“Lying? Xiao Xi is lying?”
“Could it be that Lao Lin, that bastard, really bullied her?”
“Is it possible she really was thinking of her parents, but lied because of something else?”
“I want to bully Xiao Xi hard, or be bullied hard by Xiao Xi.”
“To the one in front, I’ll help you. I’ll give you your favorite big slap.”
***
On the other side, Dr. Forefinger took a sip of coffee, smiling as he nodded.
“That’s right, just like this—control and deception.”
“Xinglan’s brainwashing is progressing even faster than I imagined. Maybe it’s connected to that deeply buried anger inside her!”
Dr. Forefinger was not making baseless remarks.
The simplest and most efficient method of brainwashing is to “teach according to their nature.”
Give those who desire power, power; those who desire beauty, beauty; those who desire strength, strength.
Yun Ruoxi was undoubtedly the last of these.
It was precisely by starting with her desire for strength and her anger that the Saint’s Hand Society easily broke open her subconscious defenses, planting a twisted worldview deep inside.
However, making her truly loyal to the Saint’s Hand Society had taken a lot of effort. They tortured Yun Ruoxi fiercely, and only when she’d lost her senses were they barely able to plant the seed.
“One and a half months left…” Dr. Forefinger glanced at the surveillance, took another sip of coffee, his eyes twinkling with amusement.
“I can hardly wait to see what A Zhen’s reaction will be when he meets this version of Xinglan. I’m sure it’ll be quite a show—it’ll definitely make him give up the idea of escaping and obediently cooperate with my experiments!”
The next night, Yun Ruoxi tied herself up with rope, trying to keep herself from going to that damned place.
She held on until dawn, when the sky began to lighten. Only then, satisfied, did she finally fall asleep.
But who could have known, by midday, when she returned to her dorm to grab something, she unconsciously found herself standing at the entrance of the laboratory again.
Dr. Forefinger was already waiting there, but there was a look of surprise in his eyes.
“You have more endurance than I expected, but sometimes, too much endurance only hurts yourself.” He patted Yun Ruoxi’s shoulder. “Oh, right, I’ve prepared clean clothes for you inside.”
The girl’s face turned ghastly pale as she walked stiffly into the lab, her gaze vacant as she stopped before the iron cage.
“Don’t blame me… don’t…”
“Meow!” A shrill cat’s cry echoed through the laboratory.
The girl tossed the cat’s corpse, broken in two, to the ground. “Blame me…”
***
When the girl walked out of the lab again, her cheeks were flushed, her expression bright and cheerful.
She quickly left the unauthorized area, only to run into Anvil, who was heading for the Gedou Shi, right at the corner.
Anvil instinctively glanced in the direction she had come from. “Xiao Xi-jie, why did you just come from the unauthorized area?”
The girl’s body went rigid, sweat beading on her forehead, her hands and feet at a loss.
But suddenly, she recalled two words: “control and deception.”
A smile once again appeared on her face. “I went in to exchange and collect some Star Arts.”
“Ruoxi’s already so strong, and she still wants to get even stronger?”
“Now that you mention it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Xiao Xi use Star Arts in her battles before. It’s always her psychic power hammering everyone.”
“It’s like you’re already Superman—why learn martial arts?”
“Star Arts, huh…” A flash of envy flickered in Anvil’s eyes.
As martial artists, all of their star energy was used to strengthen their bodies and perform Liu Pai Bi Sha Ji.
That’s why they rarely learned Star Arts before level three.
This made him quite envious of the mysterious effects of Star Arts and Yi Neng.
So his attention was immediately drawn away.
“Anvil, you’re going to train, right? Hurry, don’t be late. You don’t want to make Saxin-laoshi angry.” Yun Ruoxi clasped her hands behind her back, smiling sweetly.
A close-up revealed that beneath her pretty pink fingernails, there was still a bit of blood that hadn’t been washed away.
But due to the shadow, only a few viewers noticed.
“Is there blood under Ruoxi’s fingernail?”
“I rewound and watched—there really is!!!”
“Is Ruoxi lying?”
“A little blood’s normal, right? Maybe it’s that time of month?”
“Then I’m off.” Realizing it was getting late, Anvil was startled and dashed away.
Yun Ruoxi watched his retreating back intently, nodding thoughtfully.
That night.
Maybe because she’d already given in to her urges once.
For once, she felt no desires at all and fell into a deep sleep as soon as she lay down.
In her dreams.
Her lips curled up, smiling happily like a little child.
***
On the afternoon of the fourth day.
Inside the training room, Yun Ruoxi was sparring with Kaos.
His usually invincible wind control Yi Neng was useless against her psychic power; Kaos quickly fell into a hopeless position, full of openings.
Suddenly.
Yun Ruoxi caught one of Kaos’s mistakes and, with a burst of psychic force, caught the boy who had tried to close in.
She tilted her head slightly, her right hand slowly applying pressure.
Kaos’s throat was pinched by an invisible psychic hand, his face growing redder and redder.
On the side, Yun Che couldn’t help wanting to step in, but was stopped by Zi Jiu, who tugged at his sleeve.
He turned to look.
The girl gestured with her eyes to Lin Zhen, who was watching the match intently.
Yun Che instantly understood, giving up his intention to interfere.
Kaos was lifted higher and higher by the grip on his neck, his breathing becoming more labored, until finally he couldn’t help but tap his hand—a signal of surrender.
The next second, the girl smiled and let go, gently setting Kaos down.
Seeing this scene.
Lin Zhen, Zi Jiu, and Yun Che all broke into smiles.
Of course.
In the laboratory, Dr. Forefinger also smiled in satisfaction.
“Xiao Xi hasn’t been brainwashed, thank goodness—what a sweet smile.”
“Mom, I’m in love! What? The one I love is you? My Xiao Xi-mama?”
“Mama, mama!”
“Xiao Xi, your strength keeps growing—I can’t even last a minute under your hand now.” Kaos shook his head helplessly, the blue-haired girl simply smiling without a word.
That night, in the deep of night.
The girl’s smile twisted into pain.
She locked herself in the bathroom, banging her head hard against the wall.
The next morning, her mouth stained with blood, she, for once, felt no urge to destroy anything.
She wiped the blood away from her lips, stepped out of the bathroom, looked out at the blazing sun, and managed a difficult smile.
“At least today, I won.”
“Jie, how did your forehead get swollen like that?” Aili cried out in surprise.
“Last night I thought up a powerful move, but when I tried it, I accidentally hit myself.” Yun Ruoxi lied, face calm and unblushing.
“Really?” Aili eyed Yun Ruoxi suspiciously.
“Xiao Ai, why would I lie to you?” Yun Ruoxi pulled Aili into her arms and rubbed her head hard. “Since when did you stop believing your jie?”
“You’ll make your jie sad like this!”
“Ah, no, please!” Aili was so startled she buried her head in Yun Ruoxi’s embrace, whispering an apology.
“Swollen forehead (Xiao Xi Limited Edition)”
“My wife came home with a swollen knee, said she fell on the way. Bros, should I believe her?”
“Ruoxi looks pretty cute like this, honestly—LOL.”
“Something feels off…”
“For the guy up there, trust her. What if it’s just an accident?”