Yuan Shu had very fair skin.
The warm jade pendant hanging from her neck lay lightly against her beautiful swanlike throat, blending so seamlessly with her porcelain-white skin that it was almost impossible to tell where one ended and the other began.
The moment Shi Shuchen realized the person beside him was Yuan Shu, he instinctively tried to sit up.
But in the next instant, he suppressed the impulse.
He remembered what he had seen earlier in the Azure Radiance Formation.
At the time, Yao Qianci had reached out to support her graceful neck and held her in his arms!
Back then, they had been even more intimate—far more improper—than this.
Now, he was merely leaning against her shoulder.
He had charged through the golden heavenly gate with the main group.
Afterward, he had fallen into an extremely complicated offensive formation. The ferocious beasts conjured within it were formidable, each possessing the strength of the Deity Transformation Realm.
He had exhausted himself killing the illusionary spirit beasts, then located a weakness in the formation and fought his way out.
After that, he seemed to have heard movement coming from the underground palace passage.
He had followed the sound over and, while passing a patch of flowers, accidentally been pricked by one of their thorns. He had then been poisoned.
When he woke again, he was leaning against Yuan Shu’s shoulder.
He was tall and broad-shouldered, so resting against Yuan Shu’s shoulder was far from comfortable.
Even so, he did not want to leave her at that moment.
Once he did, he would have no excuse to draw close to her again!
A sharp sting came from his fingertips, accompanied by a faint medicinal scent. Shi Shuchen knew that Yuan Shu was helping him dispel the poison.
At a time like this, he should sit up and make it clear that he was awake.
Yet the secret desire hidden deep within him quietly began to grow.
Yuan Shu carried a floral fragrance that made people crave more.
He wanted to move closer, to inhale that alluring scent more intimately.
Just as he had in the Azure Radiance Formation, when Yuan Shu had held him tightly and allowed that intoxicating pear-blossom fragrance to envelop him!
Once the thought arose, his tense body slowly relaxed. With his other free hand, he gently wrapped it around Yuan Shu’s waist.
He leaned his head a little closer to her…
At first, Yuan Shu did not notice anything amiss. She merely assumed that Shi Shuchen was still delirious.
But the Passionflower Thorn’s poison was simple to cure. After drawing out the blood and removing the thorn, one would almost immediately regain consciousness.
Yet Shi Shuchen’s head kept inching closer. He even carefully brushed his lips against the skin at her neck.
She lowered her eyes to look at him.
Shi Shuchen’s slightly lowered brows and long lashes trembled faintly, as though he felt a little guilty about being caught doing something mischievous.
A flicker of surprise crossed Yuan Shu’s eyes.
Could it be that this Shi Shuchen… had been interested in her for a long time?
She recalled what had happened earlier in the Azure Radiance Formation, when this man had been unable to control the formation disk and the two of them had been tossed about.
To keep from getting hurt, she had clung to him like an octopus!
He was, after all, a normal man. And she naturally possessed a seductive constitution. Whenever someone came into close contact with her, it was inevitable that they would develop certain unusual thoughts.
She had sensed it at the time.
She had simply assumed it was an accident.
After all, as the master of a peak, Shi Shuchen should not have been interested in becoming involved with an unfamiliar female cultivator.
But now, it seemed that she had been wrong?
Yuan Shu did not dislike Shi Shuchen.
The man was handsome—no less so than Yao Qianci—and he was powerful as well. She was more than happy to grow closer to him.
Besides, she had just been worrying about how to find the formation spirit of the forbidden ground, and Shi Shuchen had delivered himself right to her door!
The formation spirit here was affected by the power of passion and was most sensitive to the aura of dual cultivation and the stirrings between men and women.
If she could arouse Shi Shuchen’s desire, there was a chance she could quickly sense the formation spirit’s presence.
Then she would not need to search the underground palace blindly!
A sharp gleam flashed through Yuan Shu’s eyes. Once the idea took shape, she curved her lips into a smile and suddenly let out a soft cry.
“Oh, Peak Master Shi, are you still unconscious?”
Shi Shuchen’s heart jolted. His long lashes trembled several times, but he did not open his eyes.
Yuan Shu found it amusing. This Peak Master Shi must never have acted before. His performance was terribly clumsy.
“Peak Master Shi, you were pricked by a passionflower thorn. That thorn is poisonous, and the poison is potent enough to affect the mind. Simply treating the wound like this isn’t enough…”
Yuan Shu paused, as though she had just thought of something, then continued, “I’m afraid it will take a special method to completely remove the poison!”
Shi Shuchen continued pretending to be unconscious, his long lashes lowered and casting a faint shadow over his handsome face.
A special method? What kind of special method?
Shi Shuchen did not understand, but he could feel Yuan Shu looking at him.
He was nervous. He was afraid she would discover that he had been awake for some time, and even more afraid that she would become angry. Thus, he could only remain completely motionless, leaning against her shoulder.
Yuan Shu was not at all reserved. Her bold gaze traveled up and down, taking in every inch of Shi Shuchen’s handsome face.
At last, it settled on his crimson, thin lips.
Those were the lips that had just brushed lightly against her neck, weren’t they?
With lips that beautiful, wouldn’t it be a waste to kiss only her neck?
The thought had barely arisen when she reached out and took hold of Shi Shuchen’s chin. Her slender, delicate fingers lightly pressed against his lips.
“Peak Master Shi, I only want to help you dispel the poison. I don’t mean to offend you. Now that you’re awake, you won’t blame me, will you?”
Yuan Shu’s voice was low and languid. The pad of her finger gently rubbed his lips, slowly tracing their shape.
Shi Shuchen’s body abruptly tensed again.
From Yuan Shu’s words, he vaguely sensed something unusual.
What… what was she trying to do?
She wanted to help him dispel the poison, yet she was afraid he would blame her?
Before Shi Shuchen could figure it out, the person before him suddenly lowered her head and drew closer to his face. In a soft, husky voice, she said, “Peak Master Shi, if I kiss you, you won’t object, will you?”
Shi Shuchen’s heart shuddered. For a moment, he thought he had misheard her.
“How about this, Peak Master Shi? I’m going to kiss you. If you disagree, open your eyes and stop me.”
Shi Shuchen’s eyelids trembled, but he still did not open them.
First, he was pretending to be unconscious. If he opened his eyes now, wouldn’t he give himself away?
Second, he thought Yuan Shu was joking.
Just as he was wondering whether he should find an opportunity to slowly open his eyes later and pretend he had only just awakened, the person before him suddenly moved even closer.
A cool, delicate pear-blossom fragrance enveloped his face.
He heard her ambiguous, soft voice slip into his ear.
“Peak Master Shi, since you’re not saying anything, I’ll take that as consent…”
The instant her words fell, something soft suddenly pressed against his lips.
By the time Shi Shuchen realized something was wrong, he abruptly opened his eyes.
The captivating fragrance of pear blossoms drifted into his nose, swirling around his lips before slipping through the gaps between them and entering his senses.
Shi Shuchen’s eyes widened. His body instinctively tried to retreat, but Yuan Shu held him tightly around the neck.
“Mmph…”
A soft, delicate whimper accompanied the pressure against his lips. Shi Shuchen’s eyes widened, and for a long moment, he could not react.
His heart suddenly began pounding.
He stared fixedly at the woman before him, her eyes slightly narrowed as she kissed him with increasing force. Every inch of his body was tense.
Reason told him that he was already fully awake and ought to push her away.
But she smelled so good. The fragrance of pear blossoms was intoxicating!
The scent between her lips seemed even richer, even more alluring!
Shi Shuchen braced himself with one elbow behind him, and Yuan Shu took the opportunity to lean over his chest.
She pressed her lips more firmly against his and pried open his mouth.
Shi Shuchen’s body stiffened at once, but Yuan Shu gave him no time to react.
The fragrance entering his mouth immediately spread throughout his oral cavity.
