“Huh?”
Lin Que frowned. The little devil really did say whatever came to mind. After all these years, he didn’t expect her to bring that up again.
Back when he had just awakened the system, the little devil had only issued two tasks: the first was to steal his master’s shoes and socks, and the second was to peep on his senior sister while she bathed.
Lin Que had refused to do either of them.
Naturally, his answer hadn’t changed even now.
“I refuse.”
Since Qin Wanyuan and Jiang Moqing were present, Lin Que switched to communicating with the little devil through mental transmission.
Only Lin Que could see the little devil. To others, she appeared to be some sort of unobservable existence.
“Ehh~ Why refuse?” The little devil tilted her head, seemingly confused.
“Why do you think?”
Lin Que replied expressionlessly, “Even the old me wouldn’t bow to something like that. And now I’m a man with a Dao partner.”
“So what~”
The little devil looked gleeful, clearly enjoying the drama. “Think about it. That woman used to be your Dao partner. Is there a single inch of her skin you haven’t seen? Not just seen… you even…”
“Stop.”
Lin Que glared at the little devil, who was clearly just trying to stir things up. He raised his hand to flick her forehead, but she deftly dodged it. He had no choice but to lower his hand and said sternly, “What makes a person human is a sense of shame and decency. Acting without restraint…how is that any different from a beast?”
“Tch, hypocrite.”
The little devil gave a light snort. It was obvious that discussing morals with her was completely pointless.
“But don’t you want to get stronger? Completing my tasks is the most efficient way.”
“I can become stronger through my own cultivation.”
Lin Que replied coldly, “I could never betray Wanyuan just to gain power.”
“What a righteous gentleman~”
The little devil wasn’t angry. She simply looked at Lin Que with a half-smile, then said casually,
“But… you’re running out of time.”
“……”
Lin Que frowned.
Seeing his silence, the little devil’s smile deepened.
“You know it too, don’t you? That strange behavior from Qin Wanyuan lately…it’s clear she’s sensed an unknown crisis approaching. But when will that crisis come? Five years? Ten years? Or maybe tomorrow? You don’t know. So do you really have the time to slowly prepare?”
What she said wasn’t wrong. Lin Que’s greatest problem right now was the unknown.
What was the crisis? When would it arrive? He had no idea. The only person who might know, Qin Wanyuan, for some reason couldn’t tell him exactly what it was.
If he could get information in advance, he could prepare ahead of time.
“Wanyuan surely has her reasons. She’s doing her best to avert the crisis, and I need to do my part too.” Lin Que said thoughtfully.
“Alright, alright, I’ve never forced you to do anything. If you don’t accept, then forget it~”
The little devil looked slightly disappointed but then quickly changed the subject.
“But we do have a mutually beneficial relationship, you know. If you die, it’d be a real problem for me too. So how about we meet halfway? I won’t make you do anything extreme, but in return, the reward won’t be as generous.”
“For example?” Lin Que raised an eyebrow.
The little devil tilted her head, resting her chin on her hand, and thought for a moment before saying,
“Mm… how about this? You find a chance to be alone with your ex for a bit. You don’t have to do anything, not even get close. Just look into her eyes. As for the reward, it’ll be a scroll of this cultivation technique. That way, you’ll get a taste of its benefits.”
It truly wasn’t a difficult task, and it didn’t cross Lin Que’s bottom line.
“I’ll think about it.”
Lin Que’s stance softened a little, while the little devil didn’t hesitate at all. She gave the cultivation manual in her hand a swift tear, instantly turning it into a genuine technique scroll.
“Since time’s running out, I’ll cut you a deal. Take this scroll and start learning it. But remember…you owe me a task.”
With that, the little devil shoved the technique scroll into Lin Que’s storage ring, then looked at him, hands on her slim waist, and smiled smugly.
“Kaka, wasn’t that super thoughtful of me? If you wanna shower me with compliments, I won’t stop you~”
“Alright, alright, you’re the best,” Lin Que replied half-heartedly.
With a deal this close to outright coercion, he really didn’t know what else to say. Still, at the moment, he did need that technique scroll.
“Tch, so casually.”
Leaving those words behind, the little devil vanished.
Lin Que was long used to the little devil’s unpredictable behavior and her complete disregard for treating a top-tier cultivation technique as something precious, so he didn’t bother to comment.
While communicating with the little devil, Lin Que didn’t neglect what was happening with Qin Wanyuan and Jiang Moqing.
The two had just finished a fight, and after landing, they each sat down to meditate and regulate their breathing. Only now had they fully recovered.
Lin Que had also paid some attention to their sparring. This round had been a bit fiercer than the last, but still within reasonable bounds, so he hadn’t stepped in to stop them early.
“Senior Sister, I’ll be back again tomorrow,” Qin Wanyuan said with a cheerful smile.
“Mhmm.”
Jiang Moqing gave a nod without bothering with any pleasantries. She simply wiped the sweat from her forehead and turned to head back to her room. She never once spared Lin Que a glance.
***
Back home, Qin Wanyuan went to bathe first, and afterward, Lin Que repeated the same routine as the previous night, applying medicine to her injuries.
“The wounds aren’t too bad today,” Lin Que said with a satisfied nod.
“Of course I kept your words in mind, Lin Lang. I’ve been taking good care of myself,” Qin Wanyuan replied, turning to smile at him.
After that, Qin Wanyuan’s life seemed to return to its usual routine of eating, cultivating, guiding her younger sister Qin Qian’er, and chatting about girlish things in their room.
As for not interacting with Lin Que, it was because he was seriously absorbed in reading an ancient, damaged scroll, so Qin Wanyuan chose not to disturb him.
This was probably the best day Qin Wanyuan had experienced since her rebirth. The relationship between Lin Que and Qin Qian’er was gradually improving, and her own strength was steadily advancing.
As long as things continued progressing steadily, the crisis two years from now could surely be overcome.
Life suddenly felt full of hope.
Qin Wanyuan smiled. Then, as if something had come to mind, she took out the medicinal foot bath recipe from her storage ring. Looking at its contents, she blinked and went into deep thought.
That night—
Lin Que rubbed his temples and put down the ancient scroll he had been reading all day.
He finally understood why the little devil had handed over the scroll meant to be a reward in advance. The technique was incredibly obscure and difficult to understand, filled with archaic characters passed down from ancient times. Just deciphering their meanings took a great deal of effort.
“You look like you’re in pain. Want me to just pour the contents of the technique straight into your head? That way you’ll instantly know how to use it~”
The little devil ran up to Lin Que’s side, sweetly and obediently offering.
“No need. Knowledge you learn on your own is the only kind that’s real.”
This was Lin Que’s genuine thought. He still hadn’t completely let his guard down around the little devil.
You can never be too careful with others. Allowing the little devil to directly transmit the technique into his mind would mean completely opening up his sea of consciousness and letting her take full control.
That would be no different from handing his life over to her and Lin Que simply couldn’t bring himself to do that.
So over the years since awakening the system, the little devil had made this suggestion multiple times, and each time, he had turned her down.
“Oh~ such a stubborn man.” The little devil gave a soft, playful complaint but didn’t dwell on it.
She vanished on the spot without another word.
After seeing her off, Lin Que stood up and stretched. Suddenly, he caught a whiff of a pleasant fragrance in the air.
Following the delicate scent, he turned around….only to see Qin Wanyuan soaking her feet.
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