The library was an old wooden building.
Even with the window slammed shut, moonlight still seeped through.
The interplay of light and shadow made Li Zhaoye look dangerously unpredictable.
He had never been a gentleman—his actions were always dictated by whim. This time, after suppressing himself for too long, his violent temper had brewed into a dark, turbulent tide.
The attic fell eerily silent.
He turned around, his tall, lean frame casting an overwhelming shadow that engulfed her entirely.
He stepped toward her, his footsteps heavy and distinct, echoing in her ears like a drumbeat.
As his shadow loomed closer, he bent down, his face inches from hers.
In the darkness, she couldn’t make out his expression, but Luo Luo’s breath hitched—she felt like she wasn’t facing a man, but a beast that had slipped its leash.
He chuckled low in his throat.
She couldn’t tell if his laughter was mocking or furious, but her instincts screamed that nothing good would come of it.
"Li Zhaoye," she called his name.
His shadow pressed down so heavily that the air seemed to thin, her voice muffled as if submerged underwater.
He tilted his head slightly.
Like a predator choosing the perfect angle to strike.
Luo Luo felt the need to explain herself. "I never refused to sleep with you. I said I was willing—it was you who—"
Her words were cut off as a large hand clamped around her throat.
His fingers dug into her neck, leaving deep imprints as he lifted her into a bruising kiss.
"Mmph!"
He bit her lip, his breath scorching as his tongue forced its way past her teeth, invading her mouth with relentless heat.
The kiss was rough, almost punishing.
Luo Luo arched her head back, gasping for air.
He pressed her against an old bookshelf, the wood groaning under his force.
A chaotic thought flashed through her mind—Pinned against the shelf and kissed!
The romance novels she’d read never described it quite like this—she wasn’t sure if their protagonists were also throttled mid-kiss.
Her pulse throbbed under his grip. Even knowing he wouldn’t truly hurt her, the primal fear sent shivers down her spine.
As he kissed her harder, his fingers tightened reflexively, coaxing broken whimpers from her throat.
The sounds only spurred his aggression.
With a sharp tug, he ripped her robe apart.
Rip.
She knew his hands well.
But when his palm pressed over her racing heart, Luo Luo jolted, a flicker of clarity piercing through the haze.
"You—" She turned her head, letting his teeth graze her lips as she gasped, "Your hand—mmph—something’s wrong!"
He smirked against her mouth, fingers flexing. "What’s wrong?"
His grip was firm, his knuckles unyielding.
Yet she sensed the difference immediately. "The calluses… they’re gone."
"Ah. My true form doesn’t have them," he murmured, amused. "I’ll grow them back for you later."
Luo Luo muttered, "I didn’t say I wanted—"
He laughed darkly. "Don’t worry. They won’t be needed."
Her heart skipped a beat before his lips sealed over hers again, silencing any further protest.
Pinned against the shelf, Li Zhaoye was rough but not without skill.
His kisses were practiced, expertly unraveling her resolve and stoking her desire. Her legs trembled, fingers clutching the shelf behind her to keep from collapsing.
With a low chuckle, he shrugged off his own robe, tossing it aside.
Thud.
For a fleeting moment, Luo Luo’s mind cleared.
Her dazed eyes traced his face—Li Zhaoye’s features were striking, sharpened by the contrast of light and shadow.
Her gaze trailed down his throat, over his collarbone, only to be blocked by the firm planes of his chest.
A slow, delayed realization crept in—What was that thing that just smacked against my leg?
It had even hurt a little.
Once the memory surfaced, the sensation replayed vividly in her mind.
Her eyes widened, but before she could process it, Li Zhaoye captured her lips again, scattering her thoughts into fragments.
Dazed, she vaguely recalled—Dragon… golden pillar…
Then, abruptly, his kiss gentled.
"...Hmm?"
Unaware that he was distracted, Luo Luo instinctively kissed him back, her lips brushing his.
The moment she did, she felt his mouth curve into a smirk—one that promised mischief.
In the next heartbeat, his right hand slid down with practiced ease, finding its target before his entire body pressed forward.
He was heavy as a mountain.
The bookshelf behind her groaned in protest, and Luo Luo, fearing it might collapse, could only cling to his shoulders for support.
His teeth scraped her lip, his voice a rough, excited whisper: "Here we go."
She could feel it—the way his entire body trembled, every muscle taut with restraint.
He didn’t need her permission.
No sooner had he spoken than he withdrew his hand, replacing it with something far more formidable.
Luo Luo’s eyes flew open.
Her body jerked upward, her back scraping against the shelf as two ancient books tumbled to the floor with a thump-thump.
"Running?" Li Zhaoye growled, seizing her shoulder.
His fingers trembled slightly, branding her skin with their heat.
"I’m not!" she protested, indignant.
He narrowed his eyes in warning before yanking her back down.
Balancing on her toes, Luo Luo gripped his shoulders, struggling to match his rhythm.
It still wasn’t working.
After a moment, Li Zhaoye exhaled sharply, his breath ragged with frustration. "What the hell?"
He pulled back slightly, adjusting his grip.
Luo Luo buried her burning face against his neck, his heartbeat wild and thunderous against her cheek.
She held her breath, letting him figure it out.
"Ah—!"
She bit her lip, legs curling reflexively.
Finally, Li Zhaoye stilled, thoughtful.
His dark eyes locked onto hers, simmering with intensity.
"Size mismatch. What now?"
A vein pulsed at his temple, his entire body radiating barely leashed fury.
Luo Luo hesitated. "...I don’t know either."
BANG.
He slammed a hand against the shelf beside her, teeth gritted. "I’ve been. Holding. Back. Too. Long."
Luo Luo: "..."
He took a deep, aggravated breath, his entire being radiating restless, violent energy.
Quietly, she suggested, "What about the floor? This shelf doesn’t seem very sturdy."
And you can’t really… go all out like this—she didn’t dare say that part aloud.
"Fine."
Thud.
Luo Luo’s favorite blanket was hastily spread across the wooden floor of the library.
Li Zhaoye pinned her onto it, forehead pressed to hers, noses brushing.
His body burned like a furnace, sweat dripping onto her skin with a sizzling heat that made her shiver.
He nuzzled her, nipping at her lips before growling, "Open your mouth."
Luo Luo: "Oh..."
She obediently parted her lips to kiss him.
She had no resistance to his scent—her heart melted into a pool of spring water, trembling down to her fingertips.
He nipped at her lips. "Open wider."
Luo Luo blinked dazedly. "Oh..."
"More."
"Okay."
Luo Luo strained to open her mouth wider, feeling like she was about to let out an audible "Ah—".
Li Zhaoye still seemed deeply unsatisfied. Suppressing a laugh, he roughly kneaded and nudged her.
After another lingering kiss, Luo Luo finally caught on belatedly.
"..."
Blushing, she complied without protest.
Li Zhaoye buried himself in his task, only to repeatedly pause in exasperated amusement.
"No good," he gritted out.
Luo Luo: "..."
"I'm doing this my way now."
"?"
"Boom!"
Another thunderclap split the sea's surface.
The Black Abyss Sea churned with waves towering hundreds of feet as a monstrous serpentine demon wreaked havoc.
Having fled through the barrier just before the Nether Court's collapse, it had lurked in the seabed these past months, preying on fishing boats and occasionally raiding coastal villages.
The shoreline inhabitants suffered bitterly. Several waves of cultivators had come, yet the cunning serpent always escaped back into the depths.
Until today.
A group of young cultivators cornered it.
Their formation arrays sealed off retreat to deeper waters, driving the demon toward a river estuary.
The colossal serpent's muscular body boasted impenetrable scales and a tail capable of shattering stone.
Compared to its bulk, the estuary's channel seemed laughably narrow—its only escape route.
In desperation, the demon thrashed violently, sending up geysers that shook the riverbed.
"Crash! Crash! Crash!"
Another lightning strike illuminated its sinuous form.
Gathering momentum, the serpent coiled back slightly before whipping its tail forward, ramming its lowered head brutally into the channel.
"Boom!"
"After it! Don't let it escape again!"
The library.
Clouds had swallowed the moon unnoticed.
When distant thunder cracked, Luo Luo shuddered, fingers digging into Li Zhaoye's shoulders.
"Li Zhaoye!"
He chuckled darkly. "Right here."
Luo Luo: "..."
As if she needed reminding. His overwhelming presence alone made her tremble.
There'd be no slipping away now.
His iron-hard hands—callus-free yet unyielding—locked around her waist, eliminating any retreat.
Breathing heavily, he wore a predatory grin, his aura sharp as a drawn blade.
Step by deliberate step, he advanced, leaving her no quarter.
Luo Luo's breath fractured, a sheen of sweat glistening on her forehead.
Arched against him, she clawed at his shoulders, nipped his ear, and whimpered complaints.
"Li Zhaoye..."
"What."
"It hurts."
"Tch." His displeasure was palpable. "This is nothing—not even one-tenth. Since when are you so delicate? You never cried hurt when I trained you."
Luo Luo nearly wept. "This wasn't part of training!"
Li Zhaoye: "...Fair."
Though not fully sated, having made progress tempered his urgency with newfound patience.
He kissed her deeply, teeth grazing her lip. "Better now?"
Luo Luo: "..."
His smoldering gaze held hers as he moved deliberately.
She hissed and pushed at his chest. "No no no!"
"So here's the problem spot?" he deduced.
Luo Luo nodded vehemently. "Yes!"
His eyes narrowed. "...Got it."
She stared in astonishment—since when was he so accommodating?
Without warning, he ducked his head and sank teeth into her neck.
Luo Luo: "Ah!"
This was no love bite—he worried the flesh between his teeth mercilessly.
"Li Zhaoye, are you a dog?!" she yelped.
He bit again before licking his canines and glancing up, voice rough and taunting. "...Where hurts now?"
Luo Luo fumed. "My neck! Because a dog's gnawing on it!"
Smugness oozed from him. "But the other place doesn't hurt anymore—admit it!"
Luo Luo: "..."
Since when did "pain relief" involve redirecting agony?
