Qin Feiyang also felt uncomfortable.

Heart Knot.

Just hearing the name sounds so ambiguous, he thought. It seems Princess Mermaid and I haven't reached that level of intimacy, have we?

"Ahem!"

The Mermaid King cleared his throat and said, "The appearance of this Heart Knot means you two are to become husband and wife."

"What?"

They were both stunned.

The Mermaid King chuckled. "To put it bluntly, the Heart Knot will only disappear after you consummate your marriage."

"Isn't this... isn't this a forced marriage?" Qin Feiyang stammered, utterly dumbfounded.

Setting aside the Heart Knot for a moment, there's Princess Mermaid. She's indeed very beautiful, but her lower half is a fish tail! How are we supposed to consummate the marriage? This is beyond outrageous!

Princess Mermaid glanced up at Qin Feiyang, her cheeks flushing involuntarily. "Father," she asked, "is there no other way?"

"No, there isn't."

"The Heart Knot signifies that your hearts will become one."

"No matter how you try to avoid it, you will eventually become husband and wife."

The Mermaid King smiled as he looked at them. He was quite satisfied with Qin Feiyang as his future son-in-law.

The White-Eyed Wolf sidled up, its eyes fixed deviously on the pair.

"Xiao Qinzi, you saw the princess's bare body the moment you arrived in the Sea of Despair, and now this Heart Knot has appeared."

"This is destiny! You can't defy destiny!"

"Xiao Qinzi, why don't you two just get married now and have a chubby little baby soon?"

"That way, if you happen to kick the bucket someday, at least you won't be without an heir!" the White-Eyed Wolf cackled.

Qin Feiyang's expression darkened. "You bastard!" he roared. "Get lost! As far away as possible!"

He's such a troublemaker! Can't he see I'm already beyond furious?

The Mermaid King quickly raised a hand. "Wait, White-Eyed Wolf, what did you just say? Qin Feiyang saw my daughter's body?"

"Father!" Princess Mermaid glared at the Mermaid King, mortified and angry. She lowered her head, her cheeks fiery red.

"That's right!" the White-Eyed Wolf exclaimed.

"Didn't your subordinates tell you?"

"If it weren't for that, your daughter wouldn't have captured us and brought us here."

"So, you see, it's fate," the White-Eyed Wolf snickered.

"Say that again, and I'll castrate you right now!" Qin Feiyang snarled, veins bulging on his forehead as he glared ferociously at the White-Eyed Wolf, rage burning in his heart.

"Alright, alright, I won't say it," the White-Eyed Wolf grumbled.

"All lust and no guts. Hmph, I despise you." It shot Qin Feiyang a disdainful glance, then turned, drooling, and went off to scavenge for treasures.

"Fate?" The Mermaid King, taken aback, glanced from Princess Mermaid to Qin Feiyang. His expression turned serious. "Qin Feiyang, my daughter is pure. You must take full responsibility."

Princess Mermaid pouted. "Father, he's just a little brat. What responsibility can he take?"

"Little brat?"

"Daughter, you don't understand men from the surface world. They start philandering by fifteen or sixteen."

"Besides, you're only four or five years older than him."

"There's a saying: 'A wife three years older is a gold brick to hold, ensuring wealth untold.'"

"You're four or five years older than him; that's like him finding four or five gold bricks. He's the one who profits!"

"Alright, I've decided. The wedding will be tomorrow," the Mermaid King declared.

"Senior, that's not quite how the saying goes, or how this works," Qin Feiyang said with a苦笑.

He even pulled out the 'gold brick' saying! This Mermaid King really knows how to spin things, Qin Feiyang thought.

"What, are you trying to back out of it?" the Mermaid King's face hardened.

"Let me tell you, our mermaid clan values purity above all else."

"If you don't take responsibility, don't blame me for turning hostile immediately."

Turn hostile? Qin Feiyang thought. Truth be told, I'm not afraid of that. However, given our complicated relationship, it wouldn't be good for me to lose my temper now. What should I do? He racked his brains.

Suddenly, an idea flashed into his mind.

Qin Feiyang smiled. "Senior, please give me some time, and give the princess some time too. After all, we don't have those kinds of feelings for each other yet."

Princess Mermaid added resentfully, "Yes, Father. You're making things very difficult for us."

"Well..." The Mermaid King hesitated for a moment, then looked at Qin Feiyang. "Are you concerned about my daughter's fish tail?"

"Actually, you don't need to worry about that."

"Our mermaid clan's tails can transform into human legs," the Mermaid King explained.

The White-Eyed Wolf's eyes lit up. "That solves it! Hurry up and consummate the marriage!" it howled.

"You cur! I'm going to castrate you!" Qin Feiyang, utterly enraged, could hold back no longer. He drew Blue Snow and lunged at the White-Eyed Wolf.

"You're serious!" Startled, the White-Eyed Wolf bolted from the palace without a second glance.

That bastard, he's so infuriating! Qin Feiyang glared angrily after the retreating White-Eyed Wolf, then walked over to the Mermaid King.

"Senior, what I mean is, let me first try to find a way to dissolve the Heart Knot."

"If that proves impossible, the princess and I can then discuss the matter of marriage at our own pace. What do you think?" Qin Feiyang asked.

Princess Mermaid also clung to the Mermaid King's arm, wheedling, "Father, this concerns us young people. Can't you just let us handle it and stop worrying?"

The Mermaid King looked from one to the other and sighed helplessly. "Alright, fine. I won't meddle anymore. It's up to you. However, I must make a few things clear."

"Clear about what?" they asked, puzzled.

The Mermaid King looked at Qin Feiyang. "Until the Heart Knot is undone, you cannot be intimate with any other woman. Doing so would cause your heart to rupture. Daughter, the same applies to you."

Both of them were dumbstruck.

This meant that if we can't find another way to remove this Heart Knot, we'll have to get married, they realized.

Ancestor, isn't this just a trap you've laid for us? Qin Feiyang sighed inwardly, feeling helpless.

"Furthermore," the Mermaid King continued, "once you are apart, you will be able to sense each other's deepest emotions."

"If one of you is in mortal danger, the Heart Knot will glow and automatically send a distress signal to the other."

"And it will guide that person to your location."

Hearing this, Qin Feiyang felt a profound bitterness in his heart. It seems this is what they call a telepathic connection.

"Alright, I won't disturb you two developing your bond any longer." With that, the Mermaid King turned and left, a smile on his face.

Developing our bond? Qin Feiyang shook his head with a bitter smile.

Seeing his expression, Princess Mermaid said unhappily, "From the looks of it, you don't seem to like me very much. Do I really repulse you?"

"Repulse you?" Qin Feiyang was taken aback. He shook his head. "No man would dislike a woman as beautiful as you. But right now, I'm not in a position to think about such things."

Princess Mermaid sighed in relief. As long as he didn't dislike her, that was something. "Why not?" she asked.

"Because I still have many things I need to do," Qin Feiyang said with a deep sigh, then offered a faint smile. "I'll be staying here for a while. Is that alright?"

"Of course, you're welcome," Princess Mermaid replied with a radiant smile.

Qin Feiyang smiled. "Then you go about your business. I'm going to cultivate. And please keep an eye on the White-Eyed Wolf for me; don't let it cause any trouble."

Princess Mermaid nodded.

As soon as Qin Feiyang had dressed and entered the ancient castle, Fatty and Lu Hong stared at him with peculiar expressions.

Qin Feiyang rolled his eyes at them, walked silently to the iron box, opened the iron-bound book, and prepared to transcribe the War Technique.

Suddenly!

He turned to look at Lu Hong, his gaze flickering.

Lu Hong paused. "What is it?"

"Nothing." Qin Feiyang smiled and turned back to the War Technique.

Initially, I wanted to test with Lu Hong whether I really couldn't be intimate with another woman, he mused. But I was worried it might disrupt our balanced relationship. After all, Lu Hong is a woman and has been with me for so long; I didn't want to complicate things between us. So after some thought, I gave up on the idea.

Just as he was about to begin transcribing the War Technique, a strange mix of emotions surged within him: a trace of disappointment, a touch of hesitation, and yet, a hint of joy and anticipation.

These weren't my emotions. They were the emotions from deep within Princess Mermaid's heart.

Qin Feiyang was startled. Could it be that Princess Mermaid has actually developed feelings for me? Impossible. I must be overthinking things. He shook his head forcibly. If Princess Mermaid really had feelings for me, she wouldn't have acted so indifferently before. Besides, Princess Mermaid herself said she only saw me as a little brother who hadn't grown up yet.

However, he soon found, to his dismay, that he couldn't calm his mind to cultivate at all. Princess Mermaid's emotions were continuously transmitted to him, and he couldn't stop them even if he wanted to.

This can't go on, he thought. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and tried hard not to dwell on it.

「About an hour passed.」

Only then did Qin Feiyang manage to completely quiet his mind. Or rather, it was more accurate to say he had grown accustomed to the sensation. But regardless, he could finally cultivate peacefully.

He opened his eyes and looked at the bottom of the second page. A line of small characters immediately came into view:

*Only upon reaching the War Ancestor realm can the third page be opened.*

War Ancestor... I'll reach it soon! Qin Feiyang's eyes glinted. He extended his index finger and pressed its tip to the first stroke of the War Technique. A stream of flame Battle Intent flowed steadily into it. This was the Battle Intent from his Nine-Leaf Flame Lotus.

The War Technique consisted of nine strokes. Each stroke required an enormous amount of Battle Intent, arguably tens of times more than the Counter Curse Manual.

I wonder, will it be like the Counter Curse Manual—will my cultivation increase by one realm after successfully transcribing each stroke?

In less than a hundred breaths, the flame Battle Intent within Qin Feiyang's Qi Sea was almost completely depleted!

That's too fast! He frowned, then mobilized his red Sword Qi and continued transcribing.

Again, in less than a hundred breaths, the red Sword Qi was also exhausted.

He then switched to his Purple-Gold Dragon Energy, but that too only lasted for about a hundred breaths.

Qin Feiyang couldn't help but gasp. How many Battle Intent Pills will this take?

He went to Lu Hong and asked for all the Battle Intent Pills she had. There were a total of 130,000. Although they weren't as good as Top-Grade Battle Intent Pills, with the Pill Furnace gone, Qin Feiyang couldn't refine more, so he had to make do with these.

Following that, Qin Feiyang began to refine Battle Intent Pills while focusing on transcribing.

Occasionally, Princess Mermaid would call him out for a walk to relax. This was, of course, the Mermaid King's idea, hoping they would spend more time together and develop their bond more quickly.

Fatty and Lu Hong, meanwhile, remained completely engrossed in their secluded cultivation, their cultivation levels rising day by day.

As for the White-Eyed Wolf, it spent its days roaming the underwater city, becoming quite friendly with the mermaids. Even though it just wandered around, its strength was also improving because Qin Feiyang had given it half of the Battle Intent Pills. He had put them in a Qiankun Bag, which hung around the wolf's neck. It treated them like candy, eating one whenever it pleased.

This Qiankun Bag also served another purpose: storing treasures. Any treasure that caught the White-Eyed Wolf's eye would eventually find its way into the bag.

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