True heartbreak wasn't about making a huge scene...
Chen Mo stood with his head bowed, silent.
Seeing his pitiful, aggrieved look, Yu Youhan found it inexplicably amusing. He looked just like a little wife who'd been wronged.
She gave him a careful once-over, her brows gradually knitting together.
"Did you use up all your life essence?"
The Nine-Turn Green Essence Pill was a sacred-grade pill, containing a vast amount of life essence. Under normal circumstances, it should've been enough to last Chen Mo until he reached the Heavenly Human Realm.
It had only been two days, and he'd already used it all up?
"Your subordinate went to carry out a mission yesterday..."
Chen Mo gave her a rough account of what had happened.
When she heard that he'd been trapped in the Blood Prison and his body completely destroyed, Yu Youhan's eyes filled with icy coldness.
He'd nearly lost his life just carrying out one mission?
She didn't care about things like Heavenly Demons and Evil Ghosts, but until she'd completely gotten rid of the Red Silk, Chen Mo absolutely couldn't die!
"Should I transfer him to another post?"
"No. The Heavenly Qilin Guard is independent of the Three Offices and Six Ministries. Without that status, he'd be even easier for others to scheme against."
"Otherwise..."
"Maybe I should just have him castrated and sent into the palace, so I can keep an eye on him myself?"
After giving it some serious thought, Yu Youhan dismissed the idea.
Never mind whether the Chen Family would turn against her. If this dog slave was under her eyes every day, and the Red Silk was triggered by accident...
She didn't want to experience that feeling of losing all her power and being at someone else's mercy a second time.
Chen Mo gazed at the Noble Consort with hopeful eyes.
He had no idea that his little brother had already taken a trip to the gates of hell.
"Never mind. Open your mouth."
"Ah~"
Yu Youhan flicked a finger, sending a green pill into Chen Mo's mouth.
Vast life essence exploded inside him. A scalding liquid coursed through his meridians, then poured into his acupoints.
Chen Mo let out a blissful little moan.
"Your Highness's great essence has filled all my little acupoints again..."
"?"
Yu Youhan felt that something was a little strange, but couldn't put her finger on what.
"The Nine-Turn Green Essence Pill isn't some common street-stall trinket. After I wiped out the Golden Core Sect, I only found three in total... You'd better use them sparingly."
The main thing was that the method for refining this pill had already been lost. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that every pill used was one less.
Chen Mo had experienced its effects himself, so he knew just how powerful it was.
As long as he wasn't killed in one blow and his soul wasn't destroyed, he was practically immortal!
"Your Highness may not admit it, but you really do care about me."
Chen Mo was grinning inside. He raised his voice and declared, "Your Highness's great kindness is engraved on my heart. I'm willing to brave fire and water for you, and I'll gladly die ten thousand times over!"
Yu Youhan waved a hand. "There's no need. Just stay alive."
"By the way, I have another treasure to offer Your Highness."
Chen Mo pulled a scroll from his robes.
After unrolling it, he took out a red banner.
"Qin Wuxiang spent years plotting to get this magical treasure. I thought it might be useful to Your Highness..."
"The Soul-Summoning Banner?"
"It's in decent condition, but it's an object used by ghost cultivators. A heretical trick, not fit for the grand stage."
Yu Youhan glanced at it, looking somewhat disdainful.
Chen Mo awkwardly rubbed his nose.
He hadn't expected a Heaven Tier magical treasure to be so worthless in the Noble Consort's eyes.
"Still, these Dharma Seals carved on it, which devour souls, are rather interesting..."
Green light bloomed in Yu Youhan's eyes, enveloping the Soul-Summoning Banner.
The banner instantly writhed and struggled like a living thing, letting out piercing wails!
Plumes of black smoke poured out, bearing hideous ghostly faces that repeatedly slammed against the barrier of green light!
Chen Mo's face paled slightly at the sight.
He hadn't expected the thing to be so terrifying. And he'd been carrying it around with him...
The Soul-Summoning Banner's resistance was futile, of course.
In no time, every resentful spirit had been wiped out, and the banner fell completely silent. Its color changed from deep red to grayish white.
Yu Youhan extended a slender jade finger and "grabbed" one of the lines of black ancient script from the banner. Wrapped in green light, it settled onto the back of Chen Mo's hand.
The instant it touched his skin, the ancient script sank in and imprinted itself deeply, as if taking root.
Right after that, a line of text flashed before his eyes:
[Obtained Basic Divine Ability: Soul Absorption.] [Can absorb soul power to strengthen the soul.]
Only now could Chen Mo make sense of the complex character on the back of his hand.
It was the character for "soul"!
In the blink of an eye, she'd refined a Heaven Tier magical treasure that already had an owner. She'd even extracted a Dharma Seal from it and bestowed it on him as a divine ability.
Such a feat was practically the work of creation itself, unfathomable to gods and ghosts!
Apart from in the game, this was the first time Chen Mo had directly witnessed the Noble Consort's power.
Overpowered. Ridiculously overpowered!
But...
He loved it!
"With the Nine-Turn Green Essence Pill protecting him, and the Dharma Seal strengthening his soul, this dog slave shouldn't die quite so easily now, right?"
Yu Youhan pondered.
Seeing Chen Mo still standing there foolishly, she said coolly,
"If there's nothing else, you may leave."
"Your subordinate..."
Chen Mo hesitated.
Yu Youhan raised an eyebrow. "If you have something to say, say it. Why are you stammering?"
Chen Mo hesitated for a moment, then worked up his courage. "Your Highness has bestowed such a generous reward, and I have no way to repay you. How about... how about I massage your feet again?"
"..."
Yu Youhan froze for a moment.
After a brief hesitation, she nodded. "Granted."
Desensitization therapy had to proceed gradually.
After her last experience, she thought she should be able to hold out longer this time.
Chen Mo sat sideways in front of Yu Youhan.
Her straight legs were crossed, resting on his knees.
He gently held her round, jade-like feet. His gaze gradually traveled upward, passing over her fair, smooth calves. For a moment, he seemed to catch a glimpse of snowy softness—
Her Highness wasn't wearing anything under her everyday robes...
Chen Mo nearly rose up in rebellion. He hurriedly averted his eyes and focused his attention on her feet.
Her skin was smooth and delicate beneath his touch. Her cute toes curled slightly, like a carefully sculpted work of art.
Remembering how the last foot massage had gone, Chen Mo didn't hesitate. As he pressed her arch, he gathered the life essence at his fingertips and lightly tickled the sole of her foot.
In an instant, a rich, sweet fragrance spread through the air.
Like an autumn rain showering a tree full of osmanthus blossoms.
Bang!
The next moment, Chen Mo was kicked straight out of the palace.
He traced a graceful arc through the air before splashing into the pool outside the hall with a loud plop, sending water flying everywhere.
Xu Qingyi happened to be passing by.
She saw what happened and paused for a moment. Then the corners of her mouth curled up, and her eyes bent into crescent moons.
"Hehe, serves you right!"
Before Chen Mo could even pull out his token, she turned and ran off.
Chen Mo sprang out of the pool. He circulated his True Essence, quickly drying himself off.
Looking at the tightly shut palace doors, he wore a puzzled expression.
"I thought Her Highness liked it... Why such a strong reaction?"
Inside the hall.
Yu Youhan's whole body had gone limp. Her breathing was slightly ragged, and her legs rubbed together faintly. Her moist eyes seemed to glisten with silken threads.
Her expression was part embarrassment, part helplessness.
"Why can I hold out for less and less time? I couldn't even last until we'd just begun..."
"I really am useless..."
Before you continue