Ye Tinglan did not intentionally bully her disciple.

She truly hadn’t realized that her disciple and Lu Xingzhou had any relationship beyond friendship. Since Lu Xingzhou’s relationship with her was already public in front of Qingli, what was there to hide about showing affection? The only thing to be mindful of was to avoid anything inappropriate in front of the child.

Currently, Ye Tinglan still didn’t want to confront Lu Xingzhou with her identity as Tianyao Shengzhu. It wasn’t about her previous concern for saving face, but rather for the image of Tianyao Shengdi. It was best if the rumors about Tianyao Shengzhu and a man were not substantiated; letting them be cold-treated as rumors would suffice. After all, she and her little lover were using the identity of Mr. Ye, so they could be as affectionate as they pleased.

If one day her identity as Tianyao Shengzhu could be made public, then Qingli would indeed have to dutifully call him Shigong. What was wrong with making her hide behind a screen?

Ye Tinglan had no idea that at this moment, in the eyes of outsiders, Qingli was being held and “kissed,” and she was replacing her with a clear conscience. Because she had overheard parts of the conversation earlier, her love for the young man at this moment was boundless. If it weren’t for the unsuitable location, she might have let Lu Xingzhou go even further.

“What have you two discussed here?” Ye Tinglan softly nestled in the man’s arms, thinking she was asking the obvious.

She hadn’t paid attention for only a moment, what could they have discussed? Wasn’t it just about how good he was to her, how sincere? Hehe.

But Lu Xingzhou actually spoke of serious matters: “Later, Qingli and I will be taken by Ling Qixuan to their formation site. You, in the identity of Tinglan Zhenren, should seize the opportunity to raid the formation and rescue Qingli. This matter will then be concluded.”

Ye Tinglan paused: “The identity of Tinglan Zhenren?”

Lu Xingzhou said: “Yes, weren’t you pretending to be the Shengzhu in front of Sihan?”

Ye Tinglan: “…”

She almost didn’t catch the nuance herself. She truly admired Lu Xingzhou for being able to tell a blatant lie with such clarity.

Lu Xingzhou continued: “However, in front of Bingyu Zong, it’s unlikely you can directly claim to be Tianyao Shengzhu. You’ll need to disguise yourself. For example, does Tinglan Zhenren usually wear a Daoist robe? And it’s said she also wears a veil.”

“That…” Ye Tinglan was a little embarrassed: “Tinglan Zhenren usually wears a Dharma robe, which is a type of Daoist robe, but not the simple blue robes of low-level disciples. Um, I have something similar here.”

Lu Xingzhou leaned in and chuckled: “Wear it for me to see?”

Ye Tinglan indeed took out a set of Dharma robes, then bit her lower lip and looked at him with a hint of grievance.

She recalled earlier wanting to change clothes but couldn’t find a place, so she reluctantly wore his outer robe. That could probably be considered the “beginning of her downfall.” Now that their relationship was such that they were buried in the snowy mountains eating cherries, changing clothes no longer seemed to require finding a private spot…

Sure enough, seeing that she didn’t refuse, Lu Xingzhou’s hand, which was around her, quietly untied her sash.

Thinking of her disciple squatting behind a screen, Ye Tinglan still felt some shame, but the little man’s declarations she had overheard earlier made her heart soft at this moment, unable to refuse. So, she half-heartedly let him unfasten her clothes.

Unlike Long Qinghuang, who wore a dazzling golden imperial robe outside but a human-style *dudou* underneath, being extremely reserved, Ye Tinglan didn’t wear a *dudou* underneath. Instead, she wore a very ordinary white inner lining, plain and ascetic. Her underwear wasn’t tightly binding her chest; it was relatively loose. With her outer robe unfastened, her “bunnies” trembled, inviting one to kiss them.

Lu Xingzhou almost instinctively truly did kiss them.

Ye Tinglan let out an “mm” sound, holding his head and tilting her head back slightly, panting: “Don’t, Qingli is right there…”

Duogu Qingli: “…”

Thank you very much.

Considering I’m here, shouldn’t you kick him away? What are you doing? Telling him to be more discreet?

Fortunately, Lu Xingzhou was indeed discreet. Knowing that this was not the place, he barely suppressed his desires and reached out to take the Dharma robe from Ye Tinglan’s hand to help her put it on.

As the Dharma robe was half-worn, Lu Xingzhou inwardly cursed.

Normally, the feeling wasn’t so strong, but this half-unfastened Dharma robe truly made him feel like he was intimately involved with the Tianyao Shengzhu. No wonder people liked uniform play; the psychological experience brought by this particular outfit was completely different.

Unfortunately, this was about putting it on, not taking it off. Lu Xingzhou gritted his teeth and continued to help her dress, whispering in her ear: “When this is over, my lady, will you wear this for me, please…?”

Ye Tinglan bit her lower lip, her eyes full of seductive charm, and after a long while, she let out an “mm” from her throat.

Her face was truly burning.

As the Shengzhu’s junior sister, yet wearing this to accompany him, what was this called… playing herself to satisfy his desires?

And knowing full well that he was aware of her identity…

Ye Tinglan truly couldn’t maintain her composure on her face. Not wanting to dwell on the Dharma robe topic, she changed the subject: “Tinglan Zhenren usually wears a veil. I don’t have one with me now, what should I do?”

Lu Xingzhou chuckled and pulled out a veil: “I have one.”

Ye Tinglan then remembered that he had once traded over three hundred veils for the one she usually wore. It turned out he actually kept it. She couldn’t help but feel both angry and amused, murmuring: “You’re seriously ill.”

Lu Xingzhou chuckled as he placed the veil on her, then leaned back to observe her.

The “Mister” in front of him had reverted to the veiled appearance she used to see, but the normally indifferent eyes were now filled with charm. This familiar past attire seemed to have completely transformed her.

Ye Tinglan knew what he was thinking and pouted: “Satisfied?”

Lu Xingzhou leaned in and kissed her forehead: “Satisfied.”

Then he released her from his embrace and whispered: “First, go stealthily. There will be a big battle later. And the presumed enemy might not necessarily be Ling Qixuan; be prepared to fight the Ice Demon’s body.”

Ye Tinglan took several deep breaths to switch the atmosphere, then vanished directly.

Lu Xingzhou turned to look behind the screen and saw the little white-haired girl squatting there, hugging her knees, her expression blank, looking utterly broken.

Lu Xingzhou couldn’t help but laugh. He reached out to pull her up: “Get ready for battle.”

Duogu Qingli looked up at him blankly, like an AI whose conversation had been reset.

Lu Xingzhou cleared his throat, then suddenly spoke aloud: “Yinfeng, has Sect Master Ling had any news?”

Soon, the voice transmission of Elder Yinfeng came from afar: “Sect Master Ling hasn’t left. He’s been here drinking tea as our guest. Uh, is Judge completed?”

“Mm.” Lu Xingzhou led Duogu Qingli out the door: “How has Sect Master Ling considered it?”

Soon, Ling Qixuan flashed into the courtyard, smiling: “Is Mr. Lu well and happy?”

Looking at Lu Xingzhou’s satisfied expression, as if he had gotten what he wanted, and then at Duogu Qingli’s flushed face, blank expression, and vacant eyes, most people, without the ability to discern a woman’s virtue, would only conclude that Lu Xingzhou had enjoyed himself inside.

Lu Xingzhou waved his hand: “I’m not interested in sharing such experiences with others. Let’s talk business. If Sect Master Ling has no sincerity, I’ll take my person and leave.”

Ling Qixuan quickly took out an object wrapped in ice crystal. Upon closer inspection, there seemed to be a drop of blood flowing inside, somewhat sinister: “This is blood that our sect once discovered beneath the glacier, containing unknown power. Our sect does not cultivate alchemy, so keeping it is a waste. It is said that Mr. Lu is a renowned alchemist, so you must like it. I present it to you.”

Lu Xingzhou was startled. He had expected some kind of magical artifact, not blood with unknown effects.

Unknown meant a blind box. It could be extremely valuable research material on immortal blood, or it could simply be blood left by someone who explored recently and was accidentally frozen inside, making it completely meaningless. Even if it were ancient immortal blood, its value was hard to say. For example, a drop of blood from an ancient cultivator on par with Ye Tinglan would be useless, and even a higher-grade one might not necessarily be truly useful. But if it were from a special species, like dragon or phoenix blood, that would be different.

A true blind box.

Speaking of which, there were no transcendent-grade cultivators here. Even if Ling Qixuan was a first-grade high-tier cultivator, the effect of his divine sense would be very weak. He couldn’t analyze anything through this icy obstruction. But Ye Tinglan was different; she could perceive its characteristics without needing to dissect it.

Lu Xingzhou pretended to ponder, but in reality, he was waiting for his wife’s analysis.

Sure enough, Ye Tinglan’s telepathic message soon arrived with understanding: “It is indeed ancient blood, containing at least transcendent-grade power. Further detailed analysis is needed to determine its special value, but in any case, you can accept it for now; it’s not a loss.”

As long as it was ancient blood, it had at least research significance. Lu Xingzhou accepted it and chuckled: “Since that’s the case, shall we go see Sect Master Ling’s formation now?”

Ling Qixuan was stunned: “Aren’t you handing her over to me?”

Lu Xingzhou’s expression hardened: “She’s my woman, after all. Handing her over to you so casually, do you think I have a cuckold fetish or something? If she’s to be the eye of the formation, so be it, but I must personally watch to make sure you’re not doing anything else with her.”

Ling Qixuan laughed wryly: “How is that possible? We have no interest in such white-haired girls.”

Duogu Qingli: “…”

Should I thank you for that?

“Your mouth is on your body; I don’t believe a word you say,” Lu Xingzhou said. “Also, I am genuinely curious about your ice demon matter… It’s well known that I’m only a fourth-grade cultivator. What could I possibly influence? To take me or not, just say the word.”

Ling Qixuan thought it made sense; what could a fourth-grade cultivator do? He smiled and said: “Alright, since Judge wants to see, then see he shall. Anyway, this matter will require the King of Hell’s intervention in the future, and Judge is one of our own.”

Lu Xingzhou “escorted” Duogu Qingli and flew with everyone towards the direction of Bingyu Zong, saying: “According to you, the ice demon won’t be emerging this time?”

“Of course not,” Ling Qixuan said. “We said before, how incredibly sturdy is this ten-thousand-year glacier? We haven’t even fully explored how deep its deepest parts are, let alone anything else? To break the ice, it’s impossible for our strength to accomplish it in a short while… Using this Miss Duogu as the eye of the formation is merely to facilitate communication with the Ice Demon’s body, primarily to pinpoint its location, not for immediate ice-breaking.”

Lu Xingzhou secretly thought he had misjudged, but this was even better. Communicating with the ice demon was precisely what Duogu Qingli herself needed; she could use this to determine the connection between herself and the ice demon.

Duogu Qingli’s eyes also awoke from their blankness, looking at the ice mountains ahead like swords, a hint of solemnity in her gaze.

Her master had predicted that she would find clues to her origins in Tianshuang Guo. It seemed that this was the moment.