“Thump! Thump! Thump!”
Her heartbeat grew faster and faster, more and more tense, more and more… panicked!
Should she say this man had finally come, or should she say — of all things — that this man had come too?
Baili Weisheng had come, and amid her joy, she’d felt hope, yet disappointment all the same.
Xuanyuan Lige had come, and amid her shock and warmth, she’d felt the same disappointment.
And Jun Beiyue?
What had happened to him?
Wasn’t he always dressed in that sharp black combat attire? Why, at this moment, was his robe hanging loose and disheveled? What had happened to his chest?
Why was it wrapped in white bandages? Why could she faintly make out something like a pulsing heartbeat beneath it?
What had happened to his heart?
She had to admit — amid all her churning emotions, what dominated most was worry!
Perhaps this was the price of falling in love with someone — once you fell, your heart went soft, and it ached.
What exactly had happened to Jun Beiyue?
The Poison Beast World’s collapse, the strange behavior of the shimmering dagger — it all had a great deal to do with Jun Beiyue.
And what was going on with this whole group? So long without a single soul coming, and now suddenly so many people all at once!
Ziqing’s mind reeled, question after question flooding in, none of them making sense — but at this moment, she had no room to dwell on any of it. She simply stared at Jun Beiyue from a distance, and even with her head full of questions, she felt as though her mind had gone completely empty, as though her whole self had emptied out along with it — hollow, and at a complete loss.
Hadn’t she already made up her mind?
If they ever met again, she would march right up, grab him by the collar, and demand a clear, complete explanation!
But right now, she found she couldn’t even manage a single step forward.
He stood right there before her, and yet she felt as though a lifetime had passed, as though they’d been reborn into different lives. Truly — it had been so, so long.
Yet unlike Ziqing’s tangled mess of emotions, her confusion, her unresolved love and resentment, Jun Beiyue, the moment he landed, fixed his gaze immediately on that most familiar figure, ignoring everyone else present.
At that moment, only one thought filled his mind: to pull this woman into his arms!
A wicked, triumphant smile curved at his lips, and Jun Beiyue shot forward through the air, straight toward Ziqing.
But at that very moment, Xuanyuan Lige planted his feet hard against the ground and shot forward as well, his figure like an arrow.
Ever since leaving the northern desert to search for Ziqing, he had already resolved to see this through to the end with Jun Beiyue — this time, he had no intention of backing down.
And now, he finally had the standing to compete — his body was no longer weak and frail!
Seeing the two men closing in, Baili Weisheng instinctively wanted to pull Ziqing away.
But the sight of the three Meng Clan elders behind Xuanyuan Lige immediately dispelled that impulse — his full attention shifted to those three elders instead.
He couldn’t make heads or tails of what was going on with the streak of light and the stone lock — but surely these three old men would understand!
After all, they were barrier masters — they ought to know far more about this Death Barrier in the Poison Beast World than he did!
Ziqing still stood frozen, while Jun Beiyue and Xuanyuan Lige had already reached her. Xuanyuan Lige trailed just a step or two behind Jun Beiyue, and the entire time, Jun Beiyue, well aware he was being pursued, didn’t so much as spare him a glance, continuing to surge forward instead. That cold, hard face, with its tender gaze, nearly pressed right up against Ziqing’s — only to come to an abrupt halt at the very last instant, his face almost nose-to-nose with hers!
Eyes locked, noses nearly touching, lips almost brushing — it looked, unmistakably, like the prelude to a kiss!
In that instant, Ziqing’s heart very nearly stopped. Instinctively she tried to step back — but the moment she began to, Jun Beiyue’s arm swept around her waist and pulled her in!
At the very same instant, he kicked backward with one foot, striking directly against the incoming palm of Xuanyuan Lige!
Xuanyuan Lige’s steps faltered, and he immediately planted himself into a firm stance. He had no idea about the truth behind Jun Beiyue’s pounding heart, and inwardly he was more than a little startled.
Jun Beiyue had only just woken up — how could he possibly have recovered so quickly? And more than that, his internal energy actually seemed even stronger now than before he’d been injured!
What in the world was going on?
With that single kick from Jun Beiyue, the entire scene seemed to freeze solid in an instant, everything grinding to an abrupt halt.
Baili Weisheng and the three Meng elders all stared at them, trembling, momentarily forgetting all about the stone lock.
The two men had only exchanged a single move, and yet the sheer force, the killing intent radiating between them, was staggering.
Even the poison beasts stared in disbelief. The little one, perched atop the Silly Bear’s neck, clutched its head tightly with both hands, his round black eyes darting up and down over Jun Beiyue, his little heart hanging somewhere up in the ninth heaven.
Goodness, was that man really his father?
He just stood there, and yet it was as though he commanded the whole world beneath him — so overbearing, so magnificently overbearing!
He looked so incredibly formidable, as if he were the strongest of everyone present!
Who was he, really? What was his status? Could he possibly be even more powerful than Mommy?
The more the little one thought about it, the more competitive he felt, and he couldn’t help but grab fistfuls of the Silly Bear’s fur, tugging at it clump by clump, agonizing over and over again.
He was already agonizing over exactly how he ought to introduce himself later!
Everyone’s attention had converged on the two men. Everything appeared calm on the surface, and yet everyone present knew — beneath that calm, a violent storm was about to break loose.
Even Xuanyuan Lige had gone fully alert, bracing himself to give everything he had. He could clearly feel the force gathering in Jun Beiyue’s leg, as though it might send him flying at any moment.
And yet, of all things, Jun Beiyue wore an expression of perfect ease, as though he didn’t consider the man behind him worth a second thought.
A wicked smile curved at the corner of his cold, hard lips — playful, mocking, careless of the world, and utterly captivating for it. And yet, within that playful mockery lingered a trace of tenderness he couldn’t quite hide — the kind that, once seen, would leave anyone helplessly enchanted.
Unfortunately, with their lips so close together, Ziqing couldn’t see any of it — she had already sunk deep into the gentle, watery warmth of his gaze, staring at him blankly, wanting so badly to cry, and wanting just as badly to laugh, wanting to throw herself into his arms, and yet also wanting to shove him away with all her strength and curse him for a scoundrel.
But in the end, she did nothing at all, simply letting him hold her by the waist, bracing her nearly toppling body.
Why, oh why — could she be so ruthless toward the entire world, and yet never manage to be ruthless toward him alone?
At last, Ziqing spoke. “Jun Beiyue…”
But before she could say another word, Xuanyuan Lige’s other hand struck out toward the heel of Jun Beiyue’s foot. Jun Beiyue took the blow head-on without flinching — yet in the very next instant, before Xuanyuan Lige had even withdrawn his hand, Jun Beiyue struck back!
His other leg kicked out at once, with force fully double what Xuanyuan Lige’s palm strike had carried, sending Xuanyuan Lige flying backward in an instant. Jun Beiyue himself, rather than falling despite both feet leaving the ground, used the recoil from that very kick to sweep forward through the air, cradling Ziqing, and landed steadily some distance ahead.
He remained nose-to-nose, lip-to-lip with Ziqing, and said flatly, his lips lightly brushing hers, ambiguous and wicked at once, “Mm. Go ahead and ask.”
…
A Note to Readers: It’s New Year’s Eve, and there have been so many New Years in my life to celebrate — it’s truly an honor to spend this one with all of you, alongside Poison Pet. Next year, this story definitely won’t belong to Poison Pet anymore, and it never will again. So, this is a one-time thing, ha. I have to say, writing this whole Poison Beast World arc has been quite a lot of pressure, but it’s finally behind us now. Thank you all for staying with me, and thank you for all the encouragement on WeChat too! Once I’ve wrapped up a few more plot threads, we’ll be moving into more of a triumphant, satisfying pace. Here’s hoping for even better story developments in the new year! Mwah!