Translator: Dj22031

Editor: Dj22031

Advance chapters available for patrons on Patreon. And a chapter can be sponsored by buying me a ko-fi

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“You say you only examined the patient and didn’t prescribe any medicine, do you have any evidence?” The Governor’s wife stared at her with hatred. “I’ve questioned the nannies around Third Miss in detail, and they all say you made a mistake, causing my daughter’s condition to worsen…”

“Of course I have witnesses.” Yu Linlang interrupted her directly. “That night, Young Master Mu of the Xuanping Marquis’s residence observed the entire process of how I examined and felt Third Miss’s pulse, whether I prescribed any medicine or administered acupuncture, he knows it all. Madam, you know this already, why go crazy here?”

“Moreover, if there was a prescription, there must be a medical text to prove it. Madam, do you have my handwritten medical text? Do you?”

“I understand your great pain at the loss of your daughter, but that’s no reason for you to vent your anger on strangers for no reason.”

“Madam should go back and rectify the family’s conduct! Those nannies around Third Miss who stirred up trouble for no reason are even more despicable.”

“That day, they didn’t advise your daughter against abandoning the carriage for empty fame. After the accident, they repeatedly shirked responsibility, trying to drag innocent people down with them. Such family education, at best, shows the madam’s poor upbringing and lack of discipline; at worst, it might affect your master’s reputation.”

The governor’s wife stared in horror, collapsing to the ground. While the onlookers fell silent, not daring to utter a whisper.

Several troublemaking old women went pale with fright, kneeling on the ground, not daring to raise their heads even an inch.

“Yu Linlang, what nonsense are you spouting?” Madam Huo rushed to the main gate, nearly fainting from anger upon hearing this.

This outspoken girl dared to slap the governor’s wife in the face like this?

She didn’t want the governor’s mansion to have an easy time!

“Please forgive me, Madam Li. My daughter has just returned from recuperating at the small estate and is still confused. This was just a misunderstanding; it’s not as serious as she makes it out to be. Linlang, quickly apologize to Madam Li! What nonsense are you spouting!” Madam Huo hurriedly descended the steps, grabbing Yu Linlang’s hand.

The latter unceremoniously shook her off and expressionlessly continued down the steps.

Her gaze fell on Madam Li, who was slumped on the ground, silently weeping. Seeing that Madam Li seemed to have aged several years in an instant, her spirit and vitality seemingly drained from her body, she couldn’t help but sigh softly.

Yu Linlang went straight to the body covered by the white sheet and took a pair of gauntlets from Jiu Jin’s hand, putting them on.

“What are you doing?” Madam Li, regaining her senses, looked furious and stepped forward to snatch the corner of the white sheet that Yu Linlang had lifted.

With a cold face, Jiu Jin separated them by one hand and questioned, “Madam Li, your daughter drowned in the back garden under mysterious circumstances? Don’t you want to know if it was a real drowning or a fake one?”

Yu Linlang lifted the white cloth, revealing the third young lady’s pale face. The onlookers all stepped back, and some even let out a gasp of surprise.

Yu Linlang remained unmoved, gently turning the third young lady’s face to examine her eyes, ears, nose, mouth, neck, back of the head, hands, and feet.

“Drowning before death is very different from drowning after death. If your daughter had fallen into the pond due to illness and weakness, she would have struggled before dying. There would be mud and water in her mouth and nose, mud on her ears and hair, and her slightly bloated abdomen would indicate that she had drunk water.”

“Moreover, you say she drowned by accident. There must have been some bumps and bruises during the fall and struggle, right?”

“But look, the body’s hands are clenched into fists, but there is not much mud or sand between the fingers and nails. Most of it is on the surface of the back of the hands. There are no obvious abrasions or bruises on the forehead, back of the head, hands, or feet.”

“What do you mean?” The old woman helping the paralyzed Madam Li up rebuked her sharply. “Are you saying that my third miss was drowned in the garden by someone holding her head down, and that she was murdered?”

Yu Linlang shook her head. “I’ll say it again, if she was held down and drowned before death, there would be sand and mud in her mouth and nose, her face would be red, and there would be signs of force on the back of her head.”

“Then what do you mean?” Madam Li asked in a trembling voice.   

Yu Linlang frowned, reached out and slightly lifted the deceased’s head, revealing her neck. “Your daughter was strangled.”

“Impossible! Why doesn’t the tongue of the strangled person stick out? Besides, my young lady was found dead in the pond in the back garden. She was feeling unwell and wanted to go out for some fresh air, which is why she slipped and fell into the pond.” The old woman supporting Madam Li shouted angrily, raising her voice.

Yu Linlang traced the marks on the deceased’s neck. “Can’t you understand? Can’t you see? Who told you that the tongue of someone strangled or hanged will always stick out?”

“The Third Miss’s marks are on her throat. Blood vessels are blocked, so her tongue won’t stick out or touch her teeth. She was strangled with a thin silk cloth. Although the marks are shallow, they are still visible, running diagonally from her neck to behind her ear.”

“This shows that the Third Miss was lying on her side, completely unprepared. When she was strangled, her body was pressed down, and her hands were clenched into fists with nowhere to grip.”

“She was strangled to death in her own bedroom while recuperating, and then her body was dumped in the back pond. It wasn’t an accidental drowning as you claim!”

Madam Li’s eyes widened, and her hands trembled uncontrollably.

“This is impossible, impossible…” Her thin lips trembled slightly, and her body shook involuntarily.

Yu Linlang frowned. “Madam, I pity your maternal heart, but the truth is often cruel. Do you want me to continue?”

Madam Li’s lips trembled, and she grabbed Yu Linlang’s hand. “You, you speak!”

“Madam!” the old woman beside her exclaimed. “Why listen to a young girl’s nonsense? What does a young girl know about examination techniques? Miss must have drowned by accident!”

“Get away!” Madam Li forcefully shook off the old woman’s hand. “Tell me, tell me!! Speak!”

Yu Linlang sighed softly and whispered in Madam Li’s ear, “When I examined Miss Li, I found that she was more than three months pregnant, and the pregnancy was almost complete.”

Madam Li felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck her head. Her whole body went numb, and she froze, completely unable to move.

Yu Linlang whispered again, “Madam Li, you are a smart woman, you naturally know who could order the strangulation of your daughter in the mansion and do it so secretly. I don’t need to say more.”

Madam Li gasped, swaying to the side, startling the old women who rushed to support her.

“Outrageous! What are you all doing here?” A hurried, angry shout came from outside the crowd.

Instantly, a large group of servants rushed forward, frightening the onlookers who hurriedly backed away.

“Madam has lost her mind and came here to cause trouble, are you all dead men who don’t know how to stop her?” Governor Li’s dark face was full of anger as he glared fiercely at the many old women surrounding Madam Li.

“Get her back here! What kind of mess are you making?”

Madam Li suddenly raised her head and pounced on Governor Li like a madwoman, pounding her fists on his chest. “Tell me, was it you? Was it you who did it? Was it you?!”

Governor Li’s face turned ashen with rage. “What nonsense are you spouting? Get Madam back to the manor immediately!”

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Translator: Dj22031

Editor: Dj22031

Advance chapters available for patrons on Patreon. And a chapter can be sponsored by buying me a ko-fi

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Yin Xuan looked at Chen Hua’s astonished expression and smiled smugly.

He looked at Chen Hua with pity: “When you murdered your master, did you ever imagine this day would come?”

Chen Hua’s face was as pale as gold leaf, and his body swayed precariously.

“It seems you are quite satisfied with your senior brother.”

He switched back to Yin Xuan’s voice and said, “How about I give you another chance? If you help me rescue Suan Yu, I’ll still be your senior brother, okay?”

Chen Hua’s lips trembled as she gritted her teeth and said, “Impossible! I didn’t aid and abet evil back then, and I still won’t now!”

“Then I have no choice but to kill you.” Yin Xuan’s face showed regret. He tightened his grip on Chen Hua’s heart and said coldly, “If I use just a little more force, you will turn into a pile of rotten bones. I taught you the method of condensing the demon core into a heart, didn’t I? I didn’t expect that after all these years, you still wouldn’t know to change it.”

All demons possessed a demon core. The demon core was present from birth, and for most demons, it was located in their heart. If the heart suffered an irreversible blow, the demon core would shatter, and the demon would die instantly.

However, there were also special cases like Chen Hua, who did not have a demon core, or whose demon core was not located in their heart.

When Chen Hua was enlightened by Yuan Li, he broke free from the constraints of the painting and gained his freedom, but he wasn’t able to cultivate from the start. Most humans and demons cultivated by absorbing and circulating spiritual energy through their body’s meridians. However, Chen Hua was born a skeleton without flesh and blood. It was Yin Xuan who taught him to condense the absorbed spiritual energy at his heart before he could formally begin cultivating.

Over time, this simulated heart became his demonic core, and also his Achilles’ heel.

Only he and Yin Xuan knew about this.

Now that Yin Xuan had his lifeline in his grasp, he was not afraid that Yin Xuan won’t have the strength to fight back, and he was just enjoying his pain.

Back then, when he enlightened Chen Hua, his original intention was to find a way to improve his puppetry skills from the human skin and skull diagram, but he never expected that Chen Hua would betray him.

Recalling those days, Yin Xuan’s eyes flashed with malice, and he tightened his grip even more: “If you hadn’t betrayed me, I wouldn’t have had to cripple a puppet for nothing. Do you know how much effort it takes to create those puppet clones? Even if you were to give me your life, it still wouldn’t be enough.”

He was originally a direct disciple of Chi Songzi. Back then, when the Yellow Emperor and Chi You were fighting a great battle in the mortal realm, the upper realm was also affected, and many demons from the Yellow Emperor’s faction descended to the mortal realm. He was originally watching the show, but unexpectedly, his master Chi Songzi suddenly sent him a message, asking him to take his junior brothers and sisters to the mortal realm to provide support.

Their master, Chi Songzi, was a former subordinate of Emperor Yan, and their junior sister was Emperor Yan’s daughter. Yellow Emperor should thus have been their enemy.

But when the time came, his master actually ordered him to lead his fellow disciples down to the mortal realm to provide support and help the Yellow Emperor defeat Chi You.

He had questioned his master about the reason, but his master only sternly ordered him to obey. Later, he had no choice but to lead his fellow disciples down to the mortal realm to provide support, but little did he know that this would cut off his chance to return to the upper realm.

The war god Chi You was incredibly powerful, and even with the help of many people summoned by the Yellow Emperor, the war was still a Pyrrhic victory.

In the battle for supremacy, countless powerful demons perished or were wounded, and he too remained in the mortal realm to recuperate. He originally planned to return to the upper realm after recovering, but little did he know that the Yellow Emperor had already secretly plotted to sever the connection between heaven and earth. Before they could return to the upper realm, the Yellow Emperor first abdicated in favor of Zhuanxu, who then died. While Yuan Li and the other two severed the path to heaven, blocking communication between the two realms.

Those like him who remained in the lower realm thus had no chance to return to the upper realm.

Because communication between the upper and lower realms was blocked, the spiritual energy in the lower realm became increasingly scarce. Countless powerful demons perished and vanished. His fellow disciples who had descended to the lower realm with him also met their demise. In the end, only he survived.

Although he was a disciple of Chi Songzi, his human bloodline hindered his cultivation and his lifespan was not as long as that of the demon race.

As the spiritual energy in the lower realm became increasingly scarce, his cultivation could no longer break through the bottleneck. What was even more unacceptable to him was that his lifespan was coming to an end.

He began to age and weaken uncontrollably…

As he lay weakly in his thatched hut awaiting death, the only thing that sustained him was his burning hatred and his obsession with returning to the upper realm.

Later, on his deathbed, he mastered puppetry and forged a puppet clone using secret techniques. In his final moments, enduring the excruciating pain of his soul being torn apart, he transferred half of his soul to the puppet clone. Once the puppet clone had fully grown and begun its cultivation, and his original body was nearing the end of its lifespan, he could then transfer the other half of his soul into the puppet clone.

He was able to overcome the shackles of these long years by relying on his puppet clones.

Later on, he was no longer limited to creating just one clone. As long as he could find suitable materials, he could create even more puppet clones.

He raised these puppet clones, taught them cultivation, and then sent them out to train. The one who survived and had the highest cultivation level became his perfect body, while the other puppet clones, if they did not die outside, would become alchemy materials for his new body.

Yin Xuan was merely one of his countless puppet clones.

Although these clones contained his soul, their appearances and personalities differed somewhat, likely due to the influence of the materials used in their creation.

Chen Hua was neither the first nor the last person to have deep feelings for his puppet clone.

Yin Xuan had seen many people like Chen Hua.

He scoffed at this but didn’t say anything. Instead, he composed himself and said coldly, “I’ll give you one last chance. Help me rescue Suan Yu, and you and Yin Xuan will both survive. Otherwise, you and Yin Xuan… will both be annihilated.”

Chen Hua’s eyebrows twitched, and he suddenly looked up at him.

Yin Xuan smiled confidently, deliberately mimicking his usual gentle demeanor: “Good junior brother, my life is in your hands.”

“How do I know if what you’re saying is true or false?” Chen Hua said. “Perhaps you’ve already killed my senior brother. Refining souls and stealing memories isn’t something you can’t do. Why should I believe you?”

Seeing that he seemed to be wavering, Yin Xuan added fuel to the fire.

He placed one of Chen Hua’s hands on his chest, simultaneously gripping Chen Hua’s vital point. Seeing the cold sweat covering Chen Hua’s face, he said, “You can feel for yourself whether Yin Xuan’s soul is still inside my body. He is sealed in my heart. You can save him by doing me a small favor. Whether Yin Xuan lives or dies is entirely up to you.”

Chen Hua’s expression wavered more and more. After a long while, he said coldly, “You had better tell the truth.”

As he spoke, he tentatively tried to sense his senior brother’s presence.

Yin Xuan smiled, not worried that Chen Hua would discover his deception. He had used this trick to deceive many people into working for him. This was also why he didn’t restrict his puppet clones from interacting with people.

A false identity, coupled with the word “love,” was enough to deceive people into working for him and risking their lives for him.

It was an incredibly profitable business.

He confidently waited for Chen Hua to bow down and compromise with him like those people had before, but what he got in return was a heavy blow from Chen Hua.

—The white skeleton’s bone claws pierced into his dantian. Chen Hua’s face was pale, but the force in his hand did not diminish in the slightest, and he forcefully pierced through Yin Xuan’s abdomen.

Caught off guard and severely injured, Yin Xuan’s face turned ashen, his eyes gleaming with murderous intent: “You…you’re…courting…death!”

At the same time, he twitched his fingers and crushed Chen Hua’s demon core.

However, Chen Hua only spat out a mouthful of blood but did not disappear as Yin Xuan had expected. He even disregarded his injuries and, taking advantage of Yin Xuan’s moment of astonishment, pierced through his chest with his other hand.

Do you think you’re the only smart person in the world?

Chen Hua spat out a mouthful of blood, his face as pale as paper, and said sarcastically, “Senior brother, you once taught me that a cunning rabbit has three burrows, and you must always learn to leave yourself a way out.”

“Your teachings, word by word, are etched in the hearts of people.”

His hand twisted inside Yin Xuan’s chest cavity, then suddenly pulled out, the snow-white bone claw stained with blood, and in his palm was a still-beating heart: “You are a half-demon, so even without a heart, you shouldn’t die, right? Just like me, I can still live without a demon core.”

Yin Xuan’s face turned pale. He slapped him away and took a few steps back, clutching the bloody hole in his chest, his eyes as cold and venomous as a man-eating snake.

Chen Hua struck with deadly force, unexpectedly inflicting heavy damage on his heart and dantian. While it didn’t kill him, it severely damaged his foundation. Yin Xuan wasn’t a pure demon; he still possessed half-human blood. For an ordinary great demon, these injuries might not be serious, but for him, they were a major problem.

Blood continued to gush from the wound, and Yin Xuan’s appearance visibly began to age.

When did you find out?

When was it discovered?

If Bi’an’s words were an awakening, making him realize Yin Xuan’s abnormality.

What allowed him to see through the illusion of the past was none other than Yin Xuan himself.

Yin Xuan’s words were misleading him, implying that the deceased Yuan Li had possessed Yin Xuan, and that Yin Xuan’s soul still existed, so there was still a glimmer of hope for him.

However, Chen Hua didn’t believe a word he said.

Admittedly, demons and even cultivators had many ways to search souls and explore memories, but it was almost impossible to do something as detailed and trivial as Yin Xuan’s method; moreover, he remembered the jade pendant he had found in Yuan Li’s alchemy room.

That was the jade pendant that his senior brother always wore. He found it in Yuan Li’s alchemy room, so he assumed that his senior brother had already been killed by Yuan Li and his body was gone.

But after hearing Yin Xuan’s words today, he suddenly realized that Yuan Li and Yin Xuan might actually be the same person.

In this way, it made perfect sense that Yin Xuan’s jade pendant appeared in the forbidden alchemy room.

Chen Hua looked at him silently, shook the blood off his bone claws, took off his skin, and prepared to fight to the death.

Although he had a backup plan to prevent Yin Xuan from taking his life, the destruction of half of his demon core was a genuine act to deceive Yin Xuan.

He severely injured Yin Xuan, and Yin Xuan destroyed his demon core in return.

Both were severely injured; the only way to determine a winner was to fight to the death.

---

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Translator: Dj22031

Editor: Dj22031

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A moment of silence.

Cold sweat beaded on You Xu’s palms. Being caught red-handed like this was a first for her, and her mind went blank.

“I…” You Xu bit her lower lip, her throat dry. She could barely grip the scalpel; the sharp blade was still pressed against the vein in his neck. Just as You Xu was about to pull her hand back, Duan Min fearlessly moved closer, drawing a red line across his neck. He remained silently facing her. The distance closed until their breaths mingled, their noses touching. Feeling the warm liquid on her fingertips, You Xu froze, then realized that blood was flowing from the scalpel onto her hand. The contrast between Duan Min’s pale skin and the bright red blood was striking, like a blooming red plum blossom in the snow. The sight before her made her pupils shrink sharply.

You Xu’s hand trembled, and her voice quivered: “Duan…”

Before she could finish, her next words were covered by cool lips. He held her tightly around the waist, her hands unable to pull back. He pressed the blade against her, kissing her frantically. The blade sank further, blood already soaking the back of her hand, flowing down her thumb and forefinger to her palm. Duan Min pried open her teeth, thrusting deep into her mouth. Their lips and teeth clashed even more, the blade penetrating a little further, cutting his vein. Blood gushed out, sliding down his collarbone, soaking his black and white pajamas.

“Duan…uh…” Duan Min gave her no chance to breathe, as if possessed, his eyes shrouded in an unyielding black mist, beneath which lay utter madness. You Xu desperately tried to kick him, but he didn’t move, instead pinning her legs down. Unable to move, and tormented by this situation, You Xu broke down, crying, tears streaming down her face.

Duan Min suddenly stopped, releasing her. With a clatter, the blood-red scalpel fell to the wooden floor. “Are you trying to kill me…?”

You Xu cried and raged, kicking him again.

Duan Min’s voice was low and husky: “Don’t cry.” He reached out to wipe her tears, but just as he was about to touch her face, he noticed the blood on his hand and stopped. Then he leaned down, wanting to kiss away her tears.

You Xu thought he was going to do it again and was furious. She pushed him away, wiped her own tears with the back of her hand, and sobbed, “If you… if you want to die, then die somewhere else. Don’t… don’t get in my way.” She glared at him fiercely, thinking she was being imposing, but her almond-shaped eyes were glistening with tears, the corners of her eyes red, like a cat with its fur standing on end, completely lacking in imposing manner.

Duan Min’s heart softened at the sight. You Xu didn’t want to pay attention to him and wanted to get something to bandage him, but Duan Min held her wrist and pressed it against the wound on his neck. The artery beneath her skin throbbed in her palm. Duan Min smiled, his gaze lingering on her: “I’d rather die by your hand.”

Just moments ago, he had been caught in the intense fantasy of being killed by You Xu, a fantasy that made his body heat up and his blood boil, almost melting his veins. Twenty-five short years felt incredibly long to him. In his dark, sunless room, the changing of day and night, the alternation of spring and summer, had no effect on him. His only emotion was a dislike for the presence of the living. Apart from that, everything was stagnant. If his life was a pool of still water, then he was a lifeless monster in the swamp at the bottom, not knowing why he lived, and equally unafraid of death.

After meeting You Xu, he tasted the flavors of life, noticed the changes in temperature because she was sensitive to both cold and heat, and became aware of the passage of time because time spent with her always flew by. Because of her, he gradually developed a rich array of emotions: happiness, sadness, frustration, and heartbreak. He didn’t reject any of these; he envied You Xu’s vibrant life, and he himself had become a living person. If he had been walking through an endless night, then she was the dazzling light at dawn, irresistible and alluring, inspiring both longing and intense desire. He was grateful to have found this ray of light, even though his previous years seemed so bleak in comparison. But having something to hold onto makes one insatiable, leads to anxiety and fear of loss. He feared You Xu leaving, even more so, that she would forget him. If dying at her hands could forever occupy a corner in her heart, he would be more than willing. He even had a morbid urge to savor the experience of dying at her hands.

Meeting his dependent yet obsessive gaze, You Xu finally understood what the system meant by a trust value of 80 or higher— a safe range. It meant that at this level, the target would willingly let him kill them; as long as she was ruthless enough, the mission could be completed. No wonder the host could slay a “god” with a protagonist’s halo without needing grand, sweeping skills.

At this moment, the system prompted again: “Please pick up the item and complete the killing mission.”

“I don’t want to,” You Xu looked at Duan Min and said, word by word, “You have to live well.”

If the mission target were a ruthless, inhuman psychopath who threatened her life, she might be able to do it. But Duan Min was just someone who asked her to add two extra spoonfuls of honey when she made milk powder; in her eyes, he was just someone who liked sweets. If the reward for killing five such people was her resurrection back to her original world, then she would rather wander in the endless, illusory space-time forever. She couldn’t break through the last line of defense in her heart.

….

You Xu heard the alarm clock ring once and then be turned off while she was resting with her eyes closed. She took a while, opened her eyes, and sat up. Perhaps it was because of the recent mental stress, coupled with taking care of You Qi’s physical and mental health, that she hadn’t slept well for several days in a row. She had dozed off for a while in the afternoon, but it didn’t help much. Now she only felt dizzy and exhausted.

You Xu rubbed her eyes. “What time is it?”

“4:10 PM,” Duan Min handed her a teacup. “Have some to soothe your throat.”

You Xu then noticed her voice was dry and hoarse. She took the teacup; it contained jasmine tea. Without thinking much, she drank it all.

Duan Min watched her quietly.

You Xu put down the teacup and hesitated before asking, “What’s wrong?” Something felt off, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

“You look tired,” Duan Min said. “Why don’t you stay home and rest tonight?”

Tonight, she was going to the Hua’an Hotel to deal with Xu Shaosi. She needed to be at her hiding place by at least six o’clock. You Xu hadn’t told Duan Min this, so logically he shouldn’t know. But looking into his clear, bright eyes, she vaguely felt he knew something. Whether he knew or not, it wouldn’t stop her from doing what she was doing. You Xu turned to get out of bed, but suddenly her limbs gave way, and her body tilted forward uncontrollably. Duan Min then reached out and embraced her. You Xu found herself increasingly exhausted, a wave of weariness eroding her consciousness. Her eyelids drooped, and in a daze, she saw a teacup beside her.

“What…drug did you give me…Duan Min, why…” Before she closed her eyes, the last thing she saw was Duan Min’s clean, quiet, tea-brown eyes. Why?

After asking herself the same question again, You Xu completely lost consciousness.

Duan Min carried her back to bed, carefully tucking her in. He then sat by the bed for a while, quietly watching her sleeping face.

After a moment, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

“Sweet dreams, my girl.”

….

“Drip-drip—” The light rain streaked across the windowpane as the car pulled into the parking garage.

After the driver brought the car to a stop, Xu Shaosi got out, took the elevator, and headed towards the reserved presidential suite.

At that moment, Lin Lanlan called: “Where are you?”

Xu Shaosi rubbed his temples: “Just finished a meeting, now at the hotel.”

Lin Lanlan: “That business deal fell through, should I find you a new partner?”

Xu Shaosi inserted his card and opened the door: “Yeah, we’ll see.”

Lin Lanlan sensed his tired tone, didn’t say anything more, said goodnight, and hung up.

Xu Shaosi closed the door, turned around, and found someone behind him. The person was wrapped up tightly, only revealing a pair of cold eyes.

Xu Shaosi’s breathing tightened, and cold sweat broke out: “Who…who are you…security, where’s security?”

….

“Boom—” Thunder roared in the sky like a thousand drums striking in unison, and torrential rain poured down, slamming against the windows. The jasmine flowers on the windowsill were knocked to the ground, their delicate white petals like melting snow.

Lightning flashed across the sky again, illuminating the dim room for a moment.

You Xu sat up in shock: “Duan Min!!!”

She jumped out of bed, turned on the light, and saw the clock in the distance. It was already three in the morning, indicating she had completely missed her planned schedule.

Actually, she wasn’t too angry. Plans, as long as there’s a motive, will come up again and again if they don’t succeed the first time. Besides, Duan Min didn’t know about her plan; he probably just saw that she was too tired lately and wanted her to get a good night’s sleep.

Besides, Duan Min’s medicine was truly different. She no longer felt tired; in fact, she felt energetic, and her mood wasn’t as down. It seemed that physical condition determined consciousness; when the body was healthy, the mind was also better. For example, the mood of a patient was quite different from that of a healthy person.

What bothered her most was that Duan Min had given her the medicine without consulting her. She had to talk to him and tell him he couldn’t do this again.

Another clap of thunder sounded in the sky, and You Xu felt inexplicably uneasy.

No, it wasn’t just that.

Without even putting on her slippers, she rushed to the guest room and knocked on the door: “Duan Min, are you asleep?”

She knocked several times and waited for a while, but there was no response. This meant Duan Min wasn’t inside. Usually, as soon as she arrived at the door, Duan Min would open it before she even knocked; his senses were much sharper than normal.

Where had he gone?

In the middle of the night, in this weather, where could he have gone?

What was there that he absolutely had to do at this hour?

You Xu felt like a tinderbox was burning inside her, a mix of panic and anxiety, a surge of anger rising within her.

“Spend fifty points to locate Duan Min,” You Xu told the system.

Whenever it came to missions involving specific targets, the system would immediately give her the location: “Ten meters to your northwest.”

Ten meters? That’s right at her doorstep!

She immediately ran to open the door, and as soon as she opened it, a large black object fell face-first into her face. You Xu was startled and didn’t have time to dodge, being directly knocked to the ground. Luckily, the blanket behind the door was thick enough that she didn’t hurt too much.

She heard rapid, heavy breathing, burning hot. Turning her head, You Xu realized it was Duan Min. He was wrapped in black, his face completely covered except for his eyes.

But those usually clear and bright eyes were now closed.

“Duan Min, what’s wrong?”

You Xu noticed something was wrong with him. He was soaked to the bone, tiny water droplets clinging to his fine eyelashes, yet she could feel his excessively hot body temperature emanating from him.

His body temperature was clearly more than ten degrees lower than normal.

You Xu struggled to drag him back to the room. Although Duan Min wasn’t an ordinary person, it wasn’t comfortable for him to be covered in cold, damp clothes.

She brought a basin of hot water, intending to change Duan Min’s clothes. After removing his black garments, she discovered that his entire body was flushed, his veins bulging, and his muscles spasming and twitching.

His palms were already bleeding from his own claws. He couldn’t utter a word, struggling to suppress a scream.

“Duan Min, don’t scratch, don’t scratch.” You Xu’s eyes burned with tears. She grasped his hand, but he pulled away, using his other hand to grab his neck, tearing off a layer of skin.

In that instant, You Xu couldn’t hold back anymore; her vision blurred, and tears streamed down her face.

A single, glistening tear slid down his cheek. Duan Min’s eyelids twitched, his eyelashes fluttering like butterfly wings. He opened his eyes, his pupils bloodshot.

“Don’t… be afraid.” His voice was hoarse, trembling from the pain.

“Tell me what to do,” You Xu rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Go to the lab and get the medicine. It’s… on the second or third shelf of the medicine cabinet.” He took a few breaths before finishing his sentence.

You Xu grabbed the key and immediately ran to the lab. As Duan Min had instructed, he retrieved three vials of injection and seven bottles of various sizes.

Duan Min took the vials, swallowed them without even looking at them, and when he saw Duan Min about to get the injections, You Xu took them first: “I’ll do it.” Mainly, in his current state, even taking medicine was difficult, let alone using injections.

But You Xu had never used this before, nor had she ever given injections to anyone. After drawing out the liquid, her hand trembled slightly as the needle touched his veins. She gritted his teeth and tried to insert it but missed.

Duan Min didn’t react, quietly watching her with eyes full of dependence.

You Xu’s chaotic heart suddenly calmed down. She took a deep breath, bit her lower lip, and tried again, finally getting the injection in the right spot, allowing the medicine to be slowly injected.

After three injections, You Xu was drenched in sweat and completely exhausted.

Duan Min closed his eyes: “You can leave now.”

“I won’t,” You Xu’s voice was wet with tears, “I’m not afraid.”

She grasped his wrist.

This night was the longest and most unbearable one for You Xu. Duan Min sometimes felt cold and sweaty, sometimes had fever and spasms, and several times his breathing was so weak it was almost imperceptible.

Until dawn broke, the wind subsided, and the rain stopped.

---

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---

In an abandoned factory on the outskirts of City A, Lan Zhi, still unconscious and strapped to an experimental bed, was agitated.

“Finally caught a superhuman! It seems the newly developed anesthetic works on superhumans and can control their abilities. Now we don’t have to worry about how to capture these superhumans anymore.” The old researcher with his framed glasses stared fervently at the unconscious Lan Zhi.

“Teacher, the zombie blood has been extracted. Should we inject it into him?” the young man asked the old researcher.

“No, no, no. This is a third-tier superhuman. We’ll extract his blood, hair, and skin to study his abilities first. As for the zombie experiments, we’ll use ordinary people first. We’ll experiment on other superhumans after we capture them,” the old researcher said.

“Yes, teacher.”

Although Lan Zhi was unconscious, he could clearly hear their conversation. He was filled with rage— these scum!

But even in his anger, he was now like a fish on a chopping board, completely at their mercy. He couldn’t control his body, nor could he control his abilities.

He wondered how his brother was doing. He mustn’t act rashly. Lan Zhi was deeply worried. He feared his brother would hear he was in trouble and come to rescue him; this was not a place his brother could venture into.

For three consecutive days, researchers hunted down many ability users, mostly low-level ones. After being injected with zombie blood, they all turned into zombies without exception.

“It seems that ability users don’t have antibodies against the zombie virus either,” the old researcher’s assistant said disappointedly.

“Don’t worry, maybe it’s just that low-level ability users don’t have antibodies?” The old researcher wasn’t so disappointed; a glint of light flashed in his cloudy eyes.

“Teacher, you mean…” the assistant looked at the old researcher.

“Hehe, now we don’t have to worry about not being able to catch ability users. We can study ability anytime. The most important thing now is antibodies,” the old researcher said.

They injected Lan Zhi with anesthesia regularly every day, so that after being captured, Lan Zhi hadn’t opened his eyes. But his consciousness remained clear. He heard every word they said.

Not far from the abandoned factory.

“Lan Sheng, they have a lot of heavy weapons. We have no way to rescue them.” They had been observing here for a long time, but they couldn’t infiltrate at all. Besides, apart from Lan Zhi, they were all ordinary people.

“Song Fei, you know lip reading, right?” Lan Sheng looked at the person next to him.

Song Fei nodded: “I learned it before, and I can basically understand what the other person is saying accurately.”

Lan Sheng nodded, very satisfied: “In a moment, you change direction. This is a telescope. Take it and carefully watch what they say to the guards at the gate when they go in from the outside.”

Song Fei held the binoculars and couldn’t help but say: “Lan Sheng, what are your plans? Tell us too, at least let us know what’s going on.”

Seeing Song Fei’s expression, Lan Sheng’s heart sank slightly: “My plan is to sneak in first.”

“Are you crazy! We know nothing about what’s in there. Even if we successfully sneak in, it’s a nine-out-of-ten chance of death. If Lan Zhi isn’t rescued, you might die in there too!” Hearing Lan Sheng’s words, Song Fei couldn’t help but raise his voice.

“What’s all the noise about? Keep your voice down.” Song Jing smacked Song Fei on the head. “With the captain gone, listen to the vice-captain. Why all the fuss? No matter how dangerous it is, we have to rescue the captain!”

“I didn’t say we wouldn’t rescue him! Sis, but we need to figure out what’s going on inside first.” Song Fei said anxiously.

“Song Fei, even if you stay here for another ten days or half a month, you still might not figure out what’s going on inside, right? If you don’t go in, you can’t even see the terrain, so what are you talking about figuring it out?” Song Jing said coldly.

“I’ll go alone. You guys stay outside and prepare to meet me. If I haven’t come out in twenty-four hours, you all retreat immediately.” Lan Sheng said calmly.

“Lan Sheng! What do you mean by that? Lan Zhi is your brother, but he’s also our captain. What do you mean you’re going in alone?” Song Jing said unhappily.

Lan Sheng rubbed his temples. “I didn’t mean anything by it, I just think there needs to be someone outside to coordinate things, and we need a plan for evacuation once we escape.”

Hearing Lan Sheng say this, Song Jing calmed down. “I’ll go in with you, Song Fei and his men will wait here.”

“Sister!” Song Fei’s eyes widened. “Why are you, a girl, getting involved? If anyone’s going, it should be Lan Sheng and me.”

“Alright, alright, stop nagging. Quickly change positions and hide properly. When they come back, remember to pay attention to what they say, just in case it’s some kind of code.” Song Jing waved her hand.

Song Fei felt a lump in his throat and turned to leave.

Lan Sheng looked at Song Fei’s back and said to Song Jing, “Sister Jing, I don’t agree with you going in with me either, it’s too dangerous. You stay outside. If things go wrong, even if it hasn’t been 24 hours yet, you must leave with your men. Understand?”

“Are you looking down on me?” Song Jing said, narrowing her eyes.

“No, they can even capture superhumans, let alone ordinary people like us?” Lan Sheng pursed his lips, his resolute face extremely solemn. “This rescue of Lan Zhi can only succeed, not fail. If I go in alone, the target will be much smaller. You all stay outside.”

“Lan Sheng, do you think I’m stupid?” Song Jing said with a sneer. “They didn’t leave alone. If you steal a car and sneak in alone, wouldn’t that raise more suspicion?”

Lan Sheng was stunned for a moment, looking at Song Jing, but couldn’t say anything for a long time.

“Alright, stop talking nonsense. Our people will split in two. Song Fei will stay here with the men, and the two of us will sneak in with the men.” Song Jing said firmly.

“Um, Sister Jing, if we take you, the target will be much bigger.” Suddenly, a head popped up, and a dark-skinned man said weakly.

“Liu Qi! What did you say?” Song Jing looked at Liu Qi dangerously.

Liu Qi, a dark-skinned big man, was startled by Song Jing.

“Liu Qi is right. Didn’t you notice? Weren’t all the people who went out men? If you, a woman, are in there, everyone will think something’s wrong.” Lan Sheng said.

In the laboratory.

A vial of black blood was slowly pushed into Lan Zhi’s veins.

“Ugh.” Lan Zhi felt something cold slowly seeping into his bloodstream, flowing with the blood. Then, that icy, piercing feeling turned into a dense, throbbing pain. It felt as if something was tearing his veins apart, yet despite the near-madness from the pain, he still couldn’t control his body.

“Ah—” Lan Zhi suddenly opened his eyes and screamed wildly.

The assistant who was giving him the injection was so startled that he took several steps back.

The old researcher glared at the assistant: “You’re hopeless!”

Lan Zhi’s face was contorted, veins bulging and throbbing beneath his skin, looking like he was about to explode.

“T-Professor…this reaction is different from others!” the assistant said, still shaken.

“Quick, record it!” The old researcher looked at the agonizing Lan Zhi and smiled with satisfaction. It seemed he had expected it.

“Yes!”

A vial of blood caused Lan Zhi twelve hours of agony, after which he fell into a coma.

The old researcher, exhausted, had already gone to rest. The assistant, having finished recording, woke the old researcher: “Teacher, teacher, he’s unconscious.”

The assistant’s voice instantly roused the sleeping researcher. He rubbed his eyes, put on his reading glasses, and went to Lan Zhi’s side.

He lifted Lan Zhi’s eyelids to examine him: “Black pupils.”

The assistant was startled, leaning closer to look: “Black pupils!”

After drawing blood from Lan Zhi with a small knife, he found his blood to be a dark red, not the black blood of a zombie.

“Indeed, the higher the ability level, the stronger the immunity to the zombie virus!” the old researcher said excitedly.

Lan Zhi lay pale-faced on the research bed, his limbs tightly bound to it. This time, however, he was truly unconscious and couldn’t hear anything.

“Continue injecting him with zombie blood,” the old researcher pushed up his glasses: “Inject it now.”

“Teacher? Inject it now?” the assistant asked, confused.

“Stop talking nonsense and get going!” The old researcher said, placing several notebooks aside and writing something on them.

The higher the ability level, the more resistant one is to the zombie virus. So, can a high-level ability user turn back into a human after becoming a zombie?

The old researcher was somewhat fanatical; if zombies could turn back into humans, then he would be the savior of the entire world!

---

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---

Just then, two women in sportswear suddenly ran over and struck up a conversation with them.

“Young men, you seem to be having a great time. Would you like to play with some of us aunties for a while?”

Actually, calling them “aunties” was a bit of an exaggeration; these two looked to be at most in their thirties, and had good figures— they should be called “sisters.”

The women’s gaze swept over, first appraising Yan Han, then focusing on Lin Jianlu, clearly prioritizing the latter.

However, this didn’t stop Yan Han from standing up from his chair and saying, “Okay.”

He then pulled the two older women towards their area, leaving Lin Jianlu with only his back.

He was genuinely flustered; he had rarely been this flustered in his life. He had practically used all his acting skills, but he was still incoherent. Now, he couldn’t remember anything he had just said. He secretly wiped away his sweat, hoping that Big brother Lin wouldn’t bring up this matter again to scare him.

He didn’t care what others thought or said. To be honest, even when his father beat him with the force of breaking two rolling pins, he hadn’t been this nervous.

Yan Han wiped away his sweat again and quickly arrived at the other side’s area.

The two older women were a little reluctant to be pulled back, but they were also curious about Yan Han and couldn’t help but ask him, “…Are you friends with that classmate?”

It wasn’t that they were wrong to use “you” directly when asking the question, without a subject. They simply didn’t know how to address Yan Han.

After staring for a while, they still couldn’t figure out the person’s gender.

“He’s a classmate,” Yan Han said rather coldly.

He wasn’t usually oblivious, and he could tell that this group was after Lin Jianlu.

It wasn’t surprising that people who came to this club to play would know Lin Jianlu; they were trying to get close to him, he understood that.

He had only come out to get some fresh air to escape Lin Jianlu’s company, and Yan Han didn’t really want to play with them.

Unexpectedly, just as he was about to turn back, one of the men with the two older women said, “Hey, classmate, you’re already here, why don’t you play for a while? I think you’re pretty good, play for a bit!”

Yan Han: “…”

In an informal game, you just throw the ball around randomly, especially since the opponents were all terrible, so in the end it became a show of skill by Yan Han alone.

While Yan Han was relentlessly shooting hoops, Lin Jianlu remained seated, his upturned lips now flat. He occasionally glanced at Yan Han on the court, but most of the time his eyes were downcast, motionless, his thoughts unknown to outsiders.

Only Lin Jianlu knew how much he regretted it at that moment: “I brought this up with him, and he seemed very displeased.”

He should have just kept quiet.

But the feeling was unbearable. He wondered if Yan Han already had someone else in his heart. The thought that one day Yan Han might smile at someone else, share secrets with someone else, made his heart feel like it had been doused with lava, burning and throbbing. It was only much later that Lin Jianlu learned this feeling was called jealousy, also known as possessiveness.

A voice in his head tried to comfort him: [It’s okay, this is your first time experiencing love. Everyone has awkward moments.]

“…”

[So what are you still hesitating about? Knowing he likes boys means he might like you, why aren’t you pursuing him!]

“But he just said he only wants to study.”

[So?]

“So?”

[I never thought even a brilliant host could be so slow-witted. Love really can make people blind and irrational.]

“…”

The voice in his head continued in a hoarse tone: [Whether he wants to be in a relationship is his business, whether you like him or not is your business. Will pursuing him interfere with his studies? Do you think your relationship will interfere with his studies?]

“…”

Lin Jianlu carefully considered the other person’s words, realizing there was still a conflict.

He was confident he wouldn’t interfere with or affect the other person’s studies, but like anyone experiencing their first love, he felt nervous and apprehensive facing their beloved, he was also afraid of being rejected and losing even their friendship.

Even knowing that Yan Han wouldn’t break off their friendship because of this, and would most likely laugh it off like before, sometimes even a one in ten thousand chance, or even a near-zero probability, required careful consideration.

Even Lin Jianlu knew that probability theory didn’t apply here.

[…Then you should slowly probe and find out his feelings!]

[Silly child, didn’t you notice his reaction was strange just now?]

“You mean?”

[It was when he was explaining that long conversation to you!] the voice in his head said excitedly.

Whatever, during this time, the host has fallen in love and it was having a blast!

A host who can set rules for himself like this, where would he have ever asked for his opinion before?

Now it’s different. Asking him to go east might not actually work, but at least he’ll consider my suggestions.

Truly… a promising student!

While the system was basking in its own satisfaction, Lin Jianlu was lost in thought again. His thin lips were pressed tightly together, as if he had encountered some world-shaking problem. He hadn’t been this mentally taxed in a long time— replaying every frame of Yan Han’s words in his mind, not missing a single detail of the other’s expression, tone, or any other subtle shift.

Then he really felt something was strange.

The other hadn’t directly answered his question about his relationship with Wei Ningxin, not mentioning it at all. Instead, he repeatedly emphasized that he couldn’t be in a relationship yet because he couldn’t reveal his identity, because he needed to study… that completely evasive attitude… meant that if these factors and concerns were disregarded, he might actually already be with Wei Ningxin?!

Realizing this, Lin Jianlu’s eyelashes fluttered wildly, and he abruptly looked up at Yan Han on the court.

The carefree man had completely forgotten the slight embarrassment from before. He was playing with abandon, sweating and receiving applause, effortlessly exuding charm even among a group of men ten or twenty years his senior… Suddenly, Lin Jianlu straightened his knees and stood up.

At this moment, the two older women who had originally come to invite them to play ball but only took Yan Han with them returned, reluctantly approaching him and introducing themselves with smiles: “Hello, Mr. Lin, we are from Huayu Investment…”

“Sorry, I’m busy right now.” Lin Jianlu’s voice was cold, as if he could freeze people at any moment.

For the first time in his life, he walked past the two women with indifference and expressionlessness, striding directly onto the court.

On the court, Yan Han had just shown off a fancy pass, pulling the basketball out from under his raised leg. Before that leg could even touch the ground, Lin Jianlu grabbed him.

Because of a sudden loss of balance, he fell headfirst into Lin Jianlu’s arms in full view of everyone. When he came to his senses, Yan Han looked up at him, a little confused and a little uneasy, and asked with wide eyes, “What are you doing?”

Lin Jianlu: “Come with me, I have something to ask you.”

Yan Han: “???”

---

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After leaving the room, Bai Yue put on the coat he had just taken off.

Before this, the only alphas he had interacted with most were Shang Yufei and his younger brother. Although he had already undergone secondary differentiation, he still felt somewhat out of place.

By now, it was completely dark. Night had fallen, and a crescent moon hung in the sky, casting a soft glow.

He took out his phone, preparing to try contacting Shang Yufei again. However, when he opened his messages, he found that the text message he had sent that afternoon was still unread.

Bai Yue remembered that Shang Yufei had mentioned a make-up exam. Although he didn’t know the exact time, could it still be ongoing?

Suddenly, his phone beeped, a video call request coming in.

Bai Yue clicked to answer, and the image on the screen showed his younger brother’s face. For some reason, his eyes were red and swollen, as if he had been bitten by mosquitoes.

Bai Yue put on his headphones and asked: “What’s wrong with your eyes?”

Bai Yiyan was stunned for a moment, then tossed the phone aside.

After a dizzying moment, the image that reappeared was of Father Bai.

Then, the background sound of a door slamming shut was heard. His younger brother had probably run back to his bedroom and held it in again, probably because of some kind of shock.

“This child, it was clearly his insistence on calling you.”

Mr. Bai sighed, looking at the screen again. “How’s the preparation going?”

Bai Yue: “Almost done. There’s an exam tomorrow.” He asked again, “Where’s Mom?”

Mr. Bai: “She’s still busy in the kitchen. Wait a minute, I’ll call her over.”

His mother’s voice came from the phone. After some warm greetings, she expressed a desire to see what the school looked like.

Hearing this, Bai Yue smiled: “Let my brother come down, I’ll show it all to you.”

He then turned the phone camera to show the entire school grounds.

In the evening, apart from a few scattered examinees, there was hardly anyone to be seen near the dormitory.

At this time, those having dinner were still having dinner; while those who were nervous about tomorrow’s test had already gone to bed early.

Bai Yue: “The uniforms at Imperial First are quite nice, I saw a lot of students this afternoon. It’s a pity I forgot to take pictures for you.”

Mrs. Bai covered her mouth and laughed: “Why take pictures of them? Take more pictures of your parents when you wear the uniform.”

Bai Yue walked around the school grounds, chatted with his parents for a few more minutes, and was about to close the video when he heard his younger brother’s voice from the other end.

“Brother, why is it so noisy over there?”

Although Bai Yiyan hadn’t appeared on camera since then, at least he had obediently come down.

Hearing his brother’s words, Bai Yue was taken aback, then took off his headphones.

Sure enough, he heard a cacophony of noise, like a mixture of chaotic footsteps and voices.

He turned around to look but still didn’t see many people.

“Don’t run!”

“Stop right there!” The voices grew louder and clearer, approaching.

Then, a shadow fell over his head.

Bai Yue looked up and realized that someone had leaped directly over his head.

Those people weaved through the buildings, jumping from one rooftop to another. After landing, they rolled and quickly got up.

They were all wearing masks, somewhat similar to the ones he had seen in the car that afternoon.

Bai Yue watched them disappear into the distance. Soon after, several more students wearing armbands passed by.

The students carried weapons, attempting to launch ranged attacks on the masked group, but repeatedly failed.

As if in a provocation, one of the masked individuals deliberately stopped, spread his arms wide towards the pursuers, and then fell backward, his figure disappearing into the darkness.

“Damn it!” The students put away their weapons and increased their speed.

These people came like the wind and vanished just as quickly. Their arrival and departure were swift and unexpected.

Perhaps due to the lack of response, a question came from the other end of the phone: “Brother?”

Bai Yue snapped back to reality and said to the screen, “It’s nothing. It’s just…” He carefully chose his words, “‘Police catching thieves’?”

Judging from the senior student’s attitude this afternoon, she seemed quite disgusted with those masked guys. However, since the pursuers weren’t the police, it was probably just an internal student conflict.

He hung up the phone.

“Click.”

Suddenly, a soft sound came from behind.

Bai Yue turned around but didn’t see anyone, only a mask lying in the grass. He wondered who had dropped it.

He walked over and picked up the mask.

The mask’s material was indistinguishable. A simple line drawing of an expression appeared on its surface, as if it were smiling.

Just as he was about to turn it over to examine it, he was suddenly lightly tapped on the shoulder.

Bai Yue looked back— there was no one behind him. The next second, the mask was snatched from his hand.

Feeling his hand go empty, he turned back.

This time, he finally saw the person’s true face.

Wearing a hood, tall and imposing, he looked like an alpha. However, he was wearing casual clothes, so it was impossible to tell which school he attended.

Bai Yue didn’t say anything, just quietly watched the other person.

The young man put on the mask with his back to him, then turned around and bowed slightly to him.

As if thanking him for picking up the mask.

Then he retreated and climbed over the wall. He was agile and quickly disappeared.

A little while later, several students wearing armbands returned. Seeing Bai Yue standing there, they frowned: “Are you a candidate this year?”

Bai Yue: “Yes.”

“Was there anyone wearing a mask just now?”

Bai Yue pointed in the direction the person had left.

“Thank you.” The students were about to leave. But they paused, then added, “If anyone wearing a mask speaks to you, don’t pay them any attention, understand?”

With that, the students chased after the masked man in the direction he had disappeared.

Bai Yue stood there, arms crossed: it seemed the internal conflicts within the military academy were more complex than he had imagined.

The night grew deeper. After painstakingly taking detours, the young man finally shook off the disciplinary team.

“So annoying,” he thought, slipping through a building window. There were still patrols inside, but he wasn’t new to this place and was familiar with their routes and blind spots.

The building was located in a corner of the Imperial First Military Academy; ordinary students had no idea such a place existed— unless you seriously violated school rules and regulations, in which case you’d be locked up for reflection. It was also known as the solitary confinement room.

Soldiers were required to strictly obey orders and superiors. No matter how tough they were, under repeated training, they would transform from wild dogs into loyal dogs.

The young man was unimpressed.

He bypassed the last person’s surveillance. Soon, he arrived at a door.

The corridor here was long, stretching as far as the eye could see. Each floor contained hundreds of identical rooms. The doors were all lined up, differing only in number. Some doors didn’t even have handles, as if they were assumed to be closed once shut. Only a window opened at the top, and a small opening below for passing food.

The young man slipped the documents he was holding into the opening from below.

“Boss, I stole these for you. Hurry up and look at them.”

The room inside was small, only seven or eight square meters. A bed against the wall took up almost half the room.

A tall figure sat cross-legged on the bed, his back against the wall. The room was dark, only faint moonlight filtering through the window.

His face was hidden in shadow, making it difficult to see clearly.

The man glanced at the documents scattered on the floor, then looked away, seemingly uninterested.

The young man grew impatient: “If you don’t look at them soon, you’ll fail again. Your grades are so dangerous; what if you get expelled?”

These words seemed to strike a nerve with the man inside, finally eliciting a reaction.

After a short while, he said, “I read the book.”

“Boss,” the young man said, exasperated, “you’ve already wasted a year of your studies, and even last-minute cramming won’t get you a passing grade! Those guys are doing it on purpose, trying to force you to drop out.”

He added, “I know you don’t care about dropping out. But you’ve already put in a year, and with Imperial First as a stepping stone, don’t waste it.”

The person inside was silent for a moment, then asked, “Did you get caught stealing this?”

The young man said smugly, “Who do you think I am? The second-in-command of the organization. Don’t worry, I made copies of everything. Those people don’t know what I took.”

Although he was later discovered by the disciplinary team, he was quickly led away by his companions. However, he didn’t mention this mistake aloud.

“Idiot,” the boss scoffed.

The young man was stunned. Although the boss rarely praised him, he wouldn’t call him an idiot, would he? He was doing it for the boss’s sake!

“These materials were deliberately meant for you to steal.”

The boss spoke coldly. “That person is extremely cunning. How could he not have set a trap? If we answer the questions according to what’s written there, he won’t just know who stole the study materials— our identities would be exposed as well.”

Only then did the young man realize.

That actually made sense. No wonder it had gone so smoothly when he sneaked into the office, and why he had found the exam answers so quickly. Turns out that bast**d had been fishing for them!

But if that was the case, what were they supposed to do about the make-up exam? His grades were slightly better than the boss’s, but he had absolutely no talent for tutoring.

The last time he tried explaining the problems, his explanations were so abstract that he ended up getting beaten up badly by the boss instead.

“Let’s take it one step at a time. Take the materials with you.”

The young man let out a small “oh” and reached out to grab them, but some of the papers had fallen too far away for him to reach.

“Boss…”

He looked pitiful.

The person inside clicked his tongue and finally got off the bed. He squatted down and picked up the materials from the floor.

The young man took the papers: “I’ll tear these up and throw them in the toilet when I get out.”

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he said, “By the way, boss, when I came over today, I saw a super handsome omega, I think he’s a new applicant this year.”

“Hmm,” the person inside replied indifferently, not caring at all.

The young man sighed: “If I didn’t know you had a boyfriend back home, I would have thought you weren’t interested in omegas. You always react like this when I gossip with you.”

The person inside frowned: “Get lost.”

The young man smiled: “But it’s fine if you’re not interested, I’ll gladly accept that new student.”

The person inside looked up. Moonlight shone behind him, finally revealing his face clearly.

Handsome features, a pair of emerald green eyes gleaming. His slightly raised eyebrows exuded a fierce aura.

“Do whatever you want, it’s none of my business.”

---

The author has something to say:

Bai Yue: Hmm?

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That concluded this episode’s update. Before the afternoon’s episode could even air, Feng Yuanxuan’s group had finished adjusting their schedule. However the production team clearly intended to reveal the answer in the performance video, leaving it as a cliffhanger.

But obviously, this would make Feng Yuanxuan’s situation even worse.

The video ended with a short video recorded by Guan Yike and Bei Yifan. Sheng Ziyou paused the video, exited the software, and put away her computer.

“Alright, that’s all for now. Everyone, tidy up here and go to your rooms to rest early,” she said with a gentle smile, waving her hand.

“OK.”

“Goodnight, Teacher Sheng.”

“Good night, get some rest.”

Sheng Ziyou nodded and left the practice room.

She didn’t tell everyone not to reveal the current situation; in fact, Sheng Ziyou felt it would be better if Feng Yuanxuan knew.

The last time she kept it from Ji Ran was because the reason for Ji Ran’s drop in ranking was unclear, and given Ji Ran’s health condition, it was better not to know.

But Feng Yuanxuan’s situation was different now. He was tricked by someone, and now if he knew it, he could think of ways to deal with it.

As for what happened next, Sheng Ziyou didn’t want to care anymore; it was not her business.

After she left, the practice room erupted in excitement, with everyone talking about it.

“Wow, Yuanxuan is really in a bad situation. What happened?” Guan Yike turned his head and asked curiously.

He was the most confused person; he had been too busy lately to keep up with what was happening in the other groups.

Lin Yidong’s face scrunched up: “Brother Xuan isn’t that kind of person!”

“Of course we know Feng Yuanxuan isn’t that kind of person, but the audience doesn’t know that!”

“Ugh, what should I do?!”

“Should we tell Yuanxuan?”

“I don’t know.”

“No, wouldn’t that affect his mood?”

….

“We still need to tell him, at least so he can be prepared,” Ji Ran said, frowning.

He knew how painful cyberbullying could be. Not long after he joined the show, he was criticized by many netizens for his poor attitude towards Sheng Ziyou.

However, he was very popular at the time, and his behavior wasn’t too outrageous, so Sheng Ziyou was the one who got criticized the most.

So the criticism against him didn’t make much of a splash, and his fans were still on his side.

But since then, he had no longer been number one, and his popularity had been declining, leading to his current situation.

He couldn’t even find the reason for his declining popularity, and could only watch anxiously, helpless.

It was their first time participating in a talent show. Their phones were taken away, but they still had computers to log in to Weibo.

Every time he saw those private messages that insulted him, he felt anxious and sometimes felt like he was going to collapse. For a moment, he even thought that he might as well die.

He thought he was pretty strong, but during that time he would always cry secretly in bed. The next day, he would practice and eat like crazy, and so on.

“Then I’ll talk to him.” Lin Yidong frowned. He didn’t know how to say it, but he and Feng Yuanxuan were the closest, so it was the most appropriate for him to do so.

“If we’re together, I’m afraid you won’t be able to express yourself clearly.” Fu Jiahuan raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, you can all say it together.” Gu Yuzheng lowered his voice. “Don’t let anyone else hear. Remember, ‘anyone else’ includes anyone.”

“Okay, I got it. Don’t worry, I’m much more reliable than Lin Yidong.” Fu Jiahuan said earnestly.

Lin Yidong raised his fist to punch Fu Jiahuan, and the two chased each other out.

The remaining people cleaned up the practice room and left. It was very late, and everyone needed to go to their rooms to sleep.

“Shall we go?” Ji Ran looked at Gu Yuzheng, not understanding why he was still standing there.

Gu Yuzheng frowned, as if he was thinking about something, or as if he was struggling with something.

“Hey—” Ji Ran nudged him.

Gu Yuzheng then came to his senses and looked at Ji Ran with a serious and shocked expression: “I just thought of a question.”

“What?”

“Regarding why Feng Yuanxuan was framed…”

“Huh?” Ji Ran was completely confused.

Gu Yuzheng’s eyes were full of worry. He was a smart man, but it was also very difficult for a smart man to be without much ability.

He opened his mouth and said softly, “I’ve been wondering why Feng Yuanxuan would encounter something like this. These fake fans have never appeared before. He just got the number one ranking, and then he was attacked like this. Ran Ran, do you have a guess who it is?”

Ji Ran frowned. If someone else had asked him this, he certainly wouldn’t have answered. Guesses without evidence are not something to be made lightly.

But this person was Gu Yuzheng, someone he completely trusted. So he replied, “Jiao Xiu.”

Gu Yuzheng put his hands in his pockets and looked at Ji Ran: “Yes, I also think it was him. He was the number one before Feng Yuanxuan, and you were the number one before him. And you… just had a different experience than Feng Yuanxuan, but the result was the same.”

Ji Ran’s expression suddenly changed and darkened.

He, Feng Yuanxuan, and Jiao Xiu, who seemed to have no connection, actually had a deep connection.

Ji Ran was first in the initial selection competition, but then his ranking plummeted for various reasons, and he was now probably outside the debut lineup.

Then, Jiao Xiu came in first place. In the previous episode, Feng Yuanxuan took first place, and then Feng Yuanxuan was criticized.

If Feng Yuanxuan didn’t have strong measures to deal with the situation, his fate would be the same as Ji Ran’s— his ranking would drop.

No, it was not the same.

Ji Ran’s decline was gradual, while Feng Yuanxuan was likely to face a sharp decline.

Ultimately, this was simply because as they approached the semifinals, a gradual decline in ranking was not conducive to pushing Feng Yuanxuan down the list.

By connecting all the events together, seemingly unrelated events became linked.

“He wants to debut as the center.” Ji Ran said in a deep voice.

Gu Yuzheng nodded, his face equally serious.

Anyone would feel uneasy knowing that there was a viper lurking next to them.

“If… if my ranking drop is also related to him, then this person is terrifying! And why does he have to always be number one? His ranking has always been very good, and who helped him do that? And how can he guarantee that if the people ahead of him drop out, he will be number one again?”

Ji Ran couldn’t understand Jiao Xiu’s reason for doing this. There are so many outstanding people, can he just ruin them all? Even if he debuts as the center of a boy band, he will still meet even more outstanding people in the future. Is he going to ruin them all?

“I don’t know who is helping him, nor do I know his purpose in doing so. But the result is indeed— you fell, he came in first, and if Feng Yuanxuan falls, he will definitely be first again after the next performance.” Gu Yuzheng’s voice was certain. Regardless of the other party’s assurances, the result did achieve his goal.

Ji Ran sighed, “If only Teacher Sheng were here, she would know more about the methods in the industry and would definitely know why Jiao Xiu did this.”

“Ji Ran, don’t you think… you’re becoming more and more dependent on Teacher Sheng?” Gu Yuzheng suddenly said, his eyes half-closed.

Ji Ran blushed slightly, then glared at him angrily, “You think I don’t know what you’re thinking!”

Okay, Gu Yuzheng touched his nose, not daring to argue.

They were actually birds of a feather, or rather… “misery loves company”.

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The person that the cub was taking Su Xi to see was a very famous wandering Taoist in the Yan Kingdom. He was born in Changchun Temple a hundred years ago and was said to be over a hundred years old. He had been received by the emperors of several countries and had left behind many legends about summoning back souls that had already entered the cycle of reincarnation.

This wandering Taoist had been traveling to various countries for the past ten years or so, and his whereabouts were nowhere to be found. Therefore, it took the cub several months to find him through General Zhenyuan.

The cub used to absolutely not believe in gods and ghosts, but after mistakenly believing her to be a ghost, he began to believe in this belief.

Although it was unknown whether the stories passed down by this wandering Taoist were true or false, many books in the Yan Kingdom about spirit summoning and life-giving were indeed compiled by him and his disciples.

Therefore, finding him was like finding a glimmer of hope, no matter what.

If no hope could be found from this wandering Taoist, then there was no way in the world to make Su Xi appear.

At this very moment, General Zhenyuan’s men were leading the wandering Taoist to Changchun Temple. They only needed to wait at Changchun Temple to meet the renowned wandering Taoist.

….

Watching from outside the screen, Su Xi saw the cub excitedly ordering people to prepare horses, eager to head to Changchun Temple. His expression was full of hope, and Su Xi felt a mix of emotions, unsure of what to do…

Make up an excuse, say you have something to do tonight and can’t go to Changchun Temple with him? Then stay offline for a few days and just happen to miss this wandering Taoist priest?

The moment the thought popped into Su Xi’s mind, she quickly rejected it. No, no, no, doing that would be too unfair to the cub, and too irresponsible.

Moreover, even if they didn’t meet this wandering Taoist this time, the cub will definitely find a way to take her to see him again next time.

…You can run away from this once and for all, but you can’t hide it forever.

Since sooner or later, the cub would find out that they were from two different worlds, that she could be with him until old age, but could never appear before him, then it was better to let him know tonight. Although he would be sad, Su Xi thought, he still had his own ambitions, and now he had his own friends, mentors, and allies; he would be alright.

….

Su Xi was filled with anxiety and hesitated for a long time before finally tugging at the cub’s left sleeve, indicating, “Okay, I’ll go with you.”

However, at that moment, perhaps because a new quest was about to be triggered by heading to Changchun Temple, a message popped up on the screen:

[Please accept Main Quest Ten (Intermediate): Find a respected official of at least the second rank in the imperial court for the protagonist and persuade him to stand behind the protagonist and support him in ascending the throne.]

Su Xi felt that this task was impossible to start. There were already a few high-ranking officials in the court who appreciated the cub, but the cub’s identity as a prince had not yet been revealed. No matter how much they appreciated the cub, they could not possibly support a son of a concubine from the Ning Wang’s Mansion to ascend the throne. That would turn into a plot to usurp the throne!

This task should theoretically be triggered only after the child regained his identity.

Just as she was thinking this, a notification popped up on the screen.

[Note: This task runs parallel to Main Quest Nine and is a subsidiary task of Main Quest Nine. The point reward is 8.]

So that’s how it was! Su Xi suddenly understood. In other words, while finding that Taoist nun at Changchun Temple and letting the little one know about his own background, they also needed to find an official of the second rank or above so that the little one’s identity as the Ninth Prince would also be known to that person!

So, the fact that this task has popped up now means that going to Changchun Temple tonight will trigger both Task Nine and Task Ten simultaneously?!

Su Xi was still immersed in the faint sadness of her son not being able to see her, but as soon as she received the task, she immediately became nervous.

At this moment, the cub was galloping towards Changchun Temple, glancing to his side every now and then with shining eyes, urging her to hurry and catch up. Su Xi tugged at his sleeve reassuringly, indicating that she was following, but in reality, she had already secretly switched the interface to another place.

There were many officials of the second rank or above in the imperial court, but currently, only three met the criteria for mission ten: after learning about the child’s background, they would start to consider supporting the child to rise to power.

Grand Commandant Yun, General Zhenyuan, Minister of War.

The official ranks of these three people were respectively the second rank, the first rank, and the second rank, which all met the requirements.

Su Xi first opened the General’s Mansion section and found that the protagonist was no longer there, but the General’s Mansion was still brightly lit. Many officials were drunk. General Zhenyuan was unusually happy and had also drunk a little more. He was currently drunkenly practicing his fist techniques. In this state, there was no way to take him to Changchun Temple, so she had to give up on him.

When the screen switched to General Zhenyuan, a message suddenly popped up on the screen:

“Congratulations on completing Mission 8 (1/2): Become the successor in the heart of General Zhenyuan and make initial military achievements in suppressing the rebellion in the north. The first part has been completed. You have received half the points reward +6.”

This suggested that, after these past few months, the cub had completely gained the appreciation and trust of General Zhenyuan.

General Zhenyuan had already made up his mind to take the cub to the northern border for training.

Su Xi was at a loss for words, unsure whether to be happy or worried. She was happy that the mission was halfway complete, the points had increased, and her son had achieved his wish of being promoted to the fourth rank. She was worried, however, that the mission might become increasingly difficult when they went to the northern border to quell the rebellion, and her son might inevitably get injured.

But there was no point in overthinking it; let’s focus on solving the current task first.

Next was Grand Commandant Yun. Su Xi switched the interface to the Grand Commandant’s Mansion— he wasn’t there.

He seems to have something to do tonight; he’s meeting with the Emperor at the palace.

Su Xi was a little anxious, fearing that something might happen to all three of them and they wouldn’t be able to complete the task. Fortunately, the Minister of War was sitting properly in his seat, advising another official next to him to drink less. He seemed to be sober.

He was the one.

Su Xi needed to find a way to get the Minister of War to Changchun Temple as soon as possible.

Seeing his little one already galloping along on horseback, reaching the gates of the capital, Su Xi felt a headache coming on. His little one was far too impatient! The Changchun Temple storyline was already over, and he still hadn’t managed to get the Minister of War there!

Wait, I’ve got it! Su Xi suddenly remembered the first person in the cub’s harem list, the daughter of the Minister of War, Han Yue. Now that she thought about it, no wonder Han Yue had a name; she was a key figure who could be put to good use.

Su Xi quickly switched the interface to the Ministry of War’s residence.

At this moment, it was already late at night, and Han Yue was asleep in her boudoir.

Su Xi had no choice but to exchange some hypnotic powder from the mall, sprinkle it in her room, then roll her up in the blanket, making an egg roll, and held it in her hand.

He then pushed open the window, deliberately making a very loud “bang” sound—

When the drowsy maids came to their senses, they found the room empty and the windows wide open.

A maidservant screamed, “Assassins! Miss has been kidnapped!”

Another maid rushed out of the courtyard to find a guard and said to him, “Where is the master? Hurry and go to the general’s mansion to tell the master that the young lady has been kidnapped by assassins!”

On the table, fluttering in the wind, was a drawing left by Su Xi, depicting Changchun Temple, with a pen pulled from the pen holder and placed on it.

This Minister of War was very clever; he must have understood that this meant he was to come alone, or else the hostage would be killed.

After doing all this, Su Xi slowly moved the interface little by little until she reached Changchun Temple, found an empty room belonging to a nun, and carefully placed the still unconscious daughter of the Minister of War, Han Yue, on the bed and covered her with a blanket.

She did it quietly, and Changchun Temple was very large, so no one noticed.

Su Xi breathed a sigh of relief. Next, she just had to wait for the cub and the Minister of War to arrive one after the other.

….

Changchun Temple was located on a mountain a few miles from the capital. The air was dry in the dead of autumn, and the mountain was filled with the fragrance of osmanthus blossoms. Dim lights could be seen in the distance from the mountain peaks, emanating from Changchun Temple, barely illuminating the bluestone steps along the mountain path, while the surroundings were deserted and quiet.

The cub only brought the messenger guard with him. Their horses could not go any further up the mountain, so the cub dismounted and had the guard tie both horses to a tree at the foot of the mountain.

He walked up the bluestone steps, his robes stirring up the withered yellow leaves on the steps.

His eyes were incredibly bright.

That night, only Su Xi, watching from outside the screen, knew that even though the cub had put in months of hard work, it was impossible to get any results in the end.

She felt a pang of sadness, but she still forced herself to watch as her son strode confidently and tirelessly climbed the mountain and arrived at Changchun Temple.

The wandering Taoist priest had not yet arrived.

However, two Taoist priests at Changchun Temple already knew about this matter. General Zhenyuan’s subordinates who had sent people to find them had informed them in advance, so they didn’t sleep at night and were still waiting at the temple gate to welcome them.

Upon seeing the child and the guards appear at the temple gate, their robes slightly frosty and chilly, they hurriedly bowed.

Su Xi, watching from outside the screen, was startled. It took her a while to realize that her son was now a fourth-rank official in the imperial court, so these Taoist priests naturally had to pay their respects.

…It’s really hard to believe that your own child has suddenly gained power.

“Please, Cavalry Commandant, go to the side hall to rest for a while. When the Dao Ancestor arrives, we will send someone to invite him,” one of the Daoists said.

Lu Huan was anxious and didn’t care about etiquette. He nodded and walked quickly toward the side hall. After a few steps, he turned to the two Taoist priests and the guards beside him and said, “You don’t need to come with me.”

If he comes along, he will no longer be able to speak with ghosts and spirits.

Lu Huan walked alone toward the side hall.

Previously, when Su Xi switched the interface to Changchun Temple alone, she couldn’t find the Taoist nun NPC who could trigger the truth about her past. But now, a dialog box with “…” kept popping up in the upper right corner of her screen.

Su Xi was thrilled and dragged the screen around, finally seeing two little figures in the backyard. One of them, an older woman, was holding a ruler and scolding the other, a middle-aged Taoist nun, who was sweeping the floor with a broom.

The pop-up conversation was—

“Don’t think that just because you were a maid in the palace, you’re superior to other Taoist nuns and can slack off. Let me tell you, don’t use knee pain as an excuse. If you don’t sweep properly, I’ll kick you out! Changchun Temple isn’t a place where you can just freeload!”

“You? You heard that the newly appointed Cavalry Commandant is coming tonight, and you’re already eagerly hoping to go out and meet him? What are you dreaming of? Do you want to curry favor with some high-ranking official?”

This dialogue was quite revealing. This Taoist nun used to be a maid in the palace, and she was desperately trying to see the cub tonight. It seemed that the cleaning nun mentioned in Mission Nine was her!

Su Xi hurried to the side hall, grabbed the little one’s sleeve, and gestured for him to come with her. Hurry, hurry, hurry.

The little one was anxiously waiting for the wandering Taoist priest to arrive and was pacing back and forth in the side hall. When he noticed that someone was tugging at his sleeve, he asked in confusion, “Where do you want to take me?”

Fortunately, the wandering Taoist priest hadn’t arrived yet. Su Xi thought to herself, “If he had, would my little one still have time to go to the backyard to get that Taoist nun?” Taking advantage of this opportunity, she quickly dragged her little one over!

So she pulled even harder.

Lu Huan’s robes were almost torn by her, which amused him. He said, “Okay, I’ll go with you. Don’t rush.”

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Even though these people had spent several days with Gu Wuji and witnessed so many shocking scenes that they thought they were used to everything. Even if Gu Wuji were to engage in homosexual acts with some kind of vengeful ghost boss right in front of them, they wouldn’t be surprised anymore!

But seeing this scene now, the players were still completely bewildered, unable to utter a single word. They felt that speaking would make them seem ignorant. They couldn’t say anything like, “We weren’t waiting for you, you just arrived too quickly.”

But what they really wanted to know was, what was that thing Gu Wuji was carrying?! What was this coffin that looked like it might contain some extraordinary being sleeping inside?! And why did Gu Wuji look so relaxed and happy, as if he were at a rural resort?

Finally, it was Xiao Qin, who considered himself more familiar with Gu Wuji, who spoke up, “Brother Gu, what is this thing…?”

“Ah, this.” Gu Wuji seemed to realize that this was rather illogical, and immediately said, “Don’t worry, this contains the main body of the boss of this dungeon.”

Of course, although Gu Wuji was indeed strong enough to easily lift the coffin, he wasn’t using much strength. This was because the boss’s main body inside the coffin didn’t want Gu Wuji to be burdened and was consciously controlling its weight.

The others: “…”

No need to worry, huh?!

“Alright, let’s leave this village quickly now.” Gu Wuji frowned and said, “If we wait for the monster above to awaken, things will be troublesome.”

Everyone nodded numbly and followed Gu Wuji towards the village entrance.

But they were horrified to find that even carrying a black coffin, Gu Wuji was far faster than them. If he hadn’t intentionally stayed behind to wait, they would have been left far behind by Gu Wuji.

The surrounding monsters dared not approach any further. The shadowy figures and ghosts in the mist were also terrified, immediately shunning the group whenever they encountered them.

Initially, the group was puzzled, but after Gu Wuji explained, they understood. What monster would dare approach the true form of the dungeon’s vengeful ghost boss? It was tantamount to suicide.

Just then, the ground suddenly trembled. The group looked on in astonishment to see a figure appear not far away— a tall ghost with several ferocious faces radiating from its body, glaring at them with resentment.

Before them stood the ghost of the boy.

“So that’s it. The road out of the village just happens to pass through the houses where those sacrifices were kept,” Gu Wuji thought to himself. “This dungeon is quite economical, making these sacrifice ghosts appear repeatedly…”

“Heh, now my power has increased once again. You people are nothing to fear. I will definitely avenge my previous grievances!” the ghost grinned maliciously, its gaze falling on the black coffin Gu Wuji was carrying.

At that moment, the ghost’s expression froze.

Everyone understood his feelings perfectly. After all, for any ghost, seeing the vengeful spirit above its head being packed up and taken away would be incredibly shocking.

Without uttering another threat, the vengeful spirit turned to flee, but Gu Wuji grabbed its shoulder.

Everyone clearly saw that this tall and powerful vengeful spirit was actually trembling uncontrollably.

“What a coincidence,” Gu Wuji said, looking at the spirit. “Don’t walk so fast. It’s fate that we met here.”

“W-what do you want to do?!” The vengeful spirit glared at Gu Wuji. Although it still tried to maintain its composure, it had lost all courage, only thinking that this person was not human!

“I just feel that we’re not very familiar with the roads in this village. I was wondering if you could come with us and show us the way,” Gu Wuji said with a smile.

While Xiao Qin and the others found Gu Wuji’s smile incredibly gentle, to the vengeful spirit it was like a demon crawling out of the depths of hell.

“Sister, come with me!” Inside the old building, the girl looked at the shadowy figure faintly appearing on the wall. She could barely make out that it was a woman with a similar appearance to her. “Let’s leave here together.”

“No.” The shadow spoke slowly. “This village is facing something never before seen. Only that man has a chance to leave. I helped him before, so he should be willing to take you away. But I’ll pass.”

“Sister!” The girl couldn’t help but bite her lower lip. To her, this female ghost was her only family. Without her, she didn’t know how she could survive. “If we beg him, he will definitely take us away! Didn’t you say he was a good person?”

The shadow shook her head. “Even if he is a good person, how could he be willing to take a ghost away? This is my home, but you are alive, and your future has hope.”

At this moment, footsteps could be heard outside. Surprisingly, these footsteps were very chaotic, as if there were many people.

“People are coming. Let’s go out.” The shadow spoke, emerging from the wall and pulling the girl outside.

Then they saw several people and… several ghosts approaching.

The girl and her sister were dumbfounded. “…”

Following behind Gu Wuji and the others was the ghost whose original form was a child, but whose current physique was incredibly strong. It carried the ghost whose arms and legs were no longer in its original form on its back… Beside it was a long-haired female ghost, head bowed, shyly combing her hair the whole time, seemingly unwilling to interact with outsiders.

Of course, the most mysterious was Gu Wuji, standing at the very front carrying a black coffin. The black coffin on his shoulder emitted an aura that made all the ghosts in the village tremble…

“Sister, it seems we can go together this time.” The girl, regaining her senses, was filled with excitement.

“Mmm, mmm.” The sister’s ghost was still completely bewildered. Although she had high hopes for Gu Wuji and believed in his abilities… in her mind, at most, this group would only take her sister along when they were fleeing in a hurry, out of consideration for her previous help.

But what was going on now! What was this scene of ghosts and humans coexisting harmoniously?! Gu Wuji was even carrying a black coffin that clearly contained a vengeful ghost boss!

“What a coincidence, we can leave together on the same route,” Gu Wuji greeted them warmly.

The others behind them were completely numb. The first ghost had been forced to stay by Gu Wuji… but the next two ghosts, upon hearing they could leave the village, shamelessly clung to him. Even the ghost who had previously wanted to kill Gu Wuji was now showering him with compliments, a level of flattery that left everyone speechless.

The girl excitedly pulled her sister’s ghost into the group, her eyes shining. Although she didn’t know what the future held, she was filled with anticipation for the outside world.

With two more people joining, the group became even more astonishing, resembling a tourist trip. None of them had ever imagined they would coexist so harmoniously with so many ghosts.

And so, the group quickly approached the village entrance. The journey was incredibly leisurely. The biggest difficulty was that the village roads were winding and easy to get lost, but that was nothing compared to being haunted by ghosts, especially since the village ghosts were there to guide them.

The other players couldn’t help but feel moved, wishing they could immediately latch onto Gu Wuji’s coattails. Having such a powerful figure protecting them would be incredibly awesome!

Everyone started mentally preparing to shower Gu Wuji with compliments. One player even eagerly stepped forward, offering to help Gu Wuji lift the black coffin. But the instant he touched it, he felt as if a pair of chillingly cold eyes were staring at him.

Even with Gu Wuji carrying most of it, the weight he felt made him tremble… the weight of the black coffin could absolutely crush him!

In that instant, the player quickly withdrew his hand, pretending he hadn’t made the suggestion. He felt as if he had hovered on the brink of death.

The other ghosts looked at this person with pity. They were so eager to build a good relationship with Gu Wuji, yet they hadn’t offered this suggestion. How could that fierce ghost boss allow anyone other than Gu Wuji to touch the black coffin?

It was safe to say that in this dungeon, no one but Gu Wuji could possibly trigger this hidden quest. Even if they managed to trigger the hidden quest, completing it would be incredibly difficult.

After all, a typical ghost boss wouldn’t run away with a player so easily; the process would be fraught with peril. How could Gu Wuji possibly coax a ghost boss into eloping with him with just a few sweet words?

Moreover, the black coffin containing the ghost was incredibly heavy. If it weren’t for Gu Wuji, it would take at least several players to carry it. By the time they left the village, it would be too late; everyone would probably be dead.

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---

Regardless, this time, he finally managed to snatch the dormant entity.

Li Yuebai weighed the small black coffin he had taken from Wang Wen, finding it strange. It was the first time he had encountered an unopened coffin; it was neither too light nor too heavy, neither too big nor too small. He wondered what kind of dormant entity was inside…

The small black coffin was tightly closed, bound by several familiar silver chains— sealing silver chains, looking exactly the same as the one that had killed Xu Lili.

Strangely enough, this time, the dormant entity didn’t use any mind control abilities. It didn’t control Zhuo Zhuo, Wang Wen, or Xiao Tian, nor Ye Qing or himself. It was completely different from the previous dormant entities that desperately extended their tentacles of thought to control others at the first opportunity. Why was this? Did dormant entities have different personalities? Of course, different personalities were definitely possible, but the desire to “escape” and “possess” should be very strong, right? Only this one seemed to lack such a strong desire in these areas. He’d have to hand it over for careful study; perhaps then he could find the answer.

In truth, everything went remarkably smoothly today.

Ye Qing avoided the Yongfeng Company’s mission, and the bureau’s personnel, while carrying out their own mission, were on guard against the dormant entity, equipped with comprehensive tools and weapons, more than capable of dealing with it. It was a battle without suspense.

In other words, Ye Qing wouldn’t become a vampire as originally planned.

Li Yuebai put the small black coffin into his shirt pocket, intending to clean up the mess with Ye Qing.

Zhuo Zhuo was only drugged and not in mortal danger, and Gao Chengyu’s two henchmen could be legally detained… The food at home was almost gone; should they buy some at the supermarket on the way?…

And what was the next step in their operation?…

A jumble of thoughts flooded his mind, and for a moment, he felt a bit overwhelmed by the hassle.

Ye Qing, at the end of the corridor, holstered his gun and quietly walked towards him.

Li Yuebai suddenly felt that his luck was pretty good.

The male lead in the first time he transmigrated was a bit strange, his attributes were hard to figure out, and he was clingy and persistent, but he was always a great help, doing everything according to his wishes, making things go very smoothly, which was quite touching.

Now, in the second time, the male lead was even more reliable. Not only was he reliable, but he was also not as clingy as the one in the first time. He was always calmly providing long-range support, hitting his target every time. It was also rare that the system hasn’t caused any trouble today.

Everything was going so smoothly.

Li Yuebai raised his right hand, smiling as he approached Ye Qing, intending to give him a high-five, although he knew Ye Qing would probably ignore him…

A strange buzzing sound reached his ears, and after a few seconds, Li Yuebai realized something was wrong.

They were now standing in the corridor, with a bulletproof glass window on their right.

Something seemed off. A large flock of blue-winged dragonflies flew in from nowhere, landing on the window, hovering motionless on the edge of the glass and frame, looking like a large patch of flowers.

Looking down through the window, he could see people— security guards still searching for Zhuo Zhuo in confusion, and tourists who had simply come to visit. People were all perfectly normal until suddenly they scattered and ran, waving their arms and screaming, but unfortunately, he couldn’t hear what they were shouting or saying through the glass.

In the plaza below, there was a decorative pond filled with colorful koi. Now, from a distance, Li Yuebai seemed to see countless koi leaping out of the water, soaring high into the air, and then plummeting back into the water.

What kind of chaos was this? Was this still Earth? What was going on?

Li Yuebai’s previous life had been too peaceful, so much so that it took him several seconds to realize even such an obvious sign.

“Xiao Ye!” Once he understood, Li Yuebai shouted, “Go!”

Earthquake! It was an earthquake!

The earthquake bureau hadn’t given any warning!

The system hadn’t given any alerts!

This wasn’t even mentioned in the plot summary of his previous life!

An earthquake had suddenly appeared out of nowhere!

A dizzying spin was followed by the sounds of bursting pipes, falling bricks, and billowing dust.

This building was an important structure, designed to withstand earthquakes according to Class A standards before construction; generally, nothing serious should happen… generally…

Amidst the noise and violent shaking, Li Yuebai felt a wave of dizziness and stumbled forward, unsure if Ye Qing was following. After a brief period of chaos, the violent shaking gradually subsided.

Textbooks and survival guides clearly stated that earthquakes didn’t have just one wave, so when the first tremor stopped, one must quickly escape to an open area.

Li Yuebai struggled to his feet and turned back to find Ye Qing.

The building was indeed well-constructed; a few cracks appeared in the walls, and some pipes had burst, but overall, it wasn’t serious.

But what about the pool of blood on the ground?

As the dust settled, Li Yuebai saw the scene before him.

His incredibly reliable teammate, the male protagonist Ye Qing, lay dead in a pool of blood.

In the Class A earthquake-resistant building, a metal pipe had been installed during recent renovations.

During the recent earthquake, that heavy pipe detached from the ceiling above the corridor and fell, striking Ye Qing squarely.

Li Yuebai’s ears rang, and he could hear nothing.

His hands trembled.

He tried to call out “Xiao Ye” as usual, but no sound came out.

Dead?

Li Yuebai didn’t know how he got there. He knelt down and checked Ye Qing’s breathing with his trembling hands.

No breath, no heartbeat, no pulse.

Of course not. The metal pipe that had fallen from the ceiling had pierced Ye Qing’s chest at an unusual angle; blood was everywhere, there was no chance of survival.  

“System!” Li Yuebai couldn’t speak, only roaring silently in his heart.

“Dear Host, hello.” The system’s voice cheerfully popped out: “Because your mission was being completed too easily and the process going too smoothly, the system must increase the difficulty for you by introducing the [Banana Peel Mechanism] once.”

The Banana Peel Mechanism was a physics term, and also a science fiction term, referring to— when a time traveller wants to take an action to change history, fate throws a banana peel at them, causing them to slip and fall, forcing them to stop their action, unable to change history, and only able to accept their fixed fate.

This was the hand of God that humanity could not resist.

An earthquake without warning, a metal pipe falling for no reason, and the protagonist being killed by a perfectly random, naked Banana Peel Mechanism— this was a blatant and undisguised example of the Banana Peel Mechanism.

For the first time since the start of this transmigration game, Li Yuebai felt despair.

No matter how strong or how hard he tried, he would still die under the system’s gentle touch.

Other transmigrated protagonists had cheat codes, but he didn’t, which he initially thought was fine, as he could rely on his own efforts.

He never expected the system to cruelly introduce such a huge anti-cheat code.

“System, I demand negotiation.” At this point, Li Yuebai regained his composure: “According to my alliance agreement with Ye Qing, if any member of the alliance dies, this mission will fail.”

“Correct.” The system confirmed the alliance agreement Li Yuebai and Ye Qing had made; it was correct.

“If the banana peel mechanism exists to make me fail directly, then the entire transmigration is meaningless.” Li Yuebai took a deep breath, trying to suppress the urge to fight the system.

If the mission failed, he would have to accept Gu Xisha’s predetermined fate.

Compared to that prospect, suicide was a better choice; ending it here would avoid such cruel and prolonged torture.

However, Li Yuebai didn’t want to commit suicide and admit defeat so easily; he wanted at least one more chance to negotiate with the system.

“Of course, of course, the system wouldn’t be so cruel to the host. Since the current situation is caused by the banana peel mechanism, for fairness, the system will give you a chance to terminate the contract.” The system cheerfully gave Li Yuebai a way out.

A dialogue box popped up in front of Li Yuebai.

Thirty seconds had already begun counting down.

The dialogue box read: “Hello, host Li Yuebai, do you wish to terminate your alliance contract with Ye Qing?

Two options below: Yes and No.”

“If you choose Yes, your contract with Ye Qing will be terminated, and his death will not have any impact on you.” The system enthusiastically explained: “As compensation, the system will assign you a more powerful assistant to continue your mission in this world…”

Twenty seconds.

Li Yuebai closed his eyes, feeling his mind go blank, then black again, with endless starlight bursting from the darkness.

The person lying on the rooftop watching the stars was now dead, waiting to be abandoned.

A familiar feeling surged into his heart, not only endless sorrow but also anger.

The countdown numbers decreased little by little, 8, 7, 6, 5…

“Host, please choose quickly, time is almost up.” The system considerately reminded him.

3, 2…

“Heh.”

Li Yuebai made his choice at the last second.

He pressed the [No] button with almost all his might.

It was an impulsive choice, perfectly suited to his current anger.

Li Yuebai had always been a very good-tempered person, but the better-tempered a person was, the more terrifying they could be when they got angry. He just had a low bottom line, not no bottom line. When his bottom line was crossed, he would make a radical choice that was different from his usual conservative strategy.

Commonly known as losing his temper.

“Respected host, you have chosen No. Your alliance with Ye Qing will continue. According to the rules, if one party in the alliance dies, the other party…” the system began to ramble on.

“Shut up.” Li Yuebai stopped the system’s rambling: “What if my allied teammate… doesn’t die?”

“Respected host, as long as both allies are alive, the mission can of course continue to be completed according to the original trajectory…” the system said helplessly.

“That’s fine.” Li Yuebai nodded: “Get lost.”

He said “get lost” very softly, but it had an undeniable authority.

The system obediently disappeared.

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