Chapter 83: The Face in the Photograph

HUFF... HUFF... HUFF!

The great battle was finally over. Xu Qian lay collapsed on the bed, her entire body feeling as if it had fallen apart. Her fair, jade-like form was draped across the messy sheets, and she was panting so heavily she didn’t even have the strength to lift a hand.

Her jet-black hair lay in a messy tangle on the pillow, and her exquisitely beautiful face was covered in sweat and streaks of white.

Her makeup was long since ruined beyond recognition, yet it inexplicably lent her a different kind of allure.

Meanwhile, Yang Xun sat cross-legged on the other side of the bed, his hands forming a seal and his eyes slightly closed. He silently circulated the Yin Yang Dragon and Phoenix Technique, bit by bit refining and absorbing the vast amount of Primordial Yin Qi he had taken from Xu Qian.

The sheer density of the Primordial Yin Qi was astonishing.

The Primordial Yin Qi, accumulated by a virgin for over twenty years, was dozens of times denser than Huang Qi’s. Like a volcano on the verge of erupting, it surged violently into Yang Xun’s Dantian.

The Dantian Qi Vortex spun wildly, and the total amount of his True Qi grew at a visible rate. Breaking through the bottleneck to the Fourth Layer of the Qi Refining Realm now seemed within his grasp.

However, after a long period of refinement, Yang Xun slowly opened his eyes, a trace of regret in his gaze.

’Still a little short.’

’I’m still forty percent away from the Fourth Layer of the Qi Refining Realm.’

’Although Xu Qian’s Primordial Yin Qi is dense, I’ve reached my limit for progress tonight. I’ll have to find another opportunity to cross the final threshold.’

’And what I regret most is that my sister-in-law’s body doesn’t contain any Zodiac Origin Qi!’

But Yang Xun quickly suppressed this regret. He turned to glance at Xu Qian on the bed, and a complex smile slowly formed on his lips.

The room was quiet, with only the occasional night breeze gently rustling the curtains.

The livestream, however, was a completely different scene.

The bullet comments scrolled by like a floodgate had been opened. Gift animations completely filled the screen, with all sorts of top-tier effects blooming one after another.

The revenue counter continued to jump and climb, showing no signs of stopping.

...

About half an hour later, Xu Qian finally caught her breath.

She struggled to sit up, and when she looked down at the state she was in, she was rendered speechless.

’That bastard, look what he’s done to me!’

She gritted her teeth, struggled to get out of bed, and limped into the bathroom.

The sound of running water echoed for a while.

When she reemerged, her face was scrubbed clean. Though her peach-blossom eyes still held a moist, unconcealable sheen, her expression had regained some of its clarity.

She limped over to her streaming equipment and sat down in front of the camera again.

The bullet comments immediately erupted!

"The streamer is back!!"

"Are you okay?"

"Your eyes are all swollen. Were you crying for a long time?"

"What about that criminal? Is he still there?"

Xu Qian glanced at the bullet comments, took a deep breath, and forced a smile that looked somewhat natural. She said, "Hey everyone, I’m just too tired. That’s all for tonight’s stream. See you all another day!"

With that, she offered no further explanation and immediately shut down the stream.

The screen went black.

She casually opened her backend dashboard, her eyes falling on the revenue figure.

Eight hundred and seventy thousand!

Xu Qian froze. That was more than double her earnings from last time!

Eight hundred and seventy thousand in a single night.

She stared at the number for several silent seconds, her chest heaving as complex emotions churned within her.

Then, she noticed her private messages were completely full.

Opening them one by one, she saw they were all inquiries from those rich women.

"Qianqian, can I book that delivery guy for a night? Name your price!"

"Streamer, how much for one night? I’ll pay a hundred thousand!"

"Qianqian, set me up with the delivery guy. The price is negotiable, just say the word!"

Xu Qian’s eyes grew brighter and brighter as she read through the messages.

’A hundred thousand...’

’A hundred thousand for one night.’

’My mind started racing. My sister still has a huge funding gap, and the pressure on the Xu Group hasn’t really been relieved. If I can get this money...’

At this thought, she whipped her head around to look at Yang Xun, who was still sitting cross-legged on the bed.

’Still, I’ll have to ask this guy about it eventually.’

But before she could speak, the scenes from tonight flooded back into her mind uncontrollably.

The feeling of being completely filled, that tingling and searing heat that had exploded from the depths of her bones...

She subconsciously clenched her fists as a blush crept up her cheeks uncontrollably. Then, she viciously forced the images from her mind.

"You bastard, I’m going to kill you!!"

The next moment, her peach-blossom eyes narrowed, and she pounced on him like a feral kitten!

Her ten fingers dug in, pinching the flesh of his waist with all her might.

Caught completely off guard by the sudden assault, Yang Xun was jolted from his meditative state. He glanced down at his side, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

He lowered his voice and warned, "If you pinch me again, I’ll punish you severely right now!"

"Punish me?"

Far from being intimidated, Xu Qian was enraged. Her peach-blossom eyes widened, and her voice was fierce with anger. "You bastard! First you take my virginity, and now you want to punish me?! I’ll kill you!!"

She said the words, but if you looked closely at her face, you couldn’t find a trace of genuine anger.

In those glistening peach-blossom eyes lay a hidden, indescribable emotion—more complex than anger, more subtle than indignant shame.

Yang Xun took it all in, and a thoroughly wicked smile slowly curled his lips.

’As expected, my sister-in-law has been completely conquered.’

"Fine. Since you’re not afraid, don’t blame me for what happens next!"

Before the words even left his mouth, he flipped Xu Qian onto the bed with a show of strength, his body pressing down on her like a great mountain.

Xu Qian’s eyes went wide, and she was still shouting something, but in the next second, she fell completely silent.

...

Another thoroughly satisfying battle.

After an unknown amount of time, Xu Qian finally ran out of energy to struggle.

She couldn’t be bothered to speak, not even having the strength to glance at Yang Xun. Her peach-blossom eyes slowly closed, and she fell asleep just like that.

Having absorbed such a massive amount of Primordial Yin Qi, Yang Xun was also in no hurry to leave. He sat down cross-legged on the spot and entered a deep meditative state of refinement.

Warm True Qi circulated quietly through his meridians as his Dantian Qi Vortex became increasingly solid and robust.

The entire apartment was immersed in tranquility.

...

「The next morning.」

Sunlight crept in through the gaps in the blackout curtains, casting several long, golden bands of light on the floor.

Xu Qian slowly stirred awake.

Her first feeling was one of surprise.

After being wrung out like that last night, she had expected to spend the entire day in bed recovering.

But now, she merely stretched and felt an indescribable lightness throughout her body.

Far from feeling fatigued, she felt full of strength and vigor, as if she had been completely reborn.

Even the discomfort in her body from the previous night had completely vanished.

’What... is going on?’

Slightly stunned, Xu Qian slowly sat up. She moved her arms and neck, confirming that she felt surprisingly good.

Then she turned her head to look at the cross-legged Yang Xun. Though she couldn’t see his face behind the mask, her gaze became incredibly gentle.

’After all... he was her first man.’

No matter how tough she acted, something had ultimately been left behind in a secret corner of her heart.

Without disturbing Yang Xun, she carefully looked for her phone, which she had forgotten about all night.

As she lit up the screen, a few unread message notifications popped up.

Most were from the rich women, still asking about booking him for the night. She didn’t read them, simply swiping past until her gaze landed on a message from a contact labeled "Detective."

’Finally! Did you get a picture of his face?!’

Xu Qian glanced at the cross-legged Yang Xun, and without any hesitation, immediately opened the chat. There was only one message inside.

It was an encrypted image!!

’Hmph... So you won’t take off your mask, huh? Well, this girl can still find out what you look like!’

A faint smile touched Xu Qian’s lips as she immediately entered the password and opened the encrypted image.

However, when she saw the face in the picture, her expression froze instantly. Her eyes grew wide and round, filled with an unconcealable shock...