His voice was hoarse. He took a deep breath and released Qin Moyu.
They faced each other, their eyes meeting.
This was the first time Qin Moyu had seen Shen Yebai's gaze so intense and direct, as if it could see right through him and devour his very soul.
"I don't want to be just friends."
As Shen Yebai spoke, he kissed her with a desperate gamble.
He gently lifted Qin Moyu's chin with one hand and held his back with the other, trapping him in his arms. His lips and tongue easily pried open the unsuspecting teeth, finding the other protagonist who was still in a daze, and invited it to entangle and revolve together. Shen Yebai's kiss was urgent and awkward, fiercely plundering the air in Qin Moyu's mouth, greedily savoring this deliciousness.
Qin Moyu's hands and feet went numb from the kiss, and her head was spinning. All she could hear was the wet, smacking sound of their lips and tongues intertwining, pushing the ambiguous atmosphere to its peak.
Everything happened so suddenly that he only snapped out of his daze and pushed Shen Yebai away forcefully when Shen Yebai accidentally bit his lip.
"I like you, Mo Yu."
"You, you..." Qin Moyu took a deep breath, but couldn't hypnotize herself to ignore the faint taste of blood in her mouth. Her face turned red from her ears to her neck, and she was so nervous that she stammered for a long time without being able to say a word.
Shen Yebai continued, "Would you be willing to be my Daoist partner?"
Unlike his amused reaction to the demonic cultivator and Gu Jia's confession, Shen Yebai's words completely shut Qin Moyu down. He staggered back two steps, almost falling over because his left and right feet were "fighting." Shen Yebai instinctively tried to step forward, but Qin Moyu panicked even more and turned to run away.
Logically speaking, if he didn't like Shen Yebai, he could have simply refused. But for some reason, he couldn't say yes or no, so he could only choose to run away.
Before Qin Moyu could even run to the door, a heavy thud and a muffled groan came from behind her.
Qin Moyu's chaotic mind calmed down a little. Thinking of the injuries Shen Yebai had suffered, he hesitated for a moment, then turned around to look at him again.
That one glance made it impossible for him to leave.
Shen Yebai knelt on the ground, head down, his hair obscuring his eyes, a trickle of blood seeping from the corner of his lips, clutching his chest as if he were in great pain.
Suppressing her panic for the moment, Qin Moyu pursed her lips and quickly walked to Shen Yebai's side.
"Are you... are you alright... are you badly injured?" Qin Moyu stiffly squatted down, her outstretched hand wanting to help but not daring to, and was caught by Shen Yebai while hanging in mid-air.
Qin Moyu froze as if she had been frozen in place.
"Don't go." Shen Yebai's face was pale, and he held Qin Moyu's hand tightly, refusing to let go.
"Get up first," Qin Moyu said, trying to help Shen Yebai up.
"Don't go." Unexpectedly, Shen Yebai just stared stubbornly at Qin Moyu, as if he wouldn't get up until he agreed.
"..."
They stood their ground for a while, but Qin Moyu was ultimately defeated.
“…Okay, I won’t leave.” Qin Moyu sighed.
He admitted that he had softened his heart. Whether out of reason or emotion, he couldn't bear to leave Shen Yebai here alone.
Shen Yebai was pulled up by Qin Moyu, one hand around Qin Moyu's shoulder, as if he didn't even have the strength to walk. Half of his body was hanging on Qin Moyu, and he was helped into the house step by step by Qin Moyu.
Shen Yebai had a fresh kapok flower scent on him, which he must have picked up while practicing his sword under the tree. Qin Moyu tried not to think too much and focused on helping him back.
Qin Moyu helped Shen Yebai to a chair and noticed the faint crimson on his lips. She asked with concern, "How did it suddenly become so serious? I saw you practicing swordplay just now, and I thought your injury wasn't too bad."
Shen Yebai swallowed the blood in his throat and lowered his eyes, saying, "It's just a disturbance in my heart energy; it's nothing serious."
My mind is in turmoil; is it because I'm too impatient to see you running?
Qin Moyu wanted to tease Shen Yebai, but the words wouldn't come out. She awkwardly sat down next to Shen Yebai, and the atmosphere became somewhat dull.
"sorry."
After a long pause, Shen Yebai said softly.
Qin Moyu was stunned, not understanding why Shen Yebai apologized.
"I've put Mo Yu in a difficult position, haven't I?" Shen Yebai released Qin Mo Yu's hand, lowering his head like a child who had done something wrong.
"I..." Qin Moyu opened her mouth, but didn't say anything.
It's impossible not to feel awkward when a close friend you've always considered confesses their feelings to you.
"Actually, I knew all along that Mo Yu didn't have those kinds of feelings for me." Shen Yebai raised his eyes, transforming back into the gentle and refined Shen Yebai, a bitter smile appearing on his lips. "I was too impulsive."
"You..." Qin Moyu was interrupted by Shen Yebai before she could finish speaking.
"but."
Shen Yebai placed his index finger on Qin Moyu's lips, shook his head, and gestured for Qin Moyu to listen to him.
"I can't control my feelings for Mo Yu."
"I don't know when it started...maybe it was in the last secret realm...maybe it was even longer ago..."
Even when I'm separated from Mo Yu, I often think of you.
"I always find myself looking at Mo Yu without realizing it, wanting to get closer and closer... I can't help but think, how wonderful it would be if Mo Yu were mine alone."
"So when they said those things to you, it was less anger and more fear. I was afraid that Mo Yu would really fall in love with someone else."
"You don't need to be in such a hurry to tell me the answer. I like you, nothing else, I just... wanted to tell you."
Love can fill a person with courage, or it can make them humble to the point of being insignificant. Shen Yebai is currently the latter.