“What… what are you doing?”
She retreated. Xie Jing didn’t answer. His upper garment was already off, leaving him clad only in his underpants.
Qin Jiujiu blushed and covered her face.
With a *plop*, Xie Jing entered the water.
Suddenly, Qin Jiujiu felt a sharp pain on her right shoulder blade, as if something had bitten her.
She turned her head to look, and in the water, there was a snake.
She had been bitten by a snake!
“Ah!” she screamed. Xie Jing was already in front of her.
He looked at the snake that had already slithered away. His eyes were devoid of emotion, his face still calm.
“I think I’ve been bitten by a snake!”
Qin Jiujiu could no longer remain calm. All she knew was that she had been bitten by a snake and might die in this rainforest from snake venom.
But the person in front of her showed no intention of saving her.
“Young Master Xie Er, can’t you hear that I’ve been bitten by a snake?”
Xie Jing didn’t move. His eyes clearly conveyed – So what?
Qin Jiujiu was momentarily speechless, but at this moment, she had no time to bicker with him.
Her life was on the line!
But what about the snake venom?
“Young Master Xie Er, aren’t you going to save me?”
Since he wasn’t offering to save her, she had to shamelessly ask.
“Why should I save you?”
Qin Jiujiu: …
Perhaps it was the surge of anger that caused the snake venom to spread faster. Qin Jiujiu felt her head growing heavy and dizzy.
“System, am I going to die?”
System: …
The system’s voice did not come. She suddenly remembered that the system seemed to be malfunctioning and had gone for repairs.
At this moment, she really wanted to say – What use are you to me?
Xie Jing moved behind her. Soon, Qin Jiujiu felt a warm lip press against the spot that had been throbbing.
He was sucking out the blood and venom!
Realizing what was happening, Qin Jiujiu’s entire face felt as if it were burning. The skin around the wound also felt hot, and she could no longer feel the pain.
Only embarrassment remained.
She suddenly felt a slight itch at her wound. The soft and warm touch made her heart feel a little restless.
He seemed to be licking her wound!
Qin Jiujiu’s mind went blank. Following his actions, her whole body trembled.
The sensation suddenly disappeared. Xie Jing chuckled, “Miss Qin, why are you trembling?”
Qin Jiujiu: “…”
She turned her head, moving a bit further away from Xie Jing. They were now at a safe distance. Qin Jiujiu was annoyed, feeling teased by him. She didn’t want to continue this entanglement.
Qin Jiujiu swam to the bank and was about to stand up. Suddenly, she remembered she was only wearing a thin undergarment, and immediately abandoned the thought.
Her back was to Xie Jing, yet she could feel his burning gaze on her.
Xie Jing was staring at her.
Qin Jiujiu was stalling, wanting to wait for him to leave before she dressed and departed.
But the man neither spoke nor moved to leave, only stared at her.
Qin Jiujiu cursed him as a pervert in her heart, then heard the “pervert” behind her speak.
“Miss Qin, are you feeling unwell?” His tone was frivolous, as if harboring ill intentions.
Qin Jiujiu then realized a problem – he had just licked her wound, so why wasn’t he poisoned?
Qin Jiujiu turned around to face Xie Jing. The person before her showed no signs of poisoning; he looked perfectly fine!
Her annoyance grew even more. “That snake wasn’t poisonous at all!” she stated with certainty.
Xie Jing chuckled, “It seems Miss Qin isn’t entirely foolish!”
Qin Jiujiu felt a surge of anger rush to her head. Her face was now redder than before, but this time it was from anger.
“You… why did you lie to me?”
He clearly knew the snake was harmless, so why did he suck her blood?
“I didn’t lie to you. Did I say the snake was poisonous just now?”
He had seen at a glance that it was a non-venomous snake, which was why he was so calm.
Qin Jiujiu was consumed by anger. She no longer cared that she was exposed and stood up from the water, grabbing her clean clothes and putting them on.
Only after covering her upper body did she get out of the water.
Xie Jing watched her retreating back from the water until she disappeared from his sight.
His mouth was still filled with the taste of blood. He licked his lips, a strange smile playing on his lips.
Like a vampire monster!
The night passed uneventfully. Qin Jiujiu wore the sachet Xie Jing had given her and was spared from mosquito bites.
The next morning, they ate something and set off.
As they moved further, the surrounding vegetation changed.
Soon, the sides of the path they were walking on became sparse trees.
“What a huge tree!”
Qin Jiujiu’s gaze fell upon a towering tree ahead. The tree was very thick, several times wider than the trees they had seen along the way.
Green vines twined around the tree. The tree was lush, and even the vines wrapped around it were thick.
They looked to be as thick as her arm.
As they approached the giant tree, Xie Yun suddenly shouted, “Run!”
By the time the others reacted, the vines on the tree had unfurled, blocking their path.
Some vines lashed out at them. Bai Qianluo and Qin Jiujiu were bound by the vines.
The more they struggled, the more pained their expressions became.
“Don’t move. The more you struggle, the tighter the vines will bind!” Xie Yun called out.
He was brandishing his sword, busy fending off the vines attacking him. After repelling them, he found an opening to rescue them.
Xie Jing’s situation wasn’t much better. He hacked away with all his might, but the vines surged endlessly.
It was as if something was attracting them.
Demonic energy!
Xie Yun had already flown to Qin Jiujiu’s front. He took the opportunity to repel the vines around her. She almost fell to the ground, but Xie Yun caught her and moved her to a safer location.
Then, he turned and headed towards Bai Qianluo.
Almost all the vines were heading towards Xie Jing. Qin Jiujiu even saw black mist swirling around him.
The black mist was faint, appearing to be weak.
But as the vines around him increased, the demonic energy surrounding him seemed to grow heavier.
Qin Jiujiu felt a jolt of fear. Her gaze fell upon Xie Jing’s face.
His appearance was almost identical to how he looked in her dream!
The vines also seemed to sense something and eagerly surged towards Xie Jing. Xie Yun easily rescued Bai Qianluo.
They quickly realized that the vines were behaving abnormally and flew to support Xie Jing, who was surrounded.
But Xie Jing was trapped inside. Xie Yun and Bai Qianluo could only try to create an opening from the outside.
“Young Master Xie Er!”
From Qin Jiujiu’s position, she could see Xie Jing’s current state. He was clearly not himself!
Xie Jing turned his head at the sound, facing her direction.
His once vacant eyes suddenly focused, now fixed on her.
“Young Master Xie Er, be careful!”
Xie Yun and Bai Qianluo