Ailsa's arched back collapsed, her delicate features flushed with sweat. Her white dress clung to her skin, leaving nothing to be desired. One could imagine every peak and crevice on her body, even the points of her proud peaks standing at attention.

Her hurried breathing was shallow, no small amount of fragrant liquid dripping between her legs.

She lay in a dazed state, her consciousness feeling hazy. She hardly knew what was going on around her. If it wasn't for the fact Ryu had caught her before she collapsed too heavily, she might have bashed her head into the ground.

At that moment, Ryu slowly awoke from his own stupor. He had almost gotten lost in a completely new world just then.

When he realized that Ailsa was in a half asleep, half awake state beneath him, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Did this woman just orgasm from a kiss? He couldn't say that he didn't feel quite proud, but wasn't she a bit too sensitive?

Not only did she, but it seemed as though she was completely out of commission. She was even mumbling as though sleep talking.

Her arms absentmindedly made their way up, curling around Ryu as she buried her head into his chest. It was only after she did this that she truly fell asleep, beginning to lightly, and quite adorably, snore.

Ryu smiled lightly, rising up and carrying her.

He lay her gently in the bedroom. He almost turned to leave after doing this, but after realizing that her dress was soaked through in sweat, he shook his head.

Ryu gently took her clothing off, revealing her lithe figure. His eyes couldn't help but pause on her chest… The perkiness and size made his breathing heavy. They had the perfect amount of elasticity, the kind of buoyancy Ryu was certain could float on water.

Even now, they were still flushed red and covered in sweat, giving them a particularly enticing visual. Ryu's hand only barely brushed against them, but not only did the softness make him swallow hard, the movement itself caused Ailsa's body to shudder.

He shook his head. She really was too sensitive.

Ryu's gaze drifted down to a pair of white lace panties. Through their see-through fabric, he could see a delicate blond bush that plucked on his heart strings. That was bad enough, but the faint trail of moistness only made it all worse.

Ryu cursed his bloodlines. This was really too much. It wasn't as though he had never seen Ailsa naked before. If he hadn't, he wouldn't have so casually decided to take her clothes off.

Shaking his head, Ryu slowly pulled them down, avoiding direct eye contact. What he couldn't see wouldn't hurt him. He would just leave what was beneath that blond bush to his dreams.

After he was done, Ryu placed a palm on Ailsa's lower belly, a faint frosting spreading out from his hand. To a mortal, this amount would be enough to freeze them to death. But, for Ailsa, it was no different from a cool breeze.

Her sweat was evaporated and purified all while her expression relaxed. Then, Ryu covered her in thick sheets.

Soon, she fell into a deep sleep, leaving Ryu satisfied.

…

Ryu took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind. Unfortunately, there was a raging beast below his belt that didn't seem intent on lying down for the day. But, he couldn't very well ravage an unconscious woman… now could he?

Ryu shook his head again. His beast blood was truly beginning to be a problem. Luckily, he had things to keep his mind off of it. Once again, Ryu began to arrange treasures.

In truth, there was nothing that really caught Ryu's eye. This was to be expected. As someone who had a whole host of Origin Grade treasures, it was no wonder that a treasure vault of that caliber didn't catch his attention.

But, he still managed to find some of the more rare items he might need to refine corpses in the future and even a few things that would be helpful in nurturing Esme. With this, he should be able to help Esme reached the Immortal Ring Realm, finally.

Ryu summoned the Death Worm. His Immortal Cave was indeed large enough to accommodate it with ease.

Not long later, he had Esme strapped to a table in the nude once again. Despite the enticement her body provided, Ryu would never stoop so low as to covet a corpse. He gazed at Esme no differently from the way he would gaze at a block of wood.

Plus, even if Ryu was so inclined to do something so disgusting, exchanging yin and yang with a corpse would not only cripple the corpse, but it would shave years off his lifespan — for men, anyway. One could only do so with either very special and sinister cultivation method, or by avoiding the exchange at all.

But, as one might expect, avoiding the exchange wouldn't help the build up. As cultivators, one's stamina was practically endless, physiologically speaking. What limited the sexual escapades of cultivators was the exchange of yang and yin.

If this step was avoided, Ryu would never be satiated. That was part of the reason those who had such fetishes could only be seen as deviants.

Unlike when she was alive, Esme showed no fear in this position.

To one side of him, he had the Body of an Herbologist Tome open, and on the other, he had numerous herbs carefully picked out and prepared.

'This trip to Tri Palace should provide me some good corpse puppets. With my level of control currently, it's a shame that I only have one… But, lowering my quality is unacceptable.'

Esme was a surprising talent that Ryu had stumbled upon, but he wouldn't get so lucky in the future. He would have to actively search for his next puppets.

Ryu got to work, the days ticking by. Every so often, he would laugh to himself, realizing that Ailsa was definitely avoiding him. It seemed that she was very embarrassed about her previous display.

Almost two weeks later, Ryu suddenly felt a vibration from his Osiris Ring.

'Hm? Seems they need help again.'