“Pei Yuhan, do you know what you are saying?!” The coldness in Lu Jiajing’s voice vanished, replaced by an icy tone.

"Or you could go agree to those filthy wretches from the Yin Yang Pavilion and get involved with them, that works too." Pei Yuhan raised her teacup, her eyes fixed on the clear, transparent tea, and drank it all in one gulp.

"How do you know?" Lu Jiajing frowned again. This matter was still under discussion; it shouldn't be something Pei Yuhan, who spent every day lying in the Cold Palace, would know about.

How did Pei Yuhan know? Naturally, Lin Yi had told her.

"Because those people from the Yin Yang Pavilion also want me to join them." Pei Yuhan made up a random excuse.

The Yin Yang Pavilion wanted Pei Yuhan to join them, so telling her that Lu Jiajing had also joined to lower her expectations… that was normal.

"Yin Yang stands behind the Yin Yang Pavilion." Pei Yuhan said again.

"His and Ye Linyuan's scheme is to drag friends and family like you and me into ruin, all so that Ye Linyuan can achieve a Breakthrough to the Dao Integration stage." Pei Yuhan's words caused Lu Jiajing's gaze to fall silent.

"I… do not believe it." Lu Jiajing shook her head.

"Suit yourself. Do you also not believe in the invasion of the Yao Beasts in the North Region and South Sea?" Pei Yuhan's eyes turned toward the night sky outside the high tower.

That was the North, where the Yao Beasts were frequently knocking at the gates.

Lu Jiajing fell silent again.

The people from the Yin Yang Pavilion were using the citizens of the Xuanyuan Dynasty to pressure her, and Pei Yuhan was doing the same. It left a bitter taste in her heart.

And… could Ye Linyuan really be so ruthless just for the sake of Dao Integration?

Although Pei Yuhan had only said a few words, she could still feel a bone-chilling cold from them, something far colder than the heavy snow of last night.

To her, it was even colder than the permafrost in the extreme polar regions of the North.

Lu Jiajing sat down again. "You must at least tell me why."

"He has a special Physique…" Pei Yuhan began to explain.

It was nothing more than the same old story, yet Lu Jiajing was completely taken in by it.

"Wait! You're saying his Physique can help us overcome our Bottleneck?" Lu Jiajing looked at Pei Yuhan with some skepticism.

"Yes." Pei Yuhan nodded.

This wasn't actually a lie to Lu Jiajing. Over the past few days, Lin Yi and Su Lingshu and the others had verified it among themselves: after "enjoying" Lin Yi, they would have more or less of a beneficial effect.

It was just that Yu Xiaotang and Su Lingshu, who were of a lower Rank than Lin Yi, felt it more profoundly.

Pei Yuhan only felt a tiny bit of improvement, and that was after Lin Yi had been intimate with her for several days.

Lu Jiajing closed her eyes, recalling Pei Yuhan's actions and words since they met. The distracting thoughts in her mind began to dissipate. "Since you can achieve a Breakthrough to the Return to Void stage, why do you need me?"

"His Physique needs you to help unlock it." This was something Pei Yuhan had made up, but she felt it was very likely true. After all, Lin Yi wouldn't say that he needed Su Lingshu's Red Pill.

When he was talking with Yu Xiaotang, he had also spoken about how he needed them.

"You could find others…"

"No, it has to be you, Lu Jiajing." Pei Yuhan looked at Lu Jiajing opposite her.

"You have no choice either."

Lu Jiajing frowned; she sensed that something was wrong!

"Your spiritual energy has already been entangled by my Sword Intent." A faint smile appeared at the corner of Pei Yuhan's mouth. She curled her finger slightly, and Lu Jiajing discovered a faint, stinging pain radiating from within her body!

"Pei Yuhan…" Lu Jiajing's beautiful brows were furrowed, and her fair, lovely face showed a slight change in expression.

"I apologize. I won't force you, but to ensure you don't agree to those people from the Yin Yang Pavilion, you might need to stay by my side for a while." Pei Yuhan shook her head.

Lu Jiajing hadn't expected that she would be taken advantage of by Pei Yuhan just because she hadn't been paying attention for a moment. She fell silent.

Chapter 39: Qingmu Palace Master Lu Jiajing

Lin Yi sat by the window. Yu Xiaotang and Li Tiaodeng were both tired from playing and had gone to sleep early. Su Lingshu sat silently beside him, brewing tea.

Su Lingshu picked up the teapot to fill Lin Yi's cup, then picked up the teacup and handed it over.

Lin Yi took it, his gaze fixed on the night scene outside the window. The entire Chengtian City had gradually quieted down, and even the market area had slowly descended into darkness.

Tonight was a night of good weather. The few snow clouds that had been there earlier had quietly dispersed, letting down a bit of biting moonlight. Lin Yi reached out to catch the remnant moonlight.

Su Lingshu watched the moonlight fall on Lin Yi's hand, her eyes shifting. "Will Lu Jiajing agree?"

"No." Lin Yi shook his head.

"Then why are you still waiting here?" Su Lingshu looked at the clear tea, thought for a moment, and poured it into the tea waste bowl beside her.

Lin Yi glanced at Su Lingshu's action, silently put down the teacup he had brought to his lips, and pushed it toward Su Lingshu.

"If I can wait for her, that's fine; if I can't, that's also no matter. It's nothing more than one person or two people." Lin Yi watched as Su Lingshu took the teacup he had pushed over and poured the tea into the waste bowl again, his mouth twitching slightly.

Su Lingshu's lips curved slightly, revealing a lovely smile. She brewed tea again, and this time, under Lin Yi's gaze, she filled the cup.

Lin Yi took it again and took a shallow sip.

"As long as you are prepared for one person, nothing else matters."

"Heh, you are quite open-minded."

"They are here." Lin Yi put down the teacup. Su Lingshu looked in the direction of Lin Yi's gaze, and sure enough…

Hmm?

Su Lingshu blinked. She had thought two people were coming…

Pei Yuhan placed the Lu Jiajing she was carrying onto the seat beside her, sat down next to Lin Yi, and took a sip from Lin Yi's teacup.

Lin Yi wrapped his arm around Pei Yuhan's slender waist, touching her slightly cold arm. It was indeed mid-winter; even if Pei Yuhan didn't pay much attention to the cold, she still craved warmth.

Lin Yi warmed his beautiful Master with his own body temperature. He reached out to close the open window, shutting out the cold wind from the high sky, and the entire inner room became quiet.

Pei Yuhan leaned against Lin Yi, feeling his warmth, and turned her eyes toward Lu Jiajing beside them.

Su Lingshu stared blankly at Palace Master Lu Jiajing, who was being carried over by Pei Yuhan like a mere Mortal. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

This Master and Disciple really were cut from the same cloth; she had been tied up by Lin Yi, and Lu Jiajing had been tied up by Pei Yuhan.

Lu Jiajing frowned. After all, she was a Soul Transformation expert and wouldn't be completely without the power to resist. Although her physical cultivation wasn't as high as her spiritual cultivation, it wasn't something a mere cold wind could disturb.

Lu Jiajing took in the situation inside the inner room. Her cold gaze swept past Su Lingshu and Pei Yuhan and landed on Lin Yi.

"Lu Jiajing, Palace Master Lu, I am Lin Yi."

In Lu Jiajing's eyes, the handsome young man was greeting her like that.

Her heart relaxed slightly. At least he wasn't some short, fat wretch. It was just… Pei Yuhan had really gotten together with her Disciple…

I really couldn't have guessed…

However… remembering what Pei Yuhan had said about Lin Yi's special Physique, which had lost its name, a glimmer of understanding flashed in her eyes.

Who wouldn't want to step onto the Dao? Hadn't it been said, "If one hears the Dao in the morning, one can die in the evening without regret"?

Not to mention anything else, just the effect that a few days of pleasure could allow someone like Pei Yuhan, who had nowhere left to go on the Dao, to advance even a little bit, would be enough to shock all the Qi practitioners in the world! Countless old monsters stuck in a Bottleneck would flock to it!

Lin Yi looked at Lu Jiajing in her green robes, her expression cool and indifferent. She was worthy of being called the most beautiful woman in the world in the original book; there was not a single part of her that didn't make one's heart race.

Especially that pure, ethereal temperament, which gave one the impulse to tear apart her exterior and let her fall into the dust.

Lin Yi smiled and used his spiritual energy to lift the teapot, pouring a stream of tea into the cup in front of Lu Jiajing.

"Please, Fairy Lu."

Lu Jiajing was silent, and Lin Yi wasn't in a hurry. He exchanged a glance with Pei Yuhan, who nodded at him, and Lin Yi looked up at Lu Jiajing.

"What does Fairy Lu think?"

Lu Jiajing's cold, beautiful eyes closed slightly, then opened again. "Not much. Now that I have fallen into your hands, do as you please, whether you want to kill me or torture me."

[Task "Qingmu Palace Master" detected]

[Qingmu Palace is one of the three great palaces of the entire Xuanyuan Dynasty. The Master of Qingmu Palace, Lu Jiajing, is the most beautiful woman in the world—perhaps some might question this title, as Ji Chanxi, Pei Yuhan, and Xuanyuan Xier are ranked alongside her as the four great beauties of the Fenghua List.]

[But… her beauty is unquestionable. She is a green lotus in the cold night; the saying "rinsed by clear ripples but not sullied" is a true portrayal of her.]

[Many in the world admire her, yet she has always kept herself pure. She is waiting for someone named Ye Linyuan. Is it love? Is it friendship? Is it an obsession? Or a delusion?]

[But this is also the beginning of all tragedies… Yin Yang saw her.]

[The Yin Yang Pavilion approached her. The lives of the citizens of the Xuanyuan Dynasty are already pressing down on her. In the North Region and South Sea, Yao demons are knocking at the gates. As long as she joins the Yin Yang Pavilion and switches to the Yin Yang Pavilion's Dao techniques in front of thousands of people, the entire Xuanyuan Dynasty's predicament will be solved without a fight.]

[It would only mean… having her Red Pill taken by the champion of the Dao Trial Conference in front of the whole world, cultivating together for three days and three nights, and offering her Physical Body on the top floor of the Jietian Tower for seven days.]

[Sacrificing herself alone would be enough; that is what she tells herself. After all, she is the Master of Qingmu Palace.]

[But… she is unwilling…]

[Lin Yi, you have already captured her. Use your ability to win her heart. Fairy… you can now grasp a person's future.]

[Qingmu Palace Master (Phase 1): Take Lu Jiajing's Red Pill.]

[Reward: Dao Integration-grade Dao Scripture—Great Sun Scripture (Partial).]

Lin Yi raised an eyebrow. He had been wondering why no task popped up when he saw Lu Jiajing; so that's where it was waiting for him.

Lin Yi closed the System interface. "Fairy Lu doesn't need to be so resolute. The lives of the hundreds of millions of citizens of the entire Xuanyuan Dynasty are merely in your hands."

"Now you have two choices. One is to agree to those people from the Yin Yang Pavilion, pin your hopes on them, and then offer up your Physical Body."

"The second is to join us and resist Yin Yang and Ye Linyuan together. Their schemes should not be borne by you or me, nor should they be borne by the citizens of the entire world. You can also achieve a Breakthrough to the Return to Void stage."

Chapter 40: The Softened Fairy

"Take another step on the path of the Dao."

As Lin Yi's words fell, the entire inner room fell into silence.

Lin Yi was not in a hurry either. He just pushed the window open again and turned his head to admire the capital under the moonlight. He raised his teacup and took a light sip. Thin mist swirled above the clear, bright tea, blurring his face.

Pei Yuhan tilted her head slightly, looking at Lin Yi's chin.

Her eyes flickered. Previously, she had also tried to persuade Lu Jiajing, imitating Lin Yi's style, but unfortunately…

Pei Yuhan sighed slightly in her heart.

Su Lingshu looked at her nose and focused on her heart (meditative state). She curled her lips. Lin Yi, that little thief, had improved his silver-tongued skills again. She hurriedly took a sip of tea to suppress the ripples in her heart.

Lu Jiajing's gaze was deep. She turned her head and looked at the night scene outside the window with Lin Yi. The atmosphere seemed to become softer. Because spiritual energy was isolating the cold wind, the inner room remained warm and cozy.

Lu Jiajing slowly calmed her racing heartbeat. How could she not know that her current path was lost? And… compared to those people from the Yin Yang Pavilion, this guy Lin Yi not only had a handsome appearance but could also help her make a Breakthrough from Soul Transformation to Return to Void.

The two choices were simply incomparable. Even though she had already heard it from Pei Yuhan earlier, she still couldn't remain indifferent. Even her body was telling her consciousness… choose the second one…

Back when Lu Jiajing was brought here by Pei Yuhan, she had already suppressed those palpitations, thinking that even if their words were clever, she wouldn't react.

But… these two short sentences from Lin Yi had made her lose her composure.

"I have a third choice." Lu Jiajing said softly.

"Break through to Return to Void on your own?" Lin Yi turned his head, looking at Lu Jiajing, whose face finally revealed a hint of emotion.

"Can you break through on your own? Or… do you think you can defeat Yin Yang?"

Lin Yi's mouth clearly didn't show a mocking smile; he was just stating facts calmly. But the more this was the case, the more Lu Jiajing felt her body trembling.

Even a cold Fairy would have a moment of anger.

Lin Yi glanced at Lu Jiajing. After knowing their weaknesses, it was actually very easy to coerce them. What wasn't easy was… how to win their hearts while getting what he wanted.

"Yuhan, Lingshu, you go rest first. Let me spend some time alone with this Fairy Lu." Lin Yi spoke again without waiting for Lu Jiajing to speak.

"…Okay." After a slight hesitation, Pei Yuhan nodded. She lowered her head and kissed the corner of Lin Yi's lips, then walked out under Lu Jiajing's slightly fixed gaze.

She wasn't afraid that Lu Jiajing would kidnap Lin Yi; she had already placed restrictions on Lu Jiajing.

Su Lingshu wanted to watch the show, but Lin Yi just glanced at her lightly, and she obediently stood up. When passing by Lin Yi, she even kissed the other corner of Lin Yi's lips gently…

Lin Yi watched her back, finding it somewhat amusing.

After Pei Yuhan and Su Lingshu walked out of the inner room, he smiled and reached out to invite Lu Jiajing to sit opposite him.

Lu Jiajing only hesitated slightly, then nodded and sat down opposite Lin Yi.