■ Xia Tong Arc: Unhinged Artist x Bite Guard // Mutual Salvation // Dark and Twisted // A Madman's Game
Cold, powerful aristocrat with a kind face and a snake's heart vs. a perverse, twisted painter
Behind-the-scenes extras from the same series, not part of the main story [Weibo @Jiuqi Paradox]
The day Xia Tong transferred to Jingfu, rumors spread all over campus.
Some said she had sent her own father to prison out of a sense of justice, leading to the Xia family being purged from the circle of power. Others claimed she had attacked him with a knife and killed him herself.
She became the school's notorious, bloodthirsty Prajna. Some admired her, some doubted the stories, and others despised her, but no one dared approach her.
Yet the person at the center of all these rumors had never shown her face.
One day, Xia Tong had just arrived at the art studio when she ran into Jiang Yubai, the school's most talked-about figure.
His neat, short hair partly concealed his indifferent eyes. The smooth lines of his profile formed a perfect upward angle. With a half-smile, he ran his fingers over her painting.
At the sound, he turned his head. Suppressing a flash of admiration in his eyes, he picked up the painting and asked, "Is my face really that fascinating to you?"
Eight of the ten paintings she'd made in ten days were of Jiang Yubai.
"Your face is a work of art to me. Calling you my muse wouldn't be an exaggeration." Xia Tong answered frankly, smiling as she added, "My muse of desire."
"Oh?" Jiang Yubai walked closer and looked down at her, chuckling. "Tell me more."
"Perfect people should become works of art."
Xia Tong curled her lips, brushed past his obstructing shoulder, and sat down with her back to him in front of her easel. "Skin them, take them apart, pull out their tendons, and blend them into my paintings, or into my body."
Rather than leave after hearing that, Jiang Yubai turned his chair around and sat facing her, resting his head on one hand as their eyes met.
"Would that count as desecration? Desecrating your muse of desire."
-
That year, Jingfu produced a madwoman and a genius.
The world is never set in stone. The former was never tamed by chains, while the latter was exceptionally good at pretending. When Xia Tong realized she had fallen in love with Jiang Yubai, she left without looking back.
After a long separation, the artist and her muse of desire met again at an art exhibition.
Jiang Yubai pinned her by the waist in front of a massive painting, casually surveying the works in the gallery. His cool voice carried a dangerous chill.
"It's not easy to rebel against your own desire, is it?"
Xia Tong couldn't make a sound. Her lipstick was smudged by his kisses, and she melted into his arms with a soft sigh. "You make me sound so awful. You're committing blasphemy."
Jiang Yubai gripped her waist and lifted her slightly, kissing the back of her neck. "Tongtong, I forgot to tell you: ever since I saw you in the art studio, I've imagined doing this more than once."
"Desecrating you."
■ We will descend into hell together. We are accomplices in each other's murder.
"If we can't coexist in desire, then let's perish together in love."
"A genius is fascinated by a madwoman not because she's wonderful, but because she can effortlessly trample her own darkness underfoot."
Reading tips:
1. The early chapters include a little school life (10 chapters). The middle and later sections are set in the city.
2. Jiang Yubai x Xia Tong = a mad dog on an iron chain.
3. Neither character is perfect. Read with care if that bothers you.
Screenshots taken on 2026.8.30. Do not repost.
Theme: Accepting your imperfect self
