Madam's Reward! Hao'er Soars!

Within the Sky Screen, Xu Feiyan delivered the final verdict, deciding Dai Yuhao's fate.

"Regardless of anything else, This Concubine is still this child's teacher. Since he has committed such an error, This Concubine bears a certain degree of responsibility..."

Xu Feiyan sighed softly and spoke indifferently.

"From now on, This Concubine will continue to serve as his teacher, taking on the responsibility of correcting his mindset until he has established a proper set of values."

"Starting today, this child must no longer be subjected to the drivel fed to him by all sorts of riffraff; isolation from that woman is mandatory. This Concubine will watch over you personally to ensure you are... well... educated."

The corners of Xu Feiyan's crimson lips curled upward involuntarily.

"!! No, I don't want to be with a bad woman like you. I want to see my mother, I want to see my mother!"

Dai Yuhao's eyes widened instantly as he shrieked hoarsely.

"Hmph, foolish. Shut up. Is it your place to interrupt when your teacher is speaking?"

Xu Feiyan's gaze turned sharp in an instant.

"You are not my teacher! I don't have a teacher like you!"

"Snap!"

A whip composed of starlight lashed directly across Dai Yuhao's back, forcing a muffled groan from his throat.

"I told you, shut up!"

A look of enjoyment flashed across Xu Feiyan's face; she seemed thoroughly satisfied with the punishment.

The next moment, Xu Feiyan waved her hand again, and a flash of starlight sealed Dai Yuhao's mouth shut.

"Mmph! Mmph!"

"Moving forward, This Concubine will no longer teach you cultivation or combat abilities. Otherwise, the greater the power, the greater the harm."

"This Concubine will teach you how to manage businesses, handle commerce, and eventually take over the family's profitable industries. That, too, is a contribution to the Star Luo White Tiger Clan."

"There is also the Sea God's Holy Precepts, the family precepts of the Star Luo White Tiger Clan, and various moral treatises. This Concubine will teach you all of them, so study hard. Once you have truly become an upright child with a proper foundation, This Concubine will resume teaching you cultivation!"

As she spoke, Xu Feiyan's face was filled with smugness, while Dai Yuhao's eyes burned with extreme fury.

"Snap!"

Inside a study, Dai Yuhao angrily threw a book onto the floor and stood up.

"I won't study these deceptive things! What use are they? Can they make me a powerful Spirit Master?"

Dai Yuhao said, seething with rage.

"Pick it up."

Xu Feiyan crossed her long, slender jade legs and spoke indifferently.

"I won't!"

"Hmm?"

In a flash, young Dai Yuhao was hoisted into the air by a rope made of starlight, his hands and feet flailing helplessly.

Xu Feiyan held a whip in her hand—not the starlight whip formed from her spirit power, but a real leather whip! She licked her crimson lips and asked:

"I'll give you one more chance. Are you going to pick it up?"

"Gulp!"

Dai Yuhao couldn't help but swallow hard.

Although he was resilient and possessed a willpower beyond his years, he was, after all, still just a child. Facing this tangible, cold, and pitch-black leather whip, he felt a flicker of trepidation in his heart.

"I... I..."

"Snap!"

The Duchess's whip landed on young Dai Yuhao's body. His eyes widened instantly.

"Ah!"

Ultimately, after that day, Dai Yuhao was only released by the Duchess once he had memorized three pages of the Essentials of Business.

"Lie down!"

The Duchess commanded coldly.

Dai Yuhao trembled, and after a moment of hesitation, he obeyed Xu Feiyan's order, lying on the bed in a daze.

However, to his surprise, the Duchess's cold fingers began to knead his bare back—which had been stripped of his shirt for the lashing.

Threads of icy spirit power seeped into Dai Yuhao's body, drawing a faint whimper from him. Even though she was pressing on the areas previously whipped, he strangely felt very little pain. Instead, it felt somewhat numb and itchy.

The Duchess seemed to have applied some kind of ointment to her fingers, rubbing it into Dai Yuhao's back as she massaged him. Under this strange technique, Dai Yuhao felt his pain gradually subsiding.

Even the flow of spirit power within his body became slightly smoother.

"Wh... why?"

Huo Yuhao said, feeling somewhat weak.

"You performed well today, this is your reward. As long as you listen obediently, follow your teacher, and properly learn everything you are supposed to, then all sorts of rewards will be yours every single day."

Xu Feiyan said indifferently while massaging him.

Huo Yuhao wanted to shout, "I don't want rewards from a bad person like you." But for some reason, perhaps because the sensation was too comfortable, he found himself unable to utter the words.

Soon, his eyes grew heavy. Before long, he had actually fallen asleep under the influence of the massage.

From that day on, this situation continued. Almost every day, Xu Feiyan would set aside time to "tutor" Huo Yuhao alone.

Seeing the Duchess so "attentive," even the few remaining elders of the highest seniority could find no reasonable grounds to question or challenge her, whether by logic or sentiment.

After all, at the root of it, it was indeed Huo Yuhao who had acted on impulse and beaten his own older brother, Dai Huabin, into such a state! And Huo Yun'er hiding the precious White Tiger Dagger was an undeniable fact!

Huo Yun'er claimed it was a personal gift from the Duke, but with Dai Hao away, who would believe her? If she weren't Huo Yuhao's mother, she would have been beaten to death with clubs for committing such a grave offense!

During Xu Feiyan's "private tutoring," if Huo Yuhao continued to resist or failed to complete his assigned tasks diligently, he would still be punished.

The worst instance was when Huo Yuhao was tied to a chair with a sock stuffed in his mouth, forced to sit in punishment for an entire day!

And if he behaved well, he would still receive rewards.

Sometimes it was delicious, nutritious food; sometimes it was a massage, a break, new clothes, or even gifts like soul tool toys.

"This woman is truly insidious. In this way, no matter how much of a genius this child is, he is effectively ruined!"

Outside the Sky Screen, countless people sighed with such sentiments.

"Indeed. The key is that by doing this, even those within the clan can hardly find a reason to challenge her. It is seamless in both logic and sentiment. What a clever woman!"

"It's a pity. I fear this Huo Yuhao of this lifetime will be completely toyed with in the palm of her hand, missing out on his most critical stage of cultivation. Perhaps in the future, he really will end up as she planned, taking over the White Tiger Clan's business ventures and never having any connection to becoming a powerful soul master!"

While the world discussed the matter, an unexpected turn occurred within the Sky Screen.

"God... Sealing... Platform?"