Only when the first ray of morning light fell on Yuanen Yehui's face did she fully register what had happened the night before.
Sunlight squeezed through a gap in the curtains, a slender stripe falling right across her eyelids and waking her from a shallow dream.
She opened her eyes and stared at the unfamiliar ceiling overhead, her mind blank. Then the memories of last night surged back like a tide, frame by frame, so clear they made her blush.
She had never imagined... that someone as conservative as her, who had never had any contact with men her own age, would...
At that thought, Yuanen Yehui instinctively wrapped her clothes more tightly around herself and pulled the covers up to her chin.
As a high-ranking Soul Master, she had felt little discomfort even though it had been her first time. Her body's ability to recover far surpassed an ordinary person's, but the psychological impact was another matter entirely.
She lowered her head to look at the faint mark above her collarbone, touched it lightly with a fingertip, then quickly drew her hand back.
"Good morning... Miss Yehui. What a wonderful morning it is today, isn't it?"
A familiar voice came from beside her. Yuanen Yehui looked over. He was clearly still the same person, yet her intuition told her that something about Qi Ji seemed to have changed.
The change was subtle, as though he had always worn an invisible mask, and that mask had now been lifted away.
The contours of his features had not changed. His brows and eyes were still the same, yet something was different.
The aura surrounding him was stronger than before, more ancient, more... compelling her to submit.
"What's wrong, Miss Yehui? Don't recognize me anymore?"
Qi Ji had undone some of the