Hearing Snake Snake Wife’s petulant words, Yan Zhen awkwardly scratched his cheek.
He thought for a moment, then walked to the bedside and sat down. Reaching out, he gently touched Snake Snake Wife’s pregnant belly.
The Snake God Clan’s gestation period lasted about three years. With only one year passed now—equivalent to three months for a human—the swell of her belly was barely noticeable. It formed just a gentle curve, one that did nothing to diminish the alluring sway of her water-snake waist.
Yan Zhen slowly lay down behind Cai Lian Wife, pressing close to her back. He said nothing as one hand caressed her belly and the other slid beneath her neck, drawing her fully into his embrace. His hips nestled firmly against her rear, his nose tip brushing her silky black hair. With every breath, he inhaled a fragrance that soothed the soul.
The Sovereign Lady, feigning indifference, bit her lip and tried to endure her husband’s teasing. But as a pregnant woman, she quickly surrendered, letting out a contented hum. Flushing with annoyed embarrassment, she snapped, “Get your wicked little paws off me! Don’t disturb This Sovereign and Yan’er while we rest!”
Her words said one thing, but she made no move to stop him. She didn’t struggle in the slightest.
Yan Zhen lifted his head just a bit and blew softly on one of Snake Snake Wife’s pointed little ears. Her body shivered at once, her temperature rising steadily.
The Sovereign Lady inwardly cursed her own traitorous body for reacting so easily to his mere touches. Unwilling to give in, she grumbled, “Little scoundrel, stop teasing This Sovereign right here. Go find your Thousand Fiends instead!”
Yan Zhen’s movements paused for a heartbeat. Then that mischievous hand of his glided to Snake Snake Wife’s waist, tracing the curve of her figure as if confirming its perfection. Naturally, it climbed higher, cupping the rapid thrum beneath. In a soft voice, he murmured, “Cai Lian’s heart is racing—much faster than mine.”
The serpent beauty’s breath caught. She felt flames igniting in her chest as she huffed tsundere-style, “It’s… it’s all your fault for making me mad!”
“Does Cai Lian dislike it?”
“No.”
Yan Zhen’s hand trailed up along Cai Lian’s slender neck. His forefinger rested on her flushed lips, the pad gently rubbing as he whispered tenderly in her ear, “Little liars get punished. Only honest girls get candy.”
The Sovereign Lady fell silent, pressing her lips tight to keep from instinctively sucking on his finger.
“…”
Yan Zhen only found his darling wife more adorable by the second.
She was older than him by far, the ruler of a nation and a Mystic Ancestor powerhouse. Ruthless and decisive in all things, she carried herself with iron-fisted dominance and untamed pride. Yet beneath it all lurked a little girl’s temperament—one that melted with a bit of coaxing.
Just like now: the mere mention of “candy,” and she was pliant as could be.
Yan Zhen stopped his teasing, his voice brimming with affection. “Turn around, Cai Lian.”
Snake Snake Wife ignored him, so Yan Zhen gently nudged her shoulder. He barely applied any pressure, but she flipped a full one hundred eighty degrees to face him.
Cai Lian’s pride ran deep, and her skin was thinner than most. She always needed an out, a graceful way to descend from her high horse. In a word, she had to be stroked the right way.
Master that trick, and she’d be more obedient than anyone.
Holding back a laugh, Yan Zhen gazed at her by the dim lamplight. That coolly beautiful face held a pink flush, and when he brushed his fingers over it, he felt nothing but tender warmth.
The Sovereign Lady didn’t dare meet her husband’s eyes, afraid he’d glimpse the thoughts she hid. Little did she know, she was an open book.
Pregnancy stirred powerful, chaotic desires in a woman, leaving her moods swinging wildly. She needed comfort for both body and soul.
The couple had tangled so fiercely the night before that Cai Lian, having tasted such bliss, craved more—especially after their intimate dip in the inflatable water pool earlier. She yearned desperately for her husband’s attentions.
But Yan Zhen seemed oblivious to her hints. He’d teased her mercilessly, then planned to spend the night in Killing Woman’s room. That was why she’d opened with such thick jealousy, her sarcasm just a clumsy plea for her “candy” like a spoiled girl throwing a tantrum.
Yan Zhen chuckled lightly. “Look at me, Cai Lian.”
The tsundere serpent beauty let out a soft huff, closing her eyes in deliberate defiance. In truth, she was begging for a kiss. Yan Zhen’s heart melted with tenderness as he leaned in to claim her lips.
At first, Cai Lian held back, her mouth sealed tight as if to say she wouldn’t kiss a bad man. But she soon forgot her act, parting her lips to meet him eagerly.
Once the kiss broke, she mustered her restraint once more. “Don’t… Long Ying’s still here.”
As if she harbored no desire at all, and it was solely this naughty husband of hers craving intimacy.
Had Yan Zhen said, “Shall we stop?” she would’ve turned away in a huff. Instead, he replied, “It’s fine. Long Ying’s in seclusion—she won’t wake for a while.”
“And… Yan’er.”
“Have you taken your Fetal Stability Pill? Yan’er should be asleep by now.”
“This Sovereign doesn’t want to do it in an unfamiliar bed—”
“Then shall we head to the Heavenly Pillar again?”
“…”
Cai Lian ducked her head, as if to imply, “This wasn’t This Sovereign’s idea.”
Yan Zhen smiled faintly and scooped up his cherished pregnant wife. Silently, they slipped into the Fire Refining Starry Sky, arriving at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Pillar that embodied the Great Crimson Heaven Flame.
Yan Zhen glanced toward the altar’s center, where the Beautiful Female Master sat in meditative repose as usual. He soothed Cai Lian with a quiet, “Master isn’t awake.”
Cai Lian said nothing. She simply closed her eyes and adopted a posture of fragile vulnerability, offering herself up silently to her husband.
It wasn’t until the depths of midnight that Yan Zhen finally lulled his pregnant wife to sleep. He departed the Fire Refining Starry Sky and gently laid her beside Long Ying.
Letting out a long breath, he eyed the moonlight and stepped out of the master bedroom. He knocked on the door to the secondary room.
The door swung open on its own moments later. Yan Zhen stepped inside.
Dim light bathed the chamber. Yi Xian’er had changed into a dark-hued nightgown and stood by the window with her arms crossed. Hearing him, she turned, her voice faintly wistful. “I thought you weren’t coming.”
Yan Zhen scratched his head. “Cai Lian’s carrying Yan’er—it’s hard on her. I need to give her some leeway.”
Yi Xian’er bowed her head, a touch aggrieved. “That’s not fair… I want to get pregnant too.”
Yan Zhen drew her into his arms. “You will, someday.”
Yi Xian’er clung to him as if she wanted to melt into his body. “It’s not that I envy her. I’m just scared I might not be able to have children… and you’ll leave me behind.”
“You’re thinking too far ahead, Xian’er.” Yan Zhen gave a wry smile. “Besides, I’ve already got Yan’er and Ling’er. I won’t have any regrets.”
“Really?”
“If anything, I’m still young. I don’t even feel ready to be a father yet—I’m just being thrown into the deep end. If you all end up pregnant, that’ll really give me a headache.”
“You all…? Besides Myriad Snake and Zi Ji, who else?”
“Uh, Sister Ji Ya too. Did you forget?”
Yi Xian’er suddenly remembered: that reincarnator who’d schemed to trick Yan Zhen into dual cultivation under the guise of treatment. In theory, she might well be pregnant too—that scheming merchant woman!
“Hmph. That dishonest merchant of a woman—is she in the Royal Capital too?”
“Yeah, I ran into Sister Ji Ya at the Golden Jade Chamber of Commerce.”
“Is she pregnant?”
“Probably not.”
Yi Xian’er breathed a sigh of relief. After a moment’s thought, she pressed, “Did she come clean with you?”
Hearing Yi Xian’er’s words, Yan Zhen blinked in confusion. “Come clean about what? The pregnancy? No reason she’d hide that, right?”
It wasn’t like Yun Xiu.
