The Decisive Battle Attire

Feiluo’s delicate hand clasped a nightdress.

The garment, white and somewhat translucent, appeared to be crafted from the silk of spirit silkworms, its touch an unparalleled caress of smoothness against the skin.

Of course, a mere ordinary nightdress could never have provoked such a furious blush from Feiluo.

This particular nightdress, however, was unlike any other; its scant fabric barely concealed her chest and lower body, with a wisp of sheer gauze draped across the bust so thin it was practically invisible.

A few delicate ribbons connected the upper and lower sections, dangling suggestively.

Countless other details, too numerous to list, collectively rendered the nightdress precisely the sort a submissive character would wear in the yuri manga Feiluo occasionally indulged in.

‘Shameless!’

‘This is practically a Qīngqú (TL Note: A type of extremely revealing nightdress, often associated with seduction or promiscuity) nightdress!’

‘No!’

‘This is a Qīngqú nightdress!’

With her face burning crimson, Feiluo indignantly crumpled the nightdress into a tight ball and hurled it into the far corner of her room.

“This is…”

As Feiluo picked up the gift box, poised to incinerate it with a burst of Phoenix Fire, her eyes were suddenly drawn to a small card nestled at the bottom.

‘Written by Hua Yingyue?’

She picked up the card and began to read the inscription.

The script was exquisitely delicate, resembling the refined penmanship of a cultured young lady, utterly at odds with Hua Yingyue’s usual mischievous nature.

‘Junior Sister Feiluo, by the time you read this card, I imagine you’ve already discovered the gift I sent you, haven’t you?’

‘And I’ll wager you’ve already balled up that nightdress, your face crimson with embarrassment, and tossed it aside, haven’t you?’

Upon reading this, Feiluo cast a sidelong glance at the nightdress in the corner, then, channeling her spiritual energy, she conjured a fiery red spiritual hand to retrieve the garment.

‘Hmph!’

‘You couldn’t be more wrong!’ Feiluo fumed inwardly.

‘Bringing it back won’t change anything; you’re merely deceiving yourself.’

‘Don’t bother asking how I know; Junior Sister Feiluo’s reactions are simply too transparent.’

The hand clutching the card tightened, causing the stiff paper to bend and crease under the pressure.

‘My fist is clenching, clenching!’

‘My fist is clenched!’

Feiluo felt an inferno of boundless rage ignite within her; if Hua Yingyue were to appear before her at this very moment, she would undoubtedly plant a fist squarely on her face!

‘Ahem, but I digress. Back to the matter of the gift.’

‘Junior Sister Feiluo, you must be burning with curiosity as to why I sent you such an item, aren’t you?’

Feiluo nodded unconsciously, only to realize the foolishness of her action a moment later.

Hua Yingyue wasn’t even present; why was she nodding?

‘Hmph, it’s all Hua Yingyue’s fault!’

‘If not for her meddling with such things, why would I be reacting this way?’

Having successfully shifted the blame entirely onto Hua Yingyue, Feiluo felt her mood significantly improve and returned her gaze to the card.

‘I initially thought of letting you guess, but there isn’t much blank space left on this card, so I’ll spare you the trouble and just tell you the reason directly.’

‘Were you perhaps expecting me to launch into some elaborate tale?’

‘Heh heh! No story at all!’

‘If I absolutely must give a reason, it’s simply that I feel Junior Sister Feiluo has reached a certain age, and it’s high time you found some sweet, soft girls to snuggle up with!’

‘This nightdress, you see, is my gift to you: your ultimate battle attire!’

‘Use it to conquer and claim one beautiful maiden after another!’

‘And if you feel the need to thank me, don’t bother; this is merely a Senior Sister’s duty!’

—Hua Yingyue.

The card was ripped to shreds.

With an utterly blank expression, Feiluo incinerated the card fragments in her hand with a burst of Phoenix Fire, leaving not even a speck of ash behind.

The unfortunate nightdress, once again, found itself forlornly discarded in the corner of the room.

She sat blankly on her bed for a moment, then, forming a hand seal, activated the sound-proofing array within the room.

Only then did she unleash a furious roar: “Thank you for nothing, you mischievous Senior Sister!”

As if expelling all the pent-up fury from her heart, Feiluo felt a significant portion of her anger dissipate.

“Hmph, just you wait until you return from your cultivation in the secret realm; I swear I’ll give you a thorough thrashing!”

“I mean it! No one will be able to talk me out of it!”

Feiluo mumbled under her breath, then reached for a novel from a nearby stack of books to resume reading.

She read for a while, yet Feiluo felt as though the words held no meaning for her.

Her mind was a tumultuous mess, and not a single word of the novel managed to penetrate her thoughts.

Her gaze drifted, her eyes naturally settling upon the nightdress still lying in the corner.

Her thoughts, unbidden, began to conjure images of how stunning her own Master would appear in such an outfit.

‘White hair and a white nightdress would surely complement each other beautifully, wouldn’t they?’

Feiluo’s mind wandered aimlessly, and the rhythmic turning of pages in her hand gradually ceased.

‘No, how could I possibly imagine Master wearing such an outfit!’

‘That would be utterly disrespectful!’

Feiluo shook her head vigorously, attempting to dislodge these errant thoughts from her mind.

‘Hmm…’

‘But if I were to wear it for Master, that should be perfectly acceptable, right?’

‘I wonder what Master’s reaction would be if she saw me dressed in such a manner.’

‘Perhaps she’d find it quite fetching?’

‘Then…’

Feiluo continued to lose herself in these elaborate fantasies, until, snapping back to reality, she found herself standing before her mirror, inexplicably clad in the very nightdress that had been discarded in the corner.

“Oh, my~”

Feiluo’s delicate face was a fiery scarlet, her gaze flitting nervously as she scrutinized her reflection.

Occasionally, she would murmur exclamations like, “This is far too daring~,” or “Oh, wow, there’s actually an opening here!”

“Knock, knock, knock.”

“My dear disciple, dinner’s ready.”

“Whoa!”

The sudden knocking startled Feiluo, causing her to jump.

Upon hearing Moxi’s words, she instinctively patted her modest chest, calming her startled nerves before calling out towards the door:

“I know! I’ll be right out!”

However, the knocking did not cease as she anticipated; instead, it persisted, and Moxi’s voice continued to drift through the door.

“Are you still asleep? The sun has already dipped below the horizon.”

‘Eh?’

‘Didn’t I just say I’d be right out?’

‘Why is Master still knocking?’

‘Could she not have heard my voice?’

With no time for further thought, Feiluo hastily called out, “I’m not asleep! I’m coming out right now!”

“Knock, knock, knock.”

“My dear disciple sleeps so soundly, does she? It seems I’ll have to intervene personally!”

The sounds from outside persisted.

It was then, amidst her mounting panic, that a realization finally dawned upon Feiluo: she had activated the room’s sound-proofing array.

This particular array possessed the ability to block sounds from within the room, from outside the room, or both concurrently.

Earlier, when she had roared at Hua Yingyue, she had engaged the array’s internal sound-isolation feature, lest her furious outburst reverberate throughout the entire cave dwelling.

Understanding why Moxi couldn’t hear her, Feiluo frantically moved to deactivate the sound-proofing array.

But before she could even form the necessary hand seal, there was a distinct “Click.”

The sound of the door latch turning echoed through the room.

“My dear disciple, wake up, it’s time for din—”

Moxi spoke as she entered the room, only to find Feiluo standing there, clad in the Qīngqú nightdress.

Their eyes met.

Moxi remained silent for a moment, saying nothing, before taking a few steps back and quietly closing the door, as if rewinding a scene.

Feiluo was left frozen in place, her face a vivid crimson, her eyes spiraling into dizzying whirlpools, and steam seemingly rising from the top of her head.

‘I’m finished, finished, finished, finished, finished…’

‘It’s a social death! I’ve suffered a social death!’

‘And in front of my most beloved Master, no less!’

‘What should I do, what should I do, what should I do…’

‘That’s right! Since it’s already come to this, I might as well go all out!’

“Waaaaaah!”