Do you want me to tear my heart out for you?

"No, no!"

"Don't look! Go away, go away! Sister Xiao Wu doesn't want your candy anymore!"

Without warning,

Xiao Wu's tearful voice rang in Ye Qiu's ears, filled with resentment, pleading, and fear.

"Hey! You stupid rabbit, calm down!"

Ye Qiu hurriedly called out to reassure her.

But how could Xiao Wu, at that moment, listen to a human Soul Master?

Outside, Xiao Wu, dressed in a tight black bodysuit, began to tremble all over. Black cracks appeared in the white patches over her eyes.

Xiao Wu raised her little hands and tugged at the sticky black bodysuit. She was resisting Ye Qiu not only physically, but mentally as well.

The connection between them, their minds united as one, had already been severed.

"Ah—!"

"Go away, go away!"

Xiao Wu screamed. Her tear-streaked face emerged again, pushing its way out.

Like someone trapped in a swamp, she struggled to break free, but the blackness kept climbing up her pretty face, trying to stop her from acting rashly.

"Calm down. Just calm down."

Hearing Xiao Wu scream at the top of her lungs, Ye Qiu kept trying to soothe her.

But Xiao Wu's mind was completely blank. All she could think about was escaping—getting away from Ye Qiu, getting away from this place!

Ye Qiu couldn't help growing anxious, too.

He shouted in a low voice:

"Shut up!"

"Stupid rabbit, do you want to bring everyone else here and let them find out who you are?!"

"Ah!"

Xiao Wu let out a terrified cry.

Then she clamped down hard, swallowing the sound through her tears.

"Phew~"

Ye Qiu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

To avoid frightening the little rabbit any further, Ye Qiu clung to Xiao Wu's clothes.

Xiao Wu could also feel the strength draining from her body. It was Ye Qiu's Soul Power. At that moment, she didn't have the energy to care.

Tears streaming down her face, she crouched and hugged her head, trembling nonstop.

Pfft!

A black fluid gathered on Xiao Wu's shoulder, and Venom's head emerged, floating beside her. Ye Qiu didn't form a human face, only taking on Venom's appearance and keeping his long tongue reined in.

Although his first attempt at possessing her hadn't fully succeeded, he had learned a lot about his Martial Soul's abilities. He was still a little pleased.

Seeing Xiao Wu crouched on the ground with her head bowed, silent, he leaned close to her ear and asked with concern, "Little rabbit, are you all right?"

"Don't. You're not allowed to say it."

Xiao Wu kept shaking her head, looking down. She tried to stifle her sobs, her voice hoarse.

Just as Ye Qiu was about to say something else, faint dripping sounds suddenly echoed through the alley.

Drip!

A glistening tear fell to the ground.

Ye Qiu sighed helplessly. He wasn't even a Soul Master yet, and he'd already scared her this badly.

Never mind. He'd better not tell her about Tang Hao just yet.

Otherwise, if she really tried to run away, he'd be done for.

Though he had turned into Venom and was difficult to kill,

the other man was, after all, a Titled Douluo!

The Venom he'd become wasn't truly inhuman, either.

Being hard to kill meant nothing in the face of such an overwhelming gap in power.

Tang Hao could simply lock him up and let him starve to death.

"Don't. Don't say it..."

As Ye Qiu was thinking, Xiao Wu continued murmuring the same words. She shakily raised her head, her face streaked with tears and her eyes full of panic. She wrapped both arms around her small frame.

She looked at Ye Qiu, biting her red lip, utterly vulnerable.

Even though he had only stuck his head out, she wasn't afraid. Compared to death, none of this mattered.

She could only beg Ye Qiu: "Please don't tell anyone, okay? Sister Xiao Wu will do whatever you say! Just don't tell anyone, okay? Please."

Xiao Wu clutched the clothes that had turned black, her tears falling like pearls from a broken string.

In his Venom form, Ye Qiu's expression was impossible to make out.

He'd never planned to tell anyone. How could he not feel at least a little sympathy for such an adorable, sheltered little rabbit?

"Will you really do whatever I say?"

Ye Qiu's hoarse voice sounded in his Venom form, like a demon's to Xiao Wu.

Xiao Wu's face turned deathly pale. She pressed her red lips together, gritted her teeth, and nodded firmly.

"Good!"

Ye Qiu answered, then said seriously:

"Then let's do it again! This time, you're not allowed to reject me!"

Xiao Wu blinked her tear-filled eyes, hesitated, then slowly nodded.

Ye Qiu already knew her biggest secret. What did it matter if they did it again?

When a tentacle suddenly grew out of her clothes, Xiao Wu's voice was weak and choked with sobs, barely more than a whisper.

"What are you going to do~?"

"Obviously, I'm going to wipe your nose, so you don't get snot all over me."

Ye Qiu smiled. The tentacle suddenly blossomed into the shape of a hand. Holding the cloth he'd used to wrap candy, it gently wiped Xiao Wu's face, the corners of her eyes, and the area beneath her nose.

Then he playfully pinched her little nose, red from crying, leaving a hint of sweetness behind, and tucked the cloth into the front of Xiao Wu's clothes.

Looking at the cloth tucked into her collar, Xiao Wu's deathly pale face took on a faint blush. She pressed her lips together and said nothing, but a few more tears welled in the corners of her eyes.

The little warmth she'd felt moments ago vanished. She only felt that Ye Qiu was picking on her.

"All right, are you ready?"

Ye Qiu's hoarse voice was hardly gentle, but it was enough to bring Xiao Wu back to her senses.

"Mm."

Xiao Wu gave a slight nod and closed her eyes as if resigned to her fate. Two clear tears slowly slid down her cheeks.

Seeing this, Ye Qiu rolled his eyes in exasperation.

Why was she getting upset again? He was only trying to comfort her. Besides, this wasn't exactly a good topic to discuss in public.

Once they were joined together and their minds were connected, they could say whatever they wanted—or not say anything at all. Just thinking about it would be enough for the other to understand!

"Here I go."

Ye Qiu didn't dwell on it. He warned Xiao Wu, then immediately began touching her fair skin again, even seeping beneath it.

Fine, fiber-like strands of black slowly crept up Xiao Wu's face.

Two more little pearls squeezed out of the corners of Xiao Wu's eyes. She clenched her fists and forced herself to endure the process of linking their memories. It felt as if someone were violating her memories, as if Ye Qiu were wantonly playing with her soul.

Ye Qiu's memories flowed into Xiao Wu just as uncontrollably, but there wasn't much information—only his memories from after his Martial Soul Awakening.

Their memories slowly linked together.

Xiao Wu, her fists clenched tight, suddenly froze and tilted her head.

As her eyes flickered, a surge of delight rose in her heart.

Ye Qiu's memories flowed into her, along with his truest thoughts:

He wouldn't reveal her identity, and he wouldn't hurt her!

Faced with Ye Qiu's sincere, openhearted feelings, Xiao Wu, who had still been sobbing a moment earlier, stared at him, dazed.

"Ye Qiu, you really won't tell anyone?"

"Do I have to tear my heart out and show you to prove what I'm thinking?"

Ye Qiu rolled his eyes.

Sensing that there wasn't a trace of insincerity in Ye Qiu's heart, Xiao Wu's pretty face brightened a little.

"Ye Qiu... thank you!"

Ye Qiu's consciousness was now living inside Xiao Wu, so he could feel how truly grateful she was.

"Just cooperate with me. I want to test how powerful it is."

Ye Qiu replied calmly.

"Mm!"

Xiao Wu nodded, composed herself, and began testing her black bodysuit, threaded through with wisps of pink.