Chapter 31: Coaxing

Sang Ying naturally and firmly rejected Xie Lingyu’s proposal with stern words.

She still hadn’t fully come to terms with what had just happened moments ago—how could she possibly let him do it again? She pushed against him, saying, “No.”

Suppressing her embarrassment, she put on a serious expression, offering a perfectly reasonable justification for her refusal: “Even if it could draw in more fire element spiritual power, my body wouldn’t be able to absorb it all at once. Instead, it would just make me uncomfortable.”

This was indeed true. Having suddenly taken in so much spiritual power, her adaptability to this energy was still insufficient, making it impossible for her to fully integrate it for her own use.

Xie Lingyu carried her to a shallower part of the hot spring, sitting down against the edge while holding her from behind. The spring water just reached her chest.

“Junior Sister, first try to absorb this elemental spiritual power and get used to it a bit.”

Sang Ying was now completely seated in his embrace, enveloped by him, her back pressed against his chest.

Her clothes, soaked through by the hot spring water, slightly revealed her collarbones, flushed pink from the steam. The Heart-Protecting Scale Pendant hanging in the middle gleamed beautifully.

She could feel the young man’s breath falling on the nape of her neck, tickling her.

If that were all, it might have been bearable, but the Dragon Tail beneath the water hadn’t released her even after sitting down. It remained coiled around her legs, winding once around her calf.

The furry tip of the tail idly brushed against her ankle bone, as if writing characters.

Sang Ying’s eyelashes fluttered abruptly, a bit annoyed. “Xie Lingyu, how am I supposed to cultivate like this?!”

The young man rested his chin on the nape of her neck, his voice clear and cool. “This doesn’t affect Junior Sister’s Zhou Tian circulation at all. Why wouldn’t it work?”

Sang Ying’s ears flushed crimson. How dare he call her clingy in front of others when he himself was the undisputed clingy one!

Yesterday, when his true nature was revealed, he had clung to her for half the day, and now, even while soaking in the hot spring, he still had to hold her.

Sang Ying pushed against him uncomfortably. “How did you endure it during these three years after getting married? Can’t you endure it a bit longer now?”

The young man behind her suddenly let out a soft chuckle. He caught the hand she was pushing him with, brought it to his lips, and sucked and kissed it. When he released it, a deep red kiss mark slowly appeared on her slender, pale wrist.

Rubbing the kiss mark with his thumb, he murmured in a low voice, “Junior Sister, do you mean like this?”

Sang Ying had only ever seen the kiss marks before, never witnessed the process of their creation. Now, seeing it with her own eyes, she felt a slight sting, mixed with a tingling numbness.

Suddenly remembering something, she widened her eyes. “So all those marks I found over the years were from you sneaking kisses!”

Over the past three years, she had initially discovered such red marks. At first, they were very faint, just a slight blush, and in inconspicuous places.

Thinking she had accidentally bumped into something, she hadn’t paid them much mind. But later, the marks grew darker and appeared in more noticeable places—on her wrist some time ago, and then on her neck and back while in the Demon Realm…

Sang Ying grabbed his finger. “Tell me honestly, what else have you done?!”

Xie Lingyu glanced at her, tightening the Dragon Tail coiled around her waist. Casually catching her fingers, he kissed the back of her hand, his voice tinged with a morbid, gloomy stickiness.

“What could I do? Junior Sister sleeps lightly. What if she woke up and had me arrested as a scoundrel?”

Sang Ying: “…You’re not much different from a scoundrel now.”

The young man lifted his eyelids, pressing against the nape of her neck. “Then does Junior Sister want to have me arrested?”

Sang Ying snorted coldly, took out an Immortal-Binding Rope, wriggled out of his embrace, and tied him up in a few swift moves. “Don’t disturb me.”

She sat down beside him, deliberately keeping some distance, and began regulating her breath to cultivate.

This time, the lustful dragon finally behaved, not clinging to her or disturbing her again.

She cultivated for an unknown length of time, until the elemental spiritual power had all been absorbed into her dantian. Sang Ying exhaled and opened her eyes.

She pinched a talisman between her fingers. Unlike the usual method of channeling spiritual power, this time the talisman ignited in mid-air, instantly summoning a Wind Slash that severed many vine branches.

Indeed, with elemental spiritual power, controlling talismans became much more effortless.

Just as Sang Ying was about to try other talismans, her movements suddenly paused.

She looked toward the young man across from her.

The young man, who appeared aloof and untouched by worldly affairs, was still bound by the Immortal-Binding Rope, leaning against the edge of the hot spring, his expression calm and emotionless.

Sang Ying glanced at him, then looked down into the water.

The dragon tail was swaying beside her legs, its furry tip occasionally brushing against her ankle, sending tingles through her, and then casually wrapping around her calf.

Sang Ying: “…”

Expressionlessly, Sang Ying ignited a talisman, reached out, grabbed the dragon tail, and pulled it out of the water.

The azure jade-like scales felt cool to the touch. She dragged the dragon tail to her mouth, opened it, and bit down hard.

The dragon tail visibly stiffened, and she heard the young man hiss softly.

Harming the enemy a thousand while damaging herself eight hundred—even with the Hardening Talisman, the bite still made her teeth ache. Sang Ying let go, covering her mouth, grimacing and sucking in air.

Damn, these dragon tail scales were too hard.

The azure jade dragon tail wrapped around her waist, coiled, and pulled, bringing Sang Ying back into the young man’s embrace. But she had no energy to care, her eyes teary as she covered her teeth.

Xie Lingyu was both angry and amused. He lifted her little face, pried it open, and examined it. “Not bad, your teeth aren’t broken.”

As he massaged her cheek to ease the soreness, he said with a laugh, “What were you thinking? Biting down without a second thought, aren’t you afraid of chipping your teeth?”

“But Junior Sister’s bite is quite impressive; it actually hurt a bit just now.” He commented seriously, “Yesterday too, the marks Junior Sister left are still very clear.”

…Who knew your tail scales were so hard on the teeth!

Sucking in air, Sang Ying mentally planned to find another spot to bite next time, refusing to believe it would still be this hard.

She grabbed the mischievous dragon tail that was always causing trouble and shook its tip, scattering water droplets everywhere.

After examining it, she found no weak spots; instead, the overlapping scales were quite beautiful, and the tail fin was thin and translucent.

Sang Ying poked the golden ring fastened at the end of the tail. “I didn’t expect you to have such leisurely tastes, dressing up your tail.”

The tip of the dragon tail actively pressed against her finger. The young man’s voice behind her was faint, “After reaching adulthood, all dragons develop golden rings. But it’s not for looks; it’s to suppress the dragon clan’s Tide Heat Period. Without this, given the dragon clan’s nature, every day would be a Tide Heat Period, clinging to their Dao Companion for Dual Cultivation.”

Sang Ying, who had been curiously about to remove the golden ring, quickly stopped her mischievous action.

The voice behind her drew closer, landing by her ear, a low, clear voice tinged with amusement. “Why isn’t Junior Sister taking it off anymore?”

Sang Ying’s ears grew warm. The dragon nature inherently being… that, she had heard of it, and she had experienced it firsthand, just from seeing what Xie Lingyu did to her.

Yet she also felt a bit puzzled. If he was so eager for Dual Cultivation, why hadn’t he continued yesterday?

Sang Ying paused for a moment before asking softly, “Xie Lingyu, that…”

The young man had resumed his clingy posture, holding her close, his chin resting in the crook of her neck as he nuzzled against her, his voice low. “What is it, junior sister?”

“Yesterday, weren’tt you affected by Love Thread Entanglement? And you didn’t… do that with me. How did you resolve it?”

The young man narrowed his eyes slightly. “Is junior sister suspecting that I sought someone else outside?”

Sang Ying: ?

Since when did she mean that?

The young man took her hand and placed it on his dragon tail, letting her fingertips touch the Golden Ring. “The Binding Ring of a dragon clan member who has never engaged in Dual Cultivation is pure gold. With each instance of Dual Cultivation, a Crimson Pattern appears. As the number of Dual Cultivation sessions increases, it gradually turns golden-red.”

…There was such a thing?

Sang Ying felt embarrassed but was genuinely curious. She slowly turned her gaze, her face slightly flushed as she looked at the Golden Ring.

It was a clear, pure gold without a trace of any other color, which indeed indicated that he had never engaged in Dual Cultivation.

Sang Ying grew even more puzzled. But if he hadn’t engaged in Dual Cultivation, how had he resolved the effects of the potion?

As if sensing her confusion, the young man spoke calmly, “It wasn’t resolved.”

While Sang Ying was still stunned, the dragon tail wrapped around her arm. He held her a little tighter, pulling her into his embrace and bringing her closer to himself.

Through her clothes, Sang Ying could feel the texture of the dragon tail—warm and solid even in the already hot spring water. Her face flushed instantly, and she immediately struggled to move away from the dragon tail.

“…Xie Lingyu!”

The young man held her close, the tip of the dragon tail wrapped around her arm swaying leisurely. “The potency of this potion is indeed fierce, but the Tide Heat Period of the dragon clan already surpasses all Love Potions in the world.”

Sang Ying was a bit confused. “You’re still in your Tide Heat Period?”

Xie Lingyu responded lightly, “A month.”

Sang Ying had thought he seemed quite normal today and assumed it had ended after she comforted him in the Demon Realm last time. By this calculation, his Tide Heat Period wasn’t even halfway over yet.

She lowered her head to look at the arm wrapped around her waist.

…Was this the reason he had been so clingy these past two days?

Sang Ying blinked. During the Tide Heat Period, the dragon clan would naturally desire to engage in Dual Cultivation with their Dao Companion, let alone after consuming a Love Potion, which would only make it even harder to endure.

She had also sensed earlier that he truly wanted to. Yet, aside from holding her, he hadn’t done anything to her.

Even the earlier… kissing incident was something she had initiated.

Sang Ying thought back to yesterday. After she said it hurt, he had stopped. Could it be because of that that he was now restraining himself from doing anything?

Her eyelashes fluttered slightly as she poked the tip of the dragon tail around her wrist, speaking softly, “Xie Lingyu…”

“Hmm?”

Xie Lingyu had been staring at the girl’s fair earlobe and responded upon hearing her.

“Are you… very uncomfortable? I can help you a little, but only a little. Just because you helped apply medicine for me earlier.”

She mumbled softly, her gaze fixed on the fair earlobe that gradually turned a rosy red, like a small cherry, adorned with droplets of water that made it especially enticing.

Xie Lingyu touched this small cherry with his fingertip. A droplet of water landed on his finger, and he gave it a gentle pinch. The soft earlobe seemed to redden even more.

While playing with it, he spoke unhurriedly, “How does junior sister plan to help me?”

The girl paused, as if having made up her mind about something.

After a long while, she finally spoke, her words hesitant and her voice as low as a mosquito’s hum: “…Just, with my hand.”

Xie Lingyu paused.

Having mustered the courage to say it, Sang Ying lowered her eyes, damp from the steam of the hot spring, and they flickered restlessly. She felt her ears growing even hotter.

After speaking, she hurriedly added, her tone dry: “Don’t overthink it. I’m just afraid you’ll suffer from Qi Deviation again like that day and die out there without anyone knowing.”

Suddenly, her chin was lifted. The young man behind her spoke with a cold, almost gloomy tone, and she could feel a shiver run through his shoulders, carrying that same chill.

“Has my junior sister done this for anyone else before?”

Sang Ying was momentarily confused: “Done what for anyone?”

Realizing what he meant, she grabbed his fingers in a mix of embarrassment and anger, biting down fiercely. “Xie Lingyu, what do you mean by that?!”

“Ouch.”

Xie Lingyu let out a soft hiss but didn’t withdraw his hand, allowing her to bite him. Instead, his dark eyes fixed intently on her. “So, my junior sister has never done this for anyone else?”

Sang Ying bit down again. “Of course not!”

What was wrong with him? So suspicious—first suspecting she liked the senior brother, now suspecting she had been intimate with others.

And such an intimate act at that—how could she possibly have done it with anyone else? It had taken her a long time just to muster the courage to say it out loud.

The tense atmosphere around them finally eased.

Xie Lingyu’s fingers gently lifted her small face, his thumb and forefinger lightly pinching her cheek as he continued to ask:

“Then how did my junior sister know this could be done?”

Sang Ying stiffened abruptly.

She had learned it from the Secret Manual given to her by that Huanhe Sect sister, but how could she possibly tell him that?

Sang Ying averted her eyes, feigning ignorance, and whispered, “Well… didn’t you just use your hand too? Since that worked, I thought you might be able to as well.”

The young man’s expression finally softened considerably. His Dragon Tail wrapped around her waist again as he took her wrist and pulled it toward him. Sang Ying froze, her ears flushing red. Was he really going to start without giving her any time to prepare?

She stammered nervously, “Xie Lingyu…”

But her fingertips landed on something cool and smooth, a sensation like touching cool jade. Surprised, she looked down at the pair of beautiful, jade-like dragon horns beneath her fingers.

“If my junior sister really wants to help me, just touching them will be enough.”

Hearing his words, Sang Ying blinked and whispered, “Is that really all it takes?”

The young man pressed her soft fingers against the dragon horns and hummed in agreement.

That didn’t seem too difficult. Since he said so, Sang Ying began to move her hand.

The dragon horns felt cool to the touch. She gently traced her fingers from the tips downward, slowly and carefully, when she suddenly heard him say: “A cultivator’s Primordial Yang is a very important thing. Abundant Yang Qi is beneficial to one’s cultivation base. I must wait until Dual Cultivation to feed it all to my junior sister.”

??!

Sang Ying lost control of her grip and squeezed the dragon horn hard.

The young man let out a muffled groan, and the Dragon Tail loosely wrapped around her suddenly tightened. He quickly pulled her hand away from the dragon horn, panting softly. “It seems my junior sister’s grip is no less fierce than her bite.”

Sang Ying’s face was already flushed crimson. Seeing how uncomfortable he seemed, she felt both guilty and annoyed. “Who told you to say such shameless things, you perverted dragon! Serves you right!”

Xie Lingyu chuckled softly and pinched her cheek. “My junior sister truly allows the officials to set fires but forbids the common people to light lamps. I merely mentioned it and was labeled as such, but what about what my junior sister asked me to help with tonight?”

Sang Ying: “…”

Memories from not long ago flooded her mind. Sang Ying stared at his lips, her thoughts consumed by the sensation from that time—it felt like a tongue, soft, licking for a long while, even sucking several times… The more she dwelled on it, the more flustered she became, wishing she could vanish into thin air.

She wanted to explain herself, but it was true that she had been the one to ask for it. Usually quick-witted and skilled in sophistry, this time she had no way to argue her way out.

After stammering for a while, Sang Ying dejectedly buried her head against his chest, murmuring weakly, “…Just don’t talk about it.”

“Shimei and I are already husband and wife, and Dao Companions. Dual Cultivation is the most natural thing. Why can’t it be mentioned?”

Sang Ying knew it was perfectly normal, but facing Xie Lingyu, she just couldn’t help feeling embarrassed!

Her lower abdomen felt warm as the young man’s palm covered her dantian. He whispered, “After Dual Cultivation, Shimei will absorb my Yang Qi, and your cultivation base will improve significantly—several times faster than cultivating on your own.”

Sang Ying was almost swayed by his words. Her cultivation base was something she cared deeply about. It wasn’t that she wanted to Ascend and become immortal—she just wanted to live a little longer, to have a bit more time.

Greedily, she thought that way she could spend more time with him and wouldn’t age so quickly.

The young man continued softly, “Besides, Shimei’s constitution is weak. Back when we were cultivating on the mountain, didn’t you find the rigorous training methods unbearable? Dual Cultivation is different—it doesn’t require Shimei to exert any effort.”

…A cultivation method that isn’t tiring!

Sang Ying’s eyes lit up. She was someone who even made Xie Lingyu carry her up the mountain, so hearing this immediately piqued her interest.

But doing Dual Cultivation with Xie Lingyu was still so embarrassing…

Resting her head against his chest, Sang Ying wrestled with her thoughts. On one side was his promise of effortless and rapid cultivation progress; on the other were the blush-inducing scenes she’d seen in the Secret Manual.

After agonizing for a while, the former ultimately won out. After all, husband and wife would inevitably engage in Dual Cultivation sooner or later—it was only a matter of time.

Thinking this, she suppressed her shyness and was about to look up and tell him she agreed when the young man spoke again:

“But there’s no rush. Shimei hasn’t reached Foundation Establishment yet, and your body is too weak to withstand the power of Dual Cultivation. You can take your time to consider it until then.”

Sang Ying: “…”

Blushing, Sang Ying grabbed his hand, pulled it over, and bit down hard, silently venting her frustration.

If we can’t do it now, why are you telling me all this?!

Xie Lingyu thought she was angry because he had tempted her with his words. After a moment of silence, afraid she’d grow even angrier, he swallowed back the phrase, “But it won’t be much longer.”

“The soak has been long enough. Any longer and you’ll feel uncomfortable.”

He wrapped an arm around her waist, lifted her up, and carried her out of the hot spring. Using his Spiritual Power, he instantly dried their clothes, then sat down with her on a clean rock.

The undergarments and shoes she’d worn earlier were still there, but they were stained with grass. Not wanting her to wear them again, he took out a clean set from his Storage Ring, held her ankle, and helped her put them on.

Fresh from the bath, Sang Ying felt lazy all over and didn’t refuse his assistance.

But after squinting and staring for a moment, she asked suspiciously, “This seems to be my clothing… Why are you carrying my intimate garments with you?”

The young man’s tone was indifferent. “Does Shimei really want to know?”

Sang Ying’s ears flushed red. She gritted her teeth and muttered, “…Perverted dragon.”

The young man helped her put on her shoes and socks, then suddenly chuckled. “What is junior sister thinking? It’s just that the Tide Heat Period requires some calming aura.”

“Could it be that junior sister wants me to cling to you even when I’m out?”

Sang Ying paused. That’s right, the Tide Heat Period lasts a month, and sometimes he would be away for many days, unable to return at night to seek closeness with her.

Thinking about it this way, he seemed rather pitiful. Not only could he not engage in Dual Cultivation with his wife, but even when he needed a bit of aura to soothe his restlessness, he had to do it secretly, only able to hold and cling to her when she was asleep at night.

Even the dignified Qingyu Sword Lord had been reduced to secretly using his Dao Companion’s intimate clothing to comfort himself—it sounded quite pitiful.

As Sang Ying thought this, she felt a bit of sympathy for him.

She picked up the pair of inner trousers beside her, shook off the grass blades, bundled them up, and handed them to him. “Here, take these. They were just changed, so the aura should be stronger.”

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her ankle, gripped tightly by slender fingers.

Sang Ying inexplicably sensed danger. She looked up and met the dark, brooding eyes of the young man who was still putting on her shoes.