Another half-month passed... cough, cough.
During this time, Hun Changqing had completely and thoroughly familiarized himself with Gu Xun'er.
Sitting outside the secret chamber drinking tea at this moment, Hun Changqing recalled and re-recalled Gu Xun'er's curvaceous and delicate body, and could not help but feel a surge of heat in his heart once again.
However, Hun Changqing knew that he could no longer keep Gu Xun'er locked up; right now, Gu Xun'er's state had already stabilized.
She lacked the suicidal tendencies and hysteria of before, and had merely become a bit chatty-nothing too serious.
As for the problem of how Gu Xun'er would cover up her loss of purity, Hun Changqing had also found a way.
Primordial Yin Qi was, after all, a type of Yin energy, and Hun Changqing was naturally extremely familiar with Gu Xun'er's Primordial Yin aura.
As for what would happen if Gu Xun'er shared a bed with Xiao Yan in the future and the truth came to light?
To that, Hun Changqing could only express that he was truly powerless to help.
There was also the matter of those resources, which needed to be discussed with Gu Xun'er as well.
Oh, and he also needed to go buy a set of clothes for Gu Xun'er, though Hun Changqing felt that while Gu Xun'er was in the secret chamber, it didn't really matter whether she wore clothes or not.
Ideally, she wouldn't.
Therefore, Gu Xun'er had been acting as a primitive human for over a month now, as her previous clothes had all been torn to shreds by Hun Changqing.
Now that she was to be sent back, it was naturally necessary to prepare a set of clothes.
Thinking of this, Hun Changqing walked out of the courtyard, casually bought a set of women's clothing at the marketplace, and headed toward the secret chamber.
Opening the secret chamber and meeting Gu Xun'er's eerie gaze as per usual, Hun Changqing did not pay it much mind and first got down to business.
This time, until it was over, Hun Changqing did not say a single word to Gu Xun'er.
Thinking that Hun Changqing was going to leave now that it was over, a variety of emotions flashed through her gaze-unwillingness, loss, and reluctance to part-as she stared unblinkingly at Hun Changqing.
However, Hun Changqing did not leave; instead, he took that set of clothing out from the Storage Ring and tossed it to Gu Xun'er.
After catching the clothing, Gu Xun'er looked blankly at Hun Changqing, her gaze carrying a hint of incomprehension.
Hun Changqing spoke up, saying, "Your emotions are stable now, and it's about time I let you go back."
Gu Xun'er froze for a moment, not knowing what to say.
During this period, she had fantasized countless times about what her mood would be like when she went back.
Would it be happy? Joyful? Excited? Thrilled?
Yet when Hun Changqing said she could go back, for some reason her heart felt as though it had been blocked up.
Uncomfortable... with a sensation akin to suffocation.
Gu Xun'er did not understand why she felt this way, and could only look blankly at Hun Changqing, at a loss for what to do.
Hun Changqing ignored the strange Gu Xun'er and spoke on his own accord.
"I am going to plant a wisp of aura inside your body. This aura will cause you no harm whatsoever, and it can conceal the fact that you are no longer a maiden. Neither Xiao Yan nor Gu Yuan and the others will be able to discover it. Do you understand?"
Usually, Gu Xun'er talked so much that she never stopped for even a single moment, but for some reason, at this time she could not say a single word, and could only follow Hun Changqing's words by nodding or shaking her head.
"Also, after you go back, you must quickly find a way to prepare those items from the three conditions I mentioned to you earlier. Don't play any tricks, or your Brother Xiao Yan will definitely die a very ugly death. Understood?"
For some reason, upon hearing Hun Changqing say that Xiao Yan would die, there was no longer any emotional fluctuation in Gu Xun'er's heart.
Yet when she heard Hun Changqing say "your Brother Xiao Yan," her heart felt as though it had been heavily struck by a massive hammer, causing her immense pain, and she could only nod silently.
Seeing that Gu Xun'er had no other reaction, Hun Changqing nodded. Her mental state was quite stable and her attitude quite proper; she was indeed ready to be sent back.
"Alright, then I am sending you back now."
"Um... what is your name... can I see your face..."
That's right, throughout all these days, not only had Hun Changqing not told Gu Xun'er his own name...
Even when doing business, he had worn a cloak and hood.
Gu Xun'er only knew that the person who engaged in negative-distance contact with her was not an old man.
Instead, he was a man with a relatively slender yet perfectly proportioned figure, with delicate skin that was white as snow.
That perfect, soft body was almost identical to her own, yet it erupted with astonishing combat power!
Upon hearing Gu Xun'er's words, Hun Changqing was momentarily stunned, and then sneered, "What, are you going to return to the Gu Clan to investigate me?"
Gu Xun'er hurriedly waved her hands and said, "No... not that, you... after all, you are the man who took my purity. I just want to know your name. It doesn't matter if you don't..."
After a moment of silence, Hun Changqing spoke.
"My name is Lin Changqing. As for my appearance, you can forget about it-it's impossible to let you see it. That's that, I'm sending you back."
Gu Xun'er nodded, her mouth continuously murmuring, "Lin Changqing... Lin Changqing... Lin Changqing..."
At this moment, Gu Xun'er stood before the gates of the Xiao Clan, her expression dazed and trance-like. Clearly it had only been a short month and a half, yet she felt as though her days in the Xiao Clan belonged to a past life.
Stepping into the Xiao Clan, the sounds of surrounding Xiao Clan children playing, the clamorous fighting noise on the sparring stage, and the cheering shouts of girls rooting for the boys reminded her at every moment that this was not an illusion, and she had truly returned to the Xiao Clan.
Walking past the sparring stage and reaching the door outside the main hall of the Xiao Clan, she ran head-on into someone she had once yearned for day and night, but now least wanted to see.
"Xun'er! You've come out of seclusion! Your seclusion this time really was long enough! You didn't come out even a few times over a month and more, and whenever I went to look for you to stroll the streets, you always said you didn't have time! How is it, has your strength improved?"
The person Gu Xun'er encountered was precisely Xiao Yan.
Meeting Gu Xun'er, who had been in seclusion for over a month, Xiao Yan hurried forward to show his concern for her.
"Xiao Yan... brother."
Encountering Xiao Yan after a long absence, Gu Xun'er was actually somewhat flustered at this moment, and feeling that very familiar aura on Xiao Yan's body made her even more vexed and upset.
Do not misunderstand, Gu Xun'er sensed the aura of that wisp of Supreme Yin True Qi in Xiao Yan's hair. Having had negative-distance contact with Hun Changqing for over a month, Gu Xun'er was naturally extremely sensitive to the aura of the Supreme Yin True Qi.
Looking at the brilliant smile blooming on Xiao Yan's face, Gu Xun'er inexplicably felt it was thoroughly blinding.
The more brilliant Xiao Yan's smile was, the more Gu Xun'er was able to recall the darkness within that secret chamber.
Sensing the aura of the Supreme Yin True Qi on Xiao Yan's body, Gu Xun'er increasingly felt irritated. She abruptly gave rise to a strange notion: this aura ought not to appear on Xiao Yan's body; Xiao Yan... did not deserve it?
(End of chapter)