I feel like... I might need to apply some medicine.

Warm breath brushed against Su Qi's earlobe, sending a ticklish sensation down his spine.

"Really, it's nothing."

He tried to maintain his composure.

Liu Yuan wasn’t buying it. Her nimble fingers took advantage of his distraction, slipping effortlessly into his pocket.

The phone was hers now.

"Give it back!"

A rare hint of panic colored Su Qi’s voice.

Liu Yuan clutched the phone tightly, swaying it teasingly in front of him.

"Sure, I’ve got your phone, but I can’t unlock it~"

She giggled, her tone laced with mischief. "Why so nervous, big bro?"

"Let me guess," she tucked the phone behind her back, tilting her head in mock contemplation. "Could it be… pictures of scantily clad anime girls?"

Su Qi’s expression froze.

Liu Yuan’s voice rose in triumph. "Wow, was I right?"

Beads of sweat formed at Su Qi’s temples.

She leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper—like a little devil breathing temptation into his ear. "Did you forget? I told you, once you have me, you’re not allowed to look at those anymore~ It’s not like I… can’t change, you know~"

Su Qi’s throat went dry. "This… really can’t be changed…"

Liu Yuan’s cheeks flushed pink, her smile brimming with sly amusement.

"How can you be so sure, big bro, if you won’t even let me see~ Hmm?"

A famous saying flashed through Su Qi’s mind:

When faced with harmful temptations, one must bravely say ‘no.’

But then again, what counted as harmful?

Su Qi had his own standards.

Besides, based on past experience, his silly little sister wasn’t one to make empty threats.

The problem was…

Earlier, in a group chat, a self-proclaimed ‘hero’ had forwarded some… questionable conversation logs.

Fine, he’d take the gamble.

As the saying went, even a reckless gambler couldn’t lose every time.

At worst, he’d face social death—or perhaps another kind of ‘death’ altogether.

Without another word, Su Qi silently unlocked his phone.

Several images instantly flooded Liu Yuan’s vision.

For a full three seconds, she stood there, completely frozen.

The temperature in her face skyrocketed.

"No! Absolutely not this!"

"Can’t change it!"

Then, in a blur, she bolted back to her room like a gust of wind.

Su Qi was left standing alone in the living room.

He sighed, shaking his head at the empty space.

His gaze returned to the phone screen.

Alongside the shockingly explicit images, there was a brief exchange in the chat logs.

"There’s this place called the Origin Realm—every month, it gets snowed in for about seven days."

"Some people don’t want to wait. Can they take the back mountain path instead?"

"I say, go for it!"

"Route map, incoming!"

Sure enough…

This kind of thinking was a bit too out there.

Even Su Qi had only clicked out of sheer curiosity.

Just then—

Click.

A soft sound came from Liu Yuan’s bedroom door.

Su Qi instinctively turned his head.

Normally, when his sister got this mad, she’d ignore him for at least half an hour.

This time, she’d bounced back unusually fast.

Then, his eyes locked onto the figure emerging from the room.

A small, fox-eared girl stepped out.

Su Qi understood instantly.

He swore his brain had never processed information this quickly.

Even if he had 10,000 agility points, it wouldn’t compare to this moment of clarity.

Ah, so the ‘children’s show’ was back on air.

Wait, no.

Those with good memories would recall—two months ago, he had rescued an injured little fox.

He’d almost forgotten!

Rumor had it that fox spirits like this always repaid their debts.

Was it time for her to return the favor?

The fox girl’s ears twitched lightly.

She bit through the bandages wrapped around her arm with her teeth.

Barefoot, she padded toward Su Qi, step by step.

Stopping right in front of him, she bowed deeply, her voice crisp and clear.

"Thank you for taking me in, Master. My injuries have mostly healed."

"But…"

That word was always trouble.

Did it mean she couldn’t fulfill her promise?

"But… there’s still a lingering wound inside me. For some reason, it won’t close. Could Master please examine it?"

Without hesitation, she turned around, revealing the stubborn injury.

"Please, Master."

"Logically, a wound that refuses to heal in this heat should have some… unpleasant odor…"

"But when I checked earlier… for some reason, mine seems different…"

"Maybe it’s just my unique constitution?"

Su Qi nodded vigorously—so hard it was almost comical.

He decided to inspect the wound first.

True enough, there was none of the expected foul smell.

Bizarre as it was, in a world where the supernatural existed, even the strangest things stopped being surprising.

In a way, this was a good thing.

No matter how adorable the fox girl was, Su Qi didn’t have any peculiar preferences.

At least this way, applying medicine would be less awkward.

"I think… it might need some ointment."

He chose his words carefully.

"That’s what I thought too… but the wound’s in a spot I can’t reach. Applying medicine alone is difficult, so I’ve been delaying it."

"Then I’ll trouble you, Master. Please squeeze a bit of the ointment onto the wound for me."

Su Qi’s fingers lightly brushed against the injury, his heartbeat accelerating uncontrollably.

The fox girl’s tail flicked against his hand, trembling slightly as she let out a soft whimper.

"Does it hurt?"

His voice cracked with concern.

"N-no… it’s just… I wasn’t used to the touch. I thought I was prepared, but…"

"Please… be gentle."

Her ears twitched, tail swaying restlessly.

Su Qi nodded, his movements growing even more delicate.

He continued examining the wound.

There was something undeniably odd about it.

The temperature was slightly lower than normal—cool to the touch.

Logically, a healing wound should be warmer due to increased cellular activity.

But before he could finish his inspection, the fox girl’s condition took a strange turn.

Her legs wobbled unsteadily, sweat trickling down her thighs to the floor.

"Is this examination draining your energy?"

"It’s not exhaustion… just a strange feeling…"

"Maybe you should lean on something for support?"