In truth, having left the Yang Mansion long ago, Zou Feng had almost forgotten about this Fake Xiaocui.
Besides, they had always kept out of each other’s way. Logically, she had no reason to keep pestering him.
"Brother Feng, Uncle Luo sent me."
"He said you were injured and needed a considerate maid to look after you..."
Outside the door, Fake Xiaocui spoke again.
This helped Zou Feng understand why she was here.
Luo Yong had found out about his injury after all.
Out of concern, he felt Zou Feng needed a well-behaved and sensible maid like Xiaocui to take care of him.
So, he had someone find Zhao Tianhu, who then contacted Wang Xingjian, which naturally led to this arrangement.
And since he had parted amicably with the Yang Mansion, they wouldn’t have any objections.
Especially since he was doing quite well in the Black Flood Dragon Gang, Patriarch Yang Wu was more than happy to maintain a connection with him.
"That’s not necessary. Thank my master for me."
"I’m Cultivating to heal my wounds and can’t see visitors. You should head back for now."
"Lin Chen, get two taels of silver as a tip and see her out!"
Zou Feng’s tone was extremely impatient.
His dislike for Fake Xiaocui wasn’t abrupt.
After all, back at the Yang Mansion, he had already been dismissive of her various attempts at flirtation, acting as if he looked down on her.
"Brother Feng, I brought some pastries Aunt Wang made especially for you! They’re medicinal snacks that will help your recovery!"
As she spoke, she took a step forward, seemingly wanting to enter and see Zou Feng.
But the guard outside, Lin Chen, had heard Zou Feng’s displeased order to see her out and was now naturally blocking the doorway, preventing her from getting any closer.
"Just leave the pastries!"
Left with no choice, Fake Xiaocui handed the bamboo basket to Lin Chen.
"Brother Feng, please remember to eat them while they’re warm. Aunt Wang was busy all morning, and they’re really good for your recovery..."
Zou Feng didn’t want to waste any more words and remained silent.
Next, Xiaocui took the two taels of silver from Lin Chen and turned to leave, looking dejected.
After seeing Xiaocui out the main gate, Lin Chen returned to the door of Zou Feng’s room and asked, "Zou Incense Master, these pastries?"
Zou Feng didn’t need to look to know that the pastries were indeed specially made for him by his master’s wife that morning.
But after passing through Xiaocui’s hands, it was hard to say if something extra had been added to them.
Therefore, Zou Feng’s first reaction was to have the guard dump all the pastries directly into the slop bucket.
But just as he was about to speak, he recalled Fake Xiaocui’s tone, how insistent she had been in persuading him to eat the pastries.
’It seems she didn’t care that I wouldn’t see her. She was more concerned with whether or not I ate the pastries...’
Zou Feng immediately became vigilant. ’This trouble probably isn’t over yet.’
"Bring them in and set them down for now!"
Hearing this, Lin Chen immediately entered the room and placed the bamboo basket of pastries on the round table in front of Zou Feng.
Just as he set it down and was about to leave, Lin Chen noticed that Zou Feng’s current state was clearly not good.
Perhaps his injuries were acting up again.
"Zou Incense Master, you..."
"I’m fine. It’ll pass in a moment. You can go rest."
Only then did Lin Chen bow and leave the room.
The reason he looked to be in poor condition was naturally because Zou Feng was still in the process of cultivating the Chaos Finger.
He couldn’t return to a state of focused Cultivation just yet; he needed to remain constantly distracted to guard against certain... accidents.
Because Zou Feng had a feeling that Fake Xiaocui hadn’t left!
’She has probably circled back by now and is lurking somewhere, just waiting for me to eat the pastries...’
This suspicion was confirmed after he opened the basket’s lid and smelled the pastries.
When Zou Feng was still at the Yang Mansion, he ate the pastries made by his master’s wife almost every day.
With his nose now exceptionally sensitive to toxins, he could easily smell whether these pastries had been laced with something potent.
The answer was yes.
Coincidentally, Zou Feng had just consumed the Celestial Immortal Joy Powder, so the scent of that elixir was still fresh in his mind.
And these pastries had been dosed with that very same Celestial Immortal Joy Powder!
This made Zou Feng realize with sudden clarity that although she had been sent at Luo Yong’s request, the situation had evolved. Fake Xiaocui was using this opportunity to come after him!
Thinking back, when he was still at the Yang Mansion, this Fake Xiaocui had often tried to seduce him in various ways.
At the time, he thought it was a common trait among wanton Female Evil Cultivators—a habitual desire to "have a taste" whenever they saw a handsome young man.
Looking at it now, however, it seemed this woman was after more than just his good looks.
’The most likely possibility is that she cultivates a Replenishing Skill and needs a young Martial Artist like me—full of potential and having just Entered Grade...’
And by making a move this time, it was clear Fake Xiaocui had no intention of returning to her hiding spot.
She definitely planned to devour him completely and then flee.
Thinking of this, Zou Feng didn’t forget to check the List of Gods.
Sure enough, a new name had appeared on the list—Bai Cuixiang!
Her appearance on the List of Gods proved that her Replenishing Skill was the lethal kind.
The final outcome would most likely be getting turned into a human husk, one you could take out and fly like a kite...
This also proved that Bai Cuixiang hadn’t really left.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have added Celestial Immortal Joy Powder to the pastries just to make him embarrass himself.
Fortunately, now that he knew her objective, things were relatively simple.
’Conveniently, I still need to continue cultivating the Chaos Finger. I’ll just treat these pastries as a way to increase the training intensity.’
And once Bai Cuixiang saw him eat the pastries, she naturally wouldn’t rush to act. Instead, she would wait until the drug reached its peak effect before making her timely appearance to "put out the fire."
In the time he bought, he had to complete his current Cultivation session and achieve Refinement of the Celestial Immortal Joy Powder’s medicinal power.
Truthfully, if it wasn’t necessary, Zou Feng didn’t want to clash with this Female Evil Cultivator.
After all, this woman had managed to lie low in the Yang Mansion, remaining undiscovered even after Yang Zhengfei’s grand inspection.
She had remained hidden right under the noses of the Heart Meeting Martial Arts Hall experts stationed at the Yang Mansion until now.
Therefore, it would be strange if she wasn’t at least Eighth Grade. She might even be at a higher Realm...
However, the situation was now unavoidable. His only choice was to strike first and send her to the next life!
Having made his decision, Zou Feng no longer hesitated. He propped himself up, raised a hand, picked up a pastry, and took a bite.
While chewing, Zou Feng closed his eyes and muttered to himself, "So fragrant. This is the stuff!"
He wasn’t just going to eat it; he was going to savor it slowly to stall for time, waiting for the effects of the Celestial Immortal Joy Powder to be Refined.
And after the first bite, Zou Feng was certain that Bai Cuixiang wasn’t as generous as he’d thought.
The concentration of Celestial Immortal Joy Powder in a single pastry was very low.
So she must have used only one pill of Celestial Immortal Joy Powder, crushed it into powder, and mixed a little into each pastry.
Therefore, for the drug to reach its peak effect, he would have to eat several pieces.
This gave Zou Feng another opportunity to stall for time.
Next, Zou Feng continued to pretend he was unwell and could only eat very slowly.
At the same time, he frantically activated the Chaos Finger Heart Skill to speed up his Cultivation.
However, he couldn’t transfer the side effects of cultivating the Chaos Finger to Bai Cuixiang right now.
Otherwise, she would lose her patience and immediately try to take him by force...
And so, after slowly eating his fifth pastry, Zou Feng’s face suddenly flushed red, and he began to sway as if drunk.
At the same time, his eyes grew hazy. He seemed drowsy yet was too agitated to fall asleep.
This was the signal for Bai Cuixiang to close the net.
A moment later, the window slid open silently. Bai Cuixiang appeared like a phantom, then gently closed the window behind her.
Her demeanor now bore no trace of "Xiaocui."
The act was completely dropped.
"Brother Feng, what’s wrong with you?" Bai Cuixiang asked in a soft, delicate voice, swaying her hips as she slowly walked toward Zou Feng.
The Celestial Immortal Joy Powder muddled the mind and plunged its victim into wonderful hallucinations, so there was no need to worry about them struggling or resisting.
"I... I’m so dizzy..."
"Are you... Yang Qianqian?!" Zou Feng seemed completely delirious, mistaking Bai Cuixiang for Yang Qianqian.
The smile on Bai Cuixiang’s face froze for a moment.
’This little bastard really does lust after the Yang Mansion’s young miss. No wonder he was always so dismissive of me.’
’But back at the Yang Mansion, I had to hold back to avoid exposing myself.’
’Now that I don’t have to stay there anymore, do you really think you can escape?’
Bai Cuixiang licked her lips, her eyes filled with greed.
’Pile Skill Entry, pure Inner Qi, and he Entered Grade at the peak age for vigorous qi and blood. For my Cultivation Skill, he is a top-quality supplement!’
"Yes, I’m Yang Qianqian. Whoever you want me to be, that’s who I am!"
Seeing Zou Feng sway and about to fall, Bai Cuixiang chuckled and stepped forward to catch him.
"Brother Feng, it’s time to rest!"
Zou Feng went with the motion and hooked his arm around Bai Cuixiang’s neck, acting as if he truly saw her as Yang Qianqian and couldn’t wait another second.
"Qianqian, you’re finally here!"
"I... I’ve actually... wanted to for a long time..."
Bai Cuixiang gave a seductive smile. "Wanted to do what for a long time?"
"Wanted to... strangle you to death!"
Before the words had even faded, the haze in Zou Feng’s eyes vanished. The arm wrapped around Bai Cuixiang’s neck surged with power as he activated his Tribulation-Indestructible Body.
His other hand, channeling the Five Poison Skill, clamped down hard over Bai Cuixiang’s mouth.
Caught completely off guard, even with her formidable Evil Skills, Bai Cuixiang had no time to use them.
Furthermore, just by looking at her physique, Zou Feng had determined that she most likely did not cultivate a Body Refining Skill.
So as long as he held her firmly, there was little chance she could break free.
"Mmph... you..."
"Let... let go!"
"You... you’re courting death..."
Completely taken by surprise, Bai Cuixiang was utterly panicked. She could only frantically channel her Inner Qi and struggle desperately, letting out muffled whimpers.
But forcing herself to speak only allowed more of the poison to flood into her mouth and nose.
As for Bai Cuixiang channeling her Inner Qi, Zou Feng’s Tribulation-Indestructible Body, which was nearing Integration and Mastery, and his greatly improved Black Tortoise Sea-Suppressing Force were more than enough to withstand it.
At the same time, Zou Feng could finally confirm from the Inner Qi she was emitting that she wasn’t Seventh Grade, but Eighth Grade.
In that case, there was no longer any possibility of her breaking free. Before long, she would either die from the poison or be strangled to death!