Well, they weren't that close.
Jiang Nannan's gaze wandered, and she unconsciously looked away, but she remained seated at the bedside and didn't leave.
She didn't know why herself. Maybe she was afraid something would happen to Xiao Yi?
But... what if it really did...
Her fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her clothes, her knuckles turning faintly white before slowly relaxing.
She wanted to stay.
There was no reason. Xiao Yi was hers.
Unlike Jiang Nannan, lost in wild thoughts, Jiang Yi wasn't thinking that much.
He'd called Jiang Nannan over just to deliver the Mystic Water Pill, but he hadn't expected her to insist on staying to protect him while he refined it.
As for the Whale Rubber, Jiang Yi was still quite confident. A little heat was nothing; he didn't need his big sister to step in.
And if the worst came to the worst, he still had a spare hidden cup... He was sure Sister Tian Meng would understand.
Splash!
Jiang Yi stripped off his clothes and sat in the water. The hot water rose to his shoulders, and mist billowed up, obscuring his figure.
"Tian Meng."
Then he called out to Tian Meng in his mind.
This Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue had weathered and hardened. He didn't have Ma Xiaotao's Phoenix Flame, so there was no way he could swallow it.
He could only use this method: gradually dissolve the Whale Glue in the water, then let his skin absorb its medicinal power.
It would take longer to refine, but at least it was a way.
"Coming."
A flash of blue light shot from Jiang Yi's chest and transformed into a small white silkworm. It silently sank beneath the water.
Glug, glug—
Tian Meng gulped down several mouthfuls, then fixed her gaze on the lump of Whale Glue at the bottom of the tub and lifted it into her hands.
Hugging the lump of Whale Glue, she slowly paddled through the water with more than a dozen jade-white feet until she reached Jiang Yi's crossed legs.
So big!
Tian Meng glanced down, surprise showing on her fuzzy little face.
Of course, she meant the Whale Glue. It was so thick that, when she hugged it, it was almost a full ring wider than her current body.
If she hadn't had more than a dozen legs, she might not have been able to hold it.
"Ahem..."
Jiang Yi coughed, reached into the water, and lightly flicked the dazed little caterpillar with a bent finger.
"Don't get distracted."
She dared to size up her master? Sister Tian Meng, you were already walking the path of oh-ho-ho-ho.
"Hehe, right away..."
Sister Tian Meng giggled foolishly, then hurriedly grabbed the Whale Glue. All of her jade-white feet strained at once, refining it in a single go.
Wisp after wisp of its fiery medicinal power was drawn out and dissolved into the water. Jiang Yi, closest to it, immediately felt a warm current rush from his limbs into his body.
As the medicinal power continued to release, the warm current grew larger and more turbulent.
"Huff, huff—"
Jiang Yi's breathing gradually quickened. The blood vessels throughout his body swelled, and veins bulged beneath his skin.
A faint flush slowly spread across his body, from his chest to his neck and then everywhere, making him look like a boiled prawn from a distance.
The water grew hotter and hotter, and wisps of steam rose, leaving Jiang Yi's figure hazy and indistinct.
"Done!"
Tian Meng refined the last wisp of Whale Glue into the water, dusted off her paws, and was just about to return to the Master Ball to sleep.
Suddenly—
A dark shape sprang out.
The next moment, the little white silkworm hovering in the water flew away and slammed into the tub wall with a dull thud.
"???"
Tian Meng blinked, flipped over in the water, and marveled at her master's talent.
Just then, footsteps sounded nearby, accompanied by a voice tinged with worry.
"Xiao Yi, are you all right?"
Tian Meng snapped out of it and hurriedly returned to Jiang Yi's body.
On the other side of the room, Jiang Nannan sprang to her feet at the dull thud.
Her gaze pierced the mist and settled on the indistinct figure. Her eyes were full of worry.
She hesitated for just a moment, then walked over.
"Xiao Yi!"
Jiang Nannan reached the tub and crouched down. Seeing Jiang Yi red from head to toe, she called to him softly.
But Jiang Yi didn't respond. He was doing his utmost to refine the medicinal power inside him, and he'd underestimated the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue.
"What powerful medicinal energy..."
Jiang Nannan reached out and gently laid her jade-white hand on Jiang Yi's chest. Feeling the scorching heat, she was slightly startled.
With medicinal power this domineering, it was probably no ordinary Whale Rubber.
"You really are a silly little brother~"
Looking at Jiang Yi, the veins at his temples throbbing, she chided him fondly, her voice laced with both affection and concern.
Whale Glue could strengthen the body, but he couldn't just gobble the whole lot down at once! If he'd refined it in several batches, he wouldn't be suffering like this.
The water rippled gently.
Through the shimmering water, she inadvertently glanced at the enormous thing beneath the surface, and her pretty face instantly turned scarlet.
It must be uncomfortable, right?
It... it was swollen that badly.
Jiang Nannan thought about it with a pang of sympathy.
She bit her lower lip and lightly scratched at the tub's edge with her fingertips, her nails sinking in and leaving faint marks.
And yet—
Maybe because she was standing too close, Jiang Nannan felt a faint heat gradually rising inside her, too.
"Xiao Yi."
She bit her red lips, a thin sheen of moisture appearing in her eyes as the hazy mist blurred her vision.
The boy who usually seemed so young to her now looked grown and tall through the steam.
His strong body and taut, defined muscles held an almost demonic allure, making her heart pound wildly.
Her subconscious told her she had to leave; otherwise, something irreversible might happen.
But her body didn't move. Another voice had taken over her heart.
They weren't even real siblings...
Besides, that enormous lump of Whale Glue would probably be too much for Xiao Yi to refine alone. She had to... had to keep a close eye on him.
She found herself a perfectly respectable excuse.
But she didn't believe it herself.
As the heat inside her continued to build, Jiang Nannan's pretty face gradually flushed red, her cheeks blooming like peach blossoms in the third month of spring.
No.
She gripped the tub's edge tightly, holding back the impulse inside her.
Just then, a dark cloud drifted past the window and covered the moon. In an instant, darkness swallowed everything.
"Huff, huff..."
In the darkness, breathing grew heavier and heavier. The desires of the body finally crushed the last trace of shame.
"I'm sorry~"
Jiang Nannan closed her eyes and slowly lowered her head. Her alluring red lips quivered uncontrollably, like petals in the wind.
Just this once.
Xiao Yi wouldn't know anyway. He wouldn't know... what a bad big sister she was.
With the last string in her heart finally snapping, Jiang Nannan felt as though her shackles had fallen away, leaving her much lighter.
Moonlight slipped through a gap in the clouds once more, its silvery glow falling over them.
Their faces drew closer and closer, their silhouettes gradually merging. The hot breath washing over her left her flustered and confused.
Yet an odd thrill rose in her heart, as though a devil's voice were whispering in her ear.
Kiss him! Kiss him! Then your little brother will never leave you again.
"Crack!"
A sudden, ill-timed sound broke the intimate atmosphere of the dark night.
"Who's there?"
Jiang Nannan's heart lurched, and her hazy eyes instantly cleared.
She sprang her eyes open. Seeing the face right in front of her, she darted her gaze away and jerked backward.
"Uh, looks like I came at the wrong time. I'm so sorry! I won't disturb you. I'll be going..."
Tang Ya, who was perched on the windowsill, scratched her head awkwardly and gave Jiang Nannan an embarrassed grin.
Then she prepared to make a quick getaway.
What rotten luck. She'd planned to sneak in for a night raid, but she'd walked in on something she shouldn't have seen. What a sin, what a sin...
But in the next instant, a streak of golden light flashed across the night sky, and Jiang Nannan appeared behind Tang Ya.
"Trying to run?"
A long, shapely leg swung in with a hint of pent-up anger and kicked Tang Ya hard, sending her flying into the room.
Thud! Thud!
Tang Ya rolled across the floor like a little ball, bounced twice, and crashed into the corner, dazed and dizzy.
"Ow—!"
Tang Ya clutched her backside and groaned.
Meanwhile, Jiang Nannan floated in through the window, her skirt rippling in the night breeze like a flower in full bloom.
She casually added another kick, then slammed the window shut with a smack.
Only then did she turn around and look down at Tang Ya, who was still baring her teeth in pain. Her usual cool expression had returned.
"What are you doing here?"
Before you continue