"No!" Lu Zhi refused forcefully, his face flushing bright red. "Don't come any closer."
What Shen Qi was doing wasn't wishful thinking; it was delusion. Even if he accepted their relationship, he absolutely couldn't accept helping him with *that* in just one day.
"Darling, you treat me like a plague, and it hurts my feelings~" Shen Qi's gaze suddenly deepened. He placed his hands on either side of Lu Zhi, trapping him between his chest, leaving him with no room to advance or retreat.
Lu Zhi was forced to lean back, his panicked dark eyes widening. He didn't dare blink even as a drop of water from Shen Qi's hair dripped into his eye, causing his eye corners to redden, adding a hint of seductive charm to his refined and handsome face.
Shen Qi said nothing.
Lu Zhi also dared not make a sound. His heart was pounding so hard it felt like it would leap out of his chest. He couldn't help but swallow, anxiously wondering if the other person would resort to force.
Shen Qi half-closed his eyes and slowly took Lu Zhi's hand, which was pressed against his smooth chest, and brought it to his lips, nibbling gently.
Whether it was psychosomatic or not, Lu Zhi felt Shen Qi's grip on his hand was burning hot. His fingers, held in Shen Qi's mouth, felt an itchy tickle from his teeth. He wanted to retract his hand but couldn't break free from Shen Qi's hold.
Thinking that if he really forced it, he probably couldn't escape.
Lu Zhi felt utterly embarrassed. After a moment of awkwardness, he righteously chided, "That's enough. Don't push your luck."
He was putting on a brave front now, his heart in a mess. He felt his legs go weak against Shen Qi, who was radiating so much charisma.
"Darling, you were the one who brought it up first," Shen Qi's tone was innocent, but his pupils, which had returned to their fiery golden hue, burned with a scorching passion that seemed like it could ignite into a raging inferno with just a puff of wind.
"I did not!" Lu Zhi exclaimed in disbelief, indignantly cursing, "It was your own... lewd behavior."
Shen Qi bit down slightly harder. Lu Zhi's finger throbbed with pain. Shen Qi then slowly said, "What you see is what you think. It's because you were fantasizing that you made such suggestive remarks, right?"
Lu Zhi wanted to refute, but then he paused. It was true, Shen Qi had indeed buried his hand in the water earlier, but he hadn't seen what he was doing; he had only guessed.
Lu Zhi's face instantly felt hot. Feeling guilty, he questioned, "Then tell me, you were bathing naked, what were your hands... cough, doing?"
Shen Qi raised an eyebrow and ambiguously replied, "Didn't you already guess? Seeing me 'pleasure myself' with such 'effort,' you wanted to 'help,' didn't you?"
"I did not!" Lu Zhi shouted back, righteously declaring, "I just wanted to remind you, don't do such things in a place like this, it's improper!"
Hearing this, Shen Qi chuckled softly. "Ah~ Do what?"
"Do..." Lu Zhi's voice trailed off, his eyes widening.
"Hm? Why did you stop?" Shen Qi slowly cupped Lu Zhi's chin.
Lu Zhi realized he had fallen into Shen Qi's trap and there was no way he would be led around by the nose again. He decisively changed the subject. "Nothing. What you want to do is your business, I shouldn't have meddled."
Shen Qi stared at him intently. "How can that be? I was finally in the mood, but you interrupted me. I should get some compensation, shouldn't I?"
Lu Zhi's guard went up. "No!"
He tried hard to regain control of his hand, but the difference in strength was like a mayfly trying to shake a great tree. His hand was unceremoniously pulled into the water by Shen Qi, startling Lu Zhi into jumping up, only to be pressed down again by Shen Qi. Water splashed everywhere, like a fish caught in a net, struggling in vain.
"Shen Qi, you, you, you let go! Let go of my hand!!!" Lu Zhi was furious and enraged, his face changing color rapidly. Not only were his cheeks bright red, but his neck was also flushed a deep crimson. "Shen Qi, if you dare to force me to do that for you, I, I, I'll bite you to death!"
Shen Qi was domineering and forceful. "I want to!"
Lu Zhi: "Let go of my hand!!!"
Disregarding Lu Zhi's struggles, Shen Qi forcibly guided his hand downwards. Lu Zhi, in utter panic, closed his eyes and cursed, "Ahhhhh!!! Shen Qi, you bastard—"
The curse was cut short.
One second…
Two seconds…
Lu Zhi dazedly opened his eyes. He pinched the rough texture Shen Qi had stuffed into his hand. Under Shen Qi's gaze, he stiffly lowered his head, stunned, and foolishly asked, "What is this?"
Shen Qi finally couldn't help it and burst into unrestrained laughter. "Hahahaha..."
Lu Zhi's face contorted. He tightened his grip on the item in his hand and gritted his teeth, "Shen—Qi—"
"Hahahaha..."
Lu Zhi picked up the item and, in his shame and anger, threw it at Shen Qi's face. Enraged, he jumped up and bit down without hesitation.
"Hahahaha..." Shen Qi didn't feel pain even when his shoulder was bitten. Instead, he laughed even louder, ruffling Lu Zhi's furious hair. He couldn't stop laughing and said, "Hahahaha... Darling, you're too amusing, hahahaha..."
Lu Zhi was overwhelmingly ashamed and angry, biting even harder. Unfortunately, his teeth ached, but he couldn't leave even a single mark. Finally, he pushed Shen Qi away in frustration and stormed out of the hot spring, only to be yanked back by Shen Qi and thrown into the water. He choked a few times before finally unable to help but curse, "Cough, cough... Shen Qi, you damn— Wu…???"
Shen Qi's smiling lips covered Lu Zhi's curse. His palm pressed against the back of Lu Zhi's neck. He let Lu Zhi punch him as much as he wanted. After a long while, he let go of Lu Zhi with satisfaction, but the smile on his face didn't diminish. "Alright, alright, don't be angry. It's my fault."
Lu Zhi's face was dark, and he wished he could die. Who would have thought that the other person was acting like a lunatic, weaving a rope underwater? He suspected Shen Qi had deliberately led him to misunderstand. It had to be! httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
"Aren't you curious why I was weaving this?" Shen Qi handed him the woven rope that Lu Zhi had previously thrown at him.
Although Lu Zhi was still angry about being teased by Shen Qi, he was quite curious about the weaving. However, he still maintained a stern face. "Say it if you want to, don't if you don't."
Shen Qi suppressed a smile and explained, "This is woven for you. You'll probably need it when you enter the Divine Tower."
Lu Zhi suspiciously picked up the woven rope, which was only about the size of his wrist. At first, he thought it was a red string. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be a dark red vine. He pondered, "Isn't this a lasso?"
"Yes." Shen Qi saw his stiff expression soften and continued, "It's not finished yet. I'll give it to you when it's done."
Lu Zhi's grumpy expression eased slightly, but he was still displeased. He said with a tone of annoyance, "If you're weaving, then just weave. Why be so mysterious about it?"
Shen Qi raised his hands in surrender, his tone doting and compromising. "Yes, yes, yes, it's all my fault. Alright, darling, don't be angry anymore~"
Lu Zhi felt awkward being called "darling" this way, and he also felt shy and unable to express himself. He didn't know whether to be angry at himself for his wild thoughts or to blame Shen Qi for intentionally misleading him. In the end, he just gnashed his teeth and, with a somber expression, got up and walked out of the hot spring. "I'm not bathing anymore, let's go back."
Shen Qi did not stop him this time. No matter how docile a rabbit was, if you pushed it too hard, it would eventually bite. And in the end, it was himself who would feel the heartache.