62: Chapter 62 This foundation, will you build it or not?

The black veil slowly slid down.

Revealing the peerless face beneath.

Even though her lips were tightly pursed and her eyes were filled with unease, she could not hide the charm etched into her very bones.

"After you left, I stopped taking Qingyan's medicine."

"The discomfort in my body has almost entirely disappeared."

Her voice was very soft, carrying a trace of imperceptible disappointment as she looked up at Mo Zixing:

"You were right."

"I never lie, of course."

Mo Zixing leaned back against the chair indifferently, casually tapping the table as he raised an eyebrow at her:

"So, Elder Su, you came here and waited for me for so long specifically to say what, exactly?"

His gaze fell directly on her face with unconcealed scrutiny.

Su Li opened her mouth.

But when the words reached her lips, they were blocked by the remnants of her pride.

When had she ever begged someone so submissively?

But now...

Aside from pleading with the person in front of her...

She had no other options left.

"I..."

Su Li's lips quivered a few times, her voice so low it was almost inaudible.

"Say it."

Mo Zixing interrupted her, his tone flat, yet it somehow gave her a sense of oppression.

"Elder Su, if you want something, you have to say it yourself before I know how to help you."

"I..."

Su Li's heart was in a state of immense struggle.

Finally.

As if finally shedding that pitiful bit of pride, she looked up to meet Mo Zixing's gaze:

"I... I beg you to help me repair my Foundation and restore my cultivation."

After saying this, she felt as if all the strength in her body had been drained; she lowered her head, not daring to face him.

"That's more like it."

Mo Zixing smiled and slowly stood up, walking toward her step by step.

He was more than half a head taller than Su Li. When he leaned down, his shadow almost completely enveloped her, filling the air around her.

Su Li instinctively shrank back.

Her back hit the cold back of the chair; with nowhere to retreat, her heart began to race uncontrollably.

"Since you're asking for a favor, you must show sincerity, right?"

Mo Zixing's voice was very low.

His warm breath brushed past the tip of her ear, causing her whole body to tremble slightly.

"Elder Su, what kind of sincerity can you offer?"

Sincerity.

Hearing this, a hint of bewilderment flashed through Su Li's eyes.

What did she have left now?

Her cultivation was completely destroyed.

Her Foundation was utterly scattered.

In her current state, she was nothing more than a nominal Elder with an idle post in the Sect, possessing no authority.

Furthermore, because she was not good at socializing, she had no resources in the Sect that could be called connections.

Even her appearance had only recently been restored thanks to the man before her.

She had nothing.

She couldn't produce any matching bargaining chips.

"I... I don't know."

Her voice carried an imperceptible bitterness.

A person who had been proud her whole life was admitting her emptiness so directly for the first time.

That bit of fragility mixed with her natural charm made one's heart itch.

Mo Zixing reached out and gently stroked her cheek.

Su Li's entire body stiffened, but she did nothing, only her eyelashes trembled even more violently.

"Then we'll let it be a debt for now."

Mo Zixing's fingertips slowly traced her features, his tone casual.

He quietly opened the System panel to take a look.

It had been nearly a day since they set off from the Domain of Blazing Flame to fly back to the Sect.

The twenty-four-hour cooldown for the trait masking function was almost over.

Once the CD was up, the [severely wounded] trait on Liu Qingyan would take effect again, and she would inevitably go into secluded meditation to heal.

He had to seize this opportunity to completely turn Su Li into one of his own.

Mo Zixing pulled back his thoughts, gently pinched her reddening ear, and spoke slowly:

"Do you remember how I healed your face last time?"

These words were like a bolt of lightning.

They instantly exploded in Su Li's mind.

She remembered the shameful scene in the Sleeping Quarters that day, where she had been exposed before him without any concealment.

Su Li's cheeks turned crimson. She glared at him with both shame and indignation, gritting her teeth:

"You!"

"Shh."

Mo Zixing reached out with his other hand and gently pressed his fingertip against her lips:

"Quietly. Yuwei is still resting next door; don't disturb her."

Su Li's lips were pressed by him.

Unable to speak, she could only glare at him while making muffled sounds, her whole body trembling slightly.

Mo Zixing slowly moved his hand away from her lips. Seeing her flustered state, he couldn't help but laugh.

"So you do know someone is resting next door?"

Su Li finally couldn't take it anymore. She lowered her voice and continued to snap back in anger and anxiety:

"Even at a time like this, you're still thinking of doing that kind of thing!"

"Now, that's where you're wrong, Elder Su."

Mo Zixing raised an eyebrow with an innocent expression:

"I said last time, everything I do is for your own good. It's a matter of necessity."

"Without doing that, there was no way to clear the blockages in your body and heal your face."

"Of course, the same logic applies to repairing your Foundation now."

He leaned down, his voice playful as he spun a plausible-sounding lie:

"A completely destroyed foundation at the Crystallization Stage with blocked and necrotic Meridians is a hundred times harder to treat than the injuries on your face."

"Tell me, if I don't use the same method as last time..."

"How am I supposed to help you clear all the Meridians in your body and piece back your necrotic Foundation bit by bit?"

Su Li froze completely.

It wasn't that she didn't understand the principles of cultivation.

The Meridians are connected to the Dantian and the Foundation; a single move affects the entire body.

To thoroughly repair a necrotic Foundation, it indeed sounded like all the Meridians in the body needed to be cleared.

Not a single trace of blockage could remain.

But at the thought of the scene from last time...

At the thought of being exposed before him once again without reservation, letting him touch every inch of her skin...

Her cheeks grew so hot they felt like they were burning, and even her breathing became erratic.

An internal battle was raging in Su Li's heart.

Mo Zixing watched the struggle in her eyes.

He didn't rush her, patiently waiting for her answer.

Just then, the sound of Jiang Yuwei's light footsteps came from next door, as if she were coming this way.

Su Li instantly panicked. She instinctively reached out and grabbed Mo Zixing's lapels, terrified that Jiang Yuwei would push the door open and see the two of them in such an ambiguous position.

Mo Zixing was pulled by her until he was right against her.

There was almost no distance left between them.

Su Li wanted to let go, but fearing Jiang Yuwei would hear the noise, she could only bite her lip and glare at him.

That fearful yet shameful charm made Mo Zixing's heart skip a beat.

The footsteps outside gradually faded away.

Su Li let out a long sigh of relief. Just as she was about to let go, Mo Zixing reached out and wrapped his arm around her waist.

Her soft waist felt incredibly delicate through the thin fabric.

Mo Zixing looked into her wide eyes and spoke leisurely:

"Elder Su, you haven't given me an answer yet."

"This Foundation, do you want to restore it, or not?"