Six

You Qi's frame almost completely enveloped Zhou Mu. When he raised his head and straightened, sunlight fell again on Zhou Mu's face. His eyes were somewhat hazy, as if his mind had also been stolen by that dangerous exchange of breath. His lips parted slightly, making him look even more ready to be taken.

You Qi's throat moved slightly; he leaned down and transformed into his original form. His massive beast shape was black with cyan patterns, and the Mouth Cage transformed into a corresponding shape, preventing him from carrying Zhou Mu in his jaws. He only turned his head and uttered heavy words: "Get on."

Although Zhou Mu's scent was also gradually fading, looking around, a few adult students, still under You Qi's intimidation, couldn't help but stare openly at Zhou Mu, eager to explore that ultimate enticing scent they'd just experienced.

Chun Shijiu's face darkened as he watched this nearly out-of-control scene, his tone full of warning: "Zhou Mu!"

But surrounded by wolves, Zhou Mu actually chose what should have been the most dangerous classmate, climbing onto his back and tightly hugging his neck.

You Qi stepped on the wind and vanished in an instant.

The remaining people wandered like zombies for a while before coming to their senses: You Qi took the person away — was he planning to eat him alone?

……

You Qi landed at the top of the School's Clock Tower. Few people came here; at noon each day, the ancient bell rang on its own. Now it was silent and empty. Looking out, one could see dense mountain forests and, scattered among them, the campus buildings.

You Qi transformed back into human form, carrying Zhou Mu with one hand.

Even though Zhou Mu had put the Stealth Charm back on, You Qi's keen senses still allowed him to clearly recall Zhou Mu's scent, as if it still lingered around his nose and mouth…

He stared at Zhou Mu, his gaze sliding over him as if it had substance.

Zhou Mu slowly opened his palm, revealing a Stealth Charm in his center.

What You Qi had pressed into Zhou Mu's hand earlier was his own Stealth Charm — he'd taken it off and given it to Zhou Mu, which was why his Fierce Beast aura had spread.

"Thanks." Zhou Mu's eyes held a trace of surprise, then he smiled and thanked him in a tone so intimate it was almost clingy.

Again like this.

Too naive…

You Qi was inexplicably unhappy, staring coldly at him: "Do you always think the best of people? I gave you the Stealth Charm — why assume I didn't want to hide you away and enjoy you alone?"

Zhou Mu looked around, confused: "But it's all dusty here, isn't that too dirty for enjoying?"

……It really was, the Clock Tower was full of unsanitary dead zones.

Zhou Mu's reasoning was too plain, leaving You Qi speechless.

At this moment, Zhou Mu's phone rang. He took it out — it was a video call from the Dean of Students, Cui Jue. He tapped it with his index finger.

"Zhou Mu where are you!!!!!!!! Aaaaaaaaaa!!!"

The moment it connected, Cui Jue's frantic screaming rang out, so loud it was piercing even without speaker, shattering the Clock Tower's silence.

Zhou Mu quickly moved the phone farther away, which put both him and You Qi in frame — his whole body was being held by You Qi: "Teacher, calm down, I'm on the Clock Tower, where are you?"

Where do you think I am, wuwuwuwu.

Cui Jue had nearly lost his soul when he got the news, mentally cursing the staff hundreds of times. Seeing them both appear fine on the other end of the video, he finally relaxed slightly, wiping the tears that had squeezed out from the corners of his eyes due to emotional agitation.

A moment later his eyes went wide: "What kind of position is that!! You Qi, take your hand off Zhou Mu's neck, why are you choking him, danger danger danger! Let go!!! Come find me… no, wait, I'll come to you to deliver the Stealth Charm!!!"

You Qi frowned, finding Cui Jue far too noisy, like a possessed loudspeaker: "I already gave him my Charm."

Cui Jue: "…"

Cui Jue: "Don't say anything, I'm coming right now!!"

In less than a minute, Cui Jue violated school rules, not taking the planned route, using a teleportation technique to reach the Clock Tower, leading the way. He clutched his chest as he caught his breath — clearly terrified that something irreversible might happen even in that short minute.

But seeing You Qi carrying Zhou Mu with his own eyes was still hard for Cui Jue to take. He tossed a new Stealth Charm to You Qi and his first words were: "Alright, you're not allowed to choke a classmate's neck!"

You Qi: "…Lunatic."

His hand hadn't touched Zhou Mu's neck at all, he was just holding the person.

Cui Jue: "You're not allowed to call the teacher a lunatic."

"Teacher, my foot got bitten, You Qi was just trying to help me, could you support me?" Zhou Mu said softly.

Cui Jue: "…………"

Cui Jue: "…You Qi bit him?"

You Qi: "?"

Zhou Mu: "It was Senior Xiao Xiao, it hurts so much, wuwu."

Xiao Xiao? Cui Jue felt he might really be going crazy. With a twisted expression, he supported Zhou Mu with one hand. Zhou Mu was standing on one foot, clearly not very convenient. Cui Jue simply had him sit on the stone railing.

After sorting out his emotions a bit, Cui Jue finally organized his words.

"Student Zhou Mu, I'm sorry, I must apologize to you, and also apologize on behalf of Xiao Xiao. I only have a rough understanding of this matter. From what we can tell so far, we overlooked that Xiao Xiao is growing and can already break through the Stealth Charm's protection within a certain range, smell your scent, and cause trouble — scaring the new students and nearly… nearly causing a catastrophe."

He apologized to Zhou Mu very seriously, reflecting on the oversight. The look of lingering fear on his face showed it was sincere.

Hualing had maintained a record of no students being eaten for fifty years. Since You Qi enrolled, many had assumed the record would be broken by him, but unexpectedly, it was the school's own divine dog that caused trouble.

You Qi leaned against the wall, unsurprised.

Cui Jue glanced at You Qi with complicated eyes. Today it was fortunate You Qi had held back, or the consequences would have been unthinkable.

"We'll handle the aftermath, investigate thoroughly, and if necessary, develop a new Restriction for Xiao Xiao. We can also transfer You Qi out of Room 1203..."

You Qi gave a cold laugh.

Before Cui Jue could finish, Zhou Mu interrupted: "Why? Room 1203 is You Qi's dorm, why would you make him move instead?"

You Qi looked at Zhou Mu.

This was somewhat unexpected…

He knew what he had nearly lost control looked like. Zhou Mu had clearly been scared at the time, and although he'd thanked him foolishly afterward, by any logic he shouldn't want to keep living with him.

"I just think you're not suited to being together. This time nothing happened, but what if in the future…" Cui Jue tactfully reminded.

Just because nothing happened this time didn't mean it was truly safe.

Just watching them together was enough to make Cui Jue's heart jump.

"Director, but everyone seems to want to eat me, and among the whole school only You Qi has his mouth locked — even if he wants to eat me he can't," Zhou Mu pointed at You Qi's Mouth Cage. You Qi glanced at him, and he quickly pulled his hand back, as if afraid You Qi would bite him. "Doesn't that mean You Qi is actually the safest?"

Cui Jue: "…"

You Qi: "…"

This logic was quite fresh, and thinking about it carefully, it even had a (twisted) kind of sense.

"There's a saying I learned from the Human Race: if no one offends me, I won't offend anyone," Zhou Mu smiled. "I believe You Qi, having received so many years of education at Hualing, won't harm me without reason. Today You Qi gave me his Stealth Charm in an emergency — doesn't that prove it?"

Cui Jue's face went blank for a second. He fell into thought.

Zhou Mu: "Teacher Cui?"

Cui Jue lowered his head and thought for a while, finally making up his mind: "Alright, what Student Zhou Mu says does have some logic." He also turned to You Qi: "Student You Qi, the teacher just cares about you… both, I hope you understand."

Understanding or not, being used to it was true.

Even if Cui Jue this time, because Zhou Mu seemed especially tolerant?

You Qi said indifferently: "Does the teacher need to give me another Charm then?"

Cui Jue laughed dryly: "No need for that. You two be careful, you must love each other! Follow school rules!" He added, "Also, Student Zhou Mu, I heard you have… some Yao Clan student aid subsidies, remember to collect them!"

He took one last look at Zhou Mu's ankle, paused silently, and left a word to rest well.

……

After Cui Jue left, You Qi looked up at Zhou Mu. Because of where Zhou Mu was sitting, his whole person was higher than him by a section, and backlit. You Qi could only see Zhou Mu seem to smile in the light, then jump down.

He threw himself straight into You Qi's arms.

This time his vigilance didn't seem to work — You Qi instinctively raised his hands to catch him.

Calling it a hug, given the size difference, the height difference, and Zhou Mu's impaired mobility, it was more like burrowing into his arms and hanging there.

You Qi only had to lower his head and the Mouth Cage was once again extremely close to Zhou Mu.

This weak and delicious little yao seemed to truly not care at all. Instead, because of what had happened earlier, he had developed trust in You Qi — his soft body pressed close without any guard, even dependent.

Or perhaps Zhou Mu trusted the Fuwén on the Mouth Cage? Just as he'd said, the whole school was full of classmates who wanted to eat him, but only You Qi was bound.

You Qi hadn't previously guessed Zhou Mu's race, but now he couldn't help wondering — whatever Zhou Mu was, how had a creature like him survived until now?

"Let's hurry back to Room 1203." Zhou Mu's soft cheek naturally nuzzled You Qi's chest. He looked up: "You Qi, the director said to be friendly. If something like this happens again, you swear to block them!"

You Qi: "…"

In the instant Zhou Mu's face brushed past, You Qi felt a tingling sensation surge up in his chest, spreading in wisps. What the touch brought was, beyond appetite, a strange, unfamiliar… fulfillment slowly rising.

Intimate touch could actually have such an effect — better than when he'd absently stroked Zhou Mu's head himself.

He couldn't help raising his arm and touching Zhou Mu.

You Qi thought, half-dazed.

In biology, there is a kind of symbiotic relationship.

In the textbook, its definition is: 【Symbiosis exists between animals, plants, fungi, and any two of the three. In a symbiotic relationship, one party provides the other with help beneficial to survival, while also receiving help in return. Two organisms live together, mutually dependent and mutually beneficial.】

For example, a small frog helps a wolf spider protect its eggs, and the wolf spider also protects the small frog; the mucus the frog releases allows the wolf spiders to attack.

Another example: sea anemones borrow the hermit crab's mobility, while the hermit crab uses the sea anemone for camouflage and killing enemies.

There are also many examples among the Yao Clan, such as the Bijun beast — "Qiongqiong and Juxu can walk, while Jue knows fine grass. When danger approaches, Qiongqiong and Juxu carry Jue and flee, hence called Bijun beasts."

You Qi narrowed his eyes slightly.

He felt the warmth in his arms. Hugging was a common gesture, but this kind of skin pressed close, without any malice, even full of dependence — for You Qi it was unfamiliar, causing a faint trembling tension, the tingling spreading through his whole body.

Though the scent was hidden, Zhou Mu's body still emitted a faint plant fragrance, peaceful and warm.

"Alright, I'll block them." You Qi's dark eyes looked at Zhou Mu heavily.

So, in return…

You Qi easily lifted the currently mobility-impaired Zhou Mu entirely, so he was almost sitting on his arm. Between the cold metallic gleam of the Mouth Cage, when his lips parted, a bright red tongue tip and sharp canine teeth flickered in and out of view. The surrounding wind sensed his mood, wisps brushing past and making both their hair sway lightly, letting the whole sentence drift in the air: "And try not to eat you."