"Sister has arrived?"
The light of sunrise bathed Zhu Xu, casting a golden hue upon her soft and lustrous immortal robes.
The celestial attendants had not yet begun their busy routines. On these Nine Heavens, aside from Zhu Xu, there was only "Ling Xue," who had recently arrived.
"Yes, I came to see my sister. I didn't expect my sister to be awake so early." Ling Xue smiled demurely, just as before.
"Sister, I need to find Zhao Xue now. Please go to my palace and entertain yourself for a while," Zhu Xu said, lowering her head slightly, two blushes painting her cheeks.
"Ling Xue" maintained her composure. "That is perfectly fine, but when will my sister return?"
"Sister, I don't know," Zhu Xu replied, her fingers tapping against each other, her face flushing even more deeply.
"Ling Xue" feigned surprise. "Sister, you're with him now?"
Zhu Xu nodded and then fled as if escaping.
"Ling Xue" watched Zhu Xu's graceful retreating figure, her lips curving into an unreadable smile, her eyes holding a hint of coldness.
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Zhu Xu rushed towards the peach grove, habitually turning invisible as she entered.
Following her body's instinct, Zhu Xu hid behind the peach tree where she usually concealed herself.
The Wine Immortal, unusually sober today, was playing chess and inquiring about how Zhao Xue had obtained the Unburning Pearl.
Zhu Xu held her breath, equally curious.
Zhao Xue, holding a chess piece, gazed down at the board, showing no inclination to respond to the Wine Immortal.
The Wine Immortal persisted with taunts. "Oh dear, looking at you, could that Unburning Pearl be a fake?"
Zhu Xu thought to herself that even if it were fake, she would still like it.
Very much, incredibly much…
Zhao Xue's gaze paused for a moment, then, unperturbed, he remained silent.
Seeing Zhao Xue unmoved, the Wine Immortal grew agitated and took a swig of wine.
Zhu Xu watched the two play as usual. The only difference was the exaggerated upward curve of her lips.
As she watched, a greedy desire welled up within Zhu Xu.
In the past, Zhu Xu would droop with disappointment when she could only see and not touch. But now, it was different; Zhu Xu could both see and touch.
Thinking of this, Zhu Xu's true form's feathers bristled.
Zhu Xu unconsciously took a few steps towards Zhao Xue, then, remembering her invisibility, quickly retreated. She reappeared and walked into the peach grove from the entrance with an air of nonchalance.
"Alas, you brat, make your move."
The Wine Immortal watched Zhao Xue holding a piece, his gaze not on the board. The knuckles of his hand holding the piece turned white as he drifted into thought. He waved his hand in front of Zhao Xue's eyes.
Zhao Xue frowned, a fierce light flickering in his phoenix eyes.
Just as the stone table before him was about to shatter, a gentle voice reached him from behind.
"Zhao Xue." Zhu Xu walked to Zhao Xue's side and took his hand.
"En." Zhao Xue looked at Zhu Xu beside him, his eyelashes fluttering slightly. His docile demeanor made the Wine Immortal think the momentary anger in Zhao Xue's eyes was a mere illusion.
"Shall I take you somewhere else to play?" Zhu Xu's eyes curved into smiling crescents. She appeared normal, but only Zhu Xu knew how much effort it took to prevent her hands from trembling.
"Alright." Zhao Xue's expression softened further, and the corners of his mouth turned up.
And so, Zhu Xu led Zhao Xue away, leaving the Wine Immortal alone before Zhao Xue's pavilion.
After taking another drink, the Wine Immortal saw that the area was empty and immediately began to weep mournfully. He then gulped down more wine, feeling even more miserable.
"Zhao Xue, this place truly is a sea of flowers."
A few moments later, Zhu Xu brought Zhao Xue to a mountain in the south.
Under the dimming sky, this barren mountain looked not only uninspiring but also carried a subtly eerie atmosphere, as if something unknown lurked there.
Zhao Xue surveyed the surroundings, confirmed it was safe, and then turned his gaze back to Zhu Xu. "En, it's very beautiful."
Zhu Xu touched her nose and nodded.
Zhao Xue was being very accommodating, but that didn't stop Zhu Xu from feeling a bit shy.
"Then let me show you around. Perhaps there are more sights on this mountain that we haven't seen."
After a moment of silence, Zhu Xu moved closer to Zhao Xue.
At this moment, Zhu Xu seemed to have forgotten they were deities. On such a small mountain, if they wished, they could see every corner of it with a mere closing of their eyes.
"Alright."
Being with Zhu Xu, Zhao Xue had no objections and let Zhu Xu lead him forward.
An hour later, the moon rose, and the faint eerie atmosphere gradually receded.
Zhu Xu kept stealing glances at Zhao Xue's expression.
She feared Zhao Xue would grow bored or uncomfortable.
Should she conjure a sea of flowers?
However, mortals were forbidden from casually using spiritual energy in the human realm. If it were inadvertently absorbed by some spirit or monster, it might cause chaos in the human world, especially in such a sparsely populated area with abundant wildlife.
Furthermore, she couldn't let Zhao Xue think of her as someone who didn't follow the rules.
As Zhu Xu pondered, her thoughts became jumbled, and her steps unconsciously slowed.
Zhao Xue naturally noticed and stopped in sync with her.
"What's wrong?" The slightest disturbance in Zhu Xu was a tempest to Zhao Xue, who unconsciously closed the distance between them.
This was a distance from which Zhu Xu could not easily escape Zhao Xue.
But if Zhu Xu truly intended to escape, would Zhao Xue hold her back?
Zhu Xu looked up, her gaze meeting the warm and mysterious phoenix eyes of Zhao Xue.
A few seconds later, Zhu Xu, with a touch of impulsiveness, directly embraced Zhao Xue.
Zhao Xue was taken aback, then he wrapped his arms around Zhu Xu's back.
"Is it very boring, Zhao Xue? In the future, I'll scout ahead before taking you there." Zhu Xu's voice was muffled as she buried her head in Zhao Xue's neck, her expression dejected and downcast.
Zhao Xue's heart instantly softened, and the hands around Zhu Xu's back relaxed slightly as he gently stroked her.
"Not boring. Xu Xu, I'm very happy."
Being with Zhu Xu made Zhao Xue happier than he could ever be.
"Then… that's good." Zhu Xu was captivated by Zhao Xue's rare smile, her crescent-shaped eyes fixed on him in a doting manner.