Liu Shengsheng had deep feelings for the Divine Dragon Empress, but he was also immensely afraid of her.
Ever since he could remember, he had never seen the Divine Dragon Empress smile.
In his eyes, she was always stern and majestic. To her court officials, she was even more lofty and unapproachable.
As a result, in Liu Shengsheng’s limited life experience, it seemed he had never witnessed the Divine Dragon Empress laugh.
Now, suddenly discovering that the person who had been laughing so brightly earlier was actually the Divine Dragon Empress, he was completely dumbfounded.
He had never imagined that the Divine Dragon Empress could laugh, and laugh with such a clear, crisp sound.
That’s why he blurted out that soul-searching question.
However, immediately after asking that question, he regretted it deeply.
Especially upon sensing the murderous intent in the Divine Dragon Empress’s eyes, he acted without a second thought. He retrieved the small leather whip he often used from his storage ring.
Then, he took off his upper garment and began vigorously whipping himself in front of everyone.
Thwack!
“One!”
Thwack!
“Two!”
Thwack!
“Three!”
…
The sound of Liu Shengsheng whipping himself and counting each strike clearly reached everyone’s ears.
This scene left Yu Meiren wide-eyed and speechless; she had no idea what Liu Shengsheng was doing.
But Ye Wushuang and the Divine Dragon Empress understood—this was Liu Shengsheng’s “Nine Lashes” principle.
This practice had originated with Ye Wushuang and had then carried over to the Divine Dragon Empress.
Initially, the Divine Dragon Empress hadn’t seen anything wrong with it. After all, she used to severely reprimand Liu Shengsheng herself. Him whipping himself nine times seemed more like he was acknowledging his own mistake.
In a way, this action wasn’t really wrong; it might even be considered a good thing.
But when Liu Shengsheng instinctively started whipping himself in front of everyone, the situation became awkward.
It felt as though the Divine Dragon Empress deliberately abused Liu Shengsheng, and that his fear of her was bone-deep.
She wanted to explain, but it seemed impossible to clarify.
She couldn’t help but shoot Ye Wushuang a glance, as if blaming him.
If Ye Wushuang hadn’t started this, it wouldn’t have continued until today.
Seeing this, Ye Wushuang found the situation both amusing and exasperating. He never expected Liu Shengsheng to carry a small whip with him at all times and be ready to whip himself on the spot.
Such behavior was completely beyond Ye Wushuang’s expectations.
Therefore, Ye Wushuang quickly stepped in to stop Liu Shengsheng.
“No need for this, no need! What are you doing? Why harm yourself like this?”
“Don’t stop me! I said the wrong thing. When you make a mistake, you must admit it. I’m admitting my mistake to Imperial Sister right now!!”
At this moment, Liu Shengsheng was resolute, determined to admit his mistake to the Divine Dragon Empress.
By the looks of it, he wouldn’t stop until he had delivered all nine lashes.
The Divine Dragon Empress clearly realized this too, prompting her to roll her eyes once more.
She had never actually demanded he admit his mistakes in this manner.
Thus, she also spoke up:
“Alright, enough whipping. Get up now!”
“Then… then Imperial Sister, you’re not angry with me anymore??”
“Not angry, not angry. I was never angry with you in the first place!!”
“Then I, then I…!”
Although the Divine Dragon Empress said she wasn’t angry, Liu Shengsheng still felt uneasy.
He wanted to continue whipping himself to finish the remaining lashes.
Because he knew that once he finished all nine, he would truly be in the clear.
Not finishing them now left him feeling unsettled.
So, he hesitated, whip in hand, unsure whether to continue.
However, just as he was about to resume, the Divine Dragon Empress spoke sternly.
“If you whip yourself one more time, I’ll have you locked in the dark room!!”
“Ah! I won’t whip! I’ll never whip again! I don’t want to go to the dark room!!”
Liu Shengsheng had only experienced the dark room as a child. After that experience, it felt like a childhood nightmare to him.
Although he was only locked up for half an hour, that half-hour nearly drove him to the brink of collapse.
In the dark room, everything was cut off from the outside world—not just sound and light, but even spiritual energy was isolated.
For Liu Shengsheng, that half-hour felt longer than half a century.
While it didn’t leave him with psychological trauma, it remained something he deeply feared.
So, upon hearing the words “dark room,” Liu Shengsheng stopped immediately.
Once he stopped, everyone’s attention shifted back. Then, both Ye Wushuang and the Divine Dragon Empress turned their gazes towards Yu Meiren.
Ye Wushuang’s gaze held a mix of confusion and curiosity.
And, of course, a hint of appreciation.
In this fantasy world, this was the first time he had seen someone wear black stockings, and even professional attire. It made Ye Wushuang wonder if Yu Meiren was also a transmigrator.
Otherwise, how would she know about white and black stockings?
After all, such things were considered eccentric clothing in this fantasy world!
Thus, Ye Wushuang considered whether to exchange a secret code phrase with Yu Meiren later.
As for the Divine Dragon Empress, her gaze was full of scrutiny.
She knew this was the person the Divine Dragon Imperial Seal had mentioned—the one trying to steal her man, and also a member of the Two Realms Mountain.
Admittedly, Yu Meiren was exceptionally beautiful.
Both her looks and figure far surpassed ordinary people; she certainly had the ability to attract attention.
This eccentric outfit perfectly accentuated her long legs.
If other men saw her, their eyes would probably be glued to her.
Fortunately, from her observation, Ye Wushuang’s eyes were clear and pure. Although he glanced a few times, there didn’t seem to be any lecherous thoughts, which greatly satisfied the Divine Dragon Empress.
Therefore, she stood to the side without speaking, waiting for Ye Wushuang to address her.
“Fellow Daoist Yu, you’re here again?”
“I came to seek your guidance on a cultivation technique. Regarding the integration of sword techniques, I still have some points I don’t fully understand. I humbly ask for your instruction, Fellow Daoist!!”
Yu Meiren’s words were impeccable, leaving no room for criticism and making them hard to refuse.
However, the previous seduction attempt had left a knot in Ye Wushuang’s heart.
Thus, he wasn’t particularly inclined to teach Yu Meiren again.
“Alright, then I’ll ask you a few questions. If you can answer them, I will wholeheartedly teach you the secrets of integrating sword techniques, and I might even teach you ‘Myriad Swords Return to Ancestry’!”
“Please ask, Fellow Daoist!!”
Hearing this, Yu Meiren was visibly tempted.
On one hand, “Myriad Swords Return to Ancestry” was incredibly powerful. Mastering it would be a tremendous boon for Yu Meiren.
On the other hand, if she could learn it, she would have more opportunities to spend time with Ye Wushuang.
So, she was eager and ready, awaiting Ye Wushuang’s questions.
“Listen carefully then!”
“‘Odd changes, even remains the same’ — please complete the next line!”
“Huh?”
As soon as Ye Wushuang uttered “Odd changes, even remains the same,” Yu Meiren was utterly confused. She had no idea what he was talking about, let alone how to answer.
Seeing Yu Meiren’s expression, Ye Wushuang couldn’t help but feel disappointed.
But he tried a simpler question.
“‘One, two, three, four, five’ — what’s the next line?”
“Six, seven, eight, nine, ten?”
“Come on the way?”
“What ‘way’? Alright, you can leave now.”
Hearing that Yu Meiren couldn’t answer any of these secret code phrases correctly left Ye Wushuang disappointed.
“Odd changes, even remains the same, look at the quadrant for the sign” was a mnemonic for trigonometric function reduction formulas, something most students learned.
“One, two, three, four, five, stew chicken with mushrooms” was an old internet meme that had been played to death.
As for “Come on the way, ABC,” that was a recent meme from a song and a streamer, something even many kids knew.
Yet Yu Meiren couldn’t answer a single one. It seemed that not everyone wearing black stockings was a transmigrator.
