Lin Tian lay beside Su Lan, the warmth of her body seeping into his side. The frantic heat of moments before had settled into a deep, glowing calm. He could feel the difference inside himself, like a shattered vase meticulously glued back together.
The constant, grinding ache in his meridians was gone.
Su Lan shifted, pulling the thin blanket over them both. Her movements were slow, deliberate. "Your pulse," she murmured, her voice husky. "It's… stable now."
He turned his head to look at her. The sharp angles of her face were softened in the dim light. "Your congestion?"
"It's cleared." She let out a breath that was almost a laugh. "It's never been that clear. The Flowing Ember Body… it needs a counterweight. I didn't understand how much."
They lay in silence for a while, listening to each other breathe. The clinical transaction was over, and what remained was awkward and real.
"The bond," Lin Tian said finally.
"I need to check," he said, and closed his eyes.
