88: Chapter 88 The stronger the junior brother, the more the senior sister loves him.

Su Mei was slightly stunned as she propped up her still somewhat weak body.

Her vision gradually came into focus.

On the messily arranged cushions, she was all alone. Her clothes were disheveled, her silk skirt half-undone, revealing a vast expanse of her charms; her bun was loose, and her hairpins were crooked.

A sweet fragrance still filled the air, along with a hint of... the ambiguous scent from her own arousal.

But the only thing missing was any trace of another person's presence—no body heat, no breath, and no sign of the Xu Ruyu she had expected to see, weak and unconscious after being harvested.

The cold floor, the empty hall, the silent air.

The images of that extreme pleasure just now were still clearly etched in her mind, and her body seemed to retain a certain post-satisfaction lethargy, but the cruel reality before her was like a basin of ice-cold water mixed with shards of ice, poured ruthlessly over her head.

Buzz—!

Su Mei's mind went blank for an instant, then she suddenly snapped to her senses. Her delicate body shook violently; her face turned pale in a flash before rapidly flushing red—it was the height of shame and indignation.

"I... I..."

She looked down at her disheveled, barely-clothed state and then glanced around the empty room; her fingertips began to tremble uncontrollably.

A chill surged up from her spine, instantly spreading throughout her entire body.

Hadn't she just successfully harvested Xu Ruyu, enjoying the ultimate pleasure of conquest and the illusion of her cultivation rising?

Why... why was Xu Ruyu gone? Why was she the only one here, like a... like a ridiculous fool?!

A thought that made her whole body go cold surfaced uncontrollably: she had been tricked!

She had actually fallen into some kind of illusion without even realizing it, right when she thought she was in complete control of the situation!

And everything she had done so wantonly in the illusion... was nothing more than a ridiculous play she had performed for herself!

"Xu! Ru! Yu!"

Su Mei practically squeezed those three words through her gritted teeth. Her originally charming and moving face was distorted by extreme shame and frustration, her eyes erupting with unbelievable fury and a hint of... alarm.

She, Su Mei, an Inner Sect Disciple elite of the Hehuan Sect, was famous for her techniques of charm and harvesting. Countless fellow Disciples and even outside Cultivators had fallen for her charms.

Today, she had actually suffered such a massive setback at the hands of a kid in the Qi Refinement Stage!

She had been played like a fiddle, falling into an illusion without sensing a thing, and had even struck such... unsightly poses!

Yet the other party had already made his escape, leaving her here to "perform" all by herself!

A humiliation! A total humiliation!

If word of this got out, Su Mei would become the laughingstock of the entire Hehuan Sect!

Some "Charm Prodigy" she was, unable to even handle a little fledgling in the Qi Refinement Stage, and getting played instead!

How would she ever hold her head up before her fellow Disciples again? How would those Senior Sisters and Junior Sisters who envied her mock her?

Shame and anger gnawed at her heart like venomous snakes.

When had she ever humbled herself so much to approach a man? When had she ever been so confident, only to end up in such a pathetic state?

Xu Ruyu... how dared he! How could he!

However, amidst the overwhelming shame, anger, and sense of defeat, another even stronger emotion quietly began to grow.

He could actually resist her Charm Technique? No, not just resist... he could actually turn around and set up such a sophisticated illusion array? This was definitely not something an ordinary Qi Refinement Stage Disciple could do!

Recalling the "real" sensation of power in the illusion—though she knew it was fake now—the mental level required to construct that illusion and the ability to accurately capture her desires... it was terrifying to think about.

At the Outer Sect Assessment Assembly, he was able to break the "Great Fox Illusion" that even many Inner Sect Disciples found troublesome... At the time, some thought it was luck or that Xiao Nianyin had secretly helped him. Looking at it now, it was probably no accident!

This Xu Ruyu definitely had a huge secret!

Not only was there the reason the Sect Master looked upon him with special favor, but he himself also harbored schemes and abilities that far exceeded his apparent cultivation!

Having realized this, the fury in Su Mei's chest did not subside; instead, it strangely transformed into something more intense—it was no longer simple harvesting and plundering, but a mixture of intense resentment and curiosity, along with an obsession she hadn't even clearly recognized yet.

To have tasted such a profound sense of defeat at the hands of a Qi Refinement Stage Disciple actually stirred the paranoia and competitiveness inherent in her nature as a Hehuan Sect enchantress.

The harder he was to get, and the more special he seemed, the more she wanted him!

She didn't just want his body and his power; she wanted to completely crush that hateful composure of his and his confidence in resisting her, to make him truly—from body to soul—submit beneath her skirt!

"Xu Ruyu... you won't escape."

Su Mei slowly pulled her disheveled clothes together, her gaze gradually shifting from confusion to profound depth. Her charm resurfaced, but it held a bit more sharpness and a determined, cold glint than before.

She licked her somewhat dry red lips, as if savoring a hint of unprecedented "deliciousness" alongside the bitterness of failure.

"This Senior Sister... is becoming more and more interested in you."

She whispered to herself, unaware that this complex mindset born of a crushing defeat was itself like a slowly growing addiction, a "Seed of Obsession" quietly planted.

Was this not another form of... the beginning of being conquered? It was just that Su Mei, currently blinded by shame and anger, could not yet see the trajectory of her own heart quietly shifting.

She simply attributed it all to the prey being too special, which had ignited an even greater passion for the hunt within her.

Outside the window, the moonlight deepened, enveloping Meixiang Court in a hazy and ambiguous glow.

An unexpected failure had not discouraged the hunter; instead, it ensured that the ensuing pursuit would be even more treacherous.