That Elusive and Mysterious Male Lead (28)

“They—Shen Huai, Qi Yan, Xiu, including Charles—they’re all the same person, the one from my internship world, aren’t they?”
The system replied, “...Yes.”
She let out a cold laugh.
The system fell silent, as meek as a mouse.
Si Jiu released Xiu and stood up.
Seeing her poised to leave, Xiu instinctively grabbed her wrist, his tail silently appearing and wrapping around her leg.
Charles, too, rushed over the moment Si Jiu rose, seizing her other wrist in an attempt to pull her away from the black dragon.
Both men exerted force at the same time, and Si Jiu’s wrists were yanked painfully. She hissed in pain, and both loosened their grip, though neither let go entirely.
“Heh...” Si Jiu was so angry she almost laughed.
The system, overwhelmed by excitement, shrieked internally.
“Let go.”
Si Jiu didn’t look at either of them; her voice was cold and laced with unmistakable fury.
Charles hesitated for a moment, then released her hand.
Xiu, however, remained unmoved, his tail even creeping upward, intent on encircling her waist and pulling her back.
Si Jiu’s temple throbbed; she turned to face the dark-haired man.
He met her gaze in silence, his eyes seemingly gentle, even with a hint of innocence and grievance on his face.
But beneath it all was an unyielding possessiveness and obsession no one could shake.
This demeanor was uncannily similar to Shen Huai.

Having been toyed with repeatedly by the same person, Si Jiu was genuinely furious at this moment.
Her anger boiled over into bitter laughter.
“Fight it out, the two of you. Whoever wins, I’ll belong to.”
The system was shocked to its core.
Let them destroy each other—so much for the mission!
At her words, Xiu struck first.
He didn’t revert to his true form, but his wings transformed into an elegant black garment draped over him, his tail disappearing, and he charged at Charles with wind-like speed.
No one could match the black dragon’s velocity; Charles was once again slammed into the wall before Si Jiu, then fell to the floor.
The black dragon’s physical strength was formidable—he could knock the equally sturdy bone dragon senseless; one could imagine how terrifying it was for him to collide with a human.
The system let out another enormous belch. “If the male lead dies, Father Host, you’ll fail.”
The wall shattered and collapsed, large bricks burying Charles beneath.
Si Jiu didn’t spare a glance. “You said he’s the male lead.”
The system, flustered, was perplexed.
“The male lead isn’t so easily killed.”
As Si Jiu finished speaking, the heap of bricks covering Charles exploded outward, dust billowing and gradually settling, revealing Charles beneath.
The blond man slowly lifted his head, his blue eyes casting a distant look at Si Jiu, then turning to the dark-haired man.
The dark-haired man said nothing, charging Charles again.
Charles met him head-on, undaunted.

“Bang... Boom...”
The dark-haired man pressed Charles’s head down, while Charles gripped his opponent’s neck; together, they smashed through the wall of the Temple of Time.
Such commotion alarmed everyone within the temple.
The High Priest, receiving the news at once, hurried over, only to find his great hall ravaged, pillars on the verge of collapse, his heart aching at the devastation.
Another thunderous crash resounded. The High Priest’s eyelids twitched as he looked at the blond youth. “Charles!”
For the first time, Charles appeared somewhat disheveled, yet his eyes gleamed brilliantly.
That fierce, determined gaze—he had seen it only once before: when Charles, at fourteen, challenged the kingdom’s foremost champion, and won.
Since then, no one had ever dethroned him as the kingdom’s greatest warrior.
Another crash.
The two collided again, inexplicably seeming to forget that fighting could involve blades and techniques, intent only on pitting their strength against each other.
Wild, savage, and primal.
The High Priest’s gaze lingered on Charles’s opponent, the dark-haired youth, then shifted to Si Jiu, who sat at a distance, legs crossed, chin propped up, watching with unabashed interest.
Her expression was far too telling.