Two days later—
Ten-Li Pavilion, roadside tea shop.
Right now, at a distant open-air tea shop, twelve people were seated together—a pretty impressive group, but the vibe was definitely off.
"What are you doing? Go home!" Adrian Night glared at the girl in front of him, voice raised in irritation.
"No way! I’m not going home—I want to stay with you! Just call it my wedding present!" Clara Night shot back, loud and stubborn.
Adrian Night’s frown deepened. "Quit this nonsense. Don’t you know he..." He glanced at the guy Clara was clinging to, hesitating to say more.
The guy stood up, eyes fixed on Liam Willow. "I’m a champion martial artist—why wouldn’t I be good enough for your sister? I’ve already fallen for Clara." The speaker? None other than Colin Kerr, who’d just popped back up after vanishing.
Nobody even knew where Colin had disappeared to, or how he’d gotten mixed up with Clara. Next to Clara was a guy with his head down—Aiden—who didn’t dare look at Adrian Night. Honestly, when Miss Clara got stubborn, there was no stopping her.
Naive Liam Willow immediately stood up and smiled. "Congrats, Colin! You finally found someone you love." His grin was pure blessing.
"Told you, even without you, I could find someone better—and now I have." With that, Colin hugged Clara and started showing off, but behind all that bragging was a sadness nobody saw. Liam, Liam, why do you have to be so heartless?
"That’s awesome, really awesome," Liam Willow said earnestly. He’d always been grateful to Colin for saving him from trouble, but his heart belonged to Ivy Shen. He truly wanted Colin to be happy, and seeing it for real made him genuinely glad.
"I don’t buy it," Adrian Night said flatly. Forget whether his sister would fall for Colin—Colin’s feelings for Liam were legendary among them. That kind of love doesn’t just flip overnight!
"What’s not to believe? Love’s like that—once you’re in, you’re in. Why make it complicated?" Colin shot back.
"Exactly! Brother, I don’t care what you believe—I’m with him now! You’re my brother, and you promised you’d be happy if I was happy. You said you’d give me the best dowry, so I want it. Take me wherever you’re going—that’s my wedding gift!" Clara declared, totally not taking no for an answer.
"Ridiculous," Adrian Night grumbled, his face getting darker. She’d gotten even more spoiled since he last saw her.
Did she think they were just out for a sightseeing trip or something?!
"I am NOT being ridiculous!" Clara shot Adrian a look, then turned to Colin. "Right, hubby?" She gave him a coy little wink.
But to Adrian Night, this whole lovey-dovey act just felt gross. Maybe it was Colin’s past behavior, but it all seemed off now.
"Y-yes... w-wife..." Colin stammered, awkwardly using the word, but his heart still twisted and his gaze drifted back to Liam Willow.
Meanwhile, the other five guys didn’t say a word—totally ignoring the whole scene like it was background noise.
At that moment, Ivy Shen just quietly sipped her tea, not saying a word. Before leaving the palace, she’d already sent Little White to deliver the message to Liam Willow.
Because she knew—no matter where they headed next, splitting up was absolutely off the table. If they ever did, those knuckleheads would move heaven and earth just to see her again! Instead of letting them run wild and making her worry, she might as well keep them all leashed right by her side. Way safer than letting them go solo and do something stupid!
But what Ivy hadn’t expected was for Colin Kerr and Clara Night to tag along after Liam Willow. As for their so-called ‘love story’? She just snorted—please, she’d seen the murder glint in Clara’s eyes last time, and Colin wasn’t any better. This whole ‘happy couple’ act? Only someone as pure as Liam would buy that nonsense!
"Aiden, take Miss Clara home," Adrian Night ordered, his tone brooking no argument.
"No! I’m not going! If you force me, I’ll—I’ll just die right here in front of you!" Clara shrieked, yanking out her dagger and pressing it to her neck, putting on the full drama queen act.
Adrian’s frown deepened to supervillain levels, and he finally couldn’t hold back, roaring, "Enough!" He glared at her, voice full of thunder: "How long are you going to keep this up? Get back home, now!"
For the first time—yep, literally the first time ever—Adrian tore into Clara this harshly. Instantly, Clara’s tears went full sprinkler mode, pouring down without restraint.
Since childhood, no matter how bratty or wild she got, he’d never been this savage. It was her, all her fault—ever since that demon woman showed up, he’d changed, everything had changed…
"Waaaah—!" Clara wailed at top volume, sobbing for the old Adrian, for everything lost, for all the memories she’d never get back. Someone cue the sad music!
"Adrian," Ivy suddenly stood up and walked over to Clara, pulling out a handkerchief to dab at her tears. "Enough crying! Cry any more and your face won’t be pretty. Your brother’s just stubborn, but this time, we’re heading somewhere super dangerous. He’s worried about you! Besides, you’re a pampered princess—you’ve never suffered a day in your life…"
"I’m not scared! I can handle anything—don’t you dare look down on me!" Clara shot back, swatting away the handkerchief and glaring. Ugh, she hated that goody-two-shoes expression most of all.
"Clara…" Adrian frowned, voice soft but worried, at her stubborn tone.
Ivy just chuckled. "Alright, alright! If you say so—if you’re not afraid of hardship and you really want to come, then come along. Sister-in-law approves!"
(This chapter isn’t over yet~ Please click next page for more fun!)
"Sister-in-law?!" The moment the words landed, Clara’s tears shut off like a faucet. Her face darkened—who wanted to be Ivy’s sister-in-law? She’d teamed up with Colin just to get rid of Ivy, okay? Sister-in-law, in this life, next life, next-next life, she was never accepting that title!
Ivy just grinned at Clara, whose childish face couldn’t hide a thing. What a dummy—her expression had already spilled all her secrets. If she wanted to tag along with murder in her heart, fine by Ivy; she wasn’t about to go out of her way to keep troublemakers safe!
"Ivy…" Adrian looked at her, worried. With Clara and Colin together, he was sure they were up to something shady.
"Don’t worry," Ivy said, then turned to Clara, her tone turning serious: "Think it through. I’ll say this one last time—the place we’re going is seriously dangerous. If something happens to you, nobody can save you."
"I told you, I’m not scared!"
"Save your breath! My wifey’s mine to protect!" Colin snapped at Ivy, glaring daggers. Inside, though, he was plotting—once he and Clara got rid of Ivy, maybe he’d finally have a shot with Liam. Ugh, Liam, why can’t I forget you, no matter what…
Ivy shrugged like it was no big deal. "Okay, then!" She glanced at her six husbands. "Everyone, get ready—we’re heading out!"
"Got it!" Everyone nodded, then hustled the shopkeeper to pack up some snacks for the road.
Ivy smiled at her crew. "This time, we’re heading somewhere super dangerous—so you better be ready!"
"If you’re there, even hell’s fine," Lucian Vane declared, jumping in first.
"Exactly, Wifey! You don’t have to worry about a thing!" Butterfly Rogue chimed in, laying it on thick. Ever since he’d snuck that kiss, he’d been riding high—his show-off routine was driving Lucian nuts, and their bickering was now a daily circus.
"Nina, you should head home. Once we’re back, we’ll come find you," Ivy said, turning to Nina Xu, who’d been silent.
After using her for the escape, Ivy figured Draken City was a total danger zone now—the only safe spot left was probably Mount Hua. If Nina agreed, Ivy could share the route.
"No, I’m coming with you!" Nina blurted, swallowing her heartbreak over Ivy’s six husbands. "We have the same enemies, don’t we? I want to help, too!"
Seeing that, Ivy knew arguing was pointless, so she just dropped it.
"Why are you always copying me?" Lucian Vane grumbled, totally annoyed.
"What? I am not!" Butterfly Rogue shot back, just as annoyed.
"You’re a total copycat. Whatever I say, you say too. Begging for a smack, huh?" Lucian glared at Butterfly Rogue, who was still busy buttering up Ivy.
"Am not! Every word comes straight from the heart!" Butterfly Rogue insisted, hand over his chest for extra drama.
"Enough, you two! Did you get everything I asked for?" Ivy cut in, exasperated. These two were probably sworn enemies in a past life—why did they turn red and start bickering every time they met?!
"Relax, we’ve got a whole wagon of water!" Butterfly Rogue quickly ignored Lucian and turned to Ivy. Then he frowned, puzzled: "But Wifey, why do we need so much water? Aren’t we going to the Six-Realm Martial Conference?"
"We are—but not yet. First, we’ve got something way more important to handle." Ivy shot him a sly grin.
"What is it? Where are we going?" Butterfly Rogue’s gossip radar went off again.
Ivy smirked, lips curling up mischievously. "The desert! Flame Valley!"
*****
PS: Tomorrow’s the big event! The whole family’s about to face a brutal desert trial—life and death stuff! But hey, as long as we’re together, it’ll be full of love~ Mwah!