Yu Guang couldn’t resist the aggressive gaze of Ye Si, and sweat broke out on his back.

The tip of his nose was filled with the primitive sweet scent of rust, mixed with the woody fragrance emanating from Ye Si’s body, making it difficult to resist.

Yu Guang nervously rolled his Adam’s apple, realizing that his whole body was as stiff as deadwood.

It felt as if he was being stared at by a wild beast in the primeval forest, with sharp claws already locking onto the pulsating artery in his neck.

And he had already died countless times in the mouth of the beast named Ye Si.

Yu Guang wanted to follow the beast’s guidance and step forward, but the chilling sensation, like maggots on bones, prevented him from moving, and he couldn’t even retreat.

At certain moments, the instinctual alarms coming from within his body were undoubtedly accurate.

For the first time, he didn’t immediately obey Ye Si’s command.

The unknown fear blocked him.

He stood silently in place, seemingly inadvertently casting his gaze over the fresh blood dripping from Jiang Xiyue’s arm wound.

The scorching red drops fell on the newborn tender green, or seeped into the dark soil.

Silent and invisible.

The earth silently embraced everything.

Yu Guang suddenly remembered that there was once a night when he met Ye Si here when he climbed over the wall to return to school.

He remembered the moonlight that night, pale as silver frost.

Ye Si stood against the light at the end of the only asphalt road leading to the dormitory, tall and broad-shouldered.

The moonlight gave him a silver edge, making him look like a deity.

He couldn’t suppress the palpitations in his heart at the time and greeted the senior with a tight voice.

And Ye Si just told him not to stay outside at night, lest he encounter something scary…

As Yu Guang passed by Ye Si that night, he had distinctly smelled the scent of rust hidden within the woody fragrance.

But at that moment, he was so excited that his head was spinning, and the rush of adrenaline brought waves of pleasure that engulfed him.

His eardrums were pounded by the sound of his own rapidly rising heartbeat, leaving no room to ponder where that hint of blood came from.

He didn’t even have time to think about what Ye Si’s words meant.

Looking back now… it seemed to imply a warning, or perhaps a reminder to him.

Yu Guang nervously rolled his Adam’s apple.

Suddenly, he began to doubt this small grove that he had passed by countless times when climbing over the wall to or from school.

Were the seemingly peaceful trees always nourished by blood?

Before he could think further, Jiang Xiyue suddenly went mad, crying out as if possessed:

“Don’t you want me anymore? I still have plenty of blood! You can do whatever you want with me! We can form a bond!”

Seemingly dissatisfied with Ye Si’s indifference, the girl desperately pressed her arm against the Ye Si’s lips, attempting to draw attention to herself.

The wound on her arm had already stopped bleeding.

The blood stains were messy on her fair arms and snow-white shirt, resembling mottled scars or spreading birthmarks, looking somewhat terrifying from a not too close but not too far distance.

Jiang Xiyue evidently also noticed this, hastily wiping it off. She was worried that the blood stains would look unsightly, but she was even more afraid that the wound would stop bleeding.

So, with a pale face, she raised the blood-stained utility knife.

Just as the rusty blade was about to cut into the flesh—

A muffled grunt.

Yu Guang didn’t even see how Ye Si moved, but a fleeting shadow passed by, and he only saw Ye Si slowly retracting his hand, while Jiang Xiyue fell straight down in front of him.

Ye Si didn’t even bother to offer a helping hand. Standing aside with a dull expression, he seemed like a bystander.

Yu Guang took a small breath.

Blood…

The blood in Jiang Xiyue’s mouth… the blood on Jiang Xiyue’s body…

Some kind of mysterious pact…

Yu Guang was momentarily at a loss for words, but the inexplicable fear in his heart seemed to have dissipated slightly.

He vaguely felt like he had touched the soul hidden beneath Ye Si’s gentle exterior.

Unlike the apparent gentleness and courtesy, Ye Si seemed to harbor indifference and aloofness, or perhaps something even deeper…

Those mysterious things were like broken glass, capable of shredding his understanding of the world, scorching his curled-up heart.

His throat tightened, and the monster hidden in the dark corner of his heart stirred, almost hysterically calling out for companionship.

“Come here. Don’t make me say it a third time.”

Yu Guang was stunned, feeling the oppressive pressure in Ye Si’s tone as if it were substantial, causing his heart to tremble.

Before his brain could react, his body had already executed the command.

He trod on the bodies of grass and weeds as he approached Ye Si, the soles of his shoes emitting a faint creaking sound.

As he got closer, Ye Si grabbed his arm and stepped over the area tainted with Jiang Xiyue’s blood.

“Don’t you have any questions?” he heard Ye Si ask in a casual tone, then paused before adding, “Or are you too scared?”

The scent of blood mixed with the woody incense, piercing his nostrils.

For no reason, Yu Guang thought of the man who played cards with him at the nightclub.

Wearing a mask adorned with Sanskrit gold, he frequented the nightlife scene, like a bizarre foreign expert, effortlessly manipulating people in the palm of his hand.

Yu Guang lowered his head and leaned against Ye Si, his fingertips trembling slightly as he held onto Ye Si’s clothes.

It seemed like he really was scared silly.

Ye Si raised an eyebrow, watching the little guy acting, knowing that Yu Guang would never be so timid.

Even if he was initially shocked and timid at the sight of blood, he had already given the other party enough time to adjust.

Yu Guang was playing tricks on him again.

With a barely audible chuckle, Ye Si didn’t expose him.

For Yu Guang, this rare interesting kid, his patience always seemed to be a little more.

“Do you have no questions? I’m only giving you this one chance,” Ye Si slowly pushed away Yu Guang’s hand holding onto his clothes.

About blood, about life…

Was it an exploration deeper into the unknown, or a retreat to strangers? It all depended on Yu Guang.

The small grove was quiet, dead silent, with even the sounds of insects and birds gone, and there were no voices from afar.

It was as if a completely silent space had been separated from the world.

Silence spread between the two.

The fingertips that were pushed away by Ye Si sent a chill through Yu Guang, who groped in the air, only to grasp emptiness.

He faintly sensed the seriousness of this question—

It concerned Ye Si’s identity, the secrets hidden behind Ye Si.

He had already obtained the key to Pandora’s Box, but chose to discard it before inserting it into the keyhole.

He suddenly remembered the question Ye Si had asked him a few days ago.

“Do you know your blood type?”

His answer had not changed.

The test results hadn’t come out yet, and his blood sample might still be undergoing professional analysis in medical equipment.

The purest reason he had grown from an embryo into a human form was blood.

His parents needed his umbilical cord blood to save another life, so they created him.

Born as a tool, Yu Guang was destined not to receive love.

So, deep down, he didn’t want Ye Si to agree to him because of blood.

He wanted to receive love from Ye Si—

Tender love, affectionate love, love that was fierce enough to be fatal.

He longed for it to grow wildly like vines.

His blood boiled, but he became more rational.

It was really deadly.

Yu Guang was afraid of not asking well and thus losing a certain qualification.

He would also lose the opportunity to receive love.

After weighing it several times, Yu Guang swallowed his dry throat and tentatively spoke.

“Can I only ask one question?” his voice was heavy, sounding somewhat aggrieved.

“Mm.”

“I want to ask…” Yu Guang paused, “Jiang Xiyue isn’t actually your girlfriend, Senior, right?”

He avoided the main issue and instead asked a question he was curious about.

Silence,

Absolute silence.

For a moment, Ye Si didn’t speak, his thin lips pressed into a straight line.

Yu Guang cautiously raised his gaze, catching a fleeting look of bewilderment in Ye Si’s narrow eyes.

That moment of bewilderment quickly disappeared, almost as if it had never been there.

Yu Guang thought he might have imagined it.

After a long while, he finally heard Ye Si’s answer.

“Mm, she’s not.” Extremely concise.

There was a hint of subtle resignation in his tone, and by some coincidence, Yu Guang’s keen ears picked up on it.

He knew he had perhaps managed to get past this hurdle.

Taking a deep breath and then slowly exhaling, Yu Guang realized Ye Si’s answer.

“Not.”

Jiang Xiyue wasn’t Ye Si’s girlfriend…

So, it turned out he had been mistaken all along, and Jiang Xiyue, like himself, was just another poor soul seeking affection but unable to find it.

But the joy in his heart slowly surged up.

His heart pounded, and his bloodstream surged throughout his body, carrying with it a rush of happiness.

“Since… Jiang Xiyue isn’t your girlfriend, can I…” pursue you.

Yu Guang cautiously continued, his voice trailing off at the last sentence.

But he knew Ye Si must have heard it.

Yet, he didn’t answer.

His eyebrows slightly furrowed, his eyelashes contracting, giving him a somewhat fierce appearance. The natural light gently illuminated his face, making his features even sharper and more difficult to approach.

Ye Si pinched Yu Guang’s chin with two fingers, lifting it up.

He looked at his long bangs, which, due to gravity, parted to reveal a pair of shimmering eyes.

As if about to cry.

This kid had a mind as subtle as a drizzle, and the question he asked was indeed cunning.

He avoided the dangerous topic, pulling the distance between them back to a safe zone, yet didn’t completely kill all possibilities.

Ye Si couldn’t believe he had been baited by a twenty-year-old kid.

He squinted, sizing up the face in front of him, which looked more decadent and beautiful after revealing the eyes.

The posture of Yu Guang being forced to tilt his head up seemed like he was eagerly seeking a kiss from him.

But his expression was also somewhat pitiful, like a little dog trembling in the rain.

Ye Si knew Yu Guang had sensed his anger and was now putting on a pitiful appearance to win sympathy.

“Heh—” he chuckled instead of getting angry.

His fingertips rubbed fiercely against Yu Guang’s damp eye corners, forcing out a few scorching tears.

Water droplets spread on his fingertips.

The corners of Yu Guang’s eyes turned even redder, as if he had put on makeup.

“Don’t play tricks in front of me.”

He leaned slightly closer to Yu Guang’s ear and whispered softly.

As his words fell, he released his hand.

Yu Guang rubbed his sore chin, finally daring to take deep breaths, his chest rising and falling as if to compensate for the dizziness caused by holding his breath earlier.

The woody scent wafted into his nostrils, teasing like a small hook.

He discreetly looked up at Ye Si’s expression, unable to read it, but his intuition told him that Ye Si wasn’t too angry.

After careful consideration, Yu Guang flicked his fingertip, then reached out to tug on Ye Si’s clothes.

It was probing, cautious, and careful.

But this time,

Ye Si didn’t brush his hand away.