Ye Ran circled around Lu Li, her eyes full of wonder.
“He looks so much like the real thing—exactly like the real Senior Brother.”
After her moment of amazement, her hands grew restless again, itching to pinch Lu Li’s cheeks once more.
But just as she raised her hand, something seemed to occur to her, and she sheepishly withdrew it. Turning around, she looked at the fat cat on the soft couch.
“Senior Brother, it’s getting late. Don’t you think it’s time for you to head back?”
Ye Ran’s voice carried a hint of guilt, but beneath that guilt, one could also sense urgency and anticipation.
She seemed quite eager for Lu Li to leave quickly.
The system on the couch stiffened, not daring to speak. It could only cautiously look at Lu Li, waiting for his instructions.
A dark glint appeared in Lu Li’s eyes. He slightly moved his fingers at his side, and the next moment, the fat cat on the couch was sent flying out the window in a perfect arc.
Ye Ran was stunned.
Was this really how the villain made his exit? It looked more like he had been tossed out!
She wanted to see what had just happened, but as soon as she took two steps forward, the window suddenly slammed shut, blocking her view.
“He’s already left.”
Lu Li’s voice suddenly sounded from behind her, startling Ye Ran. She turned around and stood there in a daze for a long moment before finally realizing that the person standing before her now was the system, not Lu Li.
“System, stay just like this. Don’t change back yet.”
Ye Ran’s voice was tinged with excitement, and a flicker of glee appeared in her eyes.
Lu Li caught that glee precisely. His gaze toward Ye Ran darkened a bit more, but on the surface, he deliberately showed a hint of confusion.
“Why can’t I change back?”
“Because I don’t dare to act recklessly in front of the real villain. Now that you’ve taken his form, naturally I want to do whatever I please. So bear with it, System.”
Ye Ran walked up to Lu Li and patted him on the shoulder. But after the pat, her restless hand slowly slid downward, feeling his chest.
“Not bad, System. You’ve even got the same chest muscles.”
As she spoke, she was about to withdraw her hand when, the next moment, a cool hand covered hers and pressed it back.
“It’s no trouble. Right now, I’m no different from him. Host, you can do whatever you want to me.”
Ye Ran’s heart gave a sudden tremor.
She felt that when he used Lu Li’s voice to say the word “Host,” it carried an added touch of tenderness.
It stirred something in her heart, awakening a hidden desire.
She actually wanted to hear Lu Li call her “Master.”
Ye Ran was startled by her own thought.
Snapping back to reality, she quickly pulled her hand away and stepped back, a trace of guilt showing on her face.
Lu Li didn’t know why Ye Ran had suddenly backed down. Displeased, he continued to close the distance between them.
“Why did you stop, Host?”
Another “Host” reached her ears, making her heart skip another beat and deepening her sense of guilt.
“I… I’m a decent person. I was just checking how similar you are.”
Even her voice betrayed her guilt.
When facing the fat cat system, she had felt no psychological burden at all—she could pet it however she wanted. But now, facing the system in Lu Li’s form, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of guilt, as if she were facing the real Lu Li.
At that thought, Ye Ran’s guilt only grew, and she began to feel timid.
“System, m-maybe you should change back.”
The likeness was too high—so high that she kept feeling as though she was facing the real Lu Li.
Lu Li noticed her retreat. His eyes darkened slightly, then he curved his lips into a smile.
“Is Host afraid of me too?”
“How could I be? How could I possibly be afraid of a cute little kitten!”
Ye Ran rose to the bait. She immediately opened her storage pouch, rummaged around inside, and finally pulled out a cat-ear headband, handing it to Lu Li.
“Put this on.”
Ye Ran had always liked collecting little trinkets. She had bought this headband—a pair of white ears—while shopping some time ago.
Actually, from the very first time she saw Lu Li’s white hair, she had thought those ears would look perfect on him.
But she was too cowardly to ever dare put them on him.
Now that she was facing the system wearing Lu Li’s face, she had no such reservations.
Lu Li looked at the headband being offered to him, a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.
He hadn’t expected Ye Ran to have so little nerve.
But catching sight of the anticipation in her gaze, he still took the headband and put it on.
The fluffy cat ears blended seamlessly with Lu Li’s silver hair, almost as if they were his own. At the same time, they added a touch of cuteness to his otherwise cool and aloof features.
A look of awe immediately appeared on Ye Ran’s face. Her eyes were glued to Lu Li, unwilling to look away for even a moment.
This reaction pleased Lu Li greatly, and a hint of amusement gleamed in his eyes.
“What else would you like me to do, Host?”
“Kneel and call me ‘Master.’”
Ye Ran blurted out what was on her mind.
But before she could take it back, Lu Li had already knelt down slowly. He took one of her hands, lowered his head, and rubbed the tip of his nose against it. Then he looked up and met her eyes.
“Master, please reward me.”
For a moment, Ye Ran’s mind went completely blank. The only sound filling her ears was the thunderous pounding of her own heart.
“S-Senior Brother…”
Ye Ran could no longer tell whether the person before her was the system or Lu Li himself.
Especially when she looked into those dark eyes—her heart trembled, and a quiet panic began to rise within her.
She tried to pull her hand away, but the moment she moved, Lu Li suddenly tightened his grip. Then he pressed her hand against his chest.
“Has Master decided how to reward me?”
The familiar tone and gesture made Ye Ran’s heart race even faster. She immediately pulled her hand back and stared at Lu Li in shock.
“You… you’re not the system!”
“So Master has noticed.”
A glint of excitement appeared in Lu Li’s eyes. He rose to his feet, stepped closer to Ye Ran, and wrapped an arm around her waist.
“Since Master hasn’t decided yet, I’ll claim my reward myself.”
With that, Lu Li leaned down and kissed Ye Ran on the lips.
Through repeated practice, he had come to understand Ye Ran’s preferences and knew exactly how to make her surrender.
So this time, his kiss was gentle. He moved slowly at first, then, catching her off guard, gradually deepened it, teasingly brushing against her tongue.
Ye Ran, unable to resist the temptation, began to slowly respond to Lu Li.
But whenever her tongue advanced, his retreated just enough to keep her from reaching him.
They continued this dance of advance and retreat, until soon Ye Ran was the one slipping her tongue into Lu Li’s mouth.
Lu Li’s gentleness vanished. He entwined his tongue with hers, greedily tasting the sweetness in her mouth, as if determined to claim every bit of that fragrance for himself.
It was only when the arm around her waist tightened and the air in her mouth grew scarce that Ye Ran finally snapped back to her senses.
She braced her hands against Lu Li’s chest, trying to push him away. But he didn’t budge—instead, he kissed her even more fiercely.
Ye Ran couldn’t withstand the onslaught. As the air in her mouth dwindled, the suffocating feeling grew stronger.
With no other choice, she raised her knee toward Lu Li.
This time, he was prepared. The moment she lifted her leg, he stepped back and caught it.
Her sneak attack failed, but at least it made Lu Li release her.
Ye Ran quickly caught her breath, then stepped back to put some distance between them. Just as Lu Li was about to close the gap again, she bent into a bow.
“Senior Brother has been away for quite a while. If he doesn’t return soon, people might grow suspicious.”
Her tone was distant, as if the two of them were barely acquainted—and as if they hadn’t just been kissing moments ago.
Lu Li’s expression darkened. He stepped forward, grabbed Ye Ran’s arm, and pulled her back into his embrace.
“Was my kiss not good enough? Why do you still reject me, Junior Sister?”
“No… that’s not… I mean…”
Ye Ran was flustered. Realizing that no answer would be the right one, she struggled to push Lu Li away and then spoke again:
“Senior Brother, we agreed last time to call it even. It’s not right for us to keep doing this.”
“Call it even?” Lu Li let out a cold laugh of disbelief. “When did I ever agree to that?”
He approached Ye Ran step by step, backing her into a corner. When she had nowhere left to retreat, he reached out and lifted her chin by the hand.
“I told you before—I will keep pursuing you, Junior Sister.”
Those words lingered in Ye Ran’s ears like a spell, making her body tense up instantly.
Lu Li leaned in again. Just as their lips were about to meet, the jade token at his waist suddenly lit up.
Annoyance flashed in his eyes. Still, he gave Ye Ran a gentle kiss.
“You can never get rid of me, Junior Sister.”
With that, Lu Li’s figure vanished before Ye Ran’s eyes.
Ye Ran stood there in a daze for a long time, those final words echoing in her ears.
When she finally came to her senses, she realized her heart was racing and showed no sign of calming down.
Fortunately, Lu Li seemed to be too busy—after saying those words, he didn’t come looking for Ye Ran again.
The anxiety that had been hanging over her finally eased after two days had passed.
Nevertheless, due to the murder of Immortal Venerable Gu Lin, the sect tournament was canceled outright. The leaders of the various sects gathered every day to discuss the matter, and the atmosphere within the sect grew increasingly tense.
As someone involved in the whole affair, Ye Ran couldn’t help but feel guilty. So she had been hiding in her room for the past few days, not daring to step outside.
But on this particular day, while she was lying under a tree with the system, soaking up the sun, an unexpected visitor arrived.
“Am I interrupting anything, Junior Sister?”
It was Meng Xuan. He walked over to the tree and smiled at Ye Ran, his eyes full of affection.
“Senior Brother Meng, what brings you here?”
Ye Ran quickly got to her feet, a hint of wariness appearing on her face.
“It’s like this. That night, you didn’t want to see me. I assumed you still hadn’t forgiven me. So today, I’ve come once more to offer my apologies.”
With that, Meng Xuan produced a box of scented balm.
“I asked some of the other junior sisters to bring this back for me. The fragrance is very pleasant. I hope you’ll accept it.”
“That’s not necessary. I’ve already let go of what happened that day. You should take the balm back, Senior Brother Meng.”
Although the scent was indeed lovely, Ye Ran really didn’t want to have any more involvement with Meng Xuan. Right now, she just wanted to send him on his way.
“If you don’t accept it, that means you haven’t truly forgiven me.”
Meng Xuan didn’t withdraw his hand. His stance made it clear he wouldn’t leave unless she took it.
Ye Ran found this very troublesome. After a brief stalemate, she finally accepted the balm.
“Thank you very much, Senior Brother Meng.”
With that, Ye Ran adopted the posture of someone ready to close the door and see the guest out. However, Meng Xuan remained where he stood, unwilling to leave.
“Is there something else, Senior Brother Meng?”
“It’s like this. My master has ordered me to investigate the murder of Immortal Venerable Gu Lin. You were also at Zeyang Mansion that day, Junior Sister, so I wanted to ask if you noticed anything unusual on your way back.”
At the mention of Immortal Venerable Gu Lin, Ye Ran’s heart tightened, and a flicker of nervousness crossed her eyes.
“There was nothing unusual. Our return was very smooth. No accidents happened along the way.”
Fortunately, Ye Ran quickly calmed herself.
“Then please tell me in detail about the journey back, Junior Sister.”
To her surprise, Meng Xuan continued to press for details.
But thankfully, Immortal Venerable Gu Lin had already been killed before even setting out for the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect. Meng Xuan was asking about what had happened on the return trip, so Ye Ran only needed to tell the truth.
However, midway through her account, Ye Ran suddenly felt a parched, burning sensation in her mouth and throat.
At first, she thought she was just thirsty from talking too much. But after drinking some tea, the symptoms didn’t ease.
It was only when that familiar heat surged through her body that she suddenly realized what was happening.
Her furnace constitution was acting up again!
And while the male lead was present.
Ye Ran could clearly feel that this episode was different from the last one. Last time, she had been able to endure it. But this time, the symptoms struck with overwhelming intensity right from the start, leaving her completely defenseless.
“Junior Sister, what’s wrong?”
Meng Xuan noticed something was off. He set down his teacup and rose to approach Ye Ran and check on her.
“Don’t come near me!” Ye Ran quickly stopped him. “I… I suddenly feel unwell. I can’t entertain you any longer, Senior Brother Meng. You should head back.”
Ye Ran’s only thought was to send Meng Xuan away, so she didn’t see the flash of excitement in his eyes.
Instead of leaving, he continued to approach her, his face now full of concern.
“You don’t look well, Junior Sister. Let me help you back to your room.”
“No need!”
Seeing Meng Xuan drawing closer, Ye Ran quickly stepped back, her entire body signaling refusal.
A hint of frustration appeared on Meng Xuan’s face, and his steps toward her quickened.
“Don’t shy away from help, Junior Sister. I do know a bit of medicine. Let me take a look at you.”
“There’s no need. Please go back, Senior Brother Meng.”
The growing discomfort in her body made Ye Ran increasingly agitated. Just as Meng Xuan was about to reach her, she waved her hand and unleashed a burst of spiritual energy.
Caught off guard, Meng Xuan was pushed back several steps. By the time he finally steadied himself, Ye Ran had vanished, and a barrier had risen around the house in front of him.
Meng Xuan stared at the barrier, a disdainful smile curling on his lips.
“Let’s see how much longer you can hold out.”
With that, his figure disappeared.
Back inside her room, Ye Ran rushed to the table and downed several cups of tea. But this time, the burning sensation was stronger than ever.
She could feel the freshly brewed mint tea turn scalding hot as it went down, searing her insides as her body temperature kept rising.
But just as the discomfort became unbearable, an image of Lu Li appeared in her mind.
At that moment, she wanted to see him more than anything.
She wanted to kiss his thin lips. She wanted his cool hands to chase away the heat burning inside her.
Her reason fought desperately against the unbearable urges of her body.
But with every second that passed, her rationality faded a little more.
In the end, she couldn’t resist. She climbed out the window and took a small, hidden path straight to Wangxian Peak.
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