"For the next year, I'll likely be in secluded cultivation until I successfully condense the divine embryo and shed the demonic husk."

Yi Qingwu straightened her clothes, concealing the still-trembling tally marks branded across her body, before calmly sharing her plans with Ye Chen.

Ye Chen nodded and asked with genuine curiosity, "What do you intend to do with the shed demonic husk?"

Truthfully, he wasn't keen on her refining it into some kind of treasure. Turning one's own flesh into an artifact always felt a little sanity-shattering. Worse—if it ended up like the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Jar and somehow circulated into other hands for use—he'd feel deeply uncomfortable.

But Yi Qingwu, ever decisive, had long since made up her mind. She brushed a few dried strands of hair behind her ear and answered indifferently, "Heavenly Intention Holy Land possesses its own clone techniques. I plan to refine it into one of my avatars."

Ye Chen nodded—solid choice. He himself had never been interested in clones. Take Eldest Senior Brother's One Qi Transforms Three Purities—he'd never once considered cultivating it. To Ye Chen, he was utterly unique; even a clone wouldn't truly be "him."

The thought of a clone being intimate with his women already felt bizarre—like cuckolding himself. So compared to One Qi Transforms Three Purities, he was far more intrigued by the legendary Self-Transforming Freedom Method that the Heavenly Emperor was said to have created after ascending to the Immortal Realm.

Supposedly, it carried enormous cost and could only be used in battle, but it was far more convenient—no need to painstakingly nurture another body. The principle involved summoning versions of oneself from the past and future to fight alongside the present self. With Ye Chen's current realm, he still couldn't fathom how such an advanced operation across timelines actually worked.

Still, if he ever had to cultivate a clone technique, he'd choose Self-Transforming Freedom without hesitation. He was already ridiculously powerful on his own. Add a few more versions of himself with near-identical combat strength? No one else would stand a chance. But that was him. His fiancée was different. Ye Chen wholeheartedly approved of Yi Qingwu cultivating an avatar technique.

...

Seeing that Ye Chen merely nodded without speaking, Yi Qingwu arched a brow and prompted, "Aren't you going to ask why I want to refine the demonic husk into my own avatar?"

A flicker of curiosity crossed Ye Chen's eyes.

Was there more to it?

The corners of Yi Qingwu's mouth curved upward.

"The avatar refined from the demonic husk will possess far greater combat power than an ordinary clone. And with an avatar in place, next time I'll be able to occupy two locations at once—while Luo Bingling squats off to the side and watches."

Ye Chen's mouth twitched slightly.

Double-teaming, huh?

Bold idea.

But from her expression, there seemed to be yet another reason.

Yi Qingwu didn't keep him in suspense.

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"More importantly—I've had enough! Once I refine the demonic husk into an avatar, you will choose one of us and go all the way to the final step! Otherwise, don't bother coming to find me again."

By the end, her eyes narrowed to slits, teeth gritted fiercely. Those gleaming, perfectly aligned teeth looked ready to tear a chunk out of him. They'd known each other for so many years and had experienced every kind of intimacy imaginable—yet every single time they reached the final step, Ye Chen would pull back, slip away, or at most linger for a fleeting moment. Even with Yi Qingwu's unshakable Dao Heart, she sometimes wanted to hit someone. She understood that Ye Chen was only protecting her, unwilling to risk harming her immortal path potential.

Still, she couldn't endure it any longer. If things continued this way, a heart demon would surely emerge. But Ye Chen had been so resolute that she'd run out of ways to persuade him. That was why she was now so determined to refine an avatar. If the main body wouldn't do, then the avatar would have to suffice.

And since both main body and avatar belonged to her completely, every sensation would be shared. It was, in its own way, another solution.

Ye Chen finally cracked, unable to hold back his laughter any longer. Truth be told, he hadn't expected his aloof fiancée to be pushed to this point—to actually voice it out loud herself. All this time, he'd refrained from fully claiming her because of her extraordinary potential.

Even after obtaining the Acquired Chaos Body, there was still room for further growth. He had even entertained the idea of attempting to help her convert it from acquired to innate in the future. But her feelings mattered too.

Ordinary clones held no appeal for him—they felt like lifeless dolls. With his alchemy and artifact-crafting skills at their peak, if he wanted, he could forge any female cultivator form using divine materials. But what would be the point?

The demonic husk, however, was different. It was the very body she was shedding—her own flesh and blood. Still… would she even get the multiplier boost from something like that?

It felt like exploiting a loophole in the system. Yet Ye Chen's hesitation lasted only a heartbeat. He had always prioritized benefits above all else, but if he kept sacrificing his true desires just to chase higher multipliers, he'd only be lowering himself.

Since his fiancée had brought it up herself, he decided they could at least try. If even her main body lost the ability to trigger a critical hit as a result, then he'd simply go with the flow and conquer both forms at once.

Breaking through two gates in a single day. And if the multiplier still triggered—perfect. Pleasure and profit together. A true win-win…

So under her gritted-teeth glare, Ye Chen smiled and nodded.

"Alright."

Only then did Yi Qingwu give a satisfied nod. But immediately afterward, she let out a soft humph and tossed a storage ring toward him.

"You think showering me with so many gifts will win my heart? I, Yi Qingwu, have no need for a dao companion. Don't waste your effort!"

Her attitude toward becoming his official dao companion had shifted again. At first she'd looked forward to it, but now she'd changed her mind. She had finally realized—Ye Chen already had so many women around him. He even kept one in his cave heaven at all times. If she became his legitimate dao companion, wouldn't that mean she'd be the one getting cuckolded by Luo Bingling, An Miaoli, and all the others?

The thought of so many women sharing him while she stood alone as the "official" one was intolerable to her proud nature. Better to be the one doing the cuckolding than the one being cuckolded. That sounded far more interesting.

The title of Dao Companion was nothing more than a label—let whoever wanted it have it. What she truly wanted was his attitude. The fact that he had presented such lavish gifts and expressed his desire to form a dao bond with her—that attitude was more than enough.

Ye Chen looked at the floating ring and sighed helplessly. This fiancée of his really did have a mind of her own. Before, when he said no to marriage, she got angry. Now that things were going well, she was refusing again.

Utterly unreasonable.

Still, he didn't take the ring. Instead, he let it hover before her and spoke softly, "Everything will be as you wish. But keep the storage ring for yourself."

They were all items that couldn't be gifted anyway—taking them back would be pointless.

Hearing his words, Yi Qingwu felt a surge of warmth in her chest. Such priceless treasures, and he was so resolute in giving them to her. It proved just how highly he valued her. She might not be miles ahead of An Miaoli or Gu Yunyun, but she was certainly not inferior to them. That was enough.

After a moment's thought, seeing the firmness in his expression, she gave a grand nod.

"Then I'll hold onto it for now. But don't think that accepting it means I'll agree to become your dao companion… Receiving gifts doesn't mean I like you…"

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