"What? Building a house???" The mature women, including Saki, expressed their disapproval!
Zi Wan, on the other hand, seemed to have become more honest and didn't say much.
"Well, it's not easy to build a house here because none of you have the power of the Origin of Will. You must cooperate, starting from cutting wood and gathering materials. I believe that through this, the Great Way will connect, bringing you closer to the real life in this world and establishing multifaceted connections!"
"Haha... you sure know how to talk," Lianhua said helplessly. Although no one saw what happened to Zi Wan yesterday, they were still fearful, so nobody argued with Xu Chen anymore.
"Qingyin, since you can already use the power of consciousness to some extent, you don't need to participate. Just let the four of them build a house by the lake!" Xu Chen said.
"Well, Xu Chen, I actually wanted to talk to you about something," Qingyin said.
Xu Chen and Qingyin went into the forest.
"Xu Chen!" Qingyin held onto Xu Chen's shoulders and pushed him against a tree trunk.
However, she didn't make any intimate moves towards Xu Chen, but asked seriously, "Xu Chen, what did you do to Zi Wan last night?"
"What's the matter, Qingyin? Are you really concerned about this?" Xu Chen asked.
"Don't you think Zi Wan is acting strange today? She used to be so stubborn and wilful, but now she's so obedient! What did you do to her?"
"I already said it. It was punishment."
"What... What exactly did you do as punishment?" Qingyin pressed for an answer.
"Qingyin, if you really want to know, come closer and listen," Xu Chen said.
"Ugh, there's no one else here, and you still act like this!" Qingyin complained.
Xu Chen whispered to Qingyin's ear, revealing what he did to Zi Wan as punishment.
"Eh? How could you do such a thing!" Qingyin's face turned red. Her chest heaved heavily, and her breathing became somewhat rapid.
"I had no choice! If I didn't, would she listen to me!?"
"But how can you do such things to other girls?"
"What's wrong? Qingyin, are you saying that I can only do such things to you?"
"Of course not!" Qingyin's face grew even redder. She turned away and whispered, "Besides, I... haven't done anything wrong..."
"Qingyin, after all these questions, what do you actually want?"
"I don't want anything! I just... don't want to see other girls change because of you. Maybe... I'm being selfish too..."
"Qingyin, don't compare the punishment during training with those things. We are not here to talk about love, but to prepare for entering the Mengyan Nation. It's an extremely dangerous journey, and you need to focus on your cultivation!" Xu Chen said.
"Uh... yes, I understand."
Xu Chen returned to the lakeside. The girls had already made progress, some cutting wood, others drawing on the sandy ground.
"Alright, let's stop here for today. Everyone, take a break," Xu Chen said as he noticed it was getting late.
The construction of the house continued for a full three months, and eventually, a lakeside cottage was built.
Finally, everyone could move in.
However, the distribution of the rooms surprised the girls.
Indeed! They drew lots!
There were only three bedrooms, so they paired up by drawing lots.
"For the sake of fairness, I won't participate in the drawing. Here are five lots, two will be paired up, and the odd one out will share a room with me," Xu Chen said.
"Um..." Saiko hesitated, "Sisters, come over here for a moment."
The Four Demonic Sisters gathered in a small grove, whispering to each other.
Saiko said, "I can let Qingyin be with Xu Chen, they already have that kind of relationship. But, even though we are trained by Xu Chen, it doesn't seem appropriate for one of us to end up living together in the same room, right?"
"I feel the same way!" Lianhua agreed, "But I don't think Xu Chen is that kind of person. If he wanted to do something to us, he could have done it a long time ago. There's no need for all this hassle. I wonder what his true intentions are!"
Zi Wan remained silent.
Saiko continued, "Even though I have broken all ties with the Demon King, I am still technically his wife. If it gets out that I am sharing a room with another boy, it wouldn't look good!"
The Maiden of the Celestial Realm said, "Anyway, even though I am free, I don't want to casually share a room with any other guy. But perhaps this is also part of our cultivation, as Lianhua said. If Xu Chen wanted to do something to us, he could have done it already. There's no need for all this trouble!"
So, the Four Demonic Sisters looked at each other, but in the end, they didn't come to any conclusion and obediently drew lots.
And the results were: Qingyin and Saiko in one room, Zi Wan and Lianhua in another room, and The Maiden of the Celestial Realm, all by herself.
Saiko and the others looked at The Maiden of the Celestial Realm with complicated expressions.
"Ah... This..." Although The Maiden of the Celestial Realm was a bit nervous, she didn't express any dissatisfaction.
