu roared. She'd almost burst his eardrums just now.

"You need strong medicine to treat a serious illness! I'm not trying to scare you, but if you don't get this treated, once you reach Bronze One Star, you'll either fall seriously ill at best or explode at worst. Think about it!" With that, Xian Wu released Xiao Ning'er's left leg and right ankle.

Xiao Ning'er clutched her right foot and rolled around on the ground in pain. Her saintly, aloof Goddess aura had vanished without a trace.

He rubbed the dust and germs off his right hand with his left, then massaged his right cheek.

Ow—that really freaking hurt.

He'd treated her and still gotten slapped for it. He was more wronged than Dou E herself.

After who knew how long, Xiao Ning'er finally recovered enough to sit up. Tears filled her eyes as she gazed up at the culprit with a wounded look.

Xian Wu felt a little awkward. He shrugged and raised four fingers. "I swear to the moon, I absolutely wasn't taking revenge under the guise of treatment."

"The Guidance Technique is just... um... intense. If it hurts too much, we can stop. When you reach Bronze One Star and explode, don't say I didn't warn you."

He'd gone through the same thing when treating himself. Why hadn't he complained about the pain? She was so delicate!

They were both daughters of Prominent Families. Just look at Hu Yan Lan Ruo—she'd fallen off a dog, scraped her butt until sparks flew, and hadn't made a sound. But Xiao Ning'er couldn't stand a little pain. No wonder the Winged Dragon Family had fallen into decline.

"Come on, keep going!" Enduring her anger and the pain, Xiao Ning'er took a piece of soft cloth from her Space Ring and gently bit down on it.

Xian Wu nodded and looked down at her approvingly. "That's more like it. Don't make me look down on you. And don't kick me again. If I get distracted, I could easily interrupt the treatment."

Propping herself up with both arms behind her, Xiao Ning'er leaned back and shakily extended her delicate foot again.

Xian Wu grabbed it roughly and yanked it into his lap.

His right hand clamped around her ankle while Soul Force gathered in his left and gushed out like a high-pressure water jet.

A pain that pierced her heart immediately made Xiao Ning'er's body go rigid.

She clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms and drew blood.

She bit down hard on the soft cloth, her facial muscles contorting under the pressure.

She squeezed her eyes shut. Her exquisite brows twisted into two tangled knots, and her long lashes trembled like piano keys playing Beethoven's "Fate" Symphony.

"Bear with it. The bruise on the top of your foot is a stubborn spot. It'll probably take another incense stick's worth of time," Xian Wu warned, while his Soul Force ground into the Yin energy blocking her meridians like a steel file.

Crunch, crunch... crunch, crunch... crunch, crunch...

Xian Wu showed no tenderness as he diligently cleared the Yin energy clogging Xiao Ning'er's meridians.

Spirit Masters cultivated Soul Force at night. They absorbed not only Moonlight Essence but also the Yin energy dispersed throughout the world.

Both were Yin energies. If they weren't refined in time, they could easily congeal and block the meridians.

Once the meridians were blocked, the channels for absorbing and refining Soul Force would be sealed off, making it much harder to continue cultivating Soul Force.

The moon hung high in the heavens, bashfully gazing down at the two little figures on the ground.

Xian Wu lay spread-eagled on the ground, drenched in sweat.

Xiao Ning'er lay in a starfish position on the ground, drenched in sweat.

She swore to the moon that she would never cultivate Soul Force at night again. The price was simply too high; she'd almost died from the pain.

If she hadn't endured a year of daily pain, which had strengthened her spiritual resilience, she would have passed out halfway through the treatment.

Had that bastard Xian Wu done it on purpose? Who treated an illness as if they were torturing someone?

"Ptooey, ptooey!" Xiao Ning'er spat out the soft cloth she'd bitten through and managed to push herself upright with one arm.

She was soaked in sweat, as if she'd just taken a hot bath, but she felt sticky all over and horribly uncomfortable.

In the glow of the campfire, she looked down at the bruise on her foot. Its color had faded quite a bit. It was now about the same shade as the bruise on Xian Wu's face...

That seemed to prove Xian Wu hadn't lied to her. The Guidance Technique for treating Extreme Cold Syndrome really did work.

Still, the treatment was far too rough. It had left her with the bizarre feeling that he'd... well, done something to her.

Xiao Ning'er stood and tried to take a couple of steps. She staggered and swayed; it seemed like a gust of wind could knock her over.

She glanced at Xian Wu, who was lying on the ground and panting heavily, then wrinkled her cute little nose.

Why did he look even more exhausted than she was after the treatment? It hadn't even hurt him.

"Hey, bastard, stop playing dead." Xiao Ning'er lightly kicked Xian Wu.

Xian Wu cracked open his eyes. The sight he'd been hoping for wasn't there; Xiao Ning'er's skirt was rather modest.

"Bastard? Is that how you address the person who saved your life?" Xian Wu said unhappily. "I knew it. All the children of Prominent Families are the same. Once the donkey's done its work, you kill it; once you've crossed the river, you tear down the bridge; once you've finished chanting, you beat the monk..."

"Shut up!" Xian Wu's rant gave Xiao Ning'er a headache. She took the written agreement from her Space Ring, bent down, and stuffed it into his mouth.

After that, Xiao Ning'er stood up and put on her little shoes.

Xian Wu unfolded the agreement and quickly skimmed it. Xiao Ning'er's handwriting was beautiful, graceful as a startled swan and fluid as a swimming dragon.

"At least you have a conscience." He rolled the agreement back up and lay down again.

Xiao Ning'er put on her shoes and said coolly, "Same place tomorrow. Don't be late. Xian Wu, you don't want that cooked Bronze Demonic Spirit to fly away, do you?"