You're Pretty Proud, Aren't You

His movements were not fast; in fact, they were very slow, so slow it seemed he was deliberately torturing her nerves.

Gu Chengyin patted the hem of his robe and adjusted his collar, which had been slightly ruffled by the lightning strike.

Then, he walked toward Lin Qingyan.

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

Lin Qingyan wanted to retreat, but her back was already pressed against the table. There was nowhere left to go.

She wanted to raise her hand, gather her spiritual energy, and summon another bolt of lightning.

But the inner demon roared madly in her sea of consciousness. Her divine sense felt as if it had been torn in half—one half suppressing the inner demon, the other half resisting Gu Chengyin's approach.

And the latter was clearly not something she could handle right now.

Gu Chengyin came to a stop in front of her.

The distance between them was only half a foot.

Lin Qingyan could smell the faint scent of sandalwood on him, mixed with the lingering burnt odor from the lightning strike.

And a trace of blood?

Was it from her bitten lip, or was he injured?

Lin Qingyan didn't know.

She only knew that Gu Chengyin reached out and gently brushed away a strand of hair stuck to her cheek by cold sweat.

His movement was extremely gentle, as gentle as if he were handling a fragile piece of porcelain.

But Lin Qingyan's entire body stiffened.

Not from a flutter of the heart, but from panic.

She was truly panicking.

Since the day she formed her Golden Core, she had never been this flustered.

But now, in front of Gu Chengyin, who was only at the late Foundation Establishment stage.

In front of this man she had just trampled underfoot, she panicked.

"You..."

Lin Qingyan opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but her throat was so dry she couldn't make a complete sound.

Gu Chengyin smiled—a gentle, tolerant, and even somewhat apologetic smile.

Then, he bent down.

One hand slipped under the back of Lin Qingyan's knees, and the other wrapped around her back.

Lin Qingyan's body lifted into the air as Gu Chengyin picked her up in his arms.

Her arms instinctively pressed against his chest to push him away, but her hands were soft and completely devoid of strength.

With her head resting on his shoulder, Lin Qingyan could clearly hear Gu Chengyin's heartbeat.

Steady and strong, forming a stark contrast to her panic.

"No... don't..."

Lin Qingyan finally squeezed out a sound, so weak it sounded like begging.

Gu Chengyin ignored her.

Holding her, he turned and walked toward the other side of the room.

He didn't walk toward the large bed, even though Lin Qingyan thought Gu Chengyin would throw her onto it, thought he would take revenge, thought he would do something even more excessive.

But Gu Chengyin didn't.

He just carried Lin Qingyan over to the soft couch by the window.

The soft couch was very wide, covered with a thick velvet cushion and scattered with several brocade pillows.

Moonlight shone in through the window, perfectly illuminating this area like a spotlight on a stage.

Gu Chengyin sat down.

Lin Qingyan was still held in his arms, sitting on his lap.

Just like back on the top floor of the Fan Tower in the Divine Capital, when she had curled up in Gu Chengyin's embrace.

And what surprised Lin Qingyan even more was that her inner demon's resistance actually weakened.

It didn't disappear; it weakened.

It changed from the desperate, maddening assaults of earlier into a rhythmic, continuous, but no longer seal-breaking commotion.

Lin Qingyan was stunned.

She didn't understand.

Why did the inner demon suddenly quiet down?

Why, when she was most powerless to resist, did the inner demon stop trying to take control?

Then she heard Gu Chengyin's voice, very gentle, as gentle as a light drizzle on a spring night:

"I'm sorry, Little Aunt, I was indeed wrong about this."

"After all, I am truly not good at dealing with a beautiful fairy like you."

He said this very sincerely.

So sincerely that for a moment, Lin Qingyan couldn't tell if it was genuine or fake.

Then she heard his next sentence:

"So, can you forgive me?"

Lin Qingyan bit her lower lip, her teeth sinking into the soft flesh, tasting a hint of coppery sweetness.

It was the blood seeping again from the wound she had bitten open during the inner demon's assault earlier.

The pain kept her awake, making her realize how absurd her current situation was:

She, Jingzhe of the Celestial Master Mansion, a Golden Core cultivator, was currently being held in Gu Chengyin's arms like a helpless young girl.

Moreover, Gu Chengyin had just commanded her inner demon in a way she couldn't understand, causing her to collapse while her pressure was fully unleashed.

This could no longer be described as merely losing face.

It was humiliation.

A bone-deep humiliation.

But what made Lin Qingyan panic more than the humiliation was Gu Chengyin's current attitude.

He wasn't gloating, he wasn't throwing his weight around, and he didn't even have the slightest posture of a victor.

He just held her, saying sorry in that gentle tone, and asked for her forgiveness.

These words were like poison coated in honey.

So sweet that one wanted to believe them, yet so poisonous that one dared not approach.

Lin Qingyan closed her eyes briefly.

She could feel that deep within her sea of consciousness, the inner demon that had just quieted down was getting restless again.

It wasn't a violent resistance, but a rustling like spring silkworms gnawing on mulberry leaves.

Every movement tugged at her nerves, making it impossible for her to focus.

Lin Qingyan knew why.

Because Gu Chengyin was still commanding the inner demon.

Just like a beast tamer lightly cracking a whip at a fierce beast in a cage—not to harm it, but to remind the beast who the master was.

And right now, she had become that beast.

Lin Qingyan's fingertips curled inside her sleeves, her nails digging into her palms.

The pain made her lucid, and it also made her angry.

Angry at Gu Chengyin's cunningness, holding her and asking for forgiveness while secretly manipulating the inner demon to exert pressure.

How was this a request? This was clearly a hostage situation! Coercion! Forcing her to bow her head!

"I forgive you."

These four words ultimately slipped from Lin Qingyan's lips.

She closed her eyes right after speaking, afraid to look at Gu Chengyin's reaction, and ashamed that she had ultimately submitted.

"Thank you, Little Aunt."

Gu Chengyin's voice was very sincere.

So sincere that Lin Qingyan almost believed he was truly apologizing, truly begging for forgiveness.

But the next second, she realized she was wrong.

Because deep in her sea of consciousness, the continuously restless inner demon suddenly quieted down.

As if nothing had ever happened.

Lin Qingyan's breathing stalled for half a breath.

She finally confirmed it: Gu Chengyin could indeed command her inner demon, and command it with extreme precision.

So precise that he could make the inner demon riot or quiet down at any time, so precise that he could play with her Golden Core cultivation in the palm of his hand.

And when the inner demon completely quieted down and was suppressed back to the very bottom of her sea of consciousness.

Lin Qingyan once again felt power, the power a Golden Core cultivator should have.

Spiritual energy flowed smoothly through her meridians once more, and every acupoint brimmed with the power of lightning.

Her divine sense spread out like a tide, instantly covering the entirety of Dawn City.

This was the might of a Golden Core cultivator.

This was the strength she had painstakingly cultivated.

This should have made her feel secure, feel powerful, and feel the confidence of being back in control of everything.

But at this moment, Lin Qingyan couldn't feel happy at all.

Because the moment she looked up, she saw Gu Chengyin's face.

That young, handsome face, currently bearing an undisguised, wicked smirk.

That smirk was too glaring.

So glaring that Lin Qingyan instantly forgot all her humiliation, leaving only the purest indignation!

"You're very proud of yourself, aren't you?"