“What are you up to?”
Hu Yuanyuan looked at Li Feng warily. Though their relationship was close and they had done nearly everything except the final step, she wasn’t ready to let him have his way so easily. Otherwise, she’d have no defenses left against him.
Whenever Li Feng had that look in his eyes, it meant he was up to no good. Hu Yuanyuan couldn’t help but be on guard.
“Guess,” Li Feng said with a sly grin.
“I have work to do,” Hu Yuanyuan said, flustered. His mischievous gaze didn’t just fail to repel her—it sparked a strange anticipation.
She didn’t understand why she felt this way, almost as if she wanted him to misbehave.
“It’s so late. What work?” Li Feng took her hand, leading her toward the second-floor master bedroom.
Hu Yuanyuan followed nervously, far from the commanding businesswoman she was, now resembling a shy bride on her wedding night. Though her Snow Jade Art required her to reach the Innate Realm before taking that final step, she worried Li Feng wouldn’t be able to hold back.
She was confident in her looks and figure. No one could resist her allure, and Li Feng was no exception. In the past, he had struggled to restrain himself, and once, she had even helped him relieve his urges manually.
So this time, she was especially anxious.
With a racing heart, she was pulled into the master bedroom.
“Starting today, I’m sleeping here,” Li Feng declared solemnly. As the man of the house, he had yet to sleep in the master bedroom—a blow to his authority. He wouldn’t allow this to continue.
“Then I’ll sleep in the guest room…” Hu Yuanyuan said nervously.
“Guest room? How could the lady of the house sleep in a guest room?” Li Feng said, holding her hand.
“Li Feng, my Snow Jade Art hasn’t reached the Innate Realm yet,” she said softly.
“I know,” Li Feng nodded.
“Without reaching the Innate Realm, we can’t… you know…” Her voice was barely audible.
“You know? What’s that?” A playful glint flashed in Li Feng’s eyes.
“Oh, come on, *that*! You know what I mean…” Hu Yuanyuan’s face flushed red. Asking her to say it outright was mortifying.
Li Feng pinched her nose, chuckling. “My dear Yuanyuan, your mind’s in the gutter. I brought you here to sleep, not to do *that*.”
“Your mind’s the one in the gutter!” Hu Yuanyuan huffed, turning away from him.
Li Feng stepped behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her cheek. “My sweet Yuanyuan, are Coleridge’s you a bit too eager to do *that* with me?”
“No way, it’s you who’s eager,” Hu Yuanyuan retorted, her face crimson. She refused to admit that she’d been worried he wanted to take that final step.
“Of course I’m eager. I can’t wait to gobble you up. But until your Snow Jade Art reaches the Innate Realm, I won’t,” Li Feng said.
“Li Feng, I’ve noticed my cultivation speed is slow. Is reaching the Innate Realm really that hard?” Hu Yuanyuan asked.
She didn’t know much about martial arts, only what Li Feng had told her, which wasn’t much. She had no clear understanding of the Innate Realm.
“Let your husband give you a crash course on the basics,” Li Feng said, pulling her to sit on the bed.
“Martial artists, or ancient martial artists, cultivate against the heavens. The realms are Acquired, Innate, Earth Martial, and Heaven Martial, each divided into nine levels. My cultivation technique is unique, including Body Refining and Qi Refining stages in the Acquired Realm.”
He paused, looking at her. “Your Snow Jade Art, like most techniques, doesn’t include Body Refining, making it easier to cultivate. Right now, you’re at the first level of the Acquired Realm.”
“First level?” Hu Yuanyuan was stunned. With nine levels to go before the Innate Realm, she was far from her goal.
“Yes, first level. That Fu Yanxiong we met today is at the third level, likely just broken through. If you faced him, he could defeat you instantly,” Li Feng said with a nod.
“What about Li Wu?” she asked.
“Li Wu?” Li Feng paused. “I couldn’t tell.”
“Couldn’t tell?” Hu Yuanyuan was confused.
“Yes. His aura is mysterious. Either he’s stronger than me, his technique is unique, or he has a treasure concealing his aura,” Li Feng explained.
There were ways to gauge someone’s strength. First, if your strength surpassed theirs, you could sense it through their aura. Second, through techniques like the Aura Observation Art. Third, using treasures.
But none were foolproof. Some techniques, like Li Feng’s Nine Heavens Heart Sutra, could hide one’s strength from all three methods, which was why Li Wu hadn’t noticed anything unusual about him.
Likewise, Li Feng couldn’t discern Li Wu’s strength, suggesting either a unique technique or a concealing treasure. The idea that Li Wu wasn’t a martial artist never crossed his mind—how could a key candidate for the Li family heir not be one?
Judging by Fu Yanxiong and the Ge siblings, Li Wu was likely at least at the third level of the Acquired Realm, but Li Feng wasn’t certain.
“Treasure?” Hu Yuanyuan asked.
“Yes. For martial artists, wealth, companions, techniques, and environment are essential. Treasures are a form of wealth,” Li Feng nodded.
“What’s your strength now?” she asked.
“Fourth level of Qi Refining, equivalent to the fourth level of the Acquired Realm. But due to my Body Refining stage, my combat power is around the sixth level,” Li Feng said openly. If he couldn’t trust Hu Yuanyuan, who could he trust?
“Is reaching the Innate Realm easy?” she asked.
“Hehe, Yuanyuan, are you eager to reach the Innate Realm so we can, heh heh…” Li Feng teased with a sly grin.
“Be serious. We’re talking business,” Hu Yuanyuan said, pinching his waist. His implication made her seem like a desperate flirt.
“Right, right, business,” Li Feng said, grabbing her hand with a grin.
Hu Yuanyuan raised her hand to swat him, and he continued more seriously, “During my trip to the Hundred Thousand Mountains, I met two peak Acquired Realm martial artists: Du Wu, a sixty-something crime lord from Kunyang Town, and Zheng Xiaoyang, a forty-something from the Zheng family in Zhongyuan Province. Both were one step from the Innate Realm.”
“What?” Hu Yuanyuan’s face paled. Sixty and forty, yet neither had reached the Innate Realm. Would it take her decades?
The thought made her panic. She and Li Feng were passionately in love, with only that final step remaining. But waiting decades to take it was unbearable.
She wasn’t some impatient flirt, but her initial reluctance was due to their rapid relationship, which she hadn’t fully processed. Deep down, she had long accepted Li Feng; it was just a matter of time.
But decades? That was unacceptable. Not just for her, but for any woman.
Even if Li Feng were still the “failure” she once thought he was, she wouldn’t have worried. She’d have preferred avoiding intimacy. But now, Li Feng was the love of her life. Could he wait?
“Li Feng, is reaching the Innate Realm really that hard?” she asked after a long pause.
“Yes. Innate, Innate—it’s as hard as reaching the heavens. Countless martial artists throughout history never made it,” Li Feng sighed, thinking of ancient times when Innate Realm martial artists were abundant. That era of glory was what he truly yearned for.
Seeing her unease, he smiled. “Yuanyuan, are you worried you’ll be old and grey before reaching the Innate Realm? Feeling impatient?”
“Who says I’m impatient? I’d rather you, you lecherous wolf, leave me alone,” she said, unwilling to admit her thoughts.
“I’m the impatient one,” Li Feng chuckled.
“You’re not planning to go chasing skirts, are you?” Hu Yuanyuan thought of his past, which he claimed was orchestrated by Li Quan. But as a normal man, could he resist?
Her Snow Jade Art required the Innate Realm for that final step. Wasn’t that an excuse for him to stray?
She couldn’t help but worry. Li Feng was exceptional, and many women would surely be drawn to him.
“Hmm, I was thinking about it,” Li Feng nodded.
“You dare admit it? See if I don’t teach you a lesson!” Hu Yuanyuan pounced, ready to give him a piece of her mind.
Li Feng laughed, pulling her onto the bed and pinning her down. “Trying to punish me? Let’s see who bites who.” He kissed her fiercely.
When Hu Yuanyuan was flushed and breathless, he let her go.
“Li Feng, will my Snow Jade Art really take decades to reach the Innate Realm?” she finally voiced her worry.
