Fairy, you call this repaying a debt of gratitude?

When Ye Qingci came out, her plain-colored bathrobe added a touch of languid gentleness to her appearance.

When she lay down on the bed, she belatedly realized that although the guest room was spacious and elegant, it only contained a bed.

Seeing this, Shen Wei didn't say much. He closed his eyes slightly, leaned back in his chair, and prepared to fall asleep.

However, he was tall and upright with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, so the narrow bench did not allow him to stretch out at all.

His shoulders and back were only slightly hunched, and he couldn't even fully straighten his legs, making him look extremely strained.

Ye Qingci watched silently from the side, a hint of reluctance flashing across her expression.

She knew that Shen Wei had been traveling for days and had fought with the enemy several times, and was already exhausted both physically and mentally. He was certainly not able to get proper rest by making do like this.

After hesitating for a long time, she finally suppressed her shyness and spoke softly, her voice carrying a hint of barely perceptible probing: "Why don't you sleep in the bed?"

"Hmm? No need."

Shen Wei slowly raised his eyes, a faint weariness between his brows.

"I'm fine like this, it's no problem."

"Come on up." Ye Qingci paused, as if making a huge decision, and slowly added.

"Now that my meridians are damaged and I have lost all my spiritual power, I can only rely on... you. If you don't get enough rest, and we happen to encounter someone from the Demonic Sect, we'll both be in trouble."

After listening, Shen Wei remained silent for a moment and realized that what she said made sense.

After days of travel and several encounters, he was already exhausted, both physically and mentally. If he forced himself to keep going, he would indeed be unable to protect her should a crisis arise.

After thinking it through, he stopped refusing.

Shen Wei got up, strode to the bedside, and lay down without any hesitation.

The candle was extinguished at just the right moment.

As he lay down on the side of the bed, the fresh scent of Ye Qingci, who had just taken a bath, quietly wafted into his nostrils.

It gave him a rare feeling of familiar warmth.

These days, my tense nerves have unconsciously relaxed a bit.

He soon fell into a deep sleep.

But Ye Qingci had difficulty falling asleep.

Although it wasn't the first time she'd slept with a man, back then he was just a young boy who hadn't yet grown up, with a reserved and delicate nature...

She was completely incomparable to the mature, masculine, calm, and cold man in front of her.

The bed wasn't very spacious to begin with, and although the two were only half an arm's length apart, she could still clearly feel Shen Wei's body temperature and breath, and a faint blush quietly rose on her cheeks.

She silently closed her eyes and recited the calming mantra in her heart again and again until the restlessness in her heart gradually subsided, and she finally felt a little sleepy.

As night deepened, only the even breathing of the two people remained in the room.

Halfway through his sleep, Shen Wei felt something soft pressing down on him, which made him very uncomfortable.

He initially thought that Ye Qingci had accidentally rolled over and leaned against him after falling asleep, but then he realized that she was very well-behaved and had an upright posture when she slept.

He himself is often restless when he sleeps.

What could be pressing down on him...?

A thought flashed through Shen Wei's mind, and he immediately sensed something was wrong. The sleepiness in his heart vanished instantly.

He suddenly opened his eyes.

A young girl dressed in a black, openwork, flowing dress was straddling him. The light skirt accentuated her slender and graceful figure.

He was casually toying with a gleaming dagger in his hand.

By the faint moonlight, Shen Wei could vaguely see:

The girl had a delicate face, exquisite eyebrows and eyes, and dark pupils that seemed to contain a burning obsession. Her nose was small and delicate, and her lips were a light cherry pink.

Her long hair was loosely tied up halfway, with a few stray strands falling beside her cheeks; it was a dazzling white...

Upon seeing that dazzling silver-white color in the darkness, Shen Wei immediately called out her name:

"Ji Lingyuan..."

Seeing that Shen Wei had woken up, she chuckled softly.

She immediately bent down and curled up in front of him like a kitten, pressing the sharp dagger against his neck.

"I didn't expect Brother Shen Wei to still remember me?"

The girl's voice was soft and sweet, but a hint of bitterness and resentment could be faintly heard in her tone.

"I thought I was just some random cat or dog that Young Master Shen picked up on a whim, someone he'd keep when he was interested and throw away when he wasn't."

Shen Wei's gaze subconsciously swept to his side, and seeing that Ye Qingci was still sleeping soundly and undisturbed, he breathed a slight sigh of relief before looking away.

Do you want me to explain?

"In no mood"

Ji Lingyuan's tone was resolute.

"I don't want to hear any excuses you make for leaving without saying goodbye."

As she spoke, she exerted a little force with her wrist, pressing the dagger down a few more times until it completely cut his neck, drawing out a few drops of blood.

Feeling a slight stinging pain in his neck, he frowned, but his confusion about Ji Lingyuan's actions was still more pronounced.

Then, Ji Lingyuan placed the blood-stained dagger in front of her mouth, slightly opened her lips, gently licked it, and then revealed a look of intoxication and enjoyment.

Seeing that the dagger had temporarily left his neck, Shen Wei instinctively tried to circulate his spiritual energy to break free of the restraint.

But he soon discovered that he could not use any spiritual power at all; his whole body was weak, and he didn't even have the strength to lift his hand.

Even the usually restless evil dragon within him was eerily quiet at this moment, as if it were being suppressed by something, remaining completely still.

"hehe……"

Ji Lingyuan covered her mouth and let out a silvery laugh, her tone full of smugness and cunning.

"Don't waste your energy, Brother Shen Wei."

Her fingertips gently traced his chest through his thin clothing.

"I already put a spirit-locking powder in this room, you should know that, right? You're no different from an ordinary person now."

After hearing Ji Lingyuan's words, Shen Wei felt a sense of annoyance.

It turns out that the faint, elusive fragrance was actually the Soul-Locking Powder?

I should have thought of this sooner.

Shen Wei sighed as if admitting defeat:

What exactly do you want?

The way you're saying it makes it sound like I've done something wrong.

Ji Lingyuan's tone instantly turned cold, and the smile in her eyes vanished, leaving only deep resentment.

"Wasn't it you who, without a word, left a letter and vanished without a trace back then?"

He hadn't expected Ji Lingyuan to view his departure in this way, and for a moment he didn't know how to respond.

"I……"

Shen Wei felt a dryness in his throat, which made his voice hoarse.

"I just want to set you free. We can't live a life of constant danger forever, can we?"

Ji Lingyuan's eyes changed instantly upon hearing this, and her tone turned completely cold:

"You know what, Shen Wei! That's what I hate most about you—your self-righteous gentleness and your inexplicable acts of charity!"

Her voice trembled slightly, and her eyes seemed to hold years of suppressed grievances and resentment.

"What gives you the right to make decisions for me?"

"I am indeed tired of killing, and I do yearn for freedom, but without you by my side, I would rather not have even the best days!"

Shen Wei was rendered speechless by her words.

"Besides, why is there a woman lying next to you in such an ambiguous situation?"

Ji Lingyuan was referring to Ye Cinian, who was lying next to him.

"She...is my savior." Shen Wei said calmly, his expression serious. "If it weren't for her back then, there probably wouldn't be the Shen Wei you know. I protect her simply to repay her kindness."

The hostility in his eyes faded slightly, but quickly returned; his tone remained cold, even tinged with sarcasm: "Repaying a debt of gratitude... has it all come down to sharing a bed?"

"You saved my life, so I must repay your kindness..."

"This was only out of necessity..."

"Who knows if you're lying to me again?" Ji Lingyuan interrupted him.

"Nobody's a better conman than you."

As she spoke, she suddenly raised her hand and used the dagger to make a small cut above her own neck.

Instantly, a stream of bright red blood gushed out, slowly sliding down her fair neck in a shocking sight.

She gently raised her fingers, wiped the blood from her neck, and then leaned forward slightly.

"I'll make sure you can never lie to me again, and you can never leave me again..."

Her blood-stained hand slowly reached towards Shen Wei's mouth, her tone tinged with anticipation.

"What...are you doing?"

A rare look of panic crossed Shen Wei's face.

Seeing his expression, Ji Lingyuan's eyes flashed with a hint of smugness and satisfaction, her tone carrying a touch of coquettishness:

"The contract will be fully completed once you have consumed my blood."

"At that time, you'll be mine alone..."

Ji Lingyuan's words carried a hint of longing and excitement.

"What contract...?"

At that moment, Shen Wei's heart tightened.

"Brother Shen Wei, don't pretend to be stupid, you know that."

He knew?

Could it be that slave contract?

The slave contract was a practical cultivation technique they found in a storage ring of a heretical cultivator while completing a bounty.

Specifically, through the fusion of essence and blood, the user of the technique can freely mobilize the spiritual power of the other party to achieve the effect of making the other party completely obedient to them.

However, after glancing at it twice, Shen Wei found it uninteresting and casually tossed it to Ji Lingyuan, telling her to take it to the black market and sell it.

Could it be that she didn't sell it but kept it?

No, that's absolutely not allowed.

He forced himself to calm down and see if he could find a solution.

Shen Wei tilted his head slightly, his tone firm.

"The person you like shouldn't be a puppet that can be manipulated and has no self, right?"

"Yes, that makes sense."

After a moment's thought, Ji Lingyuan nodded slightly.

"But putting aside your jerk personality, I really like your body and your face..."

As she spoke, Ji Lingyuan's slender hand slowly traced its way up his chest, gently caressing his cheek.

"Do you know..."

Her tone became somewhat shy, yet also contained a hint of anticipation.

"Back then, I fantasized every day about the day you would come back, your evil dragon's lust would flare up, and then you would do this to me..."

"After that, I can naturally become your wife. Once you have avenged your great wrongs, we will retire from the martial world, have many children, and cultivate many fields."

"But when that day actually comes, why will you try so hard to restrain yourself?"

Shen Wei felt a sense of helplessness. He looked at the girl in front of him, whose eyes were full of grievance, and was filled with confusion.

He clearly only ever treated her as a younger sister, never having any other thoughts. Could it be that there was something wrong with his parenting methods back then?

Otherwise, how could she have been raised to be like this?

"Is it because my figure isn't good enough that you're not interested in me?"

"And now?"

As she spoke, she pulled her clothes down slightly, revealing a portion of her snow-white skin.

"Am I capable of winning your heart now?"

The same applies now...

Shen Wei glanced at it subconsciously, but didn't say anything.

Ji Lingyuan seemed to understand Shen Wei's gaze. She then turned to look at Ye Qingci lying beside him, her eyes suddenly filled with insecurity.

She then subtly pulled her clothes up to cover her exposed skin, and her expression dimmed slightly.

In that brief moment of distraction, Shen Wei seized the opportunity, abruptly sitting up and pulling Ji Lingyuan tightly into his arms.

"ah..."

Caught off guard, Ji Lingyuan let out a soft cry, struggling to push him away, her voice tinged with panic, "That's cheating! Let go! I order you, let go of me!"

But as her body pressed against Shen Wei's warm chest, feeling his familiar scent, her struggles gradually weakened, and her voice grew softer and softer.

Even this angry rebuke sounded like a child's whining.

"Bang!"

The dagger fell at just the right moment, its crisp sound echoing through the room.

Ye Qingci was startled awake by the sudden noise. She rubbed her sleepy eyes, and her consciousness gradually returned.

Looking up, one could see Shen Wei tightly embracing a girl in a black dress, both of their necks stained with blood, and a gleaming dagger lying on the ground.

She was instantly wide awake, her almond-shaped eyes widening in surprise and bewilderment. She blurted out involuntarily:

"What are you doing?"