362: Chapter 362 The First Kiss of the Witchcraft Saintess Su Wanqing...

The black Qi on Su Wanqing's face receded at a visible speed, and her purplish-black lips gradually regained their color.

Li Shengyuan only slowly raised his head and released her shoulders after feeling the last trace of Gu God power being drawn from her body.

At that very instant, Su Wanqing suddenly opened her eyes, feeling a tingling sensation on her lips she had never experienced before.

Her eyes had regained their clarity, no longer the dull, dark gaze from before, but filled with shock, indignation, and an indescribable hint of panic.

Su Wanqing instinctively pushed Li Shengyuan away, shrinking back until her back hit the stone railing of the platform, her chest heaving violently.

"You..."

She stared at Li Shengyuan, her lips slightly parted, unable to form a complete sentence for a moment.

She had seen this face a few times in the capital. Although many years had passed, and she was then a timid little girl following behind the Chancellor, and both of them were no longer as they once were, she would never mistake him.

Moreover, in recent years, this person's reputation had grown increasingly prominent. She had seen his portrait a few times and occasionally wondered what it would be like to see him again and what he truly looked like.

But Su Wanqing had never imagined that after so many years, her first kiss would be taken by him...

"Are you... Li Shengyuan?" Su Wanqing's voice was still somewhat weak, with a hint of uncertainty. "How are you here?"

Li Shengyuan nodded, not rushing to get closer, and sat opposite her, his tone calm: "It's me. Wanqing, long time no see."

He paused, then briefly explained his purpose: "Passing through Southern Border, I originally intended to visit you. Only upon reaching Fengdu did I learn of your situation. The old Chancellor sent Ye Hangzhou with the bagua plate, saying it could help you suppress the Gu God's consciousness. I happened to arrive in time, so I came in."

Su Wanqing stared blankly at Li Shengyuan for a long while before she finally regained her senses.

She looked down at herself; the dead Gu insects, shattered crystal Spirit Medicine, were scattered everywhere, and the Gu God power within her had indeed been completely cleansed.

She could feel that the chilling power that had entangled her for days and constantly eroded her mind was now completely gone.

She raised her hand, looking at her fingertips that had regained their color, and fell silent for a moment.

"You..." Her voice was somewhat complex. "What you just did... was to help me extract the Gu God power?"

Li Shengyuan nodded frankly, a hint of apology on his face: "It happened suddenly, and the situation was urgent. I was afraid you would be completely corrupted by the Gu God power and didn't have time to think, so I could only use this fastest method. I hope you don't mind."

Su Wanqing stared at him for a long time, her lips repeatedly pressing together.

Mind?

Her first kiss was gone just like that; saying she didn't mind was a lie.

But Su Wanqing also knew that if Li Shengyuan hadn't acted in time, she would probably have become a sub-Gu of the Gu God, a Puppet without self-awareness.

Compared to the grace of saving her life, what was a kiss?

Moreover, only by being alive could she better suppress the Gu God's consciousness, making Li Shengyuan's kiss even more significant!

Su Wanqing took a deep breath, suppressing the complex emotions in her heart, and shook her head, her voice soft but serious: "I should be thanking you. If not for you, I would probably be a walking corpse right now..."

Before she finished speaking, her expression suddenly changed, and she abruptly reached out and grabbed Li Shengyuan's wrist, with a strength unlike someone who had just returned from the gates of hell.

"Oh no!" Her voice became urgent, and her eyes, fixed on Li Shengyuan, were full of tension. "You haven't Cultivated Wugu arts and have no resistance to Gu God power, yet you absorbed so much of it into your body! Even if your cultivation is profound, your body will have problems!"

"Hurry and go find Teacher Chancellor, let him help you remove the Gu God power from your body!"

As Su Wanqing spoke, she tried to push Li Shengyuan to get up, even starting to calculate how long she could last: "I'll hold off the Gu God's consciousness here, trying my best to suppress its awakening, you..."

Before she finished, her hand was clasped by Li Shengyuan.

Li Shengyuan's palm was broad and warm, completely enveloping her soft, small hand. The grip wasn't heavy, yet it prevented her from breaking free.

He looked at Su Wanqing, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned, his smile calm but with a certainty that strangely put one at ease.

"No need to worry," Li Shengyuan said calmly. "It was the old Chancellor who sent me to help you suppress the Gu God's consciousness, and he even brought a treasure. Mere Gu God power is like a fleeting cloud to me."

He released one hand and opened it before her; his palm was as clean as jade, without any trace of being corroded by Gu God power.

He then pointed to his face, his expression normal, even more spirited than when he entered.

The small amount of Gu God power that had invaded Su Wanqing was merely an appetizer for Li Shengyuan's current cultivation; it couldn't affect the balance of gods and demons within his body.

"See, aren't I perfectly fine?"

Su Wanqing stared at him blankly, then looked at his hand, then at his face, her lips moving slightly, but not a single word came out.

She even wondered if she had been contaminated by Gu God power for too long, her brain fried, causing hallucinations.

How was this possible?

That was Gu God power!

A power that successive Saintesses could only barely suppress at great cost, and even if Teacher Chancellor himself came, it would probably take some effort to remove it.

And this person not only completely absorbed her Gu God power but also sat before her as if nothing happened, smiling and saying, "like a fleeting cloud"?

"Are you... really okay?" Her voice was somewhat shaky.

"Really okay," Li Shengyuan's tone was decisive. "Don't worry, everything you see is real. Let's talk about serious matters. How should we suppress the Gu God's consciousness? Why don't you and I work together to obliterate its consciousness!"

Su Wanqing looked at Li Shengyuan a few more times, finally believing that he wasn't just putting on a brave face.

She took a deep breath, collected her scattered thoughts, and her expression gradually became serious.

"Although the residual body of the Gu God has been dead for countless millennia, a trace of its primal consciousness still remains within its remains."

"This trace of consciousness should have dissipated with the passage of time, but because our ancestors first discovered the immense power it contained and, for generations, communicated with it through secret arts and borrowed its power to Cultivate, it continuously absorbed faith and vitality, gradually growing stronger. By the time they wanted to stop, it was already too late..."

"We can only Cultivate its power and then, in turn, suppress it! But if this cycle continues, one day it will become impossible to suppress..."

Su Wanqing raised her hand and pointed to the massive, pitch-black residual body in the center of the altar: "Now it is nearing awakening. Once its consciousness fully condenses, it will break free from the Seal and reappear in the world using its residual body."

"At that time, not only will my Wugu Tribe bear the brunt, but the entire Southern Border, and even Great Qian, the entire world, will fall into catastrophe."

"This disaster was brought upon by our tribe, and it should also be ended by our tribe. Even if the Gu God truly emerges, our tribe will perish with it, and I will be the first!" Su Wanqing's gaze became firm, then she looked at Li Shengyuan, her tone softening as she whispered:

"You actually don't have to stay and risk it. Just leave Teacher Chancellor's item, and it's still not too late to leave now..."