Fortunately, it was Dongyue who had let go first, as he felt the heat of his own arousal!
Indeed, it was no fun being an unsuspecting virginal man. He didn't even know what he was feeling now.
The ice beauty glared at him. Even if she couldn't harm him with her powers, she could give him a thrashing for messing with her! With her bare feet, she sent a kick flying in his side!
"Serves you right," she grumbled. "Trying to have my tofu without my consent?"
The man had a smug look about him.
"If it comes to me being after your tofu, you are mistaken, Miss Muxue. I only brushed my lips against yours, and our lips merely touched slightly. It was you who devoured my lips! So am I right, that you wanted my tofu instead?"
She pouted and crossed her hands across her chest.
"Young Master Zhan, you should stay your distance from me. After all, I am a cursed witch who will bring you bad luck. You should listen to the word of the guards."
"Then, if it is so, why did they bring me to you, then?" he teased her playfully. "Isn't it a matter of fate between us?"
Her eyes flared with rage. "No, because I am the proprietress of the only inn in the whole of Muxue!"
"Then, for what angered you, just put it on the tab then." He said his words with such calmness that it annoyed her even more.
"Are you men of Han descent all like that?" she yelled at him, irked. "You don't take responsibility for what you do, and you leave without a word." She was implying to what Hanshan had done in their past friendship, but she didn't expect him such a big reaction from Dongyue.
"I, Zhan Dongyue, am not of the sort!" he shouted, trying to step in front of her, as his hands waved frantically as if he wanted to prove his point. His eyes looked anxious, and he was breathing very quickly.
"You're no different from Hanshan," she said angrily. "Once you fall in love with a beauty, you will forget whatever you said, or treat what you did as something dispensable! Is money a solution for rich people like you?"
He came closer to her and gazed into her eyes. She found herself inclined to return his gaze, and their eyes locked.
"I swear I am not of that sort," he said tenderly. "Because I won't fall in love with any beauty!"
"Why is that?" she said, forgetting herself and looking back at him. The moment she stared into his eyes, she felt a feeling that man didn't seem like Hanshan or any of the men in Muxue. Something about the emotion he carried in his eyes compelled her to trust him. But why would he not fall in love with any beauty, then?
"That's because I've fallen in love with you," he whispered. She couldn't believe her ears, but the man didn't seem to be joking at all. This man was audacious, indeed!"
"What nonsense are you spewing?" she glared at him, cutting off their eye contact.
"I am serious," he said. "Why don't you believe in a fate between us?"
"I'm a witch, you should fear me," she said, and he took her into his arms without further thought.
"Try me," he said. "I was born during a period of mourning and said to have the horoscope of the Doom Star. I am everyone's bane, but your liberator."
She didn't fathom what was it about this strange traveller that made her feel not like herself and sought the answer in his eyes. There was a particular pain in his eyes that reminded her of her own self, but at the same time, she found hope in the emotional look in his eyes. As he held her, she felt warm and relaxed in his arms.
"Miss Muxue, I've never hugged or held a woman like this before," he whispered. "You are the first. You are also the first woman to touch my heart."
She did not attempt to leave his arms, thinking about her curse. After all, if this traveller had meant to hurt her, he would have done so long ago. Why wait until now?
But then, the fact that he had a brutal horoscope was indeed a rare phenomenon. Maybe he could be of some use to her. She stared into his eyes again and wondered how true were each of the words he had just said to her.
He didn't seem to be lying. A true witch could see through a normal human's lies in mere seconds.
"What do you seek to gain out of this?" she asked him gently.
"Miss Muxue, I don't know," he said truthfully. "I've never loved a woman before, and I only hope that my answer will be satisfactory to you."
"I don't need your servitude," she said coldly. "Nor your protection. My only order is that you keep what you have seen tonight to yourself and take it to your grave, or I will kill you with my own hands."
He released her and stroked her cheek lightly, sending chills down her spine.
"Miss Muxue, I give you my vow that I will keep what happened tonight to myself. May I at least, escort you back tonight?"
She shoved his hand away. "There's no need. I am not a child."
She stormed towards her heap of clothing and picked up her magical ice dagger, pocketing it swiftly and fetching the rest of her garments. Activating her dash skill that required the presence of her dagger, she materialised in front of him in a split second.
"How...did you do that?" he was amazed.
To his horror, she had poised the dagger just over his throat.
"Say one word about tonight, and I will have your head on a platter, as a sacrifice to my ancestors," she hissed in an icy tone. But she had underestimated Dongyue, who was a skilled martial artist. In a flash, he had swiped her dagger and was standing before her, with the dagger in his hand.
"You…" she gnashed her teeth in anger. "Just what have I done to incur this from you?"
"Miss Muxue," he said with a sinister smile, "You intrigue me. You make me desire you, every night and day. Even before tonight, I've already been in awe about how you look like, and tonight, I've got to experience it for myself."
Her heart raced wildly as he placed his lips on hers and kissed her again, this time with a bit more intensity. As she had never felt like this with Hanshan, she was astonished by how she was responding to his kisses. It appeared the man had learned quickly because, in no time, she found herself pinned to the ground by his larger body. But after a few long seconds, he let go, and she gasped, feeling the fire of her passion douse her once more.
"Miss Muxue, I apologise for behaving inappropriately," the man said, bowing his head in apology while offering her the dagger. "But you will probably be the only woman to provoke me like this. In Yilong, such actions mean that I should pledge myself to you as your husband."
She found herself blushing as he had said the word husband, and accepted the dagger hastily, before turning away. Fortunately, he had not noticed the redness in her cheeks.
"I don't need a husband, and this is Muxue."
Her words were sharp and cold, sparking pain within his heart.
When he woke up the next morning after twisting and turning all night, Dongyue was still a bit forlorn. Her icy words repeated themselves in his mind, taking sleep away from him as he confusedly thought of Muxue Xiyu’s glittering large eyes again and again.Why? Why? Why? He questioned himself. She didn’t need
Xu Hanshan looked very solemn as he stepped into the red-painted doors of the Crimson Fairy. A year ago, he had sworn an oath to his wife Wang Xi'er, that no matter what, he would not meet the cursed witch that he had grown up with.But now, it seemed that he would have to break his promise to her because there was no other way o
“Miss Muxue, it is inappropriate for us to behave in this way,” he said, pulling his coarser lips away from her cherry lips.What did he mean? She was startled by his claim. Was he looking down on her because she was a witch?
Hanshan bowed his head in reverence.“Kind Sir, I would be most grateful if you could indeed save my Xi’er. I will promise you anything.”
Western LakeAt the venue promised, Xu Hanshan stood with a grave look on his face, wearing a dark outfit. Dongyue arrived at the lake, flanked by his companions. Upon seeing the man approach,
Xiao Tian jolted up in his sleep.The image of the woman in his dreams appeared to be a bit clearer now. The woman in grey smiled upon him in sheer brilliance as her hair hung loosely, billowing in the wind. Her eyes were downcast, and though she was smiling, she appeared remorseful, like she was guilt
The next dayIn those days, houses or even inns would have a trap door leading undergr
Not only had the sudden radiance astounded the four of them, but they were also immobilised for a few seconds, before being able to move again.Dongyue glanced at Xiyu, whose hand was still in his, and she coldly took her hand away from his big paw without saying a single word.
It felt like only yesterday they had come to Xuancang Mountains. Now, it was time for the couple to bid their goodbyes to the structure, that would always remain a mystery to Zhan Dongyue. Save for making a few final arrangements, the three of them, along with Xiao Tian, were prepared to seal the temple and return to the island. Xiyu was mindful of how long it had been since she had left the island into the portal that led into the Xuancang Mountains. She missed her lands and her people, but a question remained in her mind. Would they ever be able to return to Xuancang again, if they wished? “Is everything ready?” Xiyu asked Dongyue. She noticed how forlorn he had been after she had revealed the truth of how the bulls had treated their companions. However, there was nothing much he could do at this point, and Yan had already decreed for the bulls to be executed for treason some days ago. “Master is still by Goddess Ao Yun’s coffin, bidding his goodbyes,” Comm
As with the announcement the other day, drums sounded again to assemble them at the hall of Muxue Yan’s chambers. By now, Xiyu was beginning to realise her biological father had regained most, if not all, of his lost powers. Her ‘mother’ had often told her stories of how the chained man in the mountains had met his demise.Now that she thought of it, what had those tales, that she had heard so clearly even from others, said? The chained man had been betrayed by his kin. Though she was unclear of the identities of the people who had gone against him, she knew their combined powers had to be akin to his, or even more powerful to overwhelm him. She would never fathom the pain of betrayal.Beside Yan, Dongyue was her only kin now, having forged the union of a soul and ritual bonding along with marriage. The union would strengthen their ties in time to come, and if they performed dual-cultivation, they could work their ways to become an unparalleled pair.&
Dongyue slipped her out of her garments readily. He took her by the hand, leading her to the end of the room. He pulled on a small hidden lever in the Temple to reveal an unseen exit. This exit, surprisingly, took them into another room, a bathroom. It had not occurred to her how he had found out about this room’s existence, or why Muxue Yan needed to build a bathroom in his temple. As an extension of his mind and wishes, bricks and earth did not make the structure, but the power he had come to own after being corrupted by evil.
Everything was faint when Xiao Tian opened his eyes. It was like he was reliving his nightmare. The first time, he had been a swordsman, practising the arts in the solitude of the mountains, when they were all assaulted by a group of masked invaders. His master was nowhere to be found, and his martial brothers were massacred.They had been murdered over gold and a f
“Xiyu, are you alright?” Dongyue appeared concerned.She was looking blankly at the walls of her rooms, still absorbed by Yan’s words earlier. She had come to appreciate that in Muxue, marriage was more of an obligation rather than due to love. She saw the same for the other residents of the island. Wang Xi’er had been offered to Hanshan in marriag
Hours later, Xiyu found herself standing, now in a bright commemorative red dress, in an assembly as Yan made his speech majestically from a stage. Dongyue was beside her, similarly dressed in a red matching suit. Now that her spellcasting abilities were restored and her health back to almost her usual self, she appeared striking. Red appeared to accentuate her snowy-white skin.
It was a wondrous feeling for her.Dongyue’s gaze never left hers, deeply immersed in the mystery behind the galaxy of emotions within her dazzling supernovas. Like in the ritual chambers, she lost all sensation of pain, allowing him to wrap her intimately around his larger torso.
Ritual (continued)Dongyue knew from what he had read that within minutes he would temporarily relinquish control over his own body, submitting to the call of desire. He had no idea what that meant, but possibly that was what Xiyu was going through at the moment. He looked at her, and his chest throbb
“Xiyu, Xiyu. You must not sleep,” Dongyue strived to speak emotionally, confused by all what was going through him now. His eyes were now streaked with tears; the connection was weak. She was in imminent danger. Pain shot through his abdomen, mirroring what she was going through at the same time.Xiyu was unconscious but shivering badly, with beads of cold swe