“No.”
Yuan Shu shook her head, but her gaze remained fixed on Xiao Li’s face.
“Then… what is it?” Xiao Li’s heart tightened slightly. Yuan Shu’s expression as she looked at him seemed unusually serious.
“Pfft.”
Yuan Shu laughed, her stern expression suddenly melting as her brows curved and her eyes lit up.
“It’s nothing. I just think Junior Brother Xiao is pretty amazing. We haven’t seen each other for only a few short months, and you’ve already become a revered beast-taming master throughout the Beast-Taming Garden of Luoxian Sect!”
When they had entered through the garden’s gates moments ago, the young disciples they passed had all bowed respectfully to him.
It was hard to imagine that only a few months ago, this same man had been despised and tormented by everyone.
“Junior Brother Xiao, did you happen to stumble upon some incredible opportunity?”
Yuan Shu suddenly leaned closer. Her graceful body brushed against his arm, and she tilted her delicate, breathtaking face up to look at him.
A faint fragrance of pear blossoms drifted into his nose, a bewitching scent.
Xiao Li’s breath caught for two seconds before his heart began pounding uncontrollably.
“I, I…”
He opened his mouth awkwardly, wanting to say something, but Yuan Shu interrupted him with a smile.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. It’s your opportunity. Just make sure you hold on to it.”
“No, that’s not it. I can tell you, Miss Yuan. This secret, I…”
At her words, Xiao Li’s heart clenched, and he hurriedly tried to explain.
He could hide it from anyone else, but if Yuan Shu wanted to know, he would definitely tell her!
She was the reason he had become who he was today.
Just as he was about to speak, a finger pressed against his lips.
Yuan Shu leaned close to him and smiled as she shook her head.
“If it’s a secret, then you shouldn’t reveal it. Just pretend I never asked. Keep it safe.”
She was so close that when he lowered his eyes, he could see his own reflection in those dark pupils of hers.
Clean. Pure.
Her faint, enticing pear-blossom fragrance seemed to fill his nose. Her finger still rested against his lips, its warm fingertip touching his skin.
“Gulp.”
Xiao Li’s Adam’s apple rolled again, entirely against his will.
The next moment, he had already seized her wrist.
His gaze remained fixed on her face, then settled on her beautiful red lips. Slowly, he lowered his head.
Warm breath brushed lightly across her cheek. Desire spread between them, and the atmosphere was just right.
But just as Xiao Li was about to kiss Yuan Shu, voices suddenly came from the end of the path.
“I heard Master Xiao is back. The spirit beast I was taming went berserk last time, so I wanted to ask him about it. Do you know where he is?”
“No idea. I have questions for him too. Come on, let’s look farther ahead.”
…
The voices approached from a distance, shattering the intimate mood.
Xiao Li’s eyes trembled, and clarity suddenly returned to his gaze. A trace of regret rose in his eyes as he slowly released Yuan Shu’s wrist.
He was just about to say something when Yuan Shu grabbed him by the wrist with one hand and forcefully pulled him behind the vines of a spirit plant.
His back struck the vines. Xiao Li stared in shock, not yet having time to react when Yuan Shu had already leaned toward him with a mischievous smile, pressing her entire body against his.
Her breathtaking face was no more than a palm’s breadth from his.
Her fair, slender fingers slid slowly from his shoulder down to his chest, drawing lazy circles against it.
“Junior Brother Xiao, what were you trying to do just now?”
Her voice was soft and low, like willow fluff drifting lightly across a lake and leaving ripples spreading over the water.
Yuan Shu reached out and pinched his chin, applying just enough force to make him lower his head. Then she leaned her face toward his.
They were so close that their breaths became tangled.
The fragrance of pear blossoms seemed even more distinct now.
She lightly brushed her fingertip across Xiao Li’s lips and smiled as she leaned closer.
“Junior Brother Xiao, were you hoping to… do this?”
With that, Yuan Shu rose slightly onto her toes and kissed him.
Xiao Li’s eyes flew wide. Yuan Shu’s beautiful features were reflected in his pupils, and his entire body went rigid.
Yuan Shu had already hooked an arm around his neck. She gently grazed his lips with her teeth, then pulled back and asked with a smile,
“What’s wrong? Isn’t this what Junior Brother Xiao wanted?”
Xiao Li’s eyes instantly reddened. He stared unblinkingly at Yuan Shu’s lips and spoke in a hoarse voice.
“Yes. This is exactly what I wanted!”
The moment the words left his mouth, Xiao Li had already cupped the back of Yuan Shu’s head and lowered his own to kiss her.
A tentative taste and a light brush of their lips were clearly not enough.
He had imagined this countless times while alone.
If one day he ever had the chance to get close to her, then it would surely be…
Dry tinder meeting raging fire, flames filling the sky!
Xiao Li wrapped an arm around Yuan Shu’s waist and pulled her into his embrace, his lips already impatiently seeking hers.
“Mmph.”
Yuan Shu let out a soft whimper, which he swallowed completely.
Their breaths tangled, their warmth mingled.
…
On the path beyond the vines, the two young disciples from the Beast-Taming Garden walked over together, still discussing what they would say once they found Xiao Li.
They had no idea that the person they were searching for was currently being pressed behind the vines, kissing until the world seemed to spin.
Yuan Shu had merely offered him a little guidance.
She had assumed he would be as inexperienced and flustered as Yun Sheng had been the first time, able only to let her guide him through the process of sharing breath and intimacy.
But she had never expected…
Yuan Shu, a seasoned expert who had always been completely at ease in matters of romance, would actually be overpowered during their first intimate embrace.
Instead, she had become the one on the receiving end.
The hand clamped around the back of her head was like an iron pincer, holding her firmly in place. Between their lips and teeth lingered a faint, mysterious fragrance.
The scent was unusual, possessing an indescribable allure. It was not floral, nor did it smell of wood.
It was like a special fragrance Yuan Shu had never encountered before, something akin to a unique pheromone.
For the time being, she decided to call it a heated scent.
But there was no denying that she did not dislike it.
Xiao Li was incredibly strong, as though he intended to devour every inch of her lips and mouth.
The commotion grew loud enough to make the vines tremble, producing faint rustling sounds.
The two disciples walking together looked up.
“What was that noise?”
As soon as he finished speaking, one of them stepped toward the wall of vines.
“Meow~”
A completely snow-white cat emerged from behind the vine wall. Tilting its head, it looked up at the two disciples and meowed several times.
“So it’s just a kitten. I thought… Come on, don’t waste any more time. I heard someone say Master Xiao is farther ahead.”
“Let’s go, let’s go…”
Once they saw that it was only a cat, the two lost interest in taking a closer look. Still chatting, they walked away.
The snow-white cat settled itself against the vine trellis and raised a white paw to lick it.
If one looked carefully, one would find that the cat’s expression bore a striking resemblance to its master’s—at least three-tenths of one.
…
The kiss left Yuan Shu’s breathing unsteady.
The fragrance on Xiao Li’s body was actually faintly similar to the alluring scent around her own body, capable of stirring a person’s emotions!
When she gently turned her face away to evade his lips, her lips and tongue were already burning hot.
Xiao Li reached out, his long, fair fingers settling against Yuan Shu’s neck. He curved his lips into a smile and met her astonished eyes.
“Miss Yuan, was my service not comfortable enough? Is that why you took the initiative to pull away?”
Not comfortable enough?
No. It wasn’t that. It was far too comfortable. She was afraid that if this continued, she would strip him right there and then.
Could it be that this Xiao Li had also learned the art of dual cultivation through an enchanting constitution?
