I add points to Indian martial arts.

"This...plain and warm feeling...it seems...not bad?"

The thought, like a vine silently creeping out of the forest, had barely surfaced in her mind when it startled Suleza. She instinctively pressed her hand heavily against her chest—her heartbeat was clearly audible beneath the plain white brocade gauze, the fabric slightly dented under her pressure.

How could that be? How could Suleza, a woman with a grand vision and unwilling to be confined to a small space, possibly crave the simple warmth of an ordinary village woman? This is not what she should be seeking.

She let out a soft breath, then glanced at Li Wei again.

"It's nothing, just a momentary lapse in concentration," she told herself. "It's not a big deal."

……

After a while, it got completely dark. Suleisa and Levi finished their sky-gazing activity and went home together. At the door, as they exchanged greetings to say goodbye, Suleisa couldn't help but ask Levi a question.

Suleisa asked, "What does Salma think a woman is?"

Under the dim light of a ceramic lamp adorned with the image of the goddess Lakshmi, Suleisa stood quietly, awaiting Levi's answer. Many years later, she still remembered that day.

She couldn't quite remember the specifics of that day, what he was wearing, whether he was smiling or not, or what he smelled like, but she remembered Li Wei's expression and tone when he answered the question perfectly.

She remembered Li Wei giving her a strange look before casually saying, "Women are people too."

That way, it was as if she was saying what kind of question she was asking, and what else could a woman be but a human being?

……

"Is the woman even human?"

Late at night, Suleisa returned to her room and frowned as she looked at herself in the bronze mirror. She vaguely remembered what her father had told her a few days ago: the Manu Code clearly stated that women were born as "Ajana" (sacrifices)!

She had a hazy beauty in the bronze mirror. She raised her hand, her fingertips touching the cool surface of the mirror, the cool touch making her tremble slightly.

She was inexplicably irritable again tonight, so she began to slowly let go of herself.

Surisa exhaled softly into the bronze mirror, then her fingers touched the silver brooch inlaid with moonstone on the front of her dress. With a gentle flick, the sound of the button coming undone was exceptionally clear in the silence. The plain white sari, like a petal that had lost its support, slipped off her shoulder and lay softly on the back of the chair, revealing a patch of snow-white skin. Underneath was a cream-colored cotton "Julie," clinging to her body, soft, and outlining the girl's slender and delicate contours.

She untied the braids she had been wearing all day, and her long, black hair cascaded down like a small waterfall, falling over her shoulders and back. The ends of her hair were slightly curled, gently brushing against the softest skin on the inside of her bare neck and arms.

Having shed the formality of her sari and let down her long, tied-up hair, Suleza still frowned as she stood before the mirror.

Removing her clothes didn't bring her the relief she had imagined; she was still a bit irritable.

She recalled her father's words, "Women are born as sacrifices," and Li Wei's matter-of-fact statement, "They are human beings."

Suleza pressed her hands heavily against her chest; she felt a tightness in her chest.

"This can't be done..."

Suleza whispered to herself, her voice dry, as if she were trying to grasp something stable, and she turned and walked toward the shrine.

She hadn't changed her clothes; she was still wearing that thin, off-white Juliet dress, barefoot on the slightly cool floor. She knelt before the shrine, her long, loose hair slipping down one shoulder, almost touching the ground.

She first picked up a soft cloth and carefully wiped the statue, applying even pressure with her fingertips as if trying to wipe away all distracting thoughts. Then, she lit the ceramic lamp.

With a soft "poof," a warm yellow flame leaped up.

A small halo immediately enveloped her, illuminating her drooping, trembling eyelashes and casting a faint shadow on her smooth forehead, where the vermilion tirak was so red it looked as if it were about to bleed.

She devoutly placed a jasmine wreath, its white petals almost transparent in the firelight, their fragrance wafting gently. She clasped her hands together, raised them to her forehead, closed her eyes, and began to chant.

"Om..."

(Scripture reading: Peace be with you...)

(Heart sound: Woman... sacrifice...)

"Shāntiḥ, śāntiḥ, śāntiḥ……"

(Scripture chant: Peace, peace, peace...)

(Heart sound: Is it human...?)

In the dimly lit room, the girl prayed to the gods for peace, but tonight, someone else was sleepless with the lights on.

……

Dusk fell once again.

Li Wei stood in the courtyard, his shadow stretched long and thin by the setting sun. He had been standing there for almost the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, simply standing there, adjusting his breathing, trying to calm himself down from the intense training he had been engaged in for several hours.

Starting this morning, he practiced the first step of the Naga four more times and gained four more experience points.

【Naga Eight Steps Lv2 (8/10)】

"Just two more tries to break through to level three, that's fast."

Li Wei smiled, then closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Buzz... Kappa..."

With his breath swirling in his chest, Li Wei assumed a stance. In his mind, three distorted human figures reappeared. The phantom of the Naga King "Reverse Tuoman" rising to the heavens seemed clearer than ever before. The giant corpses piled up beneath the giant serpent seemed to exude a bloody and murderous aura that transcended time and space.

"bring it on."

He whispered, unsure whether he was speaking to himself or to the figure in the myth.

Li Wei bent his knees slightly and lowered his center of gravity. His thighs were parallel to the ground, his spine was like a bowstring stretched taut with full power, and his neck stood upright. The familiar, tearing, burning pain immediately exploded from his quadriceps and shot up his lower back. Sweat poured out almost instantly.

Li Wei persisted, his blood and qi surging throughout his body, the thunderous roar growing louder. In the dim light, he saw the tightly closed acupoint within his body, where the bronze giant wielding a spear resided. Under the continuous impact of his blood and qi, the light seemed to intensify. The giant still kept his eyes closed, but the electric light leaping on the lightning spear had already faintly pierced through the "walls" of the acupoint.

"After reaching level three, is it possible to break through some acupoints?"

"What will happen after it's completely broken through?" Li Wei wondered silently.

Palm strike! After an incense stick's time, Li Wei changed his posture. He twisted and slapped his left arm at an odd angle, and the air crackled with a "snap." A faint, inch-long, twisted arc of electricity flashed and disappeared in front of his palm.

And so, after one incense stick, two incense sticks, and an hour later, Li Wei practiced in several different postures until he completed one round.

[Practice completed. Experience points +1]

【Naga Eight Steps lv2 (9/10)】

"Almost there, just one more push and you'll break through to level three."

Li Wei knelt on one knee, sweat pouring down his face. After a short rest, he resumed his practice.

The final lap begins!

Li Weiqiang, supporting his trembling legs, straightened his body, tilted his head back, and assumed the starting stance, beginning to mimic the posture of a lightning spear.

……

An hour later, Li Wei lay on the ground, exhausted, looking at the panel in front of him with a satisfied expression.

[Exercise completed, experience points +1]

Congratulations on your upgrade!

【Naga Eight Steps (lv2→ lv3)】

[Reward: 0.1 HP]

[Elephant strength: 0.6 → 0.7]

Li Wei examined his body internally and found that the acupoint where the bronze giant resided seemed to have been slightly opened by him.

He vaguely felt that his body was different from before, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what was different.

After resting for a while, Li Wei stood up and walked out the door. He opened the door with a creak, and to his surprise, he did not see Suleisa today.

Suleiman did not come.

"It seems so. Why didn't she come all day today?" Li Wei frowned. A couple of days ago, he remembered that Suleisa would not only wait for him at night, but also bring him water every day when it was hot at noon. But today was strange. She didn't come all day, and she didn't wait for him here at night either.

He hadn't felt anything amiss while he was engrossed in practicing martial arts, but now he felt a little strange.

Why isn't she coming?