AMRWFA -Chapter 267 Playing Along vs. Making It Real

“President Ruan is right. You say it was just playing along—but how far did you go with those women? Don’t tell me it was just holding hands and going shopping. Did you sleep with them?” Lu Baojing was bold, directly voicing what Ruan Yaoyao had implied.

Ruan Yaoyao let out a sigh of relief.

【Looks like this girl isn’t stupid—she knows what she wants.】

【That scared me. I thought today’s events would overwhelm her and she’d just ‘forgive’ this guy and run off with him.】

“I didn’t have a choice!” Wang Yukai said helplessly. He had hoped to dodge the question, but it was still exposed.

He shot Ruan Yaoyao a glare, then said to Lu Baojing, “I’m a Calamity Trial participant. Do you know what that means? Extreme disasters—like the current situation. Don’t you feel how hot it is?”

Lu Baojing wiped the sweat from her face. “This looks like a desert. Isn’t it normal for it to be hot?”

She wasn’t some clueless fool with no basic common sense.

Ruan Yaoyao: 【Yeah, shut him down!】

【Don’t let him take the upper hand!】

【He’s your man—if you’re upset and don’t take it out on him, then who will you take it out on?】

Ruan Zhihe silently agreed.

“That’s because it’s night. During the day, people can barely even walk in the desert. Imagine a place with extreme water shortages and scarce resources—forget food and clothing, people can’t even guarantee their own survival. In that kind of environment, what’s most likely to happen?” Wang Yukai asked seriously.

“Violence?” Lu Baojing guessed.

“Exactly. It’s a lawless world where the strong prey on the weak. And as a task participant, I’m in even greater danger,” Wang Yukai said. “If I want to survive, I have to do everything I can to grow stronger—even if the method is… hard to talk about.”

“I still don’t understand. What does that have to do with what you’re trying to explain?”

Wang Yukai said, “I cultivate the Art of Absorbing Yin to Nourish Yang.”

Lu Baojing: “……”

She suddenly understood.

And then immediately wished she didn’t.

Rationally, she knew he did it to survive—but emotionally…

【So that’s it. I was wondering why he kept finding so many women—turns out it’s for yin harvesting…】

Ruan Yaoyao gave Wang Yukai a strange look. “So you’re saying this is your only option? Aside from that technique, you had no other way? Those talismans you showed earlier didn’t seem related to this, did they?”

【He can fool a young girl, but at the end of the day, isn’t it just because he’s lustful?】

【If he didn’t have those desires, couldn’t he have chosen another cultivation method?】

Ruan Yaoyao thought of her own collection of cultivation manuals.

Ruan Zhihe did too.

With so many manuals to choose from, Aunt Xu had never picked anything that sounded this… questionable.

Even in cultivation, there should be principles.

Wang Yukai was clearly displeased with Ruan Yaoyao, feeling she was just picking faults with him. “This is the best method. If I had chosen something else, I might not even be standing here right now… Jingjing, you wouldn’t want me to die, would you?”

He looked at Lu Baojing with sorrowful eyes.

But her gaze toward him was filled with shock and pain—deeply conflicted.

“Do you think I’d want you to die?”

Wang Yukai lit up. “I knew it—you wouldn’t want me to die, Jingjing, I—”

“Don’t say it. I understand. You’re saying you did it just to survive, right?” Lu Baojing said. “I’m glad you’re alive. Truly, I am. But… I’m still very sad. I’m sorry.”

Tears streamed down her face, because she knew clearly—they were over.

He did it to survive. She couldn’t ask him to risk his life by giving up that method.

But at the same time, she couldn’t accept that her future husband would be involved with other women.

Sorry—she was selfish.

Covering her face, she crouched down.

“Jingjing…” Wang Yukai’s heart ached. He quickly crouched in front of her, trying to comfort her. “I’m sorry, it’s all my fault. If I hadn’t become a Calamity Trial participant, we wouldn’t have ended up like this. Jingjing, I didn’t want to lie to you—I just didn’t want you to get hurt, so I kept it from you…I thought I could bear all this alone. And you—you just needed to live happily, go to work, come home, and wait for me. In the future, we’d have a son and a daughter—the boy would look like me, the girl like you. We’d be the happiest couple in the world…”

Wang Yukai was still fantasizing about that beautiful future.

In his mind, Lu Baojing would definitely “forgive” him. After all, he was forced into it—he didn’t want this either.

【Hypocrite!】

【If you’re lustful, just admit it. Why pretend you’re innocent and forced into it?】

【So hypocritical!】

【Ha!】

【Men like this—so long as their own interests aren’t harmed, they’ll find countless reasons to make others accept their pain and forgive their mistakes.】

【Who does he think he is?】

【The king of heaven?】

【Wants everything his way—dream on.】

Ruan Yaoyao shattered the mood, speaking up, “So by your logic, you’re basically a cultivator from a novel now, right? Then Jingjing should be able to cultivate too, shouldn’t she? Since she’s the woman you love and your future wife, how about this—you teach her your method and take her along on missions? You practice yin absorption—so just switch it around. She can practice yang absorption instead. Then Jingjing can be like you—find multiple men, strengthen herself, maybe even make a name for herself in the trial space and help you out. Wouldn’t that make things easier for you?”

Wang Yukai’s face turned green instantly. He shot Ruan Yaoyao a furious glare. “Shut up! I’ve tolerated you for long enough! Who do you think you are? Just because you’re Lu Rulan’s boss, you think you can boss everyone around? I’m not your subordinate!”

【Oh?】

【Now he’s angry?】

【Looks like I hit a nerve!】

Ruan Yaoyao wasn’t afraid at all. She glanced at her fingernails and said, “Did I say anything wrong? Why so nervous? Afraid I’ll teach your girlfriend? It’s modern times—gender equality. If you can do it, why can’t she? What—you can absorb yin to nourish yang and force your girlfriend to forgive you and stay with you, but if she absorbs yang to nourish yin, you can’t take it? You’d think she’s cheating on you? Tsk tsk… that’s some serious double standards.”

Lu Rulan: Well said, President Ruan!

Lu Baojing, who had never even considered forgiving him and was still heartbroken: “……”

Exactly. They were both human—why did she have to “forgive” him, while he couldn’t accept her doing the same?

Noticing her gaze, Wang Yukai quickly explained. It wasn’t that he wouldn’t let her cultivate—the Calamity Trial had strict rules: each trial space only allowed one participant. Even if she cultivated, she couldn’t help him.

Also, he only knew Absorbing Yin to Nourish Yang—he didn’t know the reverse technique.

“The Calamity Trials are too dangerous. One mistake and you’re dead. Jingjing, I don’t want you to face any danger…”