Clash

Hearing these words, Xu Yuan was somewhat surprised, but he felt no panic. His body was merely unable to move; his connection to his five senses had never been severed. Seeing Su Jinxuan's complexion grow paler by the day, he naturally knew she had already realized something was amiss. Yet each time he chose a batch of "lucky winners" to devour and refine, the floating particles on the surface of his intent-soul showed no abnormal reaction, giving Xu Yuan the faint impression that although she knew something was wrong, she had probably not discovered the cause yet. It was like a horror film where the person walking at the very back suddenly vanished, yet the rest of the group had no idea how they had disappeared. Even so, there were only the two of them in the room after all; Su Jinxuan certainly knew that her growing weakness was Xu Yuan's doing. It was just that she had no way out. Outside, people were guarding him, the Third Young Master, ensuring his safety. Now that all pretense was dropped, no matter what, she had to brace herself and press forward. Either she forced her way into his Innate Soul Body to take complete control of him, or what awaited her upon capture was a fate worse than death. Now that Su Jinxuan had chosen to speak with him, it was somewhat beyond Xu Yuan's expectations. Xu Yuan sensed the spore-like particles clinging like ants abruptly halt their pulsing, and control of his body returned to him once more. Within the bed curtains, Xu Yuan slowly shifted his body. The crimson bed was not large, making movement somewhat awkward. Sharing a pillow and bed, looking upon such a beauty at close range. Her peach-blossom countenance remained as before, her gaze carrying a bewitching charm. Her warm breaths brought to mind fields of roses blanketing an entire valley. Looking at the breathtaking woman lying beside him, Xu Yuan narrowed his long, slender eyes. He parted his lips, but closed them again. He felt an abrupt pulse ripple through the spore particles clinging to the surface of his intent-soul. She was warning him not to speak carelessly. Chuckling softly, Xu Yuan reconsidered his words. With curving eyes, he said gently: "Jinxuan, since I promised to respect your wishes, naturally I haven't stepped out of line once over the past few days. You... have truly wronged me." They locked eyes for two seconds. Lying on her side, Su Jinxuan raised a slender finger and tapped it lightly against his chest, her tone laced with grievance: "Third Young Master, then why... why is it that every morning Jinxuan wakes up these past few days, my entire body feels so limp, sore, and weak?" "Sore and weak?" Xu Yuan murmured, giving a slight nod. "Jinxuan, why is your face so pale? Perhaps you truly have fallen ill. But if your body really is sore, how about this young master gives you a massage?" As he spoke, Xu Yuan reached out toward her with a bright smile. Smack— A soft, crisp sound. Su Jinxuan slapped his hand away and scolded playfully, "The moment you wake up, you think of taking advantage of me. Third Young Master, you really are wicked..." Xu Yuan smiled faintly without the slightest irritation. Drawing his hand back, he chuckled: "Hehe... If you truly feel sore and weak, Jinxuan, this young master happens to have a dose of Xiaoyuan Powder right here." If Zhou Chen were peeping, he should have noticed something was wrong by now. Yet several seconds passed, and Zhou Chen did not appear. Xu Yuan reckoned he was probably behaving and hadn't used his intent-soul to spy on him. That was a bit too obedient. Feeling somewhat helpless, Xu Yuan took hold of her slender, jade-like hand instead and continued, "As long as you're willing to bathe with me, Jinxuan, I wouldn't mind sharing this Xiaoyuan Powder with you~" Su Jinxuan's eyes flickered for a moment before she chuckled softly: "Jinxuan's body is weak right now and cannot withstand Third Young Master being rough with me. I hope you will take pity on me, Young Master." "If that's the case, then another day." "Giggle, giggle..." Amidst a burst of charming giggles, Su Jinxuan slowly sat up from the bed. Gathering her supple, long hair, she remarked casually: "Third Young Master has seen that I haven't been feeling well of late, and the physician I know isn't in Jingjiang City. Could Young Master permit me to leave for a while to seek medical treatment?" Xu Yuan smiled upon hearing this. Seeing that things were untenable, she planned to run? How could things be so convenient? Just as Xu Yuan's smile surfaced— Hum— Among the countless spore particles, several thousand inconspicuous ones suddenly stirred. Contrary to their previous desperate attempts to burrow into Xu Yuan's intent-soul, these thousands of spore particles began siphoning intent-soul from Xu Yuan's surface in reverse. The sight left Xu Yuan momentarily startled and uncertain. Was this woman's cultivation art also of the devouring kind? However, the sharp perception of his Innate Soul Body allowed Xu Yuan to spot the difference in an instant. After absorbing a certain amount of his intent-soul, these ant-like clinging spore particles did not devour and refine it to strengthen themselves. Instead, they shattered and disintegrated on the spot. Mutual repulsion between human intent-souls was no mere figure of speech. Forcible absorption led to precisely this outcome. This was Su Jinxuan's warning, and also a near-suicidal method of mutual destruction. Let her leave, or go down together. Xu Yuan lightly gauged the faint damage to his intent-soul. A thoughtful look crossed his eyes, and he soon chuckled softly: "We've been inseparable these past few days. Could Jinxuan truly bear to leave?" If you're far away, would this method of yours still work? Pausing, without waiting for Su Jinxuan to reply, Xu Yuan continued: "Why doesn't this young master accompany you instead?" He wanted to see whether Su Jinxuan had any other tricks. If this was all she had, he wouldn't hold back anymore. One had to know that the intent-soul contained in those shattered spore particles would not simply vanish into thin air; they would drift for a while before gradually dispersing into the atmosphere. And these broken fragments were even easier for Xu Yuan to absorb and refine. What was more, once the scale of spores siphoning at the same time increased, the tremor released by the intent-soul would grow violent. Whether Zhou Chen would peep, Xu Yuan was not sure, but he knew that woman Ying'er definitely would. The moment the tremor went out, she would rush over in an instant. Xu Yuan's words were met by over ten thousand spores siphoning simultaneously. Seeing this, Xu Yuan's smile widened. Well then, still this trick. Time to make a move. Xu Yuan suddenly grinned. Within him, the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art and its matching secret technique circulated at the same time. Slowly rising, he suddenly reached out to seize Su Jinxuan by the throat. Yet just like before, halfway through extending his arm, control over his body froze. Gazing at him in silence, Su Jinxuan rolled over to straddle Xu Yuan. Tracing circles on his chest with her finger, she pushed him back down onto the bed, her eyes narrowing as she smiled seductively: "Does Third Young Master truly wish to come along with me?" As she spoke, those floating spores began undulating like waves of wheat once more, while Xu Yuan simply began feasting without restraint. His "stealthy pilfering" over the past few days had already made him thoroughly familiar with the devouring and refining phase of the secret art. Innumerable pores suddenly opened across the surface of Xu Yuan's intent-soul like countless gaping mouths, ceaselessly swallowing the spore-like particles clinging to its surface into his body. A thousand. Several thousand. Ten thousand. Tens of thousands. For a time, among those densely clinging spores, it was like a living hell on earth. The instant the sudden change occurred, the pupils in Su Jinxuan's seductive eyes constricted slightly. She attempted to establish contact with the spore particles that had been swallowed into Xu Yuan's intent-soul. If she could disperse the spore particles Xu Yuan had actively swallowed, she could take complete control of his mind on the spot. Yet every single one of those spore particles was like a clay ox entering the sea—vanishing without an echo. Realizing this, Su Jinxuan's pale face lost even more color, a canine tooth biting down hard on the corner of her lip. She finally understood what had happened over these past few days. The situation had spiraled entirely out of her control. The rumored useless Third Young Master was completely at odds with the intelligence she had gathered beforehand. Supposedly lacking any cultivation, yet he had already reached the Ninth Rank. Supposedly born with a crippled soul, yet not only did he possess an Innate Soul Body, he had even cultivated an extraordinarily bizarre soul-path secret art. Yet complaints were useless now. Su Jinxuan's smile never wavered as she leaned down, her jade hand slowly wandering over Xu Yuan's clothes, her eyes brimming with alluring charm: "If Third Young Master truly wishes to go, it is not impossible. It is still early; let us sleep a while longer..." The more an intent-soul was damaged, the less lucid a person's consciousness became. As long as she weakened this Xu Changtian's intent-soul to a certain point, that bizarre technique he was circulating would naturally grind to a halt, at which point she could plunge him into unconsciousness. The price of doing so was exceedingly steep, but things had come to this pass—she could no longer afford to hesitate. As long as she did not alert Xu Changtian's guards, she still had a sliver of hope of escaping. With Su Jinxuan's decision made, those dense spore particles began siphoning Xu Yuan's intent-soul in batches. As one batch of spores crumbled, the next batch took over. Wave upon wave, surge upon surge. Xu Yuan, who was concentrating on devouring and refining, immediately felt waves of dizziness continuously welling up in his mind. Steeling his focus, he knew very well that this was Su Jinxuan launching her countermeasure. Yet because he had hovered near death countless times while cultivating the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art, he had long grown accustomed to keeping his mind steady on the brink of demise. After adjusting slightly, Xu Yuan perceived what was happening across the surface of his intent-soul. Seeing that the vast majority of the floating particles still clung motionlessly to his intent-soul, an odd feeling arose within him. What did she mean by this? He had already prepared to risk his life here, yet Su Jinxuan was actually still hoping to deal with him without alerting Ying'er?