The next day.
The sun was already high in the sky.
Sunlight squeezed through the gap in the curtains, drawing a slender golden line across the bedsheets.
Mu Tianyi woke first. The moment his consciousness returned, he felt movement in his arms.
Zhang Lexuan was curled up beside him, her black hair scattered over his shoulder and pillow. Her face was buried against his neck, her breathing light and even, her warm breath brushing over his collarbone again and again.
Scenes from last night replayed in his mind.
Mu Tianyi lowered his head to look at the girl in his arms, and something soft welled up inside him.
It was not the emptiness after an impulse, nor the smugness of getting what he wanted.
It was a steady, reassuring satisfaction, as though he had finally clasped something precious firmly in his hand.
Looking at her half-closed eyes, the faint curve of her lips, and the tiny traces of tears that seemed to linger on her lashes, he could not resist lowering his head and lightly kissing her forehead.
The instant his lips touched her skin, Zhang Lexuan's body stirred slightly.
Her eyelashes trembled, and she let out a muffled murmur, like the disgruntled yet helpless hum of a kitten awakened from sleep.
She slowly opened her eyes. It took several seconds for her pupils to go from unfocused to clear.
Those light-brown eyes were brighter than usual, as though washed by last night's rain—
clean, moist, and covered by a thin mist.
"Awake?" Mu Tianyi asked softly.
"Mm..." Zhang Lexuan's voice was hoarse, clearly exhausted, and even her trailing tone sounded weak.
Mu Tianyi suddenly felt a little guilty.
The physique of a dragon martial soul master truly was no joke. In that regard, he had perfectly inherited Xuan Zu