Douluo Dalu 2: Way of Heaven

"So that's how it is..."

Huo Yutong nodded thoughtfully. It wasn't deliberate—he'd been constrained by circumstance.

"Couldn't the academy treat it?"

Huo Yutong gazed sympathetically at the tall beauty.

"Either an ultimate Martial Soul suppresses it, or she takes immortal herbs like her ancestor," An Zhen explained.

Wang Dong'er suddenly sensed something amiss. That coolly enchanting face, the peach-like curve of her hips, those long legs sheathed in black silk... Even as a girl, she knew men would covet such beauty. And with An Zhen's lustful nature—able to animate NPC puppets—would he really refrain from... misdeeds?

The young mistress glanced down at her own thin camisole dress, its hem barely covering half her thighs.

Confirmed. He absolutely would.

Though he spent nights with them, his days were free. Rumor said Class Nine's monitor appeared to sleep in class yet studied and cultivated simultaneously.

"Mmph."

Wang Dong'er felt a sudden weight atop her head.

A fair hand instinctively found its target—the soft flesh at An Zhen's waist—and twisted 720 degrees.

"Done."

Gently patting the girl's head, An Zhen said, "You just took a Blackwater Pill. Wait five or six days before another, then the Soul Ascension Pill after it's fully absorbed."

"Mhm-mhm!"

The flushed girl suddenly leaped up, wrapped her arms around An Zhen's neck, and pressed her jelly-soft lips to his cheek before darting away.

"I'll... go practice Tang Sect techniques!"

"So adorable."

Amusement glinted in An Zhen's dark eyes as they followed the blue-haired girl. His fingers brushed the damp spot on his cheek.

He turned to Wang Dong'er beside him, smiling at the exquisite beauty. "Tired from twisting? Need a break?"

Nothing in the virtual world escaped him.

"Here, even if you quartered me, I'd feel nothing unless I wished it."

With a thought, pink ribbons descended from the air, coiling around Wang Dong'er's body. Pale skin strained against the bindings, her youthful figure displayed in perfect detail—an immaculate kinbaku restraint.

"Well? Pink for a maiden's heart."

An Zhen toyed with a small sphere, smiling at the suspended girl.

"You... what are you planning?!"

Wang Dong'er's eyes darted between the sphere and her compromising position, dread coiling in her chest.

"Nothing."

In this world, An Zhen could only toggle sensation on or off. Future soul rings might grant full control—converting any feeling into... cough. Or complete mastery over memory, ability...

"Did Wang Dong'er get jealous just because I might have touched Ma Xiaotao's NPC?"

"What you do is none of my business!"

She huffed, turning away.

"I did."

The boy's gaze held hers.

"Everything described in those illicit books. More."

No point denying it.

"..."

Something shattered in Wang Dong'er's chest. Sourness flooded her heart; her vision blurred.

She'd just found someone she liked.

They'd only just begun...

Why?

"Want an explanation?"

An Zhen idly stroked a suspended pink foot.

"Speak!"

Her voice rasped.

He lowered the bound girl, gathering her into his arms. Tears like dewdrops streaked her porcelain face—a heartbreaking sight that would make any observer curse her tormentor.

"The evil fire is Ma Xiaotao's Martial Soul backlash. Wang Dong'er, mine has backlash too."

"?" She stared blankly.

His lips brushed her eyelids, nose, then mouth—the moist contact and masculine scent overwhelming her senses. An Zhen explained how his Martial Soul stripped away his emotions.

"An elder once said: Everything in this world has its price."

"My Martial Soul is powerful? Extremely. It replaces reality with dream-world illusions, copies others' soul skills. But this power demands payment."

"So... resisting it means losing your emotions?" Sapphire eyes reflected his face.

"All of them. A lifeless machine. No sorrow. No joy."

"I refuse to become that. That wouldn't be me."

So An Zhen chose to indulge his desires.

He could strengthen other emotions—like loving someone deeply. Love might counter the World's erosion.

But he was selfish. He couldn't abandon his life for one person, nor love to the point of madness. Beyond his abilities, he was ordinary.

Wang Dong'er's lips parted. She chose to believe him. Because she wanted to. And because his logic held—his Martial Soul was terrifyingly strong.

"I swear, if I'm lying—"

"Don't!"

A small hand clamped over his mouth. "I believe you!"

"Don't swear recklessly!" She scolded.

"Still angry?"

An Zhen held his girl tighter. "Hit me if you are. I've turned sensation on."

"Hmph!"

The pink-blue-haired beauty snorted, then raised her hand—

"Mmph..."

An odd sensation flooded An Zhen—but not pain.

...

"You... go find that Ma Xiaotao for that." Legs bare and trembling, Wang Dong'er fled. She needed to wash her hands, her feet, change clothes.

"Adorable."

A tsundere girl with a kind heart.

Who protected Huo Yutong for her fragility and resilience.

Who compromised her own comfort for his needs.

"It'll always be this way."

The boy vowed silently.

Just need to eliminate a certain transmigrator later.

Tang Wutong?

Never heard of her. His girlfriend is Wang Dong'er.

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