The Devil's Heart

THE SUN WAS SETTING, casting a golden light over the forest. Zhan Sheng and Lei Bo had come to this secluded spot to practice their cultivation techniques, but their thoughts were far from focused on their training. Zhan Sheng had Lei Bo pressed against a tree, they stood face to face, Zhan Sheng gazed deeply into Lei Bo's eyes, his heart racing with desire.

The omega's scent was soft and pure as sweet milk and Zhan Sheng dipped down and pressed his lips against Lei Bo's, savoring the taste of his lover's mouth. Lei Bo responded with equal passion, their kiss deepening into a fiery embrace, wrapping his arms around his neck. Lei Bo made a noise in his throat and Zhan Sheng deepened the kiss, growing hot and hard just having the beautiful omega beneath him. Zhan Sheng could taste Chrysanthemum tea on Lei Bo's lips, it was like a gentle breeze on a spring day, with a hint of sweetness that lingers on the tongue like a kiss of sunshine. Zhan Sheng's cock hardened, and his hands slipped around Lei Bo's thin waist, pressing him harder against the tree.

His flesh felt like it was on fire. Everything inside him was boiling and Zhen Sheng felt that he could live and breathe for nothing else except this omega beside him. Zhan Sheng's lips met Lei Bo's in a tender kiss, and as he felt the warmth of Lei Bo's body against his, he realized with sudden clarity that he was in love. His heart beat faster, his breath quickened, and all he could think of was the man in his arms. It wouldn't take much to hike up Lei Bo's robes, pull down his pants and fuck into his moist cavern.

Zhan Sheng has dreamed of nothing else for ten years.

I love him.

Everything else fell away at that moment. The world around them ceased to exist, and all that remained was the intense connection between them. Zhan Sheng felt as though he was soaring, his heart filled with a joy he had never known before. Lei Bo's lips were soft and yielding, and Zhan Sheng found himself lost in the sensation of their kiss. He ran his fingers through Lei Bo's hair, pulling him closer, and deepening their embrace.

The alpha inside him was preening, over the last couple of days they have stolen kisses like this whenever they could and Zhan Sheng could feel his impatience for when they would finally mate grown.

Lei Bo pushed against Zhan Sheng's chest, breaking the kiss. Zhan Sheng was panting, and he stared down at Lei Bo with a ravenous expression. Zhan Sheng gazed into Lei Bo's eyes, and he knew that he had found the one he had been searching for. The one he had been waiting for all his life. And with that realization, he knew that he would never let him go.

"E-Enough for now." The cinnabar near his eyes added to his imposing presence, a splash of bright color against his otherwise austere appearance. "Let's go back."

"Not yet," Zhan Sheng kept his arms around him. "Let's wait a while. I want to hold you."

Lei Bo glared up at him. "Let me go. We should go before someone sees."

Zhan Sheng's mouth tugged into a sardonic smile. "Why does it matter if someone sees? Isn't my scent all over you?"

"Zhan Sheng!" Lei Bo snapped. "It's improper. Even so, let's hurry back. I don't want others to know."

Zhan Sheng could feel anger rising in him. Why couldn't anyone know? He wanted to marry Lei Bo, what would it matter if people found out?

"Why not?" Zhan Sheng demanded, his scent souring. "We're together. I kissed you, that makes you mine."

"Is that how it works?" Lei Bo shoved him off. "How simplistic."

Zhan Sheng didn't understand why Lei Bo was treating him like this. "Wait—" he grabbed Lei Bo's wrist before he could run away. "What's wrong? What did I do?"

"Get off me."

"You're always running away…" Zhan Sheng continued. "I don't understand."

Lei Bo wrenched his arm free. "There's nothing to understand. You're the sect leader's son, find someone else."

"I don't want anyone else." Zhan Sheng breathed deeply trying to calm down. Lei Bo was giving him mixed signals and it was confusing the hell out of him. Zhan Sheng grabbed his wrist again, this time holding on tighter. "A minute ago you were kissing me, and now you want us to part like we're strangers."

"We are strangers. Let go."

"No."

Lei Bo's gaze slanted towards him. "How does the devil love me? Your emotions are too turbulent. Focus on your studies."

Zhan Sheng's anger simmered beneath the surface like a kettle on low heat. "My studies? Is that all you care about?" He spoke softly, but his words were charged with palpable tension.

His posture was rigid, and his eyes gleamed with a dangerous intensity. He knew what he wanted, and it was more than just stolen moments in the forest. He wanted to be with Lei Bo forever, to marry him and build a life together. But every time he brought it up, Lei Bo would shake his head and say it was impossible. He's wanted that ever since he was young. Lei Bo didn't respond, and Zhan Sheng's frustration grew.

"Why won't you consider it?" Zhan Sheng demanded, but in the face of Lei Bo's coldness, he was no match. Zhan Sheng's anger blazed like a bonfire, intense and all-consuming. His eyes burned with a fierce determination, and his voice was sharp and cutting. Lei Bo took the opportunity to rip his arm away, he turned around swiftly but then stopped.

There was a long moment of silence where Lei Bo stood with his back to him, his long black robes hanging elegantly on his slender frame, and the black fur coat draped over his shoulders gleams like a still lake reflecting the moonlight. "I'm too old for you, Zhan Sheng. And I have no status in the sect. You could do so much better than me."

Zhan Sheng shook his head. "No one could ever be better than you."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

Zhan Sheng walked around Lei Bo to face him. "I know about your past. I know that you left the Snake Poison sect…I may not know all the details but I know some things. Is it so hard to tell me what happened? Is it so hard not to confide in someone else?"

Lei Bo's brow trembled and he turned his face away. "Nonsense."

"Is it so bad that I want to get to know you?" Zhan Sheng gritted out.

"Sometimes the things we want just aren't meant to be. We have to accept the things we cannot change."

Zhan Sheng felt a wave of anguish wash over him, like a stormy sea crashing against the shore. Lies. All fucking lies. Why did Lei Bo kiss him? Why did he not push him away? So what if he had no status? If Lei Bo had said no did, he think Zhan Sheng would shamelessly force him? Was he such a beast in Lei Bo's eyes? Zhan Sheng's anger was like ice, freezing everything in its path. His expression was hard and unyielding, his tone clipped and devoid of emotion. "So…you don't you feel anything for me?"

Lei Bo's cheek jumped and his hands curled into fists at his side. "Don't say such stupid things. Of course, I feel something for you…Or else why would I…" he slammed his mouth shut. "It's inappropriate. You should just let it go, focus on the competition, and nothing else."

Zhan Sheng felt the pain of rejection tearing at his soul, like a knife slicing through his heart.

Let Lei Bo go? Never.

Zhan Sheng would razor the sect to the ground before he ever let this omega of out his sight.

Darkness swirled inside him, moving like a thick blanket as he tried to control his primal instinct, anger made his hands shake and it took everything within him to suppress his devil's blood which was raging beyond his control. Lei Bo's brows knitted as the aura shifted, contorting into something black, like a rising shadow from the abyss. "Breath deeply. Control your devil's blood."

Zhan Sheng turned around quickly, gulping in air as fast as he could to circulate his qi. It took several moments for the fog to clear, and his vision to turn back to normal. Lei Bo touched his arm, his expression one of deep concern. Zhan Sheng wiped the sweat from his bow and looked up into the clouds, his heart beating out of his chest. What happened just now? That hasn't happened in several years. Zhan Sheng was always able to control himself, but it was just after Lei Bo rejected him, he wanted to destroy everything in his path. Lei Bo touched his wrist and then shook his head.

"Your qi is turbulent… you mustn't exert yourself like this before the competition. Go and meditate. I'll let your father know."

Zhan Sheng said nothing, staring off into space trying to keep his emotions under control. Lei Bo didn't want him and it felt like his heart had been ripped out of his chest.

"Zhan Sheng?"

"Leave then," Zhan Sheng spat. "I'm fine. Since we're strangers now. There's nothing more to be said."

Lei Bo's face hardened and he left in a flurry of black robes. Zhan Sheng allowed the tears burning his eyes to fall, he slammed his fist against the tree nearly caving it in two.

Damn. How did things go from bad to worse?