Re-birth: The Beginning after the End - Chapter 72

Chapter 72: SEEN THROUGH

He tilted his head, studying her with unnerving intensity. “I’m curious,” he mused, his fingers drumming against the stone armrest. “Why does a cultivator with the golden core and white dragon bloodline live here amongst those beneath your status?”

Li Hua’s grip tightened on her daggers as shock rippled through her. Only her family and Grandmaster Yu knew about her golden core—this stranger shouldn’t have been able to detect it. “And you seem far too interested in things that don’t concern you,” she shot back, but her voice wavered slightly. She watched as he tilted his head back and sniffed the air like a predatory beast catching the scent of its prey, his eyes glowing for a brief moment.

“You’re quite mysterious,” he said, his voice carrying an undercurrent of fascination. “Your soul doesn’t seem to belong in this world, does it?”

Ice shot through her veins at his words. Without Little Firefly’s warm presence to steady her, panic began to creep in. Her first instinct was to retreat into her inner space—surely she could still do that, right? But before she could even attempt it, he vanished from the throne.

Her breath caught as he materialized directly in front of her, close enough that she could feel the raw power emanating from him. Her daggers suddenly pulsed with his essence—dark and overwhelming—before transforming into midnight-colored butterflies. They danced through the air between them, their wings catching the dim light like shards of starlit obsidian, before settling back at her waist as daggers once more.

The casual display of power made her stomach drop. In her past life, no one had ever managed to disarm her—she had been death incarnate, unstoppable and feared. But he hadn’t just disarmed her—he’d done it with such effortless grace that it felt like a reminder of just how outmatched she truly was.

His scent enveloped her then, an intoxicating mixture of mountain rain and night-blooming flowers with an undertone of something ancient and powerful that made her core flutter. It reminded her of lightning before a storm, of power barely contained, and somehow of home all at once.

Her mouth went dry as the full impact of his presence washed over her. “Who are you?” The question escaped her lips in a whisper that betrayed more breathlessness than she’d intended.

Instead of answering her question, the man reached out, his warm and strong hand finding her cheek. His honey-brown eyes sparkled with mischief and dark promise as he leaned closer. “When I first saw you,” he murmured, his voice dropping to a seductive purr that sent shivers down her spine, “something stirred inside me I never knew existed. Like I had finally found something worth my time—worth my life, worth my death.”

His fingers brushed her cheek with impossible gentleness, circling the soft skin with a deliberate slowness that made her breath catch. The touch sent shivers of spiritual energy dancing down her spine like lightning, each point of contact between his fingers and her skin leaving trails of warmth that spread across her back in tingling waves. She found herself leaning into his hand without conscious thought, her body betraying years of trained vigilance.

“Tell me, my little tempest,” he purred, his voice a dark velvet caress, “why do I yearn for you?” His eyes gleamed with dangerous intensity, a predatory smile playing at the corners of his mouth. “Could it be because you’re just as dangerous as I am?”

Li Hua’s heart skipped a beat, but she caught herself and stepped back, putting distance between them. Her fingers instinctively reached for her daggers, though she knew they’d be useless against someone of his power. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, fighting to keep her voice steady.

The man’s laugh echoed through the chamber, rich and warm like sunlight breaking through storm clouds. “Don’t be scared, I won’t harm you. You’re far too interesting—and that’s quite rare for someone like me.”

But Li Hua wasn’t afraid of him—what terrified her was the way her body, mind, and soul betrayed her, burning with an overwhelming desire to climb on top of this man and claim him as her own. The intensity of her want shocked her to her core, leaving her both horrified and desperately hungry for more.

With a casual wave of his hand, the sealed cave entrances ground opened. Li Hua didn’t hesitate—she darted toward the exit, her wind essence propelling her forward. But his voice followed her, calling out a strange list:

“Spirit ginseng! Golden cloud mushrooms! Nine-star spirit fruits!”

Li Hua’s sprint faltered for a moment in confusion, until his next words made her cheeks burn:

“To fatten you up, my little tempest,” he called after her, his voice a seductive growl that seemed to caress her skin even from a distance. “When I see you again, I want something I can really sink my teeth into.” The words dripped with dangerous intent, leaving little doubt he meant far more than just cultivation resources.

Her face flaming, Li Hua dropped to her hands and knees, crawling through the narrow cave entrance as quickly as she could. The rough stone scraped against her shoulders, but she barely noticed, too eager to put distance between herself and that maddening honey-brown gaze. His rich laughter followed her through the tunnel, echoing off the stone walls like distant thunder.

She emerged into the late afternoon sunlight to find her brothers exactly where she’d left them, their faces tight with worry. Li Wei immediately reached down to help her up, while Li Hao hovered anxiously nearby.

“Well?” Li Wei asked, brushing dust from her training clothes. “What did you find in there?”

Li Hua hesitated for a fraction of a second. “Nothing,” she lied, forcing disappointment into her voice. “Just an empty cave. The formation must have been protecting something long ago, but whatever it was is gone now.”

Her brothers’ shoulders slumped in obvious disappointment. Li Hao kicked a loose stone, sending it skittering across the ground. “All that work decoding the formation for nothing?”

“We should head back,” Li Wei said, glancing at the setting sun. “The festival will start soon, and Māmā will worry if we’re late.”

As they started down the mountain path, Li Hua couldn’t resist throwing one last glance at the cave entrance. A whisper carried on the wind, so soft she almost thought she’d imagined it:

“You can call me Mo Xing, my little tempest.”