Even This Body, I Am Willing to Offer

In the warm, quiet room, the ambiguous atmosphere of mutual probing suddenly drew tight.

Li Changsheng raised his eyes toward Feng Ling, who stood close beside him, her heart filled with ambition and a desire for opportunity. A hint of amused interest surfaced in his gaze as he spoke unhurriedly, striking straight at the heart of the matter:

"I have lurked within the Holy Spirit Cult for several years. I know quite a bit."

"You are not only the Holy Spirit Cult's highly ranked vice leader, but also the leader Zhongli Wu's wife."

"As the one by his pillow, bearing the name of husband and wife, why have you not directly asked Zhongli Wu about such a tremendous opportunity?"

It was merely a simple rhetorical question, spoken lightly.

Yet the instant his words fell, Feng Ling—who had just been smiling sweetly, composed and alluring—suddenly changed expression.

The radiant smile vanished from her face in an instant, and the seductive languor in her eyes disappeared entirely. In its place was a complicated, cold, shadowed look tinged with helplessness and restraint.

The room immediately fell silent.

Feng Ling lowered her eyes, concealing the fleeting self-mockery and loneliness within them. After a long silence, she finally spoke softly.

Her voice was cool and detached, devoid of even the slightest warmth:

"The status of husband and wife between him and me is nothing more than an act for appearances, a bond of mutual interests."

"Throughout the vast Holy Spirit Cult, everyone knows I am the leader's wife. Yet no one knows that there has never been the slightest affection between him and me."

From beginning to end, they had merely been false partners who used and restrained one another.

Back then, when she entered the cult alone, she needed the leader's power and protection to gain a foothold at the highest level.

And Zhongli Wu needed a partner with exceptional talent, methods, and beauty to stabilize his position and intimidate the cult's members.

Each had taken what they needed, forming the empty name of husband and wife. In truth, their hearts were utterly estranged. There had only ever been power and calculation between them, never romance or affection.

At this thought, Feng Ling's lips curled into a cold smile as she continued softly.

"His nature is vicious and selfish. He is deeply calculating, vindictive over the smallest grievance, and miserly to the extreme."

"An unparalleled opportunity capable of defying fate and reaching the Divine Realm is a treasure he guards as dearly as his life."

"Forget about him voluntarily telling me. Even if I lowered my head and begged him bitterly, he would not reveal a single word, much less share even a fraction of that opportunity with me."

"If I remain with Zhongli Wu, I will forever be trapped in the position of vice leader, forever remain his accessory, his decoration, and gain nothing for the rest of my life."

Having said this, she raised her eyes again. Her gaze became firm and burning once more as she stared directly at Li Changsheng, her ambition open and undisguised.

"Therefore, if I cannot seek the opportunity I want, the path ahead I want, and the transcendence I want from him, then I can only seek them from you."

This was her only path to breaking the deadlock, and her only chance to step onto the road leading to the heavens.

Seeing the undisguised ambition and resolve in her eyes, Li Changsheng remained calm. Amusement lingered in his gaze as he spoke again, every word sharp, each sentence increasing the pressure as he completely seized the initiative.

"The reasoning is sound."

"But why should I specifically choose you?"

He leaned forward slightly. Between the youth's clear brows and eyes was only the indifference and control of one looking down upon ants struggling in a game.

"In terms of prestige, you are inferior to the cult leader, Zhongli Wu. Throughout the Holy Spirit Cult, he is the nominal highest authority."

"In terms of strength, you are inferior to Ye Xishui and Long Xiaoyao. Both are Ultimate Douluo, firmly superior to you."

"In terms of usefulness, if I need to mobilize you, command you, or make use of your forces and connections—"

"I need only casually give an order to Zhongli Wu, Ye Xishui, or Long Xiaoyao."

"By borrowing their authority, I can easily keep you suppressed and make you obediently follow orders."

"Since I can command you at no cost, why should I pay an additional price to give you an exclusive opportunity and win you over separately?"

Feng Ling's momentum was crushed beneath Li Changsheng's successive sharp questions, and she became completely clear-headed.

She understood that if she could not produce a unique trump card that no one else could replace, she would never enter the eyes of this Divine Son.

She could only become an ordinary pawn swept along by the current, summoned and dismissed at will, never receiving even the slightest special opportunity for the rest of her life.

After a long while, she slowly exhaled a long breath of stale air. All the luck, restraint, and probing in her eyes faded away, leaving only the clarity and resolve of a final gamble.

She raised her eyes and looked directly at the indifferent youth who held everything under control, speaking candidly and clearly, word by word.

"Everything the Divine Son said is true."

"In terms of status, I am indeed inferior to Zhongli Wu."

"In terms of cultivation, I am far inferior to Ye Xishui and Long Xiaoyao, the two Ultimate Douluo offerings whose battle prowess towers above the masses."

"But the Divine Son has overlooked one point: in this game involving the Holy Spirit Cult, I alone am an outsider from beginning to end."

The moment she said this, the atmosphere in the room abruptly changed.

Feng Ling's gaze was resolute as she continued to lay out the stakes, revealing her most vital and deadly trump card.

"Zhongli Wu is the Holy Spirit Cult's leader. His life's foundation, power, and reputation are all tied to this place."

"Ye Xishui and Long Xiaoyao have been rooted in the Holy Spirit Cult for centuries. Their foundations, connections, obsessions, and destinies are all bound to this unorthodox sect. No matter how much they submit to you, they still cannot bear to part with this foundation in their hearts."

"All of them share honor and disgrace with the Holy Spirit Cult, their interests inseparably intertwined."

"Only I am different."

A cold, clear smile curved across her lips, and her tone held no trace of attachment.

"I joined the game midway through. I am merely the leader's wife in name, without roots, bonds, or attachments."

"I do not belong to the Holy Spirit Cult. My power, my future, and my life have never needed to rely on this unorthodox sect, which is destined to rot away."

"Therefore, I can be as ruthless as they cannot."

"I can make the sacrifices they cannot bear to make."

"I do not care in the slightest about doing the merciless things they dare not do!"

"For your plans, I can use any means necessary, leave no room for retreat, and disregard all consequences. I can utterly crush everything within the Holy Spirit Cult without caring in the least about its rise or fall, the lives of its members, or the infamy I may bear in the future!"

A nearly imperceptible trace of interest flashed through Li Changsheng's eyes.

He watched her quietly, waiting for what would come next.

Feng Ling's eyes grew increasingly bright, as though she had completely seen through all his plans. She softly and confidently revealed the truth.

"If I am not mistaken, Divine Son, you never intended to preserve the Holy Spirit Cult from the very beginning."

"You established the iron rules forbidding murder, evil practices, and the devouring of living souls. On the surface, you were reforming the cult's rules and cleansing this unorthodox path, but in truth, you were cutting off its roots, disrupting its people's hearts, and draining its foundations."

"From the moment you established those rules, the Holy Spirit Cult's destruction was already inevitable."

"You merely need to borrow its strength to wipe out the orthodox forces, then bury it with your own hands!"

With a single sentence, she exposed the heavenly secret!

She completely laid bare Li Changsheng's deeply buried calculations, revealing them openly and plainly.

As her words ended, Feng Ling no longer showed any restraint or hesitation.

She slowly extended her fair, slender right hand. Her movement was gentle yet bold as it landed directly on Li Changsheng's thigh.

Warm, delicate sensation passed through his clothing, carrying the uniquely soft and seductive allure of a mature woman.

At the same time, she leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between them. Her warm breath lightly brushed against him, while her charming eyes overflowed with allure. Her utterly seductive voice lowered, curling intimately into his ears.

"Divine Son."

"I am a woman, and even more, a woman who has experienced the ways of the world and seen through the hearts of men."

"Many things that men do not dare to do, cannot do, or cannot do perfectly because of their status, pride, or obsessions—I can do them all, and I can do them more beautifully and presentably than anyone else."

"I can maneuver among the various factions, balance their interests, act as your substitute in both the light and the shadows, and handle every underhanded scheme and troublesome matter for you."

"I can also step forward to resolve other problems."

At this point, her gaze was clear yet carried a touch of pure brightness as she cast out her final, most lethal bargaining chip.

"What those three can give you is limited strength and authority."

"What I can give you is absolute loyalty that holds nothing back, never turns against you, abandons all personal ties, and follows only you; a sharp blade of exclusive assistance. Even this body of mine, I am willing to offer to you."

The instant those words were spoken, the entire room became so quiet that a needle dropping could be heard.

Feng Ling's figure was graceful, her eyes blazing. With her body, heart, intellect, and resolute solitary will, she had completely wagered everything she possessed.

All she sought was for Li Changsheng to give her a chance to change.