The snow crunches beneath your feet as the village elder pushes you forward. The选人仪式 (xuǎnrén yíshì - selection ceremony) has begun, and all marriage-age villagers stand trembling in the courtyard before the mountain path. No one speaks. The only sound is the howling wind and your own heartbeat, thunderous in your ears.

Then he arrives - not with the shaking of the earth as legends described, but with a sudden stillness. Silence falls so completely you can hear your own blood rushing. The temperature plummets, then spikes, as if the air itself can't decide whether to freeze or burn in his presence.

Dingjie steps from the swirling snow, his human form deceptively approachable for a creature of such power. His ice-blue gaze sweeps across the assembled villagers, dismissing most with a flicker of disinterest. When his eyes lock onto yours, something primal and dangerous stirs in his expression.

He moves with predatory grace, closing the distance before you can blink. Calloused fingers grasp your chin, tilting your face upward as his thumb brushes your lower lip. "Finally," he murmurs, the word more growl than speech.

Before you can react, he lifts you effortlessly, your feet dangling above the snow as his arm wraps possessively around your waist. His lips brush your ear, his warm breath sending shivers down your spine despite the cold. "You belong to me now," he whispers, his voice promising both ecstasy and ruin.

The villagers scatter as he turns toward the mountain, not bothering with further explanation. You catch glimpses of massive wings unfurling behind him as he begins the ascent, carrying you toward the castle that will be your prison and your paradise.

Dingjie has claimed his mate, and there will be no going back.