The cool and soft sensation brushed against his lips—a fleeting touch, brief yet exquisite.
Yi Bai froze, instinctively licking the corner of his mouth, savoring the lingering warmth.
Across from him, Qing Yuan's composure shattered. Her crystalline hair flared like raging flames, and her body radiated a murderous intent that chilled the very air.
Meanwhile, Xier shrank shyly into Yi Bai's embrace, her amber eyes sparkling with an uncontainable excitement, though only the keenest observer would catch it.
Since unlocking her yandere tendencies and self-guided affection traits, Xier had discovered another novel thrill—one called rebellion.
"X-Xier, you—you—!"
Qing Yuan's voice quivered, her steely control cracking under the weight of disbelief.
Her daughter's kiss—a precious moment even she had rarely experienced—had just been stolen… right in front of her!
Unforgivable. Absolutely unforgivable.
Yi Bai, on the other hand, was having a mental breakdown of his own.
"Just kill me now," he thought, utterly resigned. If Xier really wanted to be affectionate, couldn't she at least have chosen a secluded corner?
But no. She had to do it right in front of her mother, who just so happened to be a top-tier Blood-Clad Specter.
His scalp prickled. Correction: it exploded.
On one side, a mischievous loli ready to take things even further. On the other, an enraged mother teetering on the brink of obliterating him, her murderous aura threatening to suffocate all in its path.
Caught helplessly in the middle, Yi Bai's heart cried out: "Save me, anyone!"
"Get down!"
"I won't!"
"Let him go!"
"Never!"
"Xier, are you defying your mother?!"
"I'll obey you, Mommy, in everything but matters involving Yi Bai big brother!"
The exchange was like pouring oil on Qing Yuan's fury, her translucent form trembling as if she might combust. For the first time in centuries, the powerful specter felt an unprecedented sense of helplessness.
Her daughter—the obedient, docile girl she had painstakingly nurtured over three centuries—was now completely derailed… within just one day.
And the culprit? The insignificant, hapless man standing before her.
Feeling the small arms gripping him ever tighter, Yi Bai coughed awkwardly.
He desperately wanted to say something to diffuse the situation. Anything to avoid becoming public enemy number one in this ghostly mother-daughter drama.
But Xier? Oh, she wasn't giving him that chance.
Seized by boldness, she leaned forward again, planting another kiss on Yi Bai's lips.
This time, it wasn't just Qing Yuan who froze; Yi Bai's brain short-circuited entirely.
Time crawled as icy sweat trickled down his temples.
In his mind, a constant refrain screamed: "This isn't right! This isn't me! Get a grip, Yi Bai!"
But his inner turmoil clashed with an undeniable thrill—a part of him couldn't help but feel exhilarated.
"No, stop! This is madness!"
Yet when he glanced at Qing Yuan, his nerves only frayed further.
Her expression was unreadable—a tangled mess of rage, grief, and resignation. Even the Eye of Insight, his gifted ability to analyze emotions, failed to interpret her aura.
"Mom," Xier suddenly said, her soft voice cutting through the tension like a blade.
Her one-word call snapped Qing Yuan out of her trance.
The specter's glowing, mirror-like body dimmed, her violent aura receding. A forced calmness took over her delicate features, though her eyes held a storm of unspoken emotions.
"Mommy won't hurt him," Qing Yuan said softly, her voice gentler than Yi Bai ever imagined possible. "But… promise Mommy one thing, okay?"
Her words carried a desperation that made Yi Bai shudder.
But promises with yanderes? Everyone knew those were traps.
Before Qing Yuan could finish her plea, the thing she feared most came to pass.
In Xier's hands, a small, ornate mirror shimmered like a fragment of the stars.
The light intensified, dazzling and divine, before the mirror abruptly dissolved into a streak of radiance that shot into Yi Bai's forehead.
In an instant, the contract was sealed.
Yi Bai stood dumbfounded.
"What… just happened?"
He had expected Xier's desire to stay with him forever to manifest as locking him in the mirrored world, forcing him to remain at her side.
Instead, she had tethered herself to him in a way far more profound.
In the chilling realm of the Thrilling Game, ghosts could forge contracts with players under its mysterious rules, creating an unbreakable bond.
For most humans, this was an irresistible opportunity to gain extraordinary power.
But Yi Bai? He hadn't even been given a choice.
In the depths of his soul, he knew there was no escape—not from Xier's unwavering devotion, nor from the consequences of becoming her contracted partner.
The thought lingered, heavy and inevitable:
"With temptation like this… who could possibly resist?"