Open a group to change your life

Chapter 31 A Fulfilling Day

"You...are a man?!"

Fairy Qingyi's voice was like the coldest ice in the netherworld, and the air inside the bamboo house seemed to freeze into a tangible sense of oppression, pressing down hard on Liang Junjie.

Liang Junjie didn't even see how the other person moved. He only felt a tightness around his waist, and an irresistible force suddenly appeared, lifting him up and leaving his feet off the ground, suspended in mid-air!

Invisible spiritual ropes bound him tightly, his posture awkward. His skirt lifted slightly from the struggle, revealing his smooth calves and... his pair of warm jade socks, which weren't fully on yet, were pitifully hanging from one of his ankles.

"Spare me, fairy!" Liang Junjie was so frightened that his voice changed.

"A misunderstanding! A huge misunderstanding!"

"Spare me!"

He struggled in vain, his spiritual power completely imprisoned, unable to move even a finger.

"My master made me dress like this! He said you're averse to men! I had no choice!"

"Spare me..."

"Spare me..."

His voice grew softer and softer under Fairy Qingyi's increasingly cold gaze, until only terrified gasps remained.

Huo Chuyu rubbed her forehead and let out a long sigh. She put down her teacup, stood up, and walked in front of Fairy Qingyi, blocking part of her cold gaze directed at Liang Junjie.

"Qingyi, that's enough." Huo Chuyu's tone was full of helplessness.

"I made him dress as a woman. This child is timid and has low cultivation, and I was afraid he would offend you, so I resorted to this tactic. Blame me if you must."

Fairy Qingyi's icy gaze shifted to Huo Chuyu, the anger in her eyes not dissipating, but instead tinged with annoyance at being deceived by her friend: "Chuyu, you allowed your disciple to commit such a despicable act of deception, and you still have the nerve to justify it?"

Huo Chuyu raised an eyebrow: "Disgusting? It's just a temporary measure, how can it be disgusting? Besides, he didn't do anything disrespectful. If you hadn't... cough cough, he couldn't control himself and revealed his flaw when you gave him the treasure, you probably wouldn't have been able to see through it immediately."

Mentioning "gift of treasure" and "unable to control oneself," Liang Junjie's body, which was suspended in mid-air, stiffened again, and he wished he could faint on the spot. Fairy Qingyi's expression also turned even colder.

The atmosphere inside the bamboo hut was tense. Yu Xueji had long been so frightened that she hid behind Huo Chuyu, only daring to show her eyes, looking at the "Senior Sister Liang" swaying in the air with worry and sympathy.

After a while, the chill emanating from Fairy Qingyi subsided slightly, but her gaze remained sharp as a knife. She looked Liang Junjie up and down, especially pausing for a moment on his face, which was flushed with fear and shame and still retained some of the delicate features left by his women's clothing. She then glanced at the stockings dangling from his ankles.

"Let him go?" Fairy Qingyi suddenly spoke, her tone devoid of emotion.

Huo Chuyu nodded: "Of course. This was my oversight, and I apologize on his behalf. I will definitely discipline him properly when we get back."

Fairy Qingyi: "Sure, but I happen to be short of a disciple to manage the herb garden and grind materials. Give him to me."

Huo Chuyu: "...?"

Liang Junjie: "...Huh?"

Yu Xueji was also stunned.

Huo Chuyu's expression turned somewhat strange: "Qingyi, you just said you hate men..."

"Times have changed. This boy was able to conceal his masculine aura for so long under my divine sense, his temperament... is reasonably composed. His appearance and demeanor when dressed as a woman are also passable, not offensive to the eye. Moreover,"

She paused, her smile barely concealed. "His loss of composure just now proves his cultivation is shallow and his willpower insufficient. He needs strict discipline and tempering. Your method of disciplining your disciple, Huo Chuyu, is far too unrestrained and arbitrary. Leave him to me, and within three years, I guarantee he will be completely transformed, never daring to do such absurd things again, and he will also lay a solid foundation."

She spoke clearly and righteously, as if she were genuinely considering Liang Junjie's future in his spiritual practice.

But Huo Chuyu could tell that her friend clearly felt deceived and had lost face, and also thought that Liang Junjie's material was interesting and easy to manipulate, so she wanted to take him over to "teach him a lesson" and vent her anger.

"I'm afraid that won't work." Huo Chuyu shook her head decisively.

"This is my first disciple. Although he is not good enough, it is not up to anyone else to teach him." Huo Chuyu did not want the disciple she had finally found, whose aptitude and temperament were compatible, to be made a medicine boy by Qingyi, a guy with severe misogyny but a strong desire to discipline. Wouldn't he be tortured to death?

Although what happened today certainly deserved to be punished.

Fairy Qingyi narrowed her eyes: "You won't release the person, and you won't release your disciple either? Chu Yu, you brought people to bully us here today, you have to give me an explanation."

Huo Chuyu stared at her for a moment, then suddenly sighed and spread her hands: "Fine. Then you can keep him hanging there. Let him down whenever you're no longer angry. Anyway, he's tough, he won't die even if he's hanging there for a few days."

After saying that, she actually turned around, sat back down at the coffee table, poured herself a cup of now-cold spiritual tea, took a slow sip, and waved to Yu Xueji: "Xueji, come and sit down, don't stand."

Liang Junjie: "???"

Ah? ? ?

Master?! You just sold me out like that?! What happened to protecting your own?!

Liang Junjie looked at Huo Chuyu with a desperate gaze.

Fairy Qingyi seemed to have been caught off guard by Huo Chuyu's actions. She paused for a moment, looking at Liang Junjie, who was hanging in the air, whose expression changed from fear to confusion to grief and indignation. Then she looked at Huo Chuyu, who was calmly drinking tea, and her lips twitched.

Suspended in mid-air, Liang Junjie felt the invisible spiritual rope tighten even more, causing him pain. Fairy Qingyi's icy gaze focused on him once more.

He knew that if he didn't show some sincerity, he might really be doomed today, either being hung up until the end of time or being captured by this terrifying fairy and forced into hard labor.

"Master! Fairy! I was wrong! I really know I was wrong!"

With all his might, Liang Junjie forced a remorseful, tearful expression. "I shouldn't have deceived the fairy! I shouldn't have... shouldn't have been distracted when the fairy bestowed the treasure, and made a mistake! I promise I will be pure of heart and mind, and never dare to do it again! Fairy, you are so magnanimous, please forgive me this time! I will definitely turn over a new leaf and start anew!"

He rambled on incoherently, spouting every possible excuse he could think of, with particular emphasis on the shameful reason that "raising a flag" had directly led to his exposure, attempting to move the other party with a profound "self-reflection."

"Raise a flag?" Fairy Qingyi repeated the word, finding the description somewhat vulgar yet surprisingly apt. The chill in her eyes eased slightly, but the scrutinizing intent intensified.

Huo Chuyu paused, her hand holding the teacup stilled, and her shoulders twitched suspiciously as she tried her best to suppress a laugh.

Yu Xueji covered her face, her shoulders trembling as she struggled to suppress her laughter.

Seeing that it seemed to be having some effect, Liang Junjie quickly pressed his advantage, looking at Fairy Qingyi with the most sincere eyes: "Fairy! I am willing to accept any punishment! I will be punished by cleaning the herb garden! I will be punished by grinding materials! I will be punished by copying scriptures! I only beg you to let me down and not take me away from my master! I belong to my master in life and in death... Bah! In this life and the next, I will only recognize my master as my master! I have no other heart!"

His words of loyalty were so sincere that Huo Chuyu found them quite pleasing.

Fairy Qingyi looked at him silently, then at Huo Chuyu, who was pretending to be calm, and the little girl next to her who wanted to laugh but dared not.

After a long silence, she let out a cold snort.

The spiritual ropes binding Liang Junjie suddenly dissipated.

With a "thump," Liang Junjie fell to the floor without warning. Although it wasn't a high fall, it still made him grimace. His skirt was piled up on his body in a mess, making him look extremely disheveled.

He scrambled to his feet in a flurry, not even bothering to straighten his clothes, and bowed deeply to Fairy Qingyi at a ninety-degree angle: "Thank you for your mercy, Fairy!"

Fairy Qingyi didn't look at him anymore, but turned to Huo Chuyu. Her tone returned to its usual coldness, but without the previous anger: "Keep your disciple in check. If he dares to deceive you again, or behaves improperly, I will personally discipline him."

Huo Chuyu put down her teacup, stood up, and said with a smile, "Of course, of course. I'm sorry to have bothered you today; I'll come to apologize another day."

"No need," Fairy Qingyi waved her sleeve, directly seeing the guest out. "I won't see you out."

Stepping out of the bamboo hut and back into the misty valley, Liang Junjie felt as if he had come back to life. A gust of night wind made him shiver, and he realized that the back of his dress was soaked with cold sweat.

Huo Chuyu glanced back at him, her eyes filled with a complex mix of helplessness, mockery, and satisfaction.

"Go back and change your clothes. Double your practice tonight. Also, copy the 'Heart-Cleansing Mantra' one hundred times."

With a pained expression, Liang Junjie replied, "Yes, Master..."

Yu Xueji leaned closer and whispered, "Senior brother, you were so brave just now."

Liang Junjie: "..."

Was I brave? I was scared!

Huo Chuyu teleported the two of them home again. Back in the familiar living room, the first thing Liang Junjie did was rush into his room, rip off that damned women's clothing, throw it into a corner, and change into his most comfortable old T-shirt and sweatpants.

When he came out again, Huo Chuyu was already sitting on the sofa, holding the pair of warm jade socks that had freed her, looking at him with a half-smile.

"The things Qingyi gave me are quite good. Once they're bound to you, you'll need them for fighting and escaping in the future." She tossed the stockings to Liang Junjie. "Remember to bind them with your blood. As for how to match them with your outfit... figure it out yourself."

Liang Junjie caught the stockings and felt that they were still warm and smooth, but now they felt extremely hot to the touch.

Today's visit was a complete loss of face and resources... although I did gain a valuable asset.

He dejectedly prepared to return to his room to copy the "Heart-Cleansing Mantra," but then heard Huo Chuyu slowly add a sentence behind him:

"By the way, starting tomorrow, spend an hour each day learning how to conceal your aura and transform your form with me. That way, you won't be seen through at a glance again and embarrass your teacher."

Liang Junjie paused, turned around, and saw the light in his master's eyes.

"We're doomed."