He reached into his chest and pulled out an object, waving it casually in front of Qingque.
Qingque squinted, focusing on the item. It was a dull, gray stick, unassuming and ordinary in every way. No one would have guessed that this unremarkable object had once been connected to the Amber Lord—or that it had been altered by the system into something entirely different.
"What… is this?" Qingque asked, her voice tinged with confusion.
"This," Daziel said with a sly grin, "is my 'fire poker.' I haven't exactly used it on girls before, but I suppose there's a first time for everything."
His tone was light, almost teasing, but there was a glint of mischief in his eyes. "If you can take a few hits from this, I'll let you off the hook for work today. How does that sound?"
Qingque eyed the stick skeptically. It looked harmless enough—just a plain, lifeless rod. What damage could it possibly do? She wasn't exactly a weakling, after all.
She bit her lip, hesitating for a moment before nodding. "Okay… fine."
If it meant skipping work, she was willing to take the risk.
"Good," Daziel said, clearly pleased. "Follow me."
He led her into the room and shut the door behind them. The space felt smaller now, the air heavier.
"Well… go ahead," Qingque said nervously, standing in the center of the room. She closed her eyes, bracing herself.
Daziel stepped behind her, raising the fire poker. "Ready?" he asked, his voice calm.
"Mmm…" Qingque's reply was barely audible, more of a whimper than a word.
Just as she expected the stick to land, a sudden wave of heat washed over her. Her eyes snapped open, and she gasped.
The once-dull stick was now engulfed in roaring flames, its fiery glow casting flickering shadows across the room.
"W-what is this?!" Qingque stammered, her body trembling as she stumbled back.
Daziel tilted his head, feigning innocence. "What's wrong? Having second thoughts? Don't worry—it looks like fire, but it's not real. It won't leave a mark, I promise."
He had checked with the system beforehand. The fire poker was designed to deliver pain, but nothing too severe. Perfect for teaching a lesson to someone as stubborn as Qingque.
Qingque stared at the flaming stick, her face pale. But despite her fear, she shook her head. "N-no… I'm not backing out."
If this was the price to avoid work, so be it.
She turned around, placed her hands on the bed, and stuck out her hips, her voice trembling. "J-just… be gentle, okay?"
Daziel couldn't help but chuckle at her dramatic posture. "Relax. It won't hurt as much as you think."
With that, he brought the fire poker down in a swift, controlled motion.
"Ah—!" Qingque cried out, her voice sharp and trembling.
The room seemed to hold its breath for a moment.
The room was wrapped in a thick, sultry warmth, the soft glow of moonlight filtering through the curtains and casting flickering shadows on the walls. The air was heavy with desire, the silence punctuated only by the faint sounds of Qingque's ragged breaths and the occasional sharp crack of Daziel's fire striker.
Qingque knelt there, poised on all fours, her skirt hiked up to reveal the delicate baby-blue panties clinging to her curves. The thin fabric traced a tantalizing outline, accentuating her shapely silhouette as she buried her face in the pillows, trying to hide the mix of shame and exhilaration coursing through her. Her heart raced, each beat echoing the growing tension in the room.
Daziel stood behind her, slapping the fire striker against his palm, the sharp snaps reverberating through the air. Each crack seemed to tighten the atmosphere, sending a jolt of anticipation through Qingque. Her nerves tingled, her body trembling as she waited for his touch. Where would he strike? When? The uncertainty only fueled her arousal.
"Look at you… Seems like someone's starting to enjoy this," Daziel murmured, his voice low and teasing, sending a shiver down Qingque's spine. She felt the cool metal of the fire striker brush against the thin fabric of her panties, the dampness there betraying her growing excitement.
A muffled whimper escaped her lips as Daziel tapped the fire striker lightly against her covered slit, each touch sending electric sparks of pleasure through her. She bit down on the pillowcase, her body betraying her attempts to stay composed.
"I-it's not what you think—ahh!" Her protest dissolved into a moan as Daziel's teasing grew more deliberate, the fire striker pressing harder against her sensitive folds. Her hips twitched involuntarily, her wetness soaking through the fabric and slickening the metal.
Daziel's voice was a husky whisper, dripping with desire. "You're so wet… Looks like someone's losing control." He dragged the fire striker along her slit, the thin panties pulling aside to expose her flushed, glistening lips. Qingque's breath hitched, her moans growing louder as he increased the pressure and speed.
"D-Daziel! Wait, you're—!" Her words were cut off as he quickened his pace, the fire striker rubbing insistently against her clit. The sensation was overwhelming, her body arching as pleasure coiled tight within her.
"I'm— I'm gonna— I'M GONNA CUM!" she cried out, her voice breaking as her body convulsed. Waves of ecstasy crashed over her, her legs trembling uncontrollably as she collapsed onto the bed, spent and gasping.
Daziel watched her with a satisfied smirk, his gaze lingering on her exposed form, still quivering from the aftershocks. He gave her ass a light tap with the fire striker, eliciting a faint shiver from her.
Qingque turned slowly, her face flushed and her chest heaving as she met Daziel's eyes. "So… Are we done?" she asked, her voice shaky but laced with a quiet satisfaction.
[Target character Qingque's Depravity Value increased by 10%]
[Current Depravity Value: 50%]
[Mission completed. "Strong Luck" reward has been credited. Please check.]
[Strong Luck: Extremely good luck. For example, without taking protective measures, you are guaranteed to win the lottery. Of course, this is just an example…]
[Please continue your efforts. Fire pokers are for teaching disobedient girls a lesson!]
Daziel raised an eyebrow, surprised by the system's update. He had only meant to scare her, but the fire poker seemed to have an unexpected effect. If it could farm Depravity Value this easily, maybe he wouldn't need to resort to more… drastic measures in the future.
"A-almost done…" Daziel said, his voice slightly hoarse. He pulled the fire poker away, ending the session.
Qingque collapsed onto the bed, her body limp and trembling. Her breaths came in shallow gasps, her face flushed and her eyes glazed.
"......"
She tried to speak, but her voice was too weak, barely more than a whisper.
Daziel watched her for a moment, then said softly, "Rest for a bit. I'll tell Master Diviner I couldn't find you."
He turned to leave, but before he could take a step, he felt a tug on his sleeve.
"......"
Qingque's hand clutched at his clothes, her eyes pleading as she looked up at him.
"I… I'll go to work," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Isn't that enough? I'll work seven days a week… I'll do whatever you say. Just… just help me. I can't take this anymore. And… and if you have a baseball bat, use that instead!"
Daziel blinked, taken aback by her sudden change of heart. The fire poker's effects were more potent than he'd anticipated.
"Alright," he said, sighing. "I'll hold you to that. And don't forget—overtime, too."
He helped Qingque to her feet, carefully smoothing out her rumpled clothes.
"Can you walk?" he asked, his tone softer now.
Qingque nodded weakly, her legs still shaky but steady enough to carry her. "I… I'm fine," she murmured, though her voice was still hoarse. "This… this is better than playing mahjong…"
She paused, her eyes glazing over for a moment before she added, almost too quietly to hear, "If… if I could have this every day… I wouldn't even mind working…"
Daziel stared at her, speechless. The fire poker's aftereffects were… intense, to say the least.
He guided her out of the room and back to the Divination Commission.
Fu Xuan was seated at her desk, her posture impeccable as she sorted through paperwork. She glanced up as they entered, her sharp eyes lingering on Qingque.
Qingque's face was pale, but her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes darted around nervously.
"Qingque," Fu Xuan said, her tone laced with concern, "are you feeling unwell? You look… off."
Qingque shot a quick glance at Daziel, panic flashing in her eyes. "N-no, Master Diviner. I'm just… tired," she stammered. "But… I'll come to work every day this week. No more slacking off."
Fu Xuan's eyebrows rose in surprise. Qingque, of all people, volunteering to work without complaint? She discreetly calculated something with her fingers, her expression shifting as if she'd uncovered a hidden truth. Her gaze flicked to Daziel, her eyes narrowing slightly with suspicion—and something else, something unreadable.
But in the end, she said nothing, simply nodding and returning to her work.
As a Master Diviner, she understood better than anyone that some truths could be spoken aloud, while others were better left shrouded in silence.
"Mm."
Fu Xuan's response was soft, almost dismissive, as she waved her hand. "In that case, return to your workstation."
"Yes, Master Diviner."
Qingque exhaled softly, the tension in her shoulders easing as she turned to leave. But after a few steps, she paused, glancing back at Daziel. Her eyes lingered, filled with an unspoken longing. She bit her lip gently, as if wrestling with words she couldn't bring herself to say. In the end, she simply turned away, her footsteps quickening as she disappeared into the shadows of the Great Matrix of Prescience.
Now, only Daziel and Fu Xuan remained in the vast chamber, the air thick with unspoken tension.
Fu Xuan broke the silence first, her voice measured but carrying a weight of curiosity. "After you left, I cast a divination for myself. I asked, 'Is your return a blessing or a curse?' The hexagram fell between Kan and Qian. The Matrix of Prescience is... unreliable at the moment, so I interpreted it myself. The judgment reads: 'A distinguished guest arrives, offering respect... ultimately auspicious.'"
Daziel tilted his head, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes. "Respectful offering, ultimately auspicious? Does that mean my return is a good thing?"
"This seat... cannot say for certain."
Fu Xuan's nod was slight, but her expression was clouded with uncertainty. "The last time we met, I could still discern fragments of your path. But now... the hexagrams blur, and the Matrix grows silent. Whatever you've encountered during your absence... it has changed you. Can you tell me what it was?"
Her voice, usually so confident, wavered ever so slightly. For the first time, the unshakable Master Diviner seemed... unsure.
Daziel hesitated. The truth of the Inner World System was too strange, too dangerous. He couldn't risk dragging her into it. "I've gained something," he said carefully, "but it's not something easily explained. I doubt even you, Master Diviner, could fully grasp it."
Fu Xuan didn't press further. Instead, she sighed, a soft sound that carried both resignation and trust. "If you choose not to speak of it, then so be it. Perhaps in time, the Matrix of Prescience will reveal it to me."
Her tone surprised him. There was a gentleness there, a trust he hadn't expected. It made him smile faintly. "What if the Matrix still doesn't work after calculating for me?"
Fu Xuan turned sharply, her eyes narrowing with mock reproach. "If the Matrix remains uncooperative after this..." She paused, her cheeks puffing out slightly in a rare display of childish frustration. "Then this seat will have no choice but to condemn you thoroughly, you troublemaker!"
Daziel couldn't help but laugh. The usually stern and composed Master Diviner was now pouting like a petulant child. The contrast was... endearing.
[Scanning in progress!]
[Scan successful!]
[New target character: Fu Xuan]
[Depravity Value: 0%]
[Mission: Increase Fu Xuan's Depravity Value to 50%]
[Mission Reward: Premonition of Misfortune]
[Premonition of Misfortune: Able to foresee impending dangers in advance, and avoid misfortune and seek good fortune.]
...
He grinned, unable to resist teasing her. "If that's the case, maybe I don't want the Matrix to recover after all. Seeing you like this, Master Diviner, is worth a few condemnations."
Fu Xuan's cheeks flushed a deep red, her composure cracking under his playful tone. She glared at him, but there was no real anger in her eyes—only a flicker of embarrassment. "You rascal!" she chided, her voice softer than intended. "Enough of your nonsense. Enter the Matrix of Prescience. We've wasted enough time."
Daziel chuckled but obliged, stepping into the center of the Great Matrix and sitting cross-legged. "Like this?" he asked.
"Just like that," Fu Xuan replied, her voice steadying as she took her place at the edge of the formation. "Close your eyes. Calm your breath. Focus your mind. Try to connect with the Matrix."
Daziel did as instructed, closing his eyes and drawing in a deep breath. The world around him faded, replaced by a sea of shimmering starlight. He felt the energy of the Matrix swirling around him, ancient and vast, like a living entity. A low, resonant hum filled his ears, a voice that seemed to speak in a language just beyond his understanding.
Is this... the Matrix's voice? What is it trying to say?
He strained to listen, but the harder he focused, the more elusive the voice became. Just as frustration began to creep in, Fu Xuan's voice pulled him back.
"Did you feel anything?" she asked, her tone tinged with hope.
Daziel opened his eyes and shook his head. "I heard something... but I couldn't make sense of it."
Fu Xuan's brow furrowed. "If you can't hear it clearly... then the Matrix's disorder is worse than I thought." She paused, considering her next move. "Let's try again. This time, I'll project myself into the Matrix to see if I can glimpse your future."
Daziel nodded, closing his eyes once more. Fu Xuan stepped closer, her hand resting lightly on his head. A warm, soothing energy flowed from her fingertips, enveloping him in a comforting glow.
Her power... it's so gentle.
Under its influence, Daziel's consciousness began to drift, slipping into a tranquil haze. But for Fu Xuan, the experience was far from peaceful.
The moment her fingertips touched him, the Divination Commission fell into an eerie silence—not the quiet of an empty room, but an absolute void, as if even the air itself had been sucked away.
The scene before Fu Xuan's eyes shifted rapidly, like a reel of film spinning out of control.
She saw it—a glimpse of Daziel's future.
It was a corner of hell itself.
Her pink hair stirred as if caught in an invisible breeze, tiny ice crystals forming at the tips. This was no ordinary anomaly; something far more sinister was at play.
"Open!" she commanded.
The Divine Eye erupted in a burst of golden light, shattering the stagnation around her. As the hexagram in the star chart exploded, a sound pierced the air—a sword's sharp cry, sharp enough to rend the fabric of space and time.
From the eye of the formation, white moonlight surged forth, crystallizing into thousands of ice swords that hung suspended in the dome. Between the crisscrossing blades, a figure emerged, walking on frost and starlight.
"Jingliu?" Fu Xuan instinctively took half a step back.
The woman before her was far more unsettling than the image on the wanted posters. She still wore the blue and white dress, but now, pink, vein-like patterns spread across her abdomen, blooming into grotesque shapes with every step she took.
But it was her eyes that struck fear into Fu Xuan's heart. The left pupil remained its normal pink, but the right eye held a miniature moon, its surface etched with the markings of a Path—a Path Fu Xuan had never seen, one that belonged to no known Aeon.
"Little girl from the Divination Commission," Jingliu's voice echoed, layered with three distinct tones, as though three versions of her spoke at once. "You've seen the endgame, have you?"
Fu Xuan's gaze dropped to the broken sword in Jingliu's hand. It wasn't a physical blade but a manifestation of the Matrix of Prescience, a crystallization of cause and effect. Reflected in its surface wasn't her own face, but a vision of seven moons plunging one after another into the Scalegorge Waterscape.
"This is... Moon Shattering Cloudpiercer? How could it be so terrifying?"
As the last moon sank, Jingliu's right eye burst—not with blood, but with a stream of silver-blue data.
"Warning: cognitive pollution exceeds threshold," the Divine Eye's mechanical voice screeched in her mind.
Fu Xuan bit her tongue, spraying blood essence onto the divination plate. The star chart rearranged itself frantically, revealing a horrifying truth: the moons were cutting down the remains of an interstellar behemoth. The frost-forged sword in Jingliu's hand was no mere weapon—it was a containment device woven from fragments of Emperor Ruinous Bow arrows.
"You... what happened to you?" Blood and tears streamed from Fu Xuan's Divine Eye.
Jingliu smiled—a smile that sent a shiver down Fu Xuan's spine. The moon in her right eye now reflected another Jingliu, clad in thin gauze, entangled in Daziel's arms, engaged in unspeakable acts.
"You've been infected. Go find Daziel. Beg him. You know what to beg for..." The former Sword Champion of the Xianzhou Loufu flicked the edge of her sword, and the vision projected by the Matrix of Prescience shattered into icy fragments.
"He's already aware of your spying. Go..."
A sharp pain lanced through Fu Xuan's brow. The last thing she saw was the Path's pattern, identical to the one in Jingliu's right eye, etched into her Divine Eye.
Daziel groaned as he awoke from the depths of his consciousness. It felt as though he'd been trapped in an endless, surreal dream—a dream of inverted galaxies, crisscrossing sword energy, and... a woman whose face he couldn't quite recall.
He rubbed his temples, trying to piece together the fragments of the dream, but all he felt was a splitting headache. The details slipped through his fingers like sand.
"Master Diviner Fu Xuan?"
He turned to look at her, only to freeze at the sight.
Fu Xuan's cheeks were flushed, her eyes clouded, her breathing ragged. Her usually immaculate attire was disheveled. This... this wasn't the composed, serious Master Diviner he knew.
Before he could process what was happening, Fu Xuan lunged at him, wrapping her arms around him tightly. Her body trembled against his, her warmth unnervingly intense.
"......"
Her voice was barely a whisper, trembling with desperation, a far cry from her usual icy demeanor.
"Master Diviner, what's wrong with you?" Daziel stammered, utterly bewildered. Her body felt like it was burning up, the heat radiating from her almost unbearable.
Fu Xuan didn't answer. Instead, she buried her face in his chest, inhaling his scent as though it were the only thing keeping her grounded.
What... what's happening? What's wrong with her? Did something go wrong with the future she saw in the Matrix of Prescience?
"I... I'm polluted, Da... I need to tell you... the hexagram... it wasn't 'respectful offering, ultimately auspicious'... it was 'sacrificial offering, ultimately auspicious'..." Her voice was faint, each word a struggle.
"'Sacrificial offering, ultimately auspicious'?" Daziel's mind raced. Though he wasn't well-versed in divination, the implication was clear.
"Master Diviner, are you saying...?"
Fu Xuan lifted her head, her misty eyes meeting his. She bit her lip and nodded weakly.
"I... I was too embarrassed to say it before... but now... it seems my hexagram was correct. Only you can save me..."
Her voice trailed off, the last words barely audible.
"......."
With that, Fu Xuan collapsed into his arms, her strength completely spent.
Daziel's mind reeled. He wasn't a fool; he understood what she meant. But this... this was too sudden. Though he'd harbored some affection for her, he'd never imagined it would come to this.
The faint scent of her filled his senses, sending his heart racing and his thoughts spiraling.
"Alright, Master Diviner... if this is what you need..."
Gently, he adjusted her position, his hands trembling as they brushed against her pink ponytails.
_____
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