Chương 154: The Familiar Feeling and the Truth of "Punishment"

As night deepened, deliberately lowered footsteps echoed down the corridor on the second floor of the Lin family's house.

With a strange expression on her face, a mixture of surprise, amusement, and a hint of schadenfreude, Su Yuqing gently pushed open the door to her parents' bedroom and peeked in with her little head.

"Dad, Mom, are you still awake?"

Lin Chen was sitting on the edge of the bed reading when he heard the sound. He looked up at his daughter with some surprise and asked, "Yuqing? What's wrong so late?"

Su Yuqing tried to make her expression look normal and said in a normal voice, "Um—my brother just called me and said he's staying at a friend's house tonight and won't be coming home overnight."

"Really?" Su Wanyi's worried voice came from beside Lin Chen.

"Why so suddenly? Did something happen to Xiao Che?"

In contrast, Lin Chen obviously didn't think that much. He closed the book in his hand, turned to his wife and smiled gently: "Xiao Che, when he was in junior high school, he just stayed in his room studying every day. He didn't want to go out and play with his friends. I was always worried that he might be too withdrawn."

"Now that he has finally made friends and is willing to play with them, that's a good thing. Let's not worry about it and just let him be."

Then, he looked at Su Yuqing with some doubt and asked, "But speaking of which, why does Xiao Che have to call or text us directly instead of having his younger sister relay his messages?"

"Well—" Su Yuqing's eyes darted around unconsciously, and she suddenly seemed a little hesitant, unsure of how to explain.

Fortunately, Su Wanyi smiled and came to her rescue: "Maybe Xiao Che just contacted Yu Qing first on his own. The two siblings have such a good relationship, so we're relieved."

Lin Chen nodded in agreement upon hearing this: "Yes, that makes sense."

He then turned to Su Yuqing and said, "Alright, we already know. Yuqing, you should go upstairs and rest early too."

"By the way, remember to spend more time with Xiaoli. That child lives alone in our house, so don't make her feel uncomfortable."

"Okay! I understand!" Su Yuqing nodded repeatedly, responding as if she had been granted a pardon. After saying "Goodnight, Mom and Dad," she quickly went upstairs without looking back.

Upon arriving at her room, Su Yuqing took a deep breath and quickly switched from her previous obedient and adorable demeanor to a slightly indifferent one.

She gently pushed open the door to her room, and her gaze instinctively fell on the black-haired, red-eyed girl who was kneeling on the cold floor, curled up in a small ball, looking pitiful.

Although she was still wearing that dashing long black trench coat, she had lost all her imposing presence and looked like a little bird whose feathers had been accidentally soaked and was shivering in the rain.

Su Yuqing's lips curled up slightly involuntarily, and she let out a soft "humph".

She walked calmly to her bedside, then sat down gracefully facing Jiying, crossing her long, shapely, white legs.

Then, in an incredibly gentle, almost tender voice, she slowly asked, "Can you explain yourself properly now?"

"Little Shadow?"

The deliberately drawn-out "Xiaoying" with its subtle upward inflection pierced Jiying's ears like a spell, causing her already trembling body to shake even more violently.

She instinctively lowered her head even further, trying to minimize her presence, wishing she could immediately dig a hole in the wooden floor and hide herself away.

However, no matter how hard she tried, at this moment, she was the only focus of Su Yuqing's attention in the entire room.

Seeing that Ji Ying was keeping his head down and not saying a word, but just trembling, Su Yuqing revealed a malicious smile on her face.

She leaned forward slightly, extended her slender, white fingers, and gently, yet irresistibly, lifted Ji Ying's chin, forcing her to look up and meet her gaze into her eyes, which were now flashing with a dangerous light.

"Hurry up and confess honestly~" Su Yuqing's voice became gentler, but the threat in her tone did not diminish at all.

"Suddenly barging into my room in the form of Xiaoying, not only interrupting my important nighttime girl's private talk with Xiaoli, but also making me tell my parents that kind of lie as soon as I came in, and even looking like I was about to cry—" At this point, a suspicious blush suddenly appeared on Su Yuqing's cheeks, as if she had remembered the details of the private topics she had just discussed with Luo Bingli.

Then she changed the subject, feigning magnanimity, and said, "Hmph, these—I'll reluctantly forgive you!"

Then, with a flick of her wrist, she grabbed the white cardigan that was lying on the edge of the bed, held it up in front of Ji Ying, and her tone instantly turned dangerous: "But you have to explain this to me clearly!"

"Why do you smell so strange? And—you brazenly brought back a dress that clearly belongs to another girl?!"

"Xiaoying, if you don't explain these things to me honestly, tonight—" A sweet yet incredibly dangerous smile appeared on Su Yuqing's face, her voice as soft as a lover's whisper: "You... can't... sleep... peacefully~" With Su Yuqing forcibly lifting his chin, Ji Ying, unable to continue looking down and escaping, could only be forced to meet her bright eyes, which were so close to his and filled with "murderous intent".

She subconsciously turned her pleading gaze toward Luo Bingli, who sat quietly on the edge of the bed the whole time, as if she were just an outsider, standing next to Su Yuqing.

I hope that Xiao Li, who is usually gentle and kind and who "betrayed" Su Yuqing twice this morning to speak up for me, can help me out of this predicament again.

However, to her surprise— After noticing her pleading gaze, Luo Bingli simply met her gaze calmly, then shook her head slightly, her face bearing an expression identical to Su Yuqing's: "Confess and you'll be treated leniently, resist and you'll be punished severely. Xiaoying, I absolutely will not speak up for you until you honestly explain all the issues clearly."

"After all—I'm also very curious about who that unfamiliar girl is."'

Ji Ying stared at Su Yuqing's eyes, which were filled with a strong sense of mockery, and felt the powerful aura of a victor emanating from her. He then glanced at Luo Bingli, who had completely "betrayed" him.

An indescribable surge of grief, shame, and despair welled up within her.

Let's rewind to half an hour earlier, to that quiet corner by the bench.

When Jiying silently repeated "deactivate transformation" countless times in her mind, only to find that she was still in the form of a petite girl, she was immediately filled with an overwhelming sense of panic and shock.

How could this be—how could this happen?!

Why—why can't I turn back?!

Just then, she realized with horror that some thoughts were once again uncontrollably popping into her mind— —A very strange thought.

For example, she might subconsciously feel that while the style of these tall boots on her feet is quite stylish, isn't it a bit too ordinary?

Wouldn't it look even better if the boot shaft had a delicate lace trim or a few sparkling gemstones?

For example, she might suddenly feel that her current side ponytail hairstyle, while still quite cute and playful, is a bit too monotonous.

Would a more elaborate and intricate braid, or some pretty hair accessories, better suit my current look?

These absurd thoughts, which were completely unrelated to "Lin Che," flooded her mind uncontrollably, making her scalp tingle.

She suddenly recalled the strange thought that popped into her head when she was adjusting her trench coat: "Is it a little not cute enough?"

It turns out that it wasn't an illusion at all! It was—my own thinking was once again being influenced by that feminine form!

Unable to undo the transformation, and her mind was also affected—all of this was exactly the same as the so-called punishment that unreliable system inflicted on her when she first transformed into Starfrost!

But why?

Since her last encounter with the Corrosive Queen Void Beast in the mall, the system has not issued her any new missions. If there are no missions, then where does the punishment come from?

Moreover, those so-called missions and punishments should have been aimed at "Magical Girl Starfrost"! But she is currently—she is clearly in the form of "Silent Shadow".

"System—!!! Come out here—!!!"

The more she thought about it, the angrier and more aggrieved she became. Ji Ying trembled with anger and roared inwardly in frustration.

【——Host, please calm down】 A moment later, that familiar, cold notification sound rang in her mind.

"Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down? What's going on? Why can't I turn back? And my thoughts are starting to get weird. Are you up to something again?"

Ji Ying questioned wildly in his heart, his tone filled with uncontrollable rage.

The situation you are currently experiencing is not a form of punishment imposed by this system.

"Not punishment?" Upon hearing this, Ji Ying's anger intensified.

"Then what exactly is going on? You'd better give me a reasonable explanation."

The state you are experiencing now is a foreseeable side effect of deepening your integration with this newly acquired power.

[Whether it's ethereal energy or magical power, when the total amount existing in your body reaches a certain threshold, it will begin to undergo a deeper level of fusion.] [When you first transformed into Starfrost, your magical power reached that threshold, and it wasn't until you absorbed those Void Beast energy cores that your Void Energy reached the same threshold.] In the process of accepting and mastering these forces, your soul will inevitably go through a stage of mutual adaptation, mutual influence, and ultimately, perfect integration.

This state may last for some time, the exact duration depending on your progress in integrating with the power, and during this period, your mindset will indeed be more significantly influenced by your current feminine form.

The system's voice remained calm and even, as if stating a very simple fact.

Listening to the system's seemingly reasonable explanation, Ji Ying was filled with even more doubts.

"What about before? You didn't say that when I transformed into Starfrost. You clearly said it was punishment."

O 【————】 The system fell silent for a rare moment, as if organizing its thoughts.

Given your level of understanding of extraordinary power at the time, if this system had directly explained to you that this was a necessary stage in the fusion of power and soul, You may not only be unable to understand it, but you may also develop a strong resistance due to fear of the unknown, which could seriously affect the smooth progress of the integration.

In contrast, using a more direct and easily accepted/understood approach like "punishment for task failure" to constrain your behavior is a better way to do so.

On the contrary, it allows you to gradually adapt to and accept the magic of Starfrost in a relatively "controllable" state.

"Then what about that state where you could temporarily cancel the transformation, but the overall punishment would last longer?" Jiying pressed.

That is also a manifestation of the process of power fusion.

[In essence, it involves consciously slowing down or phased down the process of integrating you with the Starfrost Magic, thereby reducing the impact of side effects on your daily life.]

"Then why didn't you tell me this sooner?"

[This system is currently unable to provide information.]

"It seems you're still hiding many things from me?" Ji Ying asked tentatively.

"Is your inability to answer my question due to 'inability,' or 'unwillingness'?"

Yes, host, there are indeed many things this system cannot reveal to you.

However, please believe that this system has absolutely no malicious intent towards you, the host.

[Those are things this system cannot tell the host, because in this regard, this system is subject to a certain—inviolable restriction.] [There are many things that this system can selectively inform you of, without violating any restrictions, only after you, the host, have noticed certain clues.] [For example, the truth about the power fusion this time, or when you first encountered the Void Realm Apostles, this system was able to explain some basic information about them to you.]

"Ha! I probably figured it out myself back then, I didn't need you to explain it to me." Ji Ying retorted somewhat irritably.

But then, as if she had thought of something even more terrifying, she cautiously asked, "Then—" How many more times will I experience the side effects of this power fusion?

The exact number of times cannot be determined.

But one thing is for sure: this will definitely not be the last time.

"This can't be the last time?!"

Ji Ying was immediately struck by a blow, as if all her strength had been drained. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed onto the cold ground in a standard duck-sitting position.

Her shoulders slumped limply, her delicate face etched with despair, and there were even glistening tears in the corners of her eyes, making her look pitiful as if she was about to burst into tears.

Immediately, she realized that, regardless of how many more times she would experience this, tonight alone, she was facing the predicament of not being able to go home as Lin Che, let alone spend the night outside in this state.

This is unbearable!

Clinging to a last shred of hope, she tried to appeal to the system: "System—System Master! Could you slow down my power fusion process a little, like before, so I can at least temporarily revert to my transformation, even if it's just for one night—" However, the system's response ruthlessly shattered her illusions— [Sorry, host. This system can only exert a limited influence on magic originating from Starfrost.] This system is powerless to assist in the deep fusion of this ethereal energy within you and your soul.

Ji Ying's lips twitched uncontrollably a few times, and she said in a trembling voice filled with despair, "Then what am I supposed to do tonight—?"

[Host, keep it up!] After leaving behind these encouraging words, the system's voice fell into a deathly silence in his mind, offering no response no matter how much Ji Ying called out to it in his heart.

"Hey! System! Stop playing dead! Come out here and explain yourself!"

"At least tell me how long this will last!"

"Damn system! Unreliable system! Garbage system!"

Finally, after several minutes of inner struggle filled with despair and indignation, Jiying slowly stood up from the cold ground.

She knew that no matter how unwilling she was, she had to find a way to solve the current predicament.

Although he knew that facing that woman in his current state was extremely dangerous, the only person who could help him in this matter was that "little devil" Su Yuqing.

With no other choice, Ji Ying gritted his teeth and quietly sneaked back to the vicinity of his own villa.

Then, using his ability to jump through shadows, he entered Su Yuqing's bedroom on the second floor, which was currently lit up, and humbly asked for help and to be "taken in".

And so—the situation has become what it is now.

Back to the present, Su Yuqing looked at Xiaoying, who was clearly distracted and lost in thought, and a slightly dissatisfied expression appeared on her face.

She still gently pinched Ji Ying's chin with one hand, forcing him to refocus his gaze on her.

At the same time, her other hand quietly slipped inside Ji Ying's long black trench coat and gently scratched her flat, smooth abdomen.

"ah--!"

Ji Ying was startled by the sudden attack and let out a short gasp involuntarily. She instinctively shrank back, but Su Yuqing's action of pinching her chin prevented her from doing so.

Seeing that Ji Ying had finally come to her senses and her cheeks were slightly flushed with embarrassment, Su Yuqing smiled sweetly and asked softly, "Now—shouldn't you organize your thoughts?"

"Can you tell Xiaoli and me what exactly happened tonight?"

"My dearest—Xiaoying?"