Eighteen Bends on the Mountain Road, Every Bend into His Arms

Half an hour later, the dedicated pickup car that was supposedly "stuck halfway" finally arrived.

It was neither a luxurious nanny van nor a flashy off-road jeep, but a... modified pickup that looked thoroughly weathered, its tires still caked with half-dried yellow mud.

Jian Xiu stared at the vehicle, his brows furrowed tightly enough to crush a fly. He nearly lost his grip on his trekking pole.

"Huo Si, is this the Huo Group's standard of hospitality in Qianzhou? You expect us to ride this into the mountains? Do you want my ass to survive or not?"

Huo Si remained perfectly calm. He took the car keys from the driver, opened the rear door with practiced ease, and held one hand over the doorframe to shield Jian Ning as he got in.

"The road ahead had a landslide and was only just repaired. Only a vehicle with high clearance and strong traction can get through. If you want to ride in a Maybach, I'm afraid we'll have to have a helicopter lower you into the mountains."

Jian Ning, on the other hand, was thrilled. Like a little bird freshly released from its cage, he nimbly slipped into the backseat and even bounced on the leather seat.

Wow! This thing's kind of wild!

Isn't this the kind of vehicle they use for post-apocalyptic escapes in movies? Awesome!

"Stop being so picky, bro. This thing doesn't just absorb shocks—it can ram zombies in an emergency!"

Jian Xiu: ...

Resigned, he tossed his enormous hiking pack into the truck bed, then opened the passenger-side door and stuffed himself inside.

Huo Si did not take the front passenger seat. Instead, he squeezed into the back with Jian Ning.

The pickup's backseat was cramped to begin with. With two grown men seated there, their thighs inevitably pressed together, shoulders touching.

The door slammed shut with a bang, and the narrow space instantly became an intimate little enclosure.

"Let's go," Huo Si told the driver.

Qianzhou's mountain roads were famously known for their "eighteen bends."

Things were fine while they were still leaving the city, but once the car truly entered the winding mountain roads, Jian Ning's excitement over a "post-apocalyptic escape" was quickly shaken away.

"Ugh..."

Jian Ning's face had turned deathly pale. He slumped limply against the seat like a salted fish that had lost all its dreams.

The car took a sharp turn.

Jian Ning's body was flung uncontrollably to the left, and his head hit the window with a thud.

Before he could rub his aching head, the car made another sharp turn in the opposite direction, sending him flying rightward like a sandbag.

Just as he thought he was about to crash into Huo Si's hard shoulder, a warm, powerful hand steadily caught his head and pulled him into an embrace.

"Feeling sick?" Huo Si's deep voice sounded above him, the vibration carrying directly into Jian Ning's ears.

Jian Ning whimpered and buried his face in Huo Si's coat. The crisp, pleasant scent of cedar instantly enveloped him, diluting the stuffy mixture of gasoline and leather inside the car.

"I feel awful..." Jian Ning's voice was soft and thick with a nasal tone. "Which abstract artist designed this road? This isn't driving—it's being churned around inside a washing machine..."

Wuwuwu, I want to throw up, but that sour fish soup I ate earlier was so good. Throwing it up would be such a waste.

Huo Si, you smell so good. Let me take a whiff to keep myself alive.

Hearing his thoughts, Huo Si's eyes flashed with helpless amusement and affection.

He adjusted his position so Jian Ning could lean against him more comfortably. His long fingers gently massaged Jian Ning's temples, applying just the right pressure to ease his dizziness.

"Get some sleep," Huo Si said quietly. "You won't feel carsick once you're asleep."

Jian Ning obediently closed his eyes, his arms instinctively wrapping around Huo Si's lean waist. He nuzzled against Huo Si's chest, searching for the most comfortable position.

Mmm... this human body pillow is pretty nice.

It's temperature-controlled, it gives massages, and most importantly, it feels good. He's got muscles around his waist... hehehe...

Jian Xiu, seated in the front passenger seat, saw the scene through the rearview mirror.

His little brother was draped over Huo Si like a boneless koala, while that usually icy "living King of Hell" was gently rubbing his brother's head, his gaze so tender it practically dripped water.

Without expression, Jian Xiu took a pair of noise-canceling headphones from his bag and put them on.

Out of sight, out of mind. Out of hearing, peace at last.

He felt that he should not have come along on this trip. He should have been under the car, not inside it.

No one knew how much time had passed before the sky gradually darkened.

Outside the windows, the scenery had changed from ordinary woods to towering ancient trees. Their dense branches and leaves blocked out the sky, making the already gloomy heavens feel even more oppressive.

Jian Ning woke groggily when the car braked sharply.

"What happened?" He rubbed his sleepy eyes and realized that he was still holding Huo Si around the waist. There was even a suspicious trace of drool at the corner of his mouth.

He hurriedly wiped it onto Huo Si's coat while Huo Si was not paying attention.

Huo Si: ...

"President Huo, fog's rolled in ahead." The driver's voice was tense. "There's something strange about it. Even the headlights can't shine through."

Everyone looked out the windows.

A dense cloud of white fog had risen on the winding mountain road ahead at some point. It was not drifting about, but stood in the middle of the road like a solid wall, reducing visibility to less than five meters.

Even stranger, the sounds of birds and insects in the surrounding forest seemed to have been muted at that moment, vanishing completely.

Jian Ning's heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively called out to the System.

System! Is this fog normal? Are there monsters and demons again?

The System reacted quickly this time, but its voice was filled with severe interference.

Bzz... high-concentration magnetic field anomaly detected... bzz... entering a "confounding fog" zone ahead... navigation system malfunctioning... recommendation... do not force your way through...

Jian Ning instantly sobered up.

Even the System said they could not force their way through. There had to be a serious problem.

"We can't go on," Jian Ning suddenly said, his tone grave. "There's something in that fog."

The driver was a local and normally believed in such supernatural things. His face changed at once. "Th-then what do we do? There's no village ahead and no inn behind us. It'll take three hours to turn back!"

Huo Si pushed up his glasses and coldly scrutinized the white fog through the window.

He could sense an aura within the fog that made him profoundly uncomfortable. It felt just like the malice directed at him when Shadow had tried to implant the virus that day.

"We're not turning back." Huo Si made his decision calmly. "According to the map, there should be a transfer station or a village nearby."

Jian Ning quickly had the System pull up the offline map.

Host, take the fork on the right for two kilometers. There is an inn called Falling Flower Cave, the last place to rest before entering the Miao village.

"Go right." Jian Ning immediately gave directions. "To Falling Flower Cave Inn."

Half an hour later, the pickup stopped in front of a wooden stilt house built against the mountain.

The inn stood alone on the mountainside, surrounded by pitch-black woods. Two large red lanterns hung at the entrance, swaying in the night wind and creaking softly.

The red light reflected against the wet bluestone pavement, making the place look exactly like a crime scene from a ghost movie.

"Th-this place is livable?" Jian Xiu got out of the car and shuddered. "Why do I feel like some old mountain demon could rush out at any moment?"

Jian Ning shrank back, instinctively hiding behind Huo Si.

System, scan it quickly. Is this inn some shady black shop? Are they selling human meat buns inside?

System: ...Host, this is a legitimate guesthouse. Its business license is complete, and it has a 4.8 rating on public review sites. It's just that the landlady is a little... unusual.

Just as he spoke, the inn's wooden doors creaked open.

A woman wearing traditional Miao clothing and silver ornaments on her head stepped outside.

She looked to be in her thirties, still charming and graceful. A long smoking pipe rested in her hand. Her gaze swept over the three of them before settling on Huo Si, and a meaningful smile curved her lips.

"Well now, what wind has blown such a handsome young man here tonight?"

She exhaled a ring of smoke, her voice languid and husky. "Perfect timing. There are two rooms left at the inn."

"Two rooms?" Jian Xiu immediately frowned. "We need three."

The landlady tapped out her pipe and said carelessly, "Sorry, there were originally three, but that strange wind just blew the tiles off the western room. It's leaking. Only two rooms are fit for sleeping."

She looked at them with a half-smile. "How you divide them is up to you."

Jian Ning's eyes lit up, and the little abacus in his heart began clattering furiously.

Two rooms? Three people?

Then obviously my brother gets one room, while Huo Si and I share the other!

Two unmarried men, deep in the mountains, at a creepy inn... isn't this the legendary accelerator for a marriage-before-love romance?

This landlady is practically divine assistance! She deserves a five-star review!

However, Jian Xiu clearly did not agree. He stepped forward and blocked Jian Ning. "No! Ning Ning stays with me! Huo Si gets a room by himself!"

"Men and men should keep their distance! The wedding hasn't even happened yet, so don't think about taking advantage of my little brother!"

Huo Si said nothing. He merely stood there, his gaze dark as he watched the pitch-black inn doors, as if sensing something.

After a while, he turned toward Jian Ning, a hint of barely perceptible vulnerability in his eyes—fake vulnerability.

"Jian Ning, I have a headache."

The moment Jian Ning heard that, his heart softened.

Huo Si had massaged his head for the entire ride. He must have exhausted himself. Besides, the magnetic field here was wrong; perhaps Huo Si's post-poisoning symptoms were acting up.

"Bro!" Jian Ning shoved Jian Xiu aside and grabbed Huo Si's hand. "Your snoring shakes the heavens! I'm not sleeping with you! Huo Si isn't feeling well, so I need to take care of him!"

Without giving Jian Xiu a chance to argue, he dragged Huo Si toward the inn.

"Landlady! We'll take the two rooms! As for the one that leaks... could you lend my brother a basin to catch the rain?"

Jian Xiu: ???

Was this really his own little brother?

The rooms were on the second floor.

The entire building was made of wood, and its soundproofing was... practically nonexistent.

The moment they entered the room, a faint scent of mugwort greeted them. The room was simple but fairly clean. In the center stood a carved canopy bed draped with indigo mosquito netting.

Jian Ning tossed down his luggage and flopped onto the bed with a satisfied sigh.

"Finally, I don't have to suffer in that washing machine anymore!"

Huo Si closed the door and locked it behind them.

The soft click of the lock sounded especially clear in the silent room.

Jian Ning's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

He rolled over and lay on his stomach, propping his chin in his hands as he watched Huo Si take off his coat.

Under the dim yellow light, the man's movements as he undid his collar were so elegant they looked cinematic. With each motion, his collarbones appeared and disappeared, radiating restrained temptation.

Gulp.

Jian Ning swallowed.

Who could possibly withstand this?

This isn't an inn at all. It's a spider demon's lair!

Huo Si, if you take off any more... I won't be sleepy anymore!

Huo Si paused, then turned around. His deep eyes locked directly onto Jian Ning, and a teasing curve touched his lips.

He walked to the bed, braced both hands at Jian Ning's sides, and lowered himself, caging Jian Ning within that tiny space.

Their noses nearly touched.

"Assistant Jian," Huo Si said in a low, husky voice that carried an enticing magnetism, "back in the car... you said you wanted to 'keep me alive'?"

Jian Ning's face instantly turned bright red.

"W-what I thought in my head counts too?"

Huo Si gave a soft laugh and kissed his earlobe, warm breath brushing over the sensitive skin.

"Here, I can hear every word in your heart clearly."

"So... how exactly do you plan to keep me alive? Hmm?"

Just when the dry tinder and blazing fire had brought the atmosphere to its peak—

BANG BANG BANG!!!

The wall next door was pounded hard three times.

Then Jian Xiu's furious roar came through.

"Huo Si! Jian Ning! You two behave yourselves! These walls are made of wood! If I hear any weird sounds, I'll smash through the wall with this consecrated trekking pole!!!"

Jian Ning: ...

Huo Si: ...

The intimate atmosphere instantly shattered into pieces.

Jian Ning buried his head in the pillow and let out a despairing wail.

I knew it! Villains aren't scary—the scary thing is having a biological brother who cracks down on indecency everywhere he goes!

Huo Si looked at the fluffy head beneath him and sighed helplessly.

He straightened up and rubbed his brow.

It seemed they could only sleep under the same blanket and have a perfectly innocent chat tonight.

But in this Falling Flower Cave Inn, where every corner felt strange and eerie, could they really get a peaceful night's sleep?

Outside the window, the two red lanterns suddenly swayed violently, and then—

With a soft puff, they went out.