Such an arrogant woman would naturally never voice her current annoyance, let alone utter the name "Wuge." She merely lifted her chin, giving Fang Senyan a look that was both haughty and challenging. Within that gaze lay a mix of indignation and allure... but Fang Senyan only perceived the challenge—So, you're sitting here? What are you going to do about it?

"Don't push your luck..."

Fang Senyan was in a terrible mood, and precisely at this moment, someone was provoking him... and this someone couldn't be disciplined with fists! Thus, Fang Senyan abruptly spun around, dropping to one knee, bracing his hands on the wall on either side of Zi's head.

The resulting posture was intensely intimate: eyes met eyes, and the distance between their lips was measurable only in centimeters. They could even feel the warmth of the other's breath...

Fang Senyan's intention in doing this was to deliver a harsh retort, but adopting this position suddenly rendered his mind a complete blank. This was the first time he had ever been this close to Zi's exquisitely noble face, the first time he had caught the feminine fragrance emanating from her heated skin, the first time he had witnessed the look in her eyes—a blend of shock tinged with faint shyness.

Indeed, it was the first time a man had so forcefully breached Zi's personal space. Hence her astonishment; the shyness was merely an instinctual feminine response, while the shock accounted for a solid eighty percent.

"You damned woman, I warned you to get lost." Fang Senyan now felt as if a fire was scorching his insides. It was an agonizing pressure, and being a man who favored directness, his next move was neither gentlemanly nor polite.

Fang Senyan decisively pressed his mouth against Zi's slightly parted crimson lips, thrusting his tongue inside with lightning speed. His right hand forcefully encircled her back, pulling her close, while his left hand made no pretense of modesty as it gripped... Frankly, Fang Senyan had wanted to do this for a long time.

"Truly astonishing softness and resilience," Fang Senyan couldn't help but exclaim inwardly. As he thought this, he relentlessly savored the taste of Zi's mouth.

Zi, caught completely off guard by the sudden assault, was momentarily stunned, seemingly unprepared for such an event. Then, a profound, bone-deep languor washed over her, a heavy, lazy sensation as if she were submerged in warm water. Her heartbeat began to race. More strangely, her body seemed to revel in and yearn for the sensation, so in her bewilderment, Zi actually allowed things to progress...

It wasn't until Fang Senyan's hand brazenly sought the "third base"—the sensation of her tightly pressed legs being forcefully pried apart—that Zi snapped back to reality. She immediately struggled, making muffled protests, and upon realizing her efforts were futile, she bit down hard...

Fang Senyan let out a sharp cry of pain and immediately ceased his aggressive conquest of her body, asking angrily:

"What are you doing?"

Zi shot him a look of utter disdain while beginning to adjust her disheveled clothing:

"I despise those who take advantage of weakness."

"Take advantage of weakness... I was the one here trying to vent my emotions! You ran over here delivering yourself to my doorstep, and now you accuse me of taking advantage? Where is my weakness?" Fang Senyan furiously thought through these points, but he had no intention of voicing them. Arguing with a woman was a scenario where the man invariably lost, regardless of the outcome. Moreover, Fang Senyan was currently flushed with heat—could any man with normal function react otherwise? Thus, ignoring whatever Zi said, Fang Senyan lunged forward again!

This time, to avoid being bitten, Fang Senyan shifted his kisses to her neck, intending to shamelessly explore the sensation of being suckled.

Clearly, Zi was unwilling to surrender so easily, but when Fang Senyan whispered something in her ear, her body stiffened instantly, and her resistance immediately became token.

What Fang Senyan had said was:

"My current Strength is 110, my Vitality exceeds four thousand, and the distance between us can only be described in centimeters. Great Mage, do you really believe your resistance will be effective under these conditions?"

In fact, Zi had encountered situations where men attempted to molest her more than once, but thanks to her superior strength, she invariably ensured those with ill intentions met a terrible end. Therefore, she had always maintained an air of composure. However... Fang Senyan's pointed reminder made her suddenly realize that her usual assets were entirely inapplicable to the current predicament.

"Damn it, how could I forget about this?" A surge of vexation crossed her mind as her long, firm legs were forcefully parted.

Women truly are peculiar creatures; men can never fully decipher what goes on in their minds.

The ensuing sounds—gasps, cries of pain, suppressed moans, and the rhythmic slapping—need no further description. After a while, the sounds escalated from low to high, reaching a peak, and then slowly subsided. Zi was the first to emerge, moving out, though her expression was feigned calm, her high heels clicking sharply on the floor. Yet, the lingering blush on her cheeks and her slightly awkward gait betrayed her completely.

For Zi, the event was something she had psychologically prepared for. First, she was a normal woman with needs. Since there was no man around who met her standards, and Fang Senyan was only marginally superior to the others, he received the benefit. Her mentality was akin to having briefly 'played' a man; a deep analysis would conclude that in terms of sexual value, Fang Senyan stood on the same starting line as a female aphrodisiac.

As for their adventures in the Nightmare World, Zi was strictly compartmentalized: public matters were public, and private matters were private. She managed the E.S. Consortium with meticulous order precisely because she kept these spheres separate. Therefore, she would never indulge in frivolity in the life-or-death environment of the Nightmare World.

Fang Senyan, however, felt an indescribable emptiness—a mixed experience of being hollowed out and exhausted. This feedback translated into a single imperative: an unwillingness to think or do anything, desiring only to lie lazily still and drift into sleep.

Fortunately, Fang Senyan still possessed a sliver of rationality and willpower. He managed to drag himself up, using a shower to wring out the last vestiges of surplus energy, then staggered back to the real world, climbed onto the bed, and promptly fell into a deep slumber. The emotional trauma and the deep-seated fatigue began to slowly heal within that sleep.

It was impossible to tell how long he slept, but Fang Senyan was roused by a familiar and deeply tempting aroma. He suppressed the urge to sleep, turned over, and sat up, only to see Fourth Uncle Da puffing contentedly on his water pipe, watching him with a kindly, smiling gaze. The source of the fragrance was a large, coarse blue-and-white porcelain bowl on the nearby table: a bowl of shredded pork noodles.

Fourth Uncle Da’s shredded pork noodles were made with common ingredients: supermarket dried noodles, a broth simmered from a randomly selected fish mixed with cooking pork, and the pork shreds themselves—cut unevenly, roughly thirty percent fat and seventy percent lean. A splash of soy sauce, a pinch of MSG and salt, and a scattering of bright green and white scallions completed the dish.

Yet, for Fang Senyan, the memory of childhood and adolescence held the simple happiness of being able to eat a bowl of these noodles. He would chew the resilient noodles heartily, swallow them down, sip the fresh broth amidst the scent of scallions while eating the briefly blanched green vegetables. His habit was to finish the noodles first, drink all the soup, leaving behind a pile of tender meat shreds at the bottom, savoring the final mouthfuls of the half-fat, half-lean pork—a truly unforgettable pleasure.

Fourth Uncle Da’s cooking might have been slightly rustic, but the broth's rich base guaranteed its deliciousness. Coupled with the thirty-seventy lean-to-fat ratio of the meat, which prevented any dryness, Fang Senyan’s appetite was greatly stimulated.

Near the end, Fang Senyan even managed to chew up several marinated cuttlefish eggs hiding beneath the meat shreds. They were chewy and springy; biting down released a burst of savory juice that flooded his mouth with fragrant flavor. The price paid was that his teeth and tongue would be stained black. This was a local specialty only enjoyed by the seaside; if these eggs were pickled and dried, they would lose significantly in terms of color, aroma, and taste.

"Ah Da, is Sanzai awake yet?" Fang Senyan asked Fourth Uncle Da, draining the last drop of broth to his satisfaction. When no one else was around, he reverted to his father's dialect from Fourth Uncle Da's hometown when addressing him.

Fourth Uncle Da replied:

"He woke up ages ago. He specifically told me not to disturb you, saying you were tired."

Fang Senyan nodded with a smile:

"What's he busy with?"

"He seemed to be booking plane tickets. Didn't you say you were going to the mainland for business?" Fourth Uncle Da asked, puzzled.

Fang Senyan quickly covered for Sanzai:

"Yes, yes, that’s right. I just woke up, my brain isn't quite clear yet."

As Fang Senyan spoke, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind: What exactly was Sanzai planning to do on the mainland?

Recommending a book by a god-tier competition writer: The Victor Reaps, hehe. Lin Hai's new work, quality guaranteed. It’s eyeing my spot on the weekly recommendation chart. (Your support is my greatest motivation.) RV