The Lycan Kingpins Captive A Baby For The Beast

The autumn wind was bleak, leaves covering the ground in a golden hue.

On a withered bed lay a woman, thin and lifeless.

"Sister!"

Fiona Fu, dressed in a resplendent nine-phoenix palace attire that starkly contrasted with the dilapidated courtyard, approached. "Your maid, Cai Yue, accused me of usurping the Luo Familys legacy and stealing your identity—didnt you graciously bestow the familys assets upon me? And the status of the Warlords only daughter, wasnt that something you disdained and begged me to take on?"

"Her lies are despicable, ruining our sisterly bond. So, I had her tongue cut out and her limbs severed, ground into pieces, and fed to the dogs."

Lying on the bed, Joy Luo wished she could tear her flesh and drink her blood. "You wicked—cough—"

"Sister," Fiona cooed gently, sitting by Joys bedside. "Do you wish to see him?"

Joys eyes widened with intense hatred.

Fiona chuckled softly. "Hes in the Daming Palace, just a cup of teas journey away. Sister, shall we go?"

Joy stared at her, finally croaking, "Is...he alive?"

"Of course," Fiona tittered. "Hes very much alive. Lets take you to see him."

With a gentle gesture, Fiona ordered Joy to be dragged out.

Joy, her heart a dead sea, no longer cared about the excruciating pain as her legs scraped against the ground.

She yearned to see him, even if it was just for the last time.

...

The heavy palace doors creaked open, sunlight streaming in.

The Daming Palace was empty, its curtains billowing with the autumn breeze.

Thud.

Joy was thrown inside.

She struggled to lift her head and saw a man in plain clothes, kneeling behind the central bookcase.

Long imprisonment had stripped him of his former glory.

Joy gritted her teeth, dragging her frail body with all her might, finally reaching him.

"Warren Yu—" she whispered, grasping his wrist.

Feeling the crisscrossing scars on his wrist, memories flashed before her eyes, and she choked out, "I was wrong... I... Im sorry..."

Once, she had been poisoned, needing the Fire Lotus Stamen for the cure, a flower so rare it required blood to grow.

He had watered the fire lotus with his own blood every fortnight, year after year, until her poison was cured.

He had always held her in the palm of his hand, pampering, protecting, and loving her.

But she, blinded, had run and hurt him, despite her heart already succumbing to him.

Had it not been for her, he would still be the pillar of Qian Kingdom, not reduced to this state.

"You were wrong?" Warren murmured, finally opening his eyes to look at her. "Joy Luo, I told you long ago, whatever you wanted, I could give—your life for mine, I could give."

"The vast rivers and mountains of Qian Kingdom, I could give those too."

"But why did you have to harm Shuoer?! Hes the only bloodline left by my brother! The last family I have in this world, and hes just a child of ten, who treated you so kindly. How could you bear to do such a thing?"

"I didnt!" Joy shook her head, tears streaming down her face. "It wasnt me!"

Warren looked at her deeply, his eyes lifeless, clearly not believing her.

"To leave me, to get back at me, theres nothing you wouldnt do, is there?" He slowly closed his eyes. "Youre not wrong; I was. I thought that with sincere devotion, even a cold heart could be warmed."

"But your heart isnt cold ice; its a stone..."

"A stone that cant be warmed—" Warrens lips curled into a bitter smile as crimson blood seeped from the corners of his mouth.

Then, from his nostrils, the corners of his eyes, and his ears, blood began to flow.

"Warren Yu!" Joy sobbed. "Dont... dont die—"

She lunged forward, wiping the blood from his face as if by cleaning it away, he would be fine.

She dared not cry, as if by not shedding tears, nothing had happened.

The man before her would lift his eyes, look at her with his always fierce gaze, and say tenderly,, "Joy, pay attention to me."

Joy knelt there, her heart a mess of blood and flesh.

She vaguely remembered the Luo Family, her grandfather, the man who had been entwined with her for years, and the years of sisterly love with the woman behind her.

Her life had been such a joke.

Blood surged up her throat as the poison in her body took effect.

She struggled towards Warren, "You... wait for me..."

"Dying together, how romantic. How could I let my sister have her way?" Fiona laughed triumphantly. "Drag her away."

Watching the man grow farther and farther away, Joy cursed with blood and tears: "If theres an afterlife, I will... make you pay!"

...

In the warm night breeze of March,

On the bed in the Jiangzhou Pavilion,

A girl in green lay, her face flushed, constantly tugging at her clothes, murmuring "hot."

A man in black robes and a high crown sat by the bed, his pleasant cold fragrance drawing the girl closer.

"Joy Luo," the man murmured, a single call containing much suppressed emotion.

"Hmm?" Joy responded hoarsely, her fair and beautiful hand reaching for the mans collar, her voice so charming it could drip with water.

Subtly, she felt herself being lifted.

A moment later—

Splash!

The sudden cold water that entered her mouth and nose caused Joy to cough violently. She struggled to the surface, instinctively grabbing a sleeve.

The sleeve was embroidered with auspicious clouds in dark gold thread, and on one side was a belt with a rare Kunshan yellow jade, exquisitely carved with a soaring dragon.

This was...

Joys gaze slowly traced up the dragon until she saw the cold, familiar face, and for a moment, she forgot to breathe.

"Ah Hua—" Joy blurted out.

Warrens pupils contracted. "What did you say?"

Joy stared at him, not noticing the shock in the mans eyes, thinking this was just a dying vision, just an illusion.

Splash.

Joy rose from the water, tightly embracing the mans waist, tears of excitement in her eyes.

Warren froze, disbelief in his eyes, but soon he regained his composure, slowly but firmly grasping Joys shoulders and pushing her away: "How dare you!"