Ti Shen

In Lan Kuang's mind, that night was unforgettable.

He had always been unruly and arrogant, but he had met someone even more so that night.

When he'd come across that person, he was engulfed by a desperate need to conquer them. He had wanted to claim them!

That night, after meeting with a few business partners, Lan Kuang had gone up to the balcony and opened a window to clear his mind. He had drunk too much during the meeting. Rubbing his temples, he glanced down at the people who were still mingling on the dancefloor, and sneered in contempt.

The people dancing below were all single-mindedly focused on finding someone for the night, they paid no attention to their rough moves that were jarringly out of place. It was an ugly sight.

As his business was over, Lan Kuang had no reason to stay any longer.

Just when he was about to turn away, he picked up on the sound of cheering coming from the dancefloor. The music had been switched to a fast-paced dance track. Lan Kuang wasn't interested in that type of music, so he didn't know the name of the song. However, just by listening to it, he could feel his blood strum in excitement.

The cheers became louder as the heavy beat of the track thrummed through the room like a steady clock.

Lan Kuang looked down.

A man wearing a demon mask was dancing slowly at the center of the dancefloor.

He moved his shoulders, flipped his hair, rotated his waist, and thrusted his hips.

It was carefree. It was confident. It was willful. And it was insolent.

The eyes hidden behind the mask were especially bright.

When the music slowed down, the man's moves also became gentler. If his earlier moves were aggressive and arrogant, then he could only be described as alluring and seductive now.

The man with the mask fingered the buttons of his shirt, pulling it open and off his body. With a swing of his arm, he threw the shirt into the air.

The crowd cheered and screamed, the noise deafening to the ears.

Lan Kuang found that he couldn't move his eyes away.

For the entire track, he found himself fixated on the man who was tearing up the dancefloor.

He could feel the desire to conquer welling up inside his heart.

Lan Kuang had always lived under the principle of "If someone dares to be wild in front of me, I'll be even wilder."

Otherwise, .

He pulled out the vampire masquerade mask he'd been given when he'd entered the dance party. Lan Kuang smiled to himself. He put the mask on, put one hand on the railings, and leapt down from the balcony.

It was at least a two-story drop.

Some of the onlookers screamed when they noticed a man falling from above. They went silent and stared intensely at the spot where Lan Kuang had landed.

Lan Kuang had bent his knees during his fall to lessen the impact on his legs. His bent position had an indescribable charm to it.

The man wearing the demon mask had already stopped dancing. He'd collected his shirt and was putting it on, preparing to leave. Before he could step away, Lan Kuang grabbed his arm.

"Is something wrong?" A simple and direct question.

"Why don't we dance together?"

"Sorry, I've just finished so I'm a bit tired right now. Sir, please go find someone else." The man pulled his arm out of Lan Kuang's grasp and turned to walk away. But underneath his mask, he was smiling.

Very good.

For such an egotistical man, Lan Kuang had taken the bait as expected.

"Then why don't we get a drink together?" Lan Kuang didn't force the issue, but he quickly followed after the other.

It'd been a long time since he'd taken an interest in someone. He had to get to know the man better.

As for conquering him, that could come after he'd gotten to know the man.

"All right, my treat."

"No, it'll be my treat!" Lan Kuang insisted. He was used to getting his way.

"Then…I gladly accept!"

The crowd watched as the two walked away. For some unknown reason, they felt that the two men matched each other rather well.

Without any further disturbances, the dancefloor resumed its previous noisiness, as if the period of silence had never existed.

The two men each picked up a glass of alcohol and sat down in a corner. After sitting together for a while, Lan Kuang said, "Don't you think the air is stuffy in here?"

"No, not at all. I think it's fine." The man in the demon mask smiled.

Lan Kuang chuckled, his eyes narrowing behind his mask. He leaned next to the other's ear and murmured, "Have you…done it with a man before?"

The other stiffened in shock, but replied honestly, "No."

"Do you want to try?" Lan Kuang reached toward the other's collar, the image of the man's smooth chest replaying inside his mind. He felt his abs tighten and spoke in an alluring voice, "Try it. I promise, you will die from how good it feels."

"But I don't like to be controlled by others." The man grabbed Lan Kuang's wrist and stopped it from moving. He emphasized, "Also, my tastes are a bit heavy. Are you sure…you can handle it?"

Lan Kuang watched as an enticing smile bloomed on the man's face, his smooth lips shining under the light. Although the upper half of the man's face was hidden behind the mask, Lan Kuang was sure that the other's expression was one of provocation.

He was the first one to challenge his authority.

Good. Lan Kuang liked it very much.

"All right, I've never tried being on the bottom before, but I can make an exception for you tonight." Lan Kuang was a bit scary when he suddenly acts gentle. "Be nice with me!"

"Then what are we waiting for?" The man with the demon mask stood up first. He pulled Lan Kuang out of the hall they were in and pressed the elevator for the top floor.

Lan Kuang understood what was going on. He'd heard of the popular trend that was going on in society. Young men and women of all kinds gathered at parties to pick out their target for the night. It was common for one-night stands to occur, and deals that lasted past the night happened as well. For men who liked to play around with other men, they were eager to resort to this sort of method.

Only, Lan Kuang was a bit curious as to how the current situation had turned out this way. Even though he had been the one to offer the invitation, why did it feel like the other was laying a trap for him?

Could it be that the other had something in mind? Was that why he had resorted to such an eye-catching dance to draw his attention?

Lan Kuang glanced at the man with the demon mask, who was leaning against a corner of the elevator and studying him. Lan Kuang's smile deepened.

Ha… Interesting! It was the first time that someone had dared to have any ideas about him. If he didn't play along, he would be wasting the man's efforts.

It hadn't been decided which of them was going to play the demon yet!

The two of them smiled at each other; the meanings behind those smiles impossible to decipher.

When they entered the hotel room, the man with the demon mask pressed his hands against Lan Kuang's chest and kissed him.

Both of them were wearing masks, but it didn't prevent them from kissing as the lower halves of their faces were exposed.

Leaning against the door, Lan Kuang tilted his head and kissed the other man back. They ground their lips together, biting and twisting their tongues against each other. Soon, their lips became linked with a thread of saliva.

They could feel the heat rising.

Even though he was unused to being so passive, Lan Kuang allowed the other man to do as he liked.

Of course, he didn't play along for long. Lan Kuang grabbed the other's waist and switched their positions, pushing the man against the door. He crushed their lips together in a violent kiss.

Taking the initiative felt very different from being passive. Having everything under his control was a fantastic feeling.

The more they kissed, the more rugged their breaths became.

"Wait…" When Lan Kuang reached down to unbuckle the man's belt, the latter stopped him with a hoarse voice.

Lan Kuang raised a brow, not understanding what the other meant.

Asking him to wait at a time like this? What kind of person did that?

"Why don't we have a drink to liven things up?" The man pushed Lan Kuang toward the bed. He then opened one of the cupboards inside the room and as expected, found it stocked with alcohol.

Lan Kuang leaned backwards, supporting himself with both hands on the bed. It was a lazy, yet charming position. "I thought that the glasses we've had earlier were enough."

"But I don't feel excited." The man popped the bottle open, and pulled out two wineglasses from the cupboard. "They only have wine here. Do we need to call for something different?"

"No, wine is enough." Lan Kuang glanced over the other's body with a satisfied smile on his face. "I'm confident in my skills to make you feel excited in all sorts of places."

The man with the demon mask gave an enigmatic smile. He poured the wine into a glass. "Here, have a glass."

Lan Kuang accepted it and raised it to his lips, but he did not take a sip. He stared at the man and asked casually, "There isn't anything in here, right?"

"Are you scared?" A light flashed across the other's eyes, bright like the stars in the sky.

"Of course. If something's in this wine and we end up going overboard because of it… What are we going to do? Although I'm making an exception to be on the bottom for you tonight, I still have my limits. If you're too rough, I won't be able to take it." Lan Kuang swirled the liquid in the glass, staring at its deep red color, his gaze as intense as if he were staring at a glass of poison.

"Then we don't have to drink." The man turned to place his glass down. Although he didn't voice it out loud, it was obvious that he'd lost interest and wasn't willing to play anymore.

Lan Kuang grabbed his wrist. "Don't be angry. Why don't you drink my glass then? I'll take care of yours." He exchanged wineglasses with the man and added, "Don't you think this is fair?"

"All right." The other quickly downed half of the wine that was in Lan Kuang's glass. "Are you satisfied now?"

Lan Kuang stared at him. His expression and pose remained unchanged.

The man in the demon mask sighed. "Aren't you too cautious? Here, why don't you take the one I've drunk from? You can return my glass to me. It's only a one-night stand. Why do you have to turn it into an assassination attempt?"

The man handed Lan Kuang's glass back. He took the glass that was originally his and took a sip.

Lan Kuang took another glance at him, and finally drank the wine.

The minute Lan Kuang swallowed, the other man came over and took his glass, tossing it onto the carpet along with his own. He then pressed Lan Kuang down onto the bed, kissing and touching all the while.

The taste of the wine remained in Lan Kuang's mouth, but he could feel the heat rising from his groin. It felt as if something were trying to burst through his body.

"Hey, you aren't bad at taking the initiative." Lan Kuang noticed that the other hadn't spoken a single word; the man was purely focused on kissing him. Despite that, the man's hands weren't idle. They pulled at his clothes and smoothed over his body in an erratic dance. Lan Kuang could feel his body heating up. His eyes were also glazing over. Was his desire muddling with his head?

The man with the demon mask pulled off his belt. Lan Kuang thought, how could he let someone else do as they liked with him? He was determined to switch their positions. Just as he lifted his hand however, he felt his head spin. His body gave way and he fell back onto the bed. His body was hot to the point of agony.

Lan Kuang knew something was wrong. The next second, the man used the belt he'd taken off to bind Lan Kuang's hands around the headboard. He then got up and took out a leather whip from the cupboard where he'd found the wine. The whip snapped through the air, the sharp sound filling the room. He stared down at the half-naked Lan Kuang, an ambiguous smile on his face and disdain in his eyes.