197: Chapter 197 My Stomach... What's going on?

Ye Changge slowly withdrew his palms and let out a long breath of turbid Qi.

He wiped the fine sweat from his forehead, his gaze falling upon Nangong Zili—

She was slumped on the brocade cushion, her body drenched in fragrant sweat, her hair disheveled, her face like a peach blossom, and the corners of her eyes still held a lingering flush.

That face, usually full of charm, was now filled with laziness and satisfaction, as if she had just experienced a moment of extreme pleasure.

Especially those peach blossom eyes, shimmering like water, misty and blurred, with tear stains at the corners not yet dry, complementing her crimson cheeks, making her indescribably seductive and moving.

Ye Changge looked at her like this, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, but he said nothing, only taking a robe from the side and gently draping it over her.

Nangong Zili noticed his actions, and her blurred eyes gradually regained clarity.

Then.

She abruptly sat up, pulled the robe around herself, and glared fiercely at Ye Changge with those peach blossom eyes, the fire in her gaze almost burning through him.

"You dog of a man."

She spat out those words through gritted teeth, her voice incredibly raspy.

Ye Changge blinked innocently:

"True Person Nangong, I was merely healing you."

Nangong Zili didn't care to waste words with him. She pulled the robe tight, turned, and got off the jade bed.

Her legs were still a bit weak, and she stumbled as she landed, but she forced herself to stand steady and walked toward the spiritual pool on one side of the Immortal Cave without looking back.

The spiritual pool wasn't large, only about ten feet across. The water was crystal clear, with steam curling up from it.

Nangong Zili walked quickly to the edge of the pool and raised her hand to undo the robe.

The robe slipped off, revealing her mature and voluptuous body. She stepped into the pool, the warm water rising past her waist, and she finally let out a soft sigh of relief.

She began to wash her body.

First, she wet her whole body with the pool water, then took the Spiritual Dew Soap prepared on the side and carefully applied it.

The Spiritual Dew Soap turned into thick foam upon contact with water, carrying a faint scent of herbs.

She scrubbed very hard, as if wanting to wash every inch of her skin.

Especially the marks left by Ye Changge—

Finger marks on her wrists, kiss marks on her shoulders, bruises on her waist from being kneaded... she scrubbed repeatedly until her skin turned red, yet she still felt those marks were there.

A Core Formation True Person's body was naturally nourished by Spiritual Qi for years, making the Physical Body tough; ordinary force couldn't leave a mark.

But that dog of a man always insisted on being mischievous, intentionally pinching and kneading her to leave these red marks that she couldn't even wash away.

At this thought, Nangong Zili felt another surge of anger.

She looked down at her wrist—

There was still a faint red ring there, left by Ye Changge holding her wrist during the treatment just now.

She, a Core Formation True Person whose Physical Body had been tempered by Spiritual Qi for many years, possessed a toughness far exceeding ordinary Magical Artifacts, yet she had been marked by a Foundation Establishment Cultivator's grip...

"Bastard."

She cursed under her breath and scrubbed even harder.

But as she scrubbed, she suddenly felt a faint... soreness deep within her lower abdomen?

It wasn't pain, but a very strange, never-before-felt sensation.

Like something was there, gently, faintly...

Nangong Zili's movements abruptly stopped.

She slowly lowered her head, her gaze falling upon her flat lower abdomen.

The pool water was clear; she could see every inch of her body beneath the surface.

Her lower abdomen was still flat and firm, showing no signs of anything unusual.

But the spiritual power within her was fluctuating slightly, at an extremely weak yet undeniably real frequency.

She closed her eyes and used her Divine Sense for internal inspection, carefully examining her body.

Dantian, Meridians, internal organs... everything was as usual. Her injuries were improving, her spiritual power was recovering, and nothing seemed wrong.

But when her Divine Sense swept through the depths of her lower abdomen—

Nangong Zili suddenly opened her eyes.

Those peach blossom eyes were filled with disbelief.

She sank her Divine Sense into her body once more, this time even more carefully and cautiously.

Then, she clearly perceived it—

What was that?

Although she had never been pregnant, as a woman, she still had some common knowledge.

That weak, faint... it was clearly a tiny trace of life aura!

Nangong Zili froze in the pool water, motionless.

She widened her eyes, staring at her flat lower abdomen, her mind a complete blank.

Impossible.

How could this be possible?

Every time after her "treatment" with Ye Changge, she would quietly circulate her spiritual power to clean herself out.

Although she never admitted it aloud, she knew in her heart that if such a thing resulted in a child...

Therefore, after every session, she would carefully clean everything up.

But now...

Her Divine Sense swept through the depths of her lower abdomen again.

Nangong Zili's expression darkened bit by bit.

Her mind raced through her memories—which time was it? When did she make a mistake?

Suddenly, she remembered something.

During the treatment that day, that dog of a man Ye Changge intentionally didn't use the Dual Cultivation Technique, saying something like "let's try a different method today."

She had scolded him a few times then, but he was full of excuses, saying "using the same method all the time will reduce the effectiveness; occasionally changing techniques helps more with spiritual power redirection."

She had believed his nonsense.

Looking at it now, it was clearly that bastard's intention!

Nangong Zili suddenly clenched her fists, her knuckles turning white.

She took a deep breath, and then another, barely managing to suppress the urge to rush out and tear Ye Changge into a thousand pieces.

"Ye—Chang—ge—"

She ground her teeth, uttering each word individually, the voice squeezed from between her teeth, carrying a towering rage.

The pool water surged and churned, stirred by the sudden surge of spiritual power within her, splashing up large amounts of water.

She closed her eyes, her chest heaving violently, those two soft mounds on her chest rising and falling with her breath, appearing and disappearing in the pool water.

After a long time.

She slowly opened her eyes and looked down at her lower abdomen.

In those peach blossom eyes, anger, shame, and disbelief were intertwined, so complex that she couldn't even distinguish her own emotions.

She raised her hand and gently covered her lower abdomen.

A warm sensation came from her palm; the pool water was warm, yet she felt that faint trace of life aura was even warmer than the water.

"..."

Nangong Zili opened her mouth, wanting to curse, but found she couldn't utter a single word.

She just stared blankly at her flat lower abdomen for a long, long time.

Then, she suddenly turned around and began scrubbing her body even harder.

This time she scrubbed even more fiercely, as if she were going to scrub off a layer of skin. Especially around her lower abdomen, she scrubbed repeatedly until the skin turned red, yet it still felt insufficient.

"Bastard, bastard, bastard—"

She cursed while scrubbing, but her eyes uncontrollably reddened.

It wasn't grievance, nor was it fear.

It was just... for some reason, she wanted to cry.

She, a Core Formation True Person who had lived for decades and roamed South Ridge, whom many would respectfully call "True Person Nangong" upon meeting.

Now, she had been knocked up by a dog of a man at the Foundation Establishment Stage...

If this matter were to get out, how could she ever face anyone again?