"National Teacher, what's wrong?" the President asked.
Lin Wanyu shook his head, placing a black piece on the Go board. "It's nothing."
The President continued their previous conversation. "Song Juyao hasn't come to pick him up yet. Why don't you let Old Master Qiu use Jiang Baiqi for a while? He has made great contributions at the Ling Wang Tomb. He must be cured."
Lin Wanyu: "I have already given him a lot of spiritual stones."
"But isn't it said that a thousand spirit stones can't compare to what Jiang Bai Qi's body produces once? The Qiu family is begging for it."
"No, I promised Miss Song."
"She probably wouldn't mind."
Lin Wanyu's hand paused. "Whether she minds or not is her business. I will keep my promise."
"Fine, fine. When Song Juyao comes to get him, let the Qiu family go and beg for help themselves." The President shook his head and said helplessly.
Lin Wanyu remained silent.
The President thought for a moment before adding, "I don't think she'll be like those other selfish sects who would monopolize Jiang Baiqi. She wouldn't be so stingy as to not let others use him once."
Use? An unreadable expression flickered across Lin Wanyu's face. He slowly placed the Go piece in his hand on the board with a dark look in his eyes.
……
There was a shackle collar around Jiang Baiqi's neck attached to chains. His hands and feet were also shackled, but the length of the chains allowed him to move within a certain range in the room and sleep on the bed.
He watched as Song Juyao entered. He still appeared weak and opened his large gray eyes wearily.
He slowly sat up, and his big gray eyes looked at her nervously and timidly.
"Are you... my new keeper?" he asked in a low, hoarse voice familiar to Song Juyao.
Yet, something felt off the moment he spoke.
Song Juyao stopped in front of him. "It seems Lin Wanyu has told you."
Jiang Baiqi nodded, with a flicker of wariness in his eyes. "Are you... are you going to take my spiritual energy? I haven't absorbed much evil energy, so I only have a little bit now."
"I don't want your spiritual energy." Song Juyao felt Jianxue tremble slightly. Only a large amount of evil energy could elicit such a reaction. This meant that the Jiang Baiqi before her must have a significant amount of evil energy in his body.
Although Jiang Baiqi could purify evil energy and convert it into spiritual energy, every bit he converted was sucked away by others before his own body could utilize it. As a result, the evil energy had seeped into his bone marrow, his internal organs, settling in every corner of his body. Over time, who knew how much had accumulated, becoming something even spiritual energy could no longer purify.
He must be in a lot of pain.
As Song Juyao thought this, she slowly drew Jianxue.
Jiang Baiqi's muscles tensed, his body instinctively shrank back. Was she going to kill him?
Lin Wanyu's eyes darkened. He slowly placed another black piece on the board, a sardonic smile playing on his lips.
Wasn't this to be expected? Hadn't he guessed it from the start? She wanted him. Since it wasn't for his spiritual energy, nor for her fellow disciples, then there was only one possibility: she wanted him dead.
These righteous cultivators were all the same, and Song Juyao was no exception. She couldn't tolerate any sand in her eyes. Even if she didn't have a grudge against him, perhaps she couldn't stand the hypocrisy of other righteous cultivators who used high-sounding excuses to commit wicked deeds. So, as the leader of the righteous faction, she wanted to kill him, to maintain the facade of righteousness. It wasn't impossible.
【??? What's going on??】
【Yaoyao, what are you going to do to Little Dust??】
【The CP fans are freaking out! The vibe between Yaoyao and Qiqi is off this time!】
【Yes, yes, yes】
With a flash of sword light, Song Juyao raised Jianxue and swung it down towards Jiang Baiqi.
The chains rattled as Jiang Baiqi instinctively raised his arms to shield himself.
Lin Wanyu squeezed his eyes shut, and clenched the Go stone in his hand.
The icy sword energy washed over him. Jiang Baiqi's hair fluttered as he felt the sword energy pass through his body. He froze and opened his eyes wide in disbelief.
He could feel the lingering evil energy in his body was "killed" by the sword energy. The coldness in his body receded a little, replaced by a sense of relief.
Song Juyao swung the sword a few more times. The sword energy pierced through him, eradicating the stubborn evil energy bit by bit. Not knowing if it was an illusion, Lin Wanyu couldn't help but feel that the sword energy was... gentle. It flowed through Jiang Baiqi's body so gently that it felt really soothing.
Lin Wanyu was stunned. What was she doing? Didn't she want to kill him?
Jiang Baiqi lowered his arms, his large, gray eyes staring at Song Juyao in bewilderment.
"Does it feel better?" Song Juyao put Jianxue back into the sheath and asked.
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"I thought you were going to kill me."
"Why would I kill you?" Song Juyao asked indifferently.
Jiang Baiqi was stunned. "Because I'm a member of the Jiang family."
A faint smile touched Song Juyao's lips, her entire face softening as if an iceberg had begun to melt. "Are you looking down on me?"
Lin Wanyu's heart skipped a beat, but then he recalled the deceitful nature of those righteous cultivators, and his eyes darkened again.
No, these people were masters of disguise. Perhaps Song Juyao was simply better at it than the rest. If she didn't have ulterior motives, why would she forcefully snatch him from the Xuanling Sect? He had been locked away since he was two years old and had never had the chance to meet Song Juyao. Even if they had met, there was no reason for Song Juyao to treat him this way. Was it simply out of kindness? Song Juyao had never shown such kindness to other demons and evils. She wouldn't tolerate their existence.
Song Juyao set Jianxue down and unlocked the shackles on his limbs. Then, she reached for the collar around his neck.
As she leaned closer, her fragrance wafted towards him. Her fingers brushed against the sensitive skin of his neck. Lin Wanyu's nerves tightened, and he instinctively wanted to avoid it, but it was futile.
Freed from his restraints, Jiang Baiqi's eyes darkened as he looked at her face so close to his.
Lin Wanyu's expression changed. He realized what the other was about to do and shouted, "Stop!"
Startled, the President, who was about to make a move on the Go board, almost flung the Go piece across the room. "National Teacher?"
Lin Wanyu suppressed his emotions, and was surprised by his own reaction. "…It's nothing."
Inside the National Teacher's mansion, Jiang Baiqi's breath grew hot. He tilted his head back, allowing Song Juyao to remove the collar and whispered into her ear. "I've been locked in a cage since I was two years old. I don't know what a bed feels like, or what warmth feels like. Is this scent you carry... warmth? It smells so good..."
Song Juyao's movements faltered. With a click, the delicate lock came undone. She maintained her position, her gaze meeting Jiang Baiqi's.
There was a strange rhythm in his voice, which seemed to cloud the mind and make people dizzy, as if they were bewitched by a hypnotic melody.
Song Juyao paused, and the delicate small lock "clicked" and opened. She kept moving while looking at Jiang Baiqi.
Their faces were inches apart, their eyes locked. Jiang Baiqi's eyes seemed to change, as if there was a whirlpool.
Song Juyao stared into his eyes, then slowly straightened.
"Thank you," he said. "No one has ever been so kind to me. They only know how to force evil energy into my body. You're the first person who has helped me get rid of it..."
He wore a thin white shirt, which was a bit too big for the thin Jiang Baiqi now. The buttons weren't buttoned up. As he spoke, he leaned forward slightly and crawled towards Song Juyao, revealing a glimpse of his thin and inexplicably seductive chest. His gaze was seductive, and his whole temperament had changed.
The viewers of the Trial Show were stunned. Something was off about Jiang Baiqi this time! Since when did their Little Dust become so… coquettish? ?
Liang Qiao's eyes lit up. He had been puzzled as to why Jiang Baiqi hadn't been recovered by the main system and had reappeared. It seemed that this Jiang Baiqi might not be the same one from the previous two episodes. Perhaps they just shared the same name and surname. Although the probability was very small, it wasn't impossible for two NPCs to have the same name and surname in the virtual world.
[Stop it! Do you hear me? Stop it! What are you doing? You filthy, disgusting thing! Aren't you ashamed of yourself?]
[Why are you so angry? Didn't Tang Jie say Song Juyao's weakness is lust? What if I succeed?]
[You fool! Tang Jie sent so many people, and they all failed. How could she possibly be seduced by something like you? Stop it! Do you want to embarrass me?]
[She doesn't know this is your body. You are Lin Wanyu, the National Teacher, right now. Why are you so agitated? Could it be that you're ashamed of yourself? Don't tell me you like her? Wouldn't that be perfect? If I succeed, the body is yours, all the sensations are yours. You can enjoy it from a distance. You've never touched a woman in your life. Don't you want to know what it feels like?]
"Crash!"
Inside the Presidential Palace, the crystal chandelier suddenly exploded, showering the room with shards of glass. Cracks spiderwebbed across the bulletproof windows. The guards were shocked and rushed in immediately, but there were no terrorists inside, only the president and Lin Wanyu.
Lin Wanyu's face was livid, his chest violently heaving with rage. The President instinctively ducked to avoid the falling glass, staring at Lin Wanyu in disbelief. "National Teacher? What happened?"
He had never seen such an ugly expression on the National Teacher's beautiful, gentle, compassionate face. Nor had he ever seen him so furious.
"Sorry, I sensed that there is an unforgivable evil spirit causing trouble, and I need to deal with it immediately."
"Yes, yes, of course. Go, quickly," the President stammered, thinking that this evil spirit must be doing something earth-shattering, otherwise the national teacher would not be so enraged.
Lin Wanyu released his grip. The Go stone in his palm crumbled into dust, scattering on the floor. He turned his wheelchair and left, his eyes cold and menacing as he looked up. He must kill it, absolutely kill it!
[Stop it! I said stop it!]
"Jiang Baiqi" ignored the voice in his head and crawled all the way to Song Juyao until he was right before her. Song Juyao looked down at him expressionlessly.
Lin Wanyu watched as Song Juyao's scrutinizing gaze swept over Jiang Baiqi, and his hatred grew with each passing second for not going to the National Teacher's mansion immediately. He wanted to cut that creature into thousands of pieces. It was unbearable to watch. What must Song Juyao think? She must think this person was nothing but a clown with no self-awareness. With such an ordinary appearance like a speck of dust, he dared to use a seduction trick on her.
But what happened next left Lin Wanyu stunned.
Song Juyao raised her hand and touched Jiang Baiqi's cheek. The warmth of her touch spread across his skin, sending shivers down his spine. Then, her finger, light as a feather, slowly trailed down from his cheek to his lips.
W-What?
Not only that, Song Juyao seemed to be really seduced. She lowered her head, her black hair fell on the side of his cheek, as her lips gently inched closer to his.