“Purification does not require taking my clothes off!!”
The words were barely out of Xi Yan's mouth when Jiang Chen seized his hand and pressed it flat against the sculpted planes of his abdomen. Xi Yan's fingers curled instinctively; the muscle under his fingertips was firm... He swallowed, and before he knew what he was doing, his hand wandered up to give his chest a squeeze.
He was getting into it — until a muffled groan sounded beside his ear. He looked up and found a flush spreading across Jiang Chen's cheeks, his eyes gone pitiful, looking for all the world like someone far too easy to push around.
“Ahem. Well, as I was saying — this is the first time I've awakened an ability, and the first time I've used it. It's still unstable; I need physical contact for the purification to work properly.”
Bubble couldn't bear to watch: [Participant 95627, you're just taking advantage of someone who doesn't know any better.]
Xi Yan shot back instantly: “What would a monitor know? This is all for the mission! Besides, you're the one who gave me a high probability of mission failure — I'm doing damage control! Although, whoever designed this virtual world has real talent. Excellent taste.”
He turned back to Jiang Chen. “The more contact, the more thorough the purification.”
“Then... is this all right?”
Jiang Chen's face was cherry-red, the color spreading to his ears and down his jaw to his neck. But the hand gripping Xi Yan's wrist not only didn't let go — it drew the hand toward his own heart. His eyes darted away, then fixed on Xi Yan with sudden resolve.
“...It's more than all right.”
Under the banner of purification, Xi Yan copped a feel.
Jiang Chen was no better off — blushing, heart hammering, while wearing the expression of a man happy to be picked.
Their breathing grew equally disordered, and the results were encouraging. Jiang Chen's contamination level — pushed past safe limits by the sea demon's ambush — stabilized at sixty percent, an extremely safe range for one of the awakened.
This was Xi Yan's first time using purification. Inexperienced, he felt nothing unusual and no discomfort. The beneficiary, Jiang Chen, was another story.
Though his face stayed flushed, his frantic heartbeat had settled. The instant Xi Yan drew his hand back, Jiang Chen grabbed it again, disbelief in his voice: “It actually works.”
“Of course it does. Who do you think I am!” Inspiration struck, and Xi Yan suddenly leaned in close. “I'm your boyfriend. My talents are considerable.”
“That's... not what I meant...” Jiang Chen was as red as red could be, though mercifully his heartbeat stayed regular.
He caught the hand that had been sneaking toward the small of his back and said, seriously: “I've carried out many missions. This one was to deal with a new contamination species that appeared on the seafloor. I didn't expect an ambush from the sea demon clan. My body was already past its limits. By all logic, taking a full-power strike from a sea demon should have shattered my mind and plunged me into a frenzy — worst case, I'd have been assimilated outright into one of the myriad races. But...”
“But just now, every reading in my body returned to normal range. Do you understand what that means?”
“Ha — of course. It means you owe me a massive favor. To repay me, you have to be with me — for at least a month!” Xi Yan rubbed the tip of his nose, for once not chasing Jiang Chen's gaze, instead glancing this way and that.
“It would be my honor,” Jiang Chen said, pulling Xi Yan into his arms, his words grave and earnest. “Thank you for coming to my side.” A trace of relief, barely detectable, hid in his voice.
“No need to thank me. You just got lucky.”
Xi Yan quietly let out a breath. He really had been scared.
Jiang Chen was the sort who showed no mercy when dealing with contamination. Rumor had it he had personally executed a family member who'd descended into madness — and at that point, the man had not yet been assimilated into the myriad races; he had still held onto his human clarity.
Someone who put the greater good first and killed his own kin — Xi Yan truly feared that once this man came to his senses, he might deal with him the same way.
After all, the love at first sight was fake. Jiang Chen had said those things and agreed to be together purely because his contamination level had blown past the critical point, his heart rate soaring, the infection in his wounds burning sense into smoke — so much so that he'd likely mistaken that pounding heart for the first flutter of romance...
Thankfully the man remembered he owed Xi Yan his life. That should carry them through the month.
Xi Yan exhaled again and lifted his arms to hug him back — but Jiang Chen had already released him. “Purifiers are scarce in the Homeland right now, and there is no one else who can bring someone directly under the safe threshold the way you can. Most of the injured can only hold on with medication. The higher-ups want to hire you as our team's purifier. That said, we respect your choice. If you'd rather not, I'll speak for you.”
“Now is the time for humanity to stand together. As a member of the Homeland, I'm willing to do my part.” Xi Yan's voice was firm, his gaze firmer — like a defender prepared to pour his whole life into building the Homeland.
When those oath-like words reached Jiang Chen's ears, his heart — already back to its normal rhythm — gave a heavy thump.
He couldn't name the feeling, but the corners of his eyes lifted despite himself. “The Homeland always extends its highest treatment to exceptional talent. You were originally entitled to a standalone residence on one of the sky islands, but things happened suddenly and housing is tight. I'm afraid you'll have to make do living with me.”
“If you really feel wronged on my behalf, then make it up to me — stay with me properly. Besides, we're a couple. Couples are supposed to live together.”
“We will stay together.” Jiang Chen had never been in a relationship and had no idea how other people did it, but what Xi Yan said sounded remarkably reasonable.
“Then which room is mine?” Xi Yan asked, looking around.
“Second on the left. Rest early tonight; tomorrow morning I'll take you to register your purifier credentials.” With that, Jiang Chen started to rise.
Xi Yan reached up and caught his hand. “Second on the left — is that your room?”
“No. Mine's across the hall.”
“Why aren't we sleeping in the same room?” Xi Yan asked, face upturned.
“That's — too fast.” Jiang Chen looked away — but the captured hand turned the tables, flipping to lock around Xi Yan's wrist, fingers circling once, then gliding slowly down his palm before threading in, seizing their chance.
Xi Yan's gaze traveled down Jiang Chen and stopped where their fingers had interlocked.
The man's fingers were long but not smooth, all calluses and scars, rough under his touch. Xi Yan arched the back of his hand, thumb brushing once across Jiang Chen's palm. “What's too fast? I just meant sharing a room makes purification easier. The data shows most people's contamination levels rise overnight to some degree. Or — did Captain Jiang have something else in mind?”
“No!” Jiang Chen pressed his thumb down over Xi Yan's restless one, the rest of his fingers tightening — locking the hand firmly in place while guarding against further mischief.
Xi Yan's gaze drifted upward and locked precisely onto Jiang Chen's evasive eyes, his lips curving. “Then why does Captain Jiang keep holding my hand? I thought it was a silent invitation.”
Heat rushed to Jiang Chen's face. He tried to pull free but was held fast; he tried to squeeze back but grasped only air as Xi Yan slipped away in time. He stared at his empty hand for a good while before managing: “What are you doing?”
“Hm? What am I doing?”
Xi Yan stared at him unblinking, the look so scorching that Jiang Chen involuntarily looked back — then wrenched his eyes away, couldn't help sneaking another glance, got caught, and turned his back entirely.
“...Nothing.”