Heilong-kou (Black Dragon-Mouth/Pass)
Heilong-cheng (Black Dragon-City)
Censorate (Supervisory Court)
Yuling City (Jade City)
Jingui Town (Golden Turtle Town)
Xuanwu City (Black tortoise City)
...
When Yin Jixue woke up, she opened her eyes to find herself nestled in the male lead's embrace. Judging by the surroundings, they were in her bedchamber.
Help! Woke up in my boyfriend's arms—what do I do?! Waiting online is kinda urgent!
First things first—check if they were still clothed.
Both of them were fully dressed. Yin Jixue sighed in relief, though she couldn't deny a tiny flicker of disappointment.
She had no idea how two drunkards had managed to get back.
She did remember their drunken antics—vividly. The sound of their kisses still echoed in her ears, making her face burn just thinking about it.
This… probably counts as my first real kiss, right?
Lou Zhao held her loosely in his arms, and her heart pounded so hard she feared it might burst. She shifted slightly, testing if he was awake. When he showed no signs of stirring, she took the chance to shamelessly admire the Demon King's flawless face up close.
Talk about being blessed by the heavens. Even at a distance of mere millimeters, his skin was flawless—not a single pore in sight. His eyelashes were thick as a brush. Do demons just… not have pores?
Unable to resist, she pressed her finger against his nose, squishing it into a pig's snout. Finally, he stirred with a frown.
She quickly retracted her hand and pretended to be asleep.
Unfortunately, Lou Zhao saw right through her. "Your eyelids are twitching. Stop faking."
Logically, this should have been awkward.
Not just because she'd been caught messing with him, but also because of their utterly childish drunken behavior.
Yin Jixue struck first. "Weren't you the great, mighty Demon King? How did three cups of wine knock you out?"
Lou Zhao pulled her closer, nuzzling into her hair as he mumbled, "I just didn't expect the wine to be that strong."
…Grape wine counts as strong now?
But saying that out loud might hurt his pride, so Yin Jixue buried her face in his chest and kept quiet.
After a moment, she peeked up and gently patted his head—something she normally couldn't reach.
"It's the wine's fault. Next time, we'll pick something milder."
To her surprise, Lou Zhao hugged her happily. "I think it's fine. We can try it again sometime." He wanted more drunken cuddles.
Yin Jixue gave him a "Are you okay?" look before smiling indulgently.
"Sure. Whenever you want."
She'd just record it with a memory stone—perfect blackmail material.
They lazed in bed for ages, chatting idly, neither willing to get up.
When the topic turned to the demon clans outside the city showing signs of ancestral reversion, Lou Zhao dredged up something useful from his inherited memories.
"Tens of thousands of years ago, demons had two forms—humanoid and their true form. But after some unknown event, only the Demon Kings and those with the purest bloodlines retained the ability."
"I suspect the changes now are because of the food—specifically, the unique produce of Black Dragon City."
Otherwise, why would only the Black Dragon Clan suddenly revert?
Another piece of evidence was the little tiger. Still drunk, it had been unceremoniously tossed into the hot springs by Lou Zhao to sober up.
Now, with the intelligence of a ten-year-old, it had even begun displaying animalistic instincts—like food aggression.
When Lou Zhao shared his theory, Yin Jixue immediately thought of the seeds from the system store.
Barren land shouldn't be cultivable. There must be something special about the system's seeds.
The system store was becoming more mysterious by the day. During the apocalypse, it had provided every weapon she needed. Now, in the demon realm, it still supplied exactly what she required.
It's time to come clean.
"It might be the seeds. There's something I need to tell you—don't be scared." Not that she worried he'd fear her. Demons existing at all was already abnormal!
Lou Zhao assumed she'd explain the seeds' origin. He perked up, listening intently.
"Actually… I have memories of my past life."
Yin Jixue recounted her experiences—surviving alone in the apocalypse for two years, and dying at eighteen.
There were no accusations, no doubts. Lou Zhao simply held her tighter.
Though she spoke in a detached tone, her stories were harrowing—nearly being caught by zombies due to her stepsister's betrayal, and killing her mother when the woman tried to trade her to a warlord for benefits.
Lou Zhao, who had never understood familial love, ached for her.
He hated that his queen had faced zombies and predators alone, that her delicate appearance had made her a target.
He hated that she'd had no one to rely on, that even sleep was fraught with danger. For two years, her only companion had been a silent system—the very thing that kept her alive.
He wanted to tear those monsters apart.
But Yin Jixue reassured him, "They got what they deserved. They became food for the zombies."
Lou Zhao relaxed. "If I entered your memories, I could make them suffer without harming you. Your memories would adjust accordingly." Still, he hadn't expected her to be this resilient.
Yin Jixue joked, "Then come save me like a hero! I'll pledge myself to you, and we'll have been married in my past life too."
Lou Zhao covered her eyes. "Stop daydreaming. I'm right here."
He wasn't about to let some fabricated memory version of himself steal her affection. Some demons were just that possessive.
Now aware of the system's existence, Lou Zhao carried on as usual—just with extra caution to erase any traces that might expose it.
The other three ancient demons would be far harder to fool. They were centuries older than him, peers of his grandfather. Those old foxes would sniff out secrets in a heartbeat.
The system must never be discovered.
No matter how they probed in the future, the seeds would always be part of the queen's dowry.
Originally, they'd just ended up in the same bed by accident after drinking. Though nothing happened, cuddling was admittedly cozy in this weather.
Yin Jixue later learned that while Lou Zhao got drunk quickly, he sobered up just as fast. He'd been fully aware during their kisses but chose to keep going—until she'd drowsily fallen asleep in his arms.
At this point, they were practically an old married couple. Yin Jixue only blushed a little before half-resisting, half-yielding to Lou Zhao staying the night.
In ancient times, girls became mothers at seventeen. I should work hard—aim for twins by next year!
Her mind already wandered to potential baby names.
Lou Zhao didn't know much either, but he understood that husbands and wives sharing a bed led to children. He wondered when she'd carry his heir.