Chapter 23

“Junior Sister hasn’t tried it, how would she know it’s not possible…”

The night was dark and heavy. The drunken girl gradually lost the energy to fuss and fell asleep on the big cat, her little face flushed red, her breathing soft and gentle.

Xiao Mi, having finished the fish, also grew drowsy. Hugging her with its paws and resting its head on her shoulder, it curled up and slept with her.

The Eldest Senior Brother cleaned up the messy table, looking at the girl’s sleeping face with a helpless yet gentle gaze. He lifted her from the big cat’s embrace and carried her horizontally in his arms.

Just as he was about to walk back to the room, his footsteps suddenly paused.

He turned to look behind him. In the pitch-black night, the person who had just been mentioned by the girl moments ago appeared here.

The young man stood beside the peach blossom tree in the courtyard, his dark eyes silently fixed on them, his gaze obscure and unreadable.

The Eldest Senior Brother chuckled softly, “Junior Brother, why didn’t you say anything when you arrived?”

Xie Lingyu looked at him and slowly spoke, “Eldest Senior Brother, I’ve come to take Junior Sister home.”

The Eldest Senior Brother’s gaze swept over the tear-reddened corners of the girl’s eyes in his arms. He paused, then smiled, “That won’t be necessary. Xiao Ying said she wants to stay here for a while. Junior Brother, you should go back first.”

“Oh, right.”

The Eldest Senior Brother flicked his finger, and the completed Divorce Letter on the table drifted without wind, flying to Xie Lingyu.

“Three years ago, the two of you were forced into marriage due to circumstances, with no feelings for each other. Now that Xiao Ying has someone she loves, this marriage has become an obstacle instead. This is the Divorce Letter Xiao Ying wrote. Take this, and from now on, the two of you will no longer be husband and wife.”

Xie Lingyu clenched the Divorce Letter in his hand, not opening it to look. His dark eyes fixed firmly on him.

“Who is the person Junior Sister likes?”

A breeze blew through the night. The girl in his arms whimpered softly, shifting her body as if feeling cold, snuggling closer into the young man’s embrace.

The Eldest Senior Brother merely chuckled, “That’s something you should ask Xiao Ying.”

The scene before him was particularly piercing.

Like a victor flaunting everything he had gained.

And no matter how much he tried to imitate—

She liked Eldest Senior Brother wearing white clothes, so he never wore any other color again; she liked Eldest Senior Brother practicing swordsmanship, so he abandoned his demonic strengths to cultivate the sword; Eldest Senior Brother was a gentle, upright, and benevolent hero, so he learned to act like a completely unnatural, ethereal gentleman of virtue…

—He could never occupy the place in her heart that belonged to him.

She didn’t love him.

The person she liked was Eldest Senior Brother.

Xie Lingyu clenched his fingers, lowering his eyelashes slightly to conceal the obsessive and frenzied look in his eyes.

“The night wind is chilly. I’ll take Xiao Ying back to rest first. Junior Brother, you should head back early too.”

After speaking, the Eldest Senior Brother turned and stepped through the door. Before his other foot could cross the threshold, the girl in his arms suddenly curled up, her face turning deathly pale as she clutched her chest tightly, trembling.

“Xiao Ying?”

The Eldest Senior Brother frowned, gripping her wrist to check her condition.

When she arrived, he had already examined her. Her physical condition was much better than before, and with a few more years of care, she would be no different from an ordinary person. That’s why he had indulged her in drinking today.

But why had her energy suddenly become so weak?

The voice of the young man behind him was low, carrying a gloomy and morbid tone, like a ghost, piercing through the night wind that tangled among the branches.

“…She can’t leave me.”

The senior brother seemed to suddenly realize something, his expression abruptly changing as he sharply looked up at him. “Have you gone mad? You actually want to—”

“Senior brother, I’ve come to take my junior sister home.”

The young man’s voice was soft as he lifted his dark eyes, his gaze indifferent and devoid of any emotion, as if looking at something lifeless.

He gripped the hilt of his sword and slowly drew it, pointing the tip toward the senior brother he had always respected.

The senior brother frowned deeply. He knew that if he refused, Xie Lingyu’s sword would strike him just as it had shattered the Restrictive Barrier at the foot of the mountain.

Under normal circumstances, he would not have feared this, but Sang Ying’s condition was deteriorating rapidly, her life force growing weaker by the moment.

He had been feeding her Azure Dragon blood for several years. While it nourished her body, it also made her dependent on it as if she were under the influence of a Gu. The longer this went on, the stronger the Backlash would be. If she did not drink the blood soon, her body might not be able to withstand it.

“…”

The senior brother sighed softly and called over Xiao Mi, who was hissing at Xie Lingyu. He placed the young woman on its back and patted Xiao Mi’s head.

“Be good.”

Xiao Mi reluctantly carried the young woman over. Seeing Xie Lingyu take Sang Ying away, its tail slapped the ground loudly in protest.

The senior brother watched the young man’s retreating figure, rubbing his temples in frustration.

This junior brother of his was truly…

He hoped that after this ordeal, the relationship between the two might see some progress.

But with just a little provocation, the look in his junior brother’s eyes earlier had almost sent him to meet their master.

So disrespectful.

He wondered what Sang Ying even saw in him.

…

The room was dimly lit.

The young woman in his arms had drunk the blood, and her complexion improved. In her sleep, she smacked her lips contentedly before leaning back against the pillow to continue sleeping.

Xie Lingyu watched her quietly for a long time. Seeing her discomfort, he reached out to undo the belt of her outer robe and helped her remove it.

As he pulled down the collar, his gaze suddenly fell upon a kiss mark, stark and vivid against the young woman’s fair neck, deep and red.

Xie Lingyu froze, his fingers stiffening.

The last time he had kissed her, afraid she would notice, he had chosen her back.

So this kiss mark could only have been left by… someone else.

The young woman suddenly turned over in her sleep. His hand, still clutching the fabric of her robe, had not let go, and with the movement, it pulled open most of the garment, revealing large patches of her fair skin.

Including… the clear bite mark over her heart.

Such an intimate location.

Xie Lingyu stared fixedly at the teeth marks, his eyes growing darker and darker. His blood surged restlessly, and a murderous, bloodthirsty intent grew increasingly intense.

He picked up the Divorce Letter and slowly, carefully opened it, taking out the letter inside.

There was only one sentence written on it.

…

Waking up from a hangover, Sang Ying felt as though her head was about to explode, throbbing with pain.

Damn it, Xiao Lingzhou had only talked about how delicious the wine was, how it could drown all sorrows and make one forget their troubles, but he hadn’t mentioned a word about the aftereffects.

Her mind was foggy as Sang Ying sat up, holding her head. A hand extended a cup of sobering tea toward her. Without looking, she took it in a daze and gulped down a large mouthful.

The person beside her took the empty cup after she finished drinking.

“Senior brother has only just emerged from seclusion, and junior sister is already eager to discard this useless husband of hers. It seems her feelings for him run deep indeed.”

Sang Ying’s head was spinning, and she couldn’t make out most of what was said—it all sounded like buzzing in her ears. But she understood two things clearly.

First, the person beside her was Xie Lingyu.

Second, his tone was icy, colder than the air around her.

She rubbed her arms exposed to the cold air and raised her head in a daze.

The room was unlit, with the windows shut, making the surroundings dim and shadowy. Only the young man’s profile could be seen, half-hidden in the shifting light and shadow, his eyelashes lowered, concealing those pitch-black eyes.

He seemed to be looking at something.

Sang Ying followed his gaze and saw that the young man held a thin sheet of letter paper in his hand, his fingertips gently and slowly stroking it.

Sang Ying blinked a couple of times, her vision clearing slightly. She recognized what seemed to be her own handwriting on it.

Her handwriting… Could it be the Divorce Letter she wrote yesterday?!

Wait, what exactly had she written yesterday?

Sang Ying held her aching head. She only remembered that yesterday she had clamored to write a Divorce Letter, and her senior brother had brought out paper and a brush. With a grand flourish, she had written bold, sweeping characters.

After finishing, she had even picked it up to admire it, looking quite satisfied.

…She couldn’t remember now.

Well, it didn’t matter.

Sang Ying cleared her throat. “I had planned to tell you when you returned, but I didn’t expect you to come back so early. As you can see, Little Brother, let’s divorce.”

The person by the bed slowly raised his eyelashes. Sang Ying met his gaze, which, though seemingly calm, inexplicably made her shudder, a chill creeping up her spine.

“Was this what my junior sister wanted to tell me a few days ago?”

Sang Ying thought Xie Lingyu seemed a bit strange.

But she nodded anyway. “Yes.”

After adjusting her emotions for several days, Sang Ying could now maintain a calm expression. She took a deep breath and said, “Little Brother, our marriage was only to deal with the crisis at the time. It’s no longer needed now, so why not end it here? That way, we won’t hold each other back from being with the ones we truly love.”

“I’ve already settled the family assets and moved out. I won’t cause you any trouble.”

The young man lowered his gaze and chuckled softly.

“My junior sister’s efficiency is quite impressive.”

…All to quickly make way for your White Moonlight.

Sang Ying felt a bit annoyed at these words, pursing her lips unhappily, but she said nothing. “That’s pretty much it. If you have any questions, if not, then…”

“There is indeed one question.”

Sang Ying was puzzled. “What question?”

The young man before her slowly raised his eyes, his pitch-black pupils gloomy and dark, like ice, sending a chill through Sang Ying.

He leaned closer to her, but his voice was the complete opposite of those lifeless eyes—soft, gentle, and so tender it made her scalp tingle. “What if I don’t agree, junior sister? What will you do then?”

The young man before her felt unfamiliar to Sang Ying.

Xie Lingyu—how could Xie Lingyu wear such a sinister expression? How could he speak like this?

But the scent on him was unmistakably Xie Lingyu’s, the White Sandalwood fragrance she knew best and found most comforting.

She instinctively retreated. “Little Brother…?”

Her chin was seized by cold fingers and lifted. Sang Ying met his dark eyes, which, though familiar, suddenly filled her with fear and panic.

She tried her best to stay calm.

“Little Brother, what’s… what’s wrong with you? Or did I say something wrong?”

His cool fingertips slowly stroked her skin. The young man looked down at her, then slowly, softly chuckled, his icy fingers wrapping around her wrist.

“Do you truly believe I’m willing to keep playing the role of your good senior brother, accompanying you in this boring follower game?”

What did he mean…?

Sang Ying was completely bewildered. She couldn’t understand why Xie Lingyu had become like this after waking up. If not for the hangover headache reminding her, she would have almost thought she was still dreaming.

“Junior Sister’s sincere affection for the eldest senior brother is truly touching. It’s just a pity I’m not some kind-hearted person willing to help others achieve their happiness.”

The young man spoke in a light tone, his knuckles tightening as he gripped her wrist and pulled her up, pinning her against the headboard before pressing down on her. “Since you’re not satisfied, then I’ll keep going until you are.”

The gauze bed curtain was brushed against, fell, and scattered.

The small confined space felt like it had been carved out, dark and cold. Sang Ying couldn’t help but shiver.

His words left her utterly confused. What did he mean about her and the eldest senior brother having sincere affection? And what was she not satisfied with?

“Little Senior Brother…”

Her shoulder suddenly felt cold as her collar loosened and fell to her elbow. Sang Ying trembled violently, looking at the person before her in disbelief.

In the dim light, the Dragon Tail covered in smooth scales gleamed darkly, exuding an overwhelming sense of pressure. As her waist tightened, it coiled around her, squeezing so tightly that Sang Ying could barely breathe.

She had only been wearing her inner garments, and now her clothes had slipped to her waist, leaving only a thin undergarment. Beneath the peony pattern, the blossoms were full and lush.

In the center of her delicate collarbone, a green-gold pendant hung there, making her skin appear even fairer.

Last night, when she helped soothe his Tide Heat Period, Sang Ying had been so embarrassed. Knowing he was asleep and couldn’t see, she had still tied a sash over his eyes.

But now, now… he could see everything.

Sang Ying felt as if her entire body was burning, her blood surging.

Xie Lingyu, what was Xie Lingyu doing?!

Her mind was in chaos. She pulled her clothes to cover herself, instinctively trying to retreat, but something at her ankle dragged and clinked.

She looked down and saw a golden chain fastened around her ankle, the other end connected to the foot of the bed.

…???

In the two seconds Sang Ying was stunned, her neck grew cold as the young man’s knuckles clasped the back of her neck, his body pressing down on her.

His breath fell on the side of her neck, his fingertips rubbing gently before a sharp pain followed—he had bitten her collarbone.

The Dragon Tail coiled around her waist shifted, slipping beneath the hem of her inner garment. The tufts of white fur at its tip brushed against her delicate skin, causing Sang Ying to tremble violently.

This sensation was unfamiliar and strange, especially since the unfamiliar Xie Lingyu filled her with panic. Her already hungover and muddled mind was flooded with unease and fear.

Sang Ying struggled desperately to break free, but how could her strength possibly match the young man’s? Her two slender, pale wrists were easily pinned with one of his hands, lifted above her head, and pressed against the bedpost.

“Xie…”

The young man’s breath left her neck, slowly moving downward, passing over the green-gold pendant, and settling before the peony blossoms.

Sang Ying hadn’t understood such matters before, but she had learned recently—this was something only done during Dual Cultivation.

Realizing what he intended to do, Sang Ying grew increasingly panicked, blurting out in desperation, “Xie Lingyu! If you keep this up, I’ll hate you! I’ll never speak to you again!!”

Though she sounded angry and fierce, she was merely a paper tiger—all bark and no bite—her body still trembling uncontrollably.

But this childish threat seemed to have some effect, as the young man paused.

However, the effect lasted only a few seconds.

The young man’s fingertips lightly brushed the peony clusters, hooking and pulling some down. His dark eyes stared closely at the bright white bite mark on her chest, his voice very soft.

“Then hate me. It’s best if you hate me for a long time, Shimei.”

Cool lips landed on the burning chest.

It was very ticklish.

But the temperature was exceptionally clear.

Sang Ying trembled all over. Even though the person before her was someone she liked, being so intimate with her, she didn’t feel the slightest bit of happiness or joy in that moment. Instead, her heart ached with a sour, stinging pain.

She didn’t understand what he was doing. He already had someone he liked, so why was he doing this to her?

She also didn’t understand the meaning of all those inexplicable things he had been saying since she woke up.

All she knew was that he had become so unfamiliar, completely unlike Xie Lingyu.

“Xie Lingyu…”

Tears slid down her jaw and fell onto the young man’s fingers.

He paused slightly, lifting his eyes to see the girl’s beautiful, clear eyes brimming with tears, filled with hurt and disbelief. She stared at him blankly, as if betrayed by someone she had long been accustomed to and always relied upon.

“…”

The hand on her neck moved away, covering her eyes.

Unable to see, her senses became even sharper. Sang Ying heard his voice, very soft, almost inaudible.

“Shimei really knows how to cheat.”

“Back then, it was you who brought me back to Minghua Mountain, wanting me to be your tail, forever following behind you. Once you grew tired and bored, you casually threw me away. And now you actually have the nerve to make this expression.”

Sang Ying was stunned. “When did I ever throw you away…” Before she could finish, she suddenly remembered the divorce.

“Are you talking about the divorce?”

Vaguely, it seemed she had grasped a clue. Sang Ying opened her mouth: “But when I said I wanted a divorce, it was clearly because… Mmm!”

Her lips were suddenly sealed. Sang Ying couldn’t utter a single word. His kiss was fierce, as if he didn’t want to hear her speak, biting her lips and tongue, swallowing all her breath, the rich scent of White Sandalwood invading her mouth.

Everything before her was pitch black, she couldn’t see a thing. Sang Ying leaned against the cold bedpost, her shoulders exposed to the chilly air, trembling.

This fierce kiss made Sang Ying uneasy and helpless.

At the same time, it suddenly reminded her of the kiss in that illusionary realm—similarly possessive, leaving her unable to breathe.

Even… the small, delicate movements of lightly sucking her tongue tip were exactly the same.

That Xie Lingyu in the illusionary realm had felt unfamiliar to her.

But what if… that wasn’t an illusion?

Tears welled up at the corners of Sang Ying’s eyes, dampening his palm. Kissed until she couldn’t breathe and her mind went blank, she finally pushed him away with sobs.

The young man lingered, lightly kissing the corner of her mouth, watching her gasp for breath, yet he smiled. “We haven’t even started yet, and Shimei can’t handle it already?”

The words “can’t handle it” were slightly emphasized.

Hearing this, Sang Ying’s muddled mind suddenly recalled the content of the Divorce Letter she had written last night while drunk—just a few bold, flamboyant characters.

[—Xie Lingyu can’t handle it, I’m not satisfied.]

Fingertips gently rubbed her waist, and a soft breath fell by her ear, gloomy and morbid. “Shimei hasn’t tried it, how do you know I can’t handle it?”

He bit her pearly white earlobe, grabbed her hand, and pulled it to his dragon tail, covering it. He spoke in a low voice, as if tempting her or murmuring to himself: “If Shimei tries mine, you might not even look at Eldest Shixiong anymore.”

Sang Ying’s eyes were covered, so she couldn’t see, but she could feel her hand being pulled and placed, through a layer of clothing, onto the little azure dragon’s tail.

If this had happened a month ago, she wouldn’t have understood. But after reading the dual cultivation technique sent by Cave Master Cai Xia, she understood completely.

Almost the moment she realized what was under her palm was the little azure dragon’s tail, Sang Ying’s ears burned hot, and her face flushed red like a shrimp.

Xie Lingyu ac-actually let her touch his tail… how shameless…!

“You jerk, Xie Lingyu! Who-who wants to try it? Let go of my hand!”

Flustered and angry, she struggled to pull her hand back while scolding him, “And what’s wrong with you today?! You keep talking about senior brother this, senior brother that—when have I ever been deeply affectionate with senior brother?”

The young man finally stopped and lifted his lashes to look at her, lips slightly pursed, his dark eyes dim.

“…You don’t admire senior brother?”

Sang Ying was furious. Finally able to pull his hand away, her vision cleared.

“When did I ever say I admired senior brother? Senior brother has taken care of me like a mother since childhood. All I feel for him is respect and affection, okay?!”

Xie Lingyu’s dark, deep eyes stared at her, and indeed, all he saw in the girl’s gaze was anger at being misunderstood and a complicated mix of frustration.

He paused. “Then why… did you want to separate?”

If he hadn’t brought it up, it might have been fine. But mentioning this made Sang Ying’s anger flare even hotter, as if she were about to explode.

“Why? To make way for you and your long-beloved white moonlight, of course—to clear the path for you two.”

Xie Lingyu frowned slightly. “What?”

Infuriated by him, Sang Ying forgot all about her shyness. She pulled her clothes tighter, rummaged for the Glazed Mirror, found those tragic, heart-wrenching little stories about them, and flung them in his face.

“Stop pretending you don’t know. Look at what everyone’s saying out there now. I’m the ugly stumbling block standing in the way of your beautiful love story—the nasty, rotten kind, just short of murder, arson, and wife-stealing.”

Xie Lingyu quickly finished reading, his frown deepening. He looked up. “You believe this?”

Sang Ying crossed her arms and leaned back, inexplicably exuding the air of a wife scolding her wayward husband. She lifted her small face. “Why shouldn’t I believe it? What, are you going to say it’s all fake?”

“Childhood acquaintances, love at first sight, pledging love with the Heart-Protecting Scale in your youth, reuniting by chance years after being separated—are all of these fake?”

The young man fell silent.

Sang Ying thought she had hit the mark and he had nothing to say. She snorted coldly, pointed at his nose, and began to berate him. “People told me men are all creatures driven by their lower halves. I didn’t believe it at the time, but now I see it’s true. You already have a girl you like, yet you still do this kind of thing to another girl. Xie Lingyu, you… you jerk!”

“Sang Ying.”

Sang Ying looked at him. “What, did I say something wrong? You lecherous dragon, you scoundrel, you degenerate!”

“When you brought me back to Minghua Mountain, I was only injured and unconscious—I didn’t lose my memory.”

Sang Ying: “So?”

“So, if I truly admired that person and considered her my beloved, why haven’t I gone looking for her even once in all these years?”

Sang Ying choked, then frowned and retorted, “How would anyone know if you looked or not? If you went secretly without telling anyone, who’d know? Maybe you looked but couldn’t find her!”

“Fine.”

The young man’s expression didn’t change; he remained calm. Just as Sang Ying was about to get angry at his response, he suddenly caught the hand she was using to hold her clothes and gently pulled it away.

He lifted the blue-gold pendant from her neck with his fingertips, his tone indifferent.

“Then could my junior sister explain why the Heart-Protecting Scale, which I pledged as a token of love with that person in our youth, has ended up around your neck?”

Sang Ying: “…?”