Meng Li slowly stood up, looking at the familiar scene around her. She had somehow arrived at the base of the mountain. Meng Li felt her entire body; nothing was missing.
“I survived…”
Meng Li breathed in the fresh air around her, slowly rising to her feet with an expression of disbelief. She looked up at the intense sunlight in the sky, spreading her arms to feel its warmth.
“Although I don’t know what happened, as long as I’m alive…!”
“So you’re here…”
“Hmm?”
Meng Li was still basking in the sunlight, immersed in the joy of surviving a brush with death, when a familiar voice rang out from behind her. Meng Li turned around. That figure was standing right by a tree, looking at her with cold, clear eyes. Plain robes, ink-black hair—like a woman painted into existence with brush and ink.
“Hmm? How does that person look so much like Senior Sister Situ…”
Meng Li hesitated, slowly squinting her eyes to see more clearly. But the figure, like a phantom, instantly teleported right in front of her. The speed was so fast she didn’t even have a chance to react.
“Se… Senior Sister…!”
Looking at the figure right before her eyes, even Meng Li’s slow reaction finally caught up. That wasn’t just someone who looked like her—that was the person herself. It was just that her overall demeanor seemed somewhat different.
“I originally wanted to find you, but didn’t expect to run into you here…”
“Se… Senior Sister, what business do you have with me? I don’t think there’s anything I need to discuss with Senior Sister, right?”
“Must I have business to seek you out…”
Listening to the other’s counter-question, Meng Li felt an even stronger sense of dissonance. Why was Situ Xue suddenly speaking to her so gently? Meng Li was still wondering if the other felt guilty for killing her avatar and was acting this way because of it.
“Could Senior Sister have done something she feels guilty about, to come speak to me?”
“……”
Meng Li had only asked casually. Yet Situ Xue before her immediately fell silent, lowering her head, momentarily unsure how to answer. Seeing this reaction, Meng Li became even more convinced of her inner guess. An evil smile couldn’t help but creep onto her face.
“It seems Senior Sister killing my avatar was just an accident, not truly meant to kill me. In that case, I should definitely extort her for all she’s worth~”
Meng Li schemed in her heart about how to maximize her benefits. After all, in the game, she had never failed to make Situ Xue cough up gold coins for her. Ninth-grade pills, golden magical artifacts, a complete set of spirit talismans, magic array blueprints… she had taken plenty.
“It seems Senior Sister knows what I’m talking about. Who would have thought the esteemed Senior Sister Situ would do such a thing to my avatar!”
“Seems you already know. Well, it’s only natural. It was your avatar, after all. It would be strange if you didn’t know…”
Situ Xue looked at Meng Li’s serious expression and sighed helplessly. What she had done was indeed difficult to speak of. She had come out searching, and although it wasn’t specifically for this matter, it was more or less the same.
“Since you know, I don’t know what to say. After all, it ultimately happened. I’ve sullied Junior Sister’s eyes…”
Situ Xue stood to the side, her eyes completely unable to meet those of her junior sister. Her left hand tightly gripped her right arm. She was normally so assertive, but now, knowing she had done wrong, Situ Xue was utterly unable to say anything else.
“I don’t want to hear Senior Sister’s explanations. If you feel sorry, wouldn’t it be better to offer some tangible compensation~”
Meng Li watched the other’s demeanor and inwardly felt a bit strange. She thought to herself: isn’t it just accidentally killing my avatar? Why act so apologetic towards me? But she only pondered briefly, ultimately attributing it all to the other feeling guilty.
“Junior Sister doesn’t take it to heart…?”
“Tsk, such a small matter—what does it matter whether I take it to heart or not~”
Meng Li generously extended her hand, ready to demand compensation. But Situ Xue, seeing the other’s trivializing attitude, felt terrible inside. Though she had been controlled by drugs at the time, everything she said and did came from her true heart. Yet the other was so dismissive.
“I’ve done wrong, after all. Junior Sister may say she doesn’t mind, but she’s surely unhappy deep down. I will take responsibility…”
“I understand, I understand. Senior Sister has a strong sense of responsibility. Accidentally injuring Junior Sister’s avatar would naturally cause some guilt. Senior Sister can just casually compensate me with some pills, and this matter will be settled~”
Situ Xue thought to herself: clearly, the avatar’s memories would be transferred back to the true body. After seeing those memories, not only does the other not despise me, she still acts like it’s no big deal. But she didn’t know that Meng Li’s constitution was special—she could choose to accept or reject the memories of her avatars.
Meng Li knew absolutely nothing about what Situ Xue had done. She merely assumed the other had accidentally harmed her avatar while practicing some cultivation technique. She had no idea what hellish stimulation True Self had endured over those several nights.
“Junior Sister wants compensation…”
“Of course! Senior Sister’s pockets are deep—this Junior Sister knows full well~”
Hearing this, Situ Xue slowly retrieved a jade box from her storage space. As the box opened, a rich pill fragrance instantly filled the surroundings. Even the environment began to sprout flowers. Meng Li could tell the quality of the pill in the other’s hand with a single glance, watching the blooming flowers around them and the grass, now doubly lush from the pill’s fragrance.
【Heavenly Spirit Pill】
【Flesh revives the dead, bones regrow. A ninth-grade pill. Those who consume it have their spiritual power absorption speed increased. Upon receiving fatal damage, it protects the soul and refines the physical body.】
“This pill is called…”
“It’s actually a Heavenly Spirit Pill! Senior Sister, you’re too generous! Good stuff, good stuff~”
“Although Junior Sister is usually scatterbrained, she certainly knows her pill names…”
“Not important, not important. Since Senior Sister is being this generous, let’s just consider the matter between us settled~”
Meng Li looked happily at the pill in her hand. Logically speaking, damage to an avatar was practically zero impact to herself. Now she could get such a pill for free—never mind the life-saving potential, just the accelerated spiritual energy absorption alone made her feel True Self’s sacrifice was worth it.
“Since Junior Sister doesn’t mind those… unseemly things I did to your clone, then I won’t say anyth—”
“Aiya, isn’t it just that little matter? It just happened to… wait… what did you do to my clone?”
Meng Li had been gazing at the pill in her hand, overjoyed. But suddenly she felt like she had just heard something extremely important. For a moment, Meng Li even thought her ears were playing tricks on her. She looked blankly at Situ Xue beside her.
“What do you mean ‘just those unseemly things I did’? I just didn’t expect Junior Sister’s body to be so fragile. Thankfully, it was just a clone. If, for a moment of my own lust, I caused Junior Sister to die in bed, that would be hard to explain…”
Listening to Situ Xue calmly utter those words, Meng Li’s pill box fell directly to the ground. She had originally imagined countless ways her avatar died—from a surprise attack, to an accidental strike by Senior Sister’s cultivation practice. But now, “died in bed” had suddenly become an option.
Meng Li’s expression stiffened as she looked at the refined and gentle Situ Xue before her. Even though it came from the other’s own mouth, she still couldn’t believe it. Only then did Meng Li finally realize what the strange feeling about the other was: it was tolerance. Tolerance towards her—someone who had used the other for bedroom pleasures.
“So I was literally fucked to death…?”
“Since Junior Sister already knows, why repeat it…”
…………
…
