CHAPTER 332: CHAPTER 164: STEAM PRINCESS QIN YAO! A WOMAN’S HEART! A NEEDLE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA!_3

With that, he withdrew the Creature Pressure weighing down on Zhang Fei and departed, thoroughly satisfied.

Zhang Fei, freed once more, didn’t immediately spring up. Instead, he remained sprawled on the ground, gasping for great lungfuls of air, slowly trying to steady his breathing. Being suppressed twice in quick succession like that had nearly crushed his body; anyone would find such pressure unbearable. After recovering for a moment, Zhang Fei sat up. Amidst the disdainful gazes from all around, he let out a few choked sounds, half-laugh, half-sob. Then he stood up, walked silently to a corner, crouched down, and fell silent.

Meanwhile, Su Yan returned to his previous seat beside Qin Yao and quietly waited for the academy’s selection process to conclude. Qin Yao was engrossed in her phone, completely absorbed. She was so focused that she didn’t even notice Su Yan sit down beside her and kept her eyes glued to the screen. This piqued Su Yan’s curiosity. Ordinarily, the moment Qin Yao saw him, she’d shower him with attention, unwilling to look away even for a second. Yet now, she preferred her phone to him. This is highly unusual, he thought. Driven by this curiosity, Su Yan surreptitiously glanced at Qin Yao’s phone screen.

And what did he see? Good heavens, she was browsing Peach Treasure.

Just browsing Peach Treasure, yet she’s so engrossed she seems oblivious to the world. Impressive. So typically female,

Su Yan mused. With nothing better to do, he continued to peek at Qin Yao’s phone screen out of the corner of his eye, curious about what she was looking at.

Fox tail: Added to cart.

Fox ear set: Added to cart.

Fox set: Added to cart.

Hmm, why would Qin Yao buy these things? Su Yan wondered. Seeing the items Qin Yao added to her cart initially confused him. But it didn’t take me long to figure it out, he quickly realized. She probably heard my speech on stage and thought I have a thing for Fox Demons. That’s why she specifically went to Peach Treasure to buy these props—to dress up as one.

At this thought, Su Yan’s lip twitched. Qin Yao really needs to rein it in. One Fox Demon is already a handful; I definitely don’t want another,

he thought.

Just as Su Yan was thinking this, Qin Yao seemed to sense someone peeking at her screen. She suddenly put her phone away and snapped her head up.

"Oh! Su... Su Yan," she stammered. Realizing the peeker was Su Yan, Qin Yao’s pretty face flushed crimson, and she became tongue-tied.

"Ahem... COUGH, COUGH... I didn’t see anything just now. You don’t need to be embarrassed," Su Yan said, trying to ease the tension.

His words, however, had the opposite effect, sounding like a clumsy denial that only made Qin Yao even more flustered. Her face struggled to maintain composure. Her cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red, and she looked like steam might actually be rising from them. She appeared extremely awkward and mortified.

Watching the steam that seemed to be continuously rising from Qin Yao’s flustered head, Su Yan couldn’t help but blurt out, "Are you... a Steam Princess?"

"I... I..." Qin Yao stammered, on the verge of complete mortification. She was so embarrassed she could barely speak. She kept stammering, her entire face flushed beet red, looking so uncomfortable that anyone watching would feel for her.

"I... I’ve crashed!"

With that, Qin Yao shot up and bolted, her face a mask of mortification. At that moment, she simply couldn’t bear to face Su Yan any longer. Going to Peach Treasure to buy a fox tail... and that specific kind, too! It’s just too mortifying! This is complete Social Death!

"A woman’s heart, a deep ocean of secrets," Su Yan remarked with a helpless shrug, watching Qin Yao’s retreating figure.

...

PS: Begging bowl in hand, I sincerely ask for support with a paid subscription!