Jiang Zheyu’s lips trembled, her cheeks flushing red with anger.

’Is this guy a pervert?’

’No, wait. He *is* a pervert.’

RIIIP.

Jiang Zheyu’s clothes were torn.

"I was wrong! I was wrong!" ’This is so weird,’ Jiang Zheyu thought. Since she’d been found out anyway, it was best to be pragmatic. She quickly admitted her mistake. "I won’t run away next time."

’Apologize first, make promises later.’

’When the time comes to run again, I’ll run. No hesitation.’

Hearing her words, Si Yu’s fingers stilled on her body. His gaze bore down on her, his dark green eyes filled with cold scrutiny. "And how were you wrong?"

"I shouldn’t have run," Jiang Zheyu said, looking up at him. She blinked her tea-colored eyes, trying to look sincere, innocent, and pitiful.

"And what else?" Si Yu braced his hands on the table beside her, trapping her within his arms.

Jiang Zheyu paused. ’There’s more?’

"I shouldn’t have disguised myself as a Beastman and pretended not to know you," Jiang Zheyu mumbled.

’I wouldn’t dare act like one of those heroines in a novel, who ignores every question, refuses to admit any fault, and just talks back sarcastically.’

’Even though I don’t think I did anything wrong, arguing back would only make him angrier, and that would just lead to all sorts of violent punishments.’

’It’s better to just be meek for now. Avoid any punishment I can.’

"And what else?" Seeing her obedient act, Si Yu’s tone did soften slightly, but his eyes still watched her with a haunting intensity.

Jiang Zheyu’s lips moved as her mind raced. ’What else, what else could there be?’

"I shouldn’t have injected Zhe Heng?" Jiang Zheyu blinked, her tea-colored eyes darting about.

"And what else?" As soon as she said that, Si Yu’s expression turned frigid again, his voice dropping to a sinister tone.

Jiang Zheyu keenly sensed the chilling shift in his mood, and her heart skipped a beat. ’Wait, his tone had just softened a little. Why the sudden change? Why is he so fierce again?’

’What did I say wrong? What did I say wrong?!’

A flash of anger surged through Jiang Zheyu.

"And also..." She hurriedly started brainstorming again. "I shouldn’t have gotten involved with another Beastman."

"Didn’t you run off with that Beastman precisely because he was Su Yan?" Si Yu’s voice was cold, each word landing like a hammer blow, his questions laced with fury. "You’ve said so much, but not one thing I wanted to hear! What about me? What about me?! Did you ever think about me when you ran away? Did you ever think I might go insane? Did you ever think about my feelings?!"

He demanded in a cold voice, his dark green eyes gradually turning bloodshot, staining the thin skin around them a vivid, pale red.

The barrage of furious questions made Jiang Zheyu’s head spin.

’He’s so hard to please!’

Her own temper flared, and she shot back, "I haven’t even gotten to you yet! That afternoon, you deliberately left that surveillance device just so you could shoot me in the knee, didn’t you?! It hurt so much, so, so much! I haven’t even gotten you back for that yet!"

Si Yu grabbed the gun he’d had earlier and thrust it into Jiang Zheyu’s hand. In a swift motion, he aimed the barrel at his own knee and, forcing her hand, pulled the trigger.

BANG! The gunshot was deafening. The recoil vibrating through her palm left it numb. Jiang Zheyu’s eyelids twitched violently.

She watched as the white fabric of Si Yu’s trousers over his knee was instantly stained red with blood.

’I have the system’s painkillers, but he has nothing! How could he do that? Doesn’t it hurt?’

"Didn’t you say these were bullets that interfere with spiritual power?" Jiang Zheyu asked sheepishly. "Does shooting a knee affect spiritual power?"

Beads of cold sweat formed on Si Yu’s temple. He seemed both exasperated and amused by her logic. "I was lying."

’She believed me so easily.’

’If she had pulled the trigger then, the bullet really would have gone through her head, and she would have died.’

Jiang Zheyu’s eyes widened.

"Yu Yu, what I want is your love." Si Yu lowered himself to hug her, his voice low and haunting. "You admitted to so many mistakes, you even thought to apologize for what you did to Zhe Heng, but why didn’t you ever think about me? You said you loved me, that you wanted to be with me. I took you at your word. So when you lied to me, I was furious. I wanted to drag you back here and fuck you to death."

Jiang Zheyu finally understood the crux of the issue. She quickly grabbed his clothes and looked up at him. "I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have disregarded your feelings. A Yu, I like you. I wasn’t thinking straight last time, that’s why I tried to run away. Please, just give me one more chance, okay?"

’I feel like some scumbag boyfriend begging for forgiveness.’

"Liar," Si Yu’s voice was faint, as if it would shatter at the slightest touch, laced with a detached coldness and strain.

"Don’t be angry anymore," Jiang Zheyu said, cautiously tugging on his sleeve. "Getting angry is bad for you. You should smile more and take it easy so you can live a long life."

"I’m already over a hundred years old," Si Yu replied hauntingly.

Jiang Zheyu faltered for a second, then said earnestly, "Living a long life is just an expression. It means living for a long, long time."

"I want to be with you for a long, long time." Si Yu’s arms tightened around her waist. "Yu Yu, I love you, I love you..."

’Hearing that familiar tone, I knew he was placated!’

"I love you too, I love you, I love you, I love you..." The sweet nothings spilled from Jiang Zheyu’s lips, costing her nothing.

’I take back what I thought about Si Yu being hard to please. He’s actually quite easy to placate.’

’That was a close call. No being locked in a dark room, no amnesia injections...’

The incandescent lights flickered, then suddenly, every light tube shattered. The area was plunged into darkness as urgent alarms blared throughout the high-security prison.

A streak of iridescent, violet-gold light flashed in the darkness.

A sharp, butterfly-shaped stinger stabbed straight into Si Yu’s shoulder, violently shoving him and Jiang Zheyu backward. It pierced clean through his shoulder, drawing a spray of fresh blood.

But even as he was forced back, Si Yu kept a death grip on Jiang Zheyu’s hand.

Jiang Zheyu was pulled back, one hand still clutched by Si Yu, while the butterfly-wielding figure held her body. Seemingly sensing Si Yu’s refusal to let go, the figure launched a spiritual power attack as another butterfly-stinger stabbed viciously at the wrist Si Yu was holding.

Si Yu’s spiritual power was already unstable, and the attack sent it into violent turmoil. Before he could counter, the stinger viciously pierced his wrist. Still, he refused to let go, and his warm blood streamed down his hand and onto Jiang Zheyu’s.