“Mm-hmm~”
“Ah~”
“Owww~”
Su Mo lay on the bed in thin pajamas, while Sakurai Mei demonstrated a new finger technique she had learned.
“How is it? Comfortable, right?”
“Ah~” Su Mo let out a lingering, satisfied moan. “Where did you learn this? How can a massage feel so good?”
Sakurai Mei chuckled. “A health practitioner. She not only created this finger technique but also named it the ‘Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger.’ Later, because I saved her life, she passed it on to me. You should have seen how amazed she was. She said my ability to learn it meant I was fated to master it, and if I ever found others with the same destiny, I could teach it to them without hesitation.”
“Yu… Oh, the Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger.” Su Mo’s face flushed for a moment, almost letting her imagination wander.
“Want to learn? I can teach you. You can use it to massage yourself whenever your muscles feel uncomfortable.”
“Yes.” Su Mo had always been a diligent and eager learner.
Besides, this finger technique wasn’t just for when you felt uncomfortable—it could also come in handy when you wanted to feel good…
Sakurai Mei began explaining the essentials of the Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger seriously. “This technique can only be learned by kind-hearted girls who are fated to master it. No one else can. Since we’re both kind-hearted, it shouldn’t be a problem.”
Su Mo nodded. “Exactly, we’re both kind-hearted people.”
For some reason, she felt a twinge of guilt.
The two of them threw themselves into the lesson—one teaching earnestly, the other learning just as seriously.
“The technique is divided into the Yin Finger and the Yang Finger. What I just demonstrated was the Yang Finger. The Yin Finger is the complete opposite. Instead of feeling comfortable, it causes intense discomfort. While it doesn’t cause serious harm, it’s perfect for playing tricks on people.”
Su Mo: Absorbing every word…
After some time, Su Mo realized Sakurai Mei’s voice had faded. She opened her eyes suddenly and found that her consciousness had drifted into her Dantian sea of qi.
The sea of qi was brimming with spiritual energy, thanks not only to contributions from people like Uesugi but also to the tonics she’d taken during her recovery over the past couple of days.
She could clearly sense that her cultivation had reached a critical point, requiring a breakthrough to ascend to a higher level.
“So that’s it… I had an epiphany while learning,” Su Mo murmured to herself, her expression shifting to one of disbelief.
Learning a massage technique leads to an epiphany? I must be a genius!
Suddenly, the mountain hidden beneath the sea began to tremble and slowly rise. This was her first breakthrough since killing Shen Nanshu over a month ago, which was remarkably fast progress.
Of course, external spiritual energy played a big part, especially from Uesugi, who contributed the most—even more than Yang Jie had back then.
Su Mo wondered which mountain this would be. The previous two had been tied to her emotions, so this one should be no different.
Could it be Joy?
Right now, her dominant emotion was happiness.
Sure enough, the rising mountain bore the characters “Corpse Dog,” confirming it was tied to Joy.
But before she could celebrate, another mountain began to emerge.
Su Mo was overjoyed.
This newly risen mountain was tied to Sorrow, inscribed with the characters “Que Yin.”
“What does this mean? I’m not feeling sorrowful. Could it be a warning that one thrives in adversity and perishes in ease?”
A sense of foreboding crept into her heart.
As the mountains rose, a stream of light split in two and flew toward the two new peaks—it was the Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger technique she’d just learned.
Oh no. Even the powerful Anger technique only occupied one mountain. And now this finger technique is taking two?
If not for the overwhelming joy of breaking through two mountains at once, Su Mo might have let out a stream of curses.
Now, she was just curious about what changes would occur after the Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger fused with these two emotional mountains…
Letting out a long breath, Su Mo slowly opened her eyes.
“You broke through?” Sakurai Mei looked at her in amazement. “I never expected the Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger to be so powerful that it could help someone break through.”
Su Mo replied helplessly, “Sister Mii, don’t tease me. This breakthrough is thanks to all the tonics I’ve taken over the past few days, combined with the bottleneck I’d already reached. It was inevitable.”
“Hehe, just kidding.”
“Still, I’ve gained a new understanding of the Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger.” Su Mo pressed her index and middle fingers together and looked at Sakurai Mei. “Would you like to try it, Sister Mii?”
“Sure!” Sakurai Mei agreed readily and lay flat in front of Su Mo. “Go ahead, let’s see how much you’ve mastered.”
Su Mo activated the sorrow-related Que Yin mountain and unleashed the Yin Finger of the Jade Maiden’s Ethereal Finger.
She pressed her finger against Sakurai Mei’s back. For a moment, there was no reaction—no sign of pain or comfort.
Su Mo tentatively called out, “Sister Mii?”
“Wahhh…” Suddenly, Sakurai Mei burst into tears, rubbing her eyes as she sobbed. “I don’t know why, but I suddenly feel so sad… I’m so heartbroken, wahhh…”
Su Mo couldn’t help but laugh. The Yin Finger really made people cry on demand.
Thinking quickly, she activated the Yang Finger and pressed it on Sakurai Mei, who was reaching out for comfort.
Sakurai Mei’s tears abruptly stopped, replaced by laughter—or rather, she was crying and laughing at the same time, her expression a hilarious mix. “Hehehe… Chiba, it has to be you playing tricks, wahhh… Making me cry one moment and laugh the next, hehe wah… Stop it right now, hehe wah…”
Hehe wah… Like a crying clown…
Su Mo barely suppressed her laughter, afraid Sakurai Mei might snap and hit her. She quickly applied the Yin and Yang Fingers again to restore balance.
“How did you do that? Teach me!” Sakurai Mei exclaimed excitedly, her face a mess of tears and laughter. “Once I learn this, Kusakabe will never stand a chance against me.”
Su Mo hesitated, unsure how to explain it. She could only describe her own experience. “When using the Yang Finger, channel your feelings of joy. For the Yin Finger, tap into your sorrow.”
Su Mo tried her best to explain, but Sakurai Mei remained utterly confused. Eventually, she waved her hand dismissively. “Forget it, I give up. It seems your connection to this technique runs deeper, allowing you to grasp its higher mysteries. My bond with it is weaker, and I’ve already gained as much as I can from it. Everything has its limits, and trying to take more than you can chew is pointless.”
Su Mo was genuinely impressed and gave her a thumbs-up. “Sister Mii, your insight here is something most people could never achieve. I truly admire you.”
Sakurai Mei basked in the praise. “Oh, it’s nothing special. You’re pretty impressive too, you know.”
A sudden, urgent phone call interrupted their mutual admiration.
“What? Dogs attacking people? This kind of thing…” Sakurai Mei’s expression turned serious. “Organize a team to handle it first. I’ll send reinforcements.”
No sooner had she hung up than another call came in. Her expression darkened further.
From that moment on, the calls didn’t stop. Reports poured in about rabid dogs attacking people.
At first, it didn’t seem like a big deal, but then… all the dogs seemed to go mad at once, biting anyone they saw, and their strength was far beyond normal. What started as a minor issue quickly became anything but.