Sang Dai felt that Su Xuan was really like a little princess.
The little fox leaned against the crook of her neck, lightly biting the soft flesh of her neck, using his sharp teeth to rub against it as though venting his frustration.
“Su Xuan, let go of me first.” Sang Dai pushed him, but the fox’s claws held on tightly.
“Coax me.”
Changmang: “Tsk.”
Qingwu: “Exactly like this!”
Their master was a fox spirit, and of course, a fox spirit had to utilize his fox spirit tricks!
Sang Dai’s face turned red with embarrassment and, in one motion, threw Changmang and Qingwu out the window.
Changmang and Qingwu: “?”
Inside the room, only the two of them remained. Su Xuan fully transformed into a fox spirit, sticking out the tip of his tongue to lick Sang Dai’s neck.
Ever since last night, now that a precedent had been set, he acted without scruples. He didn’t know why, but where he once only dared to think about her in his heart, now he had openly made his intentions clear. Though he hadn’t explicitly confessed his feelings, he was just short of saying it out loud.
Sang Dai never knew she could be so sensitive. With just a kiss on her neck, her whole body turned soft, a wave of weakness washing over her.
Just like last night.
“Su Xuan, focus on healing first.” She still retained some sense, pushing Su Xuan’s head away from her. “The back of your hand is still swollen.”
Sang Dai’s face reddened as she glanced at the back of Su Xuan’s hand. On his cold, pale skin, red marks were scattered across the surface. Su Xuan didn’t care, not even bothering to look at them, instead humming and hugging Sang Dai coquettishly.
Even though he was an awakened Heaven-grade Spiritual Root, his wounds would quickly disappear, but for now, at least, they still hurt.
“Coax me. Come on, coax me.”
The little fox buried his face in the swordswoman’s neck, rubbing against her. The faint, pleasant fragrance from her body lingered at the tip of his nose.
Sang Dai was helpless, her entire neck ticklish from Su Xuan’s rubbing. Yet Su Xuan seemed to find nothing wrong, holding onto her and refusing to stop his antics.
However, she was straddling him now, and this position was indeed improper. Sang Dai’s face was burning red, fearing that he might get uncomfortable again. She stammered, “Su Xuan, can you sit up a little?”
“Coax me first.”
The fox spirit refused.
That brat Qiu Chengxi was young, far too well-behaved, and swordswomen tended to have a gentle disposition. Su Xuan always felt that Sang Dai might like someone like him. Thus, Sang Dai’s polite treatment of Qiu Chengxi appeared to him as another splash of vinegar added to his jealousy, souring his heart further.
Sang Dai naturally didn’t know what Su Xuan was thinking. She simply thought that he was being overly clingy.
But now, she couldn’t bring herself to be harsh with Su Xuan.
“Then let go of me first… I’ll coax you, alright?”
“No, coax me like this.”
Like this.
So, how exactly was she supposed to coax him?
Su Xuan wore a look of “If you don’t coax me, I’m not getting up.” He was testing Sang Dai’s limits little by little, knowing full well that her good temper and soft heart would indulge him.
The fox spirit fully displayed his fox spirit tricks, manifesting his tail. The fluffy tail wrapped around Sang Dai’s waist, soft and warm like a fur blanket.
Sang Dai stammered, “I… I don’t know how to coax people.”
She was usually quiet, rarely interacting with others, and struggled to deal with ordinary people—let alone such a beautiful fox spirit.
Su Xuan gently nipped at the swordswoman’s neck with his sharp little teeth, one peck after another.
“Say something nice.”
Sang Dai: “…”
“Dai Dai, say something nice to me.”
Sang Dai sighed and said, “Alright, I’ll… I’ll try, okay?”
Su Xuan nodded. “Say something sweet to coax me.”
Sang Dai took a deep breath, exhaled, and finally gritted her teeth. “You… you… you’re the best.”
Silence.
Sang Dai: “…I said it.”
Su Xuan, still buried in her neck, began laughing. His body shook as he chuckled, causing the fox tail wrapped around Sang Dai’s waist to tremble with him.
“Stop laughing…”
“Miss Sang, that was so perfunctory.”
Su Xuan’s voice was low, with a languid lilt, and his laughter carried a muffled, lazy charm.
Sang Dai: “…Then what should I say?”
“Praise me more.”
“You… Su Xuan is very good…”
“Not enough.”
“Su Xuan… Su Xuan looks very good… and has high cultivation.”
“Still not enough.”
“Su Xuan… is the best and greatest demon in the world.”
“That’s too perfunctory.”
Sang Dai: “…I don’t know what else to say.”
Su Xuan lifted his head from her neck and looked at Sang Dai with his glazed, glassy eyes.
When Su Xuan smiled, he was breathtakingly beautiful. The corners of his eyes tilted up slightly, resembling a true fox spirit. His previously aloof, indifferent gaze, when focused on her, seemed to reveal a gentleness hidden beneath his cold demeanor. With his smile, the ice and frost seemed to melt away.
Sang Dai suddenly seemed to understand how to coax him.
Tentatively, she reached out her hand and stroked Su Xuan’s head.
The fox spirit revealed his ears. Fluffy and upright, the tips were tinged with a clear pink hue, and the silver fur was soft and smooth.
The woman’s palm covered his ears, gently kneading them. For the heat-sensitive Nine-Tailed Fox, the coolness of her touch was distinctly noticeable.
The Nine-Tailed Fox narrowed his eyes in comfort.
Sang Dai knew she had guessed correctly.
She softly asked, “So, you’re not angry anymore, alright? Su Xuan, don’t be angry anymore?”
Her voice was gentle, like she was coaxing a child, and her expression softened.
“…Say more.”
“Su Xuan is the best little fox in the world.”
“…What else?”
“Su Xuan is the best and treats me the best, too.”
“…Hmph.”
Su Xuan hugged Sang Dai’s waist tightly, pressing his chin against her neck as he murmured, “Don’t talk to him. I don’t like it when you talk to him. I just want you to talk to me. Don’t like him either—he’s not good enough for you.”
In this world, no one was worthy of Sang Dai. That’s why he had been striving to catch up with her, closing himself off in seclusion to grow stronger.
Because Sang Dai would always move forward, becoming more powerful, and he had to keep up with her pace.
But Sang Dai couldn’t help but smile a little. “I’ve only met Young Master Qiu that one time. If he hadn’t mentioned it, I wouldn’t even have remembered.”
“Then who’s more important, him or me?”
Sang Dai patted his shoulder, coaxing, “The little fox is more important.”
“Why?”
“Because the little fox treats me well. The little fox was my best friend.”
“Why was?”
“Because now the little fox has become my most trusted partner. He’s more precious than a friend.”
Su Xuan’s hands, which were holding her, trembled slightly, and the fox tail wrapped around her waist tightened further.
“I trust him. I can entrust my back to him without reservation because I know that in this world, only he would never betray me.”
Su Xuan lifted his head. Sang Dai was still gently stroking his ears.
“Su Xuan, to me, you are more important than Young Master Qiu, and more important than many others.”
No matter what Sang Dai said, her words always carried sincerity. She always seemed like this: even though her expressions and actions lacked warmth, and she rarely said anything to praise herself, nor did she flatter others with empty words, every word she spoke brimmed with honesty.
It was as though, as long as it was Sang Dai, even the most absurd words and actions carried an undeniable credibility.
She made people feel at ease, and they couldn’t help but trust her. Sang Dai simply possessed that kind of magic.
“Sang Dai.”
Sang Dai replied, “Hmm?”
Su Xuan pinched her cheek, and the little bit of jealousy in his heart suddenly disappeared.
“Why are you always like this?”
Sang Dai was puzzled. “What did I do?”
Su Xuan chuckled lightly and buried his head into the crook of Sang Dai’s neck again. The tip of his nose rested against her skin, and the faint fragrance on her body made him feel at ease.
She was always so adorable, yet so sincere.
She would forever make his heart flutter.
For over a hundred years, no one else had ever caught his eye. When he first saw Sang Dai, he couldn’t tear his gaze away. When he couldn’t see her, he would laze around in the Spirit Beast Hall, waiting impatiently for his wounds from her strikes to heal quickly, for Sang Dai to finish her training and return, so he could go see her again.
Rain or wind—it didn’t matter. As long as he could see her, every day would be clear and sunny for him.
It would make him happy for an entire day.
“Sang Dai, can you hold me again?”
The little fox’s voice was muffled.
Sang Dai hesitated for a moment, glancing at the tail wrapped around her waist.
His tail was wrapped tightly. She had seen Su Xuan’s true form many times and had been wrapped by his tail countless times as well.
“…Alright.”
In the end, she still agreed.
It was strange. Now it seemed truly difficult to refuse Su Xuan. Just the thought of how aggrieved he might feel if she turned him down left Sang Dai speechless.
It seemed like ever since she had come to Su Xuan’s side, her heart had softened a lot.
The two of them hugged face to face. The tall little fox buried his head into the swordswoman’s neck, holding her tightly, his tail looping again and again around her. The window hadn’t been closed earlier; they were on a high floor where the night wind could still blow through.
The breeze stirred black hair and silver strands alike. Their body heat passed to each other through the embrace. The little fox seemed to have finally found his treasure, pecking at Sang Dai’s neck, nibbling her lightly with his small teeth, his tongue softly licking her—much like an unawakened fox.
After all, in the fox clan, this was a marking behavior. The little fox wanted to leave his scent all over the little swordswoman’s body so that anyone who saw her would immediately understand:
—Oh, this is Su Xuan’s wife.
—The most beloved person of the Nine-Tailed Fox Beast King.
The little fox wanted to lick every inch of the swordswoman’s body, using his lips and teeth to leave his mark inside and out. But for now, the little fox only dared to kiss her neck, lick the base of her ears. Even this left the swordswoman’s face flushed red, her body stained with the little fox’s scent.
Sang Dai was a sensitive girl, and she got embarrassed far too easily.
But the little fox had thick skin. His wife was his to pursue and win.
The little fox happily held the little swordswoman in his arms.
Sang Dai buried her face into his embrace, feeling as though her entire body was enveloped in Su Xuan’s herbal fragrance.
She had smelled it many years ago. Back then, it didn’t feel like much, because her longtime rival loved cleanliness. Even if she beat him into the mud, he would find somewhere to change his clothes before running back to fight her again.
Now, it felt different—almost as if it truly smelled wonderful.
The light fragrance didn’t quite match Su Xuan’s striking, bold features. After all, he was someone who would embroider golden thread even onto the plainest robe. Yet, the more Sang Dai smelled it, the more she thought this fragrance suited Su Xuan perfectly.
Just by catching this scent, it was clear that Su Xuan had arrived.
They hugged for a long, long time. Sang Dai eventually noticed that Su Xuan seemed to be growing uncomfortable, his body heating up.
Once again, she was shocked inwardly. Had he suppressed his mating season for so many years that even hugging could make him suffer?