106: Chapter 106 A Shrew's Scolding

Soul Realm, East Courtyard. The night was deep, and the leaves of the dark-leaf osmanthus rustled in the evening breeze. Hun Feng had just finished reviewing the last scroll of battle reports. When he emerged from the study, he casually picked up a plate of grapes that Yao Yao had placed on the stone table. As he pushed open Medusa's door, she was leaning on a soft couch, flipping through a scroll of tribal affairs sent by the Snake-People Tribe. Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders, and the candlelight cast a soft shadow on her incredibly cold and beautiful profile. She didn't even lift her head when she heard the door open, merely saying indifferently: "Are the battle reports finished?"

"Finished." Hun Feng placed the grapes on the low table, casually snatched the scroll from her hand and tossed it aside, then sat down next to her, one hand naturally wrapping around her waist. Medusa glanced at him sideways, her purple eyes shimmering with a faint luster under the candlelight. She said nothing, merely shifting half an inch to the side to make more room for him—this was her way of expressing tacit consent. Hun Feng lowered his head close to her ear, his breath brushing against her earlobe, his voice lowered: "Cai Lin, Mu Xiao went to sleep at Mother's place tonight. Yao Yao took her there this afternoon, saying she wouldn't be back tonight. There are only a few of us left in the East Courtyard—Xun'er and Cao Ying are both pregnant, Yun Yun is helping Cao Ying organize medicinal herbs tonight, and Xiao Yi Xian is busy in the back mountain herb garden. No one will disturb us."

Medusa's hand holding the teacup paused slightly. She cast a sidelong glance at him with her purple eyes, her tone cold yet carrying a trace of coquettish annoyance that only he could detect: "So you had this planned all along?"

"Planned? This is called going with the flow." Hun Feng took the teacup from her hand and placed it on the low table. His other hand slowly moved up from her waist, his fingertips lightly tracing the beautiful curve of her back. His movements were unhurried, as if he were unwrapping a gift he had waited a long time for.

Medusa did not dodge, but merely turned her head slightly, her cascading black hair covering half her face. A very faint red quietly crept up the roots of her ears, but her voice remained that same cold tone: "You seem quite free lately; why not go accompany Cao Ying? She is carrying your seed in her belly."

"Cao Ying spent the afternoon learning the Flower Sect's Qi-nourishing mental cultivation method from Yun Yun, and once she finished, she fell asleep instantly, sleeping even more deeply than Mu Xiao. As for Xun'er—Father-in-law sent over two more boxes of pregnancy-stabilizing tonics today, and she's been busy tallying the gift list until now; she's probably tired too." Hun Feng said while pulling her closer into his embrace, "Tonight, it's just you and me, no one else." Medusa did not speak, but she did not push him away either, merely resting the hand that had been propping her up on the soft couch gently onto his shoulder.

Hun Feng lowered his head and kissed her brow, then followed the bridge of her nose all the way down, kissing her nose tip, and finally stopping at her lips. Medusa closed her eyes, responding to his kiss, her breathing gradually losing its rhythm. The hand resting on his shoulder slowly tightened, gripping the fabric on his shoulder. Hun Feng's hand slid from her waist to the back of her knees, lifting her from the soft couch and walking toward the bed. Taken by surprise as she was lifted into the air, Medusa instinctively reached out to hook her arms around his neck. She glared fiercely at him with those purple eyes, but her voice lost its usual cold hardness: "Can you be a bit gentler—"

Before she could finish, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door. The footsteps stopped under the corridor, and immediately after, Hun You's hoarse and restrained voice rang out: "Young Master, this subordinate has an urgent matter to report."

Hun Feng paused. Medusa took the opportunity to slide out of his arms, quickly smoothing her ruffled clothes, and sat back down on the soft couch, raising her teacup to cover most of her face. However, her reddened earlobes and slightly heaving chest still betrayed her earlier arousal. Hun Feng took a deep breath, suppressing the lecherous fire that had been interrupted, and walked to the door, pulling it open halfway. Hun You was kneeling on one knee under the corridor, her lips pressed tightly shut, visible beneath her hood. She did not look up, but Hun Feng noticed that the fingers gripping the hem of her clothes were trembling slightly—that was not fear, but a desperate attempt to suppress laughter.

"Speak."

"Young Master, Xiao Yan is challenging us outside the Soul Realm barrier." Hun You's voice remained that hoarse and low tone, but the inflection was a bit faster than usual, "He has been cursing for quite a while. He is calling you shameless and despicable, accusing you of ambushing the Xiao Family ancestor while he was away at the Heavenly Tomb. He even cursed your ancestors for eighteen generations, said you wouldn't die a good death, and said that one day you would meet with retribution." She paused, seemingly weighing her words, and then carefully added, "This subordinate has never seen a Seven-Star Dou Sheng—curse like this. He even shouted, 'Hun Feng, you bastard, give Cai Lin back to me,' and his voice was so loud that even the guards at the main gate could hear it clearly."

Hun Feng leaned against the doorframe. After hearing this, he did not get angry; instead, he let out a soft laugh. He had guessed as much. Coming straight from the Heavenly Tomb to the Soul Realm to curse outside the barrier—this was because he knew the remnant soul of Xiao Xuan had been destroyed and had come to him in a fit of rage to fight to the death. Unfortunately, Xiao Yan couldn't even break the Soul Realm's barrier and could only howl at the entrance. "Let him curse. You don't need to pay attention to that idiot." Hun Feng waved his hand, his tone carrying a touch of casual mockery, and turned to close the door.

Hun You hesitated for a moment, then added, "Young Master, what he is cursing is indeed very ugly. The guards at the main gate are all holding back laughter, and Elder Hun Qian says that if this continues, it will affect military morale."

"Then tell Hun Qian to replace the guards at the main gate with those who have better self-control. Tell Hun Qian to let him curse; when he gets tired of cursing, he will naturally leave."

"Yes." Hun You tactfully withdrew. After walking a few steps, Hun Feng clearly heard her let out a long sigh of relief—probably afraid that the Young Master might have ordered her to sew Xiao Yan's mouth shut in a fit of rage.

Hun Feng closed the door and turned around. Medusa was still sitting on the soft couch, holding the teacup that had long since gone cold. The blush on her face had mostly faded, but her purple eyes now held a touch of undefinable coldness. She set down the teacup, stood up, and walked over to Hun Feng. She raised her hand to smooth out his collar, which she had crumpled earlier, her movements very light and slow. Suddenly, she raised those purple eyes to look at him, her tone flat but her words astonishing: "Do you want me to go kill him?"

Hun Feng was stunned for a moment. He lowered his head to look into Medusa's eyes, trying to find a trace of hesitation or wavering in those purple eyes. But he only saw calmness—the calmness of someone who had completely let go. He reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear, his tone carrying a touch of teasing: "Kill Xiao Yan? Are you willing?"

A flash of sharp light crossed Medusa's eyes. She raised her hand and pinched his waist fiercely, using considerable force, making Hun Feng gasp and nearly jump. "I have long had nothing to do with him." Her voice was as cold as the spring water of the Nine Serene Yellow Springs, but after pinching him, her fingers did not withdraw; instead, she grabbed the fabric at his waist and pulled him closer to her, "If you mention him again, you can go sleep in the study tonight."

Hun Feng clutched his pinched, aching waist and looked down into her purple eyes. Her chin was slightly raised, and there was not a hint of jest in her gaze. He suddenly laughed, his chest vibrating with the laughter. He reached out to cup her face, his thumb gently brushing across the corner of her lips, his voice low and tender: "Alright, alright, I won't mention him. I won't mention him ever again." He bent down and scooped her up into his arms again, walking toward the bed. Taken by surprise by this embrace, Medusa hadn't yet had time to withdraw her earlier domineering aura before she found herself sinking into the soft silk quilt. He leaned over by her ear, his voice extremely low, carrying a touch of teasing that only she could understand, "Then today, your husband will give you all the stock from these past few days."

Medusa raised her hand and slapped his shoulder, the force neither light nor heavy. She glared fiercely at him with those purple eyes, her voice still that cold tone, but the coquettish annoyance in her voice could not be hidden: "Can you say something serious?" Hun Feng lowered his head and kissed her lips, blocking all the words she hadn't yet finished. She closed her eyes, her fingers slowly climbing up to the back of his neck, her posture gradually relaxing from its initial stiffness. The blood-red light of the Heaven-Slaying Flame silently overflowed from Hun Feng's body, weaving a faint blood-red curtain of light around them. The phantom of the Nine-Colored Sky Swallowing Python emerged from Medusa's body, intertwining with the light of the Heaven-Slaying Flame, casting colorful, flowing shadows on the palace walls. Hun Muxiao was not here tonight, and the East Courtyard was so quiet that only the rustling of the dark-leaf osmanthus outside the window stirred by the wind could be heard. He kissed her lips, her jaw, her slender neck, each kiss more intense than usual. She was finally moved by the kiss, her slender fingers burying into his hair, responding to this overbearing kiss.

Meanwhile, outside the Soul Realm barrier. Xiao Yan stood in the void, the xuan heavy ruler thrust into the rubble beside him. The four types of Heavenly Flames on the ruler burned fiercely, illuminating him like a furious god of fire. But this Seven-Star Dou Sheng looked truly disheveled at this moment—his throat had already gone hoarse, his voice changing from its initial resonance to something raspy and dry, yet the frequency of his cursing did not decrease in the slightest. He cursed everyone from Hun Feng's ancestors for eighteen generations to the calculating nature of Hun Tiandi, and from the complicity of Void Swallowing Flame to the fact that there wasn't a single good person in the entire Hun Clan. After cursing the ancestors, he moved on to Hun Feng himself—cursing him for his shamelessness in stealing another man's wife, cursing him for taking advantage of the situation to ambush the Xiao Family ancestor, and cursing him for his lack of conscience and inevitable retribution. By the end, when his throat could no longer hold out, he fished a flask of water from his storage ring, took several large gulps, cleared his throat, changed his posture, and continued cursing.

The guards at the main gate had already been replaced. This new batch of guards indeed had better self-control than the previous one—at least they didn't laugh out loud. But the corners of several young guards' mouths were clearly twitching. Hun Qian stood inside the main gate, listening expressionlessly to the shouting and cursing from outside, and suddenly felt that the Young Master's order to "let him curse" was truly wise. With Xiao Yan's current display, never mind the Soul Realm barrier, he was about to curse away his own image as a Seven-Star Dou Sheng.

Inside the bedroom of the East Courtyard, the candles had long been extinguished. Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves of the dark-leaf osmanthus outside the window, casting mottled shadows on the edge of the bed. Medusa was nestled in Hun Feng's arms, her long hair spread messily over his chest. Those purple eyes, usually cold and sharp, were now half-open and half-closed, lazy as a cat that had just been satisfied. Hun Feng wrapped one arm around her waist, while his other hand played with a lock of her long hair, his fingertips unhurriedly twirling around the ends.

"Xiao Yan is still cursing outside." Hun Feng suddenly spoke, his tone carrying a touch of teasing.

"Let him curse. He'll leave when he's tired of cursing." Medusa didn't even lift her eyelids, her voice carrying the lazy hoarseness of the aftermath. She leaned her face closer to his chest, her nose tip brushing against a faint red tooth mark she had just bitten below his collarbone, her tone cold yet carrying a trace of possessiveness that only he could understand, "Does what you said just now still count?"

"What words?"

"Give me all the stock." Medusa raised her purple eyes to look at him, the corners of her mouth curling slightly, "If you dare to save even a little for someone else, I'll make you sleep in the study for a month."

Hun Feng lowered his head and kissed her forehead forcefully: "It's a deal."

Medusa closed her eyes again, burying her face into the crook of his neck. Before long, her breathing steadied, and a faint smile still hung at the corners of her lips. Hun Feng watched her quiet sleeping face, listening to the faint, distant cursing coming from outside the Soul Realm, a faint smile appearing at the corners of his mouth. The lucky guy was out there cursing until his throat tore, while he was in a gentle embrace holding the continent's number one beauty. This was probably the difference between a winner and a loser.