Chapter 48 (Part 1)- I Want All of You

“Yes, that’s exactly—”

Her words abruptly halted as she felt something cool press against her back. Her entire body tensed involuntarily.

There were only three people in the room: herself, the Seventh Prince hiding under the bed, and Rong Shang. Naturally, the one handing her the bottle could only be the Ghost King himself.

Her mind raced. How did he get the bottle?

After some thought, she suddenly remembered: the last time in the illusion realm, she had asked him to fetch a chicken from her storage bracelet to deal with the red-footed bugs.

It must have been then that he saw the black porcelain bottle and took it.

But how did he know what was inside the bottle? Could he recognize the contents?

Feeling flustered, Yu Zhengzheng tilted her head, attempting to explain, “No, listen to me—”

Rong Shang simply replied, “Hmm.”

Yu Zhengzheng: “…”

There it was again, his maddening nonchalance. He might as well just say he wasn’t listening—it would have been less unnerving.

She bit her lip hard, unsure of how to explain.

Should she just confess the truth?

But that would render all her efforts to deceive the Seventh Prince pointless. She was so close to obtaining the antidote. If she missed this chance, it would be a devastating loss.

The Seventh Prince was right under the bed, able to see their every move and hear every word. Even if she wanted to quietly share the truth with Rong Shang and ask him to cooperate, there wasn’t a chance.

Gritting her teeth, Yu Zhengzheng turned to face him.

Her gaze inadvertently fell on his bare chest, causing her expression to falter slightly.

He wore only a loose outer robe, lazily tied at the waist with a jade sash. The robe hung loosely, revealing glimpses of his cold, jade-like thighs beneath the fabric.

A moist sensation trailed down from her nose. Reflexively, she reached up to cover it, forgetting entirely what she had intended to say.

Rong Shang leaned slightly forward, his cool chest pressing against her back. His long fingers lifted a clean white handkerchief, gently dabbing at her nose.

As his cold fingertips brushed her face through the thin cloth, Yu Zhengzheng stiffened, holding her breath for fear he might accidentally touch her skin directly.

His thin lips lingered near her ear as he murmured softly, “You’re bleeding from your nose.”

Yu Zhengzheng swallowed hard and forced herself to remain calm. “Too much heat.”

Rong Shang chuckled lightly. His lips parted, capturing the edge of her earlobe as he whispered, “Then we’ll have to put out the fire.”

A tingling sensation coursed from her ear upward, leaving her mind blank. Her legs trembled, and she nearly lost her footing.

Was this extinguishing a fire or fanning the flames?

Yu Zhengzheng tried to push him away, but she lacked the strength. All she could do was let him act as he pleased.

His palm pressed against her warmth, while his lips slowly traveled downward, like ants nipping gently, leaving her both ticklish and numb.

All she could do was clutch his arm to steady herself, preventing an embarrassing fall.

A faint sound came from under the bed, causing Rong Shang to pause. His narrowed eyes shifted toward the bed.

Yu Zhengzheng, terrified, grabbed his face with both hands, forcing him to look back at her. “Actually, I like you.”

Rong Shang: “…”

Her expression earnest, she spoke as though confessing her deepest feelings: “This bottle contains an aphrodisiac. I just couldn’t control my desire to win your heart, so I resorted to such a lowly trick.”

Rong Shang: “…”

Tears welled in her eyes as she pinched her thigh hard, letting the pain draw real emotion to her face. “You have to believe me. I know I was wrong and promise I’ll never act foolishly again…”

Rong Shang’s fingertip, separated by the silk cloth, pressed against her lips. He softly hushed her, “This is an aphrodisiac, isn’t it?”

Yu Zhengzheng straightened up stiffly and nodded reluctantly.

He smiled faintly, his actions unhurried as he pinched a pill from the porcelain bottle and slowly placed it between his teeth.

Yu Zhengzheng froze, her brows knitting tightly in confusion.

He believed her just like that?

Even with just a bit of reasoning, one could tell that this wasn’t an aphrodisiac!

When she saw him begin to swallow, her face turned pale with fright. “Don’t—”

Before she could finish her sentence, he had already swallowed the pill in front of her.

Yu Zhengzheng: “…”

Still clinging to a sliver of hope, she asked, “Did you switch the pills? Are you just messing with me?”

The Seventh Prince was hiding under the bed. He must have seen Rong Shang swallow the pill. If Rong Shang admitted to swapping the pills, the Seventh Prince wouldn’t dare act rashly.

Rong Shang was much smarter than her. There was no way he would foolishly ingest an unknown pill.

He must be tricking her.

Rong Shang removed the silk cloth covering her lips. His fingertip lightly brushed over her lips as he asked in a low voice, “Do you believe me now?”

Feeling the real warmth of his touch, her legs weakened, and she stumbled backward.

If he dared touch her directly, it meant he already knew the pill wasn’t an aphrodisiac but something that could strip him of his divine powers.

Knowing that, he still chose to take it?

He’s insane—truly insane.

Just as she was about to fall, he caught her slender waist before she hit the ground.

Yu Zhengzheng looked at him in disbelief, her voice trembling. “Why?”

Rong Shang’s broad hand gently pressed her head against his chest. Though his lips carried a faint smile, his gaze was devoid of warmth. “You told me to trust you.”

And she said she liked him.

Yu Zhengzheng’s body trembled. She stared at him, her heart quivering violently.

He knew she was lying, yet he still chose to trust her because of her words.

Trust. She had never trusted anyone.

No one was worth trusting—not comrades who might turn their blades on her for survival, nor blood relatives who could ruthlessly betray her for profit.

Even spouses could turn from mutual sacrifices to stabbing each other in the back.

He had been through as much as she had and should understand this truth.

Yet he still swallowed that pill.

Yu Zhengzheng felt suffocated, as if she couldn’t breathe. Glancing at the bed, she began pushing him anxiously. “Leave now, just go…”

If he left, she would handle the Seventh Prince herself.

It would be her way of repaying his trust.

At that moment, she seemed to forget entirely why she had come here in the first place.

The antidote, which was now within reach, no longer seemed to matter.

But Rong Shang didn’t leave. He strode to the bed, crouched down, and dragged the unconscious Seventh Prince out from underneath.

The Seventh Prince’s face was a deep shade of purple, clearly showing he had lost consciousness.

Yu Zhengzheng was stunned, stammering as she pointed at the Seventh Prince. “W-what happened to him?”

Rong Shang bent slightly, using two fingers to pick up a palm-sized spider and holding it in front of her. “I kept this one from the last time at the Sand Valley.”

Yu Zhengzheng turned pale at the sight of the red-backed six-eyed spider, its plump body making her retreat instinctively. “Is he… dead?”

This spider, brought to the Sand Valley by Xianjun Hengwu, was highly venomous. A single bite could claim a life within moments.

If the Seventh Prince died, what would happen to her antidote?

Rong Shang casually placed the spider into his storage pouch, his gaze indifferent. “What’s wrong? Don’t want him dead?”

Yu Zhengzheng’s eyes reddened. “I’m poisoned. Only he has the antidote.”

This served as her explanation for her prior actions.

Rong Shang wasn’t surprised.

He had long known she was poisoned, though he hadn’t been certain who had poisoned her until overhearing the conversation in the latrine earlier. Then it became clear: she was being coerced because of the poison.

Recently, apart from killing the Dragon King of the South Sea, Rong Shang hadn’t made any new enemies.

Given that the black porcelain bottle was a favored tool of the dragon clan, the identity of the man lying unconscious on the floor was obvious.

Not that it mattered to him.

What mattered was seeing if she would follow through with the man’s demands and betray him to save her life.

The truth was, she had.

Originally, he had planned to kill her. But when she gazed at him with such apparent sincerity, saying, “I like you,” it gave him pause.

So, even deep affection could be a façade.

Still, Rong Shang wasn’t one to be fooled.

Whatever she wanted, he’d give her.

But she would pay the price.

Rong Shang walked back to her side and picked up the wine jug she had brought. Tilting his head, he drank it all in one go.

He smashed the jade jug, picked up a shard, and, without hesitation, slashed it across his palm.

Blood surged from the wound, streaming down his wrist.

Yu Zhengzheng’s pupils constricted. “What are you doing?!”