This body had apparently grown accustomed to her subtle touches. Now as her fingers methodically took advantage, it only trembled slightly.

Pei Yuanshao sitting on top remained oblivious. Liu Changning enjoyed the unexpected benefits that came with the greatly increased efficacy.

Outside the light barrier

“Huh? Where’s that ambiguous sound coming from?” By now, the disciples who had come up later had all reached this section of stone steps.

“Tsk tsk tsk, and those watery sounds too, Sister Wang, did you hear them?”

“Could there be illusions as well?”

…

The Elder Pei, who had been burying his head in earnest work, suddenly paused. His softness panicked and bumped clumsily into Liu Changning’s hard tooth tip.

The pain made him cry out: “Ah!”

Fortunately, only the beginning of the sound came out before Liu Changning quickly covered his mouth.

She held him in her arms, her apricot eyes sparkling: “Shao, be good, shh!”

Elder Pei belatedly looked outside the light barrier, where more and more suspicious gazes were turning towards the illusion that had made the sound.

His entire body, with its dark red skin, involuntarily flushed a light pink.

The shame in his heart expanded infinitely under the curious gazes outside the light barrier. He suddenly felt that his act of punishing his junior was inexplicably embarrassing.

He pushed away the head of the woman above him, but unexpectedly, her cascading hair became tangled with his own dark red locks.

Suddenly separating from each other, their hair remained connected, pulling at their scalps with an acidic, numb pain.

Elder Pei was furious to the point of attack. He opened his mouth to curse, but her slender hand moved again, her long fingers like spring onions pressed against his two thin lips, her fingertips caressing.

Along with the cool sensation, it penetrated into his heart. Pei Yuanshao looked outside the light barrier with difficulty, his heartstrings now connected to his scalp, tingling… [omitted]

He seemed to have been electrified, pressing his legs together, his heart pounding like a drum.

Each beat louder than the last.

“Strange, Sister Huang. Did you hear any ‘thump thump’ sounds?”

“Heartbeats?”

Pei Yuanshao opened his shame-filled eyes, wishing he could cut off the mouths of these meddlesome female cultivators.

Liu Changning’s smile deepened as she finished admiring the little phoenix’s eyes, almost dripping blood with shame and anger.

She transmitted a message with her divine sense, nonchalantly giving him a way out: “Thank you, elder, for protecting this junior just now. Has the molten lava in the elder’s body subsided…”

Pei Yuanshao pressed his legs together, his eyes darting. His mind, which had been consumed by heat, finally cleared. Before she could finish speaking, there was a flash of white light as he quickly transformed back into his beast form.

His black feathers all stood on end, his entire bird face dying of shame.

He glared with his small eyes the size of mung beans, examining her once more to make sure the female cultivator before him was unaware of the situation. He spoke in a low voice, pretending to be confused while actually understanding: “Did you hear any heartbeats just now?”

Liu Changning raised her hand to fiddle with the drooping tuft on his head, forcibly suppressing her bursting laughter as she shook her head: “I didn’t.”

The little black bird’s embarrassed expression eased somewhat. His wings drooped softly on her chest, but his two limbs remained tightly closed.

“Although I didn’t hear any heartbeats, my body suddenly felt strange just now, I don’t know what it was, hard and bumpy, perhaps I was cut by a stone…”

The white-robed female cultivator slowly put on her scattered clothes. Her body, as thin as jade, was bathed in a halo of sunlight.

Her voice was low and cold, with a hint of hoarseness at the end. Though she had the bearing of one as pure as a distant mountain, lofty and aloof.

Yet it made the little black bird clench his legs again. He turned his gaze away with difficulty.

When he spoke, even his indignant tone had weakened, as he blustered in agreement: “I felt a stone too just now. Those old hags up there must have carelessly thrown some spirit fire stones. Don’t worry, when this sovereign regains human form later, I’ll definitely help you teach them a lesson.”

Liu Changning: …

—

At the center of the trial plaza atop the mountain, many people had gradually arrived.

Lower-level cultivators made up more than half, with only a few ordinary people.

Several Nascent Soul stage elders were already seated on the ten purple sandalwood chairs at the front. Behind them stretched a long line of elite disciples brought by various sects for this occasion.

With Nascent Soul stage patriarchs presiding, the disciples who had climbed the Azure Cloud Stairs with great difficulty didn’t dare make a sound.

They all lowered their heads and lined up, waiting for the upcoming spirit root testing ceremony.

Little did they know that above their heads, the expressions of the ten lofty Nascent Soul stage cultivators were all unsightly.

“Why hasn’t she come up yet?”

“There’s only half an incense stick’s time left before the Azure Cloud Stairs are withdrawn.”

“It’s infuriating, what does that female cultivator mean by this? Teasing the patriarch, letting the patriarch watch her climb the stairs only to turn tail and leave?”

“My Xiaoyao Sect must have this woman.”

“She hasn’t even come up yet, Elder Xiao sure has a big appetite. Hah!”

…

The elders argued incessantly through divine sense transmission.

Behind them, the curiosity on the faces of the elite disciples from the Ten Great Sects was already unconcealed, clearly visible.

In the disciple line of the Tianxin Sect.

Chen Suxin stood at the front.

Second junior sister Yayun couldn’t contain her curiosity and asked softly: “Senior sister, do you know what the patriarchs saw in the water mirror earlier? Their expressions… so fierce, it seems as if they’re about to fight?”

Chen Suxin turned her head to glance at her second junior sister and coughed lightly: “Junior sister, be careful with your words. Walls have ears.”

She glanced at the senior disciple of the Beast Taming Sect looking over from not far away, and smiled at her distantly.

Lowering her voice, she said: “The elders are so excited, there must be something big happening. Stay calm and just watch.”

Having received such information, Yayun closed her mouth and focused on her own thoughts.

Liu Changning leisurely ascended to the trial grounds just as the Azure Cloud Stairs were about to be withdrawn in the final breath.

As soon as her figure entered, the pressure on her body continuously increased.

She raised her eyes and imperceptibly looked at the ten lofty cultivators seated at the front. The group of Nascent Soul stage elders’ gazes poured towards her without any disguise.

Liu Changning didn’t have much reaction, but the little black bird in her arms snorted heavily: “A bunch of old things, what are you looking at? Dried up for too long without being nourished by male cultivators, you won’t even spare a woman?”

“Pfft” Liu Changning laughed out loud. Meeting the little black bird’s small eyes the size of mung beans, she smiled like a blooming snow lotus.

Elder Pei averted his gaze and said in a muffled voice: “Ugly creature!”