45: Chapter 45 Nourished by a Yandere

"Click."

"Click."

The sound of footsteps was very light.

But within the deathly silent Hall of Mental Cultivation, it felt like heavy hammers striking the heart.

It was a rhythm carrying the scent of blood.

With every step that fell, the temperature in the air seemed to drop by a few degrees.

Ye Chuxia curled up under the cold jade bed, her hands tightly covering her mouth, her pupils trembling violently.

Through the intricate carved gaps of the bed frame.

She saw a pair of blood-stained white boots.

Approaching the bed, step by step.

That was Second Senior Sister Liu Ruyan.

The current de facto ruler of Purple Bamboo Peak, a madwoman who killed without blinking.

"Huu..."

Ye Chuxia felt as if her heart was about to stop beating.

The terrifying pressure belonging to a Golden Core Stage powerhouse, even just a trace released unintentionally, was enough to make her, a mere Qi Refining Stage Cultivator, unable to catch her breath.

She didn't even dare to use her Divine Sense to investigate.

Because she knew.

Once she used her Divine Sense in front of this woman, even the slightest fluctuation would be instantly captured by that beast-like, sharp intuition.

Death was certain!

...

【Stop trembling.】

【If you tremble any more, you'll shake the bed until it collapses.】

Just as Ye Chuxia was on the verge of collapse, that familiar voice, carrying a hint of laziness and helplessness, sounded in her mind once again.

It was Senior Brother!

Su Ye's voice was like a needle that calmed the seas, instantly stabilizing her heart and mind, which were on the verge of shattering.

Although it sounded like he was complaining.

But that tone, devoid of any fluctuation, inexplicably gave her a sense of security.

Senior Brother is not panicking yet.

Then I... cannot panic either!

"Senior Brother... I... I'm scared..."

Ye Chuxia responded in her heart with a whimper, her voice trembling like a leaf in the wind.

【What are you afraid of?】

【She is your Senior Sister, not some man-eating Yao Beast.】

Su Ye's voice remained calm.

He lay on the bed, "watching" the woman in white walking over with a sword, feeling a wave of helplessness in his heart.

Does this Liu Ruyan have to make such a bloody scene every time she appears?

That Evil Qi on her body hadn't even dried yet, and it could be smelled from far away.

It seems like some unlucky Soul ran into her line of fire again tonight.

【Listen.】

【If you don't want to die, do as I say.】

Su Ye's voice suddenly became serious.

Unquestionable.

"I... I will listen! I will listen to everything Senior Brother says!"

Ye Chuxia hurriedly nodded like a pounding pestle in her heart.

At this moment, Su Ye was her only straw to clutch at.

【Now, take those broken bowl pieces.】

【Crawl out from under the bed.】

【Remember, be slow, appear clumsy, and act as if you've been scared silly.】

"Ah?!"

Ye Chuxia was dumbfounded.

Crawl out voluntarily?

Isn't this walking right into the trap?

【Do you trust me, or do you trust the sword in that madwoman's hand?】

Su Ye's voice turned a bit colder.

【She has already sensed the aura of a living person in the hall; you cannot hide.】

【Instead of being dragged out like a rat and slashed by her sword, it is better to reveal yourself voluntarily.】

【Your identity now is the Junior Sister who came to deliver food to me, not a thief here for an affair.】

【Understand?】

"Un... Understand!"

Ye Chuxia swallowed her saliva.

Although she was still scared to death, Senior Brother's words seemed to have a magical power, making her subconsciously choose to obey.

She took a deep breath.

Tremblingly, she reached out and grabbed the pieces of the shattered jade bowl on the ground.

At this time.

Those blood-stained white boots had already stopped three feet in front of the bed.

The tip of the sword hung toward the ground.

A drop of bright red blood slid down the blade.

"Drip."

It landed on the mirror-smooth floor, bursting into a bewitching blood flower.

Liu Ruyan tilted her head slightly.

Those emotionless eyes were preparing to scan under the bed.

Just at this moment.

"Clatter..."

A slight noise came from under the bed.

Immediately after.

A trembling figure, clutching a few broken porcelain pieces in her hands, crawled out from under the bed in an extremely disheveled state.

Her movements were stiff.

As if she had been extremely frightened.

"Se... Se... Se... Second Senior Sister?!"

As soon as Ye Chuxia poked her head out, she saw the blood-stained sword close at hand.

Her whole body instantly went limp on the ground.

The pieces in her hands scattered again.

That appearance was just like a little white rabbit targeted by an eagle, with even her Soul trembling.

Liu Ruyan's gaze narrowed slightly.

The long sword in her hand was not put away, but still pointed diagonally at the ground.

Those eyes, like icy pools, looked down condescendingly at Ye Chuxia, who was slumped on the ground.

She didn't speak.

She just watched quietly.

That silent oppression was far more terrifying than any words.

The air in the great hall seemed to have frozen.

"What are you doing here?"

After a long while.

Liu Ruyan finally spoke.

Her voice was hoarse, carrying a bone-chilling coldness, as harsh as metal rubbing against metal.

"I... I..."

Ye Chuxia was so scared that she stuttered, her mind completely blank.

【Don't panic.】

【Tell her you are here to feed me porridge.】

【You accidentally broke the bowl, the pieces splashed under the bed, and you were picking them up.】

Su Ye's voice sounded at the right time, like a master manipulating a marionette from behind the scenes.

Every word was precisely timed.

"I... I came to feed Senior Brother... Spirit Rice Porridge..."

Ye Chuxia repeated stutteringly, tears welling up in her eyes, "But... but I accidentally... broke the bowl..."

"The pieces... the pieces fell under the bed..."

"I was afraid they would prick Senior Brother... so... so I crawled in to pick them up..."

The excuse was terrible.

Even a bit far-fetched.

But combined with Ye Chuxia's timid, mouse-like personality, it seemed extraordinarily real.

Liu Ruyan's gaze swept over the pieces on the ground.

They were indeed jade bowls used exclusively by the Purple Bamboo Peak kitchen.

She looked again at Ye Chuxia's red and swollen eyes, and the clothes soaked in cold sweat from fright.

The Killing Intent that had originally gathered on the tip of her sword faded slightly.

But only slightly.

"In the middle of the night."

"Who let you come here?"

Liu Ruyan's voice remained cold.

She took a step forward.

That thick scent of blood instantly rushed toward her, choking Ye Chuxia until she almost suffocated.

"I... I saw that Senior Brother hadn't eaten anything all day..."

"I was afraid... afraid he would starve..."

"So... so I secretly cooked some porridge..."

Ye Chuxia lowered her head, not daring to look into Liu Ruyan's eyes at all.

This was the truth.

Only, she omitted those indescribable processes.

"Oh?"

Liu Ruyan's lips curled into a mocking arc.

She turned around.

Her gaze fell on the man quietly sleeping on the bed.

Her eyes instantly became somewhat complex.

Obsession, madness, pain, intertwined together.

Suddenly.

Her gaze fixed on Su Ye's lips.

There.

The originally chapped and pale lips now appeared exceptionally ruddy and plump, covered with a layer of crystal-clear paste.

Exuding a faint fragrance.

It was completely out of place with the blood-stench filling the room.

"What is this?"

Liu Ruyan extended her finger.

On her slender, fair fingertip, there was still a trace of undried blood.

She wanted to touch Su Ye's lips but stopped at the last moment.

Seeming to be afraid of dirtying him.

She turned her head.

Those eyes became sharp as knives again, staring fixedly at Ye Chuxia.

"That is... that is Jade Dew Skin-Generating Ointment!"

Ye Chuxia was startled, and without needing Su Ye's reminder, she hurriedly explained.

"Just now... just now when I was feeding the porridge..."

"I accidentally... broke Senior Brother's mouth..."

"It... it bled..."

"I saw Senior Brother's lips were too dry... so... so I applied some medicine for him..."

Speaking of this.

Ye Chuxia's voice became smaller and smaller, and her face uncontrollably turned red.

Although it was an excuse.

But thinking of the scene when applying the medicine just now, and the words Senior Brother said to her in her mind...

Her heartbeat couldn't help but accelerate.

"Broke it?"

Liu Ruyan frowned slightly.

A terrifying chill erupted again.

"Useless trash!"

She shouted coldly.

"You can't even feed porridge without hurting someone, what use are you?!"

"Bang!"

An invisible wave of Qi directly flipped Ye Chuxia, who was kneeling on the ground, over.

"Senior Sister, please forgive me! Senior Sister, please forgive me!"

Ye Chuxia didn't care about the pain and hurriedly climbed up to kowtow.

"Chuxia knows she was wrong! Chuxia really didn't do it on purpose!"

"Get lost!"

Liu Ruyan waved her sleeve in disgust.

As if driving away an annoying fly.

"Clumsy thing."

"From now on, without my permission, you are not allowed to come within half a step of the Hall of Mental Cultivation!"

"If I see you hurt Senior Brother again..."

"I will chop off your hands and feed them to the dogs!"

This sentence.

Was filled with Killing Intent.

Absolutely not a joke.

"Yes! Yes! Chuxia will remember!"

Ye Chuxia felt as if she had received a pardon.

She didn't even dare to pick up the pieces on the ground, scrambling and crawling as she ran toward the outside of the hall.

The moment she stepped over the threshold.

She subconsciously looked back.

Just in time to meet Liu Ruyan's eyes, flickering in the shadows.

Fear.

But also a trace of inexplicable... relief.

【Well done.】

【Go back to sleep; nothing will happen tonight.】

Just as she was about to disappear into the night.

Su Ye's voice sounded in her mind for the last time.

Carrying a hint of comfort.

Ye Chuxia's steps paused.

Her body, which was still trembling, miraculously calmed down.

She touched her burning earlobes.

A warm current suddenly surged in her heart.

Senior Brother... is praising me?

Is he still caring for me?

Although she was almost scared to the point of wetting herself just now.

But at this moment.

Ye Chuxia felt it was worth it!

Even if it was to protect this secret, to protect this connection that belonged only to the two of them...

Next time.

She would still dare to come!

...

As the hall door closed with a "creak".

The large Hall of Mental Cultivation fell into a deathly silence again.

Only a few eternal lamps swayed in the wind, casting mottled shadows.

Liu Ruyan stood in front of the bed.

She didn't move for a long time.

The long sword that was still dripping with blood was casually thrown on the ground by her.

Making a crisp "clang" sound.

She didn't care if this Profound Rank High Grade spirit sword would break.

In her eyes.

At this moment, there was only one person.

Only the man lying on the bed, motionless, as if he were already dead.

"Senior Brother..."

Liu Ruyan slowly squatted down.

Her movements were incredibly gentle.

As if she were a different person from the Demoness full of Killing Intent just now.

She reached out her hand.

That hand which had just been holding the sword, reaping dozens of lives.

Now, it was trembling.

Wanting to stroke Su Ye's cheek.

But at the moment of almost touching, she retracted it as if she had received an electric shock.

She glanced at the bloodstains on her hands.

That was the blood of the entire Zhao family.

That was the blood of those scumbags who dared to gossip behind Su Ye's back that he was a "useless person".

Dirty.

Too dirty.

[part:deepseek-chat]

I can't dirty Senior Brother.

"Hah..."

Liu Ruyan took a deep breath.

She formed a hand seal for the Dust-Cleaning Art.

A gentle spiritual light flashed, and the bloodstains and dust on her body instantly vanished without a trace.

Even that pungent smell of blood was replaced by a faint, elegant fragrance of purple bamboo.

After completing this.

she extended her hand once more.

Her fingertips were slightly cool.

Gently, bit by bit, she traced the contours of Su Ye's eyebrows and eyes.

From his brow bone to the bridge of his nose.

Then down to his pale cheeks.

Her gaze was utterly infatuated.

As if admiring a peerless work of art she had personally crafted.

"Senior Brother..."

"Do you know?"

"Today, that Deacon of the Hall of Punishment was cursing you again."

Liu Ruyan murmured softly, as if whispering sweet nothings to a lover.

"He called you trash."

"Said you deserved to end up like this."

"Said the Taichu Holy Land shouldn't keep a useless person like you..."

At this point.

a flash of violent red light gleamed in her eyes, yet a sweet, eerie smile curled at the corner of her lips.

"So..."

"I cut out his tongue."

"Slice by slice."

"Who told him to have such a foul mouth?"

"Senior Brother, don't you think I've been very good?"

Su Ye lay on the bed, watching everything clearly with his Divine Sense.

A chill ran down his spine.

[Good my foot!]

[This is just too twisted!]

[The original novel didn't say Liu Ruyan's blackening happened this early! Did we just skip the foreplay and go straight to the climax?]

Although he complained inwardly.

he had to admit.

This feeling of being intensely cared for, even pathologically protected...

Tsk.

was actually quite exhilarating?

Is this the legendary... enjoying a yandere's love?

"Hmm?"

Just then.

Liu Ruyan's finger slid down to Su Ye's lips.

There.

lingered the Jade Dew Muscle-Born Ointment Ye Chuxia had applied.

And also...

that faint trace, the aura of another woman left by that little girl.

Though very faint.

so faint it was almost negligible.

But in the eyes of someone with a possessive, pathological nature like Liu Ruyan, it was like a thorn in her eye, a splinter in her flesh.

That was...

a place touched by another woman.

"Dirty."

The warmth in Liu Ruyan's eyes vanished in an instant.

The tenderness from before was completely gone.

In its place.

was a near-frantic obsession.

"That clumsy girl..."

"What right did she have to touch you?"

"Even if it was to treat your injuries... it's not allowed."

"Senior Brother is mine."

"Only mine."

She suddenly leaned down.

Her breathtakingly beautiful face loomed infinitely large in Su Ye's field of vision.

The yandere fire in her eyes seemed ready to devour him whole.

"Since it's dirty..."

"Then let's clean it."

Before the words faded.

she retrieved a snow-white silk handkerchief from her storage ring.

Moistened it with the extremely precious "Heavenly Mountain Snow Lotus Dew".

Then.

forcefully.

almost roughly.

she scrubbed Su Ye's lips.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

Until she had completely wiped away the layer of ointment Ye Chuxia had applied.

Until Su Ye's originally rosy lips were rubbed pale, even seeping a trace of blood anew.

Only then did she stop.

Gazing at that newly seeping crimson.

Liu Ruyan's eyes, however, became unusually excited.

That was Senior Brother's blood.

Only blood.

was the purest.

Was...

the mark that belonged to her.

"Does it hurt?"

"Senior Brother?"

Liu Ruyan discarded the handkerchief.

Extended the tip of her tongue, gently licking that trace of blood.

Her movements were reverent.

Like a pilgrim paying homage.

"It's okay."

"Pain helps you remember."

"Remember who you belong to."

"Remember..."

"only Ruyan is truly good to you."

She murmured softly.

Her warm breath, mingled with a suffocating madness, sprayed onto Su Ye's face.

"As for that Lin Feng..."

Mentioning this name.

the tenderness in Liu Ruyan's eyes instantly transformed into boundless malice.

"Senior Brother, don't worry."

"He won't live much longer."

"The Sect Master forbids me from touching him..."

"But the moment he dares to step half a foot outside the Sect..."

"I'll slice the flesh from his body, piece by piece."

"To use as medicinal ingredients for you."

Su Ye: "..."

[Sis, are these medicinal ingredients of yours... guaranteed ripe?]

Although his body couldn't move.

he felt his scalp tingling.

So this is a yandere?

The kind that loves you so much they want to turn you into a specimen?

Good thing I'm in a vegetative state right now.

If I were awake...

I'd probably have been broken by this woman already, right?

But then again.

looking at Liu Ruyan's face, so close, bearing a hint of madness yet still breathtakingly beautiful.

A strange desire to conquer rose in Su Ye's heart.

[Interesting.]

[Truly interesting.]

[Once I recover my cultivation and rebuild my Physical Body...]

[The first thing I'll do is make you understand what 'a husband's authority is not upheld' and 'defying one's superiors' means!]

Just as Su Ye was fantasizing in his mind about how to discipline this yandere Junior Sister in the future.

Liu Ruyan seemed to have vented enough.

She resumed her usual cold, aloof demeanor.

But that hand.

still tightly gripped Su Ye's hand.

Their fingers intertwined.

The grip was so strong it felt like she wanted to crush his bones.

"Senior Brother."

"You sleep now."

"Ruyan will stay here with you."

"I won't go anywhere."

She sat on the meditation cushion beside the bed.

Gently resting her head against the back of Su Ye's hand.

And closed her eyes.

Like an evil dragon guarding its Treasure Trove.

Vigilant.

And greedy.

Deep within Su Ye's Sea of Consciousness.

the System's notification tone rang out again, quite inopportunely.

[Ding!]

[Detected intense emotional fluctuations!]

[Target: Liu Ruyan (Second Disciple of Purple Bamboo Peak, Taichu Holy Land)]

[Favorability: 96 (Until Death Do Us Part / Extreme yandere / Possessiveness Off the Charts)]

[Congratulations, Host, you have received 'Nourishment from a yandere'.]

[Divine Soul strength +10.]

[Current state: In pain yet happy.]

Su Ye: "..."

It's already 96?

Just 4 points away from 100?

If it maxes out...

should I start considering buying a nicer coffin?

"Coffin?"

Su Ye chuckled self-deprecatingly in his heart.

If I could have a fine golden-threaded nanmu coffin, that wouldn't be a bad final resting place.

It's just a pity.

Falling into the hands of these yandere Junior Sisters, even peace after death is probably a luxury.

The night grew deeper.

The candlelight in the Hall of Mental Cultivation flickered gently in the breeze, stretching their shadows long until they intertwined, inseparable.

Liu Ruyan sat on the meditation cushion beside the bed.

Her usually fear-inspiring cold eyes now seemed like melting spring ice, brimming with an almost overflowing love that threatened to completely drown Su Ye.

In the air.

that originally pungent smell of blood had been washed away by her Dust-Cleaning Art.

In its place.

was a faint, cool, elegant fragrance.

That was the unique scent of bamboo leaves from Purple Bamboo Peak, and also the distinct scent belonging to Liu Ruyan herself.

It smelled pleasant.

yet also carried a heart-palpitating chill.

"Senior Brother..."

Liu Ruyan called softly.

Her voice was soft and sweet, carrying a hint of a coquettishness that would never appear in her usual demeanor.

She slowly rose.

With no intention of leaving.

Instead, she extended those slender, jade-like hands and gently untied the sash at her waist.

"Rustle..."

The sound of clothing slipping off was especially clear in the silent hall.

The snow-white outer robe slid down her exquisite figure, pooling at her feet like a blooming white lotus.

At this moment.

she wore only a thin undergarment.

Her graceful form was faintly discernible in the candlelight, enough to drive any man in the world to madness.

But her eyes held only Su Ye.

Only this "useless person" lying motionless on the bed, his breathing barely perceptible.

"The night is deep."

"Senior Brother will get cold sleeping alone."

A sickly smile played at the corner of Liu Ruyan's lips.

She lifted her leg.

With elegant, deliberate slowness, she climbed onto the Cold Jade Bed.

The Cold Jade Bed was extremely cold.

It was a piece of ten-thousand-year-old Cold Jade Nangong Li had specially retrieved from the far northern ice plains to preserve the last trace of Su Ye's Life Qi.

An ordinary Cultivator lying on it would likely have their Meridians frozen stiff in moments.

But Liu Ruyan seemed utterly unaffected.

Like a lazy cat, she slowly, bit by bit, moved until she was positioned above Su Ye.

Then.

she straddled him.

She didn't fully rest her weight on Su Ye, but supported herself on her knees, maintaining an extremely suggestive posture.

Looking down from above.

Like a queen surveying her territory.

"Senior Brother."

"Do you know?"

"Actually, Ruyan really likes you as you are now."

She leaned down.

Her ink-black hair cascaded down, lightly brushing against Su Ye's cheek, sending a tingling sensation.

"The you from before was too dazzling."

"You were the Senior Brother of Purple Bamboo Peak, the Prodigy of the Taichu Holy Land, the Dao Companion countless female Cultivators dreamed of..."

"Back then, you were always surrounded by people."

"Little Junior Sister, Third Junior Sister, and all those other fluttering butterflies who appeared from who knows where..."

At this point.

a shadow flashed in Liu Ruyan's eyes as her finger lightly traced Su Ye's Adam's apple.

With a hint of dangerous pressure.

"Ruyan could only stand in the corner, watching you from afar."

"Watching you smile at others."

"Watching you guide others in their cultivation."

"That feeling..."

"really made me want to kill someone."

Her voice grew softer, yet colder.

As if a whisper from the depths of Hell.

"But now it's different."

"That Lin Feng, though he deserves to die."

"He did do one good thing."

Liu Ruyan suddenly laughed.

She laughed until her body trembled, laughed until tears glistened at the corners of her eyes.

"He broke you."

"He knocked you down from that lofty pedestal into the dust."

"Everyone looks down on you now."

"Everyone thinks you're trash."

"Even that Little Junior Sister Ji Wanshuang you doted on the most has cast you aside like worthless trash..."

"How wonderful."

She lowered her head.

Her nose almost touching Su Ye's nose.

Their breaths mingled.

"Now."

"No one is competing with Ruyan anymore."

"You can't move, and you can't run away."

"You can only lie here."

"At Ruyan's mercy... to do as I please."