The next morning.
The sun peeked over the far horizon, painting with a faint red glow that gradually faded into a faint blue that slowly but surely spread more and more, replacing the black mantle with small bright white dots.
Those with duties at the base awoke first thing in the morning and the previously empty streets slowly began to fill with merchants leaving the comfort of their beds and abandoning the warmth of their homes to try to get a little more to eat.
Survivors who had no opportunity to get a job and who did not have the courage to go out and fight or who were simply too weak or lacked the energy to do so, slowly began to gather in the different areas where the relief gruel would be distributed, because even though it was still too early, the sooner they reached the lines, the better as they would be able to eat more quickly as well.
Armed men wandered around the approximately 2 meter high walls while some others standing on several 8 or 9 meter high observation towers cautiously surveyed the surroundings.
On the other hand, the southeastern part of the base within the privileged area did not have even a single armed militant. This coupled with the sound of gunfire and cries from the previous night naturally attracted a lot of attention and nearby residents began to gossip among themselves.
Surprisingly, for some strange reason, the northeastern part of the privileged area was also not heavily guarded. Although there were some armed militants dressed in police uniforms, the defenses seemed to be even lower than in the past; which was strange considering that at a not-so-long distance, the other faction with equivalent power located to the south was attacked..
Because he had gone to sleep late yesterday, when Bai Zemin's eyes slowly opened it was already almost 9 o'clock in the morning.
Perhaps in a half-asleep state, his black eyes glittered with a tinge of confusion as he saw the unfamiliar ceiling above his head. However, seconds later, he finally seemed to realize something and his gaze shifted to his right side; to the left side of the bed.
Sleeping like a beautiful little angel, pure and innocent, a woman so beautiful that she was capable of making the forces of the universe enter into dispute and unleash a colossal war just to have her, lay right next to him. Her arms so slim and seemingly fragile hugged his right arm tightly while her small hands clung to his.
It was just that this beautiful woman was no angel, she was a succubus belonging to the demon faction led by Lucifer, The Demonic Army.
Her power was so high that even if there were countless men lusting after her beauty none of them dared to provoke her, and probably all those who dared did not meet a good end since curiously enough, even though she was a succubus, she had not yet been tainted by any man's filth.
During the whole previous month, except for special cases, Bai Zemin always slept with Lilith near him. However, she never slept.
But not only did she sleep just like him as a normal person the night before, she also slept in the same bed next to him and with her body glued to his.
This was the first time Bai Zemin was so close to Lilith not only physically, but also sentimentally. What happened last night had brought the two of them much closer as many barriers had been greatly weakened even if they hadn't completely disappeared yet.
"Ugh, this woman..." Bai Zemin whispered a weak groan without any vigor as he felt the upper part of his arm wrapped between the middle of two heavenly softnesses while the lower part firmly pressed against Lilith's seductive body.
He had to restrain himself with all his willpower not to move his hand, a hand that was dangerously close to the private area between the legs of the woman beside him. To make matters even worse, Lilith's nightgown had been lifted during her sleep and now barely covered her treasures, scarcely hidden by a piece of cloth that if only moved up 2 more centimeters, would expose everything in its magnificence.
Bai Zemin really did not know what to do with this person... Or more precisely, with the succubus at his side. Just then, a peculiar feeling flooded him and, curious but at the same time stupefied, he checked something in his skills.
"It really is like that." He muttered quietly to himself and suddenly felt more tired for some strange reason as he looked at the skill Stone Heart.
The requirement <Trust wholeheartedly in a being outside the comfort zone> was now complete.
Previously, Bai Zemin already trusted Lilith 99%. But what happened last night was enough for that 1%, which seemed so hard to increase, to finally tip the scales all the way to one side.
When a person was willing to sleep in the same bed next to someone else in a world as dangerous as this one, then it meant that this person was trusting his or her life to the other since when one slept, one's defenses would drop to the minimum possible and even if one managed to react to an imminent attack, suffering injuries would be anything strange.
But Bai Zemin knew that Lilith could not attack him or play any dirty tricks against him or otherwise her strength would plummet dangerously, and even her life would not be guaranteed; this was the way the Soul Record protected the weakest of those who had already broken the chains of time.
However, just before going to sleep, Bai Zemin had slapped Lilith on the butt quite hard. Regardless of whether it was a slap without any malicious intentions, a slap was a slap. Therefore, if Lilith took it as a grievance, she had the right to retaliate against him.
She had the opportunity yesterday not only to kill him, but also to do whatever malicious thing she wanted with him.
Bai Zemin already knew that she did not want him dead, or else she would not have been helping him so far and instead would give him false information to push him to his death. Therefore, it was obvious that she needed him alive or maybe something his body had without him knowing, something like super talent and the like.
Lilith could have had that in case what she wanted was something like that. However, she did nothing against him; on the contrary, even now she had her eyes closed and a sweet worry-free smile on her usually playful expression.
What did it all mean? Simple: Lilith needed something from him, but it was not something that would harm him. She didn't want his life nor did she want something special into his existence, so what she wanted was probably his help in achieving a goal that Bai Zemin felt would be beneficial to him as well.
A simple action like last night's made the thin defensive barrier in Bai Zemin's heart against her disappear, and now he trusted her completely. However, since he did not expect something like this, for some bizarre reason he felt tired and moments later he fell asleep again.
* * *
In the villa's large rest room, three unexpected guests appeared today at 10 o'clock in the morning.
Surprisingly these three people were none other than Lu Yan, Lu Xiaoyao, and Yan Tu!
Two maidens approached with some dishes containing chocolate-filled cookies, small fruit cakes, pudding, and other delicacies. At the same time, two other maidens began to serve the honey tea that had just been prepared.
Among these maids was Fang Yi, Xiang Feng's mother, who after waking up early in the morning started working immediately. She did not want to abuse the help and hospitality extended to her.
Sitting on the opposite couch from where Lu Yan was sitting, Nangong Lingxin and Nangong Yi looked at each other wordlessly. To say that they were incredibly shocked was not enough to express their current emotions.
Shangguan Bing Xue grabbed the steaming cup of tea and brought it just below her nose to smell its fragrance before taking a small sip gracefully. Her movements were refined like those of an ancient aristocrat, coupled with her incredibly beautiful appearance made her look like a moving painting.
Lu Yan sighed in his heart. Even he, at his age, was forced to admit that the 23 or 24 year old girl in front of him was probably the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his entire long life.
Yan Tu's expression remained impassive. However, his muscles were incredibly tense as he looked at Shangguan Bing Xue as he did not care about her beauty, what secretly shocked him was the sharply dangerous aura that the woman's body in front of him exuded with just her presence.
On the other hand, a slight trace of surprise and a tinge of healthy jealousy glittered in Lu Xiaoyao's eyes. She was a beauty by nature, but in front of the two women before her, she still lacked a bit; especially so with the elegant lady who was tasting her tea.
"So." Shangguan Bing Xue set the cup down on the small porcelain plate and looked straight at Lu Yan. Her eyes were cold and indifferent as always and her voice without pause questioned, "May I know what is the reason for the visit of an unexpected guest like you?"
Lu Yan smiled elegantly and said neither too fast nor too slow: "How are you? Although you probably already know thanks to the two people next to you, my name is Lu Yan and I am currently the leader of the faction that rules the north-"
"Rules?"
Before Lu Yan could finish, Shangguan Bing Xue interrupted. Her sky blue eyes flashed with a hint of disdain as she said coldly, "I know who you are, and to be honest with you, your position will last less than you think. Still, I don't know whether to call you brave or foolish for daring to walk into the wolf cave by yourself."
Lu Yan was dumbfounded. He did not expect the seemingly calm and demure young woman to suddenly burst out with such words.
Lu Xiaoyao was secretly furious but managed to endure it. After all, it was true that this was not her territory so it was not good to bring out her spoiled princess airs in this place.
Meanwhile, Nangong Lingxin looked at Shangguan Bing Xue weirdly. This was the first time in about a week that she had seen this silver-haired young woman in a bad mood.
Nangong Yi shook his head and a funny smile appeared on his face. Although he had his theories, he naturally would not say it out loud as he feared he would turn into an ice statue the second after these words left his mouth.
Lu Yan, though surprised, was not an ordinary person. After a slight surprise that did not appear in his expression, he calmly spoke again, "Since that's the way things are, then I won't beat around the bush either. May I ask if you are the leader here?"
The reason why Lu Yan discarded Nangong Yi and Nangong Lingxin was because Lu Yan already knew both of them. After all, the Nangong siblings were two powerful soul evolvers, two of the strongest who previously worked for Kang Rong.
"No." Shangguan Bing Xue shook her head and said with slight discomfort in her voice, "Our irresponsible leader is currently still lying in his bed sleeping."
Saying it, she looked at the time on the antique clock next to the adjacent wall and her eyes glittered uncharacteristically.
It had been about half an hour since Lu Yan and the rest had arrived. However, Bai Zemin still showed no signs of waking up, let alone leaving his room.
* * * * * * *
Thanks a lot to all those who use their Golden Tickets to vote for BW <3