Her breath hitched, but she didn't tell him no. She didn't tell him anything at all. And he took that as approval. Almost instantly, his lips crashed against hers, kissing her deeply.
It wasn't gentle. It was deep and unrestrained, like a dam breaking. He'd held back for far too long, and finally his restraint had snapped. His tongue slid deeper into her mouth, tilting her head just so his lips could press harder and deeper. One of his hands slid into her hair, the other gripping her waist and pulling her against him.
Yuyan gasped against his mouth as she kissed him back, and he swallowed the sound like he couldn't bear to let it escape. Heat bloomed everywhere their bodies touched. She clutched at his shirt, holding on as though he might disappear if she let go.
The kiss deepened until her lungs burned, but neither of them seemed to care. His tongue brushed against hers, and she let out a soft sound that made him groan into her mouth.
When they broke apart for air, their foreheads rested together. His breathing was uneven, his eyes dark and burning.
Without a word, he pulled her into his lap as he sat back on the bed, parting her legs and making then rest on his both sides.
The sudden position change made her gasp, and then freeze. Something solid pressed against her through the fabric between them.
Her eyes widened. "What… is that?" she asked, her voice almost a whisper.
He stilled, watching her carefully. "You don't like it?" he asked quietly, a hint of uncertainty in his tone.
She shook her head quickly. "No, it's not that, I just… something's poking me."
Her innocence made his chest tighten.
"Yuyan…" he began, but she shifted slightly, and her hand reached to hold whatever was poking her.
He sucked in a sharp breath, his grip on her waist tightening as he felt her hand against his length. He was damn hard, and if he wasn't careful, he might actually lose control. His eyes locked onto hers, voice low and strained. "That's what you do to me, my love."
Her cheeks burned, but she didn't pull away. She felt hot all over, her heart hammering against her ribs. He guided her hips slowly against his length, wanting her to feel him fully, and she let out an involuntary sound of half gasp, half moan.
The noise made him groan deep in his chest, his control fraying. His hands gripped her tighter, his lips finding the line of her jaw, trailing heat to her ear.
Her head fell back slightly, her breathing quick and uneven. She didn't understand all of it, the rush of heat pooling low in her belly, the way her body seemed to move on its own. But goodness she knew she didn't want it to stop.
Her hips kept grinding against his length, and Tian yu's leaned even closer, breathing and groaning against her neck, spreading an addictive feeling through her whole body. He was losing it, they both were.
Every movement, every sound between them fed the fire, pulling them deeper into something neither of them could control.
She pressed closer, and he kissed her again, harder this time, like he couldn't get enough of her taste. Her moan vibrated against his mouth, and he answered with a deep, guttural sound that sent a shiver down her spine.
Her hands fisted in his shirt, and his lips left hers only to drag down her neck, each brush of his mouth pulling another sound from her.
They were gone to the world outside, lost in heat, in each other when the sharp crack of something breaking shattered the air.
Tian Yu froze beneath her, his head snapping toward the door. The sound came again, heavier this time, followed by a distant scream.
His expression shifted in an instant. "Stay here," he said, voice low but urgent as he set her down gently and turned to leave.
The warmth of the moment was ripped away, replaced by the cold weight of danger.
Yuyan's expression turned to worry as she quickly held on to his hand, stopping him. "Please be safe."
Tain Yu smiled, then leaned forward and kissed her deeply on the forehead, then on the nose, and then on the lips. The kiss lingered for a moment, before he finally forced himself to pull away, "wait for me my love, I'll be back."
Just as Tian Yu stepped out of the room, a shiver ran down the corridor. The lamps flickered, shadows twisting unnaturally across the walls. Then something shifted in the darkness.
They came crawling out—bodies hunched low, nails scraping against the stone. Their eyes burned an unnatural green, their jaws opening and closing in twitching motions like they could barely contain themselves. Their limbs jerked as if pulled by invisible strings, their movements wrong in a way that made the skin crawl.
Tian Yu's eyes narrowed. These weren't ordinary vampires. These were definitely Fang Leng's creations. Always starving. Always hunting.
They didn't wait. One launched straight for his throat, teeth snapping shut a breath too late as he shoved it back. Another slammed into his chest, claws tearing through the fabric of his tunic. Two more caught hold of his arms, their fangs punching into his forearms, the pain sharp and hot. The air filled with their wet snarling and the rank smell of rotting blood.
Tian Yu threw one aside, kicked another back, but more poured from the shadows.
From inside the room, Yuyan heard the growls, the heavy thuds, and Tian Yu's sharp intake of breath like he'd been struck. Panic flared in her chest. She snatched up her sword and rushed out into the hall.
"What are those? Are you hurt?!" Her voice was sharp, her eyes darting from one twisted figure to the next.
"Go back inside," Tian Yu said, blocking another swipe of claws. His voice was low, urgent. "It's not safe here."
"No," she shot back, stepping forward, "I can fight."
From the far end of the corridor, more figures spilled into view. These didn't even glance at Tian Yu. Their heads snapped toward Yuyan, their bodies stiffening as if something had given them a silent order. Then they broke into a run—leaping from walls, pushing off the ceiling, closing the distance in seconds.
Yuyan raised her sword, sidestepped the first strike, and drove her blade into the creature's side. She spun, kicking another hard in the chest, the impact cracking bone. Her movements were quick, precise, the controlled rhythm of someone who had done this before. But no matter how many she cut down, more came. They only had eyes for her.
Tian Yu saw it. Saw how every one of them moved for her, ignored him entirely. Something twisted in his gut, hot, sharp, possessive.
A growl rolled out of his chest. Deeper than before. His pupils shrank to thin slits, fangs pushing down until they ached.
Then he moved.
He hit the nearest vampire so hard its neck snapped with a wet crack. Another he dragged down and ripped open with his claws, blood spilling across the stone. His teeth sank into the next, tearing through flesh and tendon. Every motion was brutal and final. He didn't stop to defend, didn't care about openings—only about destroying them, one after the other. By the time the last body hit the floor, the walls were splattered in red and the air stank of iron.
Tian Yu stood there, chest heaving, his hands dripping with blood. His eyes still glowed that unnatural light, fixed on nothing.
Yuyan didn't move. Her breath hitched. That wasn't her husband. it was something else entirely. Those fangs, those nails dripping with blood, that deadly look in his eyes. He had transformed into something dangerous. Her sword slipped from her fingers, clattering to the floor.
Panic clawed at her chest, and for the first time, she felt real fear. What the hell was he? Her vision swam. And before she could fully grasp the situation, she began to collapse, passing out before she even hit the floor.