If Chen Nuoyi were led into the abyss, there was a chance her Dragon King father might come after him.
But Su Yuan trusted Dog System's usual antics more.
Eternal descent into the abyss? Hah. In the system's eyes, even working part-time to support oneself counted as neglecting one's proper duties, and failing to turn in homework counted as being corrupted by the demonic path.
By that standard, even a Saint Fall Degree of one hundred percent wouldn't make Chen Nuoyi's personality change drastically. She wouldn't go around killing and setting fires, committing all manner of misdeeds.
That way, no one would notice the Righteous Path Saintess had fallen, and her Dragon King father wouldn't come looking for trouble.
With that in mind, Su Yuan began pondering how exactly to complete the mission.
How was he supposed to guide the Righteous Path Saintess toward total corruption?
Su Yuan thought it over for a long time but couldn't come up with anything. In the end, he decided to let nature take its course.
Now that the [Eternal Descent into the Abyss] fate had appeared, Chen Nuoyi might instinctively try to avoid it, but she would eventually encounter the opportunity that would tempt her to fall. All he had to do was seize the chance when it came.
"Su Yuan, why are you eating so little? Is something on your mind?"
Chen Nuoyi turned to look at the young man beside her, who was stroking his chin in thought. She asked curiously.
Su Yuan was slightly taken aback. After thinking for a moment, he explained:
"I usually eat enough in one meal to last me the whole day. I ate so much at lunch that I can't eat any more tonight."
His performance at the buffet earlier had been his normal appetite. But since he would be getting more Blue Pills in the future, he might as well give Chen Nuoyi a heads-up.
Chen Nuoyi gave a slight nod. "What a shame. There was so much meat in the restaurant."
"Never mind me. Did you get enough to eat?"
Chen Nuoyi rubbed her flat stomach and said a little sheepishly:
"Actually, I'm still a little hungry."
Su Yuan: "..."
Oh, really? She ate for two hours and still wasn't full... She really was a bottomless pit.
I grilled the meat too slowly and didn't let Class Monitor enjoy herself to her heart's content. I'm truly sorry.
It seemed she had guessed what Su Yuan was thinking, because Chen Nuoyi hurriedly explained:
"I-I really am not greedy. It's just that I caught a whiff of something delicious from somewhere earlier, and it made me crave food without even realizing it."
Greedy and craving food weren't synonyms, but they were pretty close.
Su Yuan couldn't help grumbling to himself. But just then, he too caught a faint whiff of something delicious: the rich aroma of meat wrapped in the scent of fruitwood.
The two followed the smell and found a roast-meat shop on a nearby street.
A row of roast ducks, roast geese, all kinds of barbecued pork, suckling pigs, cured meats, sausages, and more hung in the shop window.
The jujube-red roast goose, still dripping with fat, was especially eye-catching. Even Su Yuan found himself craving a bite.
But just then, knowledge of the Ancient Corpse Refining Method suddenly surfaced in his mind. One after another, the various corpse-refining techniques matched up with the processes used to make the roast ducks and geese before him.
In Su Yuan's eyes, all that so-called roast meat suddenly turned into chunks of corpse, gleaming with a scarlet sheen!
Chunks of corpse!
All right, his appetite vanished in an instant.
Su Yuan felt as if he had entered a sage-like state. Everything suddenly seemed dull and tasteless; he even felt like turning and running.
But when he caught sight of Chen Nuoyi's sparkling eyes from the corner of his own, he thought for a moment and asked:
"Want to go eat some?"
"N-no, I don't."
With tremendous willpower, the girl tore her gaze away from the fragrant roast ducks and geese and murmured:
"They smell delicious, but I have a feeling that something bad will happen if I get close to them."
Su Yuan: "I see. Then we won't eat—wait, what?!"
Something bad would happen? Had Chen Nuoyi sensed something?
Could it have something to do with the [Eternal Descent into the Abyss] fate?
But then again, what did roast meat have to do with corruption? Even by Dog System's standards, people on the righteous path could eat meat whenever they wanted.
No... It couldn't be that simple.
An idea slowly began to take shape in Su Yuan's mind. It was so audacious that the moment it occurred to him, even he was startled!
And once he had figured it all out, Su Yuan could almost be certain that Chen Nuoyi's [Eternal Descent into the Abyss] fate hinged on this possibility.
"So that's it. If I just go with the flow, I can complete this time-limited mission and get a steady source of income! Hahaha, I'm a genius!"
"No, genius doesn't even begin to describe it. I'm practically the Devil Overlord!"
As his excitement grew, Su Yuan couldn't help throwing his head back and laughing. His laughter rang especially harshly in the empty street, making Chen Nuoyi feel a chill run down her spine.
"Su Yuan, w-what's wrong? Have you gone berserk?"
"Of course not."
Su Yuan shook his head and asked the girl before him with a serious expression:
"Class Monitor, I'm not planning to deliver takeout tomorrow. I've got an even better job lined up. Would you like to work with me?"
At that, Chen Nuoyi's beautiful eyes lit up, and she nodded eagerly. "I do! Of course I do!"
But then she hesitated and asked:
"But can I really do a good job? I even got caught by the security guard when we were delivering takeout."
Su Yuan smiled faintly.
"The work I'm about to do absolutely can't be done without you."
Hearing that, Chen Nuoyi was so flattered that she didn't know what to say. After a long silence, she said earnestly:
"I understand. But before that, I need to tutor you properly so I can repay you for helping me earn so much money."
"Oh, right. I still need tutoring."
Only then did Su Yuan remember that aside from working, he also had to study.
He suppressed his excitement, took out his phone, and ordered a pile of props he would need to tempt the Righteous Path Saintess into corruption today. Then he asked:
"How about we study at my place? My apartment is pretty spacious, and I only share it with Chu Lanxi, so we won't have to worry about disturbing anyone."
"All right."
Chen Nuoyi nodded without thinking there was anything wrong with it.
After all, she was at the Eighth Layer of Qi Cultivation, while Su Yuan was only at the Fifth Layer of Qi Cultivation. It wasn't as if he could eat her.
Su Yuan, on the other hand, felt a little guilty after making the suggestion. Could Chen Nuoyi's Dragon King father come charging into his rental apartment?
But they were only going to study. He wasn't going to do anything else, so it should be fine.
Ten minutes later, at the rental apartment's entrance.
Su Yuan took out his key and unlocked the door. The living-room lights were off. A figure sat on the sofa, their face illuminated in shifting light and shadow by the television.
Hearing the front door, the face slowly turned toward the entrance, wearing a resentful, sorrowful expression.
"You're not even hiding it anymore. You're bringing women straight home. What do you take me for—your original partner?"
Chu Lanxi said mournfully.
Chen Nuoyi blinked and turned to ask Su Yuan:
"Is this your... boyfriend?"
Su Yuan: "..."
Lady, you really shouldn't believe everything you hear, okay?
Before you continue