[Is there a problematic section? Can you give me a hint?]
The sky was a high, distant azure, reflected in the courtyard pond where white clouds drifted like schools of fish.
In the pavilion, Qingque stared blankly, her eyes glazed over.
Binding the Grand Diviner? Qingque had no idea how. She was just an ordinary Diviner. She had heard that some prisoners in the dungeons were bound with chains covered in talismans to seal their powers and restrict their abilities, turning them into ordinary people.
But Qingque felt that the greatest truths were simple, that there was beauty in plainness. There was no need for so many fancy tricks and techniques.
Simply placing the Grand Diviner's hands above her head, tying her wrists, and suspending her would probably suffice.
Just imagining the scene of Fu Xuan being bound by her own hands was enough to make Qingque's head spin. It wasn't just resisting a superior; it was directly assaulting her. The rebellious feeling… was indeed exhilarating, like a great hero roaming the cosmos.
No, no!
Qingque snapped back to her senses.
It was one thing to curse her out in her head, but to actually commit such an act of insubordination was something Qingque didn't dare to do.
Despite her constant slacking, Qingque was a person with a strong sense of professional duty. Disliking her boss was one thing, but she would still diligently complete her work.
"There's no need for guilt, nor should you feel ashamed. Look, Fu Xuan herself is tied with red ropes. Who knows, maybe she likes this kind of thing?"
Ye Feng placed his hands on the Grand Diviner's fragrant shoulders, turned her around, and had Qingque take a closer look at her back.
The official-issue feathered garment was ethereal and beautiful, revealing a fair, delicate back. Several red ropes crisscrossed and bound her perfect back…
Qingque stared blankly ahead. What kind of bondage was he talking about just now? She didn't quite understand, but it felt very improper.
Of course, Qingque knew perfectly well that the red ropes on the Grand Diviner's back were meant to secure the armor on her front… probably…
As Qingque stared at the binding red ropes on Fu Xuan's back, which she had never thought much of before, Ye Feng's whispers made her feel more and more that… something was off about the Grand Diviner…
"Did you use some mind-bewitching technique on me too?"
Qingque lifted her head, desperately trying to deny the wicked thoughts sprouting in her heart. She felt that Ye Feng was meddling.
"Huh?"
Ye Feng paused for a moment, then smiled. "As expected of you. That ability to shift blame is truly a masterpiece. I do know a thing or two about the mind-bewitching you mentioned, but as things stand~~"
Ye Feng stared at Qingque and chuckled. "I don't need to use it yet."
"?"
What did that mean?
What did he mean, "don't need to use it yet"? Did he think she would definitely yield?
Qingque felt insulted.
Was she that kind of person?!
"Hard to say."
"That's slander!"
"Heh, then who's the one staring at Fu Xuan's back right now? And you say you don't want to do something?"
"You're touching her too!"
"Yeah. I'm a pervert."
"…"
Qingque realized she had fallen into a trap. Phrased like that, it was as if he was saying, "We're the same kind of people."
"Qingque, are you really not going to try?"
Ye Feng tempted her. "Think about the overtime you worked during the day, think about the pile of documents on your desk. Letting off a little steam is perfectly understandable."
Listening to Ye Feng's words, Qingque tremblingly raised her hand, slowly, inch by inch, reaching for her direct superior's back.
Just as she was about to make contact, the real warmth from Fu Xuan's skin made Qingque jolt.
No!
"…If I really do that, I feel like I'll lose something very important."
"But you'll also gain a lot. You have to give to get. The choice between giving and getting is life itself. There's no right or wrong."
Qingque still pulled her hand back.
"I still can't."
"Forget it."
Ye Feng stopped trying to persuade her. "If you won't do it, then I'll have to do you."
"!!"
Ye Feng picked up a rope and looked at Qingque, a kind smile on his face.
Qingque's heart skipped a beat, and she stumbled backward.
"I thought you were really ready to just give up. When it comes down to it, you still get nervous. It seems your 'spirit of letting things rot' isn't all that great."
Seeming a bit defiant, Qingque steadied herself. She stared at Ye Feng without a word.
Ye Feng tossed Fu Xuan's rope at her feet.
"…?"
What… what was the meaning of this?
Ye Feng said, "Didn't you feel insulted that I wasn't applying any status effects on you? Then I'll satisfy you. I'll give you two statuses."
"Eh?"
Qingque felt her body heat up, as if every cell was on fire.
"What… what did you do to me?"
"Didn't I just tell you? I added some statuses. Want me to add 'Hypnosis' too? That way you can deceive yourself and lighten the psychological burden."
"…"
Qingque felt herself getting stranger and stranger. She unconsciously arched her back, her lips pressed tightly together.
Ye Feng said, "See how thoughtful I am for you? Hurry up and say, 'Thank you, Brother Ye Feng.'"
"?"
I have to thank you?
Could you be any more shameless?
Whose fault is it that I'm like this?
Qingque fought to keep from making a sound. But Ye Feng was already coming over. A strong electric current seemed to pass through Qingque, leaving her numb. She was indignant, unwilling to yield, but a layer of mist clouded her bright eyes.
Ye Feng only gave her a small taste, a faint smile playing on his lips.
The clouds in the sky rolled and unfurled, flowers in the courtyard bloomed and fell.
But the pink progress bar was stuck in an unbearable limbo. Qingque had never felt so awful.
'This feeling…'
Qingque pressed her lips together. She wouldn't make a sound until Ye Feng made his intentions clear.
And so, Ye Feng simply walked away from her.
The girl felt a wave of dizziness, her body trembling as she watched him.
"You, you… what in the world…"
"What about me?"
Qingque had already given up, completely abandoning all resistance. Couldn't you just see it through to the end, you bastard? Don't stop halfway!
Of course, Qingque could never say such words, or even think them.
She bit her cherry lip with her pearly teeth, not knowing what to do.
Ye Feng smiled. "I'll teach you a method. See this red rope on the ground?"
Qingque looked down. At her feet lay a red rope. It was the one Ye Feng had just untied from the Grand Diviner's back.
Ye Feng leaned close to her ear and whispered a few words.
"?"
Hearing them, Qingque's heart pounded. When she looked at the Grand Diviner's red rope on the ground again, it suddenly seemed exceptionally seductive.
"…Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
Qingque leaned against a pillar of the pavilion, standing by the lotus pond, and said repeatedly, "I would rather die, jump from here… than ever do something like that."
"So you know about this sort of thing? Makes sense, you're a master of Celestial Jade, after all."
"You, you… I would never do something so indecent."
Despite being a Xianzhou girl of just over 200 years old, Qingque instantly understood Ye Feng's meaning.
"Is that so? But right now, it's the only thing that can set you free," Ye Feng emphasized.
"…"
Qingque's bright eyes widened as she stared blankly at the red rope on the ground. It seemed to writhe, like a snake, or like… the natural enemy of magical girls she had seen on the interstellar network.
"If you're going to do something, then do it! Or else let me go! Stop dithering like a woman!"
Over and over again.
Wasn't it annoying?
Qingque stubbornly held her head high. She felt that Ye Feng was humiliating her. She would not be like the characters in those black-and-white or full-color comics, so easily slipping into the dark abyss.
"Don't be angry, don't be angry. Even if you slack off at work during the day and release yourself here at night, you're still a good girl, Qingque."
Qingque gritted her teeth. "Good my ass!"
Qingque was in a highly agitated state. She was reminded of a type of balloon from her hometown that, no matter how much you inflated it, would never pop. It was quite strange. At this moment, her voice was much louder than usual.
Ye Feng looked pleased, his voice soothing, like a kind teacher.
"I understand. The people of the Xianzhou have always cared about face. With me here, you certainly can't let go. How about this: I'll leave first. You, Qingque, can improvise freely."
"…"
Qingque clenched her jaw, watching Ye Feng's back disappear into the garden. But instead of feeling relieved, she became even more tense.
"At least take the Grand Diviner with you!"
Fu Xuan's NPC was still here.
In a daze, Qingque saw a shining golden gate open before her. If she just entered, she would be liberated.
No, that's not right… Qingque, oh Qingque, hold on. You've endured so many years of working life.
Qingque collapsed to the ground, sweat soaking her clothes. Fine beads of sweat trickled from her smooth forehead, slid down her cheeks, and dripped continuously onto the ground.
Qingque was in agony. But if it were just pain, she could bear it. She was enduring a mixture of pain and pleasure…
Ten minutes passed, but it felt like an eternity to Qingque. Her mind was a battlefield.
On one side was Abundance Scion Qingque: Why not try it? No one will blame you here. No one will ever know.
On the other was Hunt Ranger Qingque: If it's unbearable, just take care of it yourself.
That's right. Self-reliance. Even the heavens wouldn't blame her for that. Yes, that was it!
"Eee…"
"Mmm~~~"
However, Qingque had underestimated Ye Feng's wicked tastes. She too had been "locked"…
Leaning against the pavilion pillar, Qingque's breathing was ragged. She remembered the difficult days of her studies. The pressure she had accumulated was just like today.
She was trembling on the ground, her back soaked with sweat that trickled down the pillar. Her rationality was nearly evaporated; not even high-pressure work had ever left her in such a sorry state.
But the Erudition in Qingque allowed her brain to continue operating at high speed. It was a very strange sensation, one Qingque had never experienced before.
'Can it really… only be the Grand Diviner… who can unlock my 'heart's lock'?'
"—!!!"
Qingque's mind buzzed. Her narrow field of vision was filled with nothing but that red rope. She struggled to lift her head, looking at her suspended superior.
At this moment, she looked like an ordinary young girl, with a delicate and flawless face like a porcelain doll. Her features were beautiful in every way, like a fairy from a storybook scroll. Her large, watery eyes were magnificent and enchanting. Her long, curved eyelashes were indescribably gorgeous, and her plump, glossy cherry lips were slightly pouted. Her pink hair was tied into two ponytails with ribbons.
"…I'm sorry, Grand Diviner Fu Xuan."
---o---
Yae Sakura wasn't sleeping. In fact, as a Pseudo-Herrscher, she didn't have the same need for sleep as a human. She had tailed Cocolia, concealing her presence, all the way to the underwater City of the Abyss.
"This must be the passage to the Sea of Quanta that scoundrel Ye Feng mentioned," Higokumaru grumbled.
Yae Sakura looked up, gazing at the fantastical underwater city. The entire city was enveloped in a huge, transparent membrane, like a "bubble universe."
"It should be. I heard Cocolia say earlier that she was sending some researchers here for debugging."
"So, why are we here?"
"Orders from my benefactor," Yae Sakura replied.
"Tch, another mission from your master? How boring. I wouldn't have come if I'd known."
Higokumaru fell silent for a moment, then tried to sow discord. "Why doesn't that scoundrel let you go to Schicksal HQ? Kallen's body is there, isn't it?"
Stare!
Yae Sakura glanced sideways, a cold glint in her eyes.
Higokumaru instinctively shrank back, then immediately felt ashamed that she, the great Herrscher of Corruption, would fear a mere Pseudo-Herrscher.
"Hmph, I'm not afraid of you. If you're so tough, don't use the authority that scoundrel gave you."
Yae Sakura just continued to stare coldly at Higokumaru.
"Ugh… what."
Higokumaru looked away, feigning weakness. "Alright, alright, I give up. I was just curious."
Only then did Yae Sakura retract her piercing gaze. "…If even you know Kallen is there, how could my benefactor not allow me to go?"
"Then why haven't you gone?"
Yae Sakura's eyes lowered slightly. "I'm just… a little afraid."
"Afraid?"
"If I go, and the [Schicksal] map doesn't open, and Kallen's NPC doesn't appear…"
Higokumaru clicked her tongue. "Is that all? Useless. As expected, you humans are all cowards."
Yae Sakura didn't refute her.
After confirming there was no one around, she headed for the lowest level of the City of the Abyss.
As for electronic surveillance? With Higokumaru here, if they were detected, it would only be because she did it on purpose, and her belly would get a little bigger.
---o---
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, it's already +9, Little Qingque," Ye Feng chuckled.
Little Qingque had already given up on herself. No, that wasn't right. It was more like she had learned to enjoy life. This was very much in line with Qingque's life philosophy: If life rapes you, and you can't fight back, then you might as well enjoy it.
That red rope had ground Qingque's dignity to dust. So she just let go.
"Can't you get it up anymore?" Qingque taunted.
"It's still early," Ye Feng said. "Here, take this red rope."
"?"
"I'll help you hang Fu Xuan up. I'll whip you, and you'll whip her. Won't that be fun?"
"…"
Qingque turned her head. Sometime, somehow, the Grand Diviner had been suspended in the center of the pavilion, her hands tied above her head. The red rope used to secure her chest plate was now in Qingque's hand…
Qingque looked at it and fell silent.
It had to be said, Qingque was a kind, good girl. Even if she had fallen, she wouldn't drag others down with her.
And yet, a feeling she had never experienced before was quietly growing in the depths of her heart…
"—Yah!"
While she was lost in thought, Ye Feng suddenly tossed her aside like a used-up, broken doll.
Ye Feng was staring at a panel. He had seen one of his favorite delicacies.
Seele?
Seele Vollerei had appeared on the [List].
"Hmm? It's Seele, hehehe. To think that Seele would be the one to come in."