Chapter 43: So What If I Feel Guilty?

The Spirit Sea expanded to its limit, as if about to explode.

What followed was intense pain, feeling both like a direct effect on the nerves and as if the Spirit Soul itself were expanding and tearing along with it.

"Clang..."

A sound akin to metal shattering.

When everything calmed down, the Spirit Sea had already reached the next tier.

Chen Shu examined himself—

In terms of space alone, its volume was only about two to three times larger than before, and this size would remain until he promoted to the Fourth Stage.

But apart from volume, the other comprehensive capabilities of the Spirit Sea were also greatly improved. For example, the efficiency of absorbing Spirit Power and outputting Spirit Power, the ability to compress and purify Spirit Power, etc.; these abilities all had mutually reinforcing effects to some extent and were not entirely independent, so each ability had improved by at least several times compared to before.

Take storing Spirit Power for example; it seems the space only increased by two or three times, but the quality of Spirit Power it can store also increased exponentially, which is similar to increasing the capacity once again.

Chen Shu remembered when he first opened his Spirit Sea, he discovered that his Spirit Sea space was exceptionally large.

After comparing it with data many times, it was about twice the size of an ordinary person's First Tier Spirit Sea.

And this volume was healthy, very different from the Spirit Sea illness caused by the Genius Disease; his Spirit Sea not only increased in space, but all other comprehensive capabilities were also improved in every aspect.

It was just like the result of an advancement.

Delving into the reason, it might be related to the Spirit Soul.

The Spirit Sea is a very magical thing—

Anatomy does not support the existence of the Spirit Sea, suggesting it likely does not exist within the physical body. Yet in soul science, the Spirit Soul is the storage device of the "Spirit Quality World" and is a backup mechanism for living beings besides the material body; its structure is not complex, and in known observations, there are no signs of the existence of a Spirit Sea.

But facts keep telling everyone that the Spirit Sea is related to both the body and the Spirit Soul.

Perhaps it will be explained in the future.

"..."

Chen Shu opened his eyes.

After wading through the pain, a strange sense of satisfaction would rise from the depths of his heart, which made him feel pretty good right now.

The first thing that caught his eye was Ning Qing; this girl had actually sat down on the floor as well. The two of them maintained a posture of sitting opposite each other in the main room, very close, their faces and gazes level, and she looked at him calmly.

"How do you feel?"

"..." Chen Shu was completely speechless, "Why are you talking again?"

"I couldn't help but want to ask you."

"Are you playing a game?"

"Things shouldn't happen more than three times."

"I don't believe a word of it."

"Really, I have already summarized the experience of getting along with you; next time I will definitely succeed in one go." Ning Qing pursed her lips and said faintly, "This is a necessary step."

"I feel like I'm a stumbling block on your path of cultivation."

"That is indeed the case."

"..."

"Do you want to take a shower?" Ning Qing pointed to the sweat on his face and head, "I ordered takeout, it's almost here."

"Takeout? What time is it?"

"It's almost six o'clock."

"It's that late?"

Only then did Chen Shu turn his head to look outside; sure enough, it was almost dark, and in about half an hour, it would be completely dark.

This meant he had spent almost the entire afternoon.

Last time it only took a little over an hour.

This trend is so exaggerated.

Chen Shu paused: "I don't have a towel."

"I do."

"Use yours?"

"Mm."

"Alright."

"Follow me."

Ning Qing stood up and walked upstairs.

Chen Shu followed her into her bedroom, which had a light fragrance, and the master bedroom had a large bathroom.

The design of this bathroom was very fresh and elegant, the space was relatively square, and the tiles on the walls and floor were very fresh and simple, not a style popular in recent years.

Chen Shu first saw the vanity, which was large, with a pile of toiletries and skincare products on it, a hairdryer embedded in the wall, and inside there was a toilet, a shower head, and a curtain. At the very back was a rectangular bathtub, which was embedded with the entire bathroom; in the middle of the bathtub sat a bamboo storage board, which could hold some fruits, snacks, a Mobile Phone, a computer, and the like.

In addition, a storage rack was installed on the wall at one end of the bathtub; besides holding toiletries, it also kept three small green plants.

Chen Shu liked these three small green plants.

Their presence made the entire bathroom different, turning it into a clean, quiet, and warm little space.

"Can the bathtub be used?"

"Yes."

"I want to take a bath."

"I'll scrub it for you."

"Have you used it?"

"Used it once."

"Do you scrub before or after using it?"

"Scrub it all."

"I was just about to say that scrubbing isn't actually necessary; if you want to soak, you should soak in the original flavor," Chen Shu said, then stretched, "I'm so tired, I need a hug."

"Hug after you finish washing."

Ning Qing turned on the bathtub faucet, took a brush in her hand, and bent down to carefully scrub the bathtub walls.

Chen Shu tilted his body to take a look—

What kind of t-shirt is this, why is the collar so small?

Two minutes later.

Ning Qing turned on both the cold and hot water at the same time, stood up, and walked out: "You can rinse off first. Once the water is full, you can get in and soak. Test the water temperature yourself. I'm going out."

Chen Shu followed her to the bathroom door, touched the lock, and discovered that the door to this bathroom actually couldn't be locked shut.

"You won't peek, will you?"

Ning Qing rolled her eyes and pulled the bedroom door shut behind her.

But she hadn't even walked two steps down the hallway when she heard a click from the bedroom door—

This person actually locked the door from the inside!

"?"

Ning Qing was speechless.

Chen Shu started his shower.

After showering, the bathtub was about half full of water. He went over to take a look at the three small green plants and then scanned the storage rack.

He picked up a bath bomb and tossed it into the tub.

Chen Shu lay inside.

It had been a while since he last took a bath. Instead of feeling very comfortable, he felt his heartbeat accelerate and his breathing become rapid. After quickly adapting, he felt very tired again. The burden on his internal organs caused by the bath itself, combined with the fatigue accumulated during his previous advancement, surged over him. He couldn't help but slide down, resting his head against the bathtub wall, and closed his eyes.

Let's empty my mind and rest for a while.

But I absolutely must not fall asleep. Who knows when I'll wake up if I do, and soaking for too long isn't good either.

Things never go as one wishes.

Chen Shu didn't know when he had fallen asleep. When he groggily regained consciousness, his first reaction was that he was still soaking in the bath and had been woken up by Surprise. But soon he discovered that he wasn't submerged in water. Was the drain plug not sealed tightly? Or had he accidentally hit the button?

But what about this bath towel on his body?

Chen Shu felt a bit unsettled.

He rubbed his eyes and lifted himself up.

On the iron rack next to him where the bath towel hung, there was now an extra white bathrobe, and the bath towel was covering him. The bathroom door was frosted glass, revealing the warm-colored light from outside.

Outside the window, it had long since turned completely dark.

The bath towel was matcha green, a very fresh color.

Chen Shu stood up in silence.

Even though he was starving, he couldn't care less. He put on the bathrobe, walked out of the bathroom, leaned against the doorway, and turned his head to look—

Ning Qing was leaning against the headboard, covered by a quilt, holding A Book in her hands, looking down at it, absorbed.

The bedroom door was still closed.

Chen Shu had a blank expression. After a long while, he smacked his lips and asked blankly: "You... how did you get in?"

Ning Qing continued to look down at the book without even raising her head:

"This is my house."

"But I locked it from the inside."

"I have a key."

"What I mean is—how did you get in?"

"You were in there too long, I was worried something happened to you."

"Then you could have knocked on the door."

"How do you know I didn't?" Ning Qing finally moved her gaze away from the book, as if she had finished a section. She gave Chen Shu a faint look, "I knocked, you didn't respond."

"I don't believe it!"

"I don't lie."

"Then knock a few more times, knock harder!"

"..."

Facing his gaze, Ning Qing remained silent for a long time before spitting out a sentence: "Might as well look since it's there."

"!?"

"..."

"What happened to the cold and aloof goddess? Would a cold and aloof goddess be like this?"

"Like what?"

"Would she be interested in this kind of thing!?"

"I am still interested in you."

"You... you even ended your Heart Dao early!"

Chen Shu felt extremely miserable inside. He pointed a trembling finger at the bathroom and shouted at her: "Hurry up! You go take a bath too, I want to see back! Otherwise, I won't feel balanced!"

Facing his exasperation, Ning Qing appeared very calm:

"Put it on my tab."

"What tab!?"

"?"

Ning Qing felt puzzled; how could this person not even understand the meaning of keeping a tab? Wasn't it his own suggestion? But she still patiently explained to him: "It just means credit payment. Once I can watch you bathe every day in the future, you can tell me then, and I'll find a day to watch for a few minutes less."

Is that what I meant?

I am angry!

I am refusing!

Can this even be put on a tab?

Wait, something seems wrong—

"A few minutes?"

"……"

Ning Qing silently withdrew her gaze and continued reading, attempting to gloss over this topic by ignoring him.

"Ah, I can't take it anymore!"

Chen Shu rushed over all at once, threw himself onto her bed, and hugged her entire body:

"Hurry up and let me watch back!!"

"You've already hugged."

"What?"

"What was said before—after finishing the wash, I'd let you hug me; you've already hugged." Ning Qing's expression remained indifferent, her gaze fixed on the book page, and she even turned a leaf, "Don't say I didn't let you hug me."

"……Is this what we're talking about right now? We're talking about you peeking at my naked body!"

Speaking of this, he suddenly sniffed.

There was a faint fragrance on Ning Qing.

It was the same as the body wash he had just used.

"You took a bath too?"

"……"

"Speak! Where did you wash?"

"……"

"?"

"……"

"Why are you staying silent?"

"I am preparing to start practicing the Jingxin Dao……"

"??"

Chen Shu slowly turned his head to look at the bathroom next to them, and his whole mood instantly soured: "There is clearly another bathroom outside! Why didn't you go outside to wash!?"

"……"

"If you don't speak, I'm going to force a kiss on you!!"

"You wouldn't wake up anyway."

"……What if I do wake up?"

"So, are you awake?"

"……Don't you feel awkward?"

"Formalism is undesirable."

"……Don't copy the way I talk." Aside from the frustration of being at a disadvantage, Chen Shu also felt a bit of disbelief, "Good heavens, how did my Qingqing become like this now?"

"Who is to blame for that?" Ning Qing let him hug her, asking him back with indifference and confidence; her expression remained the same, forming a sharp contrast with Chen Shu at this moment, "You've been used to bullying me since we were little, and I've only bullied you once; look at how big your reaction is. In my opinion, I need to bully you a few more times before you'll get used to it."

"……"

Chen Shu was choked up, and it took him a good while to recover before he continued to ask: "How long did you wash for?"

"Half an hour."

"Then you said you'd only keep a tab for a few minutes."

"I wasn't staring at it the whole time."

"So, so reasonable……"

"Rest assured, I've calculated it; it totals only 3 minutes and 28 seconds, accurate to the millisecond, so keep that in mind." After finishing, Ning Qing added, "And there wasn't much to see anyway."

"……"

"I'm going to sleep."

Ning Qing closed the book in her hand, tossed it onto the nightstand, and looked at him: "There is food on the table downstairs; you must be hungry, so go down and eat. If it's cold, heat it up; I've already prepared the kitchenware you'll need. Also, I left a blanket for you on the sofa; you'll sleep there tonight."

"I won't! I want to sleep here!"

"This is my room."

"You go sleep on the sofa."

"……"

Ning Qing silently pushed him away, got up, put on her slippers, and walked out.

"Where are you going?"

"The sofa."

Yet this person did not appreciate her gentleness at all, even pointing at her and shouting: "Look! You're just feeling guilty!"

Ning Qing was expressionless.