The Heroines I’ve Flirted With Are Bound to Go OOC - Chapter 5

“Let’s just talk about when the treasure will appear,” Ye Naitang said, deciding to shift the subject. She couldn’t come up with a decent excuse for being a child alone in the desert; the more she tried to explain, the messier it would get.

On the other side, Hu Qi blinked her eyes, her long, curled lashes fluttering like butterfly wings. She stepped forward and hugged the girl’s arm tightly, like a rabbit refusing to let go of a carrot. Resting her small head on Ye Naitang’s shoulder, she answered in a low voice:

“At any moment.”

Her voice was melodious and pleasant to the ear, carrying a faint electric quality that sent a tingle through Ye Naitang from head to toe. It was almost impossible to resist.

Ye Naitang was stunned—not by the voice, but by the weight of those words.

“So…” Ye Naitang pulled Hu Qi away and looked her in the eyes, her voice hesitating. “To avoid missing this spiritual treasure, you are willing to face the risk of being hunted? Even if you spend your entire life waiting for an opportunity that might never come, you’ll still pursue this ethereal chance?”

“Yes.”

“Is it worth it?”

Faced with the long-haired loli’s decisive reply, Ye Naitang frowned.

Hu Qi, however, seemed unbothered. If anything, she looked a little embarrassed by Ye Naitang’s intense gaze. “Naitang, you are young and inexperienced. To you, this might seem shocking. But you’ll understand once you’ve lived for over a thousand years like I have.”

“All things can cultivate. Every living being wants to climb higher. Even a stone, a flower, or a piece of rotten wood yearns for great power.”

“If I obtain the spiritual treasure, I can transcend them all and master their fates! I want to climb to the peak and stand above everyone. I want to become a legend of the ages, praised by future generations. For that moment, any price is worth paying.”

She looked straight at Ye Naitang with conviction, her glass-like pupils turning vertical, revealing a flash of madness.

Technically, it was a flawed premise. All these ideals were built on the assumption that the goal could be achieved. Betting everything on a grand vision sounds beautiful and inspiring, but what if that moment never comes?

To gamble on luck, chasing light like a moth to a flame regardless of the consequences—in Ye Naitang’s eyes, this was reckless behavior. However, to each their own. She wouldn’t criticize, especially since Hu Qi’s spirited, radiant appearance made it hard to burst her bubble.

Ye Naitang lowered her gaze in thought. Eventually, for the sake of the “fluffiness” she had enjoyed earlier, she offered a gentle warning: “And if you fail? Would you truly be willing to give up your beauties and your delicacies?”

For the sake of your hobbies alone, you should re-evaluate the risks and keep your life.

“Then let me ask you—”

Hu Qi’s lips curled upward. The obsession in her slitted pupils intensified, and her aura became increasingly dangerous.

“Suppose I wanted to keep you as a pet. To command you to love and pamper only me forever. To lock you in a cage where you would crouch beneath me day and night…”

“Would you be willing?”

Her clear voice had turned hoarse, moist, and lingering with a strange tenderness.

The atmosphere froze.

“Stop joking,” Ye Naitang said after a long silence, struggling to keep up with the girl’s train of thought.

Pet? Cages? She could almost accept those as a twisted form of possessiveness over something one likes. But the “crouching beneath her” part completely shattered her worldview. It was like reading a web novel that was heading toward a perfect happy ending, only for a meteorite to suddenly fall and kill the lead couple—a tragedy so abrupt it left her baffled.

At this moment, she felt her brain was short-circuiting. If she had a mouse in her hand, she would have spammed a hundred negative reviews.

Seeing the expression of pure shock on Ye Naitang’s usually indifferent face, Hu Qi smiled. she reached out and twirled a lock of the girl’s silver hair around her fingertip.

She said flirtatiously, “See? Without power, you get nothing. But with it, might is right, and no one can resist… everything I desire will be presented to me. Including you.”

The last three words were whispered so low they were almost inaudible. Hu Qi leaned in with a mischievous grin and licked the side of Ye Naitang’s neck. Her sharp teeth grazed the skin, leaving a red mark.

The texture was silky, and the taste was sweet. It was indeed as delicious as she had imagined.

The beauties and delicacies I love most… you represent both.

Hu Qi smacked her lips with lingering satisfaction, looking like a cat that had just stolen some cream.

Then, she stepped back, the ornaments on her dress jingling. She quickly explained before Ye Naitang could react: “The speech above was just an example! And that action just now was to mark you and hide your aura for our journey. Don’t misunderstand, okay?”

“Your ‘examples’ are certainly interesting,” Ye Naitang replied. She wanted to punch her and clenched her fists, but managed to restrain herself.

Now that the mystery of the Western Region had been unveiled, she wasn’t in such a rush to leave. The Eastern Region would always be there, but a rare treasure was another story.

“Do you have any other clues about the treasure? And don’t play tricks.”

As she asked, Ye Naitang reached up to touch her neck where it had been licked. After this encounter, her image of a soft, “easy-to-push-over” fox cub had been completely overturned. This was a cunning, thousand-year-old fox spirit whose words were a mix of truth and lies. Not cute at all.

“Eh… I know about as much as you do. What it looks like, what powers it has, when or where it will appear—I have no clue.”

The loli, now labeled “not cute,” counted on her fingers and added: “Logically, after all these years, it should have appeared by now. But it keeps delaying, as if it’s waiting for a specific timing.”

Hu Qi looked like she was going crazy from overthinking, but Ye Naitang understood perfectly. Her heart was as clear as a mirror.

What else could it be waiting for? There was only one answer: the Male Lead.

In this world, the Protagonist is supreme. Gear, girls—if it’s top-tier, it belongs to him. Anyone who touches the protagonist’s things usually ends up as cannon fodder.

However, Ye Naitang wasn’t afraid. She didn’t believe in that nonsense. She didn’t care who it belonged to; if she stumbled upon it, there was no way she was just giving it away.

After all, the protagonist only rose to power because he inherited her “golden finger.” He used her luck to have top-tier gear deliver itself to his door. If a mortal inheriting a god’s spark could do it, then the original owner should find it easy.

At this thought, Ye Naitang looked inward at her dantian. She guided the pale yellow thread—the faith she had received from Er Bao—and channeled it into her meridians. The yellow line glowed faintly, nourishing her body and merging with her.

Her body was suddenly flooded with power, washing away her fatigue and the cold. She felt an almost omnipotent sense of clarity.

But time was limited; Er Bao’s Power of Faith wouldn’t last long. Without hesitation, she poured all that energy into her Luck stat. Her luck value skyrocketed, and in exchange, the Power of Faith vanished instantly.

One second passed… Six seconds… Two minutes passed. Everything remained calm. Nothing happened.

“Naitang?”

Hu Qi spoke first, her voice trembling slightly. She stared at the silver-haired girl. The moonlight fell upon Ye Naitang’s beautiful face like a layer of fine snow; she looked like a celestial being.

Just moments ago, Hu Qi had sensed a terrifying aura. Even though it was only for a split second, it was enough to put her on high alert. She grabbed Ye Naitang’s hand.

“It’s not safe here. We have to go.”

Hu Qi’s expression was solemn and her tone urgent, but before Ye Naitang could respond, an anomaly occurred.

The sand beneath their feet began to flow as if it were alive, surging up in waves that threatened to swallow the two figures standing in the desert. Caught in the quicksand, they held onto each other, with nowhere to run.

Damn it!

Hu Qi stubbornly tried to pull Ye Naitang upward, her heart filled with silent tears. She had heard of man-eating quicksand here before, but after a thousand years of living here in peace, she had never actually encountered it until now.

The more they struggled, the deeper they sank. Soon, the sand rose above their heads, choking their nostrils.

“Let go… you run… there’s still time,” Ye Naitang said with great effort, her voice fragmented. She had no leverage; she was only staying afloat because Hu Qi was pulling her.

A powerful suction came from beneath the earth, as if something were calling to her. Ye Naitang couldn’t be sure if this was the effect of her boosted Luck—whether it was a blessing or a curse—so she didn’t want to drag someone else into the danger.

“I… I…”

Hu Qi hesitated, her expression shifting. Her brow was furrowed so hard it was practically in a knot.

The desert did not wait for her to decide. A massive wave of sand surged over them, swallowing them both.

Finally, the dust settled. The desert returned to silence, as if nothing had happened.

At that moment, six kilometers away, a pack of wolves with glowing green eyes appeared. There were about twenty of them, each with strong limbs and bared teeth, saliva dripping from their mouths. The lead black wolf, larger than the others, raised its head and let out a low howl at the moon—a mournful sound mourning the pack members who had died recently.

The moon, hanging high in the sky, was stained with a touch of blood.

Beneath the earth, in a cavern adorned with glowing crystals, various rare stones lay scattered across the ground. The spiritual qi in the air was so thick it seemed on the verge of condensing into liquid water. It felt like a paradise; being here felt like soaking in a warm spring.

The brilliant light from the various crystals illuminated the black-haired loli’s eyes. For a moment, her gaze was even more dazzling than the gems. She couldn’t stop touching everything, her eyes filled with hunger, as if she were looking at a masterpiece.

“Whoa~! Deep blue stalagmites! This quality, this pure spiritual qi and color… it’s top-tier at the very least!” The sea of treasures had completely blinded Hu Qi; she was so happy she didn’t know which way was north.

Meanwhile, Ye Naitang sat to the side, her attention drawn to a black, rounded stone at the top of the cave. One half of it was embedded in the sand, and layers of crystals surrounded it like sea salt, creating a magnificent and awe-inspiring sight.

Suddenly, the air grew quiet.

Hu Qi had also noticed the black stone. Her smile vanished, replaced by a cold, somber expression devoid of warmth. She looked at Ye Naitang with an icy gaze.

She said stiffly: “Even though I like you, I won’t let you have it!”

It was a stance of life-and-death confrontation—an “it’s either you or me” resolve.

Ye Naitang suddenly smiled. She looked at the black fox, her lake-blue pupils reflecting her usual indifference. She said softly:

“If you want it, you can have it.