Xu Mu kept his eyes shut, but through his senses, he realized that Dai Xingluo had loosened her Hanfu belt.
He immediately held his breath—this situation was getting out of hand.
"Brother…"
Dai Xingluo slowly inched closer until she nestled herself into his arms.
Then, she gently guided his hand—placing it on her body.
Xu Mu froze. What on earth is this woman doing?
Could she be dreaming about some "Spring Night Grass" fantasy?
Just as Xu Mu was panicking internally, Dai Xingluo suddenly reached out and pinched Meng Wanyue's arm.
Meng Wanyue's eyes snapped open. When she saw Dai Xingluo lying in Xu Mu's embrace, with Xu Mu's hand resting on her chest—
She shot upright in shock.
Grabbing Xu Mu's arm, she was about to pull it away—
"Ah! Brother, you're so mean! How will I ever show my face again?"
Dai Xingluo's voice rose, feigning shy indignation.
She covered her chest and lowered her head bashfully, her tone soft and pitiful. "How can I ever get married now?"
Xu Mu cursed silently. This woman! She's pretending to be embarrassed just to wake me up!
But—no one can wake a man who's determined to fake sleep.
Xu Mu simply rolled over to face Meng Wanyue, eyes still firmly shut.
"Brother! You have to take responsibility! Responsibility!"
Seeing that Xu Mu didn't react, Dai Xingluo shook him with both hands.
"Good wine! Good wine! I'm not drunk!" Xu Mu muttered, brushing her hands off and continuing to pretend to sleep.
"Stop disturbing Manager Xu's rest."
Meng Wanyue quickly slid herself between the two, facing Dai Xingluo with a glare.
When Dai Xingluo tried to move closer to Xu Mu again, Meng Wanyue wrapped her arms tightly around her.
…
When Xu Mu opened his eyes, he checked his phone—it was seven in the morning.
He had actually woken up around midnight but fallen back asleep.
Turning his head, he saw both women hugging each other tightly, their long hair tangled together.
They looked almost like affectionate sisters—nearly kissing.
Xu Mu had to admit… the sight had a certain aesthetic charm.
He couldn't resist pulling out his phone and snapping a photo.
Sensing Chen Xuan's presence next door, he decided to head over.
But as soon as he got off the bed, both women stirred and opened their eyes simultaneously.
"Holy crap!"
Dai Xingluo realized how close she was to Meng Wanyue and quickly pushed her away.
Meng Wanyue was just as horrified. She'd dreamt she was hugging Xu Mu, warm and soft and comforting—
so why was she face-to-face with the one woman she couldn't stand?
Xu Mu chuckled, showed them his phone, and sent the photo to both of them before walking out to knock on the next room's door.
Moments later, Chen Xuan opened it. "Brother Mu, we drank too much yesterday. My master always used small cups when drinking."
"Heh, just keep a lower profile next time. Still, that stuff was really strong," Xu Mu replied.
Just then, Dai Xingluo and Meng Wanyue stepped out of their room.
"Brother, what nonsense did you just send?" Dai Xingluo asked, frowning.
"Yeah, that's disgusting," Meng Wanyue added.
"Alright, let's head home. We should start practicing those cultivation manuals," Xu Mu said with a grin.
"Brother, does your head still hurt?" Dai Xingluo asked with concern.
"Not the head—my arms do," Xu Mu said, flexing them.
The two women exchanged looks. Wait… was that from us pulling him yesterday?
…
They went their separate ways.
Dai Xingluo drove toward Yang City, while Xu Mu took Meng Wanyue and Chen Xuan back to Jiang City.
After dropping Meng Wanyue off near her apartment complex, Xu Mu drove around town with Chen Xuan.
"Brother Mu, that Miao He girl… she's from the Jiuli Clan, right?" Chen Xuan asked seriously from the back seat.
"You know?" Xu Mu wasn't too surprised.
"My master told me—the Jiuli Clan are silver-haired and red-eyed. She doesn't have red eyes, but her hair is silver, and she knew too much about them."
"You're right," Xu Mu said. "She is from the Jiuli Clan. What else did your master say about them?"
"My master said they're an alien race—born for battle. Almost every one of them can fight across realms. It's a good thing there aren't many left, or they'd be a huge threat."
He continued, "Their combat types are divided into sorcery and main arms. Sorcery users rely on Gu and formations; main arms are basically warriors."
Xu Mu nodded—just as the lore described. "Old Chen, where are you planning to go next?"
"My purpose for coming down the mountain is two—to annul an engagement and to find my senior sister."
Chen Xuan paused. "Honestly, Brother Mu, traveling with you is too much fun. I feel bad for tagging along."
"Why feel bad?" Xu Mu said, glancing at him through the rearview mirror. "How about you stay in Jiang City? We'll find your fiancée and your senior sister together."
"Alright then! I won't hold back," Chen Xuan said eagerly.
Xu Mu found the guy quite likable. He was loyal and simple-hearted. If he loved his senior sister that much, Xu Mu would help him—let true lovers reunite.
"Oh, right—Jiang Huihui's grandfather is holding a martial arts tournament for her marriage soon," Xu Mu suddenly remembered.
"Brother Mu, this time you can't hide your power, right? With your strength, you could crush them easily," Chen Xuan said with a grin.
"Don't be fooled by my build—I'm actually pretty weak. You were the one tanking all the hits; I just sneak attacked," Xu Mu said modestly. "I only know a little about direct combat."
"Still, I'm sure you'll win," Chen Xuan said with conviction.
After dropping him off at a hotel, Xu Mu told him he'd find him a place to stay in a few days and drove off.
When he got home, Ye Tong, Ye Yu, and Feng Yue were all there.
"Brother-in-law!"
Ye Yu jumped off the couch and ran straight to him.
[Favorability +20]
[Favorability +20]
Even Ye Tong's head showed a Favorability increase as she approached.
She didn't know why, but after just two days without him, she'd missed him terribly.
He hadn't slept beside her for two nights. When he was around, she sometimes wished he'd go bother someone else—
but when he wasn't, she felt something missing. Even sleeping beside Ye Yu didn't fill that emptiness.
She finally realized—she couldn't live without this man anymore.
"Everything went fine this time?" Ye Tong asked gently.
"Of course. I'm perfectly fine."
Xu Mu rubbed Ye Yu's hair into a messy nest and smiled at Ye Tong.
"Brother-in-law! Where did you even go?" Ye Yu pouted, fixing her hair.
"We've got too many enemies now—I need to grow stronger. This was part of my training."
As he said that, Xu Mu remembered the cultivation method in his mind—he still hadn't studied it yet.
It was from the Tang Dynasty era; maybe it had been lost for centuries.
"Oh, by the way, my brother called again yesterday," Ye Tong said suddenly.
"Ye Chen," Xu Mu murmured, eyes narrowing.