274: Chapter 274 Returning Home in Wealth and Honor is Like Wearing Brocade at Night

"Sign... sign up?"

Ji Wushuang was stunned for a full three seconds, and a look of incredulous, embarrassed redness appeared on her stunningly beautiful face.

She was the dignified Goddess of the hidden Ji family, an existence who had awakened the ancient Vermilion Bird bloodline.

Whether in terms of talent or appearance, she was a figure placed on a pedestal within the circle of hidden families.

Usually, those young masters of aristocratic families would be excited for a long time just by glancing at her.

Now, this man from the mortal world actually said... she wasn't even eligible to sign up?

"Shameless scoundrel!"

Ji Wushuang's chest heaved violently.

Her originally pale cheeks were flushed with a rosy glow due to anger, making her look even more alluring.

"Even if I, Ji Wushuang, die, I will not..."

Before she could finish, the chill within her body suddenly erupted.

The ten-thousand-year cold poison that had always been contending with the "Nanming Li Fire" inside her.

At this moment, it discovered that its old opponent had actually "shrunk".

Yes, that Nanming Li Fire, which was usually extremely domineering, was shrinking because it feared the Origin Ember inside Lin Yuan.

At this moment, it was obediently huddled in the deepest part of her dantian, not daring to spark even a single flame.

This led to a catastrophic consequence—the cold poison, having lost its check and balance, instantly counterattacked!

"Ugh!"

Ji Wushuang's cursing instantly turned into a painful muffled groan.

Crack—crack—

Visible to the naked eye, a layer of crystalline frost quickly climbed up her eyebrows, hair, and even her red clothes were covered in a thin layer of white frost.

The fire goddess who was burning with rage a second ago had turned into an "ice sculpture beauty" lying on the hospital bed.

"Hiss... so cold..."

Ji Wushuang hugged her arms tightly, curling her entire body into a ball.

Her teeth chattered uncontrollably, making a "clack-clack-clack" sound. That bone-deep chill seemed to want to freeze her soul until it shattered.

"Eh? Did she transform just like that?"

Qin Ziyan blinked her eyes from the side.

She leaned over with a look of surprise and reached out a finger to poke Ji Wushuang's frosted arm.

"Lin Yuan, does she come with a built-in cooling function? We won't need to turn on the air conditioning in the summer anymore; it must be very comfortable to sleep while hugging her."

Hearing these "tiger-wolf words," Ji Wushuang was so angry she wanted to vomit blood.

But at this moment, she didn't even have the strength to speak.

She could only glare fiercely at Qin Ziyan with eyes that seemed to be breathing fire... oh no, now they were breathing ice shards.

"It seems the cold poison has backlashed," Lin Yuan took a bite of an apple and commented calmly.

"The little flame inside her was scared witless by me and doesn't dare come out to work. With the cold poison having no opponent, it naturally started to run wild."

As he spoke, Lin Yuan stood up, walked to the hospital bed, and looked down at the shivering Ji Wushuang.

"How is it, Goddess? It doesn't feel good right now, does it?"

"Save... save me..."

Ji Wushuang's consciousness had already begun to blur.

In the face of the threat of death, her so-called dignity didn't seem so unbreakable.

She instinctively reached out and grabbed the corner of Lin Yuan's clothes.

At that moment, she felt as if she had grabbed a giant furnace.

The massive fire-type energy within Lin Yuan was, for her right now, simply a fatal temptation.

"Want me to save you?"

Lin Yuan curled his lips into a demonic smile and slowly took out a... document from his space.

And a pen.

"Normally, I don't keep idlers, but seeing as your Superpower is somewhat useful, I can give you a chance."

"Sign it."

Qin Ziyan curiously leaned over to look at the document title, and her lips twitched wildly.

"Agreement on Employing Ms. Ji Wushuang as a Lifetime Unpaid Laborer for Jiangcheng Shelter and Debt Repayment Agreement"

"This is too..."

Qin Ziyan wanted to say it was too shady.

But thinking of the woman's arrogant attitude earlier, she immediately changed her tune.

"Too reasonable! It's simply the conscience of the industry!"

At this point, how could Ji Wushuang see the content of the contract clearly? She only felt that the piece of paper in Lin Yuan's hand was her only lifeline.

"I... I'll sign..."

She tremblingly held the pen and, at the place Lin Yuan pointed, crookedly made her mark.

"Very good, the contract is effective."

Lin Yuan put away the contract with satisfaction.

This is a new target that fits the system; it would be a waste not to take it.

Besides, she's good-looking, must be included in the reward list!

"Ziyan, you go out and guard first, don't let anyone come in to disturb us."

Lin Yuan instructed, "The treatment process might... make a bit of a commotion."

Qin Ziyan looked at Lin Yuan suspiciously.

She looked at Ji Wushuang, who was panting slightly on the bed, and her eyes instantly became sharp.

"A bit of a commotion? Lin Yuan, you aren't planning to use the name of treatment to..."

"What are you thinking!"

Lin Yuan knocked her on the forehead unhappily, "Am I that kind of person? This is for the fusion of the exotic fire! It's a very serious academic study!"

"Tch, I don't believe you."

Although Qin Ziyan complained, she still obediently walked out and closed the heavy isolation door.

Only Lin Yuan and Ji Wushuang were left in the room.

A man and a woman alone, and one of them was in a state of extreme cold, urgently needing warmth.

"Alright, stop shivering, I'll make you hot immediately."

Lin Yuan didn't waste words, he directly reached out and turned Ji Wushuang over, making her face away from him.

"Riiip—"

A crisp sound of tearing silk.

The already damaged clothing on Ji Wushuang's back was torn open by Lin Yuan, revealing her entire back, smooth as jade, yet covered in frost.

"You... what are you doing..."

Ji Wushuang was filled with shame and anger, wanting to struggle, but was held down firmly by one of Lin Yuan's hands.

"Don't move around, I'm finding the acupoints."

Lin Yuan's voice became serious.

The next second, his palm ignited a ball of pitch-black flame and pressed heavily onto the "Mingmen acupoint" on Ji Wushuang's back!

"Ugh—ah—!!!"

Ji Wushuang instantly tilted her head back and let out a shrill yet strangely tinged scream.

Pain!

That was the excruciating pain of being burned by a raging fire!

Pleasure!

That was the extreme pleasure of the cold poison being instantly dispelled!

Two completely different feelings collided fiercely within her body, causing her body to instantly tense up like a bow.

The Origin Ember, like a greedy evil dragon, flowed wildly into Ji Wushuang's meridians along Lin Yuan's palm.

It was not only devouring those white cold poison mists.

It even took the opportunity to sneak into Ji Wushuang's dantian and took a bite out of the shivering "Nanming Li Fire"!

Slurp!

It sounded like the slurp of a pearl in bubble tea, resonating on a spiritual level.

At that moment, Ji Wushuang felt as if a piece of her soul had been sucked away.

"Bas... bastard... you... you are eating my..."

Ji Wushuang accused him with a crying tone.

She felt it; the source divine fire she had worked so hard to cultivate was being treated as a buffet by this man's fire!

"Don't be so stingy."

Lin Yuan increased his firepower output while speaking righteously.

"I'm saving your life, what's wrong with collecting some toll? Besides, out with the old, in with the new. Sucking a bit of your weak fire can actually stimulate it to regenerate, understand?"

Understand my ass!

Ji Wushuang wanted to curse.

But immediately after, a more intense wave of heat swept through her entire body, washing away all her reason.

Her originally cold body began to warm up rapidly, and her pale skin flushed with an alluring pink color.

The cold poison in her body, upon encountering the Origin Ember, was like meeting its nemesis.

It couldn't even struggle before being devoured completely.

And as the cold poison dissipated.

Although the Nanming Li Fire in Ji Wushuang's body had been "snacked on" quite a bit, because it was no longer suppressed by the cold poison, it began to become active again.

For a moment, ice and fire intertwined within her body.

This feeling was even worse than killing her... or perhaps, stimulating.

Ten minutes later.

Lin Yuan withdrew his hand with satisfaction.

[Ding! Origin Ember devours high-level fire-type source, experience points greatly increased!]

[Ding! Origin Ember level increased to Lv.3!]

[Ding! New trait unlocked: Flame Imbuement (Can attach fire-type energy to weapons or objects)]

Looking at the prompts on the system panel, Lin Yuan was overjoyed.

This wave was a huge profit!

And he even leveled up the exotic fire along the way.

Looking at Ji Wushuang on the bed again.

At this moment, she was drenched in sweat, as if she had just been fished out of the water.

That high-cold, untouchable goddess temperament was long gone.

Her hair was messily plastered to her face, her eyes were unfocused, and she was unconsciously moaning.

If this appearance were seen by people from the hidden families, they would probably have their Dao hearts shattered on the spot.

"Alright, stop playing dead."

Lin Yuan patted her shoulder.

"The cold poison is temporarily suppressed, it should last for about a month. If you want to eradicate it completely, it depends on your performance."

Ji Wushuang slowly came back to her senses.

Feeling the long-lost warmth and power in her body, although weak, the fear of being frozen to death at any moment finally disappeared.

She propped herself up, pulled the sheet from the side to wrap herself, and looked at Lin Yuan with complex eyes.

"Thank you..."

She bit her lip, her voice as faint as a mosquito's.

"No need for thanks, remember to report for duty on time tomorrow."

Lin Yuan pointed to the contract on the table, "Your position has already been arranged."

"Wha... what position?" Ji Wushuang had a bad premonition.

"You'll know later," Lin Yuan said with a mysterious tone.

Walking out of the base building, Lin Yuan was not in a hurry to go back and rest.

He now had energy as vigorous as a bull that had just drunk ten cans of Red Bull.

He urgently needed to find a place to vent... oh no, to test his new power.

"Where to go?"

Lin Yuan rubbed his chin.

Suddenly, he thought of a place.

Not long after the Apocalypse began.

He, Luo Qinghan, and Ye Qingxue had been to a place—the spatial rift at the abandoned military base in the suburbs.

It was a "land of opportunity," and also a "desperate situation" that almost caused him, the cheater, to crash and burn back then.

At that time, he had just awakened not long ago, facing that terrifying Guardian Beast in the Core Zone.

He could only rely on Luo Qinghan's Space Ability and Ye Qingxue's outburst to barely escape, as pathetic as a dog.

"To return home without showing off one's success is like walking in silk clothes at night."

"Now that I'm awesome, if I don't go back and show off... ah no, take revenge, it would be unworthy of the system's cultivation."

Lin Yuan's lips curled into a "menacingly kind" smile.

With a thought.

Space law activated!

Suburbs, abandoned military base.

The environment here was still harsh, with a purple sky, black rifts, and violent energy factors permeating the air.

For ordinary survivors, this was an absolute restricted area.

But for the current Lin Yuan...

"This air quality is a bit poor, the PM2.5 is definitely over the limit."

Lin Yuan waved his hand in disgust, as if shooing away flies.

"Roar—!"

Just after landing, a group of blind Evolved Beasts surrounded him.

It was a group of "Blade Demon Wolves," at the peak of B-rank, with a few A-ranks leading them.

If it were in the past, this wave would have been enough to wipe out an ordinary Ability User squad.

But now.

Lin Yuan couldn't even be bothered to lift his eyelids.

"Perfect."

He snapped his fingers.

Snap!

A cluster of golden-red small flames danced on his fingertip.

It looked harmless to humans and animals, even a bit cute, just like the small flame in a lighter.

A few Blade Demon Wolves were stunned.

Although their IQ wasn't high, they could also feel that this human seemed to be... insulting them?

Who are you trying to scare with a lighter?

We are Demon Wolves! The very fierce kind!

"Awoo—!"

The wolf pack was furious, roaring and pouncing.

"Go."

Lin Yuan flicked lightly.

The small flame floated out lightly.

It flew very slowly, just like a slow-motion special effect.

An A-rank Demon Wolf that was charging at the very front.

Opened its bloody maw and bit towards the flame, seemingly wanting to swallow this thing that was mocking it.

And then...

There was no then.