"This Queen doesn't need… you meddling in her affairs. Can't I prick myself for fun if I wish to?"
Halfway through her sentence, Queen Medusa hastily changed her words.
Yes—why should she have to explain herself?
Hearing her proud and tsundere tone, Chen Mo simply smiled and didn't expose her excuse. Instead, his hand slid along the inside of her thigh as he asked softly, "My Queen, how's your injury?"
"Take your hand away."
Feeling his mischievous touch on her leg, Medusa let out a soft, annoyed hiss and slapped his hand.
Chen Mo withdrew it—only to rest it again on her smooth thigh, gently caressing the soft, delicate skin that felt entirely different from Ya Fei's.
"I can already walk again. Once this Queen fully recovers, I'll teach you a proper lesson," she said coldly, though her tone carried a faint tremor.
Chen Mo chuckled and turned her over so that she lay face-down against his chest. From his spatial ring, he drew out a crimson token and held it before her eyes.
"This is the Elder Token of the force I recently established—Shadow Pavilion. The red token represents an Elder's authority."
Medusa pressed a slender hand against his chest and lifted herself slightly, raising a cool gaze to meet his. "And why are you giving this to me?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.
"Of course, to invite my beloved Queen to join Shadow Pavilion."
"This Queen is the ruler of the Snake-People Tribe. You expect me to join your nameless, fledgling force? You certainly dream big."
"Oh? Then forget it. There aren't many Elder Tokens anyway—perhaps I'll give it to little Die instead."
"You dare," Medusa snapped, snatching the token from his hand before he could react. She studied it closely, her sharp eyes gleaming.
"You can infuse it with a strand of your soul power to form a bond and check its functions," Chen Mo said with a teasing glint in his gaze.
Still doubtful, Medusa hesitated, then injected a wisp of soul power into the token. A faint mark formed, and instantly she felt a connection with it.
Her pupils contracted. "Increased cultivation speed… enhanced recovery effects…" She looked up at Chen Mo in disbelief.
This man was becoming more and more unfathomable.
"Queen, are you falling for my charm?" Chen Mo said with a grin. "Thinking of devoting yourself to me and giving birth to a nest of adorable little snake babies?"
Medusa's beautiful brows arched sharply. No matter how mysterious he became, one truth would never change—he was still a shameless scoundrel.
His hand slid from her back down to her waist, fingers tugging lightly at the knot of her sash. "By the way, my Queen, you still haven't told me—where's little Die?"
Panic flashed in her eyes as she quickly pressed down on his hand. "Naturally, she went back to her own room. What? Were you hoping to play the dragon between two phoenixes?"
Chen Mo blinked, then smirked. "Oh? So you know that saying, 'one dragon, two phoenixes'. Then maybe I should—"
He flipped her over, pressing her beneath him, his breathing quickening.
"You dare!" Medusa's eyes widened in alarm.
"Want to see if I dare?"
She was still injured and in no state to resist him. Before she could react, the silk robe was already undone.
"This Queen's… this Queen's injuries haven't healed yet," she said anxiously.
"Then what am I supposed to do? I've been craving you for so long…"
Chen Mo only teased her—he knew she wasn't fully recovered.
"Do whatever you please. It has nothing to do with this Queen," she muttered coldly, her voice tinged with shy defiance.
"Whatever I please, huh?" Chen Mo leaned in, kissed her eyelid gently, and then took her hand in his—
A long while later…
Chen Mo lay sprawled on the bed in blissful exhaustion, forming the shape of a great "T," while Queen Medusa sat at the bedside, delicately wiping her snow-white feet.
When she finished, Chen Mo's arm snaked around her slim waist, pulling her into his embrace. He kissed her small nose and toyed with a strand of her violet hair.
"When you and little Die have recovered," he said softly, "I want to take you both to the Black-Corner Region and finish off Han Feng once and for all."
Medusa had been about to vent her irritation again, but when he mentioned Han Feng, her expression hardened. "That bastard… we've let him escape too many times. This time, he must die."
Han Feng had brought too many calamities upon the Snake-People Tribe.
The curtains of the bed swayed gently. Medusa lay on her side, her cheek flushed faintly red as she rested against his arm.
It seemed that only when discussing serious matters could she momentarily forget the embarrassment from earlier.
The two discussed the details of their plan.
Once the conversation ended, Medusa's attention shifted again, and her sharp gaze fell on Chen Mo. "So… how far have things gone between you and that fox woman?"
"Just holding hands," he replied casually.
Her eyes narrowed. "…And?"
"And… hugging and kissing," he admitted.
"No further?" Her voice turned icy as her amethyst eyes bore into him.
"No."
"Truly none?" she pressed, clearly suspicious.
"She was badly injured. What could I possibly do?" Chen Mo said helplessly, seeing her trying to act composed while obviously jealous.
Medusa finally nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Keep it that way. If I ever find out otherwise, this Queen will kill… her."
"..."
Thank the heavens he hadn't mentioned Feng Wei—if Medusa ever discovered that Yun Yun was the leader of the Phoenix Guard, she'd lose her mind.
Chen Mo wiped the sweat from his forehead, then, in a deliberately provocative tone, tested her temper. "My Queen, why not try accepting her too?"
Medusa's beautiful eyes flashed with murderous intent. "Bastard, don't push your luck! This Queen already tolerates you and my sister! Don't test my patience. You can try if you think I'm bluffing.
Back then, I had the heart to stab you once—if I can't bear to kill you, then killing them would take me less than a blink!"
"Alright, alright, calm down. I was only asking—no need to get angry."
"This Queen can't calm down—ugh…"
The next morning.
Although Die didn't live in the same residence as her sister, she naturally had her own informants in Qinghong City.
So the moment Chen Mo returned last night, she had already been informed.
After washing up early in the morning, she carried a freshly mended white robe and a newly crafted fragrance pouch toward her sister's room.
The pouch wasn't particularly difficult to make, but Die had stitched it with care. The embroidery featured two lifelike mandarin ducks, along with their names and the date they first met.
When she reached her sister's chamber, she found Qing Lin and Yue Nu standing guard outside. Yue Nu recognized her immediately—she had seen Chen Mo enter the Queen's room the previous night and was about to report it.
But Die stopped her, took the washbasin from Qing Lin's hands, and gently dismissed them both.
Without knocking, she carried the tray inside and quietly shut the door behind her.
The two on the bed were clearly awake. When Queen Medusa saw her sister enter, her face instantly turned crimson.
She hastily grabbed the quilt beside her, wrapping it tightly around her alluring body as she stammered, "S-sister… why are you here?"
****
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