Close Feelers

After walking out of the manor lord's study, Xue Yi was filled with complex emotions.

"Damn it..."

"Just what is the deal with this Xiao Qingruo?"

"And what's the deal with the manor lord?"

"What have I gotten myself into?!"

He felt very vexed.

Things would have been better if he hadn't met Xiao Qingruo. Even if he was just an ordinary guard, with the Imperial Five Spirit Formula in hand, he could have risen in power eventually.

But now, caught between the young miss and the manor lord, he felt like he was treading on thin ice. One wrong step would lead to utter ruin.

Now a problem stood before him:

- Should he tell Xiao Qingruo the truth when he returned?

If he did, and she really had the power to contend with the manor lord, then Xue Yi would be finished. Death would be the inevitable outcome.

If he didn't tell her, then he would be relatively safe for the time being. At the very least, he could make a run for it and get far away from Xiao Qingruo and Holy Might Manor.

This was a very difficult decision.

The key still lied in Xiao Qingruo's level of strength.

"When I get back, I'll test her again," Xue Yi thought.

Compared to running away, he actually hoped to stay at Holy Might Manor for a while longer.

After all, he wasn't very powerful yet. It would be dangerous for him to try to make it on his own out there. Holy Might Manor had abundant medicinal ingredients, light work, and he could have ample time to cultivate. Biding his time there would be more comfortable for his development.

But how should he test her?

When considering the worst possibilities, if Xiao Qingruo really was powerful, it would be quite difficult to probe her background without getting killed by her.

"The way I took liberties with her last night, and she didn't resist at all, means she probably isn't that powerful," Xue Yi thought.

If so, then...try it again like that!

Soon, Xue Yi returned to Azure Garden.

He went straight to Xiao Qingruo's room, knocked on the door, then entered.

"You were gone for so long. What did the manor lord want with you?" Xiao Qingruo was still reading her book, a bit surprised that he would knock on the door. She glanced up at him.

Xue Yi considered for a moment.

First he thought about the possibility that the manor lord had followed him here.

But he soon dismissed that notion.

The manor lord's cultivation level wasn't much higher than the level Xiao Qingruo was pretending to have. Logically, if the manor lord was eavesdropping from afar, Xiao Qingruo would have been able to detect it.

Therefore, to avoid awkwardness, the manor lord wouldn't do that.

In other words, inside Xiao Qingruo's Azure Garden, they could basically say anything without fear of being overheard.

Xue Yi replied, "He asked about my background and tested my loyalty."

"Oh? So are you loyal?" Xiao Qingruo asked with interest.

"Loyal," Xue Yi replied.

He set down the sword without bothering to examine how good it was. He closed the door and walked directly over, stopping less than half a meter from Xiao Qingruo.

"Why are you standing so close?" Xiao Qingruo's expression changed slightly. She felt something was off and recoiled from his actions. She immediately stood up and changed seats.

Xue Yi's heart was beating fast now. He was very afraid that the next moment, the young miss would slap him to death with a palm strike.

But...he didn't die last night when he went even further, so he probably wouldn't die now!

Gritting his teeth, he sat down in the spot Xiao Qingruo had just vacated. Reaching out with his big hand, he grabbed her slender waist and forcibly pulled her over.

"Xue Yi, what are you doing?!" Xiao Qingruo realized his actions were very strange. She immediately scolded him in a low voice, and tried to stand up to get away.

Xue Yi held her firmly under control. Next to her ear, he whispered, "To demonstrate my loyalty to you, the manor lord nearly beat me to death just now. Let me hold you for a bit to soothe my wounded heart."

At the same time, his palm rested on her lower abdomen, right over her dantian point, subtly sensing the fluctuations of her inner energy.

The result...he didn't detect anything!

At such close range, with direct body contact, even if she was at the Long Life realm, it would be impossible to completely conceal the subtle inner energy fluctuations that Xue Yi could sense.

But in reality, there was nothing!

Clearly, she really was just an ordinary person without the slightest bit of cultivation!

"Scoundrel! You've gone too far!"

Slap!

A slap landed on Xue Yi's face.

Taking advantage of his brief distraction, Xiao Qingruo instantly broke free and ran to the other side of the table.

She glared at Xue Yi, her hands clenched into fists. Gnashing her teeth, she said, "You really think that just because I'm useless, you can take liberties with me however you want? Who do you take me for?!"

"Young miss, I..."

Xue Yi thought to himself that this was bad, she was really angry now.

What he had said just now was no longer frivolous teasing, but outright humiliation of her. Not just Xiao Qingruo as a young miss, even an ordinary woman would find his actions unacceptable.

"I thought you were only superficially indecent, but actually quite reliable. I didn't expect...I misjudged you."

Xiao Qingruo looked completely disappointed and furious. Seeing the sword Xue Yi had brought back, she reached out to grab it, wanting to use it to defend herself.

But...she couldn't lift it.

The sword, still in its scabbard, weighed a full fifty or sixty pounds. Without any martial ability, there was no way she could wield it.

Unable to pick up the sword, Xiao Qingruo felt frustrated. She simply tore out the hair ornament from her head and pointed the sharp end at her own neck, saying, "Don't you dare violate me! I'd rather die!"

"No, no, no, I'm joking, joking!"

Xue Yi quickly explained, truly afraid that in her agitated state, she might leave a permanent scar on that beautiful neck.

"Joking?" Xiao Qingruo glared, her anger not diminished at all, but burning even more fiercely.

"Explain yourself clearly!" She gnashed her teeth, her gaze seeming capable of killing someone.

Xue Yi hesitated for a moment.

Shortly after, he said in a deep voice, "I'll tell you everything. Let's continue cooperating. Just pretend I never said those words earlier. I really didn't mean it that way. I only wanted to probe your strength up close."

His tone was very sincere.

Hearing this, Xiao Qingruo's anger lessened slightly.

But she was still very unhappy. She slapped the hair ornament onto the table, directly breaking it. Her tone was vicious as she said, "Tell me every word, exactly what did the manor lord summon you for?!"

"It went like this..."

Xue Yi told her the whole story.

After listening, Xiao Qingruo's expression became much uglier. She held the broken ornament and gnashed her teeth, "I knew Xu Conglong wouldn't be so easily fooled. So he was just waiting for me here..."

Xue Yi immediately asked, "Young miss, you and the manor lord...really exchanged blows before?"

Xiao Qingruo looked at him. Their eyes met for a long while, before she finally nodded.