“…I understand…”
Su Yun curled herself into a tiny ball, her voice so weak it seemed like it might be swallowed by the air at any moment.
Her body trembled uncontrollably from shame and fear, her beautiful fox ears drooping limply against her scalp, her tail hanging powerlessly behind her, every strand of fur soaked in humiliation.
Her mind was in unprecedented chaos.
Countless tangled thoughts swirled in her head like a ball of yarn a cat had played with—completely knotted, with no end in sight.
The warmth of the steam from the bath still seemed to linger at the tip of her nose, and Mo Qingqing’s aura—interwoven with coldness and heat—still seemed to coil around her senses, making every inch of her skin itch and shudder as if pricked by needles.
It was a memory carved into her bones; no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t tear it away from her senses.
In front of her, it seemed only two choices remained: take initiative, or be passive.
No matter what, she felt there was no escaping tonight.
But she really didn’t want to… That feeling of having her will forcibly invaded, her body completely out of her own control, forced to react under someone else’s gaze—that helplessness was truly unbearable.
It wasn’t just physical discomfort—it was a trampling on her soul and dignity.
This power seeped in everywhere, leaving her powerless—what should she do? What could she possibly do? For a moment, Su Yun’s mind was paralyzed by confusion.
However, something unexpected happened. The power that had just been roaming wantonly in her consciousness, making her restless, now transformed into a tangible touch, gently pinching her delicate, attractive little face, tugging lightly—not too hard, not too soft.
“If you understand, then go practice. There’s a low-cost training field nearby.”
That voice regained its usual chill, as if everything Su Yun had just felt was nothing more than an illusion.
“Eh?… Yes!”
Su Yun was dumbfounded, unable to process the dramatic change for a moment.
It was over?
She was just let off like that?
She didn’t even have time to wonder about Mo Qingqing’s intentions—her body, moving by instinct, scrambled to escape the room as quickly as possible.
Mo Qingqing raised her palm to the air.
Under the light, her hand looked especially fair and soft, her fingertips seemingly still tinged with some delicate, tender sensation.
“Almost couldn’t hold back,” she murmured softly.
Next time, she’d have a proper bit of fun.
After all, this place still wasn’t very safe.
It was fine if things stayed quiet, but if she actually set up a soundproofing barrier… with her current level, it wouldn’t take long before some high-ranked or transcendent being started peeping.
Then she’d really become famous.
But… it really is strange…
“Gulp…”
Mo Qingqing unconsciously swallowed.
She really wanted… to eat her up…
Was she being too fond of a pet?
No, it must be because Su Yun had made her a fortune!
Yeah.
It must be that…
Su Yun felt as if she was floating as she left the bathroom.
Her legs were weak, as though all strength had been drained from them; each step felt like walking on thick cotton.
But instead of rushing out of the room, she leaned against the cold wall, taking several deep breaths, trying to calm her wildly beating heart and suppress the lingering heat inside her body.
Only after her breathing steadied a little did she reach out with trembling hands, grabbing a clean towel and hastily wiping herself down.
The cold towel against her still-sensitive skin gave her a fresh outbreak of goosebumps.
She quickly changed back into her plain dress, and the moment the fabric clung to her body, she regained a shred of insignificant safety.
She pushed open the door and walked down the corridor lined with soft red carpet, heading toward the training field.
The entrance was far more grand than she’d imagined.
Beyond the tall arched gateway was a vast space, as big as a public square. The domed ceiling was so high it was impossible to see its full shape, and countless magical lamps glowed softly overhead like stars.
The place was enormous—one glance couldn’t take it all in. People practiced magic in different sections, and the air was thick with the chaos of magical fluctuations.
At the entrance stood an attendant to guide newcomers. She was a young, beautiful girl, slender and pretty, but her eyes were empty and lifeless. Only when she looked at customers did her lips stretch into a rigid, textbook smile.
Su Yun noticed that her blouse, which should have been neat, had been roughly torn open, exposing a large expanse of white skin to the air, with a few ambiguous red fingerprints left behind.
Some passing wizards brazenly reached out, fondling and groping her, or spoke vulgar, lewd jokes.
Yet, all along, she just kept up that stiff smile, letting them do as they pleased.
As if the body being toyed with wasn’t hers, but an empty, soulless doll.
She was like a living shell, programmed only to smile.
Su Yun couldn’t decipher what lay hidden in the depths of that girl’s eyes, but she understood that state all too well.
This must be… when the heart dies…
Su Yun unconsciously clenched her soft little fists.
She didn’t know what the girl had gone through, but compared to her, Su Yun supposed she was still lucky.
At least, her own heart was still alive.
As long as she was alive, she would feel satisfied.
“Excuse me, where’s the beginner’s training field?” Su Yun approached and asked quietly.
“Of course, the red areas are all beginner fields. Would you like a private room?” The attendant bent slightly, her tone utterly flat, that stiff smile unmoving.
“No! I don’t have any money…” Su Yun felt uneasy under her gaze and quickly waved her hands.
Mo Qingqing had never given her pocket money.
“Understood. Enjoy your session.” The attendant straightened, her eyes sliding past Su Yun to the next guest, as if Su Yun had already vanished.
“…”
Su Yun glanced at her in silence, then turned and walked toward the area marked by red lines.
She found the most secluded, inconspicuous corner in the so-called “low-cost training field,” and sat cross-legged in the shadows.
Closing her eyes, she began to carefully recall the content from the book and Mo Qingqing’s instructions.
First level of Shadow Shift—very simple.
She just needed to channel her inner mana, resonate it at a particular mental frequency, and convert it into the shadow magic that filled the world.
Then, covering her whole body with this magic, she could slip into the shadows and become one with them.
Because she had personally experienced this with Mo Qingqing, the aura of shadow magic was familiar to her.
Very quickly, she picked out that current amidst the chaos of magical energies.
“Hoo…”
Su Yun took several deep breaths, trying to calm her excitement.
This was going to be her first time using magic.
A hard-to-describe excitement and anticipation, like a gentle current, flooded her body.
She carefully stirred the warm life-magic within her, and under delicate mental control, began to imitate the frequency of shadow magic to transform it.
The process was smoother than she’d imagined. Her mana quickly took on a gray-black hue, turning cold and insubstantial.
From the outside, Su Yun sitting cross-legged in the shadows seemed to blur and lose substance, as if she might vanish at any moment.
“Shift!”
Su Yun couldn’t help but whisper in a chuunibyou-like tone.
The transformed shadow magic responded immediately, surging out with her mental energy.
In a flash, it enveloped her petite figure.
Then, her body seemed to lose all weight, silently melting into the shadow at her feet like a splash of ink.
Everything went remarkably smoothly, though from outside there was still a subtle difference.
The patch of shadow where Su Yun sat was deeper and darker than any other.
After a little while—
“Pu-ha!”
Su Yun suddenly burst out of the shadow, like a fish gasping for air, sprawling messily on the ground and gulping for breath, her little face flushed bright red.
“Ha… ha… heavens…”
It was awful!
Once inside the shadow, it felt as if she’d sunk to the deepest ocean floor, or been wrapped up in dense, airless liquid. All around her was endless darkness and pressure—she couldn’t breathe at all.
That suffocating, lonely feeling made her think she’d be trapped inside forever.
But after she calmed down, an unprecedented satisfaction and excitement filled her heart.
She’d done it! She’d mastered a supernatural power!
Having this power in her own hands felt incredible!
“Alright, keep practicing!”
Meanwhile, among the crowds training in the vast hall, a little girl with two red pigtails stopped waving her wand and secretly looked over at Su Yun in the corner.
“She’s… so pretty…” she whispered.
Whether it was those beautiful pastel fox ears and tail, or that delicate, unreal little face, she couldn’t look away.
But she seemed a bit shy, stealing only a few glances and not daring to approach.
Su Yun was oblivious, and after a short rest, she dove back into practicing shadow shifting.
She didn’t know why Mo Qingqing had suddenly given her such a precious magic book.
But she knew clearly that Mo Qingqing must need these spells for something, and her sole duty was to master the magic, to the highest degree.
It was not just a request, not just a mission—it was a rare, once-in-a-lifetime chance.
She had to seize it tightly and be ready for whatever task Mo Qingqing might give her in the future.
Then, she could prove her worth, making Mo Qingqing see her as more than just a useless pillow or toy.
Only by becoming more useful, more valuable, could she greatly decrease the odds of Mo Qingqing abandoning her.
After all, in this cruel world… being abandoned, losing shelter and protection, often meant death.
With that fierce conviction, Su Yun dove into the shadows again and again.
And scrambled out again and again in utter embarrassment.
From being suffocated at first,
to slowly adapting, the time she could stay inside the shadow grew longer and longer.
Time flew by during this dull but focused practice. Unknowingly, two or three hours had passed.
Just as Su Yun emerged from shadow shift again to catch her breath,
A familiar, commanding mental link stretched across space and touched her mind.
A summons from Mo Qingqing.
She dared not dawdle for a second. She jumped to her feet, brushed the dust off her dress, and hurried back.
When she pushed open the door, Mo Qingqing had already changed into a black silk nightgown, and was sitting lazily on the bed, combing her long, deep purple hair.
“I’m going to sleep,” Mo Qingqing said, glancing up.
Su Yun understood at once.
She hurried to the bed, quickly undressed, then obediently climbed onto the inner side of the bed.
Mo Qingqing yawned, flicked her hand, and the magic lamps in the room went out.
In the darkness, she lay down, as usual, reaching out her slender arm to pull Su Yun’s petite, warm body into her embrace, using her as the most comfortable human pillow.
But this time, Su Yun felt Mo Qingqing’s arm hugging her even tighter than on previous nights—an irresistible strength, as if she wanted to knead Su Yun completely into herself.
It was a little… hard to breathe…
Oh well… just bear with it for now.
(Really out of options after being triple-sanctioned (˃ ⌑ ˂ഃ ))
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