The bed was a sweaty mess afterward, but neither of us wanted to get up from it. Bai Ye didn’t let go of me from his arms, and I kept kissing him until I felt something hard starting to bulge between us, prodding my lower abdomen.

I stared at him in disbelief.

He chuckled, “I told you. There are consequences when you kiss me like that, Qing-er.”

I gave him a blushing glare. Disregarding his bare shoulders and chest, he still looked just like the serious, formidable master that was lecturing me not long ago. His hair was only slightly tousled, his cheeks barely flushed. If anything, the rest of his face seemed paler than usual, probably because of the dim indoor light. It was too difficult to associate this image with all his wild words, and the image where he …

“If you keep tempting me with that look in your eyes …” He interrupted my musings. His hand slid up my back, slowing tracing along my spine, “I wouldn’t mind staying here for the rest of the day and continue—”

“Bai Ye!” I caught the seductive hand that was trying to reawaken the tingles in my body. The sun was barely westering, and there was still plenty of daylight left ahead of us. If we were to stay in the room for the rest of it … What kind of indecency was this?

He chuckled again. “Don’t regret turning down my offer then. There won’t be another one for a few days,” he said as he reached for his pile of fresh clothes laying on the side table.

A few days? I finally noticed that the robes he was reaching for were the gray ones in commoner’s style. “You are leaving again?”

A lump rose in my throat. The past day and night felt too good to be true, and I had grown too used to his presence, too used to being surrounded by his scent, his voice, his touch. The thought of being separated from him, even if only for a short while, saddened me more than I had expected.

“I was going to tell you earlier when you came back …” he paused in his motion and explained. “I wouldn’t leave so soon if I could help it. But summer is almost over, and I need to find a type of herb before the end of its season. It shouldn’t take too long.”

His tone was almost apologetic, and I knew he must’ve sensed my low spirits at the news. I felt silly. He had his own matters to attend to, of course—for the past five years, he had spent more time traveling and searching for medicine books and herbs than staying at Mount Hua. I shouldn’t have expected that to change.

“Where are you heading?” I asked, trying to draw my attention away from the unreasonable disappointment.

“The Ice Mountains. If all goes well, it’ll be a three-day trip. Otherwise, maybe up to a week.”

My head snapped up. “The Ice Mountains? Is … Is what you are looking for that important?”

The Ice Mountains were infamous for the relentless climate, dangerous landscape, and most importantly, the densely packed demon lairs. It was a menacing destination even for the most powerful cultivators.

“It only grows on that mountain range.” He arched an eyebrow. “You doubt my ability to handle those low-level demons?”

“N-No—” In all honesty, I didn’t. Bai Ye was one of the strongest at Mount Hua, and I had never believed that any demons would be able to do him harm. But the sight of his scars had proved me wrong, and I couldn’t help but worry that he might encounter another deadly situation like it.

I laid my head on his chest. “Just … be careful. I don’t want to see you hurt.”

He rubbed his thumb over my cheek. “Then you know how I feel, Qing-er. Please stay safe this time while I’m gone. I would delay the trip if I could, but …”

“I’ll be fine,” I said, hearing the concern in his tone. “Chu Xi is gone already, and I’ll stay away from anyone else close to her.” I paused. “Besides … Not everything that came out of my accident was bad, was it?”

I knew how much effort it took him to save me, and it felt wrong to think this way, but without my injury, we might never get to where we were today. To some extent, I was grateful for the incident and for Chu Xi’s unintentional help.

Bai Ye’s eyes darkened. “It wasn’t an accident, and she will pay for it.” He closed his eyes and sighed. “I thought I was going to lose you, Qing-er. I thought …”

He gathered me closer, planting a light kiss on the top of my head. His embrace was all tenderness, almost careful, as if he was handling fragile porcelain that would shatter at the slightest touch. A tinge of guilt rose in me. My near-death must’ve really frightened him.

“I promise I’ll stay safe,” I said as I wrapped my arms around his waist. “But … I’ll … I’ll miss you.”

I felt almost childish for saying such a thing, but there was a smile in his voice when he said: “Next time I’ll bring you along. You haven’t left Mount Hua for a while, it’ll be a good change.”

I lifted my head and looked up at him. “It doesn’t matter where I am, Mount Hua or not … I just want to be with you.”

He laughed softly. Then his lips found mine. I ignored his earlier warnings about the consequences and pressed myself tightly into him, savoring his skin, his heartbeat, his hardness with every part of me.

If this was the last of him I could get in a while, I wasn’t going to let it go so easily.