Chapter 28: The Awakened Orb and the Curious Skill

The next morning, the first rays of sunlight pierced the tranquil courtyard atop Violet Cloud Peak.

Within one of the rooms, a woman of graceful figure and peerless beauty, like an elder sister from next door, seemed to sense the sunlight. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes and slowly sat upright from the soft, fragrant warmth of her covers.

As the woman sat up, the smooth, icy silk quilt draped over her slid down effortlessly, a testament to the exquisite slickness of her skin.

With the quilt’s descent, the woman’s graceful upper body was soon entirely exposed to the cool air.

Her skin was as fair as snow, and perhaps due to the previous night’s ‘cultivation,’ a closer look revealed a faint rosy flush beneath its snowy pallor. It was as if she had just emerged from a bath, imbued with a delicate mist that stirred one’s imagination.

Yet, as perfect as her skin was, it was not the most captivating feature.

Even more alluring was her slender, easily spanned waist, and the two extreme mounds of softness it so valiantly supported above.

If Xiao Xixi were to awaken at this moment and behold her Master in such a state, she would undoubtedly exclaim, ‘This defies logic, but I love it.’

But the question remained: could Xiao Xixi truly wake up now?

Su Mei, who had cultivated with the little one all night, pondered this.

Recalling the adorable, instinctive reactions and the uncontrollable ‘Xixi’ murmurs the little one had made after she had ‘seduced their spiritual root’ last night, Su Mei gently stroked the soft, delicate cheek of the little girl, whose white strands of hair now clung to her face. She could say with absolute certainty that the exhausted little girl would not be waking up.

As for why Su Mei was already awake and up so early, despite having confirmed Xiao Xixi would not stir?

Su Mei offered her explanation.

Regardless, the previous night’s cultivation had been far too taxing for Xiao Xixi, who had only just entered the Qi Condensation realm.

After only two hours of cultivation last night, the little girl’s ‘watermelon belly’ had pitifully reverted to its shriveled state.

Su Mei’s early rise was solely to procure some food for the little girl.

After all, her own cultivation, which had stagnated for over a year, had shown subtle signs of loosening after cultivating with the little one last night.

Su Mei estimated that if she were to ‘cultivate’ with Xiao Xixi three more times, she would certainly break through the late-stage Golden Core realm and advance to the Nascent Soul stage.

Reflecting on how all this progress was due to the little fox she had rescued, Su Mei, as her Master, declared that it was only right for her to make the little girl’s small belly big again, just as she had made it small!

Lost in these thoughts, Su Mei gently pinched the little girl’s cheek twice more. Then, with a casual wave of her hand, the clothes on the stone stool drifted gracefully onto her body.

Moments later, the gentle woman, like an elder sister, had once again transformed into the revered Peak Master of Violet Cloud Peak.

Just as Su Mei, the Peak Master, reached the doorway, intending to summon her flying sword to fetch some food, a crucial realization struck her.

Her eldest disciple, Bai Luozhu, was due to arrive today to help Xiao Xixi break through the inner demon plaguing her.

Yet, this room was saturated with a rich, intertwined fragrant scent. If Bai Luozhu were to arrive and detect this aroma, ‘wouldn’t it be strange?’

With this thought, before descending the mountain on her sword, Su Mei lightly waved her arm. Instantly, the air in the fragrant room was refreshed.

****

After Su Mei departed on her sword, only Xiao Xixi, the little fox maiden, remained in the tranquil courtyard.

Having endured the peculiar cultivation of the previous night, her delicate, weary body, which had writhed ceaselessly, now desperately needed rest.

By all accounts, Xiao Xixi, having been ‘worked’ all night, could reasonably sleep for another three hours, even though dawn had long broken.

However, just as Xiao Xixi was blissfully savoring her precious sleep, a cold, synthesized voice echoed in her mind the very next second.

“Ding! Host’s current energy absorption is sufficient to meet the first-stage requirements for strengthening the Soul-Snatching Orb. Do you wish to proceed with strengthening?”

Hearing the abrupt, emotionless voice of the ‘Save System’ strike her eardrums from the depths of her mind felt akin to being jolted awake by the exaggerated alarm of an ‘Apple’ phone early in the morning.

Although Xiao Xixi’s weary body resisted rising, her consciousness quickly awakened before her physical form in response to this sudden ‘alarm.’

Once Xiao Xixi had regained some clarity, the considerate ‘Save System’ promptly repeated its message to ensure she understood the situation.

This time, with her consciousness fully online, Xiao Xixi was utterly bewildered upon hearing that the ‘absorbed energy’ could ‘strengthen’ the Soul-Snatching Orb.

‘What is happening? Why have I accumulated enough energy for ‘strengthening’ just by sleeping?’

‘And how exactly is this ‘energy’ accumulated?’

Despite having no clue as to what had transpired last night, Xiao Xixi, guided by the principle of ‘no harm in strengthening,’ chose ‘yes’ when faced with the system’s ‘strengthen now?’ prompt.

With her selection, the ‘orb’ that had been placed by her bedside at some unknown point last night slowly rose. A scorching light then enveloped it.

The light was mysterious, first glowing with a faint crimson hue, then transitioning to an enigmatic blue. Witnessing this miraculous sight, Xiao Xixi, who had been forcibly ‘booted up’ so early, felt an instant surge of alertness.

Her originally sleepy, dewy eyes widened slightly. The light did not last long; after only a few seconds, as it dissipated, Xiao Xixi was surprised to find that the orb, which already emitted a brilliant blue glow, now appeared even brighter after being strengthened.

Her eyes lit up at this development. After all, anyone who had played games knew that while a weapon’s appearance might change with strengthening, what truly mattered to players was the enhancement of the equipment’s inherent abilities.

Considering this, Xiao Xixi hastily opened the system interface to check the attributes of the strengthened Soul-Snatching Orb.

She quickly noticed a change in the orb’s name.

Soul-Snatching Orb (+1)

Seeing the ‘+1’ designation, Xiao Xixi felt a thrill of excitement. Having played games, she knew that a ‘+1’ implied subsequent ‘+2’ and ‘+3’ enhancements, suggesting continuous strengthening was possible.

However, her excitement was soon tempered by a couple of concerns. Again, due to her gaming experience, she couldn’t help but worry: would this ‘orb’ eventually risk ‘equipment destruction’ as its strengthening level increased?

This worry did not trouble Xiao Xixi for long. Such concerns typically arose only after equipment reached very high strengthening levels. Currently, she didn’t even know how to acquire energy, and the equipment was only at ‘+1’; worrying so much now was akin to crying over spilled milk.

Having organized her thoughts, the soft little fox maiden lying on the bed soon focused her attention on the equipment’s description.

She then discovered that besides the ‘+1’ designation, there were no other changes to the Soul-Snatching Orb’s description or skills.

However, a new section had appeared at the very end of the orb’s description.

Strengthening +1: Charm attribute +3, Comprehension attribute +1. Adds passive skill ‘Head Tilt of Doom.’

Upon seeing this final description, Xiao Xixi’s eyes brightened.

Anyone who had played games knew that ‘charm’ and ‘comprehension’ values could make ‘characters’ complete quests or cultivate with greater ease.

However, after reviewing these two attribute boosts, her gaze fell upon the passive skill, and Xiao Xixi found herself somewhat perplexed.

After all, this was a cultivation world. She had never encountered a move called ‘Head Tilt of Doom’ in any novel.

And the name felt strange. What exactly was the use of this skill?

Filled with curiosity, Xiao Xixi straightened her body, intent on thoroughly researching this technique to uncover its truth.

Yet, as she tried to sit up, Xiao Xixi unexpectedly found her body incredibly heavy, and why was her waist so sore???

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