Ye Luoxue cried

Lotus Grotto-Heaven.

Ye Luoxue stood in midair, her robes stirring gently in the evening breeze. Looking down at the familiar yet unfamiliar land beneath her, her cheeks inexplicably flushed a captivating red.

"Phew..."

She shook her head, let out a soft breath, and locked onto that familiar presence.

The next second, she lightly tapped her toes and turned into a nearly invisible streak of black light, silently flying through the air to land behind Xu Changsheng.

"You..."

Ye Luoxue had barely begun to speak when she felt an arm suddenly wrap around her slender waist.

Her entire body instinctively tensed, and the spiritual power within her surged uncontrollably. Her instinct was to push away the person before her, even draw the long saber at her waist, but she forcibly restrained herself.

Even so, a fine layer of goosebumps rose over her fair skin.

Xu Changsheng, meanwhile, was somewhat surprised.

He had thought Qi Zhaoyue would be the one coming, and had even rubbed his hands together, ready to make her cry.

Only after taking her into his arms did he discover that the person he held did not carry Qi Zhaoyue's cool sandalwood fragrance, but a unique scent blending a faint, bloody killing aura with her natural fragrance, cool and secluded as an orchid.

"So it really is Ye Luoxue..."

Soon, Xu Changsheng stopped minding.

He simply scooped Ye Luoxue up, turned around, and headed deeper into the bamboo grove.

After all, whether it was Qi Zhaoyue or Ye Luoxue, what difference did it make who cried?

Ye Luoxue's legs swayed gently up and down with Xu Changsheng's steps.

But when she saw him carry her to the solitary stone chess table in the middle of the bamboo grove and prepare to set her on it, disbelief instantly spread across her face...

"O-outside?"

Ye Luoxue questioned Xu Changsheng uncertainly.

She had clearly spent so many years fighting on battlefields, weathering every great wind and wave, able to face an army of a hundred thousand without her expression changing.

Yet now, she felt a hundred times more nervous than when facing thousands upon thousands of troops.

Inside her tall boots, ten cute toes painted bright red curled up with nerves.

Seeing Ye Luoxue actually looking visibly flustered, her red nails clutching tightly at her own collar...

Xu Changsheng lowered his head with a smile, his warm breath spilling over Ye Luoxue's sensitive earlobe before he gave it a gentle bite.

Feeling her delicate body tremble instantly, he spoke with a hint of teasing laughter in his voice:

"You'll get used to it."

"And here's a little secret: your highness once lay here rather unwillingly too~"

Her highness?

Ye Luoxue's bright eyes trembled. She abruptly raised her head to look at Xu Changsheng, her eyes filled with shock.

The lofty eldest princess, cold and distant as the bright moon in the nine heavens, always unruffled and keeping everyone a thousand miles away-she had actually...

The image of her highness Zhaoyue lying on this stone chess table, her jade body laid bare, rose uncontrollably in Ye Luoxue's mind.

H-her highness, how could she?

While Ye Luoxue was lost in thought, Xu Changsheng's hands had already taken hold of her overlapping collar.

In an instant, Ye Luoxue's long black dress slipped down her smooth shoulders and fell to the ground.

A cool evening breeze blew past, carrying the fresh scent of bamboo leaves as it brushed over Ye Luoxue's white-jade skin.

Ye Luoxue felt a chill over her entire body, and only then came back to her senses.

"Next time you come, there's no need to wear anything underneath. Such a hassle..."

Looking at Ye Luoxue, Xu Changsheng lightly kissed her upper body and spoke casually.

But soon, his gaze was drawn to the red-soled, high-heeled tall boots she wore.

Ye Luoxue's legs were already long and straight, their proportions perfect to the extreme. Wearing boots like these made them all the more alluring.

In particular, the splash of vivid red at the heels looked especially bewitching against the black.

Within the bamboo grove, the evening breeze blew past.

Bamboo leaves collided with one another, making soft "pa, pa, pa" sounds that mingled with the occasional chirping of insects in the distance, forming a unique melody.

Six hours later, a sliver of fish-belly white appeared along the eastern horizon.

Faint morning light pierced the clouds, spilling into the quiet bamboo grove.

Dawn had broken.

"Xu Changsheng, you bastard! You didn't keep your word!"

An incredibly hoarse, angry voice broke the morning stillness of the bamboo grove.

At that moment, Ye Luoxue was curled in Xu Changsheng's arms, drenched in fragrant sweat, her long, white-jade legs crossed and her fair skin covered in faint red marks.

Her eyes were red, with crystalline tears still clinging to their corners, poised to fall.

Her once sleek black hair now clung messily to her cheeks and neck. She looked utterly disheveled, yet possessed a different kind of soul-stealing allure.

"Weren't you the one who said you wouldn't be able to come for a while?"

"That's why I thought I'd leave you more Divine Yang Sacred Physique essence, so your cultivation could improve as quickly as possible, you could break through to a higher realm sooner, and you could better assist your highness."

"I clearly meant well. How come you're blaming me?"

"You..."

Looking at Xu Changsheng acting innocent after getting every advantage, Ye Luoxue wanted to say something.

But now, she scarcely had the strength to lift a single finger. All she could do was lean weakly in his arms and lightly bite his arm.

Bastard!

She had clearly begged him for mercy just as he had told her to, yet he had gone back on his word.

He had insisted on tormenting her for six whole hours...

Only when she cried had he finally been willing to stop.

At that thought, Ye Luoxue lowered her head and looked at her lower abdomen, somewhat helpless. "I'm afraid I won't be able to wear tight-fitting martial attire for a while."

"Otherwise, if her highness or the other officers and soldiers in camp saw..."

Meanwhile, seeing Ye Luoxue's angry expression, Xu Changsheng stopped teasing her.

He lowered his head, lightly kissing Ye Luoxue and feeling the delicate smoothness of her skin as he said, "All right, all right, don't be angry. I have something serious to ask you."

"What is it?"

Ye Luoxue narrowed her eyes slightly, her expression hazy, and spoke irritably to Xu Changsheng. "Just like a child..."

"The books I asked you to bring last time-you brought them, right?"

Xu Changsheng asked with an expectant look.

These books were treasures he had been awaiting for a long time. After all, he knew pitifully little about this cultivation world and urgently needed them to fill the gaps in his knowledge and lay a foundation for his future cultivation.

Ye Luoxue nodded, and with a slight movement of her fingertips, a streak of white light flashed.

In an instant, a thick stack of books landed heavily on the stone chess table beside them with a clatter.

Xu Changsheng started in alarm. "Hey! Don't put them there!"