Heard of it, but never seen it. If she hadn't said anything, I would have thought it was a Lycoris radiata, even though there were no flowers.
"Surrender or not?" Yaoyao asked proudly.
"You, you're cheating!" Chu Qi retorted indignantly.
"On the battlefield, in the face of life and death, how can there be cheating or not? Just tell me if you surrender," Yaoyao said, crossing her arms proudly.
"I won't surrender!" Chu Qi was very stubborn. The vines had already wrapped around her chest, affecting her breathing. Because she had just gone through a fierce battle, Chu Qi's face was flushed from holding back, but she was still defiant.
"You won't surrender, right..." Yaoyao extended her hand and pointed at the vines. A vine that had been wrapped around Chu Qi's leg detached. One end of the vine transformed into a back scratcher shape and began to attack Chu Qi's itchy spots, such as her armpit, with ferocity.
"Hey, hey, what are you doing! It tickles!" Chu Qi exclaimed, both ashamed and angry.
"Bear with it. Once you get used to it, it won't tickle anymore, it will just... hurt to the bone!" Yaoyao said fiercely.
Chu Qi's face turned even redder. After persisting for a while longer, she clearly couldn't resist the vine's exploration back and forth. Her body softened, her eyes fluttered shut, and she softly opened her small mouth to say, "Stop it. I surrender, okay..."
"That's more like it." Yaoyao clapped her hands and withdrew the vines. Chu Qi slumped to the ground, gasping for air. Her clothes were soaked from being entangled by the vines, and both her mood and body seemed unable to calm down for a long time.
I pretended not to have seen anything. Since the outcome was decided, I withdrew from the battlefield early. I left first and hoped Chu Qi wouldn't mind this experience.
After waiting for a while, Yaoyao actually came out of the City God Temple carrying Chu Qi on her back. Chu Qi's head drooped on Yaoyao's shoulder, clearly having lost her ability to move.
"What did you do to her again?" I asked, frowning.
"I didn't do anything. She fainted on her own. I didn't expect her to be so sensitive... more sensitive than me," Yaoyao said, confused.
"What you did was a bit much!" I said with a wry smile. "Let's get her into the car first."
Wu Zhao came out. I thanked her and bid farewell. Wu Zhao exchanged a few pleasantries with me and urged me to do her a favor in the future and put in a good word for her with the young King of Hell. Although I didn't understand what "doing her a favor" meant, I knew how to put in a good word, especially since she was indeed quite beautiful.
After bidding farewell to the two yin messengers, I drove Yaoyao and Chu Qi back to the building.
Once we entered the city, the cold wind blowing in through the window finally woke Chu Qi up. However, she curled up alone in the back seat and remained silent.
"Are you alright, Instructor Chu?" I asked, looking back.
"No... I'm fine."
Yaoyao, on the other hand, was covering her mouth and chuckling beside me.
"What are you laughing at?" I asked.
"Haha, you're a man, you wouldn't understand!"
"...What's going on?" I truly didn't understand.
Back at the building, Chu Qi could finally walk normally, albeit a bit slowly. I wanted to help her, but she refused, saying she could manage on her own.
Upstairs, someone must have leaked the news, because everyone knew Chu Qi and Yaoyao had gone for a match and were waiting in the corridor for updates.
However, seeing Chu Qi's state, no one asked too many questions, assuming she had lost badly!
As there's a difference between men and women, it wasn't appropriate for me to make further arrangements. So, I asked the two human girls, Bingbing and Chen Ke, to take Chu Qi to an empty guest room and help her tidy up.
Yaoyao didn't return to our room. Instead, she excitedly went to share her spoils of war with her subordinates. I wanted to sneak a listen, but Mengmeng, who was standing at the door, pushed me out, saying it was women's business and I wasn't allowed to know.
How baffling!
I returned to my room and stood by the window, lighting a cigarette.
Regardless, Chu Qi's combat prowess had received Yaoyao's high praise. She was indeed formidable. Judging by her skills, I estimated that even Long Yue might not be her match... no, Long Yue also had magical attacks, so it's not a fair comparison. In any case, she was very powerful!
Having such strong support was naturally a good thing. I just wondered how much of this "master's" profound skills she could impart to me...