Baili Xiaosheng’s desperate struggling stirred up a great commotion in the otherwise still, dead water of the lake. Then, from the darkness not far away, came a sudden surge like the overturning of mountains and seas—a force so powerful that even Baili Xiaosheng, frightened and disoriented as she was, noticed it at once!
Judging by that sheer force alone, whoever was coming was no ordinary fighter—their strength was likely a match for Guxi’s own!
The thought sent a jolt through her. Could the one coming be Guxi himself?
The moment that thought struck her, her fear eased all at once, replaced by a sudden surge of strength. She struggled all the harder, prying open the hands gripping her with her own two hands—then, with a sharp smack, clapped both palms against the sides of his face, cupping it tight!
Their lips and teeth had never touched like this before—that wet, soft sensation, combined with the thought of Qin Chu’s sleazy face, made her want to retch with disgust. Unable to actually vomit, she could only grip that face tightly and yank at it with all her strength, trying to pry him off!
But the moment she pulled, the arm locked around her waist only tightened further, as if warning her of something.
You dare disgust this young lady! Once Guxi gets here, I’ll hack you into eight pieces and feed the strips of your lips to the fish, one by one!
Baili Xiaosheng cursed silently in her mind, struggling all the while, buying time against the surging wave now bearing down on them.
Even with total darkness before her eyes, unable to see her own hand in front of her face, she could clearly sense the direction of that overwhelming wave approaching.
Steeling herself against her disgust, and burning with fury, right as the wave was about to strike, she seized Qin Chu’s head and yanked hard, wrenching him around to shield her body, putting him directly in the path of the attack!
Boom!
The force of the wave was, as she’d expected, formidable indeed. If her guess was right, its full power must have struck Qin Chu’s chest dead-on.
What kind of man was Guxi? A three-bit hack like Qin Chu wouldn’t survive a single strike from him.
And yet, just as Baili Xiaosheng expected Qin Chu to release her and pass out from the blow, the arm around her waist didn’t loosen at all—instead it tightened even further, as if trying to press her entire body into his embrace!
In that instant, a strange sense of familiarity washed over Baili Xiaosheng—not familiarity with this particular embrace, but with the feeling of being protected itself.
But before she could even begin to make sense of that feeling, the smell of blood suddenly flooded into her small mouth, spreading through her nose and mouth all at once!
This man—he was badly wounded!
And yet, he still didn’t let go of her. He kept breathing air into her, over and over.
In that instant, something seemed to click for Baili Xiaosheng, and she instinctively tried to cry out in alarm again—but the cool, thin lips pressed against hers clamped down tighter, fitting perfectly against her own, without the faintest gap left between them.
Soft, gentle, and cold, the touch was indescribable—the word “disgusting” had already been utterly banished from her mind.
It was him. Guxi!
The one holding her, breathing air into her, wasn’t Qin Chu—it was Guxi!
A moment ago, once she’d realized his presence, her fear and panic had vanished, and her usual composure had returned. But she hadn’t expected him to arrive faster than she’d anticipated, and closer than she’d thought possible.
Baili Xiaosheng felt as though some strange, wondrous fruit had been planted in her heart—a marvelous feeling unraveling thread by thread, spilling out from her chest and filling all her senses.
She had always been a straightforward person, and straightforward people liked best to follow what their bodies wanted. She liked this feeling. She liked this touch. And she finally, firmly, thought to herself: she must be in love with this man.
If the one beside her was Guxi, then without question, the one who’d attacked them was Qin Chu!
She hadn’t expected this man’s martial skill to be so formidable, hidden so deep!
Daring to run wild in her own Duku, daring to injure Guxi—this man was clearly tired of living!
Just as everything clicked into place for Baili Xiaosheng, waves suddenly surged up from every direction at once, all stirring restlessly, ready to attack them at any moment!
Baili Xiaosheng could clearly feel Guxi holding her tighter still, sheltering her almost completely within the wide embrace of his arms.
A sweetness she could no longer conceal, and no longer wished to, welled up from deep within her heart. Without warning she reached up and wound her arms around his neck, pulling his head down, her tongue darting straight into his mouth—and at the same time, she sent him spinning violently. In an instant, as she spun, countless poison insects burst forth from her body in a continuous stream!
In the darkness, nothing could be seen, and no one could tell exactly what was happening—but within moments, the churning waves all around them vanished entirely, replaced by a lake reeking of blood.
The crisis was over. The two of them, still spinning at high speed, gradually slowed to a stop. Moments ago everything had happened so fast that all their senses had gone numb—but now, as they slowed, the meeting of their lips and teeth became suddenly, vividly clear, exquisitely so.
This was no longer breathing air into her—this was, plainly, a kiss suspended in stillness.
Yes, the kiss had gone still, because once his tongue had entered, Baili Xiaosheng hadn’t known what to do next. She had never kissed anyone before—she only knew what she’d heard about it.
And yet, that alone was enough. Enough to melt her completely.
But just as Baili Xiaosheng was savoring this sweet, wonderful moment, Guxi suddenly carried her, shooting straight up out of the water without warning—and the moment they broke the surface, he immediately released her lips.
The instant they left the water, in the pale moonlight, she saw his handsome, refined face, naturally quiet yet touched with a hint of solemnity, and his lips stained with blood—seductive, almost bewitching. Baili Xiaosheng went utterly dazed. Though she’d been mature for her age since childhood, and was no longer young now either, in certain respects she was still, deep down, just a young girl. She couldn’t resist it, couldn’t control what she truly felt—in that moment, she wanted to kiss him again.
But Guxi landed on solid ground in an instant, releasing her, and before she could even open her mouth, he snapped angrily, “Going off in the middle of the night with a strange man—you didn’t even see who it was, and you threw yourself into his arms without a second thought! Is that what your master taught you?!”
Baili Xiaosheng froze. From head to toe, every part of her went rigid.
This was the first time she’d ever seen Guxi lose his temper. So this gentle, quiet man could be terrifying when angry.
“I didn’t… throw myself at anyone. You’re the one who grabbed me,” Baili Xiaosheng explained timidly.
“Then why did you still—” Guxi didn’t finish the sentence—not because he chose not to, but because he didn’t know how to say it. He had, in truth, lost control of himself.
“Because I knew it was you.” Baili Xiaosheng said it with complete honesty—so honest that even she was startled the moment the words left her mouth. And those words left Guxi utterly speechless. He instinctively looked away, unable to meet her eyes, a strange sensation like an electric shock suddenly coursing through his veins, spreading through his entire body.
Baili Xiaosheng saw it plainly—this man’s face had turned red, all the way to the tips of his ears.
Tonight, yet another discovery: this man could be so bashful!
Silence fell between them. Neither spoke; neither knew what to say. After a long, long moment, Baili Xiaosheng suddenly burst out laughing, staring straight at him. “Hey. I’ve changed my mind. If you agree to be my guardian spirit and stay by my side forever, I’ll kill Shiliang right now. Deal?”