Chapter 37: Almost Disfigured
"You're awake."
Jing Ni's delicate, doll-like face showed no discernible emotional fluctuation as she looked down at Qin Xuan. Her voice, however, abruptly stopped.
She didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Qin Xuan's appearance at this moment was, to put it mildly, simply too comical.
Yes, comical.
Although his handsome facial features were unchanged, his cascading, waterfall-like black hair was completely gone. In its place was a stiff, bright red, Mohican-style crest of long hair.
No matter how one looked at it, it felt absurdly out of place. It was the hair of a street punk, not a god of slaughter.
Qin Xuan, still processing his return from the brink, was stunned by her silence. "What's wrong?"
"You should... come and see for yourself." Jing Ni, the master assassin of the Net, found her professional composure failing her. She took Qin Xuan's other hand and led him to the edge of the clear lake. Their reflections appeared on the still surface of the water.
Jing Ni, despite her fatigue from standing guard for so long, was still astonishingly beautiful. She was naturally endowed with a beauty that could overthrow kingdoms. Her skin was like polished jade, more vibrant than peach blossoms, fair with a rosy glow, and translucent like a clear moon in the sky. It seemed as if all the beautiful words used to describe women in the world could be applied to her.
As for Qin Xuan… he immediately blurted out a curse from his past life. "Holy crap!"
He knew that a Spirit could also affect one's appearance.
This... this ugly haircut! It was just like Ma Hongjun's cockscomb! Could it be that the Face-Setting Pill didn't work?
He quickly recalled the power of the Vermilion Bird, retracting his Spirit.
Watching his cascading black hair gradually shimmer and return to its normal, dark, flowing state in the lake's reflection, he still wasn't at ease. He tried summoning his Spirit a few more times, his heart pounding. The red Mohican reappeared, then vanished as he retracted it.
Only after confirming that the disgusting haircut wouldn't remain permanently did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness! Thank goodness he had the foresight to take the Face-Setting Pill early. Otherwise, who the hell could handle this?
No matter how high one's looks were, there were still hairstyles that couldn't be pulled off. Even a peerless beauty couldn't withstand the ravages of a truly disastrous haircut.
And Qin Xuan, sporting that red Mohican-style long hair, looked utterly foolish.
"It seems he can be childish sometimes," Jing Ni, observing Qin Xuan's frantic checking from the side, finally let a small, almost imperceptible smile touch her lips.
Her voice returned to its normal, calm tone. "It seems you've gained a lot this time. Your spirit power is almost catching up to mine."
She tilted her head, her analytical gaze returning. "And feeling it up close, it seems there's something else... an new aura, besides the Slaughter God Domain."
"My lady has sharp eyes," Qin Xuan said, his confidence restored now that his vanity was no longer under assault. He gently caressed Jing Ni's slightly fatigued, rounded face.
"But you've been protecting me, plus the previous journey and being chased by the Net... you must not have had a good rest for a long time."
"In that case," he continued, his voice softening, "even if you are a Spirit Saint now, your body won't be able to handle it."
"And it's not good for the fetus, either."
"Mm." Jing Ni nodded slightly, leaning into his touch. She had already grown accustomed to Qin Xuan's fondness for stroking her doll-like face.
If this were in her original world, anyone who dared to touch her with such casual intimacy would have been cut down by her sword long ago.
But facing Qin Xuan, she felt no aversion. On the contrary, she found she... quite enjoyed the feeling. It was grounding.
She had once asked him why he liked pinching her cheeks. Qin Xuan had simply said: "This is a sign of loving you."
And this, she had realized, was what she hoped for. Women in feudal times—which her world essentially was—shared a common trait: once married, they followed their husbands.
Since she had decided to be Qin Xuan's woman (even if by an assassin's recruitment card), she naturally hoped Qin Xuan would genuinely dote on her. It was a security she had never known in the Net.
Qin Xuan slid his arms under her back and knees, lifting her effortlessly into a princess carry. He said softly, "Now, just rest in my arms and sleep. You are pregnant, and traveling will only become more inconvenient."
"It's a good time for our training to temporarily conclude. I'll go to the nearest town to buy a carriage. We'll ride back."
"Mm." Jing Ni assented softly again. She felt the warmth from Qin Xuan's body permeating through his clothes, flowing directly into her heart. It was warm and comforting. She slowly closed her eyes and, for the first time in memory, drifted into sleep feeling completely safe.
With spirit power attached to his feet, Qin Xuan's speed was incredibly fast. Ever since he started cultivating the Ghost Valley Breathing Technique, his control over his spirit power had long been perfected.
With the boost of his Level 68 spirit power, his speed was no less than that of an agility-type Spirit Master of the same level.
Combined with the lightness skill inherent in the Ghost Valley Breathing Technique, after leaving the valley, he almost ignored the treacherous terrain of the dense, rocky jungle. He leaped several zhang at a time, always finding the smallest foothold to borrow force and advance rapidly.
[Jing Ni Affection +1]
[Jing Ni Affection +2]
[Jing Ni Affection +1]
[Jing Ni Affection +2]
During the journey, Jing Ni's affection in Qin Xuan's arms soared, even in her sleep. Although the increase was not huge, Qin Xuan was still very happy.
However, the constantly popping-up system prompts and the voice ringing in his ears really affected his concentration. Qin Xuan also had to be on guard against possible Spirit Beast attacks at any time, so he simply temporarily blocked the system's notifications and sped up his pace.
Before dark, they finally left the extremely desolate western land—the mountain range where Slaughter City was hidden—and arrived within the borders of the Heaven Dou Empire.
It was late afternoon. The sun was setting in the west, and the evening glow cast upon Qin Xuan's face. His cascading black hair flowed in the wind, and he looked impossibly handsome, gallant and spirited.
Jing Ni, who had already woken up, looked at Qin Xuan's perfect profile, as if sculpted by ancient streams and mountains, and was slightly lost in thought. She softly called out, "Husband. You've been traveling all day. Why don't you put me down and rest for a while?"
This was not the first time she had said this.
Qin Xuan lowered his head. They had already left the desolate western lands, and there were no Spirit Beasts here that could threaten him. He no longer needed to constantly sense his surroundings and could rely completely on his mental force to scout ahead, making his eyes less crucial.
Perhaps because Jing Ni was pregnant and nearing delivery, in addition to her faint feminine scent, she also had a very unique, sweet milky fragrance.
Qin Xuan, who had not indulged in carnal pleasures in two lives (his previous and his current, up to this point), was quite infatuated with this feeling. If Jing Ni weren't pregnant, he would have wanted to find a place to take her on the spot.
Subtly sniffing the air around her hair, Qin Xuan held her tighter. "It's fine. We're already in the Heaven Dou Empire. As long as we pass through this Spirit Beast Forest, we'll find a small town. We'll rest there tonight."
After saying this, Qin Xuan's powerful mental force suddenly sensed something. His rapid forward speed abruptly dropped. He sprang up, landing silently on a thick tree trunk, and stopped his advance, kneeling slightly.
"What's wrong?" Jing Ni knew Qin Xuan wouldn't stop for no reason. She was slightly startled and tried to get up from his arms, but he held her fast.
"It's nothing," he whispered. "I just sensed two spirit power fluctuations ahead. Roughly at the Spirit Emperor and a newly advanced Spirit Ancestor level."
"Although it's extremely rare to encounter 10,000-year Spirit Beasts in this particular Spirit Beast Forest, 1,000-year Spirit Beasts are not uncommon. They should be here to hunt for spirit rings. We don't need to bother with them; let's continue forward."
Qin Xuan smiled, held Jing Ni tight, and prepared to leap away, taking a different route.
Just then, an angry woman's voice, clear and sharp, drifted through the trees.
"I've told you countless times, I can protect myself! I don't need you to interfere! Now that the spirit ring has been hunted, you can leave! Go as far as you can! I don't need that man's charity!"
A woman with a clear and refined appearance, dressed in a black, tight-fitting leather suit, who looked to be about 20 years old, was walking in the opposite direction of the Spirit Beast Forest exit, as if in a huff.
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