Chapter 91: A Teasing Heart

He ignored her protest and continued approaching.

Evelyn instinctively stepped backward, but Lucian kept moving until he stood directly in front of her.

His face was now close enough that she could clearly see the amusement in his eyes.

A faint masculine scent surrounded him, and his sudden closeness made Evelyn’s thoughts stumble.

Her heartbeat grew so loud that she could almost hear it in her ears.

He’s really close!

Evelyn’s fingers nervously curled around the hem of her clothes. She wanted to say something to stop him, but the words seemed to have vanished from her mind. The teasing smile on Lucian’s face only made matters worse, leaving her wondering whether he was deliberately trying to make her flustered.

She had read more than a few romance novels in her spare time. Naturally, her imagination immediately began supplying possibilities that had absolutely no business appearing in the cultivation room.

Her cheeks burned.

Lucian leaned forward slightly.

Evelyn’s eyelashes trembled.

After a brief internal struggle, she finally closed her eyes.

If he really intended to do something, then perhaps—

A light touch landed on the tip of her nose.

Evelyn froze.

Then Lucian’s teasing voice reached her ears.

"What are you imagining in that pretty little head of yours?"

He gently tapped her nose with his finger.

"Focus on your cultivation. I’m waiting for you to catch up with me."

Evelyn opened her eyes.

The smug expression on Lucian’s face was the first thing she saw.

For a moment, she couldn’t believe what had just happened.

She had practically prepared herself for a romantic moment, only for the shameless fellow to poke her nose and tell her to cultivate!

Her embarrassment instantly transformed into indignation.

"Lucian, you bastard!"

She raised her fists and began pounding his chest.

"I’m calling my dad right now! I’ll tell him you’ve been bullying me!"

Her small fists landed against him like raindrops.

Unfortunately for her, Lucian had already reached Martial Master. Her attacks barely registered.

"Ah! You’re so annoying!"

Evelyn continued striking him, her face growing redder with every passing second.

Lucian suddenly reached forward and wrapped his arms around her waist.

He pulled her gently against his chest.

Evelyn went completely still.

Her fists stopped halfway through another swing.

For several seconds, she simply stared at him, her mind struggling to process what had happened.

The warmth of his body, the strength of his arms, and the closeness between them left her unable to think clearly.

Then Lucian spoke.

"Evelyn, thank you."

His voice was suddenly serious.

Evelyn looked up at him.

"During this time, Grandma and I have caused your family quite a bit of trouble."

The change in his tone caught her off guard.

Ever since he and his grandmother had arrived at the Magnus household, they had been treated with remarkable kindness.

Evelyn had personally brought them into her home, ensuring that his grandmother could live somewhere safe and comfortable.

More importantly, his grandmother no longer had to endure the loneliness that had weighed on her for so long.

Her laughter had become more frequent, and her spirits had noticeably improved.

Lucian was grateful for all of it.

Now that he spent most of his time cultivating, knowing his grandmother was surrounded by people he trusted allowed him to focus without constantly worrying about her safety.

He still didn’t fully understand why Magnus and the rest of the family had treated them so well from the beginning.

Even if Lucian had once saved Evelyn, Magnus was a powerful man with no obligation to go this far for a young man with little standing.

Yet he had done so anyway.

Lucian understood one thing clearly.

The stronger he became, and the greater the value he demonstrated, the safer his grandmother would be.

With someone like Magnus standing behind them, he could finally breathe a little easier.

But gratitude was not something Lucian intended to forget.

A drop of kindness deserved to be repaid with a flowing spring.

He would remember everything the Magnus family had done for him.

And he would never allow Evelyn to regret bringing him home.

"Why are you suddenly saying all this?" Evelyn asked softly.

Then, as though a troubling thought had occurred to her, she tightened her arms around him.

"Are you planning to leave?"

Lucian felt her warm body press closer against his chest.

He could even catch the faint fragrance of her hair.

For a moment, he found himself slightly distracted.

Then he looked down at her and chuckled.

"Hehehe. I never said anything about leaving."

Evelyn raised her head.

"Really?"

"Of course. Yaya, even if you personally throw me out, I won’t leave!"

His solemn expression vanished, replaced by his familiar shameless grin.

At the same time, one of his hands began wandering rather restlessly across her back.

Evelyn immediately noticed.

Her face turned bright red.

"You rogue! What are you doing?"

She shoved him away and hurriedly put some distance between them.

Lucian laughed.

"What? I was only expressing my determination to stay."

"Then express it from over there!"

Evelyn pointed toward the opposite side of the room.

"Since you’re not leaving, you’d better cultivate properly. I’m going to cultivate too!"

With that, she quickly retreated to one side of the cultivation room and sat cross-legged on the floor.

She closed her eyes and tried to calm her racing heartbeat.

That shameless fellow!

She had no idea how she was supposed to concentrate with him around.

Lucian watched her for a moment.

Seeing how thoroughly embarrassed she was, he decided not to tease her any further.

After all, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future.

For now, he had something more important to attend to.

He returned to his own spot, sat down, and slowly closed his eyes.

The playful expression on his face faded as his attention turned inward.

He had finally broken through to Martial Master.

But the real question was—

What exactly had this breakthrough brought him?