’I’ve tried so hard to change the subject, but I still couldn’t distract him? He’s such a handful.’

’Fine. He’s the one who kept pressing the issue. He can’t blame me for playing dirty.’

Jiang Yunnuan shut her eyes, took the plunge, and said brazenly, "Er... if I said I was really curious about you, would you let me take a look?"

Look at what?

Hearing her words, Ming Ye froze for a moment.

But sharp as he was, he connected her words to where her hand had been trying to go. He understood everything in an instant, and a flash of mortification crossed his deep purple eyes.

"Jiang Yunnuan, have you no shame?"

Jiang Yunnuan: "..."

"Fine, I have no shame! I’m a lecherous, depraved pervert, happy now? You’re the one with all the shame, but I’m your legal Contract Master. It’s out of the goodness of my heart that I don’t force myself on you."

"But you? I was nice enough to ask for your opinion. If you don’t want to show me, fine, but what’s with the insults?"

"What other Contract Master is as polite, civilized, and respectful as I am? Asking for permission just to take a look at her own Contractor?"

"I’m an adult, and I’m looking at my own man, not someone else’s. It’s perfectly reasonable and legal. I really don’t see how it’s shameless. If anything, it should be me asking you: do you think you’re fulfilling your duties as a Contractor?"

The more Jiang Yunnuan spoke, the more she felt she was in the right!

’That’s right, that’s exactly it. Whatever she does to him is perfectly justified. Never mind just looking—she could even sell him if she wanted to!’

’With that thought, the last bit of self-disgust in her heart vanished completely.’

Ming Ye: "..."

’Strictly speaking, he was indeed failing his duties. But the problem was, hadn’t she already agreed to the Contract Termination?’

’Is she going back on her word?’

"If you have nothing to say, then let me go! I’m tired, I want to sleep!"

After waiting a long time for his reply, Jiang Yunnuan’s patience wore thin. She tugged hard at her wrist and snapped arrogantly.

She didn’t know if her little speech had convinced Ming Ye, but it had certainly convinced her. Now she felt completely justified and wasn’t afraid of him in the slightest.

At her words, Ming Ye let go of her hand, then got up from the bed.

"Hey, where are you going?"

She was just about to go to sleep when she saw him leaving. Jiang Yunnuan panicked, scrambling up to grab his arm.

’Damn it! The mission requires me to sleep in the same bed with this guy for one night. If he leaves, what happens to my mission?’

’So, no matter what happens tonight, I absolutely cannot let him leave.’

"I’m going to sleep on the floor. Let go!"

Ming Ye turned his head, his dark eyes fixed on her.

Beastmen have sharp senses, and their vision is naturally excellent. Even in the dim light, he could still clearly make out her features.

The red patch on the side of her face, however, blended into the deep shadows and was indistinct.

Seen this way, the woman was surprisingly stunning. For the first time, he noticed how exquisite her features and the shape of her face were.

Images suddenly surfaced in his mind. He vaguely remembered seeing her once when they were children. Back then, the little girl in the princess dress had a face as flawless as jade, exquisitely delicate, fair and clean, without a single mark on it.

’Then where did that ugly red patch on her face come from?’

Ming Ye suddenly realized he didn’t know this woman at all.

Suddenly, the woman’s urgent voice snapped him back to his senses.

"No! We had a deal! We’re sleeping together tonight. You have to sleep here with me. You can’t go anywhere."

Jiang Yunnuan gripped his arm, refusing to let go.

’For the sake of the mission, I can’t let him leave, no matter what.’

"I take it back. Let go!"

Jiang Yunnuan gritted her teeth. Instead of letting go, she gripped him even tighter, practically hanging off his arm.

"No, you can’t take it back! If you back out today, I’ll have to initiate a forced Contract Termination. You just broke through to the Regression Stage. If a forced termination makes your Realm drop back to the Beast Transformation Stage or even the Initial Stage, wouldn’t that be a terrible shame?"

"I already said I wouldn’t touch you, so what more do you want? How about I throw in an extra chicken leg for you tomorrow? If that’s still not enough, I can even apologize for what I did earlier."

"I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have secretly tried to look... you know... without your permission. I know I was wrong. I swear I’ll turn over a new leaf. Is that good enough?"

She rattled all this off in one breath, using threats, bribes, and apologies all at once, giving him no chance to speak.

Seeing how far she was willing to go, Ming Ye’s gaze flickered, and a thoughtful look flashed deep in his eyes.

"Why are you so insistent on sleeping with me?"

"That’s because I like you, of course!"

The sweet, deceitful words tumbled from her lips without a second thought. However, Ming Ye’s expression instantly turned cold.

"Tell me the truth!"

’There’s no way this woman could possibly like him.’

’Even if she did like him, she wouldn’t make such huge concessions just to sleep with him. There had to be another reason.’

’And that reason was probably her biggest secret.’

"The truth is something I can’t tell you. In short, you have to sleep with me tonight. I suggest you just cooperate. It’ll be better for you, for me, for everyone."

"Otherwise, I’ll be forced to initiate the Contract Termination. After your Cultivation plummets, you probably won’t be a match for me. At that point, I can do whatever I want, and you’ll be completely unable to resist. You’re not stupid. You know what the right choice is, don’t you?"

Jiang Yunnuan couldn’t tell him the truth, but she couldn’t just leave him with no explanation either. She had no choice but to resort to harsh threats, making sure he understood the gravity of the situation and her resolve.

With his weak spot held so firmly in her grasp, Ming Ye was completely at her mercy, unable to even get angry.

After a moment of silent frowning, he lay back down on the bed.

"Congratulations on making the wise choice!"

’Looks like this guy can be reasoned with after all!’

Seeing him lie back down in his original spot, Jiang Yunnuan quietly breathed a sigh of relief but didn’t let go of his arm, continuing to grip it tightly.

He tried to pull his arm away and said grimly, "Let go!"

"Nope!"

Jiang Yunnuan refused without a second thought. "I wouldn’t have had to hold on to you," she huffed, "but it’s your own fault for trying to run away."

"I’ve thought it over. To prevent this from happening again, we’ll just stay like this for the night. I’d advise you not to get any funny ideas. Don’t force me to tie you up. You know that when I’m pushed too far, I’ll do anything."

’Just a few days ago, she had tied up Si Xie, and it was Ming Ye himself and Fu Yuan who had untied him. And she was being gentle. Compared to her, the original owner of this body was the truly cruel one.’

’The original owner used to whip them, cut them, and even burn them at the slightest provocation. The viciousness was so extreme she didn’t dare to dwell on the memories. Tying someone up was child’s play by comparison. She was sure he remembered that all too well.’

Ming Ye: "..."

’Forget it. I’ve put up with it this long... I can put up with it a little longer!’

He closed his eyes, repeating a calming mantra to himself, trying his best to ignore the arm that made his entire body feel uncomfortable.

’Damn it. He was trying so hard to ignore it, but what could he do? It was impossible to ignore.’

’This was so unbearable he wanted to die!’

"Let go. I won’t leave, I promise!"