The pit was deep, with gusts of cold wind rising from below, laced with a damp chill that made the lingering winter of early March feel even more biting.

Li Ruoshui was freezing and terrified. One arm clung tightly around his neck, while her other hand unconsciously slipped inside his torn-open collar, trying to steal his warmth.

Just as she was worrying she’d be smashed to death at the bottom, Lu Zhiyao’s arm tightened around her waist. He drove his sword sideways into the wall, carving a deep gash that finally slowed their fall.

Her pounding heart settled a little, and she silently thanked her luck for grabbing Lu Zhiyao in time—if it had been anyone else, she’d probably be a pancake by now.

Once he heard her heartbeat calm, Lu Zhiyao let out a soft chuckle. Then, with a sudden flex, he leapt upward while still holding her, landing on the embedded sword.

But the blade wasn’t lodged very securely. Li Ruoshui clung to his collar for dear life, terrified that any sharp movement would dislodge it entirely.

Cold wind, heavy with dampness, roared up from below, whipping their robes around them and making her shiver even harder.

“Guess what would happen if we just jumped straight down?”

Li Ruoshui glanced down—it was nothing but endless darkness. She couldn’t even tell how deep it was.

“We’d die.”

Lu Zhiyao seemed intrigued. His clear voice echoed in the hollow space, strangely warm despite the chill.

“In your dream—did we die like this?”

She wasn’t sure if she died in the original story, but she knew Lu Zhiyao and the two main leads definitely survived.

“No, we didn’t die, but that’s because we valued our lives. If you try anything reckless now, we’ll definitely die.”

She only said it to make him be careful—but instead, it seemed to excite him. She couldn’t see his expression, but his amused, almost manic tone told her enough.

“I would value my life?”

He started laughing, low at first but growing louder and wilder, the sound vibrating in her ears where she was pressed against him.

“How about we test it? See if your dream wins or reality does.”

He gave her waist an abrupt jolt, sending her scrambling to grab the wall and yank on his collar to stop him from falling.

“Wait, wait—hold on! Calm down, young man!”

Lu Zhiyao braced himself against the wall somehow, managing to balance them both atop the sword. It swayed slightly, but they didn’t fall.

Li Ruoshui was forced to dangle there with him, the sword beneath them loosening ominously. The whole thing felt absurdly like a high-stakes see-saw.

His long hair brushed softly across her forehead, and then his teasing voice rang out in the dark pit.

“Scared? Then tell me—why were you staring at me earlier?”

Li Ruoshui felt like tearing her hair out. Was this whole death-defying stunt just so he could ask that question?

“I was checking behind you for a hidden mechanism.”

“Liar,” he said immediately.

Li Ruoshui could only sigh in exasperation. She knew he had sharp senses—but she hadn’t realized they were this sharp.

A brief silence fell between them before Lu Feiyue’s slightly anxious voice called down from above.

“Miss Li? Master Lu? Are you both alright?”

Li Ruoshui let out a breath of relief and called back,

“We’re fine! Just… stuck halfway down. We’re figuring out how to get lower.”

She licked her lips, feeling a bit tense, then turned to Lu Zhiyao.

“How about we focus on getting down first? I’ll explain after.”

Lu Zhiyao let out a soft sigh and loosened his grip on the wall. The already wobbly sword beneath them tilted even more.

“Wait!”

It seemed he wasn’t going to budge until she gave him an answer that satisfied him. Was he really going to let them fall over this? How stubborn could he be?

Well, it was just the two of them here—she could say anything.

“Because you’re good-looking,” she blurted. “I couldn’t help staring. Sorry.”

It wouldn’t have been so bad if it were a lie—but the truly embarrassing part was that it was the truth. She really had gotten lost staring at his face.

Lu Zhiyao froze for a moment, then burst out laughing beside her ear, unable to hold it back. He clearly hadn’t expected that answer.

“So you’re the kind of person who gets fooled by a pretty face.”

Li Ruoshui didn’t feel particularly ashamed. Instead, she admitted it easily.

“Sure. Why not? Who doesn’t like looking at attractive people?”

“Sorry, but I’m exactly the type who gets completely dazzled by a pretty face.”

The cold wind gusting through the pit made her sniff involuntarily. She still clung tightly to his collar, terrified he’d lose his balance and send them both plunging.

“Oh? Then I must be very good-looking.”

Lu Zhiyao nodded slightly, his voice laced with quiet amusement. No one had ever called him handsome before—quite the opposite. He remembered people pointing at his face in disgust.

“So… you’ve been so kind to me these past few days because of my looks?”

Li Ruoshui was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t expected him to notice her careful goodwill at all.

“Well, not just because of that…” (Mainly because I want to “romance” you.)

“I’ve heard that when someone falls from a height, everything gets destroyed—from their skin to their organs. Even the most beautiful face would be torn apart.”

A chill ran through her. She couldn’t shake a sudden, awful premonition.

“Tell me,” he murmured, leaning close enough that his warm breath tickled her ear, voice low and expectant.

“Would you still look at me then? Still be kind? Or would you scream, panic, and try to fight me off in terror?”

Li Ruoshui: ???

Bro, do you have problems?

But before she could say anything, Lu Zhiyao let out a soft laugh—and without any warning, he pulled her backward with him and let them both fall.

“Shit—!”

For the second time that day, Li Ruoshui found herself cursing outright.

As soon as they dropped, the sword beneath them finally gave way completely, clattering free and following them into the void.

The freezing wind howled around them, biting at her ears until they stung. The stomach-churning rush of free fall made her pulse thunder and her back break out in a cold sweat.

What horrible karma had she built up in her past life to end up trying to romance this lunatic in this one?

Lu Zhiyao’s fingers pressed firmly against her carotid artery, feeling the wild, thudding rhythm of her heartbeat. He let out a soft laugh.

“Why are you scared now?”

“Scared my ass!”

She couldn’t hold it in anymore and snapped at him, the burst of swearing actually releasing some of her pent-up fear.

Fine. If they were going to die, so be it. Maybe it’d even send her back home.

As they fell, the sound of rushing water below grew steadily louder. A tiny hope sparked in her—landing in water had to be better than smashing onto solid ground!

But before she could even reach the water, she slammed hard into Lu Zhiyao’s chest. Something had stopped them, slowing their fall.

A series of mechanical clanks and grinding noises echoed around them.

Pulleys and iron tracks.

They were caught in a net of soft ropes strung along the rails, designed to cradle them and slow their descent with a gentle, jolting slide.

Li Ruoshui clutched her aching jaw, tears welling in her eyes from the impact. So this is what it feels like to survive certain death!

Above them, the falling sword sliced through the air, but Lu Zhiyao casually raised a hand and caught it just before it hit. He set it aside on the netting without even looking.

“So we can’t actually fall to our deaths after all.”

Lu Zhiyao sighed in clear disappointment, his voice lacking all its earlier excitement—anyone listening could hear how let down he was.

Clang—

The net reached the end of its track with a jarring crash, the pulleys and rails slamming hard and making the two of them bounce violently.

Li Ruoshui had been pressed against his chest, but the sudden jolt caused one of those scenes even cheesy romance novels don’t dare overuse—

Their lips met.

Li Ruoshui: …

There were so many things wrong with this that she didn’t even know where to start complaining. She actually forgot to move away.

Beep-boop—

After what felt like ages, the system finally chimed back to life.

[HE System at your service. Congratulations, Host, on achieving a kiss during the early stage of the route! Special reward granted: Memory Fragment x1.]

[Please keep up the good work.]

Great. One more thing to complain about.

She finally pushed herself up off his shoulders and glanced around, but it was pitch-black. All she could hear was the constant rush of water.

In total darkness, a person’s sense of vigilance spikes immediately, bringing with it a frantic urge to figure out their surroundings.

So much so that she completely overlooked the fact that she was now straddling his waist.

It was too dark to see anything. Reflexively, she reached out and patted Lu Zhiyao’s shoulder.

“Should we… get off the net?”

Lu Zhiyao’s hand shot out and caught her wrist. His fingers were even colder than hers—like fine, polished jade: smooth but icy.

When he finally spoke, his voice had lost all its earlier laughter and madness, replaced by genuine confusion.

“What was that just now?”

=^_^=