Under the influence of the Love-Confusing Pearl, only lust remained in the hearts of Ji Shiyou and Mingyue.
Mingyue clung to Ji Shiyou like a vine.
Ji Shiyou closed his eyes, struggling internally, barely holding on.
But as Mingyue's hands roamed his body, the fire of lust within him grew more intense.
Mingyue's warmth and her gasps made Ji Shiyou lose control.
All he could think of was Mingyue's every smile and glance.
Her charming demeanor stirred his heart.
At that moment, his lips felt softness and fragrance.
It was Mingyue, lost in lust, kissing him.
Unlike their previous encounter in the Qian Tian Illusion, where their lips merely brushed.
This kiss was aggressive, passionate, and filled with desire.
Mingyue was like a person dying of thirst in a desert, suddenly finding a clear spring, and that spring was in Ji Shiyou's mouth.
Cupping Ji Shiyou's head, Mingyue explored and sucked madly.
Ji Shiyou's mind exploded like fireworks, as if the sky had fallen and the earth had cracked, all else vanished.
He had fallen, lost control, and opened his eyes.
He pulled Mingyue into a fierce embrace, responding intensely.
At that moment, a beam of light erupted from their entwined bodies, enveloping them both.
The passionately kissing pair felt a jolt, their senses regaining a sliver of clarity.
Like being electrocuted, they pushed each other away.
Their eyes widened with shock and disbelief as they looked at each other.
For they realized that their souls, which they had tried countless times to switch back, had returned.
Their souls had returned to their respective bodies.
However, before they could recover or react, the aphrodisiac effect of the Love-Confusing Pearl made them lose their minds again.
Lust consumed them, and they looked at each other, slowly drawing closer, and becoming entangled once more.
...
For a time, within the barrier at the bottom of the Azure Wave Pond, boundless passion ensued.
After a night of passion, they fell into a deep sleep.
"How embarrassing. Will Ji Shiyou kill me when he wakes up?"
Mingyue opened her eyes, her face flushed with shame.
The scenes before she fell asleep were vivid in her mind.
Glancing at Ji Shiyou beside her, she felt a pang of guilt.
Although the Love-Confusing Pearl's effects were potent, they did not cause amnesia.
Every moment was clearly retained, and the impressions were so deep that forgetting was impossible.
Mingyue clearly remembered that whether it was when the drug first took effect or after their souls had returned, she seemed to have been the one initiating.
She had even torn Ji Shiyou's clothes, and looking at the scratches on his body, Mingyue feared that Ji Shiyou would not let her off when he woke up.
So, she quietly got up, put on her clothes, and prepared to leave quickly before Ji Shiyou woke up.
Otherwise, if Ji Shiyou woke up, he, who was so upright, proper, and valued rules, would surely be furious if she had forced herself on him. He would probably split her, a perfectly good Pear Blossom Tree Demon, into two charred logs.
Thinking that her life was more important, she decided to leave first.
But just as she tiptoed towards the entrance of the barrier, as if she were a thief, Ji Shiyou's voice sounded from behind, tinged with displeasure.
"Where are you going?"
In fact, Ji Shiyou had woken up before Mingyue, and all the scenes were as clear to him.
However, the look in his eyes towards Mingyue had changed, filled with doting and admiration.
He had just figured out why he had been acting so strangely these past few days.
Because, without him realizing it, he had fallen in love with this money-grubbing, adorably clumsy little tree demon.
He decided he had to take responsibility for Mingyue and marry her.
So, he closed his eyes, contemplating how he would speak to Mingyue later.
But seeing Mingyue wake up and quietly try to leave on her own, Ji Shiyou felt a flicker of displeasure, and thus asked in a cold tone.
"Ah! You're awake?
It's like this, we were forced to travel together to Sifang Mountain because of our bodies being swapped.
Now that our bodies have been swapped back, we can go our separate ways."
Mingyue was startled by Ji Shiyou's sudden question.
She calmed herself, turned around, pretended to be nonchalant, and replied calmly.
"You want to leave that badly?
So, what happened between us is just forgotten?"
Ji Shiyou felt a pang of sadness, feeling abandoned.
"Of course, it's forgotten. What else do you want?
We were under the influence of the Love-Confusing Pearl, it was involuntary, not intentional.
Let's just treat it as a dream and forget about it.
Let's not mention it again. The mountains are high and the waters are long, we'll meet again someday!"
Mingyue's heart pounded. It was over. Ji Shiyou was going to hold her responsible.
So, she pretended to be indifferent and said gallantly.
Then, she cupped her fists and turned to flee.
"Very well, it's just a dream?
Even so, don't you want your storage bag anymore?
Are you no longer interested in the treasures of Sifang Mountain?
And what about the Moonlight Pendant, and the Golden Crown? Don't you want them?"
Mingyue's indifferent attitude made Ji Shiyou unable to utter the words of responsibility he had prepared.
Seeing Mingyue about to leave, Ji Shiyou suddenly spoke.
"Oh no."
Mingyue patted her chest and realized that in her haste, she had only put on her clothes and forgotten her storage bag.
The Golden Crown was still on Ji Shiyou's head, and she had forgotten to take it.
"Give them to me. These were all gifts you gave me, you can't go back on your word.
I will go to Sifang Mountain myself, you don't need to worry about me."
Mingyue rushed back to Ji Shiyou's side, picked up her storage bag from the ground.
She found the Moonlight Pendant amidst the disheveled clothes.
Then, she tried to take the Golden Crown from Ji Shiyou's head, but seeing that Ji Shiyou was not wearing any clothes, she quickly covered her eyes and demanded the Golden Crown.
"Travel with me, and you'll receive a magic treasure every day."
Ji Shiyou slowly got up, put on the clothes Mingyue had torn.
He reached up, took off the Golden Crown from his head, and handed it to Mingyue.
With just one sentence, he made Mingyue abandon her idea of leaving.
He was indeed ruthless and spoke little, directly hitting Mingyue's weak spot.
He knew that he was the only one interested at the moment.
However, he would not give up, so he cunningly exploited Mingyue's weakness.
He planned to keep her by his side and make Mingyue fall in love with him in the shortest possible time.
Mingyue indeed took the bait, putting the Golden Crown into her storage bag.
She extended her hand in front of Ji Shiyou, fearlessly demanding today's reward.
Since she had agreed, it should start from today.
"Ten days' worth."
The wealthy Ji Shiyou waved his hand, directly producing ten magic treasures.
He generously handed them to Mingyue, feeling fortunate for his foresight.
For this mission, he had specifically gone to the Golden Crow Palace's treasury before setting out and had scavenged quite a few magic treasures. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to manipulate Mingyue so easily today.
Both of them were happy, and together they left the barrier, surfacing onto the shore.
At this moment, a red sun was rising from the horizon, and the peaks of Kongming Mountain were shrouded in mist and clouds.
Tian Jian, leading his junior disciples, had waited all night.
If the two of them didn't come up soon, he would have to go down.
"Eldest Senior Brother, Fairy Mingyue, you've finally come out."
"Fairy Mingyue, how was it? Did you resolve the matter with the Great Immortal of Azure Waves?"
"Eldest Senior Brother, why did you suddenly go down?"
...
Seeing their Eldest Senior Brother and Mingyue emerge from the water, everyone gathered around, bombarding them with questions.
Ji Shiyou remained silent, his sharp gaze falling on Jun Shuxue, who was hiding to the side.