The night pressed quietly around the small inn by the Han. After tending Marcus Ashford's wounds once more, Liam stepped out into the courtyard to cool his mind. He could still feel the subtle pulse of the Severing Heart Palm venom resisting his needles, but the worst had been turned. Marcus slept heavily, wrapped in blankets, breathing deeply.
Back in his room, Liam loosened his robes, pouring a cup of cold water. Before he could raise it to his lips, a soft knock came at the door.
"Liam?" Rowena Sterling's hesitant voice murmured.
"It's open," he said, expecting a simple word of thanks.
Rowena stepped inside with a clay teapot in her hands, her eyes luminous in the candlelight. Her hair had been let down, dark silk cascading across her shoulders. "I brewed tea… thought perhaps you could rest with something warm."
A faint smile touched his mouth. "You're thoughtful."
She poured him a cup, hands trembling slightly. Before she could speak further, another knock sounded — lighter, playful.
The door creaked open and Lilith Stormbane slipped in, carrying a second pot of fragrant tea. She blinked when she spotted Rowena. "Oh? I see someone beat me to it."
Rowena flushed. "I… only wanted to repay kindness."
Lilith set her pot beside Rowena's, smirking. "Then repay it together."
Liam chuckled, seating himself on the edge of the bed. "Then we'll drink from both."
The three sat in a faint triangle. Steam curled between them. Rowena's lashes fluttered each time her gaze drifted across him. Lilith leaned slightly forward, elbow grazing Liam's thigh with pointed intention. The air thickened, heavy with more than tea.
Lilith set her cup down first, gaze glinting. She rose and stepped behind Liam, slender arms circling his shoulders, palms gliding across his chest. "You work too hard, young master," she whispered into his ear.
Rowena stiffened, cheeks burning, unable to look away as Lilith's hands slid down to Liam's waist. Liam's breath hitched slightly when her lips brushed the side of his neck.
Rowena dazedly placed her own cup down and stood as well. "Lilith…" she began, then stopped as Lilith looked back at her with a crooked grin.
"Don't tell me you came just to pour tea," Lilith said, eyes half-lidded. "Your hands are shaking, sweet Rowena."
Rowena's lips parted. A moment of war between shame and desire played across her face. Liam met her gaze. "Come here."
Her feet moved of their own accord. Liam reached up and caught her by the hand, pulling her gently to sit across his lap. Lilith's hands roamed under his robe, tracing hard lines of muscle. Rowena gave a tiny gasp as Liam's hand slid up the back of her waist, warm and firm.
Lilith slid in, pressing her body against Liam's side. "Let me help," she whispered, pulling open Rowena's outer robe with a slow, deliberate tug. Silk slid apart. Rowena made a soft sound — protest or longing, it wasn't clear — but didn't pull away. Lilith leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Liam's lips, then to Rowena's cheek in a swift, mischievous flick.
Rowena trembled visibly, eyes lowering. Liam's hand rose to her chin, tilting her face toward his. She hesitated only a moment before he claimed her lips fully. She moaned softly into his mouth, fingers knotting in his robes.
"Turn around," Lilith breathed, pulling Rowena gently so her back rested against Liam's chest, pressed between them. With careful hands Lilith loosened the ties at Rowena's collar, revealing the smooth, pale skin of her shoulder. Then Lilith leaned down and placed her lips there, warm and lingering.
Rowena shuddered.
Liam's hand slid up under Rowena's inner layer, palm cupping the curve of her breast. She gasped, cheeks crimson, but arched into the touch. Lilith caught Liam's other hand and guided it toward herself, placing it over her own chest beneath her robe. He squeezed gently and she let out a low, satisfied sound.
The candlelight flickered as Lilith pressed closer, brushing her lips over Rowena's neck while Liam kissed the other side. Rowena let out a shivering cry, caught between them, her thighs squeezing together.
Lilith moved to straddle Liam's lap, her robe dropping from one shoulder, exposing the soft swell of her chest. "No more tea," she murmured. "Tonight we warm ourselves another way."
Rowena's breath came hot and fast. Liam's lips claimed hers again as Lilith pressed her body flush against him, one leg around his waist. His hands wandered, stroking down Rowena's stomach, feeling the tremors under his fingertips.
Lilith kissed Rowena's lips next, surprising her into a whimper as she melted into it. Liam watched them entangle, the sight stoking a raw heat inside him. Lilith broke the kiss only to trail her mouth down to Rowena's chest while Liam's fingers slipped lower beneath Rowena's robes, grazing softer places that made her cry out his name in a helpless gasp.
Her body quivered as he touched her warmth through the thin fabric. "L-Liam…" she breathed, head tipping back against his shoulder.
Lilith guided his hand lower and Rowena's moan filled the room. Lilith's hand moved to his waist, loosening his belt. Liam pulled her close again, tilting her chin to kiss her deeply while his other hand slid across her thigh, spreading her gently with practiced strength.
Rowena's legs trembled, completely pliant in his arms. Lilith kissed the hollow of Liam's throat, then Rowena's lips again, eyes gleaming like dark wine. The three of them tangled in heat and silk, their breath mingling as with a single motion Lilith pressed herself to Liam fully. Rowena wrapped her arms around both of them, voice breaking in a rush of pleasure as Liam's hand guided them both across that burning threshold together.
They moved in shared rhythm, the world shrinking to the taste of skin and the sound of each other's moans. Rowena bit her lip to stifle her cry as pleasure crested, clutching his arm. Lilith arched against him, fingernails half-mooned into his shoulders.
Then everything went still — a quiet, trembling hush wrapping them as they lay tangled in one another's arms, their bodies slick with heat and breathless. Rowena hid her face in Liam's shoulder, trembling in afterglow. Lilith's smirk softened into contentment as she pressed a final kiss to his lips, then to Rowena's forehead.
System Update
[Dual Cultivation Activated – Beginner Stage]
[Lilith Stormbane Affection +15 → Current: 102（Devoted）]
[Rowena Sterling Affection +13 → Current: 108（Bound Heart）]
[Charm +20]
[Experience +4,000]
Lilith curled against his chest, fingers tracing idle patterns. Rowena, shyly, rested on his other side, one hand on his heartbeat as if afraid it might vanish.
"You two," Liam whispered, his voice rough with satisfaction, "are dangerous."
Lilith only smiled. Rowena blushed deeply—but did not pull away.
Dawn and Departure
By morning, Marcus Ashford thanked Liam once more. "If you ever call, I will cross rivers of blood to stand at your side." He departed for the Ming Cult, shoulders straight with renewed purpose.
Liam, Lilith, and Rowena prepared to continue west — until the inn door creaked open downstairs.
An aged voice drifted in: "Innkeeper, are there any rooms remaining?"
Liam froze. That voice — calm as a clear bell.
An elderly man with a snow-white beard stepped inside, robes simple yet carrying a majesty that no crown could match. Behind him, a pale young man walked with slow steps, cold poison lingering beneath his skin, breath turning white in the air.
"Master Elias Rowan…" Liam breathed. And beside him—
"Lucas Rowan," Lilith murmured.
The air shifted.
System Update – Status Panel
Name: Liam Ardent
Level: 8
Internal Energy: 30,000（First-Rate Expert – Initial Stage）
Experience: 104,000 / 128,000
Storage: Growth Package ×1（Unopenable）, Golden-Silver Talisman ×1, Mid-Grade Experience Pills ×3
Silver: 12,000
Weapon: Heavenly Reliquary Sword（King-Class Divine Weapon）
Skills: Heavenly Descent Beyond the Veil（Incomplete）, Snowpiercing Palm（Mastered）, Flying Serpent Duel（Golden Manual）, Meridian Scripture of Noon & Midnight（Golden Manual）, Thousand-Remedy Codex（Golden Manual）…
Glossary – Chapter 26
Dual Cultivation – A mystic practice where shared intimacy circulates qi between partners, increasing charm and inner power. Liam has unlocked the beginner stage.
Lucas Rowan – Heir to the Wudang legacy, currently afflicted by cold poison. Known in legends as a destined peerless talent.
Master Elias Rowan – Patriarch of the Wudang Sect, peerless grandmaster whose name shakes the martial world.
This story is inspired from various Wuxia novels ,so if you find any similarities please dont mind . and if you think this is boring wait till the Dual cultivation starts ,Thank you .
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T/N :
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