It was clearly the opposite for Zhu Xu.
Facing Zhao Xue, whom she deeply cherished, Zhu Xu not only didn't find Zhao Xue's reaction excessive, but instead immersed herself in it.
Zhao Xue's breathing gradually calmed amidst Zhu Xu's sweet words, yet the hand resting on Zhu Xu's waist never loosened.
After a few moments, Zhu Xu hesitantly raised her head to look at Zhao Xue's chin, then quickly lowered her gaze. "Zhao Xue, can you kiss me again?"
Zhu Xu's voice was soft, but due to their close proximity, Zhao Xue heard her perfectly, almost disbelieving she was hallucinating.
"Can you kiss me again?"
Receiving no response from Zhao Xue, Zhu Xu couldn't help but repeat herself.
Zhao Xue, still gripping Zhu Xu's waist, pulled her closer. "Kiss you again?"
Zhu Xu nodded gently. "Mmm-hmm."
Zhao Xue slowly and uncertainly leaned in to kiss Zhu Xu, the kiss very light.
He hadn't dared to hope Zhu Xu would like his kiss. Not seeing any resistance on Zhu Xu's face was already like returning from hell to the mortal world.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Xu was lost in the moment, and Zhao Xue slowly closed his eyes.
...
"Are you sure the Empress and that male immortal entered the Peach Forest last night?"
In the early morning, the Water God tiptoed, pacing in small steps as she chatted with a celestial attendant by a koi pond.
The attendant nodded. The Water God, without suspicion, entered the Peach Forest with an increasingly flushed face.
After the Water God walked away, another attendant beside the first one couldn't help but approach and scold her.
"Don't you know we're not supposed to reveal that an immortal lives in the Peach Forest?"
The attendant blinked in surprise, then weakly defended herself, "I didn't know."
Zhao Xue was practicing swordplay at dawn, while the drunken Zhu Xu was still sound asleep in her room.
"Fellow Immortal, I accidentally wandered into the Peach Forest. Could you please escort me out?"
The Water God, with her charming eyes, lifted her hand to stroke her bangs, a gesture remarkably similar to Daiyu's, completely lacking the sharp demeanor she displayed towards Zhu Xu.
Zhao Xue didn't spare the Water God a glance, his swordplay becoming even more fierce.
"Fellow Immortal?" The Water God, thinking Zhao Xue was too engrossed in his practice, stood up and tiptoed towards him.
*Clang—*
Zhao Xue's sword sliced through the air, pointing directly at the Water God.
The Water God was forced to stop.
"Fellow... Fellow Immortal, I wandered into the Peach Forest. Could you please escort me out?" The Water God's expression froze for a moment, then quickly reverted to her 'Lin Daiyu' persona.
"Wandered in? No one has wandered into this Peach Forest for nearly a thousand years, yet you entered the day after the Flower Appreciation Assembly concluded."
The Water God thought: Isn't this something that should be understood, not stated explicitly? Why did he just say it outright?
Zhao Xue's expression was as cold as three feet of frost. Although the Water God was captivated by Zhao Xue's appearance, she was now using all her effort to maintain her composure.
"I doubt it needs to be said. Anyone can see your intentions are far from innocent," Zhao Xue's tone was forceful, as if the Water God before him was a heinous criminal.
As Zhao Xue finished speaking, the Water God's mouth twitched involuntarily.
Among the various immortals the Water God had flirted with in the celestial realm, Zhao Xue was the first to describe her with such words as "intentions are far from innocent."
"Fellow Immortal, please do not misunderstand. Since I first saw you at the Flower Appreciation Assembly yesterday, I have been restless, and thus unknowingly entered the Peach Forest. Seeing you practicing swordplay here, I assumed you were familiar with this place, which is why I asked if you could escort me out."
The Water God's words were cleverly crafted. They suggested her secret affection for Zhao Xue while also implying her deliberate presence there. However, such an obvious ploy, if recognized by anyone with a modicum of discernment, would typically not be exposed. Instead, one would feign embarrassment and, as the Water God intended, escort her out, thus creating an opportunity for interaction.
But the person in question was Zhao Xue...
Zhao Xue: "Is that so?"
Zhao Xue's expression remained as indifferent as ever. The Water God nodded, thinking there was a chance, and her heart began to pound uncontrollably.
To her surprise, Zhao Xue's next words almost shattered the Water God's 'Daiyu' facade.
"Since that is the case, we have some fate. Why don't we spar here? A spar to the death."
Spar? To the death?!
Is this how one should treat a female immortal? Is this how one should treat the most beautiful woman in the Three Realms?
The Water God's pounding heart felt as if it had been pierced by dull knives.
"Fellow Immortal, you must be joking?" The Water God's polite smile was starting to falter.
"I am serious."
As Zhao Xue finished speaking, he lunged forward, thrusting his sword directly at the Water God.
The Water God gasped. Fortunately, thousands of years of cultivation allowed her body to instinctively dodge Zhao Xue's attack.
Zhao Xue did not let up. He swapped his sword for a long saber and swung it towards the Water God.
The Water God's mind was in turmoil, as chaotic as the fish in the water that struggled to form a school.
"Fellow Immortal, please... please calm down." Although the Water God was doing her best to prepare herself mentally and physically for combat, Zhao Xue, who could suppress General Huo Gui, was far superior.
Before they could exchange many blows, the Water God's shoulder was struck by Zhao Xue's saber, and blood instantly stained her entire arm.
The Water God, thousands of years old, swayed precariously in the Peach Forest, but Zhao Xue's movements did not slow; instead, they became faster.
Looking at Zhao Xue's cold, immersed gaze, a gaze that seemed inherently bloodthirsty, the Water God felt for several moments that she was going to perish today.
If, at the beginning of the fight, the Water God could still believe Zhao Xue wasn't serious, she now had to admit that Zhao Xue genuinely seemed intent on killing her.
In less than two breaths, from a distance, the Water God's wounds appeared as a dense, overlapping pattern.
Finally, when the Water God was once again struck to the ground by Zhao Xue, she couldn't regain her footing and lost all opportunity to retaliate. She could only watch as the long saber in Zhao Xue's hand descended towards her.
"Mmm, Zhao Xue." Just then, Zhu Xu emerged from outside. She wasn't fully awake yet, and her voice was soft and sweet.
At this critical moment, hearing Zhu Xu's voice, Zhao Xue paused his downward swing towards the Water God.
Zhao Xue, his eyes bloodshot, looked at the Water God, whose state was beyond description, and for a moment, his expression was one of stunned disbelief.
He had done this... all of this.
Zhao Xue tightened his grip on the saber, frozen in place, afraid to turn his head.
"Zhao Xue?"
Zhu Xu, seeing Zhao Xue's back with the long saber in hand, felt confused. She quickened her pace and walked to Zhao Xue's side.
"Zhao Xue, what's wrong?"