And you said you weren’t after my body! This was the first thought that appeared in his mind. However, he knew that his vital organ was at the mercy of the other party, and if he uttered these words, she might just fly into a rage and snap it off.

Yun Jianyue’s breathing grew ragged, and her brain went completely blank. She had no idea how to deal with this sort of situation.

Her mind was flooded with wild thoughts. Even though her heart was pounding, she still had to maintain the appearance of a grandmaster. She forced her expression to remain cold and said, “Would you believe me if I said that it was an accident?”

“Of course I would!” Zu An said, “But could you please let go first? Your grip is so tight, I feel like I’m about to burst…”

The veins in his neck were bulging, and he was clearly in pain. He spoke his request carefully.

Compared to Qiu Honglei’s small and delicate hand, this woman’s hand was like an iron clamp. A grandmaster’s grip was able to crush rock like tofu. Little Zu An wouldn’t have stood a chance if not for the fact that his body was extraordinarily tough.

Yun Jianyue finally snapped out of her daze. She pulled her small hand back at lightning speed, then turned around. Her face, which usually carried a confident and carefree expression, was unnaturally red.

She took a deep breath to settle her raging emotions, then said with a feigned sense of calm, “I’ve already taken care of most of the seal in your body. The remaining bit was absorbed by a mysterious power generated by your body. Hmph, you’ve also siphoned away some of the ki that I infused into your body. If not for Honglei, I would have already beaten you to death.”

“Thank you, big sis sect master,” said Zu An with sincere gratitude. He hadn’t completely lost consciousness, so he still had a vague recollection of how dangerous the process had been. At the critical moment, the Heaven-Devouring Sutra within him had acted of its own accord, siphoning away some of her energy. He felt slightly sorry for that.

“The ki of both an Earth Immortal and a grandmaster will be tremendously beneficial to you once they are completely refined.” Yun Jianyue paused for a moment, then added, “However, remember not to completely refine away the emperor’s aura. You should at least leave an empty shell. If not, the emperor will be able to tell that you’ve already removed the seal. I’ll teach you a way to prevent that. You have to do this…”

Zu An was astounded by her astuteness. “You’re really old and wise, big sis! If you weren’t here, I would have celebrated prematurely..”

From what he knew of the emperor, if he ever found out that the seal he had placed on Zu An had been removed, he would surely resort to a more vicious method to restrain him.

“Old?” Yun Jianyue’s brows lifted, and she snorted in annoyance. She was extremely sensitive to this word. “Also, I don’t know where you learned that sinister absorption technique. Remember, either don’t use it, or silence all who witness you using it. Once word gets out, you’ll become the public enemy of the world.”

“Thank you for the reminder, big sis.” Zu An was well aware of what she meant. The most important part of one’s cultivation was their cultivation rank.  A person who could siphon away another person’s cultivation and use it to strengthen themselves would be a terrifying threat, and the world would join hands in order to get rid of that person.

Yun Jianyue nodded, satisfied by his seriousness. It seemed he didn’t need much of a reminder. Something else came to her mind. “Do you have any connection to the Holy Sect?”

Zu An was confused. He didn’t know why she would suddenly ask something like this. “Uh… does my relationship with Honglei count?”

He originally wanted to say that the two of them shared a special relationship, but out of concern for little Zu An’s safety, he decided not to mention it.

Yun Jianyue narrowed her eyes at him.

“I am asking you if you’ve cultivated the Holy Sect’s Heavenly Devil Temptation before, or if one of your elders used to be a part of the Holy Sect.”

She thought of the familiar source of power that had appeared while she was battling the emperor’s seal. She’d been surprised by the quality of that power, and she was really curious as to what that was.

Zu An shook his head. “I haven’t. I’m already so handsome and suave, just standing here is enough to charm any woman. Why do I have to cultivate your temptation technique?”

Yun Jianyue resisted the urge to slap him.

As usual, this kid really needs a beating…

Indeed, it wasn’t likely that this fellow had somehow cultivated the Heavenly Devil’s Temptation. After all, all those who cultivated it were women, and within the Holy Sect, it had always been passed directly down to a disciple. There was no way any of them would have leaked it out to an outsider. Most importantly, though, those who practiced this had to maintain their purity, yet the one in front of her… Hmph, who knows how many times he’s done the deed already.

As she thought about this, a mysterious pounding suddenly welled up from within her soul, sending a stream of warmth flowing through her entire body. She subconsciously clamped her legs together.

“What’s wrong?” Zu An asked concernedly, noticing that something was off.

Yun Jianyue jumped like a startled rabbit. “Nothing!” She leaped away from him, as though afraid that he would attempt to get closer to her.

Zu An was bewildered. Why are you looking at me like I’m some wolf? I should be the one feeling embarrassed! Besides, given the difference in our cultivation levels, what can I even do to you? I’m the one who would be helpless if you tried anything!

Sigh… If the situation really develops in that way, then I only have one request… please be gentle…

Yun Jianyue’s expression flickered several times, as though she was experiencing great internal turmoil.

It took a while before she finally straightened her trembling body. “You should work on refining the ki you just absorbed. I’ll take my leave.”

Then, her figure vanished from the room. However, a second later, she reappeared by the entrance. “Don’t tell anyone else about what happened today. If I hear even a tiny rumor, you’re dead.”

With that, she fled, not bothering to wait for a reply.

Zu An looked off in the direction she had taken, his mind all confused. Why did her voice sound so strange? She didn’t sound like her cold and arrogant self, and her voice had a slight quaver to it, like a little kitten’s… She’d clearly been threatening him, yet he didn’t feel threatened at all…

Ahem, how is that possible? That unmarried old spinster’s cultivation is so high, and she has such unshakeable willpower. How can it possibly be what I’m thinking? She was probably injured while helping me with my seal, and just needs some rest.

Collecting himself, he began to refine the powerful energies within him.

…

Meanwhile, only moments had elapsed since Yun Jianyue left Zu An’s room when her legs buckled, and she had to grab a nearby railing to support herself.

A moan escaped her mouth, and an expression of horror flashed across her eyes. “How can this be? I’ve already successfully cultivated the Heavenly Devil Temptation! How can I still be overwhelmed by lust?”

This technique was powerful, but it had all manner of side effects.

Aside from not being allowed to lose her virginity before the technique was fully cultivated, there was one other shameful thing that she didn’t tell Zu An. When the practitioner reached the later stages of cultivation, she would become overwhelmed by lust. For a few days every month, she would be overwhelmed by desire, and would be sorely tempted to find a man to help her release her inner desires.

If she could make it past this period, her cultivation would be refined into something purer. If she could not, then many years of hard work would be wasted.

The side effects of this technique seemed to act specifically to prevent people from succeeding in their cultivation. Even though the Holy Sect was full of outstanding disciples, only a pitiful few of them ended up succeeding.

This was also the reason why she insisted on separating Zu An and Qiu Honglei.

Her obedient disciple might still be able to control herself now, but that was only because her cultivation hadn’t yet reached that level. Once she entered the later stages of cultivation and faced these overwhelming waves of lust, being close to a lover would exponentially increase the difficulty of making it through those few days of every month.

Yun Jianyue had relied on her extraordinary talent and willpower to successfully cultivate this technique, and had broken free from the lust that threatened to ensnare her. Why had it suddenly reappeared?

Even her incredibly firm will began to waver. It wasn’t just because she was reliving the fear of being dominated by this technique. It was also because of a fear of the unknown.

If she could not break free of this state even at her current level, then was there any reason for her to continue cultivating this technique?

However, she was not in the right state of mind to contemplate all this right now. She hurriedly returned to a residence in the rear of the compound, which was where her private room was. The residence was also connected to a natural spring, and an indoor bath had been set up there. This was where she used to wash herself.

She rushed into the room. A wave of energy flew outwards, locking the doors and windows. She quickly removed her clothes, exposing her sparkling white body, as her long hair cascaded down across her back, the inky black contrasting sharply with her fair skin. Her entire being exuded an intangible aura of seduction that would make any man in this world turn into an ape.

She knew that this was the result of her failing to control her technique. She quickly jumped into the ice-cold pool, immersing herself inside. In moments, the once-frigid waters began to boil.