Chapter 23
Ye Xiyao buried his face in the pillow, staying silent for a long time, really giving Xing Xu some time to settle down.
But he himself felt uncomfortable for quite a while.
After sensing that Xing Xu’s body temperature was increasing instead of decreasing, he finally couldn’t help but speak: “Get up, this is weird.”
Ye Xiyao didn’t clarify what exactly he meant by “this,” but he figured Xing Xu would understand.
However, Xing Xu still stayed close to him, unconsciously rubbing against Ye Xiyao: “It’s not weird.”
Ye Xiyao’s body was very sensitive to this level of contact, and in an instant, he let out a soft hum like a cat being grabbed by the scruff of its neck: “Mmm… you’re making it really hot by hugging me like this.”
“Last time you were afraid of the cold, now you’re complaining it’s hot.” Xing Xu teased, “So which time were you lying?”
Ye Xiyao, feeling justified, tried to explain: “I wasn’t lying, I wasn’t lying either time. Last time it was cold because of the air conditioning.”
“Then what made you feel hot this time?” Xing Xu asked.
Ye Xiyao bit his lip, trying to push him away with his elbows, but he didn’t have enough strength: “You!”
Xing Xu chuckled softly: “Yeah, it’s me.”
“Xing Xu, I know you’re feeling uncomfortable right now, I understand.” Ye Xiyao suddenly changed his tone. “But hugging me like this isn’t the solution.”
Xing Xu was caught off guard, thinking Ye Xiyao was finally going to talk about what happened last night: “Really? Then what do you suggest?”
In fact, ever since Ye Xiyao unleashed his magic to destroy that demon last time, he had been having all kinds of strange dreams every night, and his body would react just as strongly as Xing Xu’s in the mornings.
But Ye Xiyao always thought this was due to his succubus nature, so every morning, he would immediately take a cold shower to suppress the reaction.
He never expected that a human like Xing Xu could also be so energetic in the early morning.
Ye Xiyao was understanding of Xing Xu’s physical response but felt his approach was wrong.
Using his own experience, he advised Xing Xu: “It’s normal to feel uncomfortable in the morning. You should take a cold shower right now. It will help.”
Xing Xu: “…”
Ye Xiyao: “Trust me, I do this every day.”
Xing Xu ground his molars in frustration, and after a long pause, squeezed out through clenched teeth: “Ye Xiyao, your memory is really terrible.”
Then he let go of Ye Xiyao and stormed off into the bathroom with a murderous air.
Ye Xiyao could hear the sound of water running inside. He guessed that Xing Xu had taken his advice and was now taking a cold shower.
However, he didn’t agree with what Xing Xu had said.
His memory was actually quite good.
Ye Xiyao got out of bed, rubbing the spot where Xing Xu had been pressed against him. There was still some residual warmth there, making it hard to ignore the excitement in Xing Xu’s body. It was his first time being so intimately close to a human, and he couldn’t help but feel his ears heat up, his heartbeat quicken.
At first, Ye Xiyao thought he was just shy. After all, in all these years, he had never woken up in the same bed, hugging someone. Nervousness and curiosity were inevitable.
But as soon as Ye Xiyao stepped on the floor, he gradually realized something was off.
His legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the ground, feeling waves of emptiness in his chest.
Ye Xiyao raised a hand to his chest, intending to massage away the inexplicable feeling of emptiness, but as soon as he touched his body, it felt both painful and itchy. Startled, he quickly withdrew his hand.
A bad feeling began to creep up on him.
Ye Xiyao glanced at the bathroom, hearing the sound of water running. He was certain that Xing Xu wouldn’t be coming out anytime soon, so he secretly lifted his shirt for a look.
“…!”
Ye Xiyao was startled by what he saw and almost cried out, but quickly covered his mouth.
The magic markings that had originally appeared only on his lower abdomen had suddenly spread overnight. Like a rose, which had once been just a budding flower, now its petals were in full bloom, with branches extending in all directions. The color was even more vibrant than before, almost as if it was glowing.
Several “branches” extended from the center of the flower, not only curling around to his lower back, but also spreading toward his chest this time.
Ye Xiyao’s earlier movements seemed to have unintentionally disturbed its growth, and it was now becoming restless.
He tried poking at the part of his body where the magic markings had latched on, but a sharp pain immediately surged through him. As soon as it started, the markings began to move wildly beneath his skin, darting around in every direction.
The frustrating part was that touching it caused intense pain, but leaving it alone made it itch.
How did this happen?
Was it because he used too much magic last night?
But Ye Xiyao knew clearly that when he attacked that human last night, the magic he used was less than one-tenth of what he’d used to eliminate that demon.
If these magic markings appeared because he had released magic, then logically, they shouldn’t have grown so quickly this time, nor should they have reacted so strangely.
The last time, after expending so much energy, only a single bud had formed on his abdomen. But now, the markings were about to spread all over his body!
Ye Xiyao tried to search his mind for any knowledge related to magic markings.
However, he didn’t know any other succubi, and no one had ever taught him the basic physiological knowledge of his kind.
All of Ye Xiyao’s understanding of his own condition came from years of self-exploration.
This was his first time growing magic markings, so naturally, he didn’t understand why they had appeared or why they were now acting up. He also had no idea how to soothe his discomfort.
Faced with the unknown, Ye Xiyao felt very uneasy.
He quietly lifted his head and looked toward the tightly closed bathroom door.
Compared to the pain and itchiness from the growth of the magic markings, Ye Xiyao seemed more afraid of Xing Xu discovering this secret.
Instinctively, he hugged himself, hoping this strange change would stop soon.
—
Half an hour later, Ye Xiyao suddenly kicked Xing Xu out of his home.
Even though Ye Xiyao had used polite words and made up a bunch of flimsy excuses to try to send Xing Xu off in a good mood, Xing Xu still felt like he had been kicked out.
At the time, Xing Xu had just finished his cold shower and was feeling both physically and mentally calm. As soon as he stepped out, he saw Ye Xiyao looking at him with a pitiful expression and saying, “Do you want to go home?”
Xing Xu was so amused he laughed out loud.
So after he spent half the night coming over to help Ye Xiyao clean up a mess, letting Ye Xiyao drink his blood, kiss him, absorb a lot of his energy, and even sleeping together—he was now being sent home right after waking up.
Ye Xiyao didn’t even ask Xing Xu why he showed up at his place and just wanted to kick him out. Was it because he no longer had any use for him?
Such a clever little demon.
A few words and he had Xing Xu wrapped around his finger.
If Xing Xu had even the slightest temper, he should have picked Ye Xiyao up and given him a good lesson.
But when it came to Ye Xiyao, Xing Xu didn’t have any temper at all. He let out a meaningless grunt and agreed, saying, “If anything comes up, remember to contact me.”
Since he was being kicked out, he should’ve just left quickly and cleanly, showing Ye Xiyao that he wasn’t someone who liked to cling. No one could control his mood.
However, as soon as Xing Xu stepped out into the entryway, he saw the door he had kicked in earlier.
Now, it couldn’t even be locked, just barely held shut. Anyone could walk right in and break into Ye Xiyao’s place again.
It was an eyesore.
Following the principle of taking responsibility for his actions, Xing Xu called a repair service while standing by the elevator, arranging for someone to come over immediately to replace the door and lock.
After all, he had broken the door, so he would see it through to the end.
But after hanging up the phone, Xing Xu didn’t leave right away. He stayed downstairs for another hour. When the repair workers arrived, he stopped them.
First, he checked their identities to make sure they weren’t suspicious individuals. Then he inspected the security door they brought along, confirming that it was sturdy enough and that the lock was smart enough, before finally leaving.
When he got into his car, Xing Xu realized how much effort he’d just put into something for nothing. Ye Xiyao had kicked him out for no reason, and here he was, still bending over backward to help with this and that.
“Am I crazy?” He yanked the rearview mirror down, swearing at his reflection, “Are you out of your damn mind?”
Just then, his phone rang.
Xing Xu picked it up and heard Ye Xiyao’s soft, tentative voice, “Xing Xu, did you arrange for someone to replace the door?”
Determined to reshape his cool and detached image, Xing Xu replied indifferently, “Yeah.”
To avoid making Ye Xiyao feel guilty, he added, “It’s from my own brand. Think of it as employee benefits; no cost.”
Of course, that was a lie.
The door, the lock, and the installation services cost a total of 100,000 yuan.
A few days ago, he’d spent so much money sending gifts to Ye Xiyao’s livestream that his balance ran low, leaving him broke for days. The 100,000 yuan had just landed in his account this morning—after killing those demons in Hanzhou, the local security bureau had given him a 100,000-yuan rescue stipend.
The central bureau’s Luo Yiji was also applying for an exorcist reward for him, with a budget estimated to be in the eight-figure range, but the approval process was slow, and the money wouldn’t arrive until the end of the year.
So this 100,000 yuan was basically Xing Xu’s current living expenses, and before he even had a chance to spend it, it had all gone toward Ye Xiyao.
But Xing Xu didn’t care about the money. Worst-case scenario, he could always go to Xue Qiao for a meal; Xue Qiao wouldn’t let him starve, right?
So he didn’t bother telling Ye Xiyao about all these little details.
Ye Xiyao genuinely believed it was a company benefit and exclaimed in surprise, “Wow, our company is so generous!”
Xing Xu opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in order to maintain his cool demeanor, he simply said, “Heh, it’s just a security door.”
“But still, such a great employee benefit wouldn’t normally go to a newcomer like me. I know—it’s because you helped me get it, right?” Even as naïve as Ye Xiyao was, he understood that a big company like Qiaoshou wouldn’t hand out such expensive perks to every employee.
Xing Xu kept up his cold front: “It’s nothing.”
“My place was really messy today, so I was too embarrassed to have you stay. Xing Xu, are you free tomorrow?” Ye Xiyao seemed to realize that kicking Xing Xu out suddenly wasn’t the best move. Worried about being turned down, he cautiously extended an invitation. “How about I treat you to a meal? I’d like to—”
Xing Xu interrupted, “What time?”
Ye Xiyao was momentarily stunned, then his face lit up with joy. “Ah, I’ll check which restaurants are good. Do you have any dietary restrictions?”
“None,” Xing Xu cleared his throat, the mirror reflecting the slight smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth. “You decide.”
Ye Xiyao’s voice sounded just as happy: “Alright, I’ll let you know once I’ve made a reservation. See you tomorrow!”
