Are you satisfied with my punishment?

Xue Linglong shivered: "You... what do you want?"

"Turn around." Lin Yuan's tone was icy.

Xue Linglong's body stiffened. Despite having ten thousand reasons to resist within her heart, her body was incredibly honest as she slowly turned around, facing Lin Yuan, standing straight, while her gaze drifted to the side, not daring to meet his eyes.

Seeing this scene, Lin Yuan's brows slightly furrowed.

Something was wrong. Very wrong!

In his mind, he instantly connected all the details since Xue Linglong entered the room.

From the moment she blurted out the supreme detachment pill at the beginning, to her vomiting blood and getting injured whenever she refused to answer his questions, to his words being able to make her stop, and now, even a simple command made her obediently turn around...

This was no side effect of a Cultivation Technique backlash; this was clearly an absolute master-servant relationship!

A guess, bold enough to make his heart race, emerged in his mind.

"Raise your head." Lin Yuan ordered again, but it exploded like a thunderclap in Xue Linglong's ears.

Xue Linglong was forced to raise that pale and stunningly beautiful face, her fists clenched tightly, her nails almost embedding into her flesh.

"It seems... you are very obedient to me." Lin Yuan spoke word by word, staring intently into her eyes.

Xue Linglong froze on the spot, gritting her teeth, her face instantly flushed bright red, filled with shame and anger.

She wanted to deny it, wanted to lash out, but her throat felt blocked, as if she couldn't utter a single word.

Immediately after, another mouthful of blood couldn't be held back and sprayed out, staining the lapel of her clothes red.

"It seems I guessed correctly." The curve of Lin Yuan's lips slowly widened, that smile carrying a hint of amusement and the contentment of controlling everything.

He took a step forward, his Aura completely suppressing her.

"You were lying to me just now. Your Cultivation Technique backlash isn't just as simple as getting injured when approaching me... rather, you lied to me just now, you... must absolutely obey any of my commands, right?"

Xue Linglong's heart skipped a beat.

It was over.

Completely over.

He knew everything.

She knew she couldn't hide it anymore.

If she continued to resist, the Cultivation Technique backlash would intensify, and she might truly have her dao foundation destroyed and die on the spot. She took a deep breath, a flash of deathly despair crossing her eyes.

Since it couldn't be hidden, there was no point in making futile resistance.

She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, they were completely dead, and she huskily revealed the truth: "The Cultivation Technique I practice is called 'Supreme Detachment', requiring one to sever the seven emotions and six desires, keeping the heart like still water, only then can it reach Major Achievement."

"Once one... breaks their Dao Heart with someone, a seed of the Heart Demon will be planted, and as time passes..."

"As the Heart Demon seed sprouts, I will develop deep feelings for you. In the end, I will... obey your every word, unable to refuse, unable to hide, and even more unable to... harm you in the slightest."

Lin Yuan finally realized everything.

"No wonder, so that was it." He walked step by step to Xue Linglong, looking down at her, his tone carrying a trace of mockery, "So, since that time, you were already unable to kill me."

"If not for this, I fear I would have already died without a burial place."

He walked step by step to Xue Linglong, looking down at her.

The once high and mighty Demonic Path enchantress, who viewed him as an ant, was now like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, having no power to resist before him, with even her life and death decided by his words.

This contrast caused a sense of unprecedented pleasure to surge in his heart.

"Since that is the case..." Lin Yuan reached out his hand, using two fingers to gently lift her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze, feeling her body tremble slightly, "Then I have decided to properly... punish you."

"You... what do you want to do?" Xue Linglong's voice was filled with fear.

"The first step of the punishment is to take off this eyesore of a black robe!"

Her hands trembled slightly, rising extremely slowly, touching the ties of her robe.

The black robe slid off.

The candlelight flickered.

...

After a day and a night.

A strange fragrance filled the room.

Lin Yuan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, feeling refreshed.

Xue Linglong curled up in a corner of the bed, wrapping herself tightly with the quilt, revealing only a face covered in crimson, delicate and dripping with charm. Her eyes dodged, filled with both shame and anger, and a trace of confusion she herself had not yet realized.

The once Demonic Path enchantress now truly looked like a frightened little kitten.

This day and night had been earth-shattering for her.

From the initial fierce resistance, to being half-willing driven by the Cultivation Technique and instinct in the middle, and then later... the backlash of the deeply planted feelings completely erupted, letting her sink into it completely.

Her body was far more honest than her mouth, even actively seeking more. Those once icy, beautiful eyes were now stained with a confusion and attachment she herself had not realized.

Lin Yuan reminisced about this day and night of "punishment," finding it quite interesting.

When the storm ceased, the small golden characters in his eyes clearly appeared and refreshed rapidly.

[Cultivation: Ninth Layer of Qi Refining: 900/900 (Perfection)]

[Sixth-Grade Alchemist: 0/400 (addable points)]

[Level 3 Fire Control Technique: 0/300 (addable points); Illusion Transformation Art (Perfection)]

[Available attribute points: 112]

During this day and night, Lin Yuan and Xue Linglong had bitterly cultivated face-to-face three times.

Each time it ended, the available attribute points increased by twenty, totaling sixty points! This clearly wasn't something a Cultivator at the Qi Refinement Stage could provide.

"You reached Foundation Establishment?" Lin Yuan turned his head, asking with great interest.

Xue Linglong's body trembled, wrapping the quilt tighter, and she muffled a single word from her throat: "Mm."

"Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment." Her voice carried a hint of hoarseness and a trace of confusion.

"How did you know?" Xue Linglong asked, coming back to her senses. Although she hadn't changed her appearance, she had used the Illusion Transformation Art to hide her Cultivation Aura. Logically, Lin Yuan, a Qi Refining Cultivator, shouldn't have been able to see through it.

Lin Yuan's lips curled into a wicked smile, his gaze sweeping over her body unscrupulously: "I went deep within, so naturally, I could discover that you are no longer what you once were."

"You... shameless!" Xue Linglong's cheeks instantly turned scorching hot, and she abruptly turned her head away, her heart in complete chaos.

The Cultivation Technique backlash made her unable to resist Lin Yuan, and even caused her to feel close to him.

But she strangely discovered that, besides the influence of the Cultivation Technique, deep in her heart, she didn't seem to reject this feeling either. Even... in that extreme sinking, she tasted a craving she had never experienced before.

"Alright, the journey to Demon Falling Valley is long, so you will stay with me for now. When we have free time, we can explore the mysteries of the origin of life more." Lin Yuan said unhurriedly.

Xue Linglong pouted but did not speak.

She couldn't refuse, and it seemed... she didn't want to refuse either.

Seeing her so docile, a faint, satisfied smile appeared on Lin Yuan's lips. He then stood up and unhurriedly put on his clothes.

"You can do whatever you want here; I won't restrict your freedom."

As he spoke, he took an ancient Jade Slip from his Storage Pouch, probed it with his Divine Sense, and began to study it.