When Lu Chengsha woke up, he immediately sensed that something was off. His body felt heavy, as if something was pressing on him. Moreover, there was a person clinging to him with their limbs wrapped around his body. This was extremely strange. He was always vigilant, even in his sleep. If someone approached to attack, he would definitely notice.
But now, he had not only failed to notice the person’s approach but had also slept deeply.
Judging by his physical condition, he deduced that he had slept for at least three hours without moving, causing a slight numbness in his arm being pressed down.
Lowering his head, he saw a person with long black hair cascading like a waterfall across his chest. Looking further down, he could only see the person’s small earlobes, pointed nose, and rosy lips—it was a woman.
This was even more bizarre.
Lu Chengsha tried to pull his arm out. It should have been a simple task, but he inexplicably felt a sense of nervousness that he couldn’t understand. What should have been a straightforward action became drawn out, resulting in…
“…Oh, you’re awake?” The woman lifted her head, sleepily glanced at him, and, still looking very tired, buried her face into his shoulder and said, “Let me sleep a bit longer.”
Her voice was tinged with drowsiness, unclear, and had a peculiar accent.
Lu Chengsha’s heart skipped a beat, but he quickly realized something was wrong. He instinctively reached for his sword…
Wait, where was his ever-present sword?
He then noticed that he was lying on a bed, wearing only his undergarments, and the bed was unfamiliar, not his own.
Everything pointed to one thing—there was something wrong with this woman.
She lay on him without any defense, without a hint of malice or discernible intent, yet she clearly had martial arts skills. Lu Chengsha sat up, pressing his hand against her throat. However, as he moved, the quilt covering them slipped off.
Under the quilt, the first thing that caught his eye was the woman’s smooth shoulder, followed by a back as white as snow, dotted with small red marks and some messy handprints, especially around her waist…
Lu Chengsha’s pupils contracted.
The woman’s shoulders shrank as she murmured, “So cold…”
Before he realized what he was doing, Lu Chengsha had already pulled the quilt back over her.
His eyesight was remarkable, and he instantly recognized that the handprints were his own.
However, Lu Chengsha had no recollection of this.
He began to feel a subtle confusion. If his intention had been to kill her, he shouldn’t have used such little force. But if not to kill her, why would he be grabbing her? For interrogation? The force used didn’t align with that purpose either.
Moreover, Lu Chengsha had never had a penchant for torturing people; he usually resolved things with a swift kill.
The skin under his palm was warm and smooth, which stirred something inexplicable in Lu Chengsha’s heart. Gripping her neck was a habitual action for him; once he sensed something amiss, a slight exertion of force would suffice to break it. Yet, despite the numerous doubts surrounding this woman, he found himself unable to do so.
Lu Chengsha grew even more perplexed. After thinking for a while, he concluded that perhaps he wanted to find out what exactly had happened.
He pushed her.
Lu Chengsha’s pushes were typically straightforward and forceful, intended to wake someone up, so they weren’t gentle. However, he now found himself using an absurdly small amount of force.
The woman finally woke up, shook her head, rubbed her eyes, and sat up. The quilt slid off her shoulders again, revealing two smooth curves rising from her chest in the dim light.
Lu Chengsha quickly averted his gaze, feeling his cheeks grow hot.
Even worse, he felt a heat rising from beneath him.
This bizarre situation was beginning to exceed Lu Chengsha’s ability to cope.
Beside him, he heard some rustling sounds, as if she was putting on clothes. However, the sounds soon stopped, and the woman said, “No, I’m still so sleepy… It’s not time for me to get up yet. Sha Sha, sleep with me a bit longer.”
Sha Sha?
Was she calling him?
Lu Chengsha was momentarily stunned.
But it seemed she indeed was calling him. Her hands reached out to him, and his instinct was to break her arm. Yet, upon gripping it, he felt a strange familiarity and couldn’t bring himself to do it. The woman simply clung to him, pulling him back into the bed.
Lu Chengsha held her wrist, pinned under her, his body rigid.
He had never expected to be so helpless and unsure of what to do because of a woman. He should have gotten up, found his clothes, retrieved his sword, and figured out what had happened. If she was an enemy, he could have easily killed her with one strike, but now…
The woman lay on him again, drowsily falling asleep, showing no fear of him at all.
Lu Chengsha remained in this deadlock for a full quarter of an hour.
It was the longest fifteen minutes of his life.
He raised his hand, intending to push her off him, but she was wearing so little that he didn’t know where to place his hand. He had never been like this before. Lu Chengsha had never had the thought of being lenient just because it was a woman. Yet now, his body was strangely hot, and even the slightest touch of her skin made him feel overwhelmed by that weird sensation. It was extremely odd.
Lu Chengsha’s fingertips touched her shoulder a few times.
She finally responded, moved up an inch, and leaned in to give him a loud kiss on the cheek. Her soft lips even brushed against the corner of his mouth before she lay back down to sleep.
Leaving behind a stunned and rigid Lu Chengsha.
He didn’t even know why he was so shocked.
Was this something to be shocked about?
He should—
Lu Chengsha’s mind seemed to come to a standstill; no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t think of what to do. However, his body reacted first. He extended his long arm and pulled the half-awake woman into his embrace.
She ended up nestled in his arms, their bodies tightly pressed together, almost inseparable.
Lu Chengsha: “…”
Hua Yan, still drowsy, thought that Lu Chengsha was particularly clingy this morning. Not only was he touching and holding her, but even after she had kissed him, he still wasn’t satisfied and insisted on hugging her to sleep. How was she supposed to sleep like this?
Moreover, his stamina was astonishing. Last night wasn’t enough for him?
Just let me sleep!
She muttered as she snuggled closer and whispered a few words in Lu Chengsha’s ear. He didn’t react at all, as if he didn’t understand… How could he not understand? Hua Yan thought, and then reached her hand downward.
Lu Chengsha’s whole body tensed up.
Not only did his body stiffen, but his hands and feet were also at a loss. Even his usually clear mind turned into a muddled mess, as if he was trapped in an inexplicable haze, drifting and unable to return to his own body.
Lu Chengsha felt that in his entire twenty-odd years of life, he had never experienced such a moment—so embarrassed and helpless.
And yet, he couldn’t resist.
It even gave him a fleeting feeling of suffocation, as if he might die here.
Could she really be here to kill him?
Lu Chengsha thought dazedly.
After this commotion, Hua Yan couldn’t sleep either. She called for someone to bring water, then dozed for a while longer. When the water finally arrived, she removed the last bits of clothing and soaked in it, slowly waking up. She suddenly noticed that Lu Chengsha was still lying on the bed, motionless.
Hua Yan scooped up some water and washed herself before saying, “Do you want to come in and wash together?”
The bathtub was quite large.
Lu Chengsha remained stiff on the bed, not moving an inch.
Hmm? Could he be sick?
Hua Yan, thinking he might be ill, quickly finished washing and donned a thin robe before returning to the bed. She reached out to touch his forehead, “What’s wrong? Your face is so red…”
Lu Chengsha was still in a daze. When he turned his head and saw the faintly visible curves beneath her hastily thrown-on robe, his momentary clarity vanished once again.
To his surprise, she even reached for his pulse.
Lu Chengsha snapped back to his senses just as her hand rested on his wrist. He was startled, wondering how his vigilance could have dropped to such a level. If she wanted to kill him, he would have been dead by now.
Thinking this, Lu Chengsha’s sense of danger heightened.
He grabbed her, intending to ask what was going on, why he was here, and who she really was.
However, he didn’t expect her to be so defenseless around him. As he pulled her, she fell into his arms, her slightly damp hair bringing a faint fragrance. She spoke in that peculiar accent, “Stop messing with me! My legs are still sore.” She seemed utterly unaware of any danger and continued, “Are you going to wash or not? I’m getting hungry.” She even patted her small belly.
Lu Chengsha involuntarily followed her hand with his gaze to her abdomen, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
For reasons he couldn’t comprehend, he felt a strange, inexplicable anticipation.
Just then, a voice called from outside the door.
“Uh, Holy Maiden, are you in there…”
Lu Chengsha froze.
She, however, calmly adjusted her hair and turned her head, “Oh, what is it?”
“It’s something very important, quite urgent… no, extremely urgent!”
“Just wait a moment, I’ll be out soon.” She started to get out of bed.
Was she really going to meet someone like this?
Even though it had nothing to do with him, Lu Chengsha felt an inexplicable surge of irritation. This annoyance was overwhelming, and he grabbed her again, “Are you going out?”
She responded naturally, “Yes, I need to find out what’s going on. You stay here, I’ll check.”
Lu Chengsha held her hand but didn’t want to let go.
“What’s wrong with you?” Her tone rose, with a subtle hint of dissatisfaction beyond her usual accent.
This dissatisfaction made Lu Chengsha inexplicably nervous for a moment.
He slowly released her hand but couldn’t help saying, “Put your clothes on properly.”
She suddenly smiled, her big eyes blinking brightly, “Of course, I’ll dress properly! I can’t go out looking like this!” Her cheeks flushed, “I only look like this in front of you.”
Somehow, Lu Chengsha felt a sudden sense of comfort and peace at her words.
Even as she got out of bed to dress and prepare, he didn’t think of doing anything else. Simply watching her was enough to occupy his mind entirely.
She dressed, opened the door, and a flash of purple passed through the gap.
A member of the Demonic Sect!
Lu Chengsha instinctively sprang up and reached for his sword, which was not far off, lying by the bed frame. Strangely, he hadn’t noticed it before. Grabbing his sword, his killing intent surged as he prepared to kill.
The purple-clad hall master of the Demonic Sect anxiously said to her, “…Holy Maiden, it’s about the new type of Forget-Sorrow Gu. It’s so concealed that we only just realized one is missing. It seems to have disappeared around here… we were wondering if you…”
She thought for a moment and replied, “I haven’t lost any memory, and neither has he…”
Lu Chengsha, with his sword in hand and a chilling expression, charged out, his killing intent overwhelming and unyielding.
The purple-clad hall master immediately said, “I’m sorry, I’ll leave right away!” With that, he fled in haste.
Lu Chengsha was about to give chase, but before he could leap out of the courtyard, she grabbed the hem of his clothes. She looked at him quizzically and asked, “What are you doing?”
Lu Chengsha didn’t know why he felt compelled to answer her, but he did, “Killing.”
Hua Yan was startled, “That new type of Forget-Sorrow Gu he mentioned had some issues, but you don’t have to… wait…” She stared into Lu Chengsha’s eyes, sensing something was wrong. “What’s my name?”
Lu Chengsha was stumped.
She pointed at herself and asked, “What am I to you?”
Lu Chengsha: “…”
Hua Yan nearly cursed in her heart but managed to keep her voice steady, “Don’t tell me you’ve lost your memory…?”
Lu Chengsha blinked suspiciously.
Alright, she understood.
Hua Yan pulled out a silk fan from her sleeve and stood up, ready to give chase.
Lu Chengsha instinctively asked, “Where are you going?”
“To kill him!” she replied.
Lu Chengsha was taken aback, “Aren’t you on the same side?”
He hadn’t thought it through—whether he didn’t know, didn’t want to, or didn’t care.
“Who’s on his side?” Hua Yan stepped back, her expression serious. “I’m on your side.”
Then why are you stepping back?
Lu Chengsha started to feel that subtle annoyance again.
***
Hua Yan hadn’t expected the situation to repeat itself. The hall master, who had been negligent with the Gu, received a stern reprimand from her. She ordered him not to make the Gu so small in the future—at least make them detectable by the Gu King.
“But… my silver taels…” the hall master hesitated, “Holy Maiden, I worked so hard on this research for so long…”
Hua Yan coldly replied, “Don’t even think about it. For the next three years… no, five years, don’t expect any more funding. Make do with what you have. Or else…” Her eyes shifted slightly.
A black-clad man stood at the doorway, holding a pitch-black long sword. His cold, dark eyes radiated a chilling aura, and he looked as though he was eager to settle scores with a single thrust of his sword.
The hall master swallowed hard, silently nodding with a mix of grievance and resignation.