"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," Lin Xiao Tian said, his face flushed.
Aunt Xue's face was also red, but seeing Lin Xiao Tian standing before her, dripping wet, her heart warmed.
In such heavy rain, he had still come to the mountains to save her. Could she still blame him?
However, Lin Xiao Tian was standing with his back to her, and the rain was still pouring outside. How should she get him inside?
She was still drenched herself, and couldn't possibly put on her wet clothes again.
She should have worn some undergarments, at least then she'd have something to cover herself with.
Just then, another clap of thunder sounded, and the rain intensified.
Seeing Lin Xiao Tian still standing outside in the rain, Aunt Xue steeled herself and shouted to him,
"Come in!"
Although Lin Xiao Tian wasn't afraid of the rain, it was better to be dry than wet, so he entered the tent.
The tent was small. Even though they were back to back, some physical contact was unavoidable.
"Your clothes are still wet. Do you want to take them off and dry them by the fire? They should be dry when the rain stops," Aunt Xue said softly. "You'll catch a cold wearing wet clothes."
"It's fine, I won't catch a cold," Lin Xiao Tian replied confidently.
He had inner strength protecting him; even if dampness penetrated, he would not be significantly affected.
But Aunt Xue didn't know this. She thought he was just being shy and chuckled to herself, wondering why she was being so hesitant. He was just a child, after all.
With that thought, Aunt Xue relaxed considerably. "What are you afraid of? Do you think Auntie will eat you?"
Aunt Xue expected Lin Xiao Tian to still be reserved after saying this. But hearing her words, Lin Xiao Tian actually relaxed a lot. Since she had agreed, and wearing wet clothes was uncomfortable anyway.
After taking off their clothes, they were almost naked in the tent.
It was the first time Aunt Xue had been so intimate with a man.
"My name is Li Xue," Aunt Xue introduced herself.
"My name is Lin Xiao Tian, I already introduced myself," Lin Xiao Tian replied.
"You're surnamed Lin? Are you from the Lin family?" Li Xue asked.
"No," Lin Xiao Tian shook his head. "Does being surnamed Lin mean I have to be from the Lin family?"
Hearing Lin Xiao Tian's question, Li Xue smiled slightly.
"Don't lie to me. You're so familiar with this forest, and you even know about the White Viper. Black Mountain is a forbidden area protected by various families; outsiders have no idea what's going on inside, nor what creatures live there."
"If you're not from an reclusive family, where else could you be from?"
Li Xue's casually spoken words stunned Lin Xiao Tian.
Forbidden area!
This was the second time he had heard this term.
It seemed Black Mountain held secrets he was unaware of!
Moreover, judging by Li Xue's words, Black Mountain seemed to be monopolized by these families.
Black Mountain was a peculiar place, unlike other mountain ranges. It had a unique miasma.
Logically, such a place should be a treasure trove for exploration teams.
But in all these years, Lin Xiao Tian had never seen any exploration teams come here. It seemed this was likely the work of these reclusive families.
Lin Xiao Tian didn't answer. Li Xue, on the other hand, took it as confirmation and continued,
"You're quite cautious!"
They sat there, back to back, with the burning fire beside them. The heavy rain outside showed no signs of abating.
Just then, a hissing sound echoed.
"Something's coming!"
They exchanged glances, both becoming wary.
They no longer cared about being naked. Lin Xiao Tian casually picked up a branch, while Li Xue grabbed a stone.
Hiss!
Another angry hiss.
The next moment, the tent flap was ripped open.
A pale, serpentine face appeared above their heads.
"Damn it! This thing still hasn't learned its lesson!" Lin Xiao Tian glared at the giant white snake before him.
He hadn't expected the White Viper to dare to bother them again after taking a shot from him.
"Protect yourself. I'll deal with it," Lin Xiao Tian instructed Li Xue, and then charged forward.
Not everyone was inconvenienced by the rain. For Lin Xiao Tian, it only meant a slight delay in his movements.
But for the White Viper before him, already injured in a vital spot, attacking Lin Xiao Tian now was simply courting death.
This creature was intelligent, thinking it could finish them both with a surprise attack. Little did it know, its end was nigh.
Lin Xiao Tian had originally intended to spare it!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Lin Xiao Tian wielded the branch, smashing it hard against the White Viper's head. The branch, due to Lin Xiao Tian's strength, broke countless times.
Blood seeped from the White Viper's head. This was a previous gunshot wound; without it, Lin Xiao Tian wouldn't have been able to do anything.
But the White Viper clearly had no intention of giving up. The downpour had driven it completely mad.
Lin Xiao Tian, however, was not one to tolerate it, striking its face repeatedly.
Initially, the White Viper could withstand a few blows. Later, however, each strike from Lin Xiao Tian sent it reeling back several meters.
"I didn't want to kill you, seeing as you're an intelligent creature. But you've come looking for death, so you can't blame me!" Lin Xiao Tian roared.
Seeing Lin Xiao Tian pounce, the White Viper suddenly became a little clearer-headed.
As the saying goes, a cornered dog will jump over the wall. As if sensing its impending death, the White Viper unleashed unprecedented power.
Hiss~
It hissed and managed to break through Lin Xiao Tian's attack.
But Lin Xiao Tian dodged, evading it completely.
At this moment, the White Viper's head had swept past Lin Xiao Tian's side, and its body was fully exposed to Lin Xiao Tian's attack range.
Lin Xiao Tian didn't hesitate, smashing its body with a thick branch.
Rumble.
A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky.
The White Viper's hissing was no longer audible.
But at that moment, Lin Xiao Tian suddenly realized something was wrong.
The White Viper hadn't stopped.
Normally, after being attacked, wouldn't it turn around to attack him?
Lin Xiao Tian instinctively looked towards the direction the White Viper was heading.
"Bad!"
The next moment, Lin Xiao Tian dashed towards the White Viper.
The White Viper, true to its intelligent nature, was attempting to attack the vulnerable Li Xue.
"Run!" Lin Xiao Tian roared.
But at his current speed, he clearly wouldn't be able to reach her in time.
Li Xue was also stubborn. In the last moment, she showed no fear. Seeing that she couldn't escape, she simply took out a stone, preparing to fight the White Viper to the death.
When the White Viper was less than half a meter away from Li Xue, she suddenly pulled a long branch from behind her, one she had used to prop up the tent earlier.
Li Xue now held the branch diagonally in front of her.
The White Viper was enormous and was now charging at Li Xue with all its might, unable to stop. It was highly likely that this branch would pierce its head.
*Splat!*
Indeed, the White Viper couldn't stop and was impaled by the branch.
However, Li Xue wasn't spared either.
At the last moment, a venomous fang pierced her shoulder...