Their bodies grew closer and closer, and the faint scent of cedarwood drifted over from Sheng Tianze.
Jiang Xinli's breath caught in her throat. She subconsciously reached out to grip the bedsheet tightly, then squeezed her eyes shut, her long lashes trembling anxiously against her eyelids.
She had been an actress for many years and had seen plenty of real kissing scenes on set.
However, as a bit player with only minor roles, she had only ever been an observer.
In her real life, she had been single for years, never having so much as properly held a man's hand.
However, her newly awakened Dodder Flower Ability urgently needed to be leveled up, and that required constantly drawing "sustenance" from Male Beastmen.
This so-called "sustenance," aside from the sharp increase in a Beastman's Uprising Value, was mostly related to intimate contact.
'Though she was inwardly repulsed by the idea,' out of a desperate need to upgrade her superpower for self-preservation, Jiang Xinli decided to "experiment."
Sheng Tianze's face drew closer and closer, so close that Jiang Xinli could clearly feel his warm breath ghosting across her skin. It tickled, sending her heart into an even more flustered state.
Just as Jiang Xinli's mind was a mess of conflict and she didn't know what to do, Sheng Tianze abruptly stopped, less than three centimeters from her lips.
GULP. His Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he swallowed the medicine he had been holding in his mouth.
Then, his thin lips parted, and a faint scent of vanilla wafted out.
"..." Utterly confused, Jiang Xinli slowly opened her eyes, and her gaze met Sheng Tianze's.
"Can you smell it?" Sheng Tianze leaned back slightly, putting some distance between them, and explained softly, "This medicine has a pleasant aroma once it's in your mouth."
Jiang Xinli's ears flushed red in an instant, the blush creeping from her neck to her cheeks. She stammered, "I thought—" 'You were going to feed me the medicine mouth-to-mouth...'
The words were on the tip of her tongue, but she forced them back down.
"Thought what?" A teasing smile played on Sheng Tianze's lips, and a mischievous glint flashed in his eyes.
"N-nothing." Jiang Xinli waved her hands in a fluster, her gaze shifting away, not daring to meet his eyes.
Seeing the girl's shy expression, Sheng Tianze picked up the black-and-red vial of medicine, held it out to her, and asked softly,
"So, can you drink it without worrying now?"
"Mhm." Jiang Xinli nodded obediently and parted her lips slightly. Sheng Tianze carefully poured the medicine into her mouth.
"This neck brace is a type of miniature, targeted healing chamber. Combined with this medicine, your neck will be fully recovered by tomorrow morning. However—" Sheng Tianze's tone deepened intentionally here, and he gave Jiang Xinli a meaningful look. "No strenuous exercise for the next three days."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Xinli's face grew even redder, like a ripe apple.
She lowered her head and whispered, "Thank you."
"You're welcome." Sheng Tianze reached for the blanket and gently tucked her in.
As his gaze unintentionally swept over her legs, which were pressed tightly together, a dark glint flashed like a meteor through his deep eyes, hidden behind his lenses.
The girl lay on the bed, looking delicate and fragile. Her long, slender legs were exquisitely fair and smooth. Against the black silk of her long dress, they looked all the more tempting, enough to make one's imagination run wild.
'I want to... pry them apart...'
Sheng Tianze was startled by the wicked thought in his own mind. He quickly averted his gaze and said, feigning composure,
"Female Master, have you grown timid?"
Jiang Xinli was rendered speechless by his comment. 'Timid?' she thought.
'How could I not be? If I were any bolder or had a worse temper, even with my newly awakened superpower, I would have been a dead woman. If Ye Kuo didn't kill me, I would have ended up in Xuan Ying's jaws.'
The memory of Xuan Ying—his hands covered in Snake Scales, hissing and flicking his tongue by her ear—sent a sudden chill down Jiang Xinli's spine, and she couldn't help but shiver.
'At least,' she thought, 'out of my five Beast Husbands, there's one who treats me decently.'
Still, she was puzzled. Sheng Tianze had also been clamoring for a divorce, so why did he seem to treat her differently?
'Is it because he's just naturally well-mannered?'
The original owner's memories contained very little about the five Beast Husbands, and she didn't have time to mull it over right now.
She made a snap decision: first, she would latch onto one powerful backer. As for the rest, she would have to take it one step at a time.
No—
To be precise, she would *act* her way through it, one step at a time. o(╥﹏╥)o
That was right. In the span of just a few short minutes, Jiang Xinli had completely accepted the absurd situation she was in.
She secretly gave herself a pep talk, telling herself to just treat this as if she'd been cast in an interstellar beast world short series.
As for how long this series would run, that depended entirely on how long she could survive in this perilous place.
She had no idea just how much danger awaited on this S-level Deserted Star, a place known as the Gate of Hell.
Her top priority was to win over the Beast Husbands who were hostile toward her.
'Divorce? Don't even think about it.'
'How could she just hand over the five handsome bodyguards and potential "sustenance" providers she had in her grasp?'
Jiang Xinli's mind raced, all sorts of ideas flashing through her thoughts.
Beside her, Sheng Tianze narrowed his eyes, watching her with an unreadable expression as he sank into his own thoughts.
Completely unaware of the change in the man beside her, Jiang Xinli thought for a moment before speaking in a soft voice.
"I'm a little thirsty... could you go downstairs and get me a glass of warm water?"
"Of course." A gentle smile touched Sheng Tianze's face. He carefully tucked in the corner of her blanket, his movements fluid and natural, then turned and left the room.
Jiang Xinli's gaze followed his retreating back until the door clicked softly shut.
Only then did she pull back her gaze and reach out to gently tap the bracelet on her left wrist.
From the original owner's residual memories, she knew this was a Light Computer, standard issue for all interstellar people. It was very similar to the smartphones of her original world, only far more advanced.
Not only did it support holographic projection, but it could also be accessed virtually using one's spiritual power.
She tapped open the Star Web interface with a flicker of anticipation. However, a glaring red exclamation mark immediately filled her vision:
[This account is currently serving a sentence. External network access is temporarily suspended!]
[Remaining sentence: 867,240 hours!!!]
Jiang Xinli couldn't help but gasp. 'This is bad,' she thought.
'I almost forgot,' she lamented. 'The original owner was a top-level interstellar felon...'
She sighed in resignation, her gaze continuing to scan the screen.
Right now, besides an application called "Dark Star No. 1 Prison Management System," all other apps on the screen were grayed out and inaccessible.
Driven by curiosity, she tapped on it. A file titled [Criminal's Spouse Information Card] instantly popped up.
1. Sheng Tianze (White Tiger), Age 21, Height 191cm. August 8, Leo. Superpower: 1st Rank (Space System, Healing System). Female Master: Jiang Xinli
Affiliation: Empire
2. Xuan Ying (Green Snake), Age 20, Height 193cm. November 11, Scorpio. Superpower: 1st Rank (Elemental: Water System). Female Master: Jiang Xinli
Affiliation: Empire
3. Ye Kuo (Black Panther), Age 22, Height 188cm. April 15, Aries. Superpower: 1st Rank (Enhancement: Strength, Speed). Female Master: Jiang Xinli
Affiliation: Military Alliance
4. Yue Hua Yin (Silver Wolf), Age 23, Height 190cm. July 7, Cancer. Superpower: 1st Rank (Elemental: Fire Element). Female Master: Jiang Xinli
Affiliation: Federation
5. Hua Xi (Peacock), Age 18, Height 185cm. December 12, Sagittarius. Superpower: 1st Rank (Elemental: Gold Element). Female Master: Jiang Xinli
Affiliation: Furao Star No.1
After quickly scanning the list, Jiang Xinli felt as if her entire world was collapsing...