How come I'm the one being conquered?

"Oh."

"The oranges are quite sweet."

"That's good."

The exchange was remarkably concise and to the point. The latter's response often came before the former had even finished speaking. This was followed by a considerable period of silence, during which the two of them simply ate the oranges in their hands, neither knowing what the other was thinking.

"There's something on your shoulder."

It wasn't until Cold Crow's gaze fell upon the handprint on Bai Jun's shoulder that the brief silence was broken.

Bai Jun looked at the handprint on his new clothes with surprise. After a moment's thought, he figured it must have been from Su Shang patting him when she greeted him earlier. After all, that girl had quite a bit of strength in her hands.

Cold Crow placed the half-eaten orange in her hand onto her lap and smoothed his clothes for him.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. By the way, where do you think we should go next?"

"Me? Hmm... San Yu Bookshop, I guess. I heard they've got a lot of good novels and comics lately, so I should be able to binge-watch to my heart's content." Bai Jun popped the orange into his mouth, thought for a moment, and answered truthfully.

"There's no hope for you. Asking you was a mistake from the start."

"Who asked you? Am I wrong for answering honestly? Besides, doesn't Xue Yi also enjoy reading?"

"Shut up. I didn't ask you to retort."

Cold Crow sighed, picked up the leftover orange from her lap, and unceremoniously shoved it into Bai Jun's mouth, effectively cutting off his retort. "Let's go, we're going to see a movie."

Bai Jun swallowed the orange with difficulty and looked at Cold Crow with a slightly strange expression. "See a movie? Didn't you say Xue Yi likes listening to Phantom Play? Those two things are completely different."

Cold Crow rolled her eyes but couldn't be bothered to explain to this guy. The dim and hazy environment, the accidental brushing of limbs in the narrow seats, the ambiguous atmosphere of facing each other, the hormones controlled by the plot's progression... he'd understand when the time came.

In any case, she'd take him to experience it first!

"There's really no helping it... Huh?"

Bai Jun's expression instantly froze. A sudden unease washed over him, and a strong sixth sense told him there was danger. But when he stood up and cautiously scanned the street, he found nothing.

"What's wrong?" Cold Crow noticed his abnormality and asked, confused.

"N-nothing... it must have just been a false alarm."

Bai Jun shook his head. As he looked away, his gaze inadvertently fell upon a handkerchief dropped on the ground on the other side of the street. Fluttered by the breeze, the torn marks on the handkerchief were very conspicuous.

Looking at the handkerchief, Bai Jun had a nagging feeling that something bad was about to happen.

No, it was probably just his imagination...

Chapter 42: But the bag clearly smelled of Bai Jun... (4k5)

The cinema was called Klausk Cinema, and it was invested in and opened by the people of Penacony.

It was said to be a branch of the renowned universally famous animation film company, Klausk Film and Television Park, on the Luofu. It could be called a paradise for animation and film enthusiasts, and one could get a glimpse of it just from the cinema's decor.

The reception hall on the first floor was magnificent, with colorful movie posters adorning the walls. Under the soft lighting, receptionists dressed in standard Penacony-style attire stood tall at the ticket counter and the platform. Upon seeing guests, they would enthusiastically approach and introduce recently released animated films for guests to consider.

And the screening rooms were directly up the stairs in front of the first-floor hall, but before that, one had to pass through the long ticket counter.

Cold Crow declined the receptionist's enthusiastic offer and walked directly to the poster featuring the cute Hamster Ball Knight. She turned and pointed at the poster, asking, "Let's watch Hamster Ball Knight, or we can watch something else... Why have you been so distracted since a moment ago? Are you feeling unwell?"

Bai Jun, who had been pondering where the gaze from earlier came from, blinked. Realizing Cold Crow was talking to him, he stopped rubbing his thumb against his lips and quickly shook his head, finding his own overthinking a bit amusing.

"It's nothing, I was just spacing out. As for the movie... whatever you want, why are you asking me?"

"That's good. I'll go buy the tickets for Hamster Ball Knight."

"Mhm, then I'll go see Hanuo Brothers. Let's meet here after we're done." Bai Jun stretched lazily, yawning, and walked towards the Hanuo Brothers ticket counter in the opposite direction, completely unaware of Cold Crow's sudden stiffening expression behind him.

Cold Crow's steps, which were about to lead her to the Hamster Ball Knight ticket counter, halted. Then, with a stiff expression, she slowly turned around, staring intently at Bai Jun with disbelief. "You, you said... what?"

"Huh? I'm going to see Hanuo Bro—Gah!"

Before he could finish, he saw Cold Crow, emanating black energy, deliver a heavy punch. Caught off guard, Bai Jun took the full force of the blow. His previously confused expression instantly became incredibly vivid, displaying a magnificent range of facial expressions.

"You truly are hopeless."

Cold Crow, supporting the half-dead Bai Jun with one hand, walked expressionlessly towards the terrified receptionist, interrupting his attempt to call the police. "Two tickets for Hamster Ball... no, Hanuo Brothers. And a family bucket."

"Don't play dead. Hurry up and go inside."

Cold Crow handed the tickets and a large bucket filled with various nuts, popcorn, and Penacony specialties to Bai Jun, and also took the six shopping bags that had been hanging from his hand. She urged him on with a hint of dissatisfaction.

"Maybe you used a bit too much force..."

Bai Jun clutched his aching abdomen. Although his complaint was quiet, Cold Crow still heard it.

She gently patted Bai Jun's shoulder, a faint smile suddenly appearing on her face, and said, enunciating each word clearly, "Hurry. Up. And. Go. Inside."

"Okay, I know I was wrong. I'll go in now..."

Bai Jun, faced with a choice between life and death, decisively chose obedience. Holding the family bucket in one hand and the ticket in the other, he entered the screening room.

Fumbling his way through the darkness without lights, he quickly found the numbers on his ticket among the neatly arranged deep red fabric seats. After Bai Jun sat down, Cold Crow soon joined him, holding two bottles of Sodale.

They sat in silence, quietly watching the screen, which appeared particularly vast under the illumination of the lights. As the lights gradually dimmed, the atmosphere in the cinema grew more tranquil, with only occasional muffled giggles and soft discussions.

It wasn't until the movie Hanuo Brothers began that the rustling sounds in the background gradually disappeared.

Ten minutes later—

"So retro, so artistic! The black and white palette is simply a stroke of genius. Ah, it's magnificent! Penacony, one day I'll visit there too!"

Twenty minutes later—

"Who is this person? When did they appear? Is the plot progression a bit too jumpy? No, I need to sit up and watch properly."

Thirty minutes later—

"Seriously, why isn't this over yet?"

Forty minutes later—

"Zzz..."

Watching Bai Jun, who had peacefully fallen asleep with his eyes closed, Cold Crow's expression was indescribably strange. He had seemed so energetic just moments ago; how could he be so listless now?

As for the movie's plot, she paid it no mind. Having worked with dream divination methods daily, constantly enduring the deluge of karma information from Mara-struck Bodies, she had long since grown indifferent to worldly affairs.

More importantly, her attention hadn't been on the movie from the start. She was entirely captivated by Bai Jun beside her.

When he was quiet and didn't speak carelessly, his charm was indeed exaggeratedly captivating.

His tall, perfect figure, skin as white as fine snow, cool and handsome features, gentle eyes, and clean, long fingers, even his soft, pleasant voice...

Gazing at his face up close, Cold Crow's usually unperturbed heart stirred with ripples. Covering her chest with her hand, she could even feel the frantic thumping of her heart.

Like a moth to a flame, some quality in Bai Jun was like a fire, fiercely drawing Cold Crow's attention, and with a single lapse, it snapped a string of her rationality.

Cold Crow held her breath, her cool right hand stealthily reaching for his fingers. The moment they touched, she felt an unprecedented warmth from his hand, like the sun, so scorching it almost melted her reason away.

She instantly cast aside any thought of restraint. Cautiously yet boldly, she moved from his fingers to his palm, intertwining their hands tightly like lovers.

She stared blankly at their clasped hands, her fair skin flushing a faint pink, feeling inexplicably lightheaded.

A desire hidden within her body gnawed at her rationality like ants, and a spark seemed to ignite deep within her heart. She could vaguely sense that if that flame were allowed to grow, her past self would be lost forever.

"So warm..." Cold Crow couldn't help but think.

Just as she was lost in her reverie, Bai Jun's eyelids twitched in his sleep. Startled, Cold Crow immediately withdrew her hand. Sure enough, after a moment, Bai Jun slowly woke up, smacked his lips, rubbed his eyes, and asked confusedly, "Is the movie over?"

"N-no."

Cold Crow turned her face away, propping up her hot cheek with her hand. Her usually beautiful lead-grey eyes were now filled with a hint of infatuation. Besides the incessant murmurs in her mind, no other thoughts could penetrate.

If there were a mirror now, she might have seen her flushed cheeks and dazed expression, but such things were no longer important.

"Ah, why isn't it over yet? It's so boring..."

Bai Jun scratched his hair in annoyance, feeling the new clothes constricting him uncomfortably. He unbuttoned the top button of his shirt and then loosened the cuff of his other wrist.

To Cold Crow, these unhurried actions were like sculpting a work of art. Especially the glimpse of porcelain-white skin at his collar, exuding an elegance with a fatal allure, and before she knew it, she felt a warmth in her nose.

"Ah, why are you bleeding from your nose?" Bai Jun looked at her in surprise and quickly reached into his pocket for tissues, but found nothing. It was then he remembered the tissues were in his old clothes, so he bent down to rummage through the packaging bag on the floor.

"The impact is a bit much."

"What?" Bai Jun stuffed his old clothes back into the packaging bag, then looked up again, handing Cold Crow a few tissues. Having not heard her clearly, he leaned closer with a hint of confusion.

"N-nothing..." Cold Crow's gaze drifted aside, and she pushed away his approaching face.

"If it's nothing, then hurry up and wipe it. Has work been too stressful lately?"

This was Bai Jun's first time seeing Cold Crow with a nosebleed. In his memory, although she had worked tirelessly for years, suffering from insomnia, melancholy, and emotional turmoil, showing signs of imminent collapse, her body had always been very healthy, and her mental state had never shown any changes.

However, her sudden nosebleed reminded Bai Jun of his own past experiences, and he felt a genuine concern, a sense of shared suffering.

"Just a bit of internal heat. The movie's over, let's go."

With that, she quickly got up, picked up the clothing packaging bag from the floor, and walked out of the cinema, leaving Bai Jun sitting there, utterly bewildered.

what can I say?

Following her out of the cinema, it was roughly two o'clock in the afternoon. Bai Jun, who had expected some other plans, saw Cold Crow, with two wads of tissue stuffed in her nose, put away her planner.

"That's all for now. Tomorrow, you just need to follow this procedure again, and then when you meet with sister..." Cold Crow frowned. For some reason, the words caught in her throat. Whenever she tried to say them, an inexplicable sense of irritation would surge within her, so she skipped it.

"Just know what you need to do." Cold Crow handed Bai Jun the five packaging bags in her hand. "Almost forgot your clothes. Remember to dress sharply tomorrow. As for the time, around dusk. I'll notify you then."

As she was leaving, Cold Crow suddenly turned around and gave Bai Jun a gentle smile. "I was very happy spending time with you today. No, it's been a long time since I've been this happy."

—If possible, I hope I can go shopping with you again.

These words were quietly hidden in Cold Crow's heart, unsaid.

Bai Jun waved his hand and silently watched her somewhat cheerful back as she walked down the steps, finally disappearing from his sight.

He stretched, about to leave, when he looked down at the five packaging bags in his hand.

If he remembered correctly, shouldn't there be six?

Ten Lords Bureau, within Yōqiú Prison.

There were no hysterical shouts or wails from the prisoners. Only the occasional roar of massive gears and machinery broke the near-deathly silence.

In the pitch darkness, the cyan lantern suspended beside Cold Crow provided the only light. The sound of her open-toed shoes on the floor, though faint, was quite noticeable in the silent environment, no less terrifying than any words could describe.

Skillfully bypassing the mechanisms, she calmly proceeded along the correct path to the central hub. Along the way, she encountered many Underworld Envoys. Their pace was also unhurried, and every few steps, they would cautiously inspect the mechanisms for any necessary repairs, ensuring no accidental activation would cause danger.

"Lady Cold Crow, you... you're back!"

A familiar voice reached her ears. Cold Crow turned and saw a green figure approaching, holding many parts, with beads of sweat on her forehead.

"Huo Huo, was everything smooth?" she asked, stepping forward and gently stroking Huo Huo's hair as she always did, her demeanor as soft as if tending to a kitten or puppy.

"O-of course! Lady Xue Yi's maintenance work went very smoothly, no problems at all!"

Huo Huo truly enjoyed Cold Crow's concern. Her fluffy fox ears twitched happily, but unfortunately, her tail, that old grump, was utterly uncooperative. Otherwise, it would have wagged just like those of her other Foxkin kin.

"Tch, you're really embarrassing the Foxkin. Isn't this just like a pet dog? Happy to wag its tail and beg for a treat," the tail grumbled as usual.

"Y-you say I'm begging, but isn't my tail you...?"

"Eh? I say, little brat, has your mouth gotten more venomous lately?"

Huo Huo's characteristic sweet-but-sarcastic nature quickly pushed the tail over the edge. It thrashed, threatening to fly up and drag Huo Huo to her doom right there. Fortunately, Cold Crow intervened in time to stop the two lively companions. "No loud noises are allowed within the Ten Lords Bureau, especially from Underworld Envoys who must maintain caution and discretion. Otherwise, be careful your tongues aren't cut out."

Huo Huo was terrified of this and quickly shut her mouth. The tail, however, was typically unfazed. It swayed, its green flames flickering, as if sensing something.

"Why do I smell Bai Jun? Hey, little crow, were you just looking for him?"

"No."

"No? Impossible. My nose is sharper than a dog's. You definitely went looking for him!" the tail insisted, its tone carrying a hint of pride, as if celebrating its superior sense of smell over canines. "For example, there's still his scent lingering on your hands, your clothes, and even that shopping bag you're carrying."

"Tch, truly disgusting."

"I-I'm sorry, Lady Cold Crow!"

Cold Crow looked at the tail with disgust, and Huo Huo, sensing the awkward situation, quickly apologized before fleeing with the tail in her arms.

Cold Crow then adjusted her mood and continued on her way. She pushed open the heavy, mottled door, beyond which lay the central hub of Yōqiú Prison.

Xue Yi rose from her coffin, stretching her mechanical body stiffened by maintenance, gradually restoring her performance to peak condition. Just as she was about to stand up and try out a few sets of military combat exercises to test her limbs, she turned and saw Cold Crow entering.