The shadow that Chu Ge had cast over him—one that he had yet to fully dispel—only deepened even further.
'This is bad…'
The presence in his mind let out a long, lingering sigh.
That youth named Chu Ge truly killed without spilling blood.
With only a few words and a single crushing release of aura, he had already trampled Ye Chen into a miserable state.
Ye Chen had already harbored deep wariness toward Chu Ge to begin with. Now, that wariness had entirely transformed into fear—becoming his inner demon.
Chu Ge had become a hurdle that Ye Chen had to overcome.
Of course, it was not entirely a bad thing.
If he failed to cross it, there was no need to say more—he would live forever in the other's shadow, utterly without any chance of rising again.
But if he could cross it, Ye Chen would undergo a complete transformation from the inside out, a true sublimation, with benefits so great they were beyond imagination!
Yet… was this hurdle called Chu Ge really so easy to overcome?
.....
[Ding! The Child of Fortune has developed fear toward the Host, giving birth to a heart demon. The Host gains 15,000 Villain Points.]
The system notification rang out right on cue, exactly as Chu Ge had expected.
Looking at the previous few notifications—
'3000, 5000, 7000, plus this 15,000… that's a full 30,000 Villain Points in one go. Ye Chen, oh Ye Chen, you really are a premium-quality leek.'
'But this still isn't enough. A Child of Fortune… shouldn't fall so easily…'
With thirty thousand Villain Points added to his account, Chu Ge was naturally in a good mood.
All the verbal suppression and aura pressure earlier had, of course, not been done on a whim.
Had he not run into Ye Chen, so be it. But since he had happened to encounter him, harvesting a wave of "leeks" was only natural.
A Child of Fortune at Ye Chen's stage was precisely at the moment when his destiny was surging and he was preparing to soar.
He was in a phase of rapid growth—yet still not fully matured.
If he were too young, still stuck in the "novice village," there would be hardly any oil to squeeze out.
If he were too mature, then the current Chu Ge would not be able to suppress him so easily.
Ye Chen, at this time, was just right—rich in "oil," easy to deal with, an exceedingly high-quality type.
Now, Chu Ge was even a little worried that Ye Chen might be crushed beyond recovery. After all, so far he had only encountered this single Child of Fortune.
Seeing Chu Ge wearing a pleased, relaxed smile, Su Lingyuan reached out a slender finger and lightly poked his arm.
"Hm?"
Chu Ge turned his head to look at her.
"Junior Brother, are you completely confident? After all, this Ye Chen is… ahem, ahem!"
Su Lingyuan slipped up for a moment and nearly blurted out the words Child of Fortune. Fortunately, she stopped herself just in time.
"He is what?"
Chu Ge asked in confusion.
"He is… he bears a King Body! And before even formally entering the sect, he had already stepped onto the path of cultivation. His combat experience is far richer than yours!"
Su Lingyuan's little head spun rapidly with thoughts—she absolutely didn't want Chu Ge to notice anything amiss.
"Senior Sister, rest assured."
Chu Ge did not explicitly state how confident he was, but the dense, flowing self-assurance in his sharp eyes alone made Su Lingyuan shudder.
Her mind couldn't help but replay the scene of Chu Ge's earlier verbal clash with Ye Chen—calm, in full control, effortlessly suppressing a Child of Fortune like Ye Chen.
It was truly dazzling.
The more she thought about it, the more she drifted off in a brief daze.
"Senior Sister? Senior Sister?"
Hearing his call, Su Lingyuan snapped back to her senses. She lifted her head, only to find that Chu Ge had already walked ahead.
Their gazes met.
The smile on Chu Ge's face was like a gentle spring breeze, causing Su Lingyuan's heartbeat to inexplicably slow by half a beat.
"What are you thinking about? We should head back."
Chu Ge's warm, gentle voice reached her ears.
"Oh—oh! I'm… I'm coming!"
She hurriedly lowered her head and jogged forward, continuing to walk side by side with him.
Only beneath her hair, the slightly heated tips of her ears quietly revealed the turbulence in her heart.