Chapter 64: Wretched Girl! I Need You to Assist My Cultivation!

「Mmm!!!」

Her mouth was suddenly clamped shut, and Xu Qinghuan’s heart jolted—she instinctively screamed in terror.

But that withered hand gripped her lower face like an iron clamp, crushing every sound into her throat, turning it into silent sobs.

She struggled desperately, kicking her legs wildly, flailing her arms—but the hand didn’t budge an inch.

She felt her jawbone groaning under unbearable pressure, as if it would shatter any second.

At that moment, she was on the verge of tears.

Her dazzling eyes were filled with terror and disbelief.

This was Jinchen Peak! The courtyard of the True Disciple Jin Hai! A core sect stronghold!

How could anyone dare break in? How could anyone even get in?!

She strained with all her strength to turn her head and see her attacker’s face.

But the other hand pressed firmly against the back of her neck, pinning her like a chick about to be slaughtered, leaving her utterly immobile.

Her strength vanished against that hand, as if swallowed by the sea.

At that moment, a hoarse yet vaguely familiar voice whispered slowly beside her ear:

「Want to speak? Want to see my face? No problem—I’ll satisfy you.」

The voice was calm, unhurried, as if chatting over tea.

「But to prevent you from screaming irrationally later, I must give you a lesson you won’t forget.」

The instant he finished speaking, Xu Qinghuan’s body froze rigid.

She felt it—two fingers had pinched her right hand’s fragile little finger.

Crack.

A sharp snap echoed clearly in the silent room.

「Mmm—!!!」

Xu Qinghuan’s eyes flew wide open, tears instantly welling at the corners.

The searing pain shot through her like lightning, nearly knocking her unconscious.

Raised in luxury her whole life, how could she have endured such torment?

Not even a single finger broken—let alone a scratch—had ever happened to her.

But what terrified her more was the bone-deep killing intent seeping from behind.

That killing intent was icy, chilling—if she so much as twitched, the next thing broken wouldn’t be her finger.

「Www...」

She shook her head frantically, tears blurring her vision, whimpering desperate pleas from her throat.

She only wanted to convey one thing—she wouldn’t scream, she dared not scream.

「You’re obedient. Perfect.」

The hoarse voice spoke again, still calm—but the killing intent in it froze the blood.

「Otherwise, old man has no choice but to... crush this flower.」

「Www!!!」

Xu Qinghuan nodded wildly, tears flying everywhere.

Her sincerity had never been more genuine.

As if sensing her “devotion,” the withered hand finally loosened slowly.

「Huh... huh...」

Xu Qinghuan gasped for air, her chest heaving violently.

She had held it in—no scream, no cry, not even turning her head.

Not because she didn’t want to—but because she dared not.

Under the pain’s stimulation, her mind cleared.

She’d heard too many tales of outlaws—knew their ways.

If you didn’t see his face, you might live. If you did—you were dead.

「Tsk tsk. Very obedient. Didn’t scream at all.」

Seeing Xu Qinghuan endure the pain without crying out, the attacker praised her.

「Looks like you’re smart. You wanted to see my face? Fine—I’ll let you.」

Footsteps sounded.

The man circled to her front.

Xu Qinghuan instinctively tried to shut her eyes.

But it was too late.

She still saw her attacker’s face.

And then she froze.

「Is... it you???」

Her eyes widened in disbelief, tears still on her cheeks, her expression utterly locked in shock.

The man before her was tall and thin, hair white, face cold—wasn’t he the old man she’d called “old thing” while queuing at the mountain gate?!

In that instant, her mind went blank.

Are you insane?!

Because I called you “old thing,” you broke into a True Disciple’s courtyard in the dead of night to get revenge?!

Is this man insane?!

She couldn’t even think about how he’d slipped past the guards and infiltrated this heavily fortified courtyard.

Her mind was entirely filled with three words: How is this possible?

Jiang Ye stood silently by the bed, looking down at her.

Moonlight streamed through the window, casting a cold silver glow over his aged face.

Those aged eyes now regarded her calmly, as if watching a trembling prey.

Yes, Jiang Ye hadn’t even used the Monkey Form True Meaning to disguise himself.

He had seen through Xu Qinghuan’s essence—vain, superficial, cowardly beneath the bravado.

He had absolute confidence he could control her.

「Old Master! I’m sorry! It was just an innocent slip of the tongue—I’ve repented every day since! Please forgive me!」

Xu Qinghuan, face streaked with tears, dropped to her knees without hesitation—*thud*—she hit the floor.

She knelt cleanly, without a second’s pause, as if she’d practiced this posture a thousand times.

As she spoke, she even tried to bow her head and kowtow—her posture, abject to the dust.

One must admit—when it came to fearing death, she was perfectly on point.

「Heh. If repentance worked, old man wouldn’t have come here tonight.」

Jiang Ye looked at Xu Qinghuan with a faint, mocking smile, his aged eyes brimming with unhidden frost.

「Gul...」

Xu Qinghuan swallowed hard, the sound loud in the silence.

Kneeling on the floor, trembling like a leaf, tear-streaked, pitiful—anyone seeing her would soften at least a little.

But Jiang Ye watched coldly.

「Old Master, if you’ll forgive me… I’ll do anything you ask…」

She spoke, voice trembling, each word shaking.

Had you not seen her arrogant, bullying demeanor earlier that day, you’d never believe this trembling wretch was the same woman who called herself Jin Hai’s fiancée.

「You’ll do anything I ask, is that right...」

Jiang Ye sneered twice, studying her with a sly expression.

His gaze swept slowly from head to toe over her trembling body, finally settling on her pale yet still alluring face.

He paused, his voice flat, as if stating something ordinary:

「Wretched girl!」

Those two words drifted down lightly—but struck her face like two slaps.

She shuddered but dared not lift her head.

「I want you—to assist me in my cultivation.」

Xu Qinghuan froze.

「Ah...」

She let out a short, involuntary gasp, looking up at Jiang Ye, eyes dazed.

Assist him in cultivation? What did that mean?

After a long moment, she finally grasped the implication in his words.

Instantly, her lovely, alluring face flushed crimson—from neck to ears.

Her wide, watery eyes bulged with stunned, furious shame; tears swelled in her lashes but dared not fall.

She never imagined this white-haired old man would make such a... shocking demand...

She was a True Disciple of Jinchen Peak! Jin Hai’s fiancée!

This old man’s audacity couldn’t even be called reckless—it was beyond comprehension.

But meeting Jiang Ye’s eyes—calm as an ancient well—her rising shame and anger were swiftly crushed by fear.

She opened her mouth to speak, but only a short whimper escaped.

The night grew darker.

Jin Hai, still cultivating, suddenly opened his eyes.

For no reason, a sudden unease stirred in his chest.

From the nearby bushes came a rustling sound; he looked up and saw two foxes mating.

On Tianqing Mountain, such wild animals were not uncommon.

Jin Hai glared at them in irritation; the two foxes seemed to sense it and vanished in a flash.

Jin Hai turned his gaze away, took a deep breath, and tried to suppress the inexplicable unease.

But the unease clung like a bone-deep plague, impossible to shake off.

He closed his eyes and tried again to sink into cultivation.

Yet the golden radiance of the five golden stones seemed dimmer to him now; he could not focus at all.

After a moment, he opened his eyes again and looked toward Xu Qinghuan’s room.

It was pitch black, the door tightly shut, utterly silent.

“Sleeping so soundly...”

He muttered under his breath, then shook his head, blaming the inexplicable unease on too long a session of cultivation and taut nerves.

He stood up, stretched his limbs, and decided to rest for the night, resuming practice tomorrow.