Beautiful women love to lie

"May I ask who you are, Senior? Why are you inside my ring? What do you want?"

After a brief silence, Xiao Yan clearly articulated the three crucial questions.

For now, this... "artifact spirit," or whatever it was, seemed to bear her no ill will.

Still, Xiao Yan had not taken it for her own "cheat"-those only existed in novels.

She was just an ordinary person, with nothing whatsoever to do with being a protagonist.

But she had to get to the bottom of what was going on with this ring.

"Never mind who I am for now. I won't hurt you, anyway. Ah, after all these years, I've finally met someone whose soul is strong enough. What luck, hehe~"

"But first, I ought to thank you for your offerings these past three years, little girl. Without them, your big sister here would probably still be asleep."

"Offerings?"

She blinked in confusion, then suddenly realized something. Xiao Yan clenched her teeth, forcing each word out between them:

"The Dou Qi that mysteriously vanished over these past three years-you were behind it?!"

Even with the mindset of someone who had lived two lives, Xiao Yan nearly lost her composure.

For three years, she had endured sneers and mockery, and even Nalan Yan, whose talent was nothing special, had come to her door to humiliate her.

If this ring had not been causing trouble, she would have been at least a Dou Shi by now!

"Heehee..." The voice sounded a little guilty. "I had no choice, either. Don't blame your big sister, little girl."

"I love you... You're so beautiful..."

"Oh, come now, don't get worked up. It was only three years' worth of Dou Qi, and not very much at that. I promise the benefits you'll get in the future will be worth more than that."

As the voice rang out again, a translucent, graceful figure floated out of the ring.

Xiao Yan could swear to heaven that she had seen the painstakingly perfected faces of many beautiful celebrities in her previous life.

Yet not one had stirred her heart like the face before her.

It was not that this graceful figure's face deserved an absolute perfect score. Everyone had different tastes, after all, so absolute perfection did not exist.

Rather, the most outstanding thing about this... soul? Was her bearing.

If Xiao Yan had to describe it, she would have used one word-bewitching!

Allure was bred into her very bones.

Though she looked about thirty and could no longer be called youthful, her unique bearing only made her more captivating.

The graceful figure floated in midair, reclining casually on her back, her long, slightly curled hair spread behind her as though serving as a bed.

Her lovely legs were crossed, though from the knees down, they were so insubstantial as to be almost invisible.

Of course, most eye-catching of all were her almost disproportionately slender waist and the heavy fruit hanging from those delicate branches...

It made quite a visual impact on Xiao Yan, whose own figure was currently rather unremarkable.

Still, she would not let this "artifact spirit's" appearance bewitch her.

"Senior, since you've been hiding inside my ring, you must know how much ridicule and abuse I suffered because you absorbed my Dou Qi, right?"

"Oh, you child..." The graceful figure waved a hand. "What do you mean, 'your ring'? It's clearly my ring. It just ended up in your hands, all right~"

Xiao Yan: "..."

"Besides, you grew through those three years of ridicule, didn't you? Do you think the person you were three years ago possessed the patience and mental fortitude you have now?"

Xiao Yan: "..."

"So what you mean, Senior, is, 'Although I stole all your money, you got to experience life as a poor person, so you didn't lose out,' right?"

"Mm..." The graceful figure was momentarily embarrassed.

"You're young, but you certainly have a sharp tongue..."

Xiao Yan could not help rolling her eyes. "So, my dear Senior, can you offer me any compensation?"

"You just said a moment ago that what I stand to gain is worth more than all the Dou Qi I cultivated over those three years. You're not going to go back on your word, are you?"

"Because of you, people spent three years pointing at my nose and cursing me. Just now, someone even came to break off our engagement, and we made that Three-Year Agreement."

"If I'm not satisfied with what you offer, then for the sake of that agreement, I'll have no choice but to take off the ring and lock it in a box. You can spend the rest of your life in a dark corner!"

Though she knew locking the ring away would probably accomplish nothing, Xiao Yan still said it all in one breath.

"Let me work this out. Without your interference, I'd be at least a Dou Shi by now. To absorb as much Dou Qi as a Dou Shi can in one day, someone with three-stage Dou Qi would have to cultivate for... Add in the interest-pay up!"

"..."

The woman played with a lock of her hair, watching as Xiao Yan picked up a little stick and scribbled calculations in the dirt. She felt somewhat helpless.

Though she could also tell that the little girl was deliberately trying to annoy her.

Only after Xiao Yan finished tallying the debt did the woman speak lightly. "Little girl, your big sister has no money right now. How about... I give myself to you instead?"

"Tch." Xiao Yan tossed the little stick aside and rolled her lovely eyes. "Let's not. You'd better find another host, Senior. My strength is meager; I can't afford to support a mighty deity like you."

She had never intended to demand any so-called "compensation," anyway.

After all, this spectral figure seemed able to ignore physical attacks. Even if she called her Da Dou Shi father over, he probably would not be able to subdue her.

The woman could simply hide somewhere, and they would never find her.

So if she refused to pay, Xiao Yan could do nothing about it.

As for actually compensating her... In a world where strength ruled supreme and the weak were meat for the strong, could such a kind person really exist?

Was there truly kindness left in the world?

Thus, Xiao Yan wanted nothing else. Sending this powerhouse away and keeping her from pestering her would be enough.

Now that she knew why her Dou Qi had vanished, her talent must have returned as well!

Surpassing that "ordinary genius" Nalan Yan within three years and winning the Three-Year Agreement might not be impossible!

"Hehe, that won't do. Other people don't have Soul Perception as powerful as yours." Propping her head on one hand, the woman lay on her side and smiled at Xiao Yan.

"Since I chose to reveal myself, naturally, I won't absorb your Dou Qi again without your permission."

"And besides..."

"Little girl, do you want to grow stronger? Do you want others to look up to you?"

Though she had already classified this woman as someone to steer clear of, Xiao Yan's heart still gave an involuntary flutter at those words.

"Now that I know why my Dou Qi vanished, with my talent, do I still need you to grow stronger?"

Drawing a slow breath, Xiao Yan spoke coolly.

She knew there was no such thing as a free lunch. Accepting favors from a mysterious stranger for no apparent reason was hardly a wise decision.

The more beautiful a woman was, the better she was at lying...

My thanks here to Maozi, Maomao, Tangyuan, Brother Gui, Sister Lan, and the others for their tips and monthly votes, listed in no particular order.