Chapter 37: Better You Than Me—A Sultry Encounter in the Cave

“Haha, Chen Ningshuang, I’m really curious to see what will become of you—the pure maiden—when you’re ravaged by those beasts! What a sight it’ll be!” Indeed, the powder Sumu gave to Chen Ningshuang was an extremely potent aphrodisiac. He couldn’t indulge in such things himself, but this secret realm was crawling with all kinds of monsters. Letting those beasts act in his stead—wasn’t that a fine solution?

Chen Ningshuang! Before you’re turned into a puppet, I want you to suffer this humiliation as well. Sumu had grown truly depraved by now. He’d conveniently forgotten that, back in that secret realm, he was the one whose lustful intent had flared up, relentlessly pestering Chen Ningshuang despite her repeated warnings—he’d only grown more brazen. With no other option, Chen Ningshuang had been forced to take drastic measures.

But in this world of cultivation, right and wrong hardly matter; people only see what they wish to see. If you desire revenge, then take it—so long as you have the power.

“Just be careful not to break my puppet!” Kui Shan frowned and spoke up. He cared little whether Chen Ningshuang was defiled—what mattered to him was that she remained intact.

Chen Ningshuang’s heart was filled with despair as she overheard their conversation. Her vision had grown hazy, and she bit her lip hard. “No! I absolutely cannot let them succeed!” She began to force all her spiritual energy into her heart meridian, preparing to self-detonate—even in death, she would not allow herself to be violated.

“Tsk, tsk. Aren’t you two shameless—ganging up on a defenseless woman!” A mocking voice rang out, drawing the attention of all three.

“It’s you?” Chen Ningshuang’s hope flickered, then dimmed once more. She knew her sect leader had instructed them to protect this person, which meant his cultivation level probably wasn’t high.

“You should leave—I’ll hold them off!” She shook her head and forced herself to stand, signaling for Lingtian to run.

“You’re already in this state—don’t push yourself. They’re no threat to me,” Lingtian replied, raising his hand as if wielding a sword and making a simple gesture.

With a snap, Kui Shan’s transparent threads were severed.

Lingtian clicked his tongue in mild annoyance. If he could fly here, he’d have arrived long ago. Perhaps if he had, Chen Ningshuang wouldn’t be in such a wretched state now.

Seeing this, Kui Shan and Sumu finally grew solemn, a hint of gravity in their eyes. At first, they’d assumed Lingtian was just an ordinary disciple from the Divine Fire Sect, meddling out of a misplaced sense of justice—nothing to worry about. Yet now he’d cut through Kui Shan’s specially crafted threads with his bare hand, and that was no small feat. Kui Shan was confident in those threads—no one below King Level, Eightfold Realm, should be able to break them, unless they excelled in some particular area…

Lingtian approached Chen Ningshuang and patted her shoulder, signaling her to relax. She was stunned—was he truly this powerful?

The next moment, a surge of heat rushed through her, her face flushing red as she sat down and struggled to suppress the sensation with her cultivation. She could barely hold on.

“Comrade, your sword intent is impressive. I wonder…” Kui Shan began to greet him, but Lingtian’s sword flashed without warning.

With a metallic clang, he cut through three layers of Kui Shan’s threads.

Kui Shan’s expression darkened. Was this guy for real?

He didn’t even bother talking before attacking! Still, he had gained something from that exchange—he could sense that this young man’s mastery of the sword was profound, which explained how he’d managed to sever his threads.

“To withstand one of my strikes is enough to earn a conversation,” Lingtian nodded, his tone calm, though his words left Kui Shan speechless. Was this guy always so arrogant?

“Your swordsmanship is indeed formidable, but if the two of us join forces, how will you respond?” Sumu interjected, his face gloomy. He’d been looking forward to seeing Chen Ningshuang humiliated, but now this unexpected figure had appeared.

“If you want to find out, why not try?” A knowing smile played on Lingtian’s lips as he produced the Imperial Banner.

“Majestic heavens, heed my command—open!” Lingtian recited the incantation, and the Imperial Banner radiated a powerful oppressive force, generating a tremendous suction.

The pressure made it nearly impossible for the two to break free.

“Damn it, what kind of treasure is this? We have to get out!” Kui Shan’s face contorted with dread. He sensed that if he were drawn in, he’d be finished.

“Go!” Kui Shan tried to command his puppets to break the banner’s force, but how could anything resist a royal artifact? The puppets were simply absorbed, never to return.

“Kui Shan, rather than die together, why not help me?” Sumu’s cold voice sounded from behind.

A chill ran down Kui Shan’s spine as anger twisted his face. “Sumu, how dare you—!”

But before he could finish, Sumu struck him from behind. Kui Shan spat a mouthful of blood and was instantly sucked into the Imperial Banner, while Sumu used the recoil to escape its range. Without a backward glance, he fled at once.

“I cannot let you go!” Lingtian, seeing Sumu’s ruthlessness and willingness to sacrifice his ally to escape, knew such a man would be a future threat. He moved to strike him down.

But just then, a pair of arms wrapped around his neck from behind, a soft warmth pressing into his back. Hot breath tickled his ear, followed by a feverish touch.

“Huh…” Lingtian made a small noise of surprise, looking back to see Chen Ningshuang, her eyes glazed, clinging to him. He gently pushed her head away.

Helpless, Lingtian put away the Imperial Banner. In her current state, there was no way to pursue Sumu—otherwise, Chen Ningshuang would perish.

Lingtian frowned. The pills his mother had given him were all for healing injuries, not for counteracting this kind of poison. He could only recall the herbal remedies from the Myriad Elixirs Manual and set out to gather ingredients. If that failed, he’d have no choice but to use less conventional methods.

“Hey, don’t put your hands there!” he shouted helplessly, then delivered a chopping blow to the back of Chen Ningshuang’s neck, knocking her out.

…

“I feel so hot… so uncomfortable… please…” In the cave, Chen Ningshuang’s skin was flushed with a rosy hue, her eyes dazed and sultry, her clothes torn apart to reveal enticing skin.

Her slender, shapely legs rubbed together restlessly—a truly provocative sight.

“Lucky you,” Lingtian muttered, leaving her in the cave while he went to search for herbs. Fortunately, he found the spiritual plant he needed; otherwise, things would have become very troublesome.

He crushed the herb and made Chen Ningshuang drink it, then channeled his spiritual energy to help her suppress the effects.

Soon, the flush faded from her skin and her mind cleared somewhat.

“What—what did you do to me?” As her senses returned, Chen Ningshuang remembered being semi-conscious, and that she had… bitten Lingtian…

Biting her lip stubbornly, she gripped her sword, Frostblade, and pointed it at Lingtian.

“If I’d wanted to take advantage of you, I wouldn’t have bothered searching for medicine,” Lingtian snorted, turning away. To be honest, Chen Ningshuang was indeed beautiful, but with his status, what kind of woman couldn’t he have? If not for the fact that she’d risked herself to let him escape, he wouldn’t have bothered.

Hearing this, Chen Ningshuang glanced at Lingtian’s intact clothing and realized her mouth was still filled with a bitter taste. Moreover, her unique style of clothing showed no signs of being removed. She inspected herself and found nothing amiss.

With that, she understood she had wronged Lingtian.

After changing into a fresh set of clothes, she hesitated several times before finally speaking with resolve, “I was too agitated earlier and misjudged you. I’m sorry. Thank you for saving my life.”

She had always been cold by nature but was not unreasonable. Even if Lingtian had done something to her, given the circumstances, she couldn’t entirely blame him. Besides, he hadn’t taken advantage of her at all—an apology was only right.

“How do you intend to thank me?” Lingtian, seeing her apology, let go of his anger, turned around, and asked.

“Ah? I don’t know—what would you like as thanks?” His question caught her off guard, but she didn’t shy away, and instead asked what he wanted.

Unlike hypocrites, Lingtian’s directness made her feel some admiration.

His gaze settled on the Frostblade in her hand. Chen Ningshuang noticed and smiled wryly, “This sword is my life-bound weapon—I can’t give it to you. But this red sword is Saint-level—it’s not bad.” She produced a red sword and handed it to him.

“Straightforward!” Lingtian accepted it and put it away. In truth, he wanted a sword to feed to his black broken blade, to see what would happen.

He handed her a roasted rabbit. “Here.”

They had already lost plenty of time—eating would make little difference.

Chen Ningshuang sat down and began tearing off pieces of rabbit meat with her hands, eating gracefully, while Lingtian devoured his portion heartily—a striking contrast.

As she neared the end of her meal, her cheeks flushed, and in a cool, quiet voice she requested, “Comrade, please… keep what happened just now a secret for me…”