Chương 497: Chapter 496: Outrageous!

Ye Chen exhaled deeply, retrieving the image stone. Releasing her restraints, he said calmly, "This stone recorded everything. You don't want your fiancé seeing this, do you? Hand over the Movement Secret, and it's yours." Burdened by her idol image, Yi Qingwu swallowed hard before speaking, her tearful eyes defiant.

"So what? My fiancé will understand—it's your coercion. He'll kill you to vent his rage." Ye Chen was stunned. She'd been so cooperative, yet her words were so stubborn? His temper cooled, and he sighed helplessly.

"Holy Maiden, tell me how to threaten you then." Her face filled with worry.

"Anything else is fine, but losing my pure yin would shame me before my fiancé, leaving me unable to face him. Threaten that, and I'd be helpless, forced to yield." Ye Chen caught her hint and played along.

"Yi Qingwu, last warning: give me the Movement Secret, or I'll take your purity!" Her stunning face flashed with defiance.

"If you're not afraid of my fiancé's wrath, try it! I won't yield." Ye Chen's eyes widened. Something's wrong with you. Had she planned this, setting up such an impregnable "private room"? Gazing at her kneeling form—flawless from head to toe, reminiscent of his master in front, his senior sister behind, with a willow-slim waist, impossibly beautiful—he couldn't deny the temptation. But compared to feedback, he wasn't so eager. He'd rather wait for a higher multiplier before granting her wish.

Sighing, he said, "You're not ready." Yi Qingwu, expecting the next step, froze, confused. Ye Chen crouched to her level, meeting her eyes earnestly.

"I, Ye Chen, live freely but never force others. You don't love me; your heart hasn't accepted me. You're just using me to provoke Ying Tiansheng. I don't know why, but I've always played along, unable to refuse. Yet, I hesitate at the final step. I'm not afraid of his wrath or pursuit. I fear you'll regret this choice someday. Unless you truly love me, not just use me, I won't take that step." The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

Hearing he never forced others, she recalled his earlier interruptions, tempted to retort. But his later words silenced her. He'd known all along she was using him as a tool to spite Ying Tiansheng. For any prodigy, being a tool was a grave insult. Yet Ye Chen indulged her without complaint, even rushing to deliver the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid for her grandmother's injury. His deep devotion was clear. Compared to that, she'd never considered his feelings, only scheming to use him for revenge.

Realizing this, guilt flickered in her eyes. The formation fell silent. Yi Qingwu stared at Ye Chen for a long time before speaking.

"You humiliated me earlier. It can't end like this." Ye Chen listened quietly, curious about her next move. She continued, "The marks are important. Each one is a humiliation, recorded so I can settle the score with you later. So, we need another mark!" Ye Chen's lips twitched but he nodded cooperatively.

"Fine. Offer your primordial spirit." He planned to leave a stroke in her spiritual core, as before. But Yi Qingwu shook her head firmly.

"Different humiliations carry different weights. I'll repay them differently—they can't be mixed. So, leave it here." She tilted her head, her fan-like lashes fluttering. Ye Chen was stunned. How could he mark her face? Her perfect, flawless features—marking them, even a smudge, felt like sacrilege. But her expression was resolute. Sighing, he used a special technique to draw a short horizontal line near her lips. The mark wasn't physical, invisible unless activated by Qi.

Yi Qingwu inspected it, satisfied, but then frowned.

"I hate incomplete marks. They feel unfinished, nagging at me. The mark in my spiritual core, with one extra stroke toward a '||||\' symbol, keeps me restless, always checking, wondering when it'll be complete. Now this single line—if it's not finished, I'll lose focus on cultivation." Ye Chen was shocked. OCD?

"Then offer your spirit, and I'll complete the symbol in your core and on your face." She shook her head, her clear eyes serious.

"Marks signify humiliation. One per session, no more, no less, or they lose meaning. This time, you must turn both lines into full '||||\' symbol!" Ye Chen was floored by the odd request but used to her quirks, and bargained smoothly.

"Completing '||||\' is fine, but you must give me the Movement Secret. Otherwise, no more marks—you'll be stuck with two incomplete lines forever." Her eyes widened, stunned by his shamelessness. Threatening her with her own obsession? Outrageous! But she relented.

"Two '||||\' symbols need eight strokes total. After each mark, I'll give you one-eighth of the Movement Secret."