Opening her eyes, the first thing Su Yan saw was Yang Kai grinning at her with smug satisfaction. Her beautiful eyes flickered, and she ducked her head to deliver a light bite on his shoulder.
"That tickles." Yang Kai gave his shoulder a little shake.
"I've discovered that you have secrets!" Su Yan said with a radiant smile.
"Has anyone ever told you that your smile can make heaven and earth lose their color?" Yang Kai gazed at her, his eyes dazed with wonder.
A flush crept across Su Yan's face. She reached up to tuck a few stray strands of hair behind her ear and murmured, "From now on, I will only smile for one person..."
Yang Kai felt this happiness settle upon him like something heavy and solid.
"Let's cultivate first!" He reined in his thoughts and spoke in a low, steady voice.
Su Yan gave a slight nod.
Thirty drops of Yang Liquid were quickly devoured by her Cold Ice Force. When the energy cycled back into Yang Kai's body, it was absorbed directly by his Proud Bone Golden Body.
This discovery filled Yang Kai with delight.
Yang Liquid was immensely important to him, but the Proud Bone Golden Body was no less precious. This conversion between energy and vitality was exactly the kind of thing he welcomed.
Just as before, he detonated another thirty drops of Yang Liquid. The distending pressure that should have come with it failed to materialize. Frowning, Yang Kai detonated five more drops before the familiar sensation of bloating and soreness finally reached him.
That period of cultivation must have widened his meridians considerably—otherwise such an effect would have been impossible.
The Harmony Technique, the Dual Cultivation Art—truly powerful!
Once the energy converted from those thirty-five drops of Yang Liquid had been absorbed and merged by Su Yan, then cycled back into his body and devoured by the Proud Bone Golden Body, Yang Kai's body shuddered slightly. A fierce wind suddenly swept through the great hall, scattering their discarded clothes across the floor. An invisible aura of power exploded outward from Yang Kai as its epicenter, and visible ripples of energy radiated outward in all directions.
It took a good while before the disturbance gradually subsided.
Another breakthrough! Kaiyuan Realm, ninth layer! Less than a day since his last advance.
Su Yan noticed it too, and a look of shared celebration bloomed across her lovely face.
Yang Kai's mind was calm, yet beneath the surface stirred a quiet anticipation.
He wondered—could this dual cultivation push him through to the Qi Movement Realm?
After a moment's thought, he realized it would be difficult. He had burned through sixty-five drops of Yang Liquid just to break through a single minor stage, and the energy he'd received through dual cultivation with Su Yan was even more precious and refined than pure Yang Liquid.
Even if he used up every last drop of Yang Liquid remaining in his dantian, it would almost certainly not be enough to carry him into the Qi Movement Realm.
Still, regardless of the outcome, he had to give it everything he had this time!
Gritting his teeth, he detonated fifty more drops of Yang Liquid in a single burst and channeled the surging energy into Su Yan's body through the circulation of the cultivation art.
Su Yan's mind shook violently!
She had already been stunned the first time that massive torrent of True Yang Energy erupted from within Yang Kai's body. The second time had left her somewhat numb. Now, this third eruption of terrifying power shattered her composure once more.
Where did he find so much energy? A question flickered through her mind, but she did not ask. Instead, a gentle warmth blossomed in her heart.
Because... this was the man with whom she had shared the most intimate of connections—a man who, barring any unforeseen turn of fate, might be the one she would spend her entire life with.
The stronger he became, the happier Su Yan naturally felt.
A full three days passed before Yang Kai and Su Yan finally concluded their first dual cultivation session. Three days was a long time, yet in the state of body-and-mind unity and soul-merging they had shared, it felt like nothing more than a fleeting instant.
Three days later, both of them opened their eyes at the same time. Su Yan could clearly feel that through this dual cultivation, the Cold Ice Force within her had grown significantly more refined—leaping more than an entire tier above its previous level.
This discovery tempered any lingering regret over the loss of her innocence.
They exchanged a glance. Yang Kai's face was full of smiles. Su Yan's was full of bashfulness.
While immersed in cultivation, she had been unaware of much, but now she could hardly bear to look at the situation she was in.
She was straddling Yang Kai in an extraordinarily shameless posture, her arms looped around his neck. Neither of them wore so much as a thread—bare skin against bare skin, locked together in the closest possible union.
A scorching, rigid warmth pressed against her lower abdomen, filling both her body and mind. Su Yan could even feel it pulsing in a steady rhythm against her, each beat sending her thoughts into a tangle. Her whole body had gone limp, weak as struck by lightning, unable to muster even the slightest strength.
She had never imagined that there would come a day when she would remain in such a posture with a man, motionless, for three entire days. She had believed that after cultivating the Ice Heart Art and sealing away her heart and body, she would walk alone for the rest of her life—solitary until the end.
But now, because of a legacy, because of a dual cultivation art, she was bound in an inseparable bond with a man she had barely known.
She could not quite name the feeling. There was a wistful sense of loss, and there was also a quiet joy and happiness.
Mustering her courage, she looked toward Yang Kai. Her eyes brimmed with tenderness.
"Su Yan..." Yang Kai's gaze burned with fierce desire as it lingered on her pristine, porcelain face. The dual cultivation was over, the fire dragon and ice phoenix had long since vanished, yet Yang Kai still felt an irresistible allure eroding his reason. The tidal rush of sensation, the wet and warm contact—like ocean waves surging in to engulf him.
Su Yan pressed her crimson lips together tightly. Her hands cupped his face, and she lowered her head until their foreheads touched gently.
"Not yet!" Her voice trembled with a trace of struggle. Their physical union allowed her to easily glimpse the thoughts and desires churning in Yang Kai's mind, and refusing him at this moment required no small amount of resolve. "Let me help you break through first!"
As her words fell, a tremendous surge of energy flowed from Su Yan's body straight into Yang Kai's.