She laughed softly, but the way she unconsciously bit her lower lip made his throat dry with sudden intensity. Their shared moment of intimacy, however, was abruptly shattered.
A piercing scream cut through the dense vegetation—a sound that began as an animal's cry of terror before being suddenly muffled into wet, gurgling silence. The entire expedition halted instantly, disciples freezing in their positions with hands moving instinctively toward weapons and defensive talismans.
Mo Xing's eyebrows quirked upward at the interruption, but he deliberately maintained his hold on Li Hua's wrist, his thumb continuing to trace lazy circles against her pulse point despite the potential danger.
Elder Fu turned toward the group, raising one finger to his lips in a signal for absolute silence. With practiced stealth, he moved ahead through the towering vegetation, his form nearly disappearing among the massive stalks as he investigated the source of the disturbance.
