It was quite ironic. In the past, as ridiculous as it may seem, he might not have hesitated. Just like he had once accepted the little princess of the Loom Clan as his fiancée despite all his previous bloviating, he wouldn't stall his cultivation progress for morals.

In the end, he was a man. Those actions simply meant less to him overall.

But… Now that he had accepted Ailsa, he didn't want things to be like this. There intimacy was still not deep enough and he didn't view her as a tool like he had in the past…

It just didn't feel right.

Ailsa's heart warmed seeing the thoughts in Ryu's mind. In truth, the moment she had chosen Ryu as her Life Partner, she had already given everything to him in her heart. Regardless of whether she gave him her virginity now or in the future, it didn't make a difference to her. They were tied as one from the very beginning.

In that way, it could be said that Ailsa could be as calculating as Ryu when she wanted to be.

That said, what warmed Ailsa's heart was that even though she could still see that she was under the shadow of another woman, Ryu was faintly placing them on par with one another.

These ideals that Ryu held onto, the ones that made Elena wait a thousand years for their wedding night, the very ones that had kept her out of his heart for so long, were the very ideals that were now pulling her close.

This change in Ryu… How could she not smile sweetly as she observed them?

It was true that the Intimacy between Ryu and Ailsa still hadn't reached the deepest level. In a lot of ways, this was still because the looming shadow of Elena still hung over their heads. Ailsa felt that until Ryu broke into the Immortal Ring Realm and confirmed whether or not his wife was alive or dead, he would never be able to truly open up his heart to her.

But, this was fine as well. Even like things were now, Ailsa was satisfied. At the very least, she could now confirm that she had a place with him.

"Ailsa? Why are you crying?

"

Ryu looked up, only to find a scene that left him almost panicked. Somewhere deep inside, he felt lucky that Elena wasn't a crier. If she had turned on the waterworks instead of trying to seduce him, who knew if he would have been able to protect his virginity for so long?

"Crying? Who's crying? I'm not crying.

"

As though by magic, the tears that had just been on Ailsa's face evaporated into thin air.

"Also, you little fool, what were you thinking staying in Osiris for so long? Didn't I tell you that the longer you stayed in there, the greater the burden on your mind? Didn't I also tell you about Crystals and how lower ranking individuals needed to gather them so they could stay in Osiris for longer?

"But did you listen to me? Nope. Did you gather even a single Crystal? Nope. All you did was sit in a room meditating away in a place I couldn't even enter because of the formations you, yourself, set up. Do you know how worried I was?

"

Ryu was speechless. When had Ailsa become a tsundere? Was he imagining things?

Also… The formation could stop even Ailsa from entering Osiris? Was that because she was his partner and entered through him? Or would it work to stop anyone from entering Osiris? What an interesting tidbit.

Ailsa avoided reading Ryu's thoughts for the first time, afraid that she would only grow more flustered if she did. Who knew how she would react if she knew that Ryu had labeled her a tsundere? Maybe she would throw a real tantrum.

"… On top of that, you disappeared for half a year without even telling me you were going into seclusion! Do you know the kind of upheaval you've missed in the Moon World? The date of the Tri Palace's opening has been moved up and is only two months from now! What would you have done had you missed it?!

"

The more Ailsa spoke, the more embarrassed she became. It was as though she had hopped on a tiger and couldn't get off its back, leaving her in a state of perpetual ranting as though she was hoping Ryu wouldn't notice her odd behavior.

Still, by the time she got to this point, Ryu was only smiling lightly, watching her continue to rant.

When Ailsa saw Ryu's gaze, her expression became as red as a tomato. That look of his seemed to speak a thousand words. It practically breathed out the words:

"I didn't know you could get flustered too?

"

'It's not my fault, dammit! Who asked you to think of all those sweet things?!'

Ailsa was used to Ryu being cold and unmoving. But, he had suddenly gone from that to a horny womanizer in the blink of an eye.

Dammit, he had probably smiled more today than he had in his entire two lives. Doesn't he realize he's too handsome when he does that?!

"Forget it, forget it!

" Ailsa waved a hand, retrieving her dignified big sister appearance and coughing the awkwardness away.

"Since you're so considerate, Big Sis will just have to bring you to a brothel.

"

Ryu coughed at the sudden words.

"… What?

"

"You heard me.

" Ailsa stuck her proud chest out, having finally regained the upper hand.

"If you keep holding yourself back, it wouldn't be long before you undergo cultivation deviation. Or, even worse, pounce on some innocent woman. It's best if we bring you to a brothel to vent out everything you've got in there.

"

Ailsa pointed a slender finger toward Ryu's crotch, her eyes sparkling.

Ryu shook his head.

"Absolutely not. There's another way, right?

"

"Maybe?

" Ailsa batted her eyelashes, taking advantage of the fact Ryu never read her mind to tease him.

But, the words Ryu spoke next left her feeling stunned.

"The Yang Circulation Massage, let's do that.

" Ryu said with a smile.

"You…

" Ailsa choked on her own breath.

"… You … You… You read my thoughts?

"

"Can't I?

" Ryu responded, his smile not fading.

Ailsa felt as though she had suffered a fatal blow. That smile… It was too much.

At that same moment, Ailsa felt her body flooding with strength, growing past the First Path Extinction Stage all the way to the Ninth in the blink of an eye.

She didn't even need to think to understand. Her and Ryu's Intimacy had increased once again so she could show more of her true strength.

Ailsa fell silent, her gaze landing on Ryu's as though this was the first time she was truly seeing him.

However, before she could put her emotions into words, something that was completely unnecessary now that Ryu was reading her thoughts, Little Gem suddenly began to cough violently.

"Little Gem?!

"

The little griffin didn't seem to be able to hear any of Ryu and Ailsa's calls as she continued to cough.

Mouthfuls of black blood began to fly.