CHAPTER 41
After a long pause, Sheng Qing mentally rehearsed the conversation several times before finally tentatively asking, "Did you also see the murals in the passageway?"
"Isn't that obvious? I've only been here a short time, how could I have discovered this? Only a blind person wouldn't see it," Sheng Qing thought to himself.
“A long time ago, ever since I became conscious.” Blake’s eyes became unfocused, as if he were lost in deep memories.
"Do you think you are that demon king?" Sheng Qing glanced at the scalded part, which had almost healed. Could his saliva really have such a miraculous effect? However, she didn't want to verify this question.
"And I am the girl who was sacrificed?" Sheng Qing felt guilty when she said the word "girl," but she couldn't possibly be the demon king, could she?
But then again, do they really have to play the demon king and the sacrificed girl? Besides, their situation has nothing to do with the story in the murals, does it?
"Sister, isn't that right?" Blake's expression was very sincere, with a coquettish and aggrieved look, like a cat that took the initiative to please its master and shed its arrogance to act cute. For a moment, Sheng Qing forgot his wicked act of wanting to imprison her, or rather, that she had already been imprisoned.
No, Sheng Qing shook her head, regaining her senses. What did it matter to her what kind of act he wanted to play? At this moment, all she wanted was to leave this place.
"You want to play this kind of trick?" Sheng Qing didn't think Blake would really have any strange thoughts about her; he was just coveting the exotic fragrance brought by the spiritual energy. So she looked at Blake with a serious face and a calm expression, "With your appearance, I think there must be many people who would be willing, or rather, eager to play games with you. But I don't have that kind of leisure."
The white cat in her arms had dark green pupils that had become deep in color. Sheng Qing lifted it by the back and placed it on an empty spot on the sofa, her movements not exactly gentle.
"I thought my sister would fall for this?" The white cat leaned against the sofa, stretched its limbs, and yawned. Then the sofa sank inward, and Blake transformed back into human form. His white hair fluttered, rising without wind, brushing against Sheng Qing's cheek, only to be unceremoniously brushed away by the latter.
"Does my sister fall for Reed's tactics more?" Blake's lips curled into a slight smile. "A rougher approach?"
"I'm really not in the mood to play with you." Sheng Qing tried to get up, but Blake pressed her shoulder down.
"Or maybe you'll fall for Meng Yunxi's act? Cold on the outside but warm on the inside, tenderness hidden beneath the arrogant mask?" Blake released one hand and stroked his chin with interest, his eyes fixed on Sheng Qing.
"Still talking about Qin Feiyu's style? The lighthearted and cheerful one?" Not expecting to hear Sheng Qing's reply, Blake continued talking to himself. He then mentioned several more names, some of which even Sheng Qing herself couldn't match. It was probably a list of all the men she had ever interacted with.
Where did he learn all these adjectives? Sheng Qing didn't say anything, but silently rolled her eyes.
Blake's eyes suddenly lit up, and his expression became meaningful: "Sister likes girls? Is it Qin Feiyan, or that Le Tian who's good at healing? It doesn't seem like there are any other suitable girls?"
Sheng Qing rolled her eyes and finally couldn't help but interrupt Blake, who was still adding names: "Let's make a deal."
"Oh? What kind of deal?" Blake suddenly leaned closer to Sheng Qing and asked with great interest.
"Can you move away from me?" Sheng Qing frowned and moved her body back.
“No.” Blake also moved forward at the same time.
The hand pressing down on Sheng Qing's shoulder was neither too light nor too heavy, just enough to prevent her from getting up and escaping. Sheng Qing could only turn her face away, take a deep breath, and then look at Blake again: "I can periodically transfer some spiritual energy to you, in exchange for letting me leave."
"And you can't lay a hand on the people around me." Sheng Qing recalled the strange circumstances surrounding Blake's recitation of those names as if they were second nature, and felt that it was a reminder or threat to her not to act rashly. Perhaps she was overthinking it, but she didn't want to take any risks.
"People around you? That's a bit too broad a scope," Blake chuckled.
“Those people you just mentioned,” Sheng Qing added impatiently.
"Deal!" Blake agreed in just one second.
"Twice a month," Sheng Qing offered. "If there are uncontrollable factors like missions, we'll carry them over to the next half month."
“No,” Blake shook his head. “Once a week.”
"Deal." After thinking it over, Sheng Qing agreed, finding it reasonable.
Why was the strange fragrance emanating from the spiritual energy so attractive to him? Was it merely a matter of physical instinct, like with the monsters outside the city?
Before this, Sheng Qing had never thought about how to deal with this guy who was immune to elemental power, but it was time to put it on the agenda. Recalling the first time she avoided his entanglement, she hid in the training room. There must be something there that he feared, otherwise he would have already barged in and dragged her out.
What could it be? Meng Yunxi mentioned that it was a kind of formation superimposed on elemental power. Now that I think about it, it's probably not that simple.
Regarding the Qin siblings' predicament, both Meng Yunxi and Ning Xianyu mentioned that besides elemental power, there are also some forbidden techniques in this world.
What Blake fears is most likely some kind of forbidden technique. Sheng Qing pondered in his mind how to find out about the forbidden technique and how to do so in a way that would go unnoticed.
It seems I'll have to trouble Meng Yunxi again. Thinking of this, Sheng Qing sighed. She really owes him so many favors. When will she ever have a chance to repay them?
Sheng Qing, lost in thought, was awakened by the expanding shadow before her eyes, by Blake's face gradually approaching, murmuring, "Now."
His eyes held a hint of suspicious daze, then he shifted his gaze from Sheng Qing's eyes to her lips, his intention clear: he was about to press his lips against hers without warning.
Is he going to kiss her?
Without time to confirm, in a moment of desperation, Sheng Qing swung her free hand, clenched her fist, and slammed it hard into Blake's face. The latter seemed caught off guard, caught off guard by the punch.
Sheng Qing felt that his field of vision had widened considerably, but his brows were still furrowed, and he shouted sternly, "What are you doing? I'm just transferring spiritual energy, I didn't promise you anything else. Don't push your luck!"
"Don't misunderstand, I didn't mean to kiss my sister." A vague emotion flashed in Blake's eyes. He brushed aside a strand of messy hair and rubbed the sore spot. He exuded a broken aura, as if Sheng Qing had done something unforgivable to him.
Was her grip really that strong? Sheng Qing glanced at her loosened fist; it did hurt a little. She then looked at Blake's unmarked face and couldn't help but think to herself, "Why is she pretending to be weak? If she loves acting so much, why doesn't she act in TV dramas? Well, if all else fails, she could sing opera or act in stage plays." Sheng Qing had only heard about several theaters in Montreal by chance, where various performances were held from time to time.
"So, how does Sister plan to transfer spiritual energy?" Seemingly having recovered, Blake's gaze swept unabashedly over Sheng Qing's lips before meeting her eyes.
“Physical contact is fine, right?” Sheng Qing frowned slightly. To be honest, she didn’t even want physical contact. Suddenly, she thought of Reid. “Perhaps you could ask Reid how he manages to draw spiritual energy from a distance.”
Blake sneered, "I don't know him at all."
Sheng Qing caught a glimpse of a strange expression on his face and was about to ask him when she was interrupted by Blake's approaching figure once again.
This guy is still up to no good. Sheng Qing waved her clenched fist, and the latter sat up straight, asking with a hint of confusion, "Wouldn't this be more convenient? Sister doesn't want spiritual energy to be wasted, does she?"
There's plenty of spiritual energy, so what's there to be afraid of wasting? Ever since he figured out the frequency and speed of spiritual energy generation, Sheng Qing felt like he had become a wealthy and powerful tycoon.
Sheng Qing could never put Blake in a completely opposing position. He always managed to provoke her anger in just the right way, but he also knew when to stop, barely managing to respect her wishes and let her off the hook at the appropriate time.
Besides the alluring fragrance brought by her spiritual power, what else about her was something he coveted and feared?
There were too few valid clues, and Sheng Qing had no way of making any deductions.
"Besides spiritual power, what else do you want?" Instead of racking your brains to guess, it's better to just ask directly. After all, not getting an answer won't hurt you.
Blake's eyes flashed with undisguised greed and madness, only to be quickly replaced by calm and restraint a few seconds later. If gazes had temperature, Sheng Qing would probably be engulfed in flames by now. Because, in that short time, Blake's gaze had traced Sheng Qing from head to toe, inside and out, several times.
This feeling was no better than having a piece missing; in fact, it made Sheng Qing even more upset. She began to regret asking that question.
"Speak," Sheng Qing managed to utter.
“Of course. Does sister really want to know?” Blake’s gaze met Sheng Qing’s eyes, and his expression inexplicably became enthusiastic and excited.
Could it be that he's been watching her all along? Has he already discovered that she's a time traveler? But what does this secret have to do with the strange fragrance?
She'd be willing to listen if her little secret wouldn't be exposed, but she also felt she might hear some random, nonsensical thoughts.
Sheng Qing suddenly became irritable and finally had to wave her hand in frustration, saying, "No need, I don't want to."
Blake withdrew his gaze with slight disappointment, stood up, straightened the non-existent wrinkles on his clothes, and then took out a clean set of clothes from the void and handed them to Sheng Qing. He pointed to the blue stone door that had just appeared and said, "Sister, go wash up first. I'll prepare something to eat for you." Without waiting for Sheng Qing's reply, he disappeared and left.
A few seconds later, Blake's voice came from the void: "After I transfer the Qi, I will take my sister away. As for when to transfer the Qi, I will patiently wait for my sister's notification."
Kissing, physical contact, showering, breathing in air. Blake always liked to engage in these ambiguous, misleading actions.
Having confirmed that Blake had completely left, Sheng Qing sighed helplessly, checked the clothes and found nothing amiss, then pushed open the bluestone door and slowly stepped inside.
Blake indeed brought back hot food and a shivering, slightly deformed middle-aged woman. After washing up and changing into clean clothes, he went out through the blue stone gate and immediately saw the unfamiliar middle-aged woman.
"Who is she?" Wasn't it agreed that I could leave after the breath-transferring was over? Why is there suddenly another person? Did she change her mind again?
“The chef.” Blake glanced at the middle-aged man and raised an eyebrow smugly. “She’s the best chef in Montreal. These are all specially prepared for you.” Blake gestured to Sheng Qing to look at the exquisite food laid out on the table.
"Yes, yes, please try it." The middle-aged woman was clearly afraid of Blake, and dared not look up, only managing to squeeze out a few words with trembling hands.
Sheng Qing frowned again. Why did she frown so often? If this continued, the dynamic wrinkles would become static wrinkles and stay on her face permanently. She rubbed her temples and said, "Let her go back. I have hands and feet and can do it myself."
Blake teleported to Sheng Qing's side in an instant: "How can you use your hands to cook, sister?" He gently took Sheng Qing's hand and stroked it against his cheek. He leaned close to her ear and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Sister, have you forgotten that you also need to use it to transfer spiritual energy? Or have you changed your mind and want to use it? I would be happy to." After saying that, he looked at her lips.
Sheng Qing withdrew his hand, closed his eyes, and quickly checked the state of the spiritual energy in his sea of consciousness. He lowered his voice and said, "I will transfer my energy to you tomorrow and let her leave."
Blake shook his head almost imperceptibly, then teleported back to the sofa, looking utterly bored.
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