NOVEL WEB Chapter 15: Absorption
Chapter 15: Absorption
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Lin Yao’s words left the three present utterly stunned.
Now? Here?
Xiao Qing frowned tightly—this man didn’t seem like some lecherous rogue.
Why would he act so brazenly?
She sensed the aura of his supernatural power lingering right in front of her.
“Is it because of his ability?”
Leaning against the wall, Xiao Qing suddenly found herself somewhat believing Lin Yao’s words.
“Sister, perhaps one day I really will be able to kill that monk with my own hands.”
In the center of the room, the Black Mountain Demon was also taken aback by Lin Yao’s words.
“To think the younger generation has such… refined tastes. This old one must truly be getting on in years.”
She then turned her gaze toward Xiao Qian.
“Why aren’t you going to serve the young master?”
Xiao Qian had no choice. With her life firmly in the demon’s grasp, she could only walk toward Lin Yao.
Tears fell silently.
“My dear Ning, this lowly one must wrong you.”
Lin Yao felt a headache coming on, but he had to keep up the act.
He took Xiao Qian’s hand, pulling her into his embrace, his fingers lifting her chin.
Her tear-streaked face was indeed enough to stir pity.
“What’s wrong? Thinking of your lover?”
Lin Yao chuckled lightly, but his hands began to loosen her garments.
Xiao Qian shut her eyes tightly, her delicate body trembling uncontrollably. The Black Mountain Demon, however, watched with keen interest.
After all, once the two consummated their union, she could drain Lin Yao’s vital essence. The blood pool outside could restore flesh to bones—there was no fear of sudden death.
Xiao Qing watched the scene unfold, her heart filled with displeasure.
She didn’t know what Lin Yao was planning, but the sight made her deeply uncomfortable.
As the light robes slipped away, Xiao Qian’s body was gradually exposed to the air.
Lin Yao frowned slightly.
“Was I wrong?”
His movements slowed. Just as he was about to give up, his hand accidentally brushed against Xiao Qian’s waist.
A familiar sensation rippled through his heart.
“It is a curse—but compared to Zhi Nü’s, it’s far weaker.”
He placed his palm on Xiao Qian’s waist, lifting her onto his lap.
Feeling the warmth of his body, Xiao Qian seemed to resign herself, her face etched with sorrow and despair.
“Is he trying to find the curse the Black Mountain Demon planted?”
Xiao Qing, who had been about to intervene, paused, her doubts and anger fading somewhat.
Feeling the trembling beauty in his arms, Lin Yao’s mind was anything but calm.
“Don’t move.”
An inexplicable irritation rose in him.
Pinning Xiao Qian down, he whispered in her ear,
“If you want to remain bound forever, then suit yourself.”
Hearing his words, Xiao Qian’s eyes flew open.
All she saw were calm, detached pupils, devoid of desire. His blood-smeared cheeks held a sinister, mesmerizing beauty.
For some reason, she felt an inexplicable sense of safety with this strange man.
“He’s removing Grandma’s curse? No—he’s absorbing it?”
Xiao Qian could feel the curse planted in her being devoured by Lin Yao.
“Clever.”
Xiao Qing’s lips curled slightly. It seemed this man was indeed worth collaborating with.
She had merely mentioned the path of curses, and he had already begun delving into the arts of witchcraft.
“But where did the curse inside him come from? To be so domineering… Could it be the price of his supernatural ability?”
Lin Yao lifted his hand, his arm slightly numb.
Closing his eyes, he sensed the curse in his heart had grown slightly stronger—yet it remained beyond his control.
When he first entered the first floor of Leifeng Pagoda, Lin Yao had sensed the curse stirring.
[Translator: sauron05]
Unfolding the “Weaving Fate” ability was meant to better manipulate the Black Mountain Demon—yet in the end, he hadn’t needed to use it much before she handed over Xiao Qian.
“Let me help you once.”
Xiao Qing summoned her whip, waiting quietly.
“Young man, why have you stopped?”
The Black Mountain Demon, who had been watching the scene while fantasizing about Lin Yao’s essence, was baffled.
As a fox spirit, Xiao Qian was born with the skills to seduce men.
Yet Lin Yao had suddenly halted.
If there were men in this world who could resist temptation, she found it hard to believe.
“Qing-jie, this isn’t my fault. They forced me.”
Lin Yao spoke abruptly. By the time the Black Mountain Demon turned, the whip was already lashing across her face.
Crack!
A sharp sound echoed alongside the demon’s howl of pain.
Xiao Qian panicked, as if caught in an affair with her master.
Head bowed, she recalled how Xiao Qing had always treated her like a sister.
Now, forced to seduce the man who might become Xiao Qing’s future husband…
Though it seemed Lin Yao was only after the curse, the two had still shared an intimate moment.
The thought left her unsure how to face Xiao Qing.
Xiao Qing strode up to the Black Mountain Demon and drew her slender sword.
“I told you not to touch him.”
The demon shuddered at the blade’s proximity.
The killing intent radiating from Xiao Qing was unmistakable—she truly intended to kill.
With an awkward laugh, the demon spoke:
“Lady Qing, I was merely testing whether this young man was worthy of you.”
Worthy of me?
Xiao Qing couldn’t help but glance at Lin Yao.
She remembered her sister once saying that without experiencing mortal love and hatred, one could never attain enlightenment.
Cultivation was also the cultivation of the heart.
Yet for thousands of years, she had focused solely on cultivation, never sparing a thought for such matters.
Misreading her expression, the Black Mountain Demon pressed on:
“Xiao Qian and I agreed to help you judge whether this man is worth entrusting yourself to.”
“Oh? And what’s your verdict?”
A dangerous aura began to emanate from Xiao Qing.
Mistaking it for anger toward Lin Yao, the demon feigned outrage:
“Who knew this boy would fail to resist temptation, nearly defiling Xiao Qian? Hand him over to me—I’ll make sure he satisfies you.”
Looking at her ingratiating smile, Xiao Qing laughed coldly, her sword flashing.
A streak of blood flew as the Black Mountain Demon stared dumbly at her severed arm on the ground.
“Grandma…”
Xiao Qian still felt some pity—after all, without the demon’s care, she would have long since dissipated as a lonely ghost.
“Take her to the blood pool. If any of you interfere in my affairs again, I won’t mind sending you to meet the Western Paradise ahead of schedule.”
Xiao Qing sheathed her sword, her whip coiling around Lin Yao before vanishing down the corridor.
“Change your clothes.”
Xiao Qing tossed garments at Lin Yao, then turned and shut the door behind her.
“She’s different from Zhi Nü.”
Lin Yao smiled, stripping off the wedding robes. The outfit Xiao Qing had given him was a loose Confucian-style blue robe—fortunately roomy enough to fit.
Outside the door, Xiao Qing leaned against the wall. The Black Mountain Demon’s words had stirred ripples in her heart, untouched for millennia.
Lin Yao’s composure and calmness intrigued her, as did that inexplicable sense of familiarity.
“Was Sister’s heart the same back then?”
Her fingers traced the white sword at her waist—the only memento Bai Niangzi had left her.
Years ago, after achieving human form through cultivation, she had battled Bai Niangzi fiercely before the two became sworn sisters.
To commemorate it, Bai Niangzi forged two swords from volcanic essence and other treasures.
One was White Blaze, the other Green Edge.
Green Edge hung at Xiao Qing’s waist, while White Blaze had been Bai Niangzi’s own.
Now, only the relics remained.
Creak.
Lin Yao stepped out.
When Xiao Qing glanced over, the scholarly robes lent him an air of refined elegance.
With a flick of her wrist, her soft sword Green Edge pressed against Lin Yao’s throat.
“We need to talk.”
(End of Chapter)