After a beat—yeah, dramatic pause and all—everything chilled out.
Adrian Night was super careful, helping Ivy Shen get dressed one piece at a time. But honestly? The whole process had him gulping like crazy—her skin was so soft and smooth, he legit couldn't find words. Anyone who touched her would be instantly obsessed! Just picturing it, he started marinating in jealousy again.
"Uh..." Outta nowhere, Adrian yanked her into his arms, like he was trying to absorb her breathing through osmosis.
"What's up, Adrian?" Ivy Shen blinked, totally thrown by the sudden hug attack.
"Nothing at all," Adrian flashed a little smile and let her go. He knew someone as awesome as Ivy Shen could never be his alone—just getting to stick around was already peak happiness.
THUD—right on cue, the ice beneath them decided to split open, all dramatic and ominous.
Ivy Shen snapped into action: "Take her with us!" She still had unfinished business with Lila Vane—no way was she letting that girl die just yet!
Adrian didn't miss a beat—he undid Lila Vane's restraints, grabbed her, and cannonballed them both into the water before she could even blink. The three of them dove under, and soon spotted a patch of light glimmering on the surface above.
Instantly, they all turbo-swimming toward the light like their lives depended on it.
"Puh~" They popped out of the water one after another—Ivy Shen first, of course, then Adrian dragging Lila Vane behind him like a prize catch.
"Ah!" As soon as they hit the bank, Adrian mercilessly tossed her onto the grass.
Once she was steady, Lila Vane started gasping for air, then suddenly yanked her skirt up and got to work with her hands.
"Ah... ah..." Half-reclining on the grass, she kept moving her hands in ways that were honestly too indecent to look at.
Her actions made Adrian frown and turn away, while Shen Bingxin just watched her blankly. She'd known things would get rough for Lila, but this was way worse than she'd expected.
"You... you—ahhh, I can't take it anymore, ah, ah..." She wanted to yell at them, but her body was so overwhelmed that she couldn't even spare the energy to scold them. Even helping herself wasn't enough, not even close. She needed more—so much more!
Just then, Lila Vane suddenly pulled something out from her clothes, yanked a cord, and in the next second, a puff of black smoke shot up into the sky with a loud 'pop.'
"What are you doing?" Adrian immediately got wary—was that a signal? What was this woman up to now?
"Ah... uh..." Lila was way too busy with her own crisis to answer him.
Less than a minute later, a man came sprinting over from the distance. Adrian quickly pulled Shen Bingxin behind him to protect her.
"Miss!" The man was shocked at Lila's state, but managed to call out in a steady voice.
Suddenly, Lila's dazed eyes snapped open. In the next moment, she pounced on the man, leaving him so startled he had no idea what to do.
"Quinn, I order you to serve me! Hurry, hurry!" Her hands couldn't calm her down at all—only a man could help, only that could stop the madness and bring her peace.
"Miss..." Quinn was so stunned he didn't know what to do. He'd always been Lila's personal attendant—the Vane Manor barely had any male guards, just a few maids and kitchen aunties. After all, who'd be crazy enough to barge into Endless Gorge?
Anyone who entered here would be killed by traps and poisons, so they didn't bother with bodyguards. Lila hadn't told Quinn what she was planning; she was confident she could handle anyone. But she hadn't expected to be outplayed herself.
"Quinn, do something! Come on!" Seeing him freeze, Lila snapped, "Don't pretend I don't know you like me—you've peeked at me bathing more than once!" She sounded seriously annoyed.
"Miss... there are people..." Quinn said awkwardly. He'd always liked her, even knowing about her thing with the Crown Prince. Just seeing her every day was enough for him.
"What's there to be scared of? Hurry up—are you even a man?" Lila shouted, ignoring his pale face and just started handling things herself again.
"Ah..." Instantly, she wasn't suffering nearly as much as before.
"Lila Vane—!" A sudden shout made everyone freeze.
Lila turned, dazed, and stared blankly at the handsome young man coming toward her, stammering, "Lu... Lucian..."
Wind quickly glanced at Shen Bingxin, who was frowning, and said, "Miss, I didn't notify Lucian—it was his own idea to come." Shen Bingxin had warned them never to call her 'Master' in public; they had to use 'Miss' to avoid suspicion.
"Lucian..." Seeing her brother suddenly appear, Lila Vane scrambled off Quinn, yanked her skirt down, and turned ghostly pale.
"You... how could you..." Lucian stared at Lila's behavior, too shocked for words. His tightly furrowed brow made Shen Bingxin worry.
She really didn't like Lila, but she was Lucian's sister. According to Wind, Lila always tried her best to impress Lucian, so seeing her like this must've devastated him. Ivy didn't want him to hurt, even if she'd considered killing Lila before. She still hoped Lila could mean something as a sister to him—so that became her second reason for not telling him everything.
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"Lucian..." Seeing his pain, Shen Bingxin slowly walked over and gently called his name.
He turned to look at her, snapping out of his thoughts, then grabbed her arm, worried. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? Let me see."
Seeing this, Shen Bingxin quickly grabbed his hand and said seriously, "Lucian, I'm fine, really!" His worry warmed her heart.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." Suddenly, Lucian's face fell in pain.
Seeing this, Shen Bingxin glanced at Wind, who awkwardly bowed his head and whispered, "Lucian rushed over on horseback, asking what was going on. I was afraid he'd misunderstand and think you were going to hurt his sister, so I told him everything." After that, he kept quiet. Honestly, he had his own reasons—he just wanted Lucian to know that Ivy didn't want him involved, not out of blame.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know my parents hurt your childhood so much. I'm sorry." With that, Lucian hugged Shen Bingxin tightly, heart aching—he understood, he really did.
Hearing this, Shen Bingxin hugged him back. "Will you blame me for coming after your sister?" she asked, sitting up and looking him in the eye. "Lucian, you need to know—I... I might end up killing your sister!" It was hard to say, but she knew it would be brutal for him.
"This is everything my family owes you. It's only right for you to take it back. But... selfish as it is, can I beg you—please, spare her life? You can take mine instead, since... since she's my sister!" He looked down, totally defeated.
"Why are you begging him? Why?" Suddenly, seeing her usually proud brother so humble in front of another man, Lila completely lost it and yelled.
Hearing that, Shen Bingxin lifted Lucian's face and smiled, "You really are my adorable little snake. Don't worry—this is an old grudge, I won't take it out on her. But I want her to tell me everything about her deals with the Crown Prince and Silver Consort. I... I'll spare her life, but her martial arts have to be abolished!"
"Okay!" Lucian finally smiled—he knew this was the biggest compromise Shen Bingxin could make. Without martial arts, at least Lila couldn't hurt anyone anymore.
"You said you liked that silly woman—what's up with you now?" Lila screamed. Then she froze, muttering to herself, "You like that woman... that woman... woman..." Suddenly, her eyes went wide in horror. "You... you're a woman?!"
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