Immortal Lion of Fortune He Xinghan was an arrogant man. As a Spirit Lord of Beast God Sanctum and the first in line to take over the lion faction, it was natural to him as breathing and eating. If any other woman spoke to him like Jin Niang was doing, he would have not stood for it at all. Of his handful of official wives, countless concubines, and even more female disciples that warmed his bed, none of them would have dared to act like Jin Niang.
However, Jin Niang was special. Even for a man who had his choice of beautiful women, it was possible for one of them to occupy a large part of his heart and she was the one.
He Xinghan and Jin Niang have known each other for a long time. Although the Jin Family was firmly in the snake lord's camp, a budding Jin Niang caught the eye of He Xinghan when he was still an impressionable young man. She also fell in love with him and the pair started an illicit relationship. He could claim to have stolen her virginity but she could argue that she had given it willingly. Against the backdrop of strained relations between the three factions, the pair continued their love affair without a care.
Their relationship was so strong that it didn't matter that Jin Niang had to marry another man. As the young miss of the Jin Family, she was naturally betrothed to Zhuge Ming, the young lord of the snake faction. And yet, she did not stop loving He Xinghan. They continued to meet in secret every chance they got and she even conceived He Xinghan's child the night before she was to marry Zhuge Ming.
The child that came out of that was Jin Zenan. His original name was Zhuge Zenan and assumed to be the first-born son of Zhuge Ming. Nobody suspected a thing and thus Jin Zenan was raised up as a successor and taught the precious snake-skin transformation art. However, as a way to hide his important identity, Zhuge Zenan often used his mother's surname and traveled around as Jin Zenan. After the snake lord fell, it was natural that he kept the false name over his real one.
These were the reasons He Xinghan felt helpless in front of Jin Niang. She had given him her virtue and love. She had given him a talented son with a Spirit King Realm beast transformation art. She had even delivered the Jin Family to the lion faction. All the time, she had never asked anything of him. She was never jealous of the countless other women he bedded and impregnated. She held on believing in his promise that he would marry her one day and that they could be together.
"Sigh… I think... it's about time we let this secret out to the world." He Xinghan said finally, "Zenan's snake-skin transformation art has been revealed. The secret will come out sooner or later. Only… it will be tougher on you since…"
"I don't care. You promised."
"I know… And I will fulfill it. As soon as my father agrees, I will send a wedding procession of a hundred carriages to the Jin Family."
"Hmph, you better!"
The pair finally shared a laugh and hug.
"I should go, it is getting late."
Before she could run, He Xinghan caught her hand with a glint in his eye, "Xiao Niang, since you're here. Just stay the night."
"Okay." She replied quickly, as if she was already expecting it.
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Crack!
Jasmine turned a piece of stone to dust as she listened to Chen Wentian report on the information he had uncovered throughout the night. They were hiding underground within the Glittering Forest, making their way steadily towards Queen Sundew.
"These sluts and adulterers, when I get my hands on them, I will blast them into pieces! These people that betrayed my adopted father, I will never forgive them! I knew the lion and eagle factions had been scheming against us for a long time. I didn't expect that their schemes went so deep as to undermine the foundation. No wonder… no wonder it happened so quickly."
"Don't worry. I will help you make them all pay for their crimes. But thinking about it…" Chen Wentian chuckled, "This He Xinghan is an interesting person. I always thought he was a bit of an idiot. I never expected that he had a soft side."
"Uh huh… a soft side that lets his woman marry another man. Peh! Someone like that isn't a man at all. If he was a real man, he would have fought with Zhuge Ming for his woman. But I'm sure he was weaker at that time and also never really truly loved her anyway. Men are always like that, playing with women's hearts!"
"What about me?" Chen Wentian asked as he hugged her close.
Amidst the sea of beast furs that acted as a bed, Jasmine tried to push him away but his hands were too persistent.
"You? Barely above average."
He laughed, "Oh yeah? I'm barely above average, then let me show you how this barely above average man will make you scream out my name over and over."
He leaned in and started peppering her with soft kisses, roaming along her slender neck, exposed shoulders, and even down towards her almost non-existent breasts.
"Pervert… ahhh… stop, there was one more thing… Ahhh… I wanted to ask." She finally pushed his face away and gave him a glare.
"Hmm?" He said as he licked his lips, savoring her taste.
"What about the southern front, it should be the one named White Deng's territory. How are we going to handle it?"
"I got it covered. General Kong has already made contact with White Deng. They had some history going back several decades. You know these mantises, can never say no to a good meal."
Jasmine nodded, "Oh, I forgot about that one. You have so many souls running around. It's hard to keep track. So, we are good to go?"
"Yeah, we are good to attack Queen Sundew's lair directly. Tomorrow, Beast God Sanctum is holding a large auction. Ziyun and Yuechan will continue to cause trouble. Ziyun has a few surprises in store so it should be explosive. He Zicheng and Qu Shen's attention will be solely on them."
"Good, tomorrow, we'll finally go all out."
"Actually…" Chen Wentian leaned in towards her, "I think I want to go all out right now."
"What… ahhh!"
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A/N This arc is rather long. It is split into two volumes. So, this is the end of the first volume. There will be a break of a few side stories before the arc resumes.