Chapter Thirty-Six: That Day, She Awakened the Feminine Within Her Heart

The voice was icy, chilling enough to freeze the very air around them.

Su Li channeled her spiritual pressure into the ring. The surface flickered with incantations, and a yellow talisman quietly appeared in her palm.

On the talisman, crimson script flowed like fresh blood, radiating an aura that made the heart tremble.

Such single-use high-grade incantations were exceedingly expensive.

For Su Li, these belonged among her most closely guarded assets.

To use such a precious high-grade talisman in a sparring match was, to some, nothing short of lunacy.

But Su Li was indeed mad.

She had to fight for everything, always striving never to be beneath anyone.

Especially not beneath any man, whom she had always looked down upon.

She poured her spiritual pressure into the talisman, and a ghostly violet light immediately shimmered across its surface.

With a flick of her wrist, the talisman left her hand, transforming into a circle of ethereal violet light that hovered above Bai Yujing’s head.

The circle cast a faint glow downward, like a transparent glass dome, enveloping Bai Yujing within.

Su Li raised her right hand, her fingertip pointed at Bai Yujing’s right arm, and swiftly slashed sideways.

In an instant, a tidal wave of spatial force surged forth, seeking to tear Bai Yujing’s right arm from his body.

His spirit garment shuddered violently under the onslaught, emitting a low, resonant hum.

Bai Yujing nodded slightly. “This strike is indeed quite formidable.”

Bang, bang—the sound of his praise was drowned in the fierce clash of spatial force and spiritual pressure.

Under the shroud of violet light, space itself began to fracture, black fissures spreading like a spider’s web.

Yet as soon as those cracks touched Bai Yujing’s body, they came to an abrupt halt, unable to advance even an inch.

Su Li stared at the scene before her, shock written plainly on her face. She cried out, “Impossible!”

“That was the third strike.”

Before the words had faded, his figure blurred—and the violet ring above his head shattered instantly.

The next moment, he stood before Su Li, gazing upon her astonished face.

He had allowed her three strikes just to see this very expression.

Bai Yujing slapped her hard across the face. “Always spouting off about men. Don’t you have a father?”

Smack!

The crisp sound of the slap echoed through the empty hall.

He raised his hand and struck again. “When you’re out in the world, don’t act so haughty.”

“Learn some humility. Do you understand?”

The third slap landed, sending Su Li staggering backward, unsteady on her feet until she collapsed to the floor.

One of her scarlet heels slipped off, revealing round toes and soft soles wrapped in black silk.

The bun at the back of her head unraveled, and her jet-black hair fell across her shoulders.

The stinging pain on her cheek left her momentarily dazed. She stared blankly at Bai Yujing.

Is this a dream?

Su Li wondered how it could be possible that a man could slap her to the ground like this.

“Impossible!” she suddenly screamed, nearly hysterical, pouring spiritual pressure into her ring, ready to strike again.

Bai Yujing showed no intention of indulging her. Another heavy slap landed.

Smack!

The searing pain immediately broke her concentration. She clutched her face, eyes burning with fury and disbelief. “You bastard! How dare you hit me?!”

“So what if I hit you?”

Bai Yujing delivered another fierce slap to her proud face.

The burning pain spread from her cheek through her entire body. Only now did Su Li realize that her defeat was not some nightmare, but a harsh reality.

Her fists clenched so tightly her knuckles turned white, her body trembled, and the buttons of her blazer strained as if ready to burst.

Bai Yujing’s eyes flashed with surprise. “You’re actually getting excited?!”

“What nonsense are you spouting?! Why would I feel any pleasure from being slapped by a man like you?”

Su Li retorted at once.

Yet deep inside, a strange sensation welled up—a tangled mix of shame and anger, yet laced with an inexplicable pleasure.

It was like a dark current rising from the depths of her soul, something she resisted but could not ignore.

Her words might deceive, but her spiritual pressure did not.

Bai Yujing could sense that Su Li’s surging spiritual pressure was not born of anger or any negative emotion, but of unmistakable excitement.

So, she was actually a masochist.

Bai Yujing stopped rewarding her.

“Get out!”

With a sweep of his sleeve, a torrent of force blasted forth like a hurricane, sweeping Su Li from the hall as though she were refuse.

Her body traced an arc through the air, flying over the high wall of Azure Cloud Gate, plunging down toward the woods at the foot of the mountain.

Smack!

Su Li crashed face-first into the earth, rolling twice in the dirt, her body covered in soil and piles of dead leaves.

A scarlet high heel soon followed, striking her face.

“Ugh—” She struggled to her feet, looking up to see that Azure Cloud Gate was already hidden behind yellowing trees, not even a shadow in sight.

“Damn you! I’ll kill you!”

She shouted in anger, her voice echoing through the woods.

Yet in her heart, not a trace of murderous intent could be found.

On the contrary, her body betrayed her true feelings.

The dampness of her underwear filled her with shame.

Unbidden, the image of Bai Yujing’s unyielding demeanor and stern, handsome face surfaced in her mind.

Those powerful slaps seemed to carry some kind of magic, infusing her with a forceful masculine presence, seeping into her very soul.

The sensation of being dominated so forcefully brought her an unprecedented joy.

The thought flashed through Su Li’s mind, and she shook her head violently, trying to banish such absurdity.

She touched her burning cheek, then quickly withdrew her hand, as if she’d touched something forbidden.

“Impossible! How could I ever feel that way toward a man who hit me?!”

She screamed inwardly, shaking her head like a rattle-drum.

On the internet, she was notorious as the “Demon Abbess,” famous for her contempt of men. How could she possibly yearn to be trampled and humiliated by Bai Yujing?

Yet no matter how she denied it, that strange sensation clung to her like a festering wound.

Her body and soul seemed torn in two—one half raging in anger, the other secretly rejoicing.

“No, I have to get away from here!”

Su Li gritted her teeth, slipped on her high heel, and with a high-level ghostly step, vanished from sight.

...

That figure just now... looked familiar?

Guo Chen appeared outside Azure Cloud Gate with a single ghostly step, frowning.

The person had moved too fast, little more than a fleeting blur.

Yet it reminded him of the infamous “Demon Abbess” Su Li.

But on second thought, it couldn’t be.

Who was Su Li? A renowned lady of stature in Shanghai, always carrying herself with supreme arrogance.

How could she possibly appear here, disheveled and untidy?

It must have been a trick of the eye.

So thinking, Guo Chen turned his attention back to the path ahead.

A white marble arch stood at the foot of the mountain, a flight of blue stone stairs stretching straight upward. The autumn wind whirled a few yellowed leaves through the air.

He started up the steps.

Inside the hall, Bai Yujing sensed someone approaching. His plan to return to Pine Crane Residence was set aside; instead, he fetched out some tea.

After a moment, a gentle knock sounded at the gate, followed by a low, respectful male voice.

“Hello, I am Guo Chen from the local Inspection Division of the Brocade Guard. I’m here to discuss the recent Two-Tailed Incident with Master Bai.”

“Come in,” Bai Yujing called out.

Guo Chen pushed the door open and entered.