Once they arrived in Wuhun City, Wuhun Hall arranged lodgings for all the participating teams.
Xiao Se and Qian Renxue were given a pleasant courtyard residence of their own.
Xiao Se had barely pushed the door open—hadn't even had a chance to shut it behind him—when a dark shape lunged at him from the side.
He tensed for half a second. Whoever this was had slipped past his senses entirely, which meant they were no ordinary intruder. His hand was already halfway to summoning his strange fire when a familiar, faint scent reached his nose.
He froze, then let out a slow smile and pulled the soft, curvaceous body into his arms instead. Before he could get a word out, his lips were captured by another pair—soft, warm, and achingly familiar.
Xiao Se was no stranger to this kind of thing. He'd once gone three days and three nights against Queen Medusa without either of them backing down, and had left both Little Fairy Doctor and Little Cat breathless and spent. It didn't take him long to seize control of the kiss.
Ten minutes later, the woman melted against him, eyes glazed, breath ragged.
"Dong'er. What are you doing here?" He kept one arm around her as he reached back to shut and bolt the door.
A shaft of sunset light spilled through the window, gilding her face—stunning, yet touched with a hint of melancholy.
She was beautiful in a way that stopped the breath—her skin luminous and youthful as a girl's, yet her figure and the look in her eyes carried the deep, magnetic pull of a woman fully grown. Her hair, still damp, clung to her shoulders. She wore a loose, sheer nightgown—one that had belonged to Xiao Se two years ago—and it was clear from her bare skin and the dampness on the floor that she'd just come from his bathroom. She was slightly shorter than him, and where her collar hung open past the fourth button, the curve of her chest was just visible—an utterly captivating sight.
Who would have guessed that Bibi Dong—the once regal, untouchable Pope of Spirit Hall—would end up curled in a man's arms like this?
"What, I can't come see you?" Bibi Dong smiled, sweet as honey. "I heard someone got a girl on the Dou Qi Continent pregnant."
"Uh…" Xiao Se's mouth twitched, and he laughed, a little sheepishly. "That was an accident. A total accident."
"Just an accident, hm? Prove it to me, then." She clearly wasn't buying it.
"How exactly am I supposed to prove that?" He frowned. It wasn't like he could rip the Fallen Heart Flame and the Sea God's Heart Flame out of his own body, separate them, and fuse them again just to demonstrate.
"I want it." Bibi Dong pressed a finger to her red lips and leaned in toward his—only for a flurry of footsteps to sound outside, followed by a knock.
"Who is it?" Xiao Se called out, irritation creeping into his voice. "Can a man not get some sleep?"
"Little Se, it's not even dark out yet," Bibi Dong murmured against him, tracing lazy circles on his chest with one slender finger.
"Uh…" He shot her an exasperated look. Whose side are you even on?
A soft voice drifted through the door. "Xiao Se. It's me—Liu Erlong."
"Liu Erlong?" The familiar, gentle voice caught him off guard for a moment before recognition set in. He glanced at Bibi Dong, wearing a helpless little smile. "Dong'er… think we should finally explain things to her?"
"Up to you," Bibi Dong said with a laugh.
He nodded. "Dong'er, put on the same outfit you wore the first time she saw you. I'll go let her in."
"Fine." She nodded and slipped behind the screen.
He opened the door to find Liu Erlong standing there. She wore a simple white dress today, leaning toward something youthful. With her classic oval face, her composed and dignified bearing, and cool, understated makeup framing those striking eyes, she carried a rare, ethereal beauty.
Normally, pairing that kind of otherworldly elegance with such a youthful outfit might feel mismatched. On her, somehow, it only added to the allure.
"I thought I heard voices in here. I hope I didn't interrupt anything," she said, hesitant, her expression clouded with conflicting feelings.
"Not at all. Come in." He waved her inside. "I promised you last time I'd give you a proper explanation once we met again. Perfect timing, actually—Xiao Huohuo happens to be here."
"Xiao Huohuo?" Her eyes lit up. She'd stayed unmarried for years, never once let a man close—could this finally be the moment she'd been waiting for?
As she stepped inside, a faint, feminine fragrance drifted past her. The floor was slightly damp—someone had clearly just showered. A small knot of unease tightened in her chest, but the thought of finally seeing the person she'd missed for thirty years pushed everything else aside.
"Sit, have some tea first," Xiao Se said, pouring her a cup.
"Thank you." She sat and took the cup, glancing around the room, but saw no sign of Xiao Huohuo. "Where is he?"
Xiao Se's eyes flicked toward the screen. "Come out."
The moment the words left his mouth, a figure stepped out from behind the screen—clad in white robes and a white cloak, a ghost mask covering the face beneath a wide bamboo hat.
The instant Liu Erlong laid eyes on that painfully familiar silhouette, her vision blurred with sudden tears. She stood frozen, the teacup slipping from her fingers and shattering on the floor, tea spreading across the tiles—though she seemed not to notice at all.
In the space of a breath, she was standing directly in front of the disguised Bibi Dong.
"Huo Huo… is it really you? Am I dreaming?" Her voice, so gentle a moment ago, now trembled violently as she asked it again. "Where have you been all these years?" Tears spilled freely down her pale cheeks, her whole body shaking with the weight of emotion she could no longer contain.
Behind the mask, Bibi Dong shot Xiao Se a sharp, irritated glance. Then, in a voice pitched to match his exactly, she answered, "It's me. I know how you feel. But I'm sorry—we can't be together."
"Why not?" Liu Erlong's voice cracked. "Is it because I'm getting old?"
"No. You're not old at all. If anything, you're breathtaking." Bibi Dong shook her head.
"Is it because you already have children?" Liu Erlong's gaze flicked briefly to Xiao Se, her resolve hardening. "I don't care. I'll love him like my own."
Xiao Se's mouth twitched, but he kept quiet, waiting to see how Bibi Dong would answer.
"No. That's not it either." Another shake of the head.
"Then what?" Liu Erlong asked, bewildered.
"You should forget about me." Bibi Dong let out a soft sigh. "I don't want to be the one who ruins your beautiful memories."
"I don't care if you're poor, or noble, or ugly, or already have a family—I'll stay by your side for the rest of my life. None of that matters to me." Liu Erlong's voice trembled with conviction.
"Even if I were a woman?" Bibi Dong asked, her voice sliding back into its own gentle, seductive tone.
"Yes. Even then." Liu Erlong nodded without hesitation—then stopped cold, her brow furrowing. "…Wait. You're a woman?"
(End of Chapter)
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