An Old Acquaintance

Inside the side chamber, a woman sat upright on the edge of the bed. With a face like a hibiscus and brows like willow leaves, her black hair was wound into an elegant, high updo. A pair of eyes even more enchanting than peach blossoms looked as though they could drip with liquid affection. Under the illumination of the bright-pattern lamp, her skin was white as snow, and her ample chest—full enough to obscure any glimpse of her toes—was wrapped snugly in simple, unadorned robes. The plainly dressed woman offered a faint smile toward Xu Yuan at the door, looking as though peach blossoms were fluttering through the air. "Young Master, long time no see." "..." Silence hung in the room for a moment before Xu Yuan asked, "Who are you?" "..." Su Jinxuan froze. The air abruptly congealed. Su Jinxuan parted her cherry lips slightly in disbelief. "Just kidding." Xu Yuan let out a hearty laugh, waved his hand, and walked toward her. "Long time no see, Su Jinxuan." As he spoke, he sent out his intent-soul to probe her cultivation. Su Jinxuan curled her lips in a smile. She sensed what he was doing, yet made no move to stop him. However, the moment Xu Yuan's intent-soul made contact with her body, his pupils contracted slightly. *Damn it, you've got cheats too?* He had the bottleneck-free Innate Dao Body and the Chancellor's Manor's endless gold, yet his cultivation speed still couldn't compare to this woman's. At this moment, the Source Qi within Su Jinxuan was as vast as a sea, and her intent-soul was dense and unbroken. Fourth-rank Body Integration. And it was far more robust than that of an ordinary fourth-rank Body Integration practitioner. He felt a faint wave of frustration, but Xu Yuan soon let it go. After all, this woman practiced a human-devouring cultivation art. On top of that, the technique possessed a natural synergy with her constitution. He had experienced this kind of power-fantasy cultivation speed before, but only while playing *Cangyuan* in his past life. As long as there was an endless supply of people, cultivation realm was nothing more than a number on a screen. Practicing the Great Joyous Union Yin-Yang Art was the shortest, most villainous storyline—the path of the Drunken Wanderer. "Young Master... have you looked your fill?" Her voice was gentle, yet it carried an indescribable allure. "Jinxuan's cultivation should be somewhat satisfactory to you, shouldn't it? This is all thanks to the cultivation art you provided, Young Master." "Ahem." Xu Yuan cleared his throat lightly and said, "Cultivating like this, aren't you afraid of an unstable foundation?" Sitting on the bed, Su Jinxuan tilted her head. "Combined with Jinxuan's physique, the Great Joyous Union Yin-Yang Art provided by the Young Master doesn't cause any superficiality in cultivation. Every time I use the soul-bewitching spores to absorb someone else's cultivation, it automatically converts into compatible origin Source Qi, so there won't be an unstable foundation." Xu Yuan looked at her, his gaze momentarily dazed. Those peach-blossom eyes merely held a smile, yet they seemed to hook a person's soul so deeply that they couldn't pull their gaze away. Snapping back to his senses an instant later, Xu Yuan frowned and said in a low voice, "All right, don't use those tricks on me." "Pfft." Su Jinxuan rose gracefully and stepped lightly toward him. Standing close to Xu Yuan, she murmured softly, "Jinxuan hasn't used any charm arts on you, Young Master. I haven't even circulated my cultivation art~" The corner of Xu Yuan's eye twitched. A flare of blood-red flame ignited in his eyes as he checked himself, only to find no trace of manipulation whatsoever. This was bad; he couldn't even afford to provoke this succubus anymore. However, as he began circulating his own cultivation art, the natural charm radiating from the succubus before him seemed to lose much of its hold on him. Sensing this shift, Xu Yuan breathed a quiet sigh of relief. The Great Joyous Union Yin-Yang Art was a blood-tier manual, but his Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art wasn't inferior in the slightest. Fortunately, this little succubus Su Jinxuan was of the pure, innocent variety, unlike the unrestrained nature of that grand succubus Lou Ji. Otherwise, combined with that Bewitching Soul Fiend Physique, he truly might not have been able to withstand it. Just as the thought crossed his mind, Su Jinxuan suddenly beamed a radiant smile. The dark pupils in her peach-blossom eyes naturally shifted into a soft pink, and she spoke softly, "Young Master, this is what it looks like when Jinxuan actually circulates her art..." "..." Xu Yuan's eyes widened slightly. A single smile birthed a hundred charms. Petals resembling cherries and peaches seemed to drift before his eyes, casting a vivid, delicate glow over the beauty's face. It stirred a desire to ravage her, yet simultaneously filled him with tender pity. Yet in the very next instant, Several seemingly tangible cherry blossoms fluttered down within the room. Xu Yuan's clarity returned, while the smiling warmth in Su Jinxuan's eyes suddenly went blank. The Meishen Dao Charm flared into existence, illuminating the entire chamber in a radiant pink hue. Xu Yuan chuckled and shook his head. He had probably bullied this succubus a bit too hard back in Jingjiang Prefecture. Now that she had made something of herself, she wanted to take this chance to make a fool of him. A petty woman's mentality. If she wanted to beat him up, he might not be able to match her. But playing charm arts? He currently possessed the Meishen Dao Charm. Trying to enchant him? Feeling the Source Qi inside him depleting rapidly from activating the Dao Charm, Xu Yuan took slow steps around to the little succubus's rear. Then, he raised his hand. *Smack.* A crisp sound echoed. Xu Yuan planted a firm slap right against Su Jinxuan's pert backside beneath her loose, plain robes. "Ah!" Jolted back to her senses by the sting, Su Jinxuan spun her head around to stare at Xu Yuan, her pink peach-blossom eyes wide with shock. "Young Master, you... what is..." Once she gathered her wits, she wanted to ask what had just happened. But halfway through her sentence, she suddenly felt the warmth of the man's hand lingering through her robes, and she hurried a step forward to escape. An alluring blush crept over her fair cheeks. Su Jinxuan bit her lip and said, "Young Master, please conduct yourself with dignity." As the soft, wonderful sensation slipped away, Xu Yuan gave a rather regretful shrug. As expected of a succubus, she felt even better to touch than Ying'er. "Feels great. I told you not to use those tricks on me." Su Jinxuan gritted her pearly teeth and let out a soft huff. Her Source Qi began to stir, as if she were about to strike. Xu Yuan remained completely shameless, raising a finger to point outside. "If you make a move, I'm calling for help. You know him too—Zhou Chen, that Grandmaster who was following me around back in Jingjiang Prefecture." Hearing that, Su Jinxuan clenched her delicate fists, her charming yet innocent face flushed with exasperation. She dispersed her art and ground her teeth. "Young Master, after parting in Jingjiang Prefecture, you truly haven't changed in the slightest." "Likewise, likewise," Xu Yuan said with a cheerful grin. "Honestly, with that temper of yours, how haven't you blown your cover yet?" "..." Enraged, Su Jinxuan turned her head away and refused to speak. She was truly angry now. Xu Yuan let out a breath and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed. Unhurriedly, he retrieved a pair of white silk stockings from his Sumeru ring. Just as he was about to fold them neatly, a fragrant breeze rushed at him, accompanied by a flustered voice: "Give... give that back to me!" Having reached the fourth rank, the succubus was swift, but Xu Yuan was already circulating his art and was fully prepared. With a flick of his wrist, he tucked the white silk stockings behind his back and looked at the thoroughly blushing succubus standing before him. "Hey, you left this as a gift for me yourself. Are you really going to ask for it back?" "..." Su Jinxuan stared at Xu Yuan with a crimson face, an innate charm radiating from her. "Th-that was an accident! I left it behind by mistake." "Ah, right. Left behind by mistake, tucked neatly and hidden securely under my pillow," Xu Yuan agreed with an immediate, vigorous nod. This woman had left that thing beneath his pillow, which later led to him getting caught red-handed by that big block of ice. Su Jinxuan fell silent, locking her intent-soul onto her former undergarment. If she wanted to snatch it, she would have to throw herself upon him. Just as she hesitated, she saw the scoundrel playboy suddenly hold out the white silk stockings toward her, saying with a chuckle, "Look at how stingy you are. Here, take it back." Su Jinxuan was momentarily stunned. Pressing her lips together, she snatched them away. However, she had no Sumeru ring, so she could only hold them in her hand for the time being. Watching the amusement lingering in the man's phoenix eyes, Su Jinxuan clenched her fist, took a deep breath, and began composing her expression. A moment later, The flush on Su Jinxuan's face faded. Glancing at the silk stockings in her hand, a faint smile curved her lips, and she looked down at him with a gaze laced with disdain. "Young Master, over such a long time, you haven't used Jinxuan's undergarment to do anything strange, have you?" "Anything strange?" Xu Yuan feigned confusion, only to adopt an expression of sudden enlightenment as he drew out his words: "Ah, you mean—" "Enough!" Su Jinxuan's face flushed scarlet once more. The fabric of the silk stockings crumpled beneath her grip, and her delicate frame trembled. "Young Master, is teasing Jinxuan really that much fun?" Hearing this, Xu Yuan asked with genuine and earnest sincerity, "All right, all right, my mistake. Jinxuan, do you need me to apologize to you?" "..." Su Jinxuan was speechless. Xu Yuan suddenly felt that teasing this embarrassing, innocent succubus was quite entertaining. Just as he was about to continue, he reined in the urge to keep bantering with her. With a wave of his hand, his expression instantly turned solemn as he asked, "Jinxuan, were the depot explosions in the city tonight your doing?" Hearing the question, Su Jinxuan instinctively wanted to turn her face away in silence. But with a cold huff, she walked over to the desk in the room and sat down in a huff, murmuring in a low voice, "Yes. Mister Qin provided me with an identity to enter those government offices, allowing me to take control of the guards in those locations one by one."