Chapter 153 Since you want to hide, then... I won't force you.

After saying that, he seemed unable to control his surging emotions any longer. He suddenly turned his head and buried his face in the crook of her neck, his teeth gently touching her exposed skin.

However, the pain that Jiang Dusheng expected did not come.

He ultimately couldn't bear to exert himself.

That light bite from the tip of the teeth was more like a mark of endless greed and unwavering stubbornness.

A touch that tries to imprint her scent firmly into the depths of one's soul.

Hot lips brushed against cool skin, sending shivers down the spine.

Just as Jiang Dusheng was stunned by the overly intimate contact, his mind went blank and his body stiffened, unsure of how to react.

A drop of warm liquid landed unexpectedly on her equally burning neck.

They are tears.

These are... Xie Jinchen's tears?

That tear seemed to carry a scorching heat, instantly bringing Jiang Dusheng back to his senses.

Xie Jinchen seemed embarrassed by his momentary loss of control.

His body stiffened almost imperceptibly.

Then, he closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, he forcibly suppressed the madness and moisture in his eyes, leaving only a bottomless silence and self-mockery.

Xie Jinchen took a step back, creating distance, as if everything that had just happened was just an illusion.

"it is good."

His voice returned to calm, yet it was a calmness that sent shivers down one's spine: "Since you want to hide, then... I won't force you."

After saying that, he actually turned around and was about to walk out of the temple.

His back was straight, yet it conveyed loneliness and determination.

Jiang Dusheng felt a sudden panic, as if something important was about to slip through his fingers and never be found or held back in this lifetime.

Her body reacted before her consciousness could.

Jiang Dusheng strode forward and grabbed Xie Jinchen's arm.

"Xie Jinchen!" Her voice carried an urgency and panic she herself was unaware of. "I...I didn't mean to hide."

Xie Jinchen stopped in his tracks. He didn't turn around immediately, but turned his head slightly to the side, as if waiting, or as if he had already given up hope.

Jiang Dusheng gripped his sleeve tightly, his knuckles turning white.

She could feel the stiffness in his arm muscles, and she could feel her heart pounding like a drum, almost shattering her sternum.

Jiang Dusheng lowered his head, seemingly struggling with his own inner confusion and understanding, his voice filled with unprecedented bewilderment and honesty:

"Xie Jinchen, I grew up in a temple. My master and fellow disciples taught me Buddhist scriptures, how to observe one's own mind, subdue delusions, and how to liberate the souls of the dead and appease vengeful spirits..."

"How to see through the illusions of the world and not be attached to external appearances."

Jiang Dusheng raised his head and looked at Xie Jinchen's face, which had finally slowly turned around. His eyes were filled with genuine confusion, like a lost child.

"They told me that all beings are equal, to be compassionate, and to walk in the world with a mind as clear as a mirror, untouched by dust. I remembered that, and I have always... thought I was doing it that way."

"They taught me many principles of this world—how to guide souls, how to save people, how to cultivate one's mind—but no one ever taught me..."

She took a deep breath, as if she had used all her strength to say the rest of her words:

"What is the relationship between a man and a woman? What is the feeling that Yi Che had for Jiang Shuangjiang, the feeling of being unable to live without her and being willing to follow her to the death?"

"What does true love feel like in my heart? What does it feel like in my body? I... I don't know. I think I can understand the story between Jiang Shuangjiang and Yi Che, and I can be moved by it, but when it comes to my own feelings..."

She shook her head, her eyes growing more earnest and clear, reflecting his image:

"I can't tell. I can't tell if my concern for you stems from the unspoken understanding we share after going through life and death, or... or from love. Xie Jinchen, I really can't tell."

"I'm not avoiding you, really!" she reiterated urgently, as if afraid he wouldn't believe her, and tightened her grip on his arm.

"I need some time to sort out these messy feelings, those overly intense sensations in my mind just now, and my heart that suddenly became uncontrollable... and see things clearly."

After listening, Xie Jinchen looked at her intently. His usually calm eyes were like the sea after a storm, yet he tried his best to maintain a calm appearance.

His Adam's apple bobbed slowly, as if he were swallowing back the countless words that were about to come out of his mouth.

After a long silence, he finally uttered a single word from his tightly pursed lips:

"it is good."

Then, he raised his hand and gently tucked a few stray hairs from her forehead behind her ear.

His fingertips accidentally touched her burning hot earlobe, and both of them trembled.

He withdrew his hand, his gaze still fixed on her face. "Jiang Dusheng, don't keep me waiting too long."

After Xie Jinchen left, Jiang Dusheng remained standing there, lost in thought.

She gazed at the gradually brightening dawn sky, her fingertips unconsciously tracing the spot on her neck where he had bitten her.

Although no trace was left there, it felt as hot as a branding iron, leaving her in a state of utter turmoil.

The mountain breeze in the early morning, carrying the damp, cold dew and the fresh scent of grass and trees, swept through the temple, stirring her slightly cool, sweat-dampened clothes.

She shivered suddenly, then snapped out of her daze and realized that she had been standing in the wind for quite some time.

As dawn broke, the faint sounds of roosters crowing and dogs barking could be heard from the direction of Willow Village in the distance.

The villagers will soon muster their courage and come to find out the outcome of the mountain god's marriage.

Jiang Dusheng quickly composed himself, slipped behind the mountain god statue, and made a hand seal to conceal his figure and aura.

As the sun rose above the mountain peak, the sound of hurried footsteps and deliberately hushed conversations could be heard outside the temple.

"Why...why is there no movement?"

"The sedan chair is still here! But where is the bride?"

"Is the mountain god dissatisfied?"

"I think so! You don't know, before dawn, Granny Wang was found unconscious in her own yard, foaming at the mouth, and no one could wake her up! It's probably because the mountain god is angry and has taken her down first!"

"Oh dear, what should we do..."

A dozen or so villagers gathered nervously at the temple gate, none of them daring to step over the threshold.

A stronger man swallowed hard, mustered his courage, and shouted tremblingly into the temple:

"Mountain God? The bride sent last night, are you...are you satisfied? We have come to pay our respects!"

Jiang Dusheng's eyes turned cold, and he gathered spiritual power at his fingertips, casting a spell behind the statue.

She deliberately lowered her voice, making it deep and ethereal, with a touch of authority, as it drifted in from all directions:

"Listen up, you fools!"

The sound came suddenly, as if it exploded directly in everyone's ears, or as if it came from the deepest hell.

The villagers outside the temple were terrified and knelt down in unison, not daring to even breathe.

"I am Willow Immortal, a cultivator from Kunlun. I have borrowed your incense offerings to heal my wounds. Now that my merits are complete, I shall return to my cave."

She mimicked the snake demon's chilling tone, incorporating a touch of celestial authority, "From this day forward, all monthly offerings are cancelled. Any further sacrifices will incur divine retribution!"

There was a deathly silence outside the temple, which was then filled with shouts of ecstatic joy.