Temptation

The radiance gradually converged, and the martial soul returned to her body.

Hu Liena slowly opened her eyes.

A flash of joy crossed her gaze as she looked at Su Ming nearby, and she stood up, just about to speak.

Suddenly, she felt sticky all over, accompanied by a strange, foul stench—something like licking the crystallized armpit of a sixty-year-old man on a forty-degree day!

"Cough, cough... what is that smell? Why is it so foul?"

Hu Liena subconsciously raised her arm to take a look, and the next second, her face turned ashen.

She saw that the surface of her skin was covered in a layer of viscous, black grime.

That grime emitted an extremely pungent stench; it was the impurities from the bone marrow and meridians hidden deep within her body.

Under the thorough marrow-cleansing of the Immortal Herb, these impurities had been forcibly expelled all at once.

"What is this?" Hu Liena's small face turned pale; this was just too foul.

Su Ming's expression remained calm as he pointed to the side room. "These are the impurities from your meridians. I had the maid prepare hot water in advance; go wash up."

Upon hearing this, Hu Liena hurriedly covered her nose and dashed into the bathroom next door.

This wash lasted for a full two hours.

Two hours later, the sound of water in the bathroom finally ceased completely.

The bathroom door was pulled open a crack, and Hu Liena poked her head out.

After two hours of scrubbing, her small face was flushed pink.

She glanced at the next room and called out, "Su Ming, are you still there? Do you have any spare clean clothes? Lend me a set."

Su Ming was puzzled. "Didn't you bring any clothes in your own storage bracelet?"

Hu Liena replied, "I haven't been out lately, so why would I bring clothes?"

Su Ming listened and said, "I only have my own clothes. Do you want a maid's outfit? I can have someone bring one over."

"No!"

Hu Liena refused flatly, curling her lip in distaste. "The fabric of those clothes is too rough, and I don't want to wear a maid's outfit in your courtyard."

Su Ming shook his head, speechless.

He didn't say anything more and took a set of his own black casual robes from his ring.

Su Ming had a maid deliver them inside.

A few minutes later, the bathroom door opened.

Hu Liena walked out and approached Su Ming.

Hearing the movement, Su Ming subconsciously looked up, and he couldn't help but freeze for a moment.

At this moment, Hu Liena was wearing Su Ming's oversized black robe. Because the collar was too large, it was forced to hang low, unavoidably revealing her delicate collarbones and a large expanse of supple skin.

Her tall, slender figure was also wrapped in the baggy robe, creating a hazy, translucent effect that made her appearance even more mysterious.

More importantly, after her martial soul evolved into the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, Hu Liena's entire temperament had become even more bewitching.

Every movement she made radiated an extremely intense aura of charm.

This aura was no longer the result of a deliberately activated soul skill, but a natural fluctuation that had merged into her very marrow, making one's heartbeat quicken involuntarily just by looking at her.

Even Su Ming was affected against his will.

Seeing Su Ming sitting there staring at her in a daze, she couldn't help but hook her lips into a triumphant smile.

Her pair of somewhat bewitching, beautiful eyes held a hint of teasing. "Stunned, are you? Spending every day in the cultivation room, did you only realize today that your sister here is actually quite beautiful?"

Hearing Hu Liena's teasing tone, Su Ming regained his composure in an instant.

He withdrew his gaze and changed the subject. "How do you feel now?"

Mentioning business, Hu Liena also put away the playful look on her face.

Her eyes reignited with excitement and shock. "Better than ever! Not only has my martial soul evolved, but my physical fitness has also improved by several grades! And more importantly..."

As she said this, Hu Liena stood up abruptly, releasing the soul power within her body without reservation.

In an instant, an extremely tyrannical wave of soul power swept through the entire room.

"My soul power has broken through four levels in a row; I have now officially reached the fifty-level bottleneck!"

Hu Liena said with some excitement, "And I can clearly feel that there seems to be a very massive amount of medicinal power still accumulated in my body."

"If it weren't for the restriction of not having absorbed a fifth soul ring, I feel I could have broken through at least one more level!"

Looking at the excited Hu Liena, Su Ming nodded.

"Don't worry, the medicinal power of the Immortal Herb won't disappear. When you go to hunt for your fifth soul ring, these accumulated powers will erupt in tandem, helping you complete another leap in strength."

After hearing Su Ming's explanation, Hu Liena felt relieved.

She had thought it would go to waste.

Then, Hu Liena suddenly stared at Su Ming in confusion.

"Su Ming, I'm genuinely curious: where on earth did you learn so much bizarre and eccentric knowledge?"

"You're only twelve years old, and ever since you joined the Spirit Hall, I've barely seen you step foot in the Library Pavilion."

Faced with Hu Liena's interrogation, Su Ming merely offered a perfunctory reply: "When it comes to reading, it's not about how much you read, but how well you understand it."

Hu Liena eyed him suspiciously, clearly unconvinced by this explanation.

However, knowing that Su Ming didn't want to elaborate, she didn't press the issue further.

Su Ming glanced at the sky outside. "You've already consumed the Immortal Herb; if there's nothing else, you can head back now."

Hearing Su Ming issue such a blunt dismissal, the smile on Hu Liena's face stiffened slightly, and she felt a flicker of annoyance.

"In such a rush to kick me out? What, would it kill you to spend a few more words with your senior sister?"

Su Ming simply stared at her, expressionless.

Hu Liena felt a wave of discouragement, yet she remained undeterred, shifting her tone. "It's not that I don't want to leave, but you've given me such a massive opportunity—I haven't even properly thanked you yet."

Su Ming replied, "No need for thanks, we are fellow disciples."

"No need for thanks?"

Hearing Su Ming's response, a flash of cunning crossed Hu Liena's eyes.

She lunged forward, closing the distance until their noses were less than a centimeter apart. "They say there's no such thing as a free lunch. Come on, be honest—you gave your senior sister such a huge benefit for no reason, do you have some wicked intentions toward me?"

Su Ming was taken aback, not expecting her to suddenly close the distance.

He was hit by a wave of fragrance—the clean scent of a bath mixed with the natural aroma of her mature, supple body.

Because she had leaned in, the collar of her already loose robe slipped, instantly revealing a vast expanse of snow-white, delicate skin.

The peaks were full, the abyss soul-snatching!

The visual and olfactory impact at such close range made Su Ming forget his thoughts for a moment.

But he quickly regained his composure, stepping back to widen the gap between them.

"You're overthinking it."

Su Ming said indifferently, "We are just fellow disciples. Besides, one can only consume a single Immortal Herb; extra herbs are useless to keep on hand."

Watching Su Ming retreat as if avoiding a plague, Hu Liena chuckled inwardly.

She looked at him, her eyes still carrying a hint of provocation and playfulness.

"Is that so?"

"That reason really does break my heart."

"Actually, if you really do have any ideas about your senior sister, you can just say it. Who knows... maybe I really could satisfy some of your little requests."