Ship deck. Morning.

Standing by the ship's edge, Bubai raised his hand, knocking on the empty air in front of him, only to feel it come into contact with an invisible barrier. This was the wind barrier, serving not only to curb the strong winds but also to prevent passengers from falling off the ship… and escaping.

After an entire afternoon and night of convincing Xiao Lan, he finally freed himself from his cabin.

However, it wasn't until he explored the ship that he realized his idea of jumping ship was a mere fantasy. If he wanted to escape, it wasn’t the people he had to deal with first. The barrier was the first obstacle he had to overcome.

No wonder the old man was still busy enjoying himself with one woman after another, paying him no heed. He had no worries about Bubai escaping, even if he managed to convince Xiao Lan to let him out.

Letting out a sigh, Bubai clasped his hands behind his back and stared down at the landscape of mountains and forests quickly scrolling by far below. "At this speed, we'll enter the territory of the Sun Furnace Sect soon?"

Behind him, the pale-faced Xiao Lan, dressed in her silky white robe, observed Bubai's back. One of her hands crossed over her chest, holding the other arm, as if feeling vulnerable. However, her face remained expressionless as she responded, "Yes."

Turning around and seeing her seemingly vulnerable form, Bubai walked over and pulled her cool, soft body into his warm embrace. He asked in a gentle voice as he looked at her face, "Cold?"

Xiao Lan's iceberg face turned away from his heated gaze as she responded in a cool tone, "I'm not a weak woman who will fall for these tricks."

Bubai's eyes were deep as he smiled playfully. "I know. That's why I tamed you another way."

"You-" Xiao Lan's eyes briefly flashed with anger when she looked back. However, in the end, she closed her eyes. When she opened them once more, they were filled with calmness.

Gazing into her eyes, akin to a deep blue sea, Bubai sensed that he had finally cracked her shell, although it would take some time to plant his seed within her.

But, time was something he had plenty of now, especially given his inability to escape. In a new and unfamiliar place, having more people he could use was advantageous, and he intended to make her one of them.

After a prolonged silence of staring at each other, Bubai finally inquired, "So, are you finally going to tell me how you ended up here?"

Xiao Lan remained silent, her face deadpan. "Why do you want to know?"

"I told you yesterday, didn't I? No matter what, I am willing to stand on your side," Bubai declared as he leaned in for a kiss.

However, Xiao Lan turned her face to the side, responding in a cool tone, "I came here to save someone."

"Save someone?" Bubai arched a brow. "Who could make you sacrifice so much?"

Xiao Lan didn't respond, closing her eyes in silence, as if reluctant to reveal more.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

Bubai's thoughts sifted through the fragmented details he had extracted from her during his overnight interrogation after she begged for rest.

He had learned many interesting tidbits, including the fact that her cultivation had fallen from Foundation Establishment to late-stage Qi-refinement after being used as a cauldron for cultivation by her former master.

Amidst these details, he recalled a piece that seemed relevant time-wise. "Your former master was... Mo Tianren?"

Xiao Lan's eyelids trembled, as if suppressing some unpleasant memories, before she answered in a low voice, "Yes."

What a coincidence! Bubai's thoughts raced as he seemed to find a connection. "Fang Bubai?"

Xiao Lan's closed eyes snapped open, her head quickly swiveling to stare at Bubai. After biting her purplish lips, she asked, "How do you know that name?"

"Fang Bubai," Bubai stated. "He was the one who challenged and killed Mo Tianren of the Earth Ranking. As long as one is not dead, they would have heard this news."

Hearing this, Xiao Lan's expression quickly returned to calmness, and Bubai continued to scrutinize her face. "I heard he was seeking revenge... for a woman."

Xiao Lan maintained her silence, and Bubai pressed on. "That woman is you, isn't it?"

Still, Xiao Lan offered no response.

"So, you sacrificed yourself to save him, didn't you?"

After a moment of silence, Xiao Lan lowered her head slightly. "So what if it is? So what if it is not."

As if he had cracked a case like a seasoned detective, Bubai felt a sense of accomplishment, and a cheeky smile appeared on his face. However, this smile soon faltered.

Wait a sec.

Xiao Lan sacrificed herself to save someone, that someone came back to avenge her, and after avenging her, he failed to save her but managed to escape. This meant that he would likely come back for her in the future.

Then, the protagonist defeats the villain and reclaims the beauty. This was the proper romantic tale of star-crossed lovers with a fitting protagonist.

But there was now one significant problem.

The beauty was currently in his possession, and it seemed he had inherited the role of Mo Tianren as the villain.

Oh, no. Bubai felt his heart palpitate. It seemed that the old geezer had pitted him big time.

He was certain that the old geezer knew the trouble an escaped genius could bring and certainly didn't want to bear the brunt of the genius's anger when he returned to seek revenge.

So, a scapegoat had to be pushed to the forefront, and he happened to be the unlucky one picking the peaches - a rotten peach, to be exact.

Shoot! He should have known! An iceberg beauty such as Xiao Lan, how could that lusty old geezer not want to play with her himself? He should have known this woman was trouble when that old geezer gave her away so magnanimously.

What kind of heaven-defying genius could cause a Golden Core realm cultivator to avoid his edge?

A bead of sweat rolled down Bubai’s face as he realized he had fallen for the beauty trap and entered deep into the hole.

He trained with her over and over again, made her perform for him over and over… At this moment, his essence was still flowing out from where he left them!

It wasn’t just a dream, there was no denying it. He just screwed with one of the protagonist’s women.

He felt his body heat up as he overclocked his brain to plan a way out from his future nightmare. As time passed, he seemed to feel himself getting hotter and hotter, with the only cool sensation coming from the soft body in front of him. Huh?

Bubai snapped out of his daze, looking at the iceberg beauty who was still silently staring at him, her body radiating a cool temperature that made him involuntarily hold her tighter. “Why is it so hot all of a sudden?”

Xiao Lan glanced down at the naughty hand that had slipped under her silky robe, but her expression remained unchanged as she uttered, “See for yourself.”

Bubai tilted his head slightly before turning around and walking over to the edge of the ship with his arm coiled around Xiao Lan’s waist.

Peering over the edge, Bubai's eyes widened slightly in shock when he saw the endless expanse of sand dunes stretching into the distance.

Looking back, he could see a chasm extending out into the unknown edges of the desert, separating the desert from the distant mountains and lustrous forests receding into the horizon. “Here is… the desert?”

Xiao Lan dully stared at the passing sand below, introducing in a soft voice, “The Sunfire Desert. We’ve entered the territory of the Sun Furnace Sect.”