In the oppressive darkness, the female's slender, pale fingers stood out in stark relief.
The black snake reared back slightly, staring warily at Jiang Qingli.
The other snakes also retreated to varying degrees at her movement.
The sight made Jiang Qingli want to laugh.
'Ye Linyuan was so arrogant and domineering in the outside world, yet his Spiritual Body was cautious and timid. It was somehow a little cute.'
Jiang Qingli had no experience with snakes. Recalling how she used to pet cats, she beckoned to the little snake and made a few soft clicking sounds.
The black snake tilted its head and blinked its blood-red eyes.
Jiang Qingli remained still and smiled at the black snake.
After they stared at each other for a few seconds, the black snake began to crawl slowly toward Jiang Qingli, its tongue flicking in and out rhythmically.
Jiang Qingli didn't know this was how a snake showed interest, so she waited patiently.
When it reached her, the black snake pressed its head into her palm.
Then, the snake narrowed its eyes, brought its head closer, and nuzzled against Jiang Qingli's cheek.
Seeing this, the other snakes started to approach as well, only to be stopped by a warning glare from the black snake.
Jiang Qingli stroked the snake's body, trying to soothe its emotions the way Ye Linyuan had told her to.
After a moment, the surrounding snakes vanished.
Jiang Qingli then noticed that the ground beneath her feet was changing.
The cracked earth slowly began to mend. The black mist in the air thinned, and her visibility improved significantly.
A blurry shadow appeared in the distance. Jiang Qingli stepped closer, trying to get a better look.
But before she could see it clearly, a sharp pain shot through her mind, and she passed out.
-
In a daze, Jiang Qingli heard someone calling her name.
Someone was whispering in her ear. She tried to make out the words, but her consciousness only grew fuzzier...
Jiang Qingli opened her eyes to a blinding white light and the ornate canopy above the bed.
Dazed for a few seconds, Jiang Qingli finally realized it was the next morning.
The sensation of something wrapped around her waist was impossible to ignore. Jiang Qingli looked down and, sure enough, saw a snake tail shifting slowly.
Jiang Qingli: "..."
'It was the same scene as yesterday, and strangely, she was already getting used to it…'
"You're awake?"
Ye Linyuan, who was holding her, felt her stir. He pressed closer, taking her earlobe between his lips as his forked tongue darted wantonly.
The tickling sensation made Jiang Qingli shrink away.
It was as if he were tethered to her; when she moved away, he followed.
The large bed suddenly felt very crowded.
Getting impatient, Jiang Qingli smacked his snake tail. "Put it away."
"I'm in heat."
When Spiritual Pollution levels were high, a male Beastman in heat would find it hard to maintain his human form, uncontrollably entering a state of Half-beastification.
Recalling this, Jiang Qingli said, "Then let go. You're crushing me."
This time, Ye Linyuan actually listened.
The snake tail uncoiled, no longer wrapping around her, and instead settled against her leg.
Jiang Qingli's head was foggy, and her stomach ached with hunger.
Presumably, because Ye Linyuan's condition was so severe and she had only just awakened her spiritual power, handling it had been difficult.
Thankfully, Ye Linyuan seemed much more normal now.
She sat up and discovered her white dress was in tatters. Furious, she kicked Ye Linyuan.
Ye Linyuan's gaze swept over her exposed skin. His Adam's apple bobbed, and his breathing grew heavier. "There are new clothes in the closet."
'That's more like it.'
Jiang Qingli went to the walk-in closet and changed into a long blue dress. While she was freshening up, she ordered breakfast.
Breakfast was delivered by a round, roly-poly robot.
Jiang Qingli was starving. Just as she was about to take the food, a hand with long, slender fingers grabbed her wrist.
"Don't move. There's something wrong with it."
Black mist instantly enveloped the robot. When it dissipated, the robot had been torn to pieces, its fragments and the breakfast scattered across the floor.
The snake tail retrieved a finger-sized, circular object from the pile of debris and presented it to Jiang Qingli.
"It's a military-grade surveillance device," Ye Linyuan said, his voice cold.
A chill ran down Jiang Qingli's spine, and a cold sweat broke out on her back.
She curled her stiff fingers. "Were they monitoring you?"
"The device was pointed at you." Ye Linyuan tossed it to her. "I've cut the power."
The unspoken implication was that if she didn't believe him, she was free to take it and have it examined herself.
Jiang Qingli took it and set it on the coffee table.
With breakfast strewn across the floor, Jiang Qingli lost her appetite to order more. Who knew if it had been poisoned?
She closed the door, rummaged through a cabinet in the suite, and found some snacks. Tearing open the package, she offered it to Ye Linyuan. "Want some?"
Ye Linyuan: "..."
'She's using me as a poison taster…'
He casually picked one up, popped it into his mouth, and said, "No poison."
Reassured, Jiang Qingli began to eat.
She recalled her earlier questions and decided to broach the subject. "Why did you alter my Beast Husband match? And... aren't people from the Underground City all unregistered residents? How did you get in here?"
She was very close to him, and Ye Linyuan could smell his own scent on her.
He couldn't resist wrapping his snake tail around her, pulling her into his lap. He embraced her from behind, pressing his face against the side of her neck.
"I have legal status."
'As for why…'
Ye Linyuan closed his eyes, his voice hoarse. "You said you would take responsibility for me."
Jiang Qingli was speechless. "...But you didn't agree at the time, did you?"
"I didn't refuse, either," Ye Linyuan said, his tone surprisingly self-assured.
Jiang Qingli thought for a moment. "You need me to perform Spiritual Healing on you, don't you?"
His fingers, resting on her waist, caressed her for a moment before Ye Linyuan grudgingly admitted, "I suppose so."
"Are you really F Level?" Jiang Qingli asked.
"Never been tested," Ye Linyuan's voice was lazy. "It's boring."
'I knew it.'
Jiang Qingli didn't press the matter. She was more concerned about something else. "Besides you, who was the other person that was added?"
"I don't know."
"You don't know?" Jiang Qingli turned to stare into his eyes. "You aren't lying to me, are you?"
"Would there be any point?" Ye Linyuan met her gaze, then took her hand and pressed it against his chest.
A black totem of a thorny rose was imprinted there. It was Jiang Qingli's mark.
It was also the shackle that bound Ye Linyuan in loyalty to her.
'He really had no reason to lie.'
"But who is the other person?" Jiang Qingli frowned. "Didn't you see when you went into the system to make the changes?"
"When I got in, there were already four names in the system," Ye Linyuan said.
Jiang Qingli bit her lip in frustration.
After the surveillance device incident, Jiang Qingli couldn't shake the fear that an undercover agent was trying to assassinate her.
"Ye Linyuan." Jiang Qingli looked up. "How about we make a deal?"
Ye Linyuan looked up.
Jiang Qingli said, "How about this: you protect me, and I'll perform Spiritual Healing for you."
Ye Linyuan gave a quiet sound of assent.
Having gotten his agreement, Jiang Qingli held out her pinky finger to him. "Pinky swear!"
'Ye Linyuan realized that Jiang Qingli didn't seem to understand the rules of their world.'
'She was the female master. She only needed to give a command; she didn't need to make deals.'
'A pinky swear... How childish.'
But when he met the girl's smiling eyes, Ye Linyuan found himself at a loss for words.
After a pause, the Underground City Lord, a man renowned for his vicious cruelty, raised his hand and childishly linked pinkies with the girl.
-
Since Ye Linyuan was still in his Half-beastman form, Jiang Qingli had him stay put while she returned to her villa alone.
Jiang Qingli was supposed to be living with the Jiang Family.
However, at the age of eighteen, unable to awaken her spiritual power, she'd had a massive argument with the Jiang Family. She ended up moving out to live on her own, cutting all ties with them.
It was only a few days ago, with her marriage approaching, that she had accepted the butler, Yi Nuo, sent by the Jiang Family's eldest son, Jiang Youchen.
As she reached the entrance to her villa, Jiang Qingli saw Yi Nuo standing by the door, talking with Qin Muye about something.
Qin Muye looked furious, but Yi Nuo stood blocking his path, his expression stern, not yielding an inch.
"What's wrong?" Jiang Qingli asked, walking over.
Hearing her voice, both men turned their heads in unison. Their gazes locked onto her, as if expecting her to be the judge.