The courtyard was bathed in the early morning sun, vines clinging to the ivory pillars, the edges of the petals plated with a thin layer of gold.
The blond young man stood before her. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the vines on the corridor's vaulted ceiling, falling in dappled patches on his face and flowing through his pale golden eyelashes.
His flawless white skin, his blond hair as bright as the dawn, and the sharp, beautiful lines of his features were all outlined by the light to the point of being almost transparent.
He looked like a statue enshrined by believers—perfect, holy, yet carrying a sense of untouchable distance.
However, the other person's words shattered this distance.
Su Cheng stared at him in astonishment.
That intense sense of awe even made her think of the God of Purity, but that person could never say such a thing.
If he had sensed the heretical aura on her, he would have likely just punched her away.
Even if it wasn't voluntary on her part, he wouldn't have acted like this.
"What are you thinking about?"
Ian spoke softly.
Su Cheng suddenly felt her throat tighten.
This guy was overly beautiful, but he wasn't exactly the typical cold and glamorous type.
His facial features were indeed delicate and sharp.
And this beautiful, light, yet not cold hair and eye color softened the oppressiveness and aggressiveness brought by his deep contours.
It was just that his personality was not gentle; no matter who he was dealing with, he always seemed a bit indifferent and distant.
Su Cheng remembered how he had spoken to the two archbishops earlier.
His posture was polite, but it always carried a sense of distance.
It seemed to be about the same as when he was in front of her.
He was very much like the kind of scholar immersed in his own world; even if he reacted to external stimuli, it would be very limited.
Moreover, in terms of personality, this guy really didn't like to be at a disadvantage, and was probably a bit petty, so he would occasionally make sarcastic remarks.
Su Cheng found it hard to describe her feelings toward him.
To say she was afraid of him didn't seem quite right either. Given their current status and condition, it seemed impossible for her to offend him too much anyway.
So when she talked to him, she still felt a bit like retorting, even deliberately arguing with him.
Su Cheng: "Of course I'm thinking of you, sir."
"Oh," the blond young man cast a fleeting glance at her. "Perhaps I should feel honored to have such a big shot like you paying so much attention to me."
Saying this, he didn't wait for her reply, but casually raised his hand.
A bright, soft, almost tangible pale golden light gathered in his palm.
The radiance was pure in color, exuding a comforting warmth and carrying a vibrant vitality.
The light slowly expanded outward, like a sun cupped in his palm.
His entire body was enveloped in a dazzling halo.
Those pale eyes reflected the radiance, like melted gold, and the golden threads blooming in his irises looked like the edges of a solar corona.
Perhaps because of the blessing of the holy arts—
Su Cheng was deeply shaken by that pure, solemn beauty that carried a certain sacred aura.
The blood beneath her skin seemed to start boiling, every drop leaning toward his direction, like the tide chasing the moon, like a moth darting toward a candle flame.
An agonizingly anxious longing burned in her spine, like an ancient navigation carved into the pulse, driving humans to get closer to fire and light.
Those abstract, strange feelings all melted in her mind, making her unable to clearly understand it all.
Su Cheng stared at him blankly, "What kind of big shot am I? I can understand outsiders taking it seriously, but there are quite a few God-favored ones in your Church, right?"
"There really aren't many like you," Ian said softly. "Besides, you're about to become famous too. The story of you bravely fighting evil and defeating a heretical God-favored one in one fell swoop might soon be sung by bards."
Su Cheng: "?"
Su Cheng: "Are you being sarcastic? You're mocking me, aren't you? There are plenty of heroic deeds way more impressive than this!"
The blond young man remained noncommittal. "I'm just a little surprised. I thought you wouldn't do that."
Su Cheng blinked, then understood what he meant. "You mean me going to help my neighbor? Taking that hit instead of dodging it?"
She paused for a moment. "To be honest, I originally just wanted to test my battle aura. I hadn't had many opportunities for actual combat before."
Although this challenge was a bit beyond the syllabus.
But in this regard, Su Cheng quite trusted her teammates' judgment. Since they thought it was about right, she felt that even if it exceeded the limits, it was still within a manageable range.
However—did the two of them sense the heretical power on that person at that time?
Her collar suddenly tightened.
Su Cheng snapped back to reality.
She looked down and saw a pair of beautiful, long hands unhurriedly straightening her slightly curled collar.
Su Cheng: "..."
She couldn't help but look up at him.
The young man's angular jawline and the delicate gold threads on his uniform both seemed to be sculpted in the light.
His jade-carved fingers pulled away and hovered in mid-air.
The fingertips were just a hair's breadth away from touching her collarbone.
Su Cheng could already feel the heat.
She couldn't tell if it came from his skin or that light-attribute power.
The majestic power of light had already surged over like a warm ocean tide, passing through the thin fabric and pouring into her body.
Ian calmly lowered his eyes to look at her, not letting her relax.
Nor did he say anything asking for her cooperation.
He looked incredibly calm, not worried about any unexpected situations, seemingly certain that everything would proceed smoothly—
And indeed, it did.
Su Cheng took a soft breath.
The moment the light touched her body, an indescribable sense of comfort instantly swept over her.
She hadn't felt any discomfort originally, but after being enveloped by the holy art, it felt as if she had suddenly been immersed in a hot spring, and all the pores in her body abruptly opened up.
All her exhaustion, unease, and doubts, as well as certain negative emotions pent up in her heart, were all washed away and smoothed out in this moment.
Su Cheng felt incredibly clearly that the pure power of light, like countless warm streams, was spreading and flowing beneath her skin.
They flowed slowly but firmly through every blood vessel and meridian, piercing through all her limbs and bones.
Wherever this power reached, the dark forces originally hidden deep within her body, like a lingering disease, dispersed like melting snow under the sun.
Then they were completely disintegrated and vanished into nothingness.
This was truly strange.
It wasn't until this moment that she could feel there really were such remnants inside her body.
Moreover, the feeling of being purified was overwhelmingly comfortable. The inner and outer sluggishness was swept away entirely, and from her soul to her body, she felt as if she had become lighter.
Su Cheng let out a breath and couldn't help but let out a happy moan.
It wasn't an overly hot burning sensation; rather, it was more like melted honey, sweetly and warmly wrapping around her internal organs.
Her fingertips curled slightly, her chest unconsciously thrust forward, instinctively wanting to get closer.
And then she bumped into his hand.
Su Cheng: "..."
It was already early summer, the climate in the imperial capital was mild, and she wasn't wearing much.
The skin in areas not often subject to friction was naturally quite sensitive.
Because she could still clearly feel those distinct fingers, smooth and warm, carrying a comforting heat, without the slightest scar or callus.
He also looked very much like a pampered aristocrat.
—Of course, for a capable cleric, this was quite normal.
Wait.
Su Cheng quickly stopped her train of thought, gritted her teeth, and forced herself to stand up straight. "Sorry."
He wouldn't think she was being a creep, would he?
The blond man looked down at her. He wasn't angry, nor did he offer any sarcastic remarks; he just stared at her quietly.
Su Cheng felt a bit guilty under his gaze. "Actually, I also wanted to say—"
Her voice abruptly stopped.
The power of light poured continuously into her body, and she felt her temperature slowly begin to rise.
At first, it seemed fine.
Until a rush of heat surged and churned in her waist and abdomen, bringing a strange, heart-palpitating numbness that quickly spread throughout her entire body.
"Actually, I thought," Ian said, seemingly mimicking her tone on purpose, "that you might embellish your motives a bit."
"?"
Su Cheng tried to organize her thoughts.
She felt like her brain was starting to melt.
That pure, vibrant power of light had, in this moment, become a bizarre catalyst.
A sensitive nerve was plucked, giving rise to an uncontrollable desire that, mixed with the extreme comfort of purification, began to burn within her.
"...Why?"
She felt her cheeks heating up, her breathing quickening, and her eyes darting around uncontrollably.
Su Cheng spoke with difficulty: "You mean, you thought I would pretend that I helped her out of noble character and a love for helping others?"
The curse was acting up.
Moreover, the mark seemed to have some reaction to the power of light. It was now alternating between hot and cold very irregularly, acting up at times and then subsiding.
As a result, Su Cheng fell into a bizarre state.
On one hand, she still enjoyed a sense of mental peace; on the other hand, her body uncontrollably craved something, every inch of her muscles and bones feeling an unbearable emptiness.
Ian looked down at her, frowning slightly, seeming a bit surprised by her reaction.
It was rare for Su Cheng to see such an expression on his face.
Unfortunately, she couldn't really mock him, because let alone him not knowing what was going on, she couldn't even explain it herself.
"...Yes," the blond young man said softly. "After all, you clearly have a favorable impression of me, and most humans, in front of such a person, will unconsciously or deliberately pretend to show a better side of themselves, such as a sense of morality and acts of kindness—prosocial traits."
He paused. "From my personal perspective, this also seems to be one of the instinctive mating strategies of humans."
"Uh," Su Cheng had a strange expression, "I can give you two answers. One is relatively objective, and the other might anger you. Which one do you want to hear?"
Ian raised an eyebrow slightly. "As you wish. I'm not someone easily angered anyway, otherwise I would have died of anger by now."
Su Cheng nodded. "Alright, then the first one is: if I really like someone, I definitely want him to know my true colors. If he can't even accept that, at most he'd be a fling—well, anyway, I wouldn't consider him as a lover. Let's put aside the talk about whether you can fool someone for a lifetime, since a lover isn't necessarily for a lifetime anyway. Just saying, if the other person doesn't even know who you really are, do they really like you? Wouldn't you feel uncomfortable with that? I know I would."
"Hmm," Ian looked at her with a half-smile. "That makes a lot of sense. And the other?"
Su Cheng sighed helplessly. "The second is, brother, we've only met twice. I do think you're very pretty, but that's it. I don't care that much about your opinion. You can think whatever you want. I'm very willing to get to know you, but after that, if we hit it off and our temperaments match, that's naturally great; if not, then forget it."
It wasn't as if she didn't have pretty men around her.
And speaking of pretty men.
Su Cheng felt she really needed to find someone to break the curse.
Just as she was about to step back, the palm surging with golden light in front of her moved, and long fingers clasped her shoulder.
"...Where are you going?"
The blond young man lowered his head to look at her.
After the threads of light dissipated, those eyes, like flowing sunset clouds and autumn waters, also returned to their original tranquil hue, currently reflecting the girl's slightly distressed face.
"To be honest," he said slowly, "I like your answers. All three of them."
Three?
Didn't she only say two?
Su Cheng was bewildered for a moment, racked her brains to think, and then it dawned on her.
"Are you talking about—how I wasn't doing it out of a love for helping others, but wanting to test my battle aura? Then I need to add one more thing: I did genuinely want to help her too."
She pursed her lips. "It's a bit of both. You know, human thoughts are inherently complex and changeable, not necessarily black and white. I'm not a calm and meticulous person to begin with, so acting on impulse is very common for me."
"Hmm," Ian chuckled softly. "I know. I wouldn't think of you as a completely kind and good person, nor as a completely selfish, cold-blooded, and morally flawed person."
Su Cheng: "..."
She felt like she had heard these words somewhere before.
Su Cheng thought for a moment and suddenly realized that she seemed to have said something similar herself.
That was essentially her assessment of herself. It was probably a bit sarcastic, but also her true thoughts in a sense.
Comparing it right now, the feeling was very subtle.
But there was a more troublesome problem right now.
"Speaking of which—"
Su Cheng felt the state of the curse. It was still heating up in waves, occasionally pausing for a few seconds. It was an unprecedented situation.
"My teammate," she thought for a moment, "the one who brought me to the temple. He's very tall, with black hair—"
"Yes," Ian interrupted her. "He had someone pass a message to you, saying he will be staying at the Evening Star Manor, a hotel in the East District. You can go find him tonight."
Su Cheng: "...It's morning right now, so there's a high probability he's not there? And that place is quite far from here?"
The Imperial Capital should be the largest city in the entire empire, or at least one of them, even bigger than Golden Amber City, and the Holy Temple was located in the central area.
She recalled the atlas she had seen before. "Then can I still go find Jam-, I mean, Lord White."
Ian: "..."
