Intimacy Task Pool, Shared Bath

Pope Palace, bedchamber.

Bibi Dong sat on the rosewood chair, motionless, like a stone statue nailed to the spot.

In her mind, that line of blood-red mission descriptions was dancing wildly.

[Close embrace.]

[Duration: one hour.]

[Read a bedtime story.]

She stared at these three lines for a full quarter of an hour, her breathing disordered and then steady, steady and then disordered, tossing back and forth seven or eight times.

This system is truly a cur!

[Failure penalty: Soul-Devouring Pain Ultimate Edition, lasting two hundred and eighty-eight hours.]

Two hundred and eighty-eight hours, no more, no less, exactly twelve days.

The seventy-two-hour "trial card" from last time had already left her leaning against walls and vomiting blood; if this twelve-day "deluxe complete version" were poured into her, her soul would likely be ground into dust!

Bibi Dong closed her eyes and slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

So be it.

She stood up, walked to the wardrobe, and pulled out the moon-white plain robe she had already worn twice.

While changing, her fingers trembled three times.

The first time was when unbuttoning the collar of her Pope robe.

The second time was when tying the sash of the plain robe.

The third time was when pushing open the doors of the bedchamber.

The night was like ink.

Bibi Dong followed the secluded corridor she had already walked three times, heading toward the northeast corner.

Her footsteps were heavy, as if she were marching toward the execution ground.

Library Pavilion, third floor.

Su Chen lay on a bamboo chair, eyes closed, his breathing long and steady.

It's coming, it's coming; time for the Oscar-winning performance to begin.

He had extinguished the lamps a quarter of an hour ago, leaving only moonlight to leak through the gaps in the window lattice, landing just right on his face.

On the light screen, the red dot representing the coordinates of Bibi Dong was moving forward with unwavering determination.

Creeeak~

The wooden door was pushed open, the sound so faint it was almost inaudible.

Bibi Dong controlled the width of the door gap perfectly, just enough for one person to slip in sideways.

She stood beside the bamboo chair, lowering her eyes to look at the "fast asleep" Su Chen.

Under the moonlight, the young man's face was quiet and completely unguarded, his long eyelashes casting shadows on his cheekbones, covering the bloodstain that had already scabbed over.

Bibi Dong's hands gripped her skirt hem tightly.

In her mind, the mission countdown skipped past [08:00].

She stood there for a full three minutes, like a statue waiting for a husband.

Then, she moved.

Bibi Dong sat on the edge of the bamboo chair with extreme stiffness, her hips barely touching a narrow strip, half her body hanging off the edge.

She reached out her right hand, supported the back of Su Chen's head, lifted it, and carefully placed it onto her lap.

A lap pillow.

Her ten fingers threaded into Su Chen's hair, stiff as ten iron bars.

Bibi Dong stared straight ahead, her breathing rapid.

This... should be enough to muddle through, right?

The next second, the system's cold, mechanical voice exploded directly in her brain.

[Warning! Action does not meet the criteria! Please strictly execute the "close embrace" command; do not attempt to exploit loopholes!]

The countdown numbers instantly turned a glaring, blood-red, flashing frantically.

Bibi Dong's body swayed.

She looked down at the eyes-closed Su Chen, then looked at the countdown that had jumped to [02:00].

In her pupils, humiliation, fear, and rage played out in turns, only to be crushed into pieces by the terrifying shadow of the Soul-Devouring Pain.

She nearly shattered her silver teeth.

Bibi Dong turned her body and lay her entire self into the narrow bamboo chair.

Her back pressed tightly against the cold surface of the chair, her arms wrapped around Su Chen from behind, pulling him entirely into her embrace.

Su Chen's cheek was pressed seamlessly against her collarbone, his nose brushing against the skin of her neck.

His warm breath puffed against her neck, one beat after another.

Bibi Dong's muscles tensed instantly, turning as hard as iron.

Her heart rate soared straight to one hundred and eighty!

However, at that very moment...

The aura of the World Tree origin within Su Chen stirred.

That vast, oceanic life force flowed silently from where their skin touched, pouring back into Bibi Dong's meridians.

It was crisp, ancient, and seemed capable of cleansing all things.

The lingering evil thoughts of the Rakshasa God that had long occupied Bibi Dong's mind were washed away by this power, melting silently like spring snow meeting the warm sun.

Large swaths of purple-black malice were forcibly purified, and the filth that had accumulated in the depths of her soul for three years was stripped away layer by layer.

Her muscles relaxed.

It wasn't that she wanted to, but her body reacted instinctively.

Her tense spine softened, the arms wrapped around Su Chen's back were no longer like iron bars, and her heart rate dropped steadily from one hundred and eighty back to ninety.

On the light screen, Bibi Dong's resistance value plummeted from 98% to 31%.

Su Chen, with his face buried in her collarbone and his eyes closed, felt the embrace shift from rigid to soft and the heartbeat transition from frantic to steady, a subtle smile curling the corner of his lips.

The mission was only one step away.

Read aloud.

Bibi Dong froze for two seconds before reaching out with one hand to fumble for a book on the nearby shelf.

She dared not move too much, fearing she might wake Su Chen in her arms.

Her fingers opened the cover in the darkness, and by the moonlight, she barely managed to make out the title.

<Douluo Continent Soul Beast Illustrated Handbook: Deep Sea Volume>.

Bibi Dong's temples throbbed.

There was no choice.

If she changed books now and shifted her posture, and the system judged it as an "interruption of the close embrace" and triggered another countdown, she truly wouldn't survive the night.

Bibi Dong swallowed, turned to the first page, and began.

"Deep Sea Demon Whale."

Her voice was as cold as if she were reading a death warrant.

"Classification: Hundred-thousand-year-level deep-sea overlord. Habitat depth: Below three thousand meters. Staple diet: Venomous jellyfish."

She paused for two seconds.

"The adult of this soul beast can reach a length of one hundred zhang. Its head is covered in black-iron-grade hard armor; physical attacks are nearly ineffective, and soul power attacks require a level above eighty to cause significant damage."

Every word was enunciated clearly, as flat and monotonous as reading a list of crimes to a prisoner on death row.

Su Chen's face was buried in her collarbone, his nose filled with her faint scent, while his ears were flooded with this murderous "lullaby."

Hold it in, Su Chen, you are a professional!

The laughter rising in his throat pushed up three times, but he pressed it down firmly each time.

Cannot laugh, absolutely cannot laugh!

If he laughed, he would be done for tonight!

Bibi Dong turned the page and continued to read in a monotone.

"Great White Shark Emperor, lifespan: eighty thousand to one hundred and twenty thousand years. Attack method: high-speed collision, bite force capable of shattering level-six soul-guided alloys."

She turned another page.

"Nether Jellyfish Swarm, characteristics: translucent gelatinous body, tentacles up to thirty zhang long, highly toxic, neurotoxins can paralyze a Soul King-level expert within three seconds..."

Her voice began to show subtle changes by the time she reached the thirty-seventh soul beast.

It didn't become gentler.

It became slower.

The life aura of the World Tree continued to pour in, and the scorched earth in the depths of her soul, occupied by the Rakshasa malice for three years, was being healed and cleared inch by inch.

It had been too long, far too long, since she had felt such peace.

So long that she had almost forgotten that such a feeling existed.

"...Blue Silver Whale King... distribution area..."

Her voice grew lower and slower.

Her breathing became increasingly steady.

The Soul Beast Illustrated Handbook slid two inches from her hand, barely caught by her fingertips.

She was still reading, but the intervals between the words grew longer and longer.

The young man in her arms had a steady body temperature and long, rhythmic breaths, and that woody fragrance lingering around him made her feel incredibly at ease.

One hour later.

A mechanical voice exploded in both of their minds simultaneously.

[Ding~ Bedtime reading task complete! Rewards being issued: 5% of the Rakshasa God's evil thoughts removed, difficulty of the eighth trial of the Rakshasa God reduced by 50%.]

Bibi Dong's consciousness was instantly pulled back.

She lowered her head, only to realize that at some point, her chin had come to rest on top of Su Chen's head, and her arms were pulled tight, holding him firmly and securely in her embrace.

A faint "pat" sound came from the floor; the Soul Beast Illustrated Handbook had fallen.

The tips of Bibi Dong's ears burned instantly.

She carefully loosened her arms and rose from the bamboo chair, her movements as light as a cat's.

As she smoothed her skirt, her peripheral vision swept over Su Chen's collar, which had pulled open slightly due to their posture.

Her gaze froze.

Three inches below his collarbone, a verdant green mark flickered in and out of sight.

It was a leaf pattern, exquisite to the extreme with distinct veins, radiating an ancient life fluctuation that seemed to come from the very end of the world.

Bibi Dong's pupils shrank to pinpricks.

She stared fixedly at the mark for a full five seconds, engraving every single vein deep into her memory.

Then, she turned and walked out of the Library Pavilion without looking back.

Meanwhile, in Su Chen's mind, golden light detonated.

[Hundredfold critical return triggered! Origin Soul Power surged! World Tree consciousness sea fully expanded!]

Boom!

A hot current erupted from his dantian, and his meridians hummed like thunder!

The World Tree in his consciousness sea expanded by a full circle, its roots digging deep into the bedrock of his soul, and its emerald divine leaves nearly covered the entire dome of his consciousness sea.

Soul Power Level: 40 → 45!

Su Chen remained lying on the bamboo chair, eyes closed, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned.

Winning by lying down—truly sweet.

Pope Palace bedchamber.

Bibi Dong sat alone in the vast, empty hall.

She lowered her eyes to look at her palm, her fingers slowly curling and then slowly relaxing.

Her palm was empty.

Yet, on her fingertips, it felt as if the softness of his hair, the warmth of his shoulder blades, and that woody fragrance that simply would not dissipate still remained.

Bibi Dong slowly closed her eyes.

Whatever she was thinking of, a faint, shallow arc appeared at the corner of her mouth.

Just then, the system screen popped up again.

A blinding golden panel exploded:

[Daily Intimacy Task Pool unlocked!]

[Task Preview List:]

[Hold hands and walk (30-minute time limit)]

[Forehead kiss (no less than 3 seconds)]

[Bathe together (water temperature no lower than 40 degrees)]

[...]

The faint smile that had just appeared on Bibi Dong's face froze instantly.