Chapter 386: Miao Village (19)

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The short-haired girl walking with the players through the forest frowned, instinctively slowing her pace as she turned to look in a certain direction.  

The woods were perilous—even the slightest anomaly would catch the players' attention. Seeing her stop, the others immediately turned to her.  

"What’s wrong?"  

"I smell something," the girl said, sniffing the air uncertainly. "Like something burning."  

She followed the scent, moving cautiously toward its source. The other players exchanged glances—none of them had noticed anything, but they’d heard about her sharp sense of smell. If she said it was there, it almost certainly was.  

On high alert, they trailed behind her, advancing slowly and warily toward the northwest.  

***  

Unless it was a life-bound gu worm, the death of the one who planted the parasite would not affect the host.  

Miao Ciyu and Miao Linyuan had already confirmed it—the gu inside Miao Qing was not the kind that linked lives.  

Meaning the man’s death would not harm Miao Qing.  

That was why they hadn’t hesitated.  

Once certain no one could escape the burning house, Miao Linyuan turned away, satisfaction radiating from him as he coldly walked off.  

Miao Ciyu did the same.  

The roaring flames shrank behind them, growing distant until they vanished from sight entirely.  

Miao Ciyu headed calmly toward the village chief’s home—but halfway there, a sudden, gnawing dread seized him, as if something terrible was about to happen.  

A voice in his mind screamed at him to turn back.  

Under normal circumstances, he would’ve suspected a gu’s influence. But this time, he didn’t hesitate—he spun around and sprinted back toward the house.  

By the time he returned, the fire had completely engulfed the estate. The outer structure was already charred beyond recognition, flames now licking inward.  

The crackle of burning wood filled the air, deafening—yet amidst the chaos, Miao Ciyu heard something else.  

A faint, desperate cry.  

A voice he knew too well—  

Miao Qing’s voice.  

Miao Ciyu's pupils constricted—his heartbeat stuttered to a halt. Without a second thought, he charged into the roaring flames.  

The crackling of the fire was deafening, drowning out all other sounds. He couldn’t tell where that faint noise had come from… or if he’d imagined it entirely.  

Logically, he shouldn’t have been able to hear anything so faint over the inferno. But he couldn’t take that chance.  

Because if he was wrong, the cost would be unbearable.  

Clamping down on his panic, he wove through the flames, desperate to confirm whether that person was truly inside.  

The fire was beyond control now, devouring the entire mansion. Searching for someone in this hellscape was madness.  

Yet Miao Ciyu found himself sprinting toward one particular direction—until he saw it: a slender figure amidst the blaze.  

Ruan Qing lay collapsed on the ground, the hem of his clothes already alight, flames creeping toward his body.  

But that wasn’t the most immediate danger. Above him, a charred beam teetered precariously, seconds from crashing down.  

Ruan Qing noticed it too. Gritting his teeth, he tried to push himself up, to scramble away.  

*I haven’t found Miao Li yet. I haven’t brought him home. I can’t die here.*  

"Miao Li…"  

Yet the prolonged oxygen deprivation left him weak. His arms gave out, and he slumped back to the floor, his vision darkening at the edges.  

*…I guess I won’t be able to marry him after all.*  

In his fading consciousness, a flash of red flickered at the edge of his sight—a hue deeper than the fire itself, coalescing into the silhouette of a man.  

Ruan Qing stared blankly at the figure, his eyes reflecting its shape, before finally letting them fall shut as he surrendered to unconsciousness.  

Miao Ciyu’s heart nearly stopped as the beam plummeted. In an instant, he lunged forward, seizing Ruan Qing’s arm and yanking him upright—then crushing him against his chest.  

The beam was too massive to evade. That split-second delay cost him.  

"Ungh—!" The timber struck Miao Ciyu’s back with a brutal crack, forcing a grunt from his throat. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.  

The beam, fractured by the flames, still burned where it had hit him, igniting the fabric of his clothes.  

But there was no time to extinguish it. No way to, either—not when the person in his arms was already unconscious, breaths shallow and rapid, skin feverishly hot.  

If they didn’t escape now, Ruan Qing would never wake again.  

Miao Ciyu rolled on the ground with the person in his arms, extinguishing the flames on his back, then immediately sprinted toward the direction he had come from.  

There was a pond in that courtyard.  

Without water, neither he nor Miao Qing would make it out alive. Their only hope was to use it.  

But in a fire this intense, hiding underwater wouldn’t guarantee survival—sooner or later, the oxygen would run out.  

When Miao Ciyu reached the pond, he plunged straight in, stripping off his coat and draping it over Ruan Qing.  

Then, shielding the person in his arms, he charged toward the nearest exit.  

The fire was too fierce. The damp clothes quickly dried under the scorching heat, catching flame almost instantly.  

Miao Ciyu no longer cared about the burns. Clutching Ruan Qing tightly, he rushed forward recklessly.  

In the final second before the house collapsed, Miao Ciyu burst out of the compound, crashing hard onto the ground.  

By now, his entire body was wrapped in flames, his skin scorched across large areas. Yet the person in his arms remained perfectly protected—unburned, unharmed by the fall.  

But Ruan Qing’s condition was far from safe. Prolonged exposure to the extreme heat had left his body temperature dangerously high.  

Miao Ciyu didn’t dare stop. Staggering, he carried Ruan Qing toward the lake.  

Water. They needed water to cool down.  

***

After Miao Ciyu left with Ruan Qing, a figure reappeared in front of the ruined estate—Miao Linyuan, who had turned back.  

Staring at the collapsed building, Miao Linyuan pressed a hand to his unsettled chest, his brow furrowing deeply.  

What was happening? Why was the gu worm agitated?  

The zhongqing gu he had planted came in a pair—one in Miao Qing, the other in himself. Only if one was in distress would the other react.  

Had something happened to Miao Qing?  

As he watched the raging fire, his heart sank uncontrollably, a thread of panic rising.  

Just as he was about to charge into the flames, the restless gu worm suddenly calmed. Miao Linyuan halted mid-step.  

The other gu worm was fine now.  

***  

The lake wasn’t far. Miao Ciyu leaped into the water with Ruan Qing still in his arms. The icy chill enveloped them instantly, and the feverish heat quickly subsided.  

Miao Ciyu felt the person in his arms breathing steadily at last, and only then did his strained nerves relax slightly. It was only now that he noticed the charred, mangled flesh covering much of his own body.  

The burns looked agonizing, yet Miao Ciyu’s expression didn’t change—as if the wounds weren’t his at all.  

Once he confirmed Ruan Qing’s temperature had normalized, he prepared to swim back to shore. His injuries needed treatment.  

But just as he lifted Ruan Qing, the man’s lashes fluttered, and his eyes slowly opened.  

Before his vision even focused, Ruan Qing instinctively murmured, "Miao Li…"  

The words were faint, barely audible—yet Miao Ciyu heard them. His eyes darkened instantly, a storm of dangerous intensity radiating from him.  

It took Ruan Qing a few seconds to fully regain awareness. When he saw Miao Ciyu’s face so close to his own, his eyes widened in shock.  

The lake water had soaked through their clothes, clinging to their skin and leaving little to the imagination. Pressed together like this, the scene was undeniably intimate.  

Ruan Qing’s delicate face flushed scarlet. He instinctively loosened his grip, stammering,  

"L-Let me go."  

Miao Ciyu stared coldly at him, a nameless fury rising in his chest.  

He knew this man called for Miao Li because of the gu worm’s influence. Knew his rejection of others was also the worm’s doing. Yet none of that quelled his anger. Without a word, he released his hold.  

The lake wasn’t shallow—even near the edge, the water was three or four meters deep. The moment Miao Ciyu let go, Ruan Qing plunged downward.  

"Ah—!" The sudden drop wrenched a gasp from him, his eyes flying wide. Panicked, he flung his arms around Miao Ciyu’s neck, legs locking around his waist like a koala clinging to a tree.  

Now it wasn’t Miao Ciyu holding him—but him clinging desperately to Miao Ciyu.  

Yet Ruan Qing had little strength left. His search for Miao Li in the fire had drained him completely.  

And this position—wrapped around another person—was exhausting to maintain.  

He tried to swim toward the shore, but they were at least two or three meters away. There was no way he could make it in his state.  

His shimmering, tear-bright eyes met Miao Ciyu’s impassive gaze. Finally, in a small voice, he admitted:  

"I… I can’t hold on anymore."  

The words sounded pitiful, helpless—almost like a plea. Like a feather brushing against the heart, impossible to ignore.  

Miao Ciyu instantly had a reaction he shouldn’t have.  

Ruan Qing was holding onto him and naturally felt the change in Miao Ciyu’s body. His face paled, then flushed with anger—but he couldn’t bring himself to curse the man.  

After all, he was the one who had initiated the embrace.  

Ruan Qing took a deep breath, swallowing back his frustration, and cautiously loosened his right arm.  

He had originally intended to test if he could swim back to shore, but as he pulled away, he noticed his hand was smeared with blood.  

He wasn’t injured, so the blood could only be Miao Ciyu’s.  

“You’re hurt?” Ruan Qing’s voice spiked with alarm. Without waiting for an answer, he craned his neck to look at Miao Ciyu’s back.  

What greeted him was a gruesome sight—crimson staining the water around them, all seeping from the wounds on Miao Ciyu’s back.  

It wasn’t just his back, either. Parts of Miao Ciyu’s hair had been singed by the fire, leaving him looking utterly disheveled.  

“A-Are you okay?” Ruan Qing’s voice trembled, his body stiffening. His hand had been pressing directly against the injury earlier—that’s why it was covered in blood.  

He jerked his hand away, his own voice shaking as if he were the one in pain.  

“Does it hurt?”  

Miao Ciyu had been about to say no, but the look of heartache on Ruan Qing’s face made him change his answer. “Yes.”  

The burns on his back were severe, the flesh charred and mangled, scraps of fabric fused to the wounds. It was horrifying to see.  

Tears welled in Ruan Qing’s eyes. He bit his lip hard. “I’m sorry… If it weren’t for me—”  

Before he could finish, his chin was seized, tilting his face up—and then warmth pressed against his lips.  

Miao Ciyu had long since lost his patience. And now, with Ruan Qing looking so pitifully vulnerable, he couldn’t resist. He’d never realized how much that fragile expression of his invited domination.  

Ruan Qing’s eyes flew wide. He instinctively tried to pull back, but Miao Ciyu withdrew faster, breaking the kiss in less than three seconds—leaving Ruan Qing no time to react.  

Now, Ruan Qing was stuck between pushing him away and staying still, his face twisting with conflict.  

Miao Ciyu studied him with dark, unreadable eyes, then murmured in a low, rough voice:  

“My back hurts.”  

Ruan Qing froze, all resistance vanishing. “Y-You… are you alright?” he stammered, frantic.  

The reaction seemed to satisfy Miao Ciyu. Instead of answering, he tightened his grip around Ruan Qing’s waist, his voice a husky whisper against his ear—  

"Be with me... okay?"  

Miao Ciyu's voice sounded pitiful, even pleading. It was hard to resist a grown man lowering himself to such vulnerability—especially when that man had just risked his life to pull you from a burning building.  

Ruan Qing's nervous expression froze. He opened his mouth, then hesitated, his delicate face twisting with conflict.  

Clearly, he couldn't say yes.  

But...  

Staring at Miao Ciyu's dejected look, Ruan Qing found himself unable to outright reject him either. And if he was honest, he hadn’t exactly hated the man’s kiss.  

The problem was—he already had someone he loved.  

After a long pause, Ruan Qing finally spoke, his tone wavering with uncertain guilt, as if even he knew how unreasonable his suggestion was:  

"How about... you be my side piece?"  

Miao Ciyu: "?"  

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