Mo Ruxue was truly about to lose her temper. Although she was no longer a young girl, she had never had such close contact with any man since the day she was born.
She had certainly never had anyone touch her feet.
However, Xu Sheng seemed to have her completely figured out. Just an instant before Mo Ruxue was about to snap, he withdrew his hand and stood up.
Mo Ruxue watched this scene, not yet having the chance to get angry, and froze for a moment.
“Sigh…”
She watched as Xu Sheng shook his head and sighed, then stepped into the hot spring himself.
The spring was large enough to accommodate ten people with room to spare. With the support of the formations and screens, there was still quite a distance between Xu Sheng and Zhu Yuexi on the other side, even though he had entered the water. The girl did not notice anything unusual.
But Mo Ruxue was different.
Xu Sheng had been wearing a bathrobe just moments ago, but now that he was in the water, he had naturally removed it. Beneath the water, he seemed to be wearing shorts… but he made no effort to hide his upper body.
Xu Sheng’s skin was even paler than she had imagined. His face already placed him among the fair-complexioned type of men, but his skin was like a woman’s, yet it didn’t look out of place or strange.
When he was clothed, he merely looked like a slightly thin man, but now that he had removed his top and revealed his firm physique, she realized his body was actually… pleasing to the eye.
Matched with that face, he could indeed be called a sight for sore eyes.
By the time Mo Ruxue realized the thoughts drifting through her mind, it was already too late. She was somewhat shocked that she would even have such thoughts; it was something she had never experienced in all her decades of life.
Her fingers tightened slightly as she focused on Xu Sheng’s expression.
Xu Sheng’s eyes, however, were filled with a strange look.
Mo Ruxue thought he had truly seen through her expression and was about to hurriedly explain herself when Xu Sheng spoke.
“Did Li Qingqing… not have anyone prepare undergarments for you?”
“Huh?” The question came out of nowhere, and Mo Ruxue didn’t understand what he meant.
However, she followed his gaze and realized he wasn’t looking at her. To be precise, he wasn’t looking at her eyes. He was looking…
At that moment, she finally understood why Zhu Yuexi had blushed when looking at her from that direction earlier.
She had actually… She had actually…
“Ah—!” Mo Ruxue actually screamed.
It was rare for Mo Ruxue to lose her composure to such an extent.
Her eyes glistened with tears. As she stood up, perhaps because of the thick mist of the hot spring or because the shock was too much for her, her legs actually went weak.
*Splash—!*
Mo Ruxue fell into the hot spring.
Xu Sheng reacted quickly, catching her before she completely submerged.
…
It was like having soft jade in his arms.
Mo Ruxue’s figure was curvaceous, possessing the fullness of a mature woman, yet when he actually held her, she was unbelievably light. He could even smell the scent of sandalwood clinging to her.
For Xu Sheng, it could be considered a reward of sorts.
…
Mo Ruxue, however, felt her heart turn to ash.
Compared to Xu Sheng’s current embrace, being seen just now… was far more fatal in her mind. By comparison, this hug wasn’t even that big of a deal anymore.
Yet Xu Sheng continued to add fuel to the fire.
As he held Mo Ruxue in this ambiguous posture, he asked with what seemed like genuine confusion, “You… wouldn’t be doing this on purpose, would you? A Ninth Realm expert can’t even stand steady?”
“…”
…
If her shame had been greater than her anger a moment ago, now her anger truly outweighed her shame.
Mo Ruxue really wanted to stab Xu Sheng to death with a sword.
But there was a partnership between her and Xu Sheng, and he still had to treat Yuexi’s illness…
In an instant, Mo Ruxue felt inexplicably wronged, and tears began to flow uncontrollably.
Xu Sheng didn’t feel flustered; he just felt quite helpless.
“Mo Ruxue, I haven’t even started bullying you yet, have I?”
“…” Mo Ruxue was indeed not a petty woman. Even though she was crying, she didn’t close her eyes and rub them; instead, she stared straight at Xu Sheng.
The tears began to recede little by little.
“I didn’t manufacture any of this on purpose. I only knew you hadn’t fully soaked in the spring, so I came over to take a look. As for the situation now or just a moment ago, my abilities really aren’t great enough to manipulate your reactions to control the occurrence of coincidences.”
Xu Sheng’s words didn’t contain a hint of apology, but surprisingly, Mo Ruxue actually felt a bit better.
Staying in the water, even though Mo Ruxue was wearing a robe, the fabric had become wet and clung to her body. She could only try her best to keep as much of herself submerged as possible to seek a sense of security.
She took a deep breath and was about to stand up when Xu Sheng reached out and pressed down on her shoulder.
Mo Ruxue was about to resist, but looking at his helpless gaze, she subconsciously believed him and didn’t get up immediately.
Having calmed Mo Ruxue down, Xu Sheng stood up from the hot spring, grabbed a towel, and sat on the stone steps nearby.
“Our deal hasn’t officially begun yet. At the very least, we have to wait until after dinner when I start the treatment… It wouldn’t be too late to seek you out for anything then. I didn’t come here to find you for those kinds of things; this hot spring is beneficial to you.”
‘What does he mean, it wouldn’t be too late to seek me out for anything then…’
But this was Mo Ruxue, after all. If it were Zhu Yuexi in her place, she probably would have only heard the first half of the sentence.
The second half… it was beneficial to her?
She was already at the Ninth Realm. How beneficial could a hot spring be? In the end, it was very likely that Xu Sheng had come here on purpose…
“Master… how long has it been… Is it about time…”
Before Mo Ruxue could speak, Zhu Yuexi’s voice sounded from behind the screen. Then, the screen moved.
Zhu Yuexi poked her head out from behind the partition.
It was over.
Mo Ruxue’s heart was like dead embers.
It was really over now.
She almost didn’t dare to face Zhu Yuexi.
Zhu Yuexi tilted her head. “Master, what’s wrong? Why are you spacing out here all by yourself?”
Mo Ruxue turned her head in confusion, only to find that the spot where Xu Sheng had been standing was already empty.
***
“Do you feel any different?”
On the way to dinner, the two of them had changed their clothes again. Mo Ruxue spoke up to ask Zhu Yuexi.
Zhu Yuexi actually didn’t want to admit it, but since it was her master, she could only speak. “I feel… I feel like my body is much better. If I weren’t sick… I think my cultivation would have already started to shift.”
One had to realize that Zhu Yuexi had only broken through to the Third Realm not long ago. Having been idle in her cultivation for so long due to the toxins, she could actually feel signs of a breakthrough after just one soak in the hot spring.
If this news got out, it would likely shake the entire world.
Upon hearing those words, Mo Ruxue remained silent.
This was because she could feel that her own cultivation, which hadn’t improved by a single inch since reaching the Ninth Realm… had actually increased slightly after soaking in that hot spring.
…
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