《When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)》


 Guide To The Nightmare Cycle!

    <h4>Chapter -1: Guide To The Nightmare Cycle!</h4>


    First thing first, let me introduce you to this genre.


    Q: What is Unlimited Flow?


    ? A genre featuring horror, challenge, and survival games. A character is summoned into unique spaces separate from the real world and has toplete tasks, generally stuff like puzzles, survival or horror games. The final purpose is to survive. Usually involving instances and special abilities, a system is optional. (This is taken from Google, credit to Yuu)


    Q: Do you have examples of this genre?


    ? Yes! Actually, I have been a fan of unlimited flow for years and I''ve run out of books to read tbh, that''s why I resort to writing it myself QAQ If you''re interested in this genre, I have a few great rmendations for you to read, and you can ess them in novelupdates for FREE


    ps: they are all BLs ;)


    Some examples of unlimited flow I''ve read and love:


    ?Kaleidoscope of Death


    ?Supernatural Movie Actor App


    ?The Earth Is Online


    ?Thriller Trainee


    ?Surprise! The Supposed Talent Show Was Actually¨C?!


    ?The Days I Clear Escape Games Pretending to be an NPC


    Do tell me in thement section if you''d like more rmendations. If you prefer watching the series, then the examples of this genre will be ''Squid Game'' and ''Alice in Bordend''.


    Next, let me introduce you to the world of this book.


    Disimer: this Aux chapter serves as an insight to worldbuilding. It will gradually be revealed along the story, so warning for spoiler alert!


    Story mainly takes ce in fictional countries in China.


    ? Nightmare Cycle


    The Nightmare Cycle descended upon the world a few decades ago and the criteria in which it chose people remains unknown to date. So far, ording to the data in the Nightmare Forum, the range of age between yers is 8 - 75. The chosen people will receive an invitation in the form of a bus ticket.


    ? Bus Ticket


    It is a mysterious invitation to the Nightmare Cycle. On the ticket, the date, time and location you have to board the bus will be disyed. And if you fail to get into the bus when the timees, you will suffer from a horrible and excruciating death. In the forum, yers tend to call it ''death notice''.


    The time interval to which they receive the tickets will vary with the rise of their ranks. For example, first-timers will receive their bus ticket three days prior to their first Cycle, and for the second Cycle, they will receive it one week prior. Hearsay Legendary yers receive their ticket one or two years in advance, giving them ample time to prepare for the ordeal they have to face.


    One more thing, yers must bring the ticket with them when they board the bus otherwise the door won''t be opened to them.


    ? The Chosen People


    They will be referred to as yers from here on. yers who have hopped on the bus will be transported to their first Cycle. There, they have toplete a series of tasks issued by the NPC and obtain a return ticket in order to break away from the Cycle, while trying to survive until the end. Once yers managed to aplish this feat, they would be rewarded with either skill cards, props, or experience points.


    Until now, nobody knows how many Cycles yers have to go through to put a stop to this nightmare.


    There are five rank distinction between yers:


    ?Newbie


    ?Intermediate


    ?Veteran


    ?Elite


    ?Legendary


    First time yers will be called Newbie. Once they survive through the first Cycle, then they will be Intermediate yers. On their third Cycle, Intermediate yers will receive more difficult, specially tailored tasks from the NPC as a test to rise in rank. If they fail, then only death awaits them, but if they seed, then they will start to get physical enhancement and be upgraded into Veteran yers. Simrly, Veteran yers will be tested during their sixth Cycle to be upgraded into Elite yers.


    However, in order for Elite yers to advance into Legendary yers, they will have to challenge the Nightmare themselves andplete a set of harrowing, inconceivable tasks that are more dangerous than anything they have gone through before. But in exchange, they will receive extraordinary rewards ¨C rumors say that they have touched upon the realm of demigods.


    So far, there are only three Legendary yers in China.


    ? Skill Card


    The most important reward yers can get frompleting tasks or breaking away from the Cycle. The rate in which skill card is dropped depends on luck, affinity and whether the Nightmare acknowledges you as its challenger. Once a yer receives a skill card, it will be automatically bound to them.


    But be careful, it can be robbed when the yer is killed by another yer, so you may not want to let others know what kind of skill cards you have in your possession.


    There is no limit to the type of skills the Nightmare can bestow you, only those you haven''t imagined yet. Here are a few examples:


    ?Healing


    ?Divination


    ?Invisibility


    ?Illusion


    ?Maniption


    ?Shape-shifting


    ?Summoning


    ?Mind Control


    ?Others


    These types of skill can be further divided into a more specific purpose, for example for Maniption, it can be Blood Maniption, Gravity Maniption etc. Typically, yers will receive a skill card after they be an Intermediate yer.


    Skill cards are also divided into several levels that correspond to deck cards, namely Level 2 being the weakest, Level 3, Level 4, Level 5... Level Jack, Level Queen, Level King, and Level Ace being the strongest. There are rumors that Joker skill cards have started to appear in the Nightmare Cycle, but until now no one hase out to attest to it yet and it is still unknown whether it will rece Ace as the strongest card.


    The higher the level of a skill card is, the more powerful they are and the cooldown time for their usage will also be shortened.


    ? Properties (props)


    Object or item that yers can use to progress through the Cycle, including but not limited to weapons, magical tools, food or shelter materials. Different from skill cards, props will not be automatically bound to yers and hence, it could be given or traded at will.


    yers can obtain props as a reward for taskspletion or after sessfully breaking away from the Cycle. Props can be sold in the Nightmare Forum for experience points.


    There are a few rank distinction for Props based on its quality and rarity:


    ?Common


    ?Valuable


    ?Unique


    ?Epic


    ?Divine


    ? Experience points


    Another reward yers will obtain in the Nightmare Cycle. This will be a currency used in Nightmare Forum. Aside from purchasing props, points can also be used to upgrade skill cards. For example, once you gather enough points, you can upgrade your Level 2 skill card into Level 3. Of course, the higher the level, the more points you will need.


    Points can also be exchanged into real money. 1 point = 500 RMB or around $72


    ? Nightmare App


    An app that will automatically appear in the yer''s phone once they survive through the first Cycle and be an Intermediate yer. The app can''t be erased. It is used by yers to navigate through the Nightmare Cycle and connect with other yers.


    In the Nightmare Forum, you can find your own data profile, browse the forum where yers would usually discuss their Cycles, trade props, choose your next Cycle (only Veteran yers and above will be able to ess it), search for vacancy in organizations, and also see the rank of yers in the region.


    The ranking is sorted by the Nightmare itself based on the umted experience points, number of Cyclespleted, quality of props owned and level of skill cards. Only the top 100 yers are shown in the app.


    ? Organization


    The higher the level of Cycles, the more yers it will need. Typically, low level Cycles will only consist of 4-7 yers at most, with a mix of Newbies and Intermediates, and if you''re lucky then a Veteran will be pulled in to guide you (but such a case seldom happens because low level Cycles yield little experience points so Veterans will be unwilling to waste their time there).


    On the other hand, high level Cycles will often have more than 50 people, none are below Veteran.


    When entering a high level Cycle, yers prefer to form an organization and challenge the Cycle together using a special prop. This will reduce the risk of being calcted and schemed against by others.

 Chapter 1: Human Lamb Skewer

    <h4>Chapter 1: Human Lamb Skewer</h4>


    Cycle 1: Shishen Apartment


    ***


    It all started with a bright yellow kindergarten bus with the bloody poster ''Shishen Apartment'' written on it.


    Jin Jiuchi paused whilst holding the grilled skewer with one hand. He could not help but feel amused. What was this? Had he left the normal world for so long that apartments had started to amodate buses for its tenants nowadays? Moreover, what was up with the passengers sitting inside?


    He stood in the middle of the deste road and counted. One... two... three...


    There were five passengers inside, three men and two women, their age varied from 20-50. Instead of a delightful expression of finally being able to go home, each of them had a grave look on their faces. Due to the white light shining from above, their skin looked especially ghastly, it reminded him of a corpse whose blood was drained to thest drop. The thin middle aged man sitting near the window was trembling so hard that Jin Jiuchi could see his teeth chattering from where he was standing.


    It was... perfect! Just like the apartment name[1]!


    Jin Jiuchi narrowed his eyes, curiosity piqued. Well, it''s not like he had anything to do after going home. Might as well find something fun to amuse him with.


    Swinging the stic bag in his hand, Jin Jiuchi bit down on themb skewer and made his way to the bright yellow bus. The people inside did not seem to notice his approach, too caught up in their own thoughts.


    Jin Jiuchi''s attention was soon drawn to the poster on the bus'' body. "Hmm?" He raised a brow when he saw that the crimson liquid on the poster was still half-dried.


    Illustrated in the poster was a six-story old apartment building ¡ª even older than Jin Jiuchi himself, he surmised ¡ª and six people were standing on its entrance with a bright smile on their faces. However, due to the red ink trailing down from the words ''Shishen Apartment'' above, it made their smiles look distorted and malicious.


    Curious, Jin Jiuchi leaned in and sniffed.


    ¡ªWow, it was real blood.


    He stared at the poster, then at the passengers sitting inside. Grinning, Jin Jiuchi finally moved to the door. Even though there was no driver, the door automatically slid open when Jin Jiuchi came close with a faint hiss. Chilly wind rushed to his face, so frigid that the warmth from his skewer cooled down in an instant.


    It stood to reason that even in the height of summer, an ordinary bus'' air-con should not be this cold. Not to mention that it was autumn now. However, Jin Jiuchi did not think too much of it. He only sped up his eating before his skewer could be icicle.


    As soon as he stepped foot inside, the five people snapped their heads up, alert and vignt. They did not let their guard down even as Jin Jiuchi climbed in. The man sitting in the sixth row, whose muscles almost bulged out of his shirt, even brandished a sharp dagger as though preparing to attack.


    Interesting. They were so interesting...


    Jin Jiuchi made eye contact with the dagger wielder and gave him a wide grin, showing a pair of canine teeth. He thought he looked friendly enough but the man actually shivered. With a flip of his hand, the dagger on the man''s grip disappeared and he slumped on his seat, forehead dripping with sweat. He did not lift his head anymore.


    Jin Jiuchi leaned against the driver''s seat and observed the five passengers with undisguised curiosity.


    The atmosphere inside the bus was so tense that it was like they were heading to the Underworld. And it was under such circumstances that Jin Jiuchi continued to devour hismb skewers to his heart''s content. The noisy sounds of him chewing and the alluring aroma of grilled skewers spread across the air, causing the passengers'' faces to turn weird.


    It was the young girl in the third row seat who braced herself to speak to him, "Excuse me... b¨Cbrother. You''d better take a seat ording to the ticket before the officeres in." She had a delicate oval face, huge nervous eyes and a cyan blue hair clip to pin her bangs to the side. She looked like a high school student judging from her youthful features.


    "Oh?" Jin Jiuchi tilted his head, his messy medium-length curly hair draped over his shoulder. "Or else?"


    The young girl fidgeted under his stare. Her fairplexion became even paler. "Y¨CYou''re a newbie?"


    "Hmph!" The bespectacled woman d in a business suit harrumphed coldly. She sat in the fourth row behind the young girl, looking like an executive in one nce. Even her tone carried authority and unveiled arrogance, indicating that she was used to giving orders to her subordinates. "Just leave him alone. Ignorant newbies will die sooner orter."


    "''Ignorant newbies will die sooner orter''?" Jin Jiuchi repeated her words as his grin became even wider. His blood started to boil with excitement. It had been so, so long since he had felt something like this. Goodness... it had been the perfect choice to get into this bus. He could feel that something thrilling was waiting for him ahead!


    Perhaps sensing that the atmosphere was on the verge of freezing, a young man who was sitting on the back called out with a bright tone, "Hey, hey, don''t argue. We are going to be teammates in the next six days, remember? It''s not good to have conflict before we even start!" Because he was sitting so far away, Jin Jiuchi had to squint his eyes to look at him. The young man had handsome features. His eyes were naturally curved and friendly, giving people a very pleasant impression. He waved at Jin Jiuchi with an amicable smile. "Yo, my good brother there. Is it your first time here? Don''t be scared. You have a ticket, don''t you? Go and take a seat first. Oh, by the way, my name is Tang Ye and this is my second time."


    Thanks to Tang Ye, the tense atmosphere rxed ever so slightly. The young girl followed up with a nervous smile. "Hello everyone, my name is Xinxin. This is my second time too."


    Then Xinxin nced at the woman behind her tentatively. The woman in suit crossed her arms and snorted, "Just call me Sister Hong. Third time."


    The middle aged man on the seventh row squeezed out through gritted teeth. His voice was shaky and small, "Old Guan. T¨CThis is my f¨Cfirst time." Among the people here, he was the one who looked the most unstable. Even now, he was still sweating nonstop and his hair was already sticking to his forehead wetly.


    Why did he look so afraid? Jin Jiuchi wondered, slightly amused.


    Finally, the man who had brandished the dagger added in a gruff voice, "Surname Zhi. Third time."


    "Woah, so Sister Hong and Brother Zhi are going to advance soon?!" Tang Ye eximed in pleasant surprise. "I''ve been dying to know how difficult the test will be. Please take care of me!"


    Jin Jiuchi listened with great interest. Tang Ye did not hesitate to reveal his full name. However, Xinxin, Sister Hong, Old Guan, and the man surnamed Zhi clearly did not want people to know their name. Why was it? Moreover, first time, second time, third time... of what? Just as Jin Jiuchi was lost in thought, he suddenly realized that everyone''s eyes were fixed on him. Oh, it seemed like they were waiting for his response.


    Hmm... what should he call himself?


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes swept across the skewer in his hand and a brilliant idea popped up in his head. He grinned brightly, "My surname is Yang, name Rouchuan[2]."


    Everyone: ...


    Could you even think of a better alias?!


    Tang Ye coughed to disguise hisugh. "Then... I will call you Brother Yang."


    Now that everyone had introduced themselves, the freezing atmosphere slightly thawed. Xinxin and Tang Ye could not help but urge him to take a seat again. However, Jin Jiuchi remained where he was standing and asked innocently, "Ticket?"


    In an instant, everyone froze. Sister Hong snapped to him in disbelief. Her voice was almost shrill when she demanded, "You don''t have a ticket?!"


    Jin Jiuchi scratched his nose awkwardly. He really did not have a ticket. Was it toote to go down and purchase one if he wanted to follow them? However, he had not replied yet when the door beside him suddenly opened once again.


    This time, two more people came in.


    On the front was a little child around eight or nine years old. They[3] looked so exquisite like a little jade doll. Their long hair was tied in a high ponytail, each silver strand was akin to a ray of moonlight. The child lifted their head and revealed a pair of pale purple eyes. Those orbs seemed ethereal, so mystifying and otherworldly. s, the temperature in those eyes were so cold and piercing as though one gaze was enough to freeze someone''s blood.


    Unfortunately, it did not deter a certain someone from admiring. Jin Jiuchi had never seen such striking colors in one person before and hence, he could not help but stare a little more, mesmerized.


    How beautiful...


    This child was just like a snow elf. See, even someone like him could still appreciate beauty!


    s, the child regarded him as air and took a seat on the first row adjacent to the driver seat.


    Behind the child was a tall, muscr man d in blue uniform and ck polished hat. He must be the ''officer'' everyone was talking about. His skin was grayish blue and if Jin Jiuchi had to be honest, he looked more like a corpse than a real corpse. His eyeballs were bulging out as though they were going to burst out of their sockets, and his pupils abnormally thin that they were almost unseen. When he spoke, his voice did note from his mouth but instead, somewhere around the hollow of his throat, sounding scratchy and very unpleasant.


    "Wee, everyone. Thank you for boarding the bus in time." Even though he said that, Jin Jiuchi could sense a faint disappointment from his tone. Huh? Was he disappointed that everyone was here? What would happen if someone waste?


    The officer continued, "We will be heading to Shishen Apartment now. I can see that all six passengers have¡ª" The officer suddenly paused and blinked in confusion.


    Bus officer: ??


    No matter how many times he counted, the number of people on the bus was seven! But he was only supposed to bring six people in. Where did the other onee from?!


    Everyone''s eyes simultaneouslynded on Jin Jiuchi who was finishing hisst skewer. Under the passengers'' terrified look, he licked his oily lips and grinned roguishly, "Well, I don''t have a ticket. Can I still follow along with you guys?"


    .


    .


    [1] Shishen literally means corpse, so the ce they''re heading to is called ''Corpse Apartment''. Jin Jiuchi was saying how their ghastlyplexion fit perfectly with the name of the apartment.


    [2] Yang Rou Chuan:mb skewer


    [3] Using ''they'' because Jin Jiuchi is still unclear about the child''s gender. As a child, our ML looks androgynous. He looks like a cute barbie doll hehe. Ofc it''s not his real form. Don''t worry, there is no pedophilia here. Pronoun will change ordingly after Jin Jiuchi found out about ML''s gender :)

 Chapter 2: Welcome

    <h4>Chapter 2: Wee</h4>


    "Is... Is he a ghost? A ghost from that cursed apartment?!"


    "Ha! A ghost? If he''s a ghost, then the first person he will haunt is you!"


    "Actually... I have heard of something like this before. A ghost from the Cycle mixes in with the yers and in the end, all of the yers are almost wiped out! If not for a Veteran yer who got a rare prop which could directly bring him out of the game, he will definitely perish too...!"


    "Cough, guys, calm down. He doesn''t look dangerous at all..."


    "I¨CI don''t want to die! Say, should we... should we just throw him down from the bus?!"


    "Are you crazy?! The bus has started running. The doors and windows are all locked and we can''t escape!"


    "Pfft... Hahahaha!" Hearing the flustered and hushed conversation behind him, Jin Jiuchi could not help but burst out inughter. A ghost from Shishen Apartment? These people''s imaginations sure were wild! He turned to the person beside him and asked cheerfully, "How about you, kid? Do you think I am a ghost too?"


    Earlier, after the matter of Jin Jiuchi not having a ticket was exposed, a great uproar descended inside the bus. The corpse officer was speechless and the passengers were terrified. That left this jade doll alone who merely stared at him with nary an expression on their face. However, Jin Jiuchi''s senses were keen enough to know that this child was scrutinizing him closely.


    (For some inexplicable reason, Jin Jiuchi felt that this child was even more capable than others. Let''s say that it was... an innate instinct.)


    s, no matter how great the uproar was, it still did not change the fact that Jin Jiuchi had no ticket. He was the seventh person who was not supposed to be on the bus.


    However, before the officer could throw him out, the bus ¡ª still with its driver missing ¡ª suddenly started to go down the main road.


    Through the earlier conversation, Jin Jiuchi discovered that nobody could go down anymore once the bus started moving. That also applied to the corpse officer, who had been staring at Jin Jiuchi with those bulging eyes of his. If it was any other person, they would''ve already had a mental breakdown from being the recipient of that ghostly, terrifying stare. But who was Jin Jiuchi? The corpse officer could stare all day for all he cared.


    He propped his chin on his palm and studied the jade doll closely with great interest.


    "Kid, why are you ignoring me?" Jin Jiuchi asked curiously. "Where are your parents? Didn''t you know that running around at night without supervision will get you punished? Are you a bad kiddo?"


    Veins throbbed on the beautiful jade doll''s forehead, prompting another gleefulughter from Jin Jiuchi. The jade doll took a deep breath and said in a smooth and milky voice, "There are so many seats in the bus. Why are you sitting next to me?"


    Jin Jiuchi answered in a matter-of-fact tone. "Of course, it''s because you''re the most beautiful one."


    Then disregarding the re he received, Jin Jiuchi continued his barrage of questions, "Say kid... are you kidnapped? Do you need help? Is this some kind of cult which brings people to dubious ces? Are you a cult member? Kid? Kid, why don''t you answer me? Hey..."


    "Stop. Calling. Me. A. Kid." The child answered through gritted teeth.


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi raised a brow with a teasing smile on the corner of his lips. The indication behind that gesture was clear: if you''re not a kid, then what are you, a ghost?


    Livid, the beautiful jade doll turned their head toward the window with a harrumph, resolutely treating Jin Jiuchi like air. Out of sight, out of mind.


    Their angry look was so adorable that Jin Jiuchi could not help butugh again. How could this jade doll be so fun to tease? As if he did not notice the child''s obvious anger, he continued asking, "I''m just wondering... why are they treating me like a ghost? Clearly, the one who looks more like a ghost here is you. One more thing, you clearly look so eye-catching so why are they acting like they can''t see you? No, to be exact, it''s like... they don''t notice you at all."


    Jin Jiuchi''s doubt was reasonable. He had no idea about other people, but the jade doll''s striking appearance had captured his attention at first sight before he noticed the corpse officer.


    Even if the others were wary of the officer and waited until he finished speaking first, it was still weird how they did not address the child at all. Not to mention that the appearance of an ethereal albino child in a ghostly bus in the middle of the night warranted enough attention, they did not even try to rescue the child from him ¨C this ''seventh passenger who was not supposed to exist'' aka the infamous ghost.


    It was just like... everyone had overlooked the child''s presence.


    Take the one sitting on the third row, Xinxin, for example. From his position, Xinxin could clearly see the both of them in one nce. However, she merely snuck a few nces at Jin Jiuchi fearfully whilst whispering something to Sister Hong. Not even once had she turned to look at the jade doll beside him.


    Jin Jiuchi rubbed his chin with an amused look. He had never torn his gaze away from the jade doll and hence, he perceived the sh of shock from their micro-expression right away. The child, who was resolutely ignoring him five seconds ago, turned to him with a strange expression on their face.


    They asked tentatively, "In your eyes... what do I look like?"


    "Hmm...?" A confused noise escaped Jin Jiuchi''s throat. What kind of question is that? He shoved his face closer to the jade doll, catching the other off guard, until he could clearly see his reflection on those pale purple eyes. Jin Jiuchi pointed at his own eyes, "Kid, look here. Can you see your face here?" Then he pointed at the window. "How about there?"


    "Or..." Jin Jiuchi narrowed his eyes, mirthful. "...are you really a ghost?"


    The jade doll was startled, then cleared their throat and said with a solemn tone, "My eyesight is not good. That''s why I ask you that question."


    Jin Jiuchi threw his head back andughed out loud. Seeing such a serious expression on the jade doll''s adorable face amused him to no end.


    His demeanor of not taking the other seriously seemed to be the final nail that struck the coffin. This time, the jade doll resolutely ignored him with a frosty expression. No matter how Jin Jiuchi tried to provoke the other, they did not react anymore. But Jin Jiuchi was someone who did not know how to stop. He kept talking and talking, while the other passengers could only listen with a numb expression on their faces.


    Wrapped in this strange atmosphere, the bus entered a dark tunnel.


    Logically speaking, even if the bus entered a tunnel where there was no light present, the fluorescent light above their head should have still offered a weak ray to dispel the dark. At least, they could still see each other inside the bus.


    But no, this was not the case this time.


    The intense darkness engulfed the entire bus like a ferocious monster, so thick that Jin Jiuchi could not see his hand even if he stretched it in front of his face. From behind, there was a muffled shriek ¡ª Old Guan, he noted withck of interest ¡ª but the other passengers clearly had anticipated this before. There was no panic reaction or mindless screaming, only sharp intake of breaths and heart palpitations.


    The darkness did not linger for long. Five secondster, it receded and the scene in front of them changed in a blink of an eye.


    The bus was clearly running in the middle of the city just a moment ago, yet right now, in front of them was a narrow bumpy street.


    Gone was the city hubbub and streetmps. Instead, scorched ck trees lined up along the pathway, each branch so thin and dry it was like they would crumble with the slightest touch. ck ravens pped their wings andnded on the electricity lines overhead, their crimson beady eyes staring fixedly at the yellow bus which seemed to appear out of nowhere.


    The surroundings were dominated by ashy gray and ck. As such, their yellow kindergarten bus seemed even more conspicuous, it was almostical. The bus slowed down until it gradually stopped in front of the only building around the vicinity.


    Due to the thick white mist shrouding the end of the streets, the lone apartment looked especially eerie and deste, as if it was the only building left in the world.


    In one nce, Jin Jiuchi could recognize it immediately. It was the Shishen Apartment, the old building like the one illustrated on their bus poster.


    It was not until the building stood in front of them that the degree of creepiness was magnified tenfold. Thick vines crept over the mottled and rough walls. Dusty windows lined up along the six-story building, revealing nothing but utter darkness inside.


    And if Jin Jiuchi''s eyesight did not fail him, then he seemed to have seen... a pale shriveled face peeking out through a window on the fourth floor. It shed by so fast that before he could examine it closer, it had vanished without a trace.


    How to say it... It was neither man nor woman, more like dry tree bark, marred with deep lines like all the liquid in their body had been sucked away. Their eyes upied almost two thirds of their face, bulging like they had seen something horrifying.


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes squinted in smiles. How interesting...


    In front of them, the corpse officer stood up and his ck lips stretched into a wide smile that almost reached his ears. But the strange thing was, the muscles around his eyes did not move a bit, giving off an air of stillness and dread. Xinxin gave off a terrified yelp when she saw this.


    The corpse officer said with a hint of excitement in his hoarse voice,


    "Everyone, wee to the Shishen Apartment. I wish you a pleasant stay~"

 Chapter 3: Say ’Please’?

    <h4>Chapter 3: Say ''Please''?</h4>


    No matter from which angle one scrutinized that sentence, it sounded ominous and a whole lot disturbing. Wishing them a pleasant stay in the Corpse Apartment? It''s more like he was cursing for them to die sooner instead!


    The passengers gulped and showed a various degree of nervousness and trepidation. Only Jin Jiuchi could stillugh and chirped happily, looking very much like a boy on his first field trip. "Thank you, I sure will!"


    The corpse officer stared at him for one long moment as if he was engraving Jin Jiuchi''s appearance to mind, to which Jin Jiuchi returned with an innocent look. What was the problem with this man? Why did he look kinda... constipated? Was it because he did not have a ticket and that''s why the officer was sulking?


    s, before Jin Jiuchi could confront him for hisck of hospitality, the door to the bus opened by itself with a hiss and the corpse officer finally averted his gaze to gesture politely, "Please be careful with your step."


    Surnamed Zhi was the first one to descend the bus, his gait was tense and wary as if he was sending himself to a deadly battlefield. Well, in a sense, all of them behaved so... except for the child beside him.


    Jin Jiuchi discreetly snuck a nce at the jade doll and saw that they were peering out of the window to observe the apartment in front of them. His pale purple eyes were cid andposed, just like the surface of a calmke devoid of any ripples.


    What made the child so different from others? Goodness, Jin Jiuchi was getting so curious!


    Next, Sister Hong stood up decisively and straightened her suit, looking every inch like a career woman who was on her way to a board meeting. Soon, she was followed by Xinxin who decided that she was the perfect person totch onto ¨C or perhaps it was because they were the only women in the group.


    Tang Ye walked forward and stopped at Old Guan''s aisle. The middle-aged man was huddling in his seat while trembling violently. He did not look like he was going to step down anytime soon. "Old Guan, aren''t you getting off?" he asked worriedly.


    "N¨CNo!" Old Guan flinched as if someone had struck him a blow. "I''m not going! I... I''m not going to enter that... that cursed ce!"


    The corpse officer nced at the clock in front of the bus and stated with a hint of annoyance in his voice, "Five minutes left."


    Hearing this, Tang Ye sucked in cold air. He nced at Old Guan in slight hesitation as if considering whether he should physically drag the man off the bus. But then he finally shook his head and proceeded to join the three people outside.


    Left behind, Old Guan trembled even harder. He buried his face into the crook of his arm and whimpered. Jin Jiuchi had difficulty listening to what he was mumbling under his breath, but it sounded simr to ''I don''t want to die'' being repeated again and again like a mantra.


    Why was he so afraid? What was there to be afraid of? Jin Jiuchi really could not figure it out. Amused, he nudged the child beside him with his elbow. "How about you, kid? Aren''t you getting off?"


    Without saying a word, the beautiful jade doll stood up. s, because Jin Jiuchi was having the aisle seat, the child could not walk out unless he removed his legs out of the way. But instead of showing any sign of love and courtesy toward minors, Jin Jiuchi crossed his mile-long legs and raised a provoking brow. His lips curled into a smirk as he asked, "Now, shouldn''t you say ''please''~?"


    The jade doll leveled him with an unimpressed stare, his purple eyes flickering like sparkling gems bathed in moonlight. Beautiful but also... oozing with killing intent. Jin Jiuchi shuddered when he sensed it. Not out of fear, of course!


    The grin on his face widened in excitement. He almost vibrated in his seat while he waited for the other''s reaction.


    "Three minutes," the corpse officer announced.


    With a harrumph, the jade doll grabbed onto the partition screen in front and smoothly flipped their body through it, not before pping Jin Jiuchi on the face with their swishing ponytail. In a blink of an eye, they descended the short flight of steps and joined the people outside.


    Stunned, Jin Jiuchi rubbed his itchy face and barked out augh. He, too, stood up and got down from the bus. He saw that the jade doll chose to keep a distance from the other people, opting to stand by the side instead. Jin Jiuchi really couldn''t stop wondering, just how could nobody notice this child?! Instead, everyone''s gaze snapped to him, this simple and ordinary man, once he stepped down.


    Seeing a mixture ofplicated emotions in the others'' eyes, Jin Jiuchi grinned and yfully gave a bow, "Please take care of me, everyone~"


    In response, Xinxin, Sister Hong and Surnamed Zhi abruptly took a step back as if avoiding the source of a gue, whereas Tang Ye scratched his nose andughed awkwardly, "Haha, Brother Yang is too modest..."


    Kinda bored, Jin Jiuchi then returned his gaze to the yellow kindergarten bus.


    Now, there was only Old Guan left.


    "Two minutes."


    "One minute."


    "Thirty seconds."


    Each time the corpse officer counted down the time, the middle aged man would whimper even harder. From where Jin Jiuchi was standing, he could see that the man already started to cry. His body was wrecked in sobs, and he looked as if he was on the verge of breaking down.


    "Twenty seconds... Neen seconds..." This time, the officer suddenly moved. He took one step after another toward Old Guan, all the while counting down the time. "Fifteen seconds... Fourteen seconds..." He arrived beside Old Guan and stopped.


    For two full seconds, there was utter silence.


    Jin Jiuchi heard a few sharp intake of breaths beside him while his gaze was trained on the corpse officer whose face began to look distorted. It was as if something was writhing under his dead skin, a ripple that looked both bizarre and unnatural. The man towered over the quivering Old Guan, "You''re not getting off?" His voice was scratchy and squeaky like an old radio that barely held on by a wire.


    But then, it suddenly grew sharp and shrill as the officer opened his mouth wide,


    "YOU''RE NOT GETTING OFF?!!" His lips stretched wider and wider until they reached below his ears and the upper half of his head began to tilt back, his ck hat slipping off his head to the ground, as the ckhole of his mouth spread bigger and bigger. "YOU''RENOTGETTINGOFFYOU''RENOTGETTINGOFF¡ª"


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes rounded in surprise. He could see a small pale hand reaching out from the void deep inside the officer''s mawing mouth. It was like a child''s hand, small and dainty, yet on its palm was a... mouth with sharp jagged teeth, moving along with the officer''s words ¨C wait, that''s not right. He realized that this was the source of the voice all along.


    And that bizarre hand was currently reaching out toward the petrified Old Guan.


    "Damn...!" Tang Ye cursed out loud. He lunged into the front of the bus gate and hollered, "RUN!!"

 Chapter 4: Woo-hoo!!

    <h4>Chapter 4: Woo-hoo!!</h4>


    As though Tang Ye''s loud voice had shattered the spell in the air, Old Guan snapped back to his senses and let out a hysterical scream. "Aaahh¡ª!!" He squeezed his eyes shut, ducked his head and forcefully shoved the corpse officer away in lieu of running to the door!


    Tang Ye readily caught the middle aged man''s hand and both of them tumbled down from the steps, still reeling from the shock and terror.


    Almost in an instant, the door slid close with a faint hiss behind them, trapping the bus officer inside.


    Wait, could he still be considered a bus officer? Jin Jiuchi tilted his head and observed that bizarre creature curiously.


    It seemed to have been caught off guard, not expecting that Old Guan would run out in the nick of time. s, the bus door was already tightly shut and it had no way to get off. Enraged, it rushed to the nearest window and banged his fist on the ss. The little mouth on the ghastly hand kept moving again and again, screaming frantically.


    Jin Jiuchi slowly mouthed along, "Why would you run? Come here... you don''t want to get off, do you..." he let out a mirthful chortle and turned to ask the jade doll. "Hey, why is it so obsessed with Old Guan?" It''s not like he looks particrly delicious, was what Jin Jiuchi did not say.


    He had expected to be ignored just like the entire way here. But again, the ethereal jade doll surprised him by answering with a solemn milky voice, "It''s a blood parasite. Its host''s body is already rotting and it can''t wait to obtain a new vessel. A living one, at best."


    "Huh..." Jin Jiuchi rubbed his chin in thought, slightly amused. "The choice for bus officer sure is... unique." He had never heard of ''blood parasite'' before, but he reckoned that it was because he had spent too many years in that damned asylum, leaving many nk holes in hismon knowledge.


    "You are not afraid?" The jade doll asked weirdly.


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head in confusion. "Should I? I mean, it looks kinda gross¡ª oh!" Realization finally dawned on Jin Jiuchi and he teased the jade doll with a grin. "Don''t tell me... are you afraid, kid? You are, aren''t you? That''s why you¡ª" His words were cut off by a loud and breathless shriek.


    "W¨CW¨CWhat the hell is that?!!" Old Guan scrambled away from the bus, pupils wild in terror. He was trembling so badly like a sieve and in the next second, fat droplets of tears started running down his face. "I¨CIt wants to kill me! You guys saw it, didn''t you? It almost killed me!!" His voice cracked in the end, veins bursting out of his neck from how hard he was screaming.


    "Duh," Sister Hong rolled her eyes with a disdainful look. "It''s because you are slow in getting off the bus. This is why idiot newbies are the worst."


    Apparently, her words did nothing to assuage Old Guan''s fear at all. It became worse, instead. "You... You are all in this together, aren''t you?" He swept his bloodshot eyes over everyone''s present... except the jade doll, beforending on Jin Jiuchi atst. As a good andw-abiding citizen, Jin Jiuchi was taught to offer a smile every time he met someone''s eyes, and thus he did.


    Old Guan became hysterical. He pointed at Jin Jiuchi''s nose. Rude. Pointing at people''s nose was extremely rude, or so he had been taught.


    "You...! You are a ghost and that thing... that monster inside the bus... you are all in this together!" He hollered on top of his lungs. "I don''t want to be here anymore! I want to get out of this ce¡ª!!"


    In a fit of madness, he took off running to the street ¨C away from the bus, the passengers and the apartment. His pace was surprisingly agile and fast. His thin figure was quickly swallowed by the surrounding fog as if it was a predator that was just waiting for a prey to fall right into its mouth.


    Jin Jiuchi narrowed his eyes and tried to see where Old Guan had run off to, but he could not see anything at all past the fog barrier. It was like Old Guan had vanished into thin air... just like that. Even the echo of his voice could not be heard anymore.


    Jin Jiuchi made a curious noise from his throat and asked the person closest to him ¨C who coincidentally turned out to be Tang Ye. "Where does this road lead to?"


    Tang Ye shook his head grimly. "Nowhere."


    Before Jin Jiuchi could ask what he meant by that, his ears suddenly picked up a familiar voice from behind. He swiveled his head around in astonishment, and there Old Guan was, sweaty and panting, still screaming on top of his lungs. "I want to get out of this¡ª" His eyes flew wide in horror once he saw the familiar scenery reappearing in front of him again. "No... nononono... this is not real! This can''t be real!!!" Squeezing his eyes shut, he picked up his pace and dashed past the apartment again, letting the hazy embrace of the fog wee him.


    Seeing Jin Jiuchi''s dumbfounded face, Tang Ye grimaced and told him, "It''s no use... there is no way out once you enter this ce. You will only return here again and again. After all, this is a Cycle..."


    Xinxin shivered with a pale face, presumably recalling some unpleasant memories.


    On the other hand, Sister Hong waspletely unmoved against Old Guan''s hysterics. She clicked her tongue impatiently, "Can we just leave the newbie behind and enter the apartment? It''s getting dark soon."


    Jin Jiuchi stared at the ce where Old Guan had disappeared into, his broad frame shaking ever so slightly.


    Assuming that Jin Jiuchi was starting to lose it out of fear, Tang Ye stepped forward in sympathy and reached out to pat his shoulder. "Brother Yang..."


    But he touched nothing but empty air.


    Because Jin Jiuchi had also taken off running toward Old Guan''s direction. Yes, he was starting to lose it... out of excitement, of course! His boomingughter echoed in the air, full of joy and delight. "Ha... hahaha! What is this ce?! This is amazinggg¡ª!!!"


    How could such a magical ce exist in this world? If he did not test it out by himself, then it would be his loss!


    Jin Jiuchi''s legs were long and his running speed was a few times faster than Old Guan, just like an overexcited beast that was finally let out of its cage. He let his body be engulfed by the fog, let the chilling coldness seep into his skin, let the wind whistle past his ears. He stretched his eyes open and filled his lungs with a mouthful of hazy fog.


    At that moment, he was truly free!


    He opened his arms wide and yelled on top of his lungs, "Woo-hoo...!!"


    Soon, he caught up with Old Guan amidst the thickening vapor. The middle aged man began to lose his stamina and his pace had slowed into a breathless jog. However, upon hearing Jin Jiuchi''s excited cry from behind, he screamed and forced his aching legs to move... faster! He had to run faster!! He had to run away from the ghost!!!


    "Get lost!!" Old Guan''s pupils dted sharply when he saw that Jin Jiuchi was approaching him at a rapid pace. His breath was stuck in his throat and his entire body was petrified. In that split second, he prepared himself for the worst...


    ...but then Jin Jiuchi ran past him like a mad horse, leaving a strong gust of wind and trail of dust in his wake.


    "Woo-hoo!!" His joyful cheers reverberated in the air, getting fainter and fainter.


    Old Guan almost tripped on his feet out of shock. "...H-Huh?"

 Chapter 5: Way To Survive

    <h4>Chapter 5: Way To Survive</h4>


    Meanwhile, back in Shishen Apartment.


    Tang Ye froze, still with his hand outstretched in midair. "Hmm?" He blinked once, twice, and abruptly snapped back to his senses. He looked around for Jin Jiuchi''s missing figure. "Wait... where is Brother Yang?!"


    Xinxin tremblingly pointed at the direction where Old Guan had gone with a weird look on her face. Even the ever silent man surnamed Zhi was stunned.


    Sister Hong quickly schooled her features and wiped the shock away. Jin Jiuchi had moved so quickly that she could not track his movement with her eyes alone. Her lips twisted in displeasure. "Don''t tell me we have two cowardly newbies..."


    s, not even one second after her words settled in the air, they heard a faint exuberant cry echoing in the far distance. "Woo-hoo...!!"


    Everyone: "..."


    No matter from which angle one inspected it, that did not sound like a cry of terror!


    What was up with that man?! Was... was he really a newbie? If he wasn''t, then there was no way he wouldn''t know about the infinity road, but if he was... why didn''t he show an ounce of fear like normal people would?!


    By any chance... was he really a ghost in disguise?!


    As the five people were still stupefied on the spot, Jin Jiuchi soon emerged from the opposite road. He had no idea how long he had been running. It could be five seconds or five minutes for all he cared. All he knew was that he really enjoyed the sensation of coldness that stuck to his overheated skin. He was so happy that he couldn''t resist another peal of deepughter from his throat.


    His eyes lit up once the fog receded to reveal the familiar old apartment again. So what Tang Ye said was true. This road really led to nowhere! Just now, he had clearly left the apartment behind him, but now it showed up again in front of his eyes.


    How... exciting!


    He skidded to a halt in front of the apartment, still grinning bright enough to light up the whole city. "I''m back!"


    "B¨CBrother Yang..." Tang Ye forced the question out of his mouth with much difficulty. "What are you doing..."


    Why did he look kinda constipated? Confused, Jin Jiuchi tilted his head and answered in a matter-of-fact tone. "Checking out the new environment, of course! You guys knew it already. Even Old Guan had done it twice. Wouldn''t it be totally unfair if I''m the only one kept in the dark?!" His argument sounded extremely valid and righteous, even giving off the impression of being wronged.


    But why did it sound like something was not quite right? Tang Ye scratched his hair but could not pinpoint what was exactly off about Jin Jiuchi''s sentence. In the end, he could only switch the topic. "Okay, let''s wait for Old Guan and enter the apartment. We should really get inside before it gets totally dark."


    "Otherwise...?" Jin Jiuchi prompted.


    Again, Tang Ye shot him a deep look and answered solemnly, "I assure you, Brother Yang. You don''t want to be left outside after nightfall."


    Jin Jiuchi licked his gum, feeling out the sharp canines along his teeth. The corner of his lips were curved into a careless smile. When Tang Ye put it like that, it made him want to... stay outside all the more... just to see what would happen...


    "Don''t even think about it," the jade doll suddenly spoke up as if they had clearly guessed the line of Jin Jiuchi''s thoughts. "I don''t know where youe from and what you do, but here, it''s totally different from the normal world. You can''t bring your logic here and expect that they will work. Foolishness, carelessness, rebellion, excessive curiosity... all of them will only result in death. And the only way to survive is to proceed with utmost caution and follow the rules set by the Nightmare."


    "Oh, what should I do?" Jin Jiuchi gasped and put on an extremely troubled look. "I''ve never been good at following rules. And most importantly... what is the normal world you''re talking about?" He asked with genuine curiosity.


    At first, he thought that the world had changed so much since thest time he saw it ¨C wait, when was this st time'' again? He could no longer remember ¨C but it seemed like... this world was abnormal either? Did he somehow get lost? It seemed like there were so many things he had to learn all over again...


    The jade doll''s exquisite face hardened, and their voice was steely as they shot him a cold re. "If you''re here just to y around, then let me give you a warning, newbie. I can make sure that you will not even know how you die."


    It took Jin Jiuchi a while to realize that the jade doll had misunderstood, thinking that Jin Jiuchi was teasing them again with his question. He couldn''t help but feel a bit aggrieved. He was really not joking this time!


    Moreover, have children be so mature nowadays? Talking about killing someone without even batting an eyelid... what a bad kiddo!


    Jin Jiuchi had just wanted to open his mouth and rebuke the child when he heard Tang Ye cry out, "Brother Zhi!"


    He raised his head and saw that the man surnamed Zhi had taken the lead to enter the apartment, following closely behind him were Sister Hong and Xinxin. It turned out, Old Guan had staggered out from the opposite road, looking utterly exhausted and worse to wear. His legs trembled once he caught sight of the apartment again, despair thick in his eyes.


    Tang Ye called out, "Hurry, Brother Yang, Old Guan!" As soon as he said it, he jogged to follow the three people in.


    Jin Jiuchi turned to the jade doll. Yet before he could even open his mouth, they briskly strode forward and left him behind. Geez, such a bad tempered kiddo...


    "You..." Old Guan stuttered out, his voice weak and shaky. "You''re going to... enter that ce...?"


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head and offered the man a toothy grin once their eyes met, earning him a full body shiver from the other. He singsong-ed, "A beautiful jade doll told me that I have to follow the rules if I want to survive. Well, now that I''m here, I may as well heed their words?" He shrugged, shoved his hands into the pocket and sauntered into the dark and creepy apartment, whistling a random tune.


    Old Guan was left bbergasted behind. J¨CJ¨CJade doll? Who... who the hell was he talking about? It couldn''t be a ghost friend of his, right?!


    Just in time, a cold breeze blew by, sending prickles of goosebumps across his sweaty skin. He gulped and looked around nervously. The more he looked at the dim surroundings, the more terrified he was. In the end, he scrambled toward the dark entrance of the apartment like his life depended on it,


    "W¨CWait for me...!"


    What all of them did not know was, after they entered the apartment, the faces of people on the bus'' poster illustration began to change. Six people ¨C five adults, one child.


    It was the yers'' faces... except for Jin Jiuchi.

 Chapter 6: Big Brother

    <h4>Chapter 6: Big Brother</h4>


    As soon as Jin Jiuchi took a step into the apartment, shivers ran down his spine and his scalp exploded in numbness. He sensed a cold and inhumane pair of eyes on him, so different than anything he had ever felt before, and it came from... above!


    At once, he snapped his gaze up, lips pulling back into a silent snarl. If there was something he hated more than an empty stomach, then it was being monitored against his will!


    The six-story apartment building featured an atrium with stained ss roof in the middle for better lighting. Corridors ran through the main structure with rooms on both sides of it. This must be the so-called tube shaped apartment Jin Jiuchi had only seen in newspapers before.


    In hindsight, with this type of building, he should be able to see the entirety of the apartment''s interior as well as catch a glimpse of the sky beyond the ss roof once he looked up.


    However, when Jin Jiuchi raised his head intending to catch the perpetrator red-handed, what he found were empty corridors with nary a person in sight. He quickly shifted his gaze to the ss roof in the middle where he had sensed the inhumane gaze from. Instead of the darkening gray sky, he saw a stretch of infinite darkness, so intense it was like a bottle of ink had toppled across pure white paper.


    ''Huh?'' Jin Jiuchi blinked in surprise.


    He could not find the source of the cryptic gaze... but it was ever present. Jin Jiuchi felt it with every fiber of his cell. Who could it be...


    "Wha¡ª" Old Guan had hastily run after Jin Jiuchi, only to find the man standing still like a statue in front of the door. He braked himself in time and subconsciously raised his head to follow Jin Jiuchi''s line of sight. "W¨CWhat are you looking at¡ª ah!!" As soon as his eyesnded on the dark roof, he let out a terrified shriek and quickly lowered his head again, his thin frame shaking like a leaf. Jin Jiuchi could even hear the rattle of his teeth from where he was standing.


    He finally retracted his gaze to cast a curious look at the middle aged man. Why was he so afraid? No, to be exact... what had he seen to make him react like this?


    s, before Jin Jiuchi could get his answer, clicking of high heels reverberated in the air, slow and steady. rmed, everyone immediately shifted their eyes to the direction of the sound ¨C the narrow staircase. All of them were spotted with a tense and nervous look on their faces, except for Jin Jiuchi... and the icy jade doll whose appearance stuck out like a sore thumb in the rundown building.


    The footsteps were getting closer and closer to them, and finally, a faint silhouette appeared from the darkness. It was a woman in her forties d in a long ck dress with her hair pulled up in a tight bun on the base of her neck.


    "Wee to Shishen Apartment," she addressed them and pulled up the corner of her stiff ¨C ck colored ¨C lips. There was nothing wrong with her appearance but somehow, everything about her screamed of vition. Perhaps it was her pallidplexion that contrasted greatly with her ck dress, or perhaps it was her eyes that were always nk as if she had difficulty focusing her pupils, or perhaps it was the aura of stillness that radiated from every inch of her body. Whatever it was, she looked like a¡ª


    ''Corpse,'' the word popped up in Jin Jiuchi''s mind.


    That''s right, she was akin to a puppet corpse controlled by strings. And that''s why her movements looked so weird and jarring.


    The corner of Jin Jiuchi''s lips curved into an intrigued smile. What was the deal with this ce? Really, he could not wait to explore and find out...


    She continued gently, "You are the six helpers I have hired for this week, aren''t you? I am thendy here, you can just call me Madam Liu. Come here and register yourself first."


    In the next second, Old Guan let out a surprised cry and looked around fearfully. "W¨CWhat was that...?!"


    "Damn!" Tang Ye cursed in a low voice. "I hate ghost marriages!"


    Beside him, Xinxin nodded wholeheartedly, tears pooling in the corner of her eyes, whereas Sister Hong and Surnamed Zhi abruptly went rigid.


    Once again, Jin Jiuchi was left to stew in his own confusion.


    "What?" He asked out loud. "What is it? What ghost marriage are you talking about?" Why did it seem like there was something he was not privy to?


    "Y¨CYou didn''t hear that?!" Old Guan asked him, horrified.


    "Hear what?" Jin Jiuchi was genuinely confused. Why was everyone keeping him in the dark?! He wanted to join in on the fun too!


    "Oh?" Madam Liu''s gazended on him, making Jin Jiuchi lose his chance to extract an exnation from Old Guan''s mouth. Thendy''s lips twitched and a hint of confusion appeared in her dead eyes. "And who might you be? I am sure that I have only employed six people..."


    Jin Jiuchi raised a brow. Finally, there was someone who did not overlook the jade doll''s presence? He turned to look at the jade doll and found that they were staring at him as well. Jin Jiuchi offered them a wide grin and in response, their eyes subtly widened as though sensing that Jin Jiuchi was up to no good again.


    s, it was already toote to escape.


    Jin Jiuchi pounced forward and swooped the jade doll into his arm, carrying them in the middle like a potato sack. He faced the shocked yers andndy with a wide grin. "Nice to meet you, Madam Liu. Sorry for the sudden intrusion. I really like your lipstick, by the way. Oh, I am this kid''s big brother!"


    His grin quickly faded into a troubled look and he shook his head, sighing. "How can you employ an underaged child? Isn''t that against thew? That''s why I am here to give a helping hand and to watch over my brother as well. Surely, you won''t mind, right?"


    "Don''t worry," he added after a second pause, silver eyes sparkling in delight. "I will even work for free!"

 Chapter 7: One Rule

    <h4>Chapter 7: One Rule</h4>


    "Let me go...!" The jade doll squirmed and thrashed their four limbs in rage, forcing Jin Jiuchi to tighten his hold around their body.


    "Sssh!" Jin Jiuchi hushed them and bent down to whisper with a pitiful look on his face. He almost squeezed out some crocodile tears to make his acting more believable. "Help me out here just this once, will you? I really, really want to stay in this ce! Where is yourpassion for a fellow human being, kid?!"


    "Are you even human?" The jade doll sneered, their silver ponytail falling over one shoulder and making their features look all the more ethereal, especially with the bright and vivid emotions in those pale purple eyes."And let me tell you for thest time, stop calling me a kid!"


    Jin Jiuchi let out a gasp of disbelief. He switched the way he was carrying the jade doll and sped their head to his chest, forcing them to listen to his heartbeat. "Hear this. What am I if not a human?!"


    They fell strangely silent after that, but Jin Jiuchi did not think much about it in lieu of grinning toward the nk-eyedndy. For some unknown reason, Jin Jiuchi could sense the extreme shock she radiated despite her expression that hardly changed at all.


    "Sorry, sorry," he said apologetically, the picture perfect of a big brother who was covering for their younger sibling''s mischief. "They''re in a rebellious state now. They don''t mean to chase me away. Let me tell you a secret, they can''t even sleep without me at night!" He spouted out lies through his teeth, unfazed by the dumbfounded look from others. "So how about it? I am allowed to stay, right?"


    Jin Jiuchi''s words seemed to shatter the brief spell in the air and for the second time tonight, another uproar descended among the four others.


    "B¨CBrother, he said..."


    "Wait a minute, why... why haven''t I realized that there''s a child among us until now?!"


    "You are not alone," Sister Hong said coldly, her gaze turning vignt as itnded on the jade doll. "That child is not simple. The ticket has clearly stated that six people will board the bus, but now there are seven of us. It looks like they are in here together... I suspect that one of them is not human."


    In a few mere sentences, she seeded in increasing the yers'' wariness toward the mysterious jade doll by a few folds. Even Old Guan let out a yelp and hastily distanced himself from Jin Jiuchi, huddling in fear.


    "Damn...!" the jade doll cursed under their breath, vexed. They shot Jin Jiuchi a re that seemed to convey, ''You''re dead meat!''


    Of course, Jin Jiuchi was not worried at all. What could a mere child do to him?


    Madam Liu blinked and a little life returned to her dead eyes. "Ah, you''re his big brother? You''re right, there must be some kind of error in the process. Of course, we will wee you with open arms. The more people, the better..." her smile looked kinda strange when she said this, but it soon disappeared as though that little curl on the corner of her ck lips was nothing but a mirage. "There are so many things we have to prepare. After all, a wedding is a big celebration that only happens once in a lifetime, right?"


    The man surnamed Zhi, who had never opened his mouth from the start, suddenly asked in a gruff voice, "How do we earn the ticket?"


    "Of course," thendy blinked and offered another weird smile of hers. "It will be after you finish your job."


    Tang Yeg pressed tentatively, "And what does our job entail, to be exact?"


    This time, she acted as if she heard nothing. She checked the time and frowned. "It''s gettingte. Quickly register yourself and go to your room. Remember, we have only one rule in this ce." She paused for two seconds to increase the tension, her uncanny gaze fixed on them. "Do note out of your room after 10 pm no matter what."


    Everyone sucked in a breath simultaneously. Old Guan looked like he was on the verge of fainting. As for the reason why they were not allowed to go out after ten, nobody asked.


    Wait... nobody really asked? Jin Jiuchi looked around in utter confusion. Why would they obey such an unreasonable rule? He was ready to speak up in protest when all of a sudden, Xinxin cried out in rm,


    "It''s already 9.40! We only have less than twenty minutes to get into our room!" Everyone followed her line of sight to the clock on the wall and true to her words, it was already close to ten pm!


    Sister Hong quickly walked toward thendy and epted the clipboard. She scanned the paper and turned to the others, "There are six empty rooms. We will divide it ording to the number in our bus ticket. How about it?"


    Nobody raised an argument. Satisfied, Sister Hong wrote her name down before giving it to the person beside her, Surname Zhi.


    Soon, the clipboard was passed to Xinxin, Tang Ye and Old Guan... before it was finally Jin Jiuchi and the jade doll''s turn.


    "H¨CHere..." Old Guan handed the clipboard over tremblingly.


    Looking at him like this, Jin Jiuchi had the urge to give him a jump scare just to see if the man would truly faint away. s, before he could even act on it, the beautiful jade doll slipped away from his grip like an eel, snatched the clipboard from Old Guan''s hand and wrote something down on the form furiously. Then he threw it to Jin Jiuchi.


    Catching something midair was his forte. He did not even need to move his feet as he stretched an arm out and caught the clipboard effortlessly in his hand, much to the jade doll''s anger. "Hmm..." Jin Jiuchi gave it a once-over. It was a simple list of tenant names and the room number they were upying, as followed:


    Xinxin, third floor, room 303


    Sister Hong, fourth floor, room 404


    Surnamed Zhi, fourth floor, room 406


    Old Guan, fifth floor, 507


    Tang Ye, fifth floor, 509


    As for the jade doll... Jin Jiuchi''s eyes moved to the only bracket that was still fresh with ink, a smile curving on his lips.


    Nian, third floor, 301


    "So it''s Nian''er, huh...?" he rolled the name in his tongue as though savoring it, chuckling. Then he wrote his alias down beside Nian and returned the clipboard back to thendy. By then, five minutes had already passed and that meant, they only had less than fifteen minutes to go to the safety of their rooms.


    Under the tense atmosphere, Madam Liu''s eyes slowly rolled in the sockets as she checked the form. Then she gave a nod of approval and moved away from the stairs. "Breakfast will be ready at seven. I will see you tomorrow morning. Good night, everyone."


    Her words had not even fully settled in the air yet when everyone hastily rushed to the stairs. s, the space was too narrow to amodate two fully grown adults and hence, the strong and robust Zhi managed to go up first, followed by Sister Hong, Xinxin, Tang Ye and Old Guan.


    Jin Jiuchi watched the jade doll from the corner of his eyes and saw them taking a step forward after everyone had gone up, still with the frosty and mightier-than-thou expression on their face. Happily, Jin Jiuchi trailed after them, even bidding thendy goodnight along the way. "Have a good rest and sweet dreams, Madam Liu!"


    Madam Liu''s expression froze, but Jin Jiuchi had already looked away and climbed up the stairs, humming a random tune.


    It did not take long for them to reach the third floor.


    It turned out that Xinxin''s room was only two doors away. Jin Jiuchi waved her goodbye ¨C which earned him a frightened cry and a door mmed on his face. Tsk, how rude ¨C before following Nian into room number 301.


    s, he had not even taken in the room''s interior yet when a shadow passed by in front of him and a solid kicknded on his stomach, sending him stumbling a few steps backward and crashing onto the door. It hurt so much that Jin Jiuchi gasped, feeling like his inner organs had just burst apart from that terrifying kick.


    Nian''s little exquisite face was twisted in fury. "If you want to die, just die alone and don''t drag me with you, bastard!"

 Chapter 8: Ghost Marriage

    <h4>Chapter 8: Ghost Marriage</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi slumped over the door and clutched his stomach, coughing.


    Oh God... that was really one hell of a kick! He had truly underestimated the strength of this kid. Who could have guessed that their little body could hold so much power? Should he be grateful that they did not kick him on the balls??


    "Die...?" Jin Jiuchiughed, almost breathless due to the mixture of throbbing pain and amusement. However, this kind of pain was nothing he had never gone through before. He soon recovered and straightened up, still with his back against the door in case the jade doll nned tounch another attack again. "Who told you that I want to die?"


    Nian sneered as if they had heard the most ridiculous joke in the world. "Entering the bus on your own volition, testing the Cycle''s boundary, challenging the rules... if that''s not called seeking death, then what is?"


    Well, when they put it like that... it did sound like Jin Jiuchi had attempted many brazen ¨C okay, maybe a little bit stupid ¨C deeds. But in his defense, he had never seen anything so bizarre yet magical like this ce before! So it''s natural for him to get curious and want to explore, right?!


    "Wait," Jin Jiuchi suddenly recalled something important. "What is this Cycle you are talking about? Just now, Tang Ye also mentioned that..."


    The mockery in Nian''s sneer deepened. They looked like they wanted to push Jin Jiuchi down from the third floor. "And you''re not even a yer."


    It was honestly disconcerting to see such an expression on that ethereal face, and a child to boot! s, whatever could Jin Jiuchi do? He had been gone for so many years that everything had be abnormal upon his return. The more he thought about it, the more mncholic he felt. It was like the world no longer weed his presence.


    "Bad kid..." he murmured sadly. "How can you be so stingy? Didn''t they teach you to always be kind to others?"


    "Ha!" They scoffed out loud. "Sure, just keep holding on to that stupid mindset of yours and you won''t even know how you die or who kills you. Let me tell you one thing, newbie, if you want to survive in this world, the first thing you have to do is to get rid of your stupidity."


    "Stu¡ª" Jin Jiuchi sputtered, shocked and affronted in equal measure. "How am I stupid!"


    Nian rolled their purple eyes in contempt. "And the fact that you''re asking this question already proves your stupidity. Forget it," they turned away with a harrumph, long ponytail swishing behind their back. "Why am I having this kind of idiotic conversation with you?"


    "I¨CIt''s not like I want to speak with you either!" He glowered out of spite. He did not expect the exquisite child to have such a stinky attitude. Goodness, just what has the world be?! "Bad Nian''er! Do you know what they will do to naughty children? First, they will starve you until your stomach feels like caving in. They won''t budge even if you beg on your feet..." Jin Jiuchi chattered on and on, spouting out one menacing sentence after another.


    The jade doll ignored him, of course. They went to turn on the switch, bathing the room in a hazy light from the flickering lightbulb above.


    In an instant, Jin Jiuchi fell silent, mouth hanging open as he stared at the room in front of him. And judging from Nian''s rigid posture, they were rendered speechless as well.


    Red. Bright red decoration dominated his vision. The thick curtain on the window was red, the silky canopy draped over the king-sized bed was red, the mattress, nket and pillowcase was red, and there were a fewrge ''double happiness'' stickers stuck on the wall. Not only that, there was also a pair of exquisite bridal shoes on the side of the bed, its tips facing the door. It was as if... a bride was supposed to sit there just a moment ago, waiting for the arrival of her newly wedded groom...


    Jin Jiuchi stared at the bridal shoes unblinkingly, only to hear Nian growl out in a milky voice, their tone nothing but threatening, "Don''t you dare touch anything here!"


    Hearing those words, Jin Jiuchi snapped back to his senses and offered the jade doll a wounded look. "Do you think I''m such a mindless person? Of course, I know not to touch things that don''t belong to me!" He was kinda offended to hear Nian''er say something like that. Excuse him, no one respected boundaries and personal territory more than Jin Jiuchi, okay?!


    His mind quickly drifted to the things Tang Ye had said in the lobby. "Ghost marriage...?" He murmured out loud, brows furrowing. "This is the bridal room? How are we assigned here? There must be some kind of error here. Let me go and ask Madam Liu..."


    "Wait." Little Nian grabbed his arm, stopping him before he could even open the door. They gestured at the clock on the wall. "It''s already past ten pm."


    There was only one rule in this ce: nobody was allowed to leave their room after ten. It meant that Jin Jiuchi could no longer go to find Madam Liu to demand an exnation and switch their room.


    It also meant that... they had to stay here for the night??


    Jin Jiuchi was astonished. "We are staying in... in this room?! Are we even allowed to?!"


    "It seems like you''re more concerned about staying in the bridal room rather than the fact that this is a ghost marriage," Nian pointed out tly.


    Jin Jiuchi asked in pure confusion, "What''s so weird about ghost marriages?" As far as he knew, it was a traditional practice that had been going on for thousands of years. Jin Jiuchi vaguely recalled that there was an old man in the asylum who had always talked about the ghost marriage in his family. Over time, Jin Jiuchi had also picked up a thing or two.


    In response to his question, Nian scrutinized him with their beautiful purple eyes that were slightly narrowed. "...You''re such a weirdo," was what they said in the end.


    Jin Jiuchi pouted his lips sullenly. "I know I haven''t been back for long. You don''t have to say it like that, you know!"


    "What are you..." Nian''s words were interrupted by multiple crisp snaps outside. They immediately forewent the conversation in lieu of moving to the window beside the door. They brushed the curtain away with a finger and peeked out.


    "What? What''s wrong?" Jin Jiuchi moved to stand behind Nian, bent down and peeked out through the small gap, his chin nestled on top of Nian''s head.


    Suddenly enraged, Nian swung their elbow behind and hissed, "Can''t you scram a little further? Why the hell do you keep following me?!"


    Jin Jiuchi rubbed his aching side and grumbled under his breath about how ruthless Nian''er was. "...I''m your big brother, remember?" Thoughining, he still moved to the other side of the window and peeked out to see what was going on.


    "Big brother, my ass..." he heard Little Nian curse softly under their breath. Jin Jiuchi gasped at him, shocked. How rude! Who taught this child to curse at such a young age?!!


    Soon, Jin Jiuchi could no longerin because he was distracted by the scene of lightbulbs going off one after another outside the corridor, swallowing whatever dim lights that illuminated the apartment and turning it pitch ck.


    Then something started to crawl out from the darkness...

 Chapter 9: Paper Dolls

    <h4>Chapter 9: Paper Dolls</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi''s three views were already refreshed by the sight of blood parasiteing out of the corpse officer''s mouth, and hence he did not feel too surprised anymore when he saw anything bizarre...


    ...or so he thought.


    He had learned early on that his senses were better than average. His eyes could perfectly see in the dark, his nose could track down scents and his ears could hear sounds from meters away if he focused on it. Thus, it was not difficult for him to hear the weird soundsing from the lower floor ¨C right below them. First, it was the rustle of papers ¨C many, many papers ¨C that resounded one on top of the other. Then a faint beat of gong and trumpets rang out, its melody was cheerful and upbeat.


    ''Like they are celebrating something,'' he realized.


    "The marriage?" He wondered out loud, perplexed. "The ghost marriage is¡ª"


    "Sssh!" Nian hushed him without taking their gaze off the window. "Be quiet!"


    Jin Jiuchi raised a brow, amused. The more someone told him not to do something, the more he wanted to do it out of the spirit of rebellion. Well, in this case, he merely wanted to make Nian angry because their eyes looked the most beautiful this way...


    "Oh?" He grinned, taunting. "What will happen if I don''t? Hmm?"


    Nian snapped their head to him, eyes narrowing dangerously. Jin Jiuchi met their gaze head-on with a careless smile curling on the corner of his lips, unfazed by the simmering killing intent from the jade doll''s small body. Outside, the lively music was getting closer and closer, presumably making their way up the stairs after a round in the second floor.


    In the next second, Nian pounced on him like a small cheetah.


    Jin Jiuchi''s back mmed against the window with a dull thud as the jade dolltched on him, legs wrapped around his middle with their right hand raised high. In that split second, Jin Jiuchi seemed to catch the glint of needles between Nian''s fair fingers before his instinct kicked in and he grabbed hold of their wrist. When Nian moved their left hand, Jin Jiuchi caught it too.


    "Ah ah," he tutted with softughtercing in his voice. "Choosing violence in an instant, huh? Tsk, why are you so bad-tempered, Nian''er?" When he moved his gaze to check if it was really needles he was seeing, all he saw was the jade doll''s adorable little fist that had been prepared to give him a punch.


    Nian''s eyes widened briefly as though they did not expect that Jin Jiuchi could react so quickly and stopped their attack in the nick of time.


    Now, the two of them were in a deadlock. Nian could not move because both of their hands were in Jin Jiuchi''s grip, and their legs were pinned between the window and Jin Jiuchi''s back. Instead of moving away and letting go of the jade doll, Jin Jiuchi absolutely refused to move and made himselffortable against the window, his silver eyes overflowing with smiles as he waited for Nian''s next reaction.


    Outside, the lively yet eerie music finally reached the third floor, quickly approaching their door.


    Jin Jiuchi met the jade doll''s stare, grinned and opened his mouth to say something.


    However, it was as if Nian could predict what Jin Jiuchi was going to do. Before Jin Jiuchi could even let out a sound from his throat, Nian yanked their hand away from his grip with tremendous strength and mped his mouth with it. The warning in their eyes couldn''t be clearer. Taking advantage of their current situation, Nian leaned forward and brushed a bit of the curtain away, peeking out of the window over Jin Jiuchi''s head.


    Whatever they saw there instantly caused their body to go rigid.


    Curious, Jin Jiuchi tilted his body slightly to follow Nian''s line of sight, his hand that was not holding onto Nian''s wrist moved to wrap around the child''s body to prevent them from falling, and when he finally registered what was going on outside, his eyes flew wide in surprise.


    He finally knew where the noisy crinkle of papers came from. It was the people ¨C to be exact, the paper dolls that were making those sounds. There were a dozen of them outside, twisting and twirling into some kind of celebration dance. Old and young, men and women. All of them were dressed in brightly colored clothes with huge smiles and squinted eyes painted on their paper faces. The children were throwing paper money to the air while the adults were holding onto paper gongs and trumpets.


    To witness such a bizarre crowd of paper dolls in the pitch-ck corridor of a rundown apartment building, if it was any other person than Jin Jiuchi ¨C or the gutsy jade doll ¨C perhaps they would have screamed on top of their lungs or immediately fainted.


    On the other hand, all Jin Jiuchi did was to suck in a breath and he regretted it almost immediately when a nauseating smell rushed to his nose through the very faint crack of the window.


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes watered right away, his throat spasmed and he almost retched if not for Nian''s hand that was still sping his mouth tightly. There was a thick scent of ash ¨C he was certain that it was not incense ash or cigarettes ¨C mixed with the horrible stench of rotten meat, something burnt and an overpowering odor of death. Never before had he smelled anything as revolting!


    He immediately tried to move as far away from the source of the scent, but Nian clearly begged to differ. They used their whole weight to pin Jin Jiuchi on the window. Jin Jiuchi had no idea whether he was imagining it, but the jade doll seemed to get increasingly heavier by each second it almost felt as if he was carrying a fully grown adult with one hand. Goodness, how could Nian''er be so heavy?! He almost could not breathe!


    Involuntarily, Jin Jiuchi let out a muffled sound of protest from his throat. "Mmph¨C!!"


    And then, as if someone had pressed a pause button, the ghostly music abruptly halted and a dozen of paper dolls stopped in their tracks. Slowly, they turned their heads and looked at the window with their ink-drawn eyes and wide eerie smiles.

 Chapter 10: Smells Good...

    <h4>Chapter 10: Smells Good...</h4>


    For a brief moment that stretched like forever, only an utterly terrifying silence remained.


    Jin Jiuchi sensed the jade doll growing tense, eyes sharp in alert and vignce as if preparing to attack should the paper dolls make a move. They pressed their little hand on Jin Jiuchi''s mouth harder, preventing him from making the slightest sounds. Both of them had stopped breathing altogether ¨C although for very different reasons.


    Jin Jiuchi felt the weight of the paper dolls'' stare like a cold and sticky sensation running across his skin, and he had to resist a shudder. He would haveughed out loud had his mouth not been blocked. Those gazes were awfully simr to the one he had sensed when he entered the apartment earlier; weaker, but still unpleasant nheless.


    It''s been so long since something evoked such an unpleasant feeling in him. To think that he would encounter it again here...


    The paper dolls were still staring at the window, not showing any signs of moving. Jin Jiuchi was certain that he could hold this position for the rest of the night without moving, but... there was a problem. A very, very big and grave problem he had to address at once.


    He was quickly losing his breath.


    Even if his lung capacity was greater than average, it was simply impossible for him to hold his breath for so long! His fingers twitched as he patted Nian on the back, drawing a surprised jolt from the other.


    However, Jin Jiuchi could not care less about the jade doll''s anger because he was soon dizzy from theck of oxygen. He wanted to breathe so badly... but he did not want to take in that disgusting stench for the second time! The only option was to move further into the room in hope of taking in a lungful of fresh air, but all of a sudden, the little jade doll in his arms became a heavy and unmovable boulder, not allowing him to budge even an inch.


    ''I can''t bear it anymore...!'' Jin Jiuchi tried to convey his desperation as he looked into Nian''s furious purple eyes. ''I am really not trying to make trouble this time!'' A sharp pain seared through his chest. His ears were ringing with white noises and his head felt like it was going to explode in any second.


    Nian must have seen something in Jin Jiuchi''s eyes for the rage in their features quickly faded to be reced with slight hesitation. However, they still did not dare to take their hand off in fear that it would be another trick Jin Jiuchi was ying.


    Just as Jin Jiuchi was going to pass out, he suddenly heard a bloodcurdling screeching from a far distance, echoing all around the atrium. It did not sound humane and if he had to be honest, more like the chaotic shriek of a group of chickens flocking together.


    No matter what it was, it had sessfully diverted the paper dolls'' attention away and they soon continued their journey down the dark corridor, the upbeat music restarting yet again.


    Jin Jiuchi''s knees abruptly gave up beneath him and he copsed to the floor together with Nian, gasping desperately for air. The repulsive stench still lingered on the tip of his nose but now that the paper dolls had left, Jin Jiuchi began to take in another scent that was subdued under the overpowering odor. It was a waft of cold and mild fragrance, slightly sweet and sugary...ing from the jade doll in his arms.


    "What happened to¡ªah!" Nian opened their mouth to ask about Jin Jiuchi''s sudden turn of condition, only to end in a surprised cry when they were abruptly yanked into a crushing embrace.


    In a fit of madness, Jin Jiuchi pulled the jade doll to him and buried his nose into the crook of their neck, ravenously gulping in the scent that was nothing but heavenlypared to the paper dolls''. His broad frame was still shaking from the rush of adrenaline, heart thundering fast and loud inside his ribcage. He tightened his grip around the jade doll when he sensed them squirming in protest.


    "Just... Just a moment..." he gasped, still unable to catch his breath. He chuckled breathlessly, "Bad Nian''er... you almost killed me, you know?"


    He had read somewhere that humans could not die from suffocation due to holding their own breath because no matter what, their innate self-preservation would kick in at thest moment to ensure their survival, causing them to release their breath. However, Jin Jiuchi almost proved them wrong. Just now, if the paper dolls had not gone away, he was sure that he would have died from suffocation. He swore he could already see a silver-haired and purple-eyed angeling to reap his life. He was very close to dying because of a stupid reason... and it was all Nian''s fault for trapping him against the window!


    Nian sounded utterly incredulous when they demanded, "How did it be my fault? It''s clearly you who almost got us killed! Let me go, you pervert!!" They began to thrash around wildly in Jin Jiuchi''s arms.


    Laughing hoarsely, Jin Jiuchi rubbed his face roughly on the crook of Nian''s neck like arge animal leaving its scent. "It''s your fault... so you must make it up for me..."


    "You''re insane!" Nian became even angrier when they heard this. s, Jin Jiuchi''s arms were akin to two thick steels around their body, ensnaring them in an overly warm embrace just like how they had pinned him against the window earlier.


    "Hmm..." Jin Jiuchi took in another inhale of Nian''s scent and felt himself liking it more and more. It soothed him like nothing before. He was almost dazed when hemented, "You didn''t smell like a child at all..." Not realizing that Nian''s body had gone perfectly still, he continued to murmur under his breath, "Smells good... Nian''er, how can you smell so good? I like it so much."


    Jin Jiuchi heard the jade doll''s pulse jump beside his ear at the same time they gritted out, "Stop calling me that!"


    "Hmm?" Without the risk of dying of suffocation, Jin Jiuchi quickly regained his bearing and lifted his head from Nian''s neck, not without reluctance. "Then how am I supposed to call you? By the way..." he grinned when he saw that Nian''s fair cheeks were suffused with a tint of crimson. "I thought that you''re a girl, but it turns out you''re a boy all along, huh?"


    Taken aback, Nian blurted out, "How do you know?!"


    Again, Jin Jiuchi leaned in to sniff their ¨C ah no, it should be his ¨C neck, more properly this time. This time, Nian did not push him away, presumably too shocked that Jin Jiuchi could see through his disguise. "Do you know that you can discern a lot of things based on someone''s scent alone? For example you..." he had to stifle a chuckle when he sensed the jade doll''s thundering pulse beneath his skin. "You don''t smell like a child at all. You''re a boy but there''s a sweet scent clinging on you. Do you own a lot of flowers in your house, perhaps?" He leaned in a bit further to take in more of the enthralling scent. "There''s also another... something dark and wicked..."


    Nian abruptly pushed him away and covered his own neck with his silver hair, ring viciously at Jin Jiuchi as if wishing to chop him into pieces. "Stop doing that!"


    "What? Don''t believe me?" Jin Jiuchi jutted out his bottom lip into a pout of dissatisfaction. Nian must have thought that he was lying. Otherwise, why else would he be ring so hard? "Then let me give you another example. Let''s see..." he racked his brain to recall what the other five people smelled like and his eyes lit up when he recalled a particrly strong odor on a certain someone.


    "Aha! That woman who told us to call her Sister Hong, do you know what she smells like?"


    Skeptical yet unable to hold back his curiosity, the jade doll asked with narrowed eyes. "...What?"


    Jin Jiuchi gave a wide grin upon seeing that he had managed to hook Nian in. He leaned forward and whispered in a mysterious way. "She smells of men."


    When he saw the jade doll nking out, Jin Jiuchi chuckle and borated in a deep and mirthful voice, "The viscous liquid men discharge from their sexual organ when they''re fucking... the so-called sperm... she reeks of them. And it doesn''te only from one person alone. Do you know how hard it is to keep my face straight when she''s practically walking around wearing that unpleasant odor like a trophy?"


    .


    .


    A/N: New book event is on!


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 Chapter 11: Husky Or Wolf?

    <h4>Chapter 11: Husky Or Wolf?</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi was positively amused when he saw Nian gawking at him with a dazed look on his face.


    He had the urge to stuff his finger into the jade doll''s pretty little mouth to see what it would feel like, but something told him that Nian would not talk to him anymore if he did that. As such, Jin Jiuchi forcefully restrained himself from doing so... for the time being.


    What to do? Patience was not really his forte.


    "Earth to Nian''er. Why are you looking at me like this?" He waved his hand in front of Nian''s face to draw his attention. Did he not understand what Jin Jiuchi was talking about? Otherwise why didn''t he give any reaction whatsoever to indicate it? "Don''t you get it? I''m sure you have it too, right? It''s the thing hanging between your legs..." In the spirit of sharing wisdom and knowledge, Jin Jiuchi tugged the jade doll''s wrist forward and pressed it to his crotch.


    Nian only had a split second to register the firm and scorching thickness against his palm before he abruptly snapped back to his senses and yanked his hand back. His face exploded in bright crimson as he stuttered out, "Y¨CY¨CYou..." he could not, for the love of God, continue his sentence after that.


    This infuriatingly attractive weirdo, he... he was not hard, right? So how could it be so... huge...


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head curiously as he observed Nian''s reaction, still oblivious of the turbulence he had caused to the other person''s heart. "Look at you..." he crooned softly as he reached out to brush his fingers on the jade doll''s flushed cheeks. "You are getting so red. How striking. Silver, purple, red..." his silver eyes were shining in awe and appreciation for the beauty in front of him. "Your smell too. Hmm, it bes a little sweeter..."


    s, before Jin Jiuchi could lean in to take another whiff of the sweet fragrance, Nian abruptly jerked himself away from Jin Jiuchi''s arms and rolled to his feet, ring ¨C except the killing intent he radiated this time was greatly impacted by the watery sheen in his purple eyes. "You damned pervert...! If not because we are going to be in the same boat for the next six days, I would have killed you right this instant!!"


    It was not the first time Jin Jiuchi had sensed killing intent from Nian and thus, he immediately threw it to the back of his mind. Instead, he focused on the first half of the sentence. "We''re in the same boat?" He surged forward and ced his face right in front of Nian, demanding excitedly. "Nian''er has epted me as his big brother?!"


    "Big brother, your ass!" Nian angrily shoved his face away. Why did he feel like dealing with an overexcited husky?! No, this was no mere husky, but a goddamn crazy wolf! "And I''ve told you to stop calling me that!"


    Jin Jiuchi did not take the jade doll''s protest to heart at all. He let out a deepughter, almost giddy in joy. "Okay, Nian''er! I will definitely be the best big brother for you! Here, try calling me Gege~"


    "You¡ª!"


    After tussling back and forth for a while, the jade doll quickly became frustrated and decided that he was going to ignore Jin Jiuchi for the rest of the night, much to Jin Jiuchi''s sadness.


    How could Nian be so bad-tempered?! Sulking, Jin Jiuchi watched as the jade doll turned his attention to the striking crimson marital bed, little creases forming between his beautiful brows as he pondered on something. Before Jin Jiuchi could open his mouth and ask about it, Nian stepped forward and yanked the sheets off the bed in a swoop.


    Jin Jiuchi blinked, surprised. "Nian''er, what are you doing...?"


    Nian staggered back a step when the sheets almost engulfed his entire body. Unable to watch it any longer, Jin Jiuchi stepped forward and easily took the sheets from him. "Where should I put this?"


    The jade doll stared at him for one full second before pointing at the chair in the room.


    Jin Jiuchi let out a hum and dumped the wrinkled sheets unceremoniously on the chair. "Is it really okay to take this off?" he asked worriedly. What if the bride dropped by and saw that they had messed with her marital bed?


    "Or else? Do you want to sleep on it?" Nian sneered, toozy to exin his hypothesis to the man. Either way, it was not like this weirdo would understand it.


    "What''s wrong with sleeping on it for a night..." Jin Jiuchi murmured under his breath, confused. Wouldn''t the problem be solved if they went to thendy tomorrow and asked for a room change? Surely she wouldn''t allow them to stay in the bridal room, right? Unless there were no more empty rooms...


    Jin Jiuchi was caught off guard once again when Nian made a move to pick up the bridal shoes. "Didn''t you tell me not to touch it earlier??" He eximed, utterly baffled.


    s, it seemed like Nian was staying true to his words and steadfastly ignored Jin Jiuchi''s presence, not without sneering. Jin Jiuchi strongly suspected that the jade doll was cursing him in his mind, but he couldn''t do anything about it because he had no evidence.


    Nian walked around the room in search of a ce to put the bridal shoes. In the end, he crouched down in front of the nightstand and ced the shoes into the drawer. Jin Jiuchi tilted his head curiously. Why would he put it there¡ª oh, he got his answer the next second when Nian locked the drawer, pulled out the key and pocketed it.


    Next, Nian walked to the water basin on the table and washed his hands on it. He also sshed some water on his face. Jin Jiuchi sidled up to him and tugged on his sleeve, sulking. "Are you really going to ignore me for the rest of the night?" When he saw that Nian did not intend to answer him, Jin Jiuchi became more unhappy and continued to pester him, "Why is Nian angry? I really don''t understand. Is it because of the lie I told Madam Liu? I know that lying is bad, but I don''t want to get chased out..."


    Nian was utterly speechless when he heard this. Until the end, this person was perfectly clueless on the umon things he had said and done. Not only was he ridiculous and unreasonable, he was childish too. Nian could almost see a pair of folded ears on top of Jin Jiuchi''s head, looking both miserable and pitiful.


    ''But this weirdo is really so damn handsome,'' he clicked his tongue in displeasure. ''And his body...''


    He had noticed it when he pinned Jin Jiuchi to the window. This man''s body waspletely packed with solid muscles and no excess fat. He had a towering height, long and powerful limbs, sharp features that exuded aggression and a mess of silken ck hair that was effortlessly beautiful. ce him in the crowd and he would surely be the center of attention.


    Who could stay angry for long when such a gorgeous man was appealing to them?


    Though the said man turned out to be a huge weirdo and a pervert...


    Nian let out a heavy sigh, feeling an iing headache for the next six days he was going to spend with this man.

 Chapter 12: Glowing Eyes

    <h4>Chapter 12: Glowing Eyes</h4>


    "Nian''er?" Jin Jiuchi asked when he saw that the jade doll was merely staring at him without even blinking. He patted his cheeks in confusion. "What''s wrong? Is there something on my face?"


    Nian blinked as though snapping back to his senses, then he let out a helpless sigh.


    Jin Jiuchi was amused by the adult-like expression on his face. Clearly, he was in the body of a child now ¨C Jin Jiuchi had no idea how he did it but was it really important? ¨C so why wouldn''t he act like one too?


    If it was him... if he had the ability to disguise himself as a child like Nian, he would definitely seize the chance to y around to his heart''s content. It was so sad how adults were forbidden to y simply because people expected them to act mature ording to their age. Excuse him, even though Jin Jiuchi''s body was big, he was still a toddler at heart, okay?!


    "Forget it," was what the jade doll said in the end. He stepped back and gestured for Jin Jiuchi to take his ce. "We can''t go to themunal bathroom outside because of the curfew, so just make do with this tonight. Let''s hurry up and get some rest. The night is not over yet."


    Jin Jiuchi wanted to say that he was perfectly okay even without bathing for days, that only beautiful jade dolls like Nian''er needed to care for themselves, but he was instantly distracted by thest sentence Nian had said.


    "The night... is not over yet?" He asked, puzzled. "But aren''t we not allowed to leave the room?"


    This time, the hardness on Nian''s features thawed, turning his purple orb into two breathtaking pools of amethyst. His tone was patient as if he was coaxing a child, "You''re not a yer, so listen to me. The first step to survive in the Cycle is to follow the rules, and the second... fight. There are strange creatures in this ce, many more than you could have ever thought of. You''ve seen two of them tonight ¨C the blood parasite and the paper dolls. They will try to kill you if you break the rules. So... be cautious and fight for your life when the need arises."


    "Strange creatures?" Jin Jiuchi blinked slowly like a cat. "So what you mean to say is... they are not normal?"


    "Well, yes...?" Nian put on a strange look as if he was baffled that Jin Jiuchi even had to ask for something like this.


    Jin Jiuchi still had a lot of questions he wanted to ask, but for now... he was already immensely satisfied. Strange creatures! There were many strange creatures in this ce and none of them were normal! So it was not only him who was the odd ball around here!


    "Okay!" Jin Jiuchi discarded his confusion right away and gave the jade doll a wide grin that showcased his canine teeth. "Of course, I will listen to Nian''er! Who else will I listen to except for Nian''er?"


    Nian shot him with a re and turned away with a harrumph, "Cease your nonsense and hurry up to wash!"


    "Okay~" Jin Jiuchi happily went to the basin and sshed his face until droplets of water dripped down from his chin and his cor got drenched. By the time he was finished, Nian already pulled the crimson gauze off the canopy bed, dumped it together with the sheets and settled on one side of the bed.


    He told Jin Jiuchizily, "Lock the door and turn off the light before youe here."


    "Okay~" Still in an exuberant mood, Jin Jiuchi practically skipped across the room to lock the door and flick the switch with a snap, instantly sinking the room into pitch-ck darkness. However, Jin Jiuchi did not have difficulty maneuvering through the dark thanks to his excellent eyesight. He climbed to the bed andy on his side, facing Nian whoy on his back with his beautiful eyes peacefully shut. He looked even more like a breathing jade doll this way.


    Jin Jiuchi couldn''t seem to contain the restless energy in his body tonight. As such, he could only channel it to focus on Nian''s beautiful and thick silvershes, counting each strand of it and noting how it trembled with each breath he took.


    Jin Jiuchi was getting to the twelve strands when Nian abruptly snapped his eyes open and turned to him angrily. "Why do you keep¡ª" his expression morphed into one of shock as he saw Jin Jiuchi. "Your eyes..."


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi opened his eyes wide and blinked a few times just for good measure.


    Nian scooted a little closer to him, his cheek mushed against the pillow, peering into Jin Jiuchi''s eyes with an expression akin to... wonder? "Your eyes are glowing... it''s not like this before."


    "Ah?" Taken aback, Jin Jiuchi reached out to touch his eyelids by reflex. "Really?"


    "You don''t know?" There it was again, the strange look in Nian''s face as if he was questioning Jin Jiuchi''sck ofmon sense.


    Jin Jiuchi pouted his lips sullenly, "I very seldom look at myself in the mirror, so how would I know?"


    For years, there was nothing that could reflect his image back in the asylum. They were not given mirrors or anything made of steel for fear that they would hurt themselves and others. Thest time he saw himself... that''s right, it was when he looked into Nian''s eyes. Nian''s purple eyes were so clear that Jin Jiuchi could easily see himself in it.


    "You... forget it." Nian let out a sigh and turned so that he wasying on his back again, closing his eyes. "Hurry up and sleep."


    "Or else...?" Jin Jiuchi prompted.


    Nian seemed to have gotten used to his spirit of rebellion because he replied in an easy and casual tone, "Or else I will kick you down from the bed."


    Jin Jiuchi gasped in mock disbelief, but he couldn''t contain the grin on his face. "How can you be so ruthless to your big brother, Nian''er? You can''t sleep without me, remember?"


    "Big brother, your ass..." he let out a soft curse, already dozing off a bit. It took no time at all for the jade doll''s breathing to turn deep and smooth. The furrow that was always spotted between his brows faded away, making him look like a real child. Very soft and adorable.


    Jin Jiuchi had to bite down a grin as soon as he realized a very important thing.


    The jade doll no longer asked him not to call him by the intimate nickname.


    Did it mean that Nian did not despise him as much anymore? Jin Jiuchi really hoped so. He really, really liked Nian, so he wished that Nian could like him back even by a fraction.


    Smiling in delight, Jin Jiuchi matched his own breathing with Nian''s and gradually closed his eyes. "Goodnight, Nian''er."

 Chapter 13: Song of a Depraved Siren

    <h4>Chapter 13: Song of a Depraved Siren</h4>


    cw: brief, veeeery brief sexual description


    While the two people in room 301 were having a peaceful rest, the horde of paper dolls continued their celebration dance to the fourth floor, passing through tightly closed doors one after another. The sound of gongs and trumpets lingered in the air like a cold caress of the undead, sending a burst of cold fear to the frightened souls beyond the door.


    Upon finding no disturbance, they smoothly ascended to the fifth floor, unaware that behind them, the door number 404 quietly creaked open.


    Sister Hong poked her head out and seeing that the paper dolls had gone up the stairs, she heaved out a sigh of relief and opened the door wider. Compared to her strict and no-nonsense appearance a few moments ago, it was like she had be a wholly different person now.


    The business suit that made her look stiff and rigid was no more, reced with a piece of white silky lingerie that barely reached her knees, showcasing her voluptuous and sexy body. She had foregone her sses and raked her fingers through her hair to make it a little disheveled, knowing that men would not be able to resist her when she looked this way.


    Right now, she was akin to a seductress, a demoness who hade out to hunt for prey.


    Confirming that the paper dolls had indeed gone to the upper floor, she sashayed to room 406 and knocked softly on the door.


    "Who is it," came a cautious voice from inside.


    "Brother Zhi..." she deliberately lowered her voice so that it sounded gentle and sultry. "It''s me, Hong."


    There was a few seconds of silence before the man''s gruff voice sounded again, this time closer as though the man was stering himself to the wall while peeking out of the window. And judging from the rustling curtain, it seemed like her guess was spot on.


    "What do you want?" He did not show any signs of opening the door for her.


    Bastard, she cursed inwardly. Such a beautiful woman sending herself to your doorstep and you still don''t want to let her in? Who are you trying to kid?!


    She did not show the contempt on her face though. Instead, she deliberately flicked her hair to one side to disy the fair column of her neck, the gentle dip of her corbones and most importantly, her cleavage that offered a glimpse to her full breasts. If the man was still peeking out of the window, then he must have seen her nipples that had gone taut through the flimsy piece of lingerie she was wearing.


    She had done it enough times to know that this was an irresistible sight which no man could refuse, especially in an uwful ce like this where the strong preyed on the weak.


    Outside, she was a powerful executive officer who was feared and respected by countless others. But here... aftering to this abhorrent ce, she learned in a hard way that she was but a weak and vulnerable woman. Money and status meant nothing in the face of death. If she wanted to survive, she had to adapt to changes and sought the best way to preserve her life.


    So far, she discovered that this was the best method she could utilize to the maximum, and the appearance of her skill card further strengthened her conviction. Men were animals in human clothing who were thinking only with their dick eighty percent of the time. And by using her womanly charm, she would bewitch them and make them do her bidding.


    That''s right, just like the blood parasite...


    It needed a living body to survive, while she needed men to thrive.


    She let out a soft and meaningful chuckle. "Well, we are both in our third Cycle. Won''t it be better for us to team up and get to know each other intimately from early on? If you want, I can even tell you what my special task is..."


    Sure enough, in the next second, there was a click and the door creaked open by an inch.


    Surnamed Zhi''srge frame upied that gap, and she took immense pleasure in how he couldn''t seem to take his gaze off her seductive curves. "You..." he swallowed thickly before dragging his eyes up to her face, a flicker of lust clouding his features. "You want to team up?"


    ''Got you.'' She licked her red lips, stepped forward and gently blew a breath against the man''s tense jaws.


    She ced her hands on his broad shoulders and went on her tiptoe to whisper into his ear, giggling. "Of course. We are the strongest ones in this Cycle so it''s only right for us to earn the tickets, right?" As she spoke, she grabbed his wrist and led it to her inner thigh, letting him feel how soft and silky her skin was and also...


    "Y¨CYou are not wearing anything underneath?" He choked on his words, his voice strained on the edge.


    She bit back a moan when the man''s thick and rough fingers parted her folds and plunged into her core that was already dripping wet. "Ah, gentler..." she whispered breathily and nipped on the shell of his ear, teasing. "Brother Zhi, we will make such a perfect team, won''t we?"


    "Yes," Surnamed Zhi grunted in a hoarse voice. He yanked the woman into his room and locked the door behind them, unaware that at that exact moment, her eyes were gleaming in an abnormal green shade.


    Skill Card: Song of a Depraved Siren


    Skill Type: Mind control


    Skill Level: 4


    Skill description: Sinking into depravity, the ck-hearted siren will chant a haunting song every night, sending turbulent waves over the dark ocean and drowning the enchanted sailors. She drags them into the icy depth where they will apany her for a lifetime, both body and soul.


    Number of usage: 1/2


    ***


    Meanwhile, in room 507.


    Old Guan was huddling in the corner of the room, shivering in fear and terror while he listened to the ghostly music that was approaching where he was. With tears streaming down his face, he desperately sped his hand over his mouth to prevent any sounds froming out.


    The sound of gongs and trumpets were steadily getting closer and closer...


    Chills ran down his spine and he pressed himself closer to the wall as if he could hide inside this way. Intense fear smothered down on him with the weight of a thousand pounds. In the pitch-ck room, only the sound of his rapid breathing and thundering heartbeats could be heard.


    Exactly what was this ce?! The horrible monster inside the bus, the neverending road, the moving paper dolls and earlier, the unnerving screech that shook him down to the core... he had had enough! He really had had enough of it!


    When the music sounded right outside his door, he buried his head between his knees and covered his ears tightly, willing himself to ignore his surroundings until they left on their own. Much to his surprise, everything went smoothly. The paper dolls did not stop even for a second as they continued to dance along the dark corridor.


    Old Guan slumped against the wall weakly, panting. His entire body was drenched in cold sweat, it was as if he had taken a jump into an icyke. His mind was still ringing from the extreme rush of adrenaline.


    H¨CHe was saved... he was still alive...!


    Relieved, he pped a hand over his itchy cheek and scratched it distractedly... only to grab onto a few strands of long ck hair between his fingers.


    Old Guan froze, eyes widening in horror. I¨CIt was not his hair... he did not have long hair. But if it did not belong to him, then who...?


    His blood abruptly ran cold. The extreme fear rushed back, strangling whatever breath was stuck on his throat. Trembles wrecked his entire body as he slowly... very very slowly lifted his head toy his gaze upon the terrifying creature on the ceiling.


    "AAAAH¡ª!!!"

 Chapter 14: Bloody Bride

    <h4>Chapter 14: Bloody Bride</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi awoke in the middle of the night with a start.


    Before he could even open his eyes, he already sensed an unfamiliar presence in the room that caused his senses to go on full alert. He snapped his eyes open to see an unfamiliar ceiling above him. It took him approximately two full seconds to realize where he was and what he was doing before this.


    Oh right, he had hopped into a yellow kindergarten bus out of a whim and ended up stranded in this corpse apartment...


    A gentle voice drew Jin Jiuchi''s attention back to the present and he withdrew his gaze from the ceiling to look at the foot of the bed, then he promptly held his breath.


    A woman was sitting beside Jin Jiuchi''s feet, exactly the ce where the bridal shoes were supposed to be. She was d in a bright crimson robe with white embellishments, the exquisite silk gossamer highlighted her thin frame and tapered waist. Luscious ck hair cascaded down her back, fluttering gently even by the absence of wind inside the room.


    She was humming a song that sounded awfully familiar to Jin Jiuchi, her voice echoing distantly as if it hade from somece far away.


    The scene in front of him was practically straight out of a horror film, but right now the only thought in Jin Jiuchi''s mind was ¨C ''It''s over, it''s over! The bride hase to im her room! I have warned Nian''er about it but he just didn''t listen to me!''


    A nce to the side told him that the jade doll was still soundly asleep. ''And you even dare to sleep so well on her bed!'' Jin Jiuchi gritted his teeth, pushed himself into a sitting position and cleared his throat.


    "I''m sorry... err, Miss..." he apologized awkwardly. "I think there is a huge misunderstanding here. Don''t worry, we will leave as soon as it''s daylight ¨C no, we can even leave now if you want! I don''t mean to upy your bridal room at all, Miss! It''s all because of that damned curfew that I couldn''t leave the room!" He reached out to shake the jade doll awake, exasperated. Was it only him who cared about propriety and decorum here?! "Hey, wake up, Nian''er! We have to move now!"


    Nian stirred in his sleep, eyelids twitching.


    The woman suddenly stopped humming and tilted her head to the side. "When did youe back?" she asked gently with a slight gurgle on her throat.


    "Huh?" Jin Jiuchi pointed at his own nose, baffled. "Me? I''ve never been here at all..." Did the woman somehow mistake him as the groom?


    But the woman asked again, more insistent this time. "When did youe back?"


    Jin Jiuchi opened his mouth, ready to exin that he was but a poor soul trapped in this room until his gaze suddenly dropped to the bride''s body and all words abruptly stuck on his throat. Crimson was rapidly spreading on the white embellishments of the bridal robe. No, that''s not right... the robe should have been white from the start, and it only turned crimson due to the blood oozing out of the woman''s body.


    And now, the blood was steadily dripping to the pristine white mattress.


    Jin Jiuchi jumped from the bed as if scalded, while cradling the sleepy jade doll in his arms. "Y¨CYou..." he finally saw the appearance of the bride for the first time. Her face was ghastly pale, dark eyes upying one third of her face akin to two ck holes that were drawn haphazardly on a piece of paper. Lines of blood smeared her skin like spiderwebs, making it look as if her flesh had been torn apart only to be pieced together again.


    She stood up to face Jin Jiuchi, sleeves billowing. Blood continued to pool around her feet in a steady stream.


    Wait a moment, her feet...


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes widened in shock. She was wearing the bridal shoes that Nian''er had locked inside the drawer earlier!


    "...What has happened to you?" Jin Jiuchi finally found his voice with much difficulty, too taken aback by the appearance of the bloody bride.


    In his arms, the jade doll finally managed to shake off the haze of intense sleepiness that was weighing down on his eyelids. As soon as he opened his eyes, he discovered that he was no longer on the bed, and in front of him was...


    "Fuck!" He jolted in shock, a curse slipping out of his mouth. "W¨CWhat happened?!" He asked, extremely flustered. He had never allowed himself to fall into real slumber inside the Cycle for fear that something ¨C or someone ¨C woulde attacking in the middle of the night, just like now. Such an instance where he was utterly oblivious of his surroundings had never urred before!


    This was the important first night in the Cycle where he should be finding out about the death conditions, so how was it possible for him to lower his guard down and fall asleep?!


    However, Jin Jiuchi clearly misunderstood the meaning behind Nian''s question. Still recalling the shame of being caught intruding into another person''s territory, he squeezed the jade doll in his arms and shook him in exasperation. "What happened? You still dare to ask what happened?! Isn''t it you who told me not to leave the room? Now look, the real owner hase back! What should we do to make it up for her?!"


    Nian: "..." So that''s the thing you''re most worried about, huh?


    Somehow, Jin Jiuchi''s ridiculous words managed to calm him down a lot. s, the bloody bride did not give him any time to think. She took a step forward, causing Jin Jiuchi to stagger toward the door.


    "Woah, woah, woah!" He lifted a hand to express his harmless intention, while the other hand was still wrapped around the jade doll''s body. "Okay, don''t be angry, Miss! We will leave! We will definitely leave your room now!"


    "No!" Nian yanked on his hair to stop him from running out, earning him a yelp of surprise. "What do you mean by leaving? Haven''t you heard the rules?! We must not leave the room no matter what!"


    Jin Jiuchi stared at him in sheer disbelief. "...I didn''t expect your face to be thicker than me, Nian''er." To insist on staying even though the bride had returned, even he was not shameless enough to attempt something like that!


    Nian shot him a vicious re. However, before he could say anything, the bloody bride suddenly parted her lips and sang in a soft voice, all the while taking one step after another toward them.


    Leaving behind the only home I''ve known


    Walking down this aisle, I feel so alone


    Dad by my side, I hold on tight


    Jin Jiuchi heard the jade doll cursing beside his ear, but right now, he could not afford to pay attention to what the other person was up to. This song was very familiar... he was certain that he had heard it somewhere before. Each verse awoken a memory buried deep inside him, and before he knew it, he opened his mouth and sang along with the bride,


    "To this life that I''m leaving tonight..."


    All of a sudden, the air became deathly still.


    .


    .


    A/N: I know it''s a creepy chapter but please enjoy a fanart of our beautiful jade doll by Ying! Do open thement section and show your love there! Isn''t he a total little prince? I wanna poke his cheek so bad!! ><

 Chapter 15: Old Zhao’s Daughter

    <h4>Chapter 15: Old Zhao''s Daughter</h4>


    As soon as Jin Jiuchi hummed the melody to sing along with the ghost bride, everything screeched to an abrupt halt. It was as if someone had pressed the pause button to freeze the time.


    Nian gaped in shock, his purple eyes widening to the maximum. In front of them, the bride halted mid-step, the terrifying ck holes of her eyes transfixed on Jin Jiuchi. Even her blood had stopped dripping to the floor.


    However, Jin Jiuchi took no notice of their reaction for he was still immersed in the tide of nostalgia. Now that he had sung the song out loud, it was as if the locked crest inside his head suddenly burst open, flooding him with one piece of memory after another.


    Jin Jiuchi had no idea why, but the time he spent in the asylum had quickly be a blur in his mind after he was discharged. In hindsight, it was the ce which he had spent most of his life in, so wouldn''t it be reasonable for him to remember everything?


    s, it was not the case for him. Let alone his fellow patients, he had even forgotten what the room he stayed in looked like. It was as if someone had applied ayer of film to his memory, making it blurred and hazy.


    It was not until now, until he heard the bride singing this familiar song that he recalled something ¨C or to be exact, someone ¨C with vivid rity. Happiness swelled in his heart as he continued to sing, "I''m leaving my home, to start a new life..."


    The bride slowly parted her lips. She took back her right foot and stopped a distance away from Jin Jiuchi. "Bing a wife, leaving behind my strife..."


    "What the¡ª" Nian looked at them back and forth, bbergasted. "You... why are you... how..." he was so shocked that he couldn''t even form a coherent sentence.


    When Jin Jiuchi looked at the bloody bride again, his eyes lit up impossibly brighter. He took a tentative step forward, hopeful. "By any chance... is your surname Zhao? Is there an Old Zhao in your family?"


    It might only be a figment of imagination, but he seemed to see the crimson blood on the bride''s ghastly skin recede bit by bit. A flicker of recognition shed in her bottomless eyes as she regarded Jin Jiuchi in a new light. "Old Zhao..." she said slowly, almost dragging on her words as if she was digging deep into the forgotten part of her memory. "My father... everyone used to call him Old Zhao..."


    Jin Jiuchi was positively glowing by now. Without a warning, he let go of the jade doll in his arms in lieu of rushing forward to take the bride''s hand for a handshake. Her skin was cold and slimy, it was as if what he was holding was not a hand, but a slippery eel. He did not think too much about it though, too excited to hear about an acquaintance.


    "So you''re Old Zhao''s daughter! Nice to meet you, I''ve heard a lot about you before!" He shook her hand with vigor, his manner was akin to meeting someone from the same hometown in a foreign country. "I am your father''s friend, you see. He has always talked about you and your marriage! Are you the one whose wedding we will celebrate in a few days? Wow, to think that I will be able to attend Old Zhao''s daughter''s wedding... as expected, it''s the right decision to board the bus ande to this ce!" He threw his head back andughed uproariously, full of joy and satisfaction.


    The ghost bride: "..."


    Nian: "..."


    Nian stared at Jin Jiuchi who babbled nonstop, then at the ghost bride who looked like she was starting to question her whole life''s decision that led her to this moment.


    Her terrifying face was radiating confusion as if asking, ''Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing here?''


    This was the first time Nian had ever felt something akin to sympathy for the ghost. Because right now, he was also questioning the same thing in his mind.


    What the hell is going on here?!


    On top of acting so familiar with the ghost, he was also... what? He was friends with the ghost bride''s father?! Nian had met so many kinds of people in the Cycle; the cunning ones, the self-sacrificing ones, the ruthless ones, the cowardly ones... but never before had he met someone who could talk nonsense better than Jin Jiuchi!


    He scrutinized Jin Jiuchi''s brilliant smile closely.


    But why did he feel like the man was not lying at all? Not to mention, he also knew how to sing that damned song and could urately guess the ghost bride''s surname.


    Nian furrowed his brows in thought.


    Was this man really a newbie or...


    Jin Jiuchi was so thrilled to meet an acquaintance here that he could not stop talking. "Once again, I''m very sorry for upying your bridal room, Miss Zhao! But now that we''re already here, why don''t we chat a bit? How is Old Zhao doing now? I don''t remember thest time I saw him, but I recalled him talking about your marriage all day long. Wait a minute..." he was practically buzzing with tion. "Now that you will have your wedding here, does it mean that I can meet Old Zhao? Is he here?!"


    Finally, the ghost bride found a chance to interrupt Jin Jiuchi''s barrage of words. She twisted her hand out of Jin Jiuchi''s grip and staggered backward. "My father... is dead..."


    Jin Jiuchi blinked, his hand still hanging in midair. "...What?"


    In the next second, the bride''s body started to turn transparent.


    "Wait, wait, don''t go! There are so many things we haven''t talked about yet!" Jin Jiuchi hurried to stop her from leaving, but it was already toote.


    All he could grab onto was empty air as the bride''s bodypletely faded away. Even the blood on the mattress and the floor vanished without a trace. If not for the pair of exquisite bridal shoes left on the floor, it would look like she was never even here in the first ce.


    "Augh!! How can she leave so fast?!" Jin Jiuchi punched the air in frustration. And to think that he had been so excited to meet her...! Vexed, he turned to the jade doll toin. "Why do you think she''s in such a hurry to go, Nian''er? Does she¡ª wait, why are you looking at me like that?"


    Nian asked nkly, "Like what."


    "Like..." At an utter loss of words, Jin Jiuchi could only gesture vaguely at the dumbfounded jade doll. "Like this."


    Nian opened his mouth to say something, but then he closed it again upon realizing that he had no idea what to say. He felt like his three views were on the verge of breaking apart and no amount of mental preparation could prevent it from happening.


    He stared at the man in front of him, speechless.


    ''What are you doing, getting chummy with a ghost? You even tried to chat her up? And begged her not to go? Crazy pervert, no wonder she can''t wait to get away from you!''


    And the thing Nian was angriest with was how Jin Jiuchi managed to chase the ghost away without any skills or props whatsoever! He had entered the Cycle a few times before, enough to know that the first night tended to be the riskiest. They still had no clear idea about the rules in this ce and thus would not know whether they would trigger the death conditions. But with the feat Jin Jiuchi had just done, there was no way the bride would dare toe back again tonight!


    What did it mean?


    It meant that Jin Jiuchi had kept them safe and let them evade death for the first night ¨C with such a ridiculous method to boot!

 Chapter 16: Angry Chicken

    <h4>Chapter 16: Angry Chicken</h4>


    Following this little ¨C and weirdly shocking ¨C encounter, there was nothing more they could do, not with the rule that forbade them from leaving the room. Nian went to lock the bridal shoes in the drawer again just in case. Each upied with their own thoughts, the two of them returned to the bed to catch up on some sleep.


    Of course, Jin Jiuchi raised his protest because how was he supposed to sleep knowing that Miss Zhao had returned and would even drop by without a warning?! But then, Nian forcefully pushed him down to the bed and all words ended up stuck on Jin Jiuchi''s throat.


    The jade doll pinned him down, his purple eyes burning in embers. "Sleep!"


    Previously, it always irked him when someone ordered him around but much to his own surprise, it was not annoying when the one who did it was Nian. Why, he wondered? Was it because Nian''er''s beauty was unparalleled? Jin Jiuchi''s eyes worked even better in the dark, thus he could clearly trace each strand of gleaming silver hair that fell over Nian''s shoulders. It looked even more dazzling when lights out, it was as if his entire body was shrouded in a faint halo.


    s, not annoying did not mean that Jin Jiuchi would obey it.


    "Oh?" He let out a mirthful chuckle. "Or else?"


    "Or else..." Nian narrowed his eyes and with a flick of his hand, two silver needles appeared between his fingers.


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes rounded in surprise. "So I really didn''t see wronglyst time! What is this, Nian''er? You''re carrying needles around with you? Is it a hobby?" He clicked his tongue, a roguish smile ying on the corner of his lips. "Tsk, such a dangerous hobby. Are you going to stab me with it?"


    Nian threateningly brought the needles closer to his neck. "Do you want to try?"


    Jin Jiuchi''s scalp turned numb once he sensed the tip of the needles grazing softly against his skin. His hair stood up on its end and his instinct was screaming at him to avoid it. But like the rebellious spirit he was, Jin Jiuchi ignored it and licked his lips, provoking. "Does Nian''er want to let me try?"


    For a while, both of them stared at each other, none was willing to back down.


    Just as Jin Jiuchi thought that the jade doll was going to murder him after everything they had gone through together, he rolled off Jin Jiuchi''s body with a harrumph andy properly on the bed, the needles once again disappearing into God-knows-where. "Why the hell am I talking to a crazy pervert like you..." he murmured under his breath.


    "Crazy¡ª" Jin Jiuchi sputtered out a disbelievingugh, amused yet affronted at the same time. "How am I a crazy pervert?!"


    Nian turned his head away and resolutely refused to acknowledge him. As such, he ended up baring his little fair neck for Jin Jiuchi to see.


    Jin Jiuchi ran his tongue along the sharp tip of his canines, itching to let Nian know how much crazier he could get up to. But when he recalled the silver needles hidden somewhere on Nian''s body, he forced himself to curb the impulse. Okay, he would let Nian off the hook for now! Later, if... if he continued to call Jin Jiuchi a crazy pervert, then Jin Jiuchi would not hesitate to sink his teeth into Nian''s little fragile neck to teach him an unforgettable lesson!


    (yfully, of course. He liked Nian so much, how could he bear to hurt him?)


    Huffing, Jin Jiuchi closed his eyes and tried to ignore the fact that he wasying on Miss Zhao''s marital bed.


    He fell asleep to the sound of Nian''s smooth and deep breathing.


    ***


    The next day, they came down to the first floor at seven on the dot and went to the dining hall to find only Tang Ye and Xinxin chatting quietly inside. Well, it was more like Tang Ye who was chatting whereas Xinxin was listening with a nervous smile, while sneaking nces at the door once in a while.


    As soon as she caught sight of Jin Jiuchi and Nian, her expression morphed into one of relief. "Thank God, you guys are okay!"


    Tang Ye waved at them brightly, "Good morning, Brother Yang and err..." he had no idea how to address Nian so in the end, he could only settle with, "...you too, little brother."


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi raised a brow, confused. Wasn''t she the one who yelped in fear when their eyes met and mmed the door on his face? What brought forth the change?


    Presumably guessing the line of Jin Jiuchi''s thought, Xinxin flushed bright red and stuttered nervously. "No, I mean...st night, I saw the paper dolls stopping in front of your door. I was scared that something would happen to you, so..."


    Nian made a noise of understanding. "Was it youst night?"


    Xinxin ducked her head and nodded bashfully with a tiny smile on her lips. She seemed morefortable with a child like Nian than the adult Tang Ye.


    "What?" Jin Jiuchi demanded in confusion as he looked at them back and forth. "What was it aboutst night? What are you two talking about? Nian''er, you can''t just speak vaguely like that and leave me in the dark! We have been through thick and thin together and¡ªoh!" He suddenly recalled something and turned to Xinxin in shock. He repeated Nian''s question, only with twice the amount of shock. "Was it youst night? That loud screech?!"


    Xinxin shrunk back nervously under his stare. She brought out something from her pocket and ced it on the table.


    Jin Jiuchi stared at it, wide-eyed and unblinking.


    It was the figurine of a small white chicken with a puffed out chest and fierce eyebrows, its beak opened wide. It oddly looked like it was posed for screaming...


    "You mean to say..." Jin Jiuchi swallowed and pointed at the tiny chicken, still could not believe what he was seeing. "Last night, the one that made such a huge ruckus is... this?" The thought that the screech resembled a flock of chickens indeed crossed his mindst night, but he only meant it figuratively ¨C not literally!


    "How...?" He asked Xinxin, breathless in awe.


    "I¨CIt''s amon prop ''Angry Chicken''," Xinxin exined awkwardly under Jin Jiuchi''s sparkling eyes. "It has no other use aside from making some noise to lure or distract someone. But I reckon that it may be quite useful in desperate times and it seems like I am right. Oh, it''s also very cheap! You can get it with 50 points in the App."


    There were a lot of things to unpack in that short exnation. For starters, what was a prop? What was the ''App'' and ''point'' she was talking about? But the most important of them all was¡ª


    Jin Jiuchi picked up the chicken with two fingers and brought it in front of his eyes, his silver eyes shining as if there was a sea of glittering stars within. "Let''s make it scream again! Can we? One more time! Just one more time, please? I really, really want to see it!" he proposed excitedly.


    Xinxin and Tang Ye became dazed. "...Huh?"


    Nian palmed his forehead in exasperation. Somehow, he had expected that this would be the first thing Jin Jiuchi would say...


    s, before Jin Jiuchi could get another demonstration, two more people stepped into the dining hall, drawing everyone''s attention. It was Sister Hong and the man surnamed Zhi.


    .


    .


    A/N: *cough* I know that unlimited flow novels tend to be fast-paced and each instance will have less than 50 chapters (and some even less than 20!), but I''m not really good at such a rapid pace otherwise I''m going to feel as if I''m missing a lot of the character''s thoughts and little interactions >< so please bear with my snail pace unlimited flow. This cycle is going to take around 50 ch

 Chapter 17: Old Guan’s Changes

    <h4>Chapter 17: Old Guan''s Changes</h4>


    The dining hall in Shishen Apartment had a ssic design that could be traced back to the 1800s with cemented floor, floral wallpapers and frosted ss window. Judging from the size of the building and the number of rooms, the apartment could amodate at least fifty tenants so it was natural that the dining hall would be spacious too. Thergest table could amodate up to eight people, whereas the smallest was only for two.


    When Jin Jiuchi and Nian entered, Tang Ye and Xinxin were already sitting on thergest table.


    Now, seeing two more peopleing in, Tang Ye waved energetically at them, "Sister Hong, Brother Zhi! Good morning, did you two have a good rest?"


    Xinxin looked visibly relieved to see them. "Good morning, seniors," she greeted politely.


    Nian stared at the table in front of him with his head lowered, pretending to be a good and harmless child, whereas Jin Jiuchi was still engrossed in poking and squeezing the tiny chicken between his fingers. "Tell me, tell me! How does it work?"


    A dark look crossed Sister Hong''s face when she noticed that Jin Jiuchi and Nian outright ignored her seniority in this ce. With Surnamed Zhi in tow, she walked toward them and naturally sat down on the chair the man had humbly pulled for her.


    Everyone was stunned when they saw this. Last night, Brother Zhi was adamant on keeping some distance from them and not talking unless necessary, but today... how did his rtionship with Sister Hong be intimate all of a sudden?


    However, Sister Hong acted like nothing was wrong so no one dared to speak up either. She scoffed when she saw Jin Jiuchi toying with the chicken in great interest. "Amon prop, huh? Was it youst night who caused such a great ruckus? Are you so keen on seeking death?!"


    "Sister Hong, it''s me..." Xinxin raised her hand gingerly just like a student in the ss who wanted to speak with the teacher.


    "You?" Sister Hong turned to her, frowning. But before she could open her mouth to give a lecture, Nian ced something on the table and slid it in front of Xinxin. It was a yellow talisman drawn with red cinnabar.


    "For you," he said, ignoring the surprised look from others. "It can be used to protect yourself from one supernatural attack. Consider it my gratitude for your helpst night."


    "Oh me too, me too!" Jin Jiuchi immediately perked up when he heard that, unwilling to lose out to Nian. As shocked as he was ¨C because what the hell, Nian also had something as magical as the screaming chicken? Why didn''t he bring it outst night for Jin Jiuchi to see?! ¨C he was truly grateful for Xinxin''s timely assistancest night. Otherwise he would have died if he had to hold his breath for one more second! "Um, wait a minute..." he patted his pocket with great hope only to be disappointed when he found nothing inside. Last night, he hade out with only a little cash, enough to buy a portion ofmb skewers. Let alone any magical item, he did not even have a single cent on his body.


    He murmured sadly. "I don''t have anything on me..."


    Sister Hong sneered and murmured loud enough for the whole table to hear. "Idiot newbie, of course you don''t."


    "No, no..." Xinxin hurriedly refused and reached out to grab Nian''s talisman. "It''s okay, Brother Yang. That prop is very cheap and I have received this¡ª" her eyes red wide in surprise as she choked out, "Oh my God, this talisman is almost thrice as expensive as my chicken!"


    "What? What is it?" Tang Ye scooted closer in curiosity and when Xinxin allowed him to take a peek, his eyes simrly grew wide. "Woah, this is a goodmon prop! Little brother has good stuff!"


    Nian remained as cool as a cucumber under Xinxin and Tang Ye''s sparkling eyes. "Xinxin has saved my life. This is nothing."


    Jin Jiuchi pouted his lips, sulking. Even Nian could bring out something so awesome, what about him?! He racked his brain and his eyes lit up when he thought of something that mightpare to Nian''s talisman. "I owe you one," he told Xinxin seriously and thumped on his chest. "In the future, if you need me, I will definitely help you even at the expense of my life!"


    Sister Hong sneered again, louder this time. "You waste a prop to save a newbie and a child?" she asked Xinxin in a demanding tone. "Have you gone crazy? Every single prop is precious and may save your life in unexpected times. You can barely take care of yourself so what makes you think that you can take care of others?!"


    Xinxin''s face grew pale in fright. "I¨CI know..." her voice was shaky. "I won''t do it again next time, Sister Hong."


    "Ha! Next time? You are lucky if there will be a ''next time''!" Her lips curled into a contemptuous arc as if mocking Xinxin''s kind-hearted yet foolish gesture. Then she shook her head and turned her gaze to the door. "Forget it. Why should I waste my time to lecture you? It''s up to you how you want to live your life. Whether you''re dead or alive, it''s none of my business. Where the hell is the other newbie? Don''t tell me that he stupidly ran outst night and got himself killed!"


    "Actually..." Tang Ye interjected awkwardly from the side. "Last night, I heard Old Guan''s screams. It sounded like he had been terribly frightened by something. Then I saw him... bursting out of his room..."


    A hushed silence fell over the table. If Old Guan indeed left his roomst night, then he must have been¡ª


    "Good morning, everyone."


    "Ah!" Xinxin sped her mouth in shock, her widened eyes trailing after Old Guan who had just stepped in through the door. Everyone''s eyesnded on him with various degrees of shock and disbelief, half because they really thought that he had met his demisest night, while the other half was because...


    "O¨COld Guan?" Tang Ye stood up in reflex. "You... are you okay?"


    Old Guan still looked the same as he didst night, yet at the same time, it was also like he had turned into a wholly different person. His frightened and frenzied demeanor was no more, his eyes were no longer shifty and bloodshot like a jumpy rabbit. He looked... refreshed, to say the least.


    If only his lips were not ck in color.

 Chapter 18: Signature Dish

    <h4>Chapter 18: Signature Dish</h4>


    Everyone couldn''t help but stare as Old Guan approached them and took a seat beside Surnamed Zhi with a slight smile on his face. "I''m sorry for beingte. I''ve almost overslept."


    "You... overslept?" Tang Ye choked out with much difficulty. Then whose tragic screams had he heardst night? Who was the figure he had seen running out of Old Guan''s room? It couldn''t be that he was hallucinating... right?!


    "Yeah," Old Guan let out a hoarse chuckle that sent chills down their spine. It just sounded... wrong, in more ways than one. "I apologize for my unsightly behaviorst night. I was not usually like that. I am an artisan, you see. Beforeing here, I''ve justpleted a huge order and haven''t had the time to rest yet. I guess the shock and sleep deprivation got the best out of me, I ended up making a joke out of myself. Now that I''ve gotten a good night''s sleep, I can finally think clearly again."


    Tang Ye gaped at him, clearly speechless. Could a good night''s sleep really cause someone''s personality to change 180 degrees?


    "What happened to your lips?" Sister Hong directly addressed the elephant in the room, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.


    "My... lips?" Blinking, Old Guan wiped his mouth with an utterly oblivious look. The ck color did note off at all, as if that was how it was supposed to be. "What''s wrong with my lips?"


    Sister Hong parted her lips to speak, but then she closed it again and decided not to say anything.


    Once again, a hushed and grim silence fell over the table, this time with a horror ir as Old Guan started to hum softly under his breath. On closer inspection, it sounded awfully simr to the melody of the gongs and trumpetsst night, only more mellow, softer and of course... creepier.


    No one said anything, but they all tacitly agreed on one thing ¨C something had happened to Old Guan and it''s better to keep their distance from now on.


    Xinxin gave a visible shudder and rubbed the goosebumps on her arms whereas Tang Ye looked like he had just swallowed a fly. Only Sister Hong and Surnamed Zhi could keep a straight face in front of this creature that looked exactly like Old Guan.


    "Hey," Nian jabbed Jin Jiuchi with an elbow, drawing thetter''s attention away from Old Guan. He leaned to the side and whispered to Jin Jiuchi''s ear in a voice only both of them could hear. "Why are you staring at him like that?"


    Jin Jiuchi could feel his ear twitching when the jade doll''s exhale softly caressed his earlobe. He rubbed the shell of his ear absentmindedly. "It''s just that..." he had not finished his sentence yet when the door to the dining hall swung open and this time, a group of cooks bringing a huge pot and tes sauntered in.


    A warm and appetizing aroma spread in the air and Jin Jiuchi instantly forgot what he was going to say. He was practically buzzing in his seat out of excitement, his sparkling eyes glued to the food. If he had a tail, it would definitely be wagging like mad right now.


    Food! There was free food here! And it smelled so amazing! Seriously, could this ce get any better?!


    Growing unsatisfied with theck of answer, Nian jabbed him again, harder this time. He felt like what his elbow touched was not human skin and muscles, but a hard wall of bricks. He seethed in a low voice, "I''m asking you a question!"


    "Sshhh!" Jin Jiuchi hushed him with a rare seriousness he had never shown before. Without even looking away from the approaching cooks, he stretched out an arm and pushed the jade''s doll face away with arge hand. "Nian''er, we must always show appreciation for food. Please don''t distract me!"


    Nian: "..." He almost brought out his silver needles and stabbed Jin Jiuchi with them to let him know what true distraction felt like.


    He swatted Jin Jiuchi''s stinky paw away and shot him a dark re. s, the man did not even deign to give him a nce for all of his attention was focused on the food. Once therge pot and tes were ced on the table, Jin Jiuchi let out an astonished ''wow'', as opposed to everyone''s faces who instantly crumpled as if they had bitten into a sour lemon.


    On the table, there were six tes of dry bread for each of them whereas a pot of bubbling meat sauce was ced in the middle. It was bright crimson in color, looking extremely thick and lumpy with small bs of red meat popping out of the surface. Despite the bubbling soup, the meat looked like they were not cooked at all, with the white fat and bluish little veins on the surface. Not only that, there were also a few ck strands swimming inside the soup that honestly looked like... hair. Small clumps of hair.


    Xinxin sped her mouth tightly to prevent herself from retching, and everyone else recoiled as if they couldn''t wait to get as far away as possible from the pot.


    Only Jin Jiuchi was leaning in to take in more of the appetizing scent. As if it was not enough, he even used his hand to fan the vapor to him. "Hmm..." He closed his eyes with a blissful look. "Smells so good!"


    Xinxin and Tang Ye''s heads snapped to him in horror. Sister Hong and Surnamed Zhi merely frowned and nced at Jin Jiuchi warily. Old Guan was still humming, immersed in his own world.


    And Nian... Nian was shielding his face, ashamed to be ced in the same group with Jin Jiuchi. What the hell was wrong with this crazy pervert?! How could he say that¡ª oh right, he was crazy. It would be better not to learn how a madman''s brain worked.


    "It is Shishen Apartment''s signature dish, Authentic Meat Sauce," Madam Liu stepped in gracefully through the door and answered Jin Jiuchi''s praise with a stiff smile. In daylight, she looked even more terrifying with her gray colored skin, dead eyes, ck lips and long ck dress that reached her ankles. "Everyone is a guest from afar, so it''s only right for me to offer you the best hospitality. I''m very sure you will like the meat sauce I have made. Won''t you give it a try?"


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes lit up. "Madam Liu is too kind, I like this kind of hospitality the most! Now that you are offering, I won''t stand on ceremony with you then! Thank you for the food~" He grabbed thedle, scooped out the sauce and happily dumped it on his bread.


    Nian''s eyes flew wide in shock. "Wait¡ª" He did not expect Jin Jiuchi to be crazy enough to ignore the obvious warning signs. He wanted to eat this disgusting soup? Did he have a death wish or something?!


    s, when he shot up to his feet intending to swipe the te off Jin Jiuchi''s hand, the man used his full height to his advantage to lift it away from his reach.


    "Ah, ah, no stealing, Nian''er! If you want to have a taste, then just grab it yourself!" Jin Jiuchi let out a delightfulugh and stuffed the bread dipped in meat sauce into his mouth, chewing it under everyone''s stupefied gazes.

 Chapter 19: Dead

    <h4>Chapter 19: Dead</h4>


    Cw: depiction of gory death


    ''Damn this shortie!''


    Nian gritted his teeth and cursed inwardly when he could not p the te out of Jin Jiuchi''s hand in time. Previously, this small body had been nothing but convenient to him and that''s why he had always preferred to enter the Cycle under this guise. But who could have guessed that he would finally run into a wall after meeting Jin Jiuchi?


    "Are you crazy?!" He seethed. "How dare you put that repulsive thing into your mouth!"


    Jin Jiuchi gasped in such terror as if the jade doll had murdered his entire family. "''Repulsive thing''? Bad Nian''er! How could you..." a sputter of disbelievingugh escaped his lips and in that split second, Nian caught a glimpse of the red bloody meat inside his mouth. Ew. "How could you say it like that? This is food... precious and delicious food! The audacity you have to badmouth about it in front of the owner itself!"


    Jin Jiuchi shot him a disapproving re before turning to thendy with an apologetic smile. "Please don''t take it to heart, Madam Liu. He''s only a child! Your meat sauce is very delicious!"


    Now it was Nian''s turn to bark out a disbelievingugh. What the hell was he doing trying to help someone who could not even appreciate it? Moreover, he was not even certain yet whether this man was really a human! Jin Jiuchi could be a ghost in disguise, a crazy pervert or real weirdo for all he cared! The man''s life and death was none of his business!


    Taking a deep breath, Nian curbed the hot anger in his chest and sat down on the chair. Out of sight, out of mind.


    Madam Liu looked really delighted when she heard Jin Jiuchi''s praise. Her stare bore into his face ¨C or to be exact, on the bread with meat sauce topping that entered his mouth one after another, so intense that it sent shivers down everyone''s spine. "I''m so d to hear that!" She offered a wider smile to Jin Jiuchi, which meant that her lips curled up a millimeter higher. It made her look like she had a muscle spasm instead.


    "How about the others? Won''t you give it a try too?" She swept his gaze over the people who were still frozen in their seats after the insane feat Jin Jiuchi had attempted, beforending on Old Guan in the end.


    Last night, Old Guan had been terrified to death just by the mere sight of her, but now, he actually offered her a smile and reached for thedle to pour the meat sauce over his bread. He brought the bread to his mouth and bit down on it with a crunchy sound.


    "Delicious," hemented, the crimson soup trickling out of his ck colored lips.


    Everyone gaped at him in various degrees of shock and disgust. At least, Jin Jiuchi''s manner of eating was neat and clean ¨C well, it was actually him being too ravenous and unwilling to waste even a single drop ¨C but Old Guan was... messy. In a sh, the soup had drenched half of his face and the cor of his shirt like an endless stream of blood, painting a grotesque and bizarre image.


    Yet he still had a calm smile on his face as if he was fine-dining in an expensive restaurant and what he was eating was his favorite steak.


    "I¨CI''m sorry...!" Unable to endure it anymore, Xinxin stumbled out of her seat and rushed out of the dining hall, presumably to the bathroom where she could empty the contents of her stomach.


    Madam Liu acted as if she noticed none of the ruckus. "I''m so happy that the guests this time show such high appreciation for the signature dish. Previously, all of them wasted it..." she trailed off, her countenance turning grim as though recalling some unpleasant memories. With her dead eyes and ck lips, she looked like some kind of ultra realistic gothic doll that would make children cry as soon as they saw her. Then she blinked and nced at the time. "Oh my, look at me. I will leave you on your own volition. After you''re done with the breakfast, please go to the sixth floor where we will start to decorate the wedding venue."


    After saying that, she really turned away and left, causing everyone to breathe out a sigh of relief.


    "B¨CBrother Yang!" Tang Ye jumped to his feet and demanded in utter shock and trepidation. "You... are you okay?!"


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi asked, his cheeks stuffed full like a hamster. In such a short span of time, he had already wolfed down four out of six slices of bread on his te. He chewed quickly and swallowed it down, already reaching for the fifth slice. "What''s wrong?"


    Tang Ye was utterly stupefied. "What''s wrong, you ask..."


    Jin Jiuchi saw how they did not move to grab their fill and asked in confusion. "Why aren''t you guys eating? It''s so creamy and vorful. Look, even Old Guan is enjoying it. You heard Madam Liu. This is a signature dish you can only find in this apartment! Everyone, please give it a try!"


    Sister Hong''s face abruptly turned ugly when she heard that. s, just as she was opening her mouth and was ready to curse the living shit out of Jin Jiuchi¡ª


    "Huekk¡ª!" Old Guan covered his mouth and retched, more crimson soup slipping out through his fingers to drip to his trousers.


    Almost immediately, Sister Hong and the man surnamed Zhi ¨C who sat closest to him ¨C pushed the chair back and stood up, eyeing Old Guan warily. Nian followed suit to keep a considerable distance where he could still observe the man.


    Tang Ye''s eyes flew wide in horror, his voice shaky as he asked, "O¨COld Guan...?"


    Old Guan''s eyes bulged out almost terrifyingly, bloody red veins palpable in them. A sh of fear appeared in the depth of his pupils and in that moment, it was as if the previous Old Guan had returned ¨C the man who was overwhelmed by dread and panic.


    "H¨CHelp..." he rasped. "H¨CHelp me... my throat... something is¡ª hueek!" He retched again.


    With a sudden lurch, he hurled out a flood of thick crimson liquid, sshing all over himself and the table. He kept vomiting and vomiting until his stomach caved in and his skin turned dry and rough like a tree bark. "H¨CHelp..." with that onest plea, his eyes rolled backward and he mmed face-first down to the table, before goingpletely motionless.


    Everyone watched in horror as his skin started to crack like a fragile ss, yellow pus and blood oozing out of the cracks as if he was breaking apart from within. Soon afterward, his body began to melt, like wax heated under high temperature, like a piece of candy liquified under the scorching sun, leaving not even a resemnce to the human he had been just moments ago.


    By this point, everyone had already moved to the corner of the room, staring speechlessly at the puddle of blood and melted substance that was Old Guan. Amid the blood and pus sshed all over the floor, they could even see a few small pieces of twitching flesh and small clumps of long hair.


    It looked horribly simr to... the meat sauce in the pot.


    "Urgh¡ª!" Tang Ye braced his hand against the wall and dry-heaved. Even Sister Hong, Zhi and Nian''s faces were slightly pale.


    Then simultaneously, they snapped their eyes toward Jin Jiuchi who was still cradling the pot of meat sauce ¨C which he had hastily taken away before it could be spoiled by Old Guan''s vomit ¨C in his arms.


    Jin Jiuchi opened his mouth and let out a satisfied burp. "...What?" he asked once he noticed four pairs of expectant eyes on him.


    Everyone: "..." Waiting for the next victim to fall.


    .


    .


    Mini theater


    Jin Jiuchi: 0.0 why is everyone staring at me? They can''t be eyeing my food, right...

 Chapter 20: Death Condition

    <h4>Chapter 20: Death Condition</h4>


    A strange situation unfolded for the next ten minutes where everyone fixed their vignt gazes on Jin Jiuchi, waiting for him to end up in the same predicament as Old Guan.


    But much to their surprise ¨C and Jin Jiuchi''s confusion ¨C nothing happened at all. Well, if they did not count how many times Jin Jiuchi had burped for thest ten minutes.


    "B-Brother Yang..." Tang Ye was the first to speak up, unable to endure the weird atmosphere any longer. "How are you feeling? Is everything... okay?"


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head in confusion. "Yes...?" he said, puzzled. "Why are you guys staring at me? Shouldn''t you go and check on Old Guan? All of a sudden, he just..." He looked at Old Guan who had melted into a puddle of unknown substance, and he pinched his nose when the smell started to overwhelm him. "Ugh, luckily I salvaged the meat sauce in time. Otherwise what should we do if it got contaminated by Old Guan?"


    Everyone: "..." So that''s what you''re most concerned about huh?


    Sister Hong scoffed and turned away. "We''ve already known from the start that he is abnormal. Why should we continue to fuss on him?"


    "Hey!" Jin Jiuchi eximed, affronted.


    What''s the problem with this woman? How could she im Jin Jiuchi for being abnormal when she was the one who... when she was the one who showed up reeking of Surnamed Zhi! Only God knew what those two were doing behind the closed door for their scents to mingle so intensely like that! Compared to her, what Jin Jiuchi did was perfectly normal, okay?!


    "Okay guys, we shouldn''t fight." Tang Ye stepped in to thaw the tension in the air, being the busybody he was. He looked at Jin Jiuchi and Sister Hong back and forth, and tried to ster a friendly and harmless smile on his face. "It''s very fortunate that nothing happens to Brother Yang, it means that we have one more manpower to finish the task. And Sister Hong, Brother Yang''s personality is indeed very... unique, but there''s nothing abnormal about him at all!"


    Jin Jiuchi gave him a thumbs up. Finally, there was someone who could talk some sense here!


    On the other hand, Sister Hong rolled her eyes and turned away with a cold harrumph.


    Tang Ye continued to say, "Now that Old Guan and Brother Yang have both eaten the meat sauce and only Old Guan who had... um, met with an unfortunate ident, then can we all agree that eating the meat sauce is not the death condition?"


    "Death condition?" Jin Jiuchi chewed the foreign words on his tongue, confused. "What is that?"


    "Oh, look at me. I forgot that Brother Yang is a newbie." Tang Ye pped his forehead and proceeded to exin the terms to Jin Jiuchi. "Okay, listen well, Brother Yang. Now that you''re here with us, you have be a yer. Or to be exact, a newbie yer because you''re entering the Cycle for the first time. I won''t talk your ears off about the Cycle here, you can find out everything about it after you get out of here. What''s most important right now is to earn the bus ticket. It''s the thing you use to get here..." he trailed off all of a sudden, presumably recalling that Jin Jiuchi was an anomaly who had found his way to the bus without a ticket. But then he quickly regained his bearing, cleared his throat and continued to say,


    "To earn the tickets, we have to finish the task issued by the NPC ¨C I''m talking about Madam Liu. She is the NPC who has hired us to help with the ghost marriage procession. Only with the ticket can we board the bus again on the sixth day and get out of this ce. Do you get it, Brother Yang?"


    Jin Jiuchi nodded solemnly even though he still could not figure out what he was supposed to ''get''. He must have zoned out sometime when Tang Ye started to talk about yers...


    "And the death condition you''re talking about?" Jin Jiuchi prompted.


    "Just like the name implied, it''s a condition for death to happen. Each Cycle has its own rule and it will not kill people casually, so as long as you don''t fulfill the condition needed to trigger death, then you won''t... meet your demise like Old Guan. I believe that we have all been told the first death conditionst night ¨C do note out of our room after ten pm no matter what. If we vite this rule, something horrible will befall us."


    Now Jin Jiuchi was starting to get it. "So what you mean to say is... Old Guan died because he ran out of his roomst night?"


    "I believe so," Tang Ye scratched his head and nced at Old Guan with a frown. "But we can''t exclude the possibility that Old Guan has fulfilled more than one death condition."


    Jin Jiuchi blinked in surprise, "More than one death condition?"


    Tang Ye nodded somberly. "There can''t be only one death condition in the Cycle, Brother Yang. That''s why, the faster we discover them, therger our chance of survival will be."


    "And the way to discover them will be...?"


    Sister Hong finally lost her patience and snapped at Jin Jiuchi, "Why are you asking so many questions? Can''t you use your brain to think for once?! Our focus right now is to finish the task and earn the tickets. Anything other than that will be an unnecessary distraction! Now that you have seen what happened to that man, I would advise you to be extra careful, newbie..." her lips curled into a contemptuous sneer. "Who knows? Maybe you will be the next."


    "Let''s go," she told Zhi and together, both of them strode out of the dining hall with the man trailing behind her like a well-trained dog.


    "Wait, Sister Hong, Brother Zhi¡ª!" Tang Ye nced at the pair and Jin Jiuchi back and forth before jogging toward the former. "Well, that''s the gist, Brother Yang! If you are still confused, let''s talk againter. We have to go to the sixth floor now!"


    In a sh, the three of them were gone, leaving only Jin Jiuchi, Nian and the very dead Old Guan.


    Jin Jiuchi turned to Nian and started to grumble out loud, "Are all women like her, Nian''er? Why is she so fierce and annoying?" He bared his teeth at the door as if he could convey his distaste for her this way. "Moreover, she stinks to death!"


    Nian stared at him for one long moment, his purple eyes sharp and scrutinizing. "She slept with that man?"


    "Nian''er, you have to trust me!" Jin Jiuchi demanded loudly for fear that the jade doll would think that he was making things up. "Even if you can''t trust my eyes, you have to trust my nose! My nose has never failed me before!"


    "I know, I am not blind." Nian rolled his eyes in disdain. How rude. Only the jade doll would still look beautiful when he attempted something like this. "I can tell in a nce that something is different about them. If I''m not wrong, that woman''s skill card must have something to do with hypnosis or mind control..." he mumbled, more to himself this time. After considering it for a few seconds, he turned to walk toward the door. "Throw that damn pot away. We have to go to the sixth floor now."


    "Okay~" Jin Jiuchi obediently tossed the empty pot in his arms away, sending it flying in an arc only tond with a bang right in the middle of the puddle that was Old Guan.


    He skipped after Nian and asked curiously, "By the way, Tang Ye has not answered my question yet. How do we discover the death condition in this ce? Do you have any idea about it, Nian''er?"


    Hearing that question, Nian abruptly halted in his steps and turned to Jin Jiuchi, forcing thetter to stop in haste to prevent them from colliding with each other. s, before Jin Jiuchi could lecture him on how dangerous it was to do something like that, Nian showed a mocking smile and said,


    "How to discover the death condition? It''s very simple. As long as people continue to die, we will gradually learn about them all."


    .


    .


    A/N: new book event is closed! Thank you everyone for your lovely and kind reviews QAQ I''m really happy to see such enthusiasm from you! To be honest, I was afraid that this story will be too scary to attract readers, but reading yourments everyday has been a huge motivation for me >< please continue to support Jin Jiuchi and Nian, okay? *lick knife*


    Winners will be announced on tomorrow''s chapter! Please wait for it~

 Chapter 21: Room 404

    <h4>Chapter 21: Room 404</h4>


    "Huh?" Jin Jiuchi blinked in surprise. "What you mean to say is... between us, that repulsive woman, Zhi, Tang Ye, and Xinxin, someone has to die for the others to learn about the death condition in this ce?"


    "Exactly," Nian''s lips curved into a chilling smile that did not quite reach his eyes. Under the dim sunlight streaming in from the atrium, the jade doll looked positively breathtaking with his fluttering silver hair and sharp purple eyes. Almost as if he did not belong to this world to begin with. "But let me tell you one thing. I don''t n to die. Not now, and especially not in this ce."


    Jin Jiuchi couldn''t help but snort in amusement when he heard this. Of course, who would want to die? Didn''t humans struggle to wake up early and go on their boring routine every single day because they wanted to survive? Even Old Guan''s ¨C if that creature back there could still be considered Old Guan ¨Cst words before he breathed hisst was to plead for someone to help him.


    Jin Jiuchi did not want to die either. Hell, he had just managed to get out of the asylum with much difficulty. How could he die before he had the chance to experience everything this world has to offer?! He would be utterly unreconciled if that were to happen. He would definitelye back as a hungry ghost!


    But speaking of this strange world, was it really a ce where someone had to die for others to survive? That would be... so saddening.


    Seeing that Jin Jiuchi was lost in thought, Nian grew impatient. "So, is there anything else you want to ask?"


    "Oh yes!" Jin Jiuchi perked up in attention to that. He shed a grin that showed his sharp canines. "Nian''er, you haven''t eaten anything yet, have you? Aren''t you very hungry now?" Like magic, he flipped his hand and two pieces of dry bread appeared on his palm, ones that had not been touched by the meat sauce yet. "Ta-da! I managed to grab this from your te before Old Guan... err, turned into liquid. How is it? Ain''t I fast?"


    Jin Jiuchi offered the bread to the jade doll with an expectant look, rendering thetter utterly speechless. When had this man made a move? Not only had he salvaged the pot, he also had the time to snatch the bread! Was he ravenous or inly foolish?!


    Nian stared at the man in front of him, stumped. Somehow, if he stared hard enough, he could almost see a fluffy tail swishing back and forth behind Jin Jiuchi. Coupled with his sparkling eyes and devilishly gorgeous face, Nian felt strangely... warm. He did not expect the man to pay so much attention to him.


    He cleared his throat and took one of the bread from Jin Jiuchi''s hand, taking a small bite out of it. "Thank you. Let''s hurry up." Not giving any chance for Jin Jiuchi to react, he turned and walked toward the stairs.


    "Okay~" Jin Jiuchi''s eyes curved into crescents as he shoved the remaining piece of bread into his mouth and caught up with the jade doll with his long legs. "Nian''er, wait for me!"


    Last night, they had arrived toote and thus had no time to properly inspect the apartment building. Now that it was daylight, the two of them seized the advantage to look around ¨C well, it was Nian who did it seriously whereas Jin Jiuchi merely jumped here and there to sniff the air.


    "Strange..." Jin Jiuchi swept his gaze over the closed doors, the empty corridor, and the floor that was covered in a thinyer of dust, frowning. "The list clearly said that all of the rooms in this building are upied save for the six rooms we stayed inst night. So why does it smell like no one has lived here for a long time? Not to mention, I can''t even detect any hint of repulsive stench from the paper dollsst night. Don''t you think it''s weird, Nian''er? That smell was so damn strong, I almost diedst night because of it! How could it vanish without a trace just like that?!"


    Nian cast him a speechless look. "What are you, a hound? You can even smell something like that?"


    Jin Jiuchi rubbed his nose and puffed out his chest proudly. "Hehe I told you, my nose has never failed me before!"


    In response to his demeanor that was clearly seeking praise, Nian merely rolled his eyes and returned his gaze to the front. But surprisingly, he gave a proper answer for once, perhaps because Jin Jiuchi had shared the bread with him earlier. So the saying was true, the way to someone''s heart was really through their stomach!


    "Don''t bother," he said in a nonchnt tone as he continued to inspect the rooms. "All of these rooms are either empty, or there''s a trap waiting for us as soon as we open them. Some of it may even trigger the death condition. If you don''t want to die, I''d advise you not to knock on the door."


    Jin Jiuchi''s knuckles stopped an inch away from the door before he quickly retracted his paw and hid it behind his back like a disobedient child who was caught eating a jar of peanut butter. He stared at the jade doll in front of him in astonishment. Amazing, Nian''er did not even look at him so how did he know that Jin Jiuchi was going to knock on the door?!


    "But..." Jin Jiuchi hurried to chase after him. "Nian''er, I saw someone..."


    Nian paused. "...You saw someone? Where?"


    "Uh-huh. Before we even got off the bus..." Jin Jiuchi described the appearance of the thin and shriveled face he had seen through the window. "And if I''m not wrong, then it should be... this room." He halted on his tracks and pointed at a certain room on the fourth floor in front of him.


    Nian looked up and saw that it was room 404.


    404...


    Nian furrowed his brows. If he did not remember wrongly, then this room should belong to one of the yers ¡ª Sister Hong.

 Chapter 22: Gege, My Ass

    <h4>Chapter 22: Gege, My Ass</h4>


    "Are you sure?" Nian asked him again to confirm, only to receive a disbelieving gasp from Jin Jiuchi.


    The man put a hand on his chest with a wounded look, "Nian''er, how can you doubt me so?!"


    Seeing that Jin Jiuchi was being his dramatic and annoying self, Nian''er had the urge to roll his eyes again. He swore, if he spent more time with this man, his eyes were going to pop out of their sockets from the amount of rolling they did. Instead of ying along, he told the man seriously, "Don''t tell anyone about this. Do you hear me?"


    Jin Jiuchi blinked in surprise, not expecting that the jade doll would say something like that. "Oooh..." he drawled out with a provoking smirk. "Is this Nian''er being a bad kid? Don''t tell anyone? What if something happens to herter? Hmm?"


    The jade doll shot him a vicious re. "If you want to tell her, then go ahead. It''s none of my business."


    Jin Jiuchi threw his head back andughed out loud. One second he was advising Jin Jiuchi, then the next second he turned around and pretended as if it had nothing to do with him? How could Nian''er be so fun to tease? "Okay, okay I know..." a hint of sly cruelty shed through his silver eyes. "Don''t worry, Nian''er. Even though I look like this, I know how to differentiate between friend and foe. I didn''t tell you everythingst night. Actually, aside from the stinky stench of men, she also smells of blood and decay. Like a rotten fish." Jin Jiuchi wrinkled his nose in distaste when he recalled that. The food in this ce was good, too bad there were so many awful smells mixing in the air.


    Nian stared at him nkly, "Rotten fish..."


    "Uh-huh, it smells so bad that I''m going to puke." Jin Jiuchi made a gesture of retching, but when he saw that Nian did not show any reaction whatsoever, he ended up sulking instead. Why was the jade doll so hard to impress? Jin Jiuchi had told him so many things, but all he got was a stupefied look. How devastating!


    Jin Jiuchi huffed. "What? Don''t believe me?"


    Nian blinked as though snapping back to his senses, then he shook his head. "Then, can you tell me about another person?" he asked tentatively.


    As soon as Jin Jiuchi heard that, his entire person instantly brightened up as if gorgeous flowers were blooming all around him, even the tip of his hair radiated happiness. He smiled so wide that his eyes turned crescents. However, what came out of his mouth sounded so annoying that Nian had the urge to punch him on the face. "Oooh, Nian''er~ you''re starting to trust me, aren''t you?"


    Nian felt his ears heating up and he gritted out angrily, "Do you want to tell me or not?!" As much as it pained him to admit it, Jin Jiuchi had been nothing but sincere and candid to him. Even though he was quite a weirdo and possibly a crazy pervert who did not act ording tomon sense, deep down Nian could tell that... he was not a bad person.


    At least,pared to everyone else here, Jin Jiuchi could be considered the easiest to read ¨C even though times and times again he kept being taken aback by the absurdity of this man''s wed logic.


    "I will. Of course, I will!" Jin Jiuchiughed and sent him a teasing wink. "Who does Nian''er want to know? Gege will tell you everything!"


    "Gege, my ass..." Nian grumbled, but he still stepped forward to tug on Jin Jiuchi''s wrist, pulling the man down so he could whisper into his ear.


    ***


    Instead of rooms, there was only a vast circr space on the sixth floor. Sundries,rge wooden tables and chairs were messily stacked on the corner.


    The sunlight was the strongest here ¨C even though it was just a faint raypared to normal ¨C illuminating every dusty crook and corner and the tiny particles floating in midair. Somehow, the low ceiling gave people a sense of oppression, it was as if they were standing on top of a mountain where the oxygen became thin.


    The first thing Jin Jiuchi did once he stepped on the sixth floor was to look at the ss roof in the middle where he had sensed the source of the cryptic gazest night. But in the daylight, everything looked normal and all he could see was a small piece of overcast sky with little clouds drifting by.


    Huh? It seemed like... he could only sense it at night?


    "What are you looking at?" Nian asked while following his line of sight, only to frown when he saw nothing unusual.


    Jin Jiuchi shook his head, "I can''t really describe it now. Let me ask you againter."


    "Brother Yang! Little brother! Over here!" Tang Ye caught sight of them and waved energetically.


    Right now, he and Xinxin were busy sweeping the dirty floor with a broom that looked older than a century. Meanwhile, Sister Hong and Surnamed Zhi were wiping the tables and chairs ¨C no, to be exact it was only Zhi who worked whereas Sister Hong sat on the chair while giving out onemand after another just like the evil stepmother of Cindere.


    Walking toward them, Jin Jiuchi rolled up his sleeves to show a pair of toned and beautifully muscr arms. "I''m here! What should I help with?" Then to the jade doll, he said, "Nian''er should just stay aside and watch me work, okay?"


    How could he let someone as ethereal and delicate as Nian''er work hardbor? What if Nian''er''s small soft hands became callused after this? Jin Jiuchi''s heart ached at the mere thought of it. Anything beautiful and fragile had to be cherished and for that, Jin Jiuchi was prepared to work hard for Nian''s behalf as well. Either way, he was the (self-acimed) big brother so it was only right for him to take his little brother''s burden!


    Jin Jiuchi secretly patted himself on the back. He went to drag a chair and wiped the dirty surface with the provided rag cloth. Then he ced the chair behind the jade doll and beamed, "Have a seat, Nian''er!"


    Surprisingly, no one objected to this preferential treatment, even Sister Hong merely turned her head away with a harrumph. Perhaps because they thought it would be too low of them to force a child to work or perhaps they were afraid that Nian would mess things up instead. Whatever it was, odds ended up working in Nian''s favor and he could once again escape the responsibility of having to work menialbor.


    This was the main reason why he liked to stay in this form. Aside from how easily he could make people lower their guard around him, he would also be given lighter tasks like the women''s.


    But to clearly exempt him from work and readily take on the burden on his behalf... Jin Jiuchi was the first person to do it.


    Nian sat down on the wooden chair with aplicated look. He watched as Jin Jiuchi showed a look of utter satisfaction, then went to join Tang Ye and Xinxin to sweep the floor. Thanks to his rolled-up sleeves, Nian could see the way his biceps and back muscles flexed charmingly when he moved, the way droplets of sweat trailed down his cheeks before rolling down his sharp jaws to leave a glistening trail behind, the way he lifted his shirt to wipe it away and as a result, showed a glimpse of perfectly sculptured abs akin to a delectable piece of chocte... and his hands, thoserge veiny hands that held onto the broom like it was a fragile neck...


    He had to admit, this man sure was gorgeous in a rough and aggressive way.


    Nian swallowed hard, but then when his gaze moved to the person Jin Jiuchi was talking to, he instantly snapped back to his senses and a gloomy look obscured his purple eyes.


    .


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi turned to him in surprise. "You want to know about him?"


    Startled by their sudden proximity, Nian took a step backward and nodded with the most casual look he could muster, "Do you know anything?"


    "Of course..." A sly grin spread across Jin Jiuchi''s face, making him look all the more devilish like the God of Trickster who delighted to see the world in chaos. "Tang Ye, huh? His scent is second only to Sister Hong. Not so repulsive, but still unpleasant nheless. Do you want to know what he smells like, Nian''er?"


    A sharp gleam shed through Jin Jiuchi''s silver eyes. "Liar," he whispered in a low voice that only both of them could hear. "He smells like an utter liar."


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª


    A/N: Winner annoucement!


    Congrattions to Jerzer, heaven_falling, ThatAnimeeLoverr, Bunny_s_sweet_chim, Kyen_Syr, tangerine_boy, Firefly9116, Yumi_Lynh, and ArcaneMag! ^^ For heaven, bunny, and kyen (because I already know how to contact the others *cough*) please reach out to me through discord dnasiwarka#1490 or instagram dnasiwarka, so I can send the redeem codes to you!


    Also, I''m sorry for those who aren''t chosen QAQ but fret not, dna will randomly drop redeem codes in this book once in a while. If you''re fast (because the redeem codes are only avable for the first 10 users) then you will definitely be able to grab it!


    Again, thank you so much for being here with me <3<3<3

 Chapter 23: Give Me A Smile!

    <h4>Chapter 23: Give Me A Smile!</h4>


    Due to the sheer size of the entire floor, it took Jin Jiuchi, Tang Ye and Xinxin the whole morning to sweep it.


    Jin Jiuchi wiped the sweat on his forehead and beamed in satisfaction when he looked at the clean floor. "Oh, we''re faster than I expected! Do you think we will be able to get everything done in less than six days? What if we really finish it? Does it mean we can leave this ce earlier?"


    Tang Ye and Xinxin looked hesitant. Tang Ye took the lead to answer, "I don''t really know about that, Brother Yang. In my first Cycle, we needed to stay in a secluded vige for three days and learn their unique art of tea ceremony. In the end, we barely managed to master it within the allocated time. What about you?" he asked Xinxin.


    Under Tang Ye and Jin Jiuchi''s curious stare, Xinxin showed a nervous look and tugged on her bangs clipped by the cyan blue hairpin. "Um, as for me... I was transported into a tropical forest. I... and the others had to rush to the other side of the forest to get a g, and then hurried back again before nightfall..."


    Tang Ye eximed in pleasant surprise, "So, your first Cyclested only for a day? How nice!"


    Xinxin''s expression turned bitter, presumably recalling some unpleasant memories. "There''s nothing nice about it..."


    Jin Jiuchi rubbed his chin in contemtion, his gaze darting between Xinxin and Tang Ye back and forth. A secluded vige and a tropical rainforest... did it mean that Jin Jiuchi would also get a chance to visit many more ces after this? Ohoho, how could this ce be so interesting?! Jin Jiuchi still had no clear idea what the ''Cycle'' was, but one thing for sure, he was so ready to go to new ces and meet all kinds of people!


    Even though there were annoying people like Sister Hong, didn''t the Cycle also allow him to meet such an ethereal and beautiful Nian?


    His gaze involuntarily drifted to the jade doll who was sitting so primly and elegantly on the in wooden chair, only to realize that the jade doll had been staring at him since God-knows-when. As soon as their eyes collided in midair, Jin Jiuchi shed him a million-watt smile, causing Nian''s purple eyes to widen subtly before he turned his head away.


    Jin Jiuchi''s smile instantly faded to a pout. How could Nian look away once their eyes met? Wasn''t itmon sense to offer another smile in return?! Come to think of it, he did not recall ever seeing the jade doll smile...


    "Nian''er! Nian''er!" Jin Jiuchi bounded toward Nian and bent his waist to see the jade doll''s exquisite face better. Once again, Jin Jiuchi was awed by how stunning he was. Every inch of his face seemed to have been carved to perfection to highlight the best part of his features; the gentle yet sharp arc of his brows, the adorable slope of his nose, the lips that were always pressed into tight lines. But most of all, Jin Jiuchi''s favorite was his long and thick silvershes that framed a pair of the most unique and breathtaking eyes he had ever seen.


    "W¨CWhat do you want?" Startled, Nian leaned backward to put some distance between them, eyes wide in surprise. This crazy pervert couldn''t have realized how he had been ogling on him, right...


    "Nian''er, give me a smile!" Jin Jiuchi put two fingers on the corner of his curved lips as a demonstration. "Come on, just like this~"


    "...Huh?" Too taken aback by the request that came out of nowhere, Nian could not react for a while.


    Seeing him putting on a nk face, Jin Jiuchi clicked his tongue impatiently and reached out to help Nian stretch the corner of his lips. "Come on, smile~"


    s, before his fingers could even make contact with those beautiful lips, Nian instantly bristled like a cat whose tail was being stepped on and pped Jin Jiuchi''s dirty paws away. "Don''t touch me!"


    Jin Jiuchi clutched his hands to his chest with an extremely wounded look. "Nian''er, how can you be so violent?!"


    Nian froze. It suddenly dawned on him that he had overreacted this time. He already knew that this man was a weirdo who woulde up with the weirdest idea at random times, so why would he get so worked up? s, could anyone me him though? Who told Jin Jiuchi to be so touchy-feely?! His own sexual orientation and the fact of how gorgeous this annoying man was did nothing to help either!


    Refusing to back down, Nian turned his head away with a harrumph. "What are you talking about with the two of them?" He tried to shift the topic.


    Sure enough, Jin Jiuchi was instantly distracted. He told Nian enthusiastically, "Oh, we''re talking about their first Cycle. It seems like I haven''t heard you talk about it before. How about you, Nian''er? What kind of Cycle have you gone through before this? Is it more exciting than a secluded vige and a tropical rainforest?"


    The kind of Cycle he had gone through...


    Nian fell into a daze as the relentless sound of crashing waves faintly echoed in his ears. Silver lighting struck above his head, illuminating the deadly creatures swimming below his feet. He struggled to keep afloat, the salty taste of ocean water and blood choking his throat. All around him were shrill screams of despair, yers crying out for help and mercy only for their words to be cut off abruptly when the nightmare creature dragged them down to the belly of the ocean...


    "Nian''er..." A sudden warmth enveloped him, pulling him out of the vortex of memory. Nian gasped and his vacant eyes immediately regained focus. And the very first thing he registered was the scorching heat from the body that was hugging him tight, dispersing the chills that permeated his limbs.


    So hot and stuffy. It kinda felt like... being smothered by a huge husky.


    "Nian''er, Nian''er..." Jin Jiuchi nuzzled his face into the crook of Nian''s neck and sniffed him lightly. "You smell like fear, Nian''er. Are you thinking of something horrible? It''s okay, everything will be okay..."


    Nian was still reeling from the horror triggered by the reminder of the worst day of his life and that''s why he was slow to react when Jin Jiuchi started to rock them back and forth like he would a crying baby. What the hell was this man doing? Moreover, he even knew how tofort someone?


    Torn betweenughter and tears, Nian thumped Jin Jiuchi lightly on the back and said in a muffled voice, "Let go." How could someone''s temperature be so high? He was going to be suffocated by the heat!


    "But Nian''er... you''re afraid."


    Nian scoffed. "Well, not anymore. Hurry and let me go. Aren''t you embarassed? Everyone is looking at us!"


    Jin Jiuchi made a hum of protest that vibrated from deep within his chest. Nian could vividly feel it from where his arms were pressed against the man''s chest. He could also perceive the man''s powerful heartbeat and the overly warm exhale that fanned his neck...


    Jin Jiuchi drew back and regarded him with genuine concern. "Are you really okay?"


    Nian did not see this kind of concerning from him when Old Guan met his demise. Hell, he didn''t even know that Jin Jiuchi was capable of showing such a serious look. The man''s unusually sharp silver eyes fell on him like a warm ray of sunlight, causing his face to redden slightly.


    "I told you I''m fine!" He pushed Jin Jiuchi away, huffing and puffing.


    Fortunately, before Jin Jiuchi could say anything more, Nian caught thendy appearing from the staircase.


    "Good evening, everyone. I can see that you have been working hard to clean the ce. Nice work," she praised them with a t tone and dead eyes, making it so that the yers could not even feel an ounce of happiness from it.


    Madam Liu continued to say, "Lunch is ready. Pleasee to the dining hall to get it."


    "Lunch!" Jin Jiuchi shot up to his feet, his eyes shining in joy. He turned to the jade doll and offered his hand, beaming so bright that it could rival the sun. "Let''s go, Nian''er!"

 Chapter 24: Tough Love?

    <h4>Chapter 24: Tough Love?</h4>


    Compared to Jin Jiuchi who was enthusiastically skipping all the way to the first floor and even humming a random tune, everyone else was dragging on their feet, the memory of Old Guan''s tragic state and the disgusting meat sauce still repeating in their mind.


    It couldn''t be, the lunch menu shouldn''t be the same with breakfast, right?


    Jin Jiuchi entered the dining hall first and discovered that the mess Old Guan left behind had been cleaned. Not only that, Old Guan himself had also vanished without a trace. Jin Jiuchi sniffed the air but all he could detect was the musty smell of an old building that had not been upied for a long time, with no signs of the middle aged man anywhere.


    "Huh?" He made a curious noise. "The cleaning service in this ce is so skillful. How can they clean up the mess so fast?"


    Nian, who entered after him, heard his murmur and let out a snort in response. "From now on, you will see more of this ''cleaning service''. They are not only fast, but they can also do it in a blink of an eye."


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes flew wide when he registered the meaning behind Nian''s sarcastic words. "You mean, they make Old Guan disappear just like that? How?!"


    Unfortunately, no one could give him an answer. After that, Jin Jiuchi learned that in the Cycle, as long as someone died, then their bodies would disintegrate after some time, leaving nothing behind that could prove that they once existed in the Cycle.


    How magical...


    Jin Jiuchi was getting more and more intrigued. Exactly what was the ''Cycle'' and how could it disy such fascinating tricks one after another?! Would he be able to learn more about it after he got out of this apartment, just like what Tang Ye had told him?


    (Oops, he forgot that the man was a big liar. Jin Jiuchi couldn''t trust whatever that hade out of his mouth. He''d better ask Nianter after they returned to the room. Nian had never lied to him!)


    Lunch, as it turned out, was the exact opposite of what everyone had been dreading.


    It seemed like the Cycle still bestowed them a little mercy. This time, there was a a bowl of noodles for each of them. Even though the vegetables did not look fresh anymore and the meat was so tiny that it was barely a slice, it was already a thousand times better than the meat sauce this morning!


    Again, only Jin Jiuchi begged to differ. He looked at the bowl of in noodles with clear broth that did not emit any scent whatsoever, and tears started to pool on the corner of his eyes. "No meat sauce?"


    While everyone was busy stuffing their mouths with noodles, Jin Jiuchi draped himself dramatically on the table and wept for his tragic fate. "No meat sauce... why is there no meat sauce...?"


    Breakfast in the morning was excellent. Because nobody dared to eat it, Jin Jiuchi could hoard a pot of delicious meat sauce all to himself. He had devoured it to his heart''s content and felt so happy that he wished he could ask for seconds.


    But now... how was he supposed to cope with this bowl of cooked paste with nd soup sprinkled only with a drop of salt?!


    Everyone pretended not to hear him, or to be exact they were so upied with filling their own stomach that they couldn''t care less about Jin Jiuchi''s unreasonableint. Only Nian paused, stared at his bowl for a while, then he moved the only slice of meat that he initially wanted to save for thest into Jin Jiuchi''s bowl.


    "Here," he tapped the rim of the bowl with his chopsticks. "Don''tin too much and eat it. You should be grateful that this Cycle provides you food. In some others, you have to hunt for it yourself."


    ''Even hunting is much better than this. At least, it''s meat!'' Jin Jiuchi grumbled inwardly.


    However, when he looked at the two thin slices of meat on his bowl, he found the corner of his lips rising higher and higher until it morphed into an uncontroble grin.


    "Nian''er..." he reached out to hug the jade doll to him using his powerful arm, almost hauling the other person to hisp. "Nian''er, Nian''er, Nian''er! You''re so kind to me! How can you be so kind to me?" Jin Jiuchi was so happy that he couldn''t resist nuzzling his head on Nian''s chest like an overexcited husky, earning him a crisp p to his face.


    "O¡ª!" Jin Jiuchi held his throbbing cheek and stared at the jade doll in disbelief. "Nian''er!" How could Nian be so violent? And to think that Jin Jiuchi had just praised him for being kind! Was this the so-called tough love?


    Nian gritted out, his cheeks flushing in deep red. "Keep your paws to yourself, you crazy pervert!"


    The rest of the day passed by in this uneventful manner. After finishing the noodles, they continued to clean the sixth floor and moved the messy and misceneous items to the storage room.


    For dinner, they got a bowl of rice and stewed potatoes. Jin Jiuchi wept again for the absence of meat until Nian couldn''t bear it anymore and stuffed his mouth with potato.


    Jin Jiuchi shut up immediately and started to chew with his eyes curving into crescents. He tried to test his luck again and shamelessly opened his mouth wide, asking for the jade doll to feed him. But Nian, as ruthless as he was, brandished his needles and threatened to poke a thousand holes into Jin Jiuchi''s body if he were to misbehave any longer.


    Jin Jiuchi was left to sulk on his own, but he did not dare to ask again for fear that Nian would really act on his words.


    Sigh, tough love was really difficult...


    When the hour hand of the clock pointed at seven, the group finally decided to call it a day. By then, whatever little sunlight that spilled in from the atrium had been swallowed by therge swath of darkness, making the dim corridor and closed rooms look extra creepy. Even the temperature seemed to plummet all of a sudden. The eerie atmosphere caused people to break out in goosebumps, it was as if something would suddenly burst out of those closed doors and drag them inside.


    It was then that Jin Jiuchi started to sense the mysterious gaze from the ss roof again, just like he didst night.

 Chapter 25: The Nightmare

    <h4>Chapter 25: The Nightmare</h4>


    When Jin Jiuchi sensed it, he was walking toward themunal shower on the third floor with Nian, Tang Ye and Xinxin.


    Tang Ye made an excuse to join them, saying how he was the only one left in the fifth floor and it would be too scary to shower all on his own. He couldn''t join Surnamed Zhi on the fourth floor either because... it seemed like there was a bubble between the man and Sister Hong that he could not pierce through. Left with no other choice, he could only beg toe along with Jin Jiuchi and Nian. Even though one of them was a newbie yer and the other was a child, at least they were humans and not a ghost in disguise!


    "But Brother Yang... you''re really not a ghost, are you?" he asked with a nervousugh upon recalling how Jin Jiuchi hade along with them without a bus ticket and how he had never shown fear no matter what he had seen in this ce.


    When he got no answer, Tang Ye turned back and saw that Jin Jiuchi had stopped in his tracks with an unusually somber look on his face. "Brother Yang...?"


    Hearing this, Nian and Xinxin who had walked in front also stopped and turned around in confusion.


    Jin Jiuchi blinked slowly and offered him a sharp grin that showed all of his teeth. "Ah, sorry. I was just thinking of something just now. What did you say again?"


    For some reason, that grin sent chills down Tang Ye''s spine and he did not dare to ask again. "No, no, it''s nothing..." he walked faster to catch up with Xinxin in front, leaving Jin Jiuchi behind.


    Nian deliberately slowed his steps to match Jin Jiuchi and asked, "What''s wrong?"


    "Nian''er..." Jin Jiuchi''s whole body was on the state of great alert now. The line of his muscles were extremely tense and his silver eyes gleamed in a dangerous light. He was keeping an eye on the ss roof through his peripheral vision, desperately curbing the desire to snarl. The cold and inhumane gaze was ever present,nding on his body like caterpirs crawling across his skin. "Can you do something for me?"


    "...What?"


    Jin Jiuchi gently tugged the jade doll toward him and ced both hands on his small shoulders. "Look up," he instructed.


    Nian did not suspect anything at all and raised his head in confusion.


    In an instant, his entire body turned rigid and he quickly dropped his head again. Jin Jiuchi watched as trembles wrecked the small body. This was almost the exact same reaction as Old Guan, except Nian was braver and better at controlling himself not to scream out loud. The sour scent of fear emanated from his body, making his wintry and sweet fragrance be a tad unpleasant.


    Jin Jiuchi frowned. He walked forward and crouched down in front of Nian, and his frown deepened upon seeing the jade doll''s ghastlyplexion and slightly trembling lips. "Nian''er?" He reached out to hold Nian''s little balled fist and rubbed it between his hands to chase away the lingering chill. "What''s wrong? What makes you so afraid?" Jin Jiuchi kept rubbing until Nian''s delicate hand was warm and toasty and only then did he move to the other hand.


    Perhaps Jin Jiuchi''s method offorting really worked, Nian sucked in a shuddering breath and let the tension flow out of his body. Even then, Jin Jiuchi could still see beads of cold sweat forming on his hairline. "...It''s the Nightmare."


    Jin Jiuchi blinked, "The¡ª what?"


    "The Nightmare ¨C the All-seeing Eye. Hearsay it is the one who creates the Cycles and drags us to this ce."


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head. "You mean, like a Big Boss?"


    Nian couldn''t help but snort when he heard that, his body rxing further. Jin Jiuchi delighted in the fact that he did not look on the verge of fainting anymore. "You can also call it Big Boss. Nobody really knows what it is or what it looks like. Some said it''s an evil deity, but there are also people who believe that it''s an existence that is far superior to humans, or in other words, aliens. Words spread that when youy your gaze upon it, you will see all your worst nightmare materializing right in front of your eyes. In the end, you will lose your mind and die." Nian let out a wry chuckle and rubbed his eyes. "It seems like the rule ''never look at the Nightmare in the eye'' is not just a tale. I have only seen it for a split second earlier and I''m already..."


    Jin Jiuchi caught the jade doll''s wrist before he could irritate his eyes further. "Did you see your worst nightmare, Nian''er?"


    Nian gave him a somber nod.


    "Hmm, so that''s the case..." Jin Jiuchi nodded in understanding even though many questions were swirling in his mind now. The Nightmare? The All-seeing Eye? And everyone who looked at it would go crazy? Judging from Old Guan and Nian''s reaction, he could conclude that it was the truth, but... why didn''t the same apply to him?! Last night, he had stared at the ss roof for more than ten seconds but let alone his nightmare, he did not even see anything other than a stretch of pitch-ck darkness!


    This was so unfair! He also wanted to see what kind of nightmare he would have!


    Was it because he was an intruder in this ce and that''s why the same rule did not work on him? That was usible. After all, he had tagged along without a bus ticket and forcefully inserted himself into this group of yers. It was no wonder that the ''house owner'' did not wee him!


    Jin Jiuchi tried to put himself in the Nightmare''s shoes. If there was someone who suddenly encroached upon his territory, he would also be he mad!


    Should he... climb to the roof and offer a sincere apology to the Nightmare and ask to be included in the list of yers along the way?


    The more Jin Jiuchi thought about it, the better the idea sounded. But of course he could not ask Nian toe along with him; he did not want the jade doll to go crazy! Perhaps if the Nightmare saw how sincere he was, it would stop staring at him like he was an exotic animal. Jin Jiuchi felt like he had to make it clear how much he despised being spied on! But when should he do that...


    The line of Jin Jiuchi''s thoughts was broken off when the jade doll suddenly grabbed his wrist in a tight grip, his pale purple eyes wide in fluster. "I just remembered one more thing..."


    "The appearance of the Nightmare inside the Cycle..." Nian stared at Jin Jiuchi in muted horror. "It means that the difficulty will increase a few folds!"

 Chapter 26: Damn Husky!

    <h4>Chapter 26: Damn Husky!</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi could not figure out why Nian looked so horrified, nor did he understand what the jade doll meant by ''difficulty''. But in the spirit of camaraderie, he still let out a gasp and opened his eyes wide in shock. "That''s horrible!"


    Nian rolled his eyes at him, having seen through his dramatic guise again. However, he could not deny how Jin Jiuchi''s silly acts managed to soothe his fear despite the looming horror staring at them from above. Such a strange man Jin Jiuchi was. Clearly, he had never taken anything seriously ¨C except for breakfast, lunch and dinner time, of course ¨C but it was exactly for that reason that he could offer a sense of security for others. It was as if nothing could be bizarre or terrifying enough in his eyes.


    Who was he, exactly?


    s, instead of asking directly, he chose to keep the question for himself. Now was not the time to be curious about another person. He had entered this Cycle with a specific purpose, but now, the sudden appearance of the Nightmare had be a threat that could foil his ns. For that, he had to proceed with utmost vignce and tried his best to survive.


    "Let''s go," he told Jin Jiuchi. "The two of them must have been waiting for us."


    Jin Jiuchi carefully observed Nian and delighted in the fact that hisplexion did not look as horrible anymore. He trotted after the jade doll, asking, "Are we going to tell them, Nian''er?"


    Nian pondered seriously for a while, then shook his head. "Knowing the Nightmare is present may only serve to add unnecessary panic. Let''s just wait and see first."


    Jin Jiuchi chirped happily, "Okay, I will listen to Nian''er~"


    Nian''s words were spot on. They hurried to themunal shower to see Tang Ye and Xinxin standing nervously in front. When they saw Jin Jiuchi and Nianing, their eyes lit up. "You scared me..." Tang Ye rubbed his chest and let out a sigh of relief. "What takes you two so long? We thought that something had happened to you!" Beside him, Xinxin nodded with a tense look.


    "Sorry, sorry," Jin Jiuchi shed a grin and winked at Nian. "We''re just having a heart-to-heart conversation between brothers. Am I right, Nian''er?"


    Nian murmured something inaudible under his breath that sounded awfully like he was cursing Jin Jiuchi''s shamelessness before striding into the men''s room.


    Jin Jiuchi and Tang Ye hurried to follow after him, but in thest moment, Jin Jiuchi''s peripheral vision caught sight of Xinxin going into the chamber beside theirs that had the female sign on the wall.


    ''Huh...'' Jin Jiuchi tilted his head, puzzled.


    His confusionsted until he took the stall right beside Nian and saw him holding a basin filled with various bottles of soap and shampoos. Wait... where did ite from? He turned to look at Tang Ye who took the opposite stall and saw that he had a simr basin as well, with only one bottle of shampoo and a bar soap.


    He scooted closer to whisper. "Nian''er..."


    "What?" Nian ced the basin on the floor and started to undress.


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes tracked along the stretch of extremely fair skin that was revealed as Nian took off his shirt and put it into a transparent zipper bag. In the dingy and oldmunal shower with filthy mold and rust on its four walls, he was practically glowing like an angel who had identally fallen into a pit of mud by mistake. Jin Jiuchi was a bit distracted and it took him a few seconds to remember what he wanted to ask.


    "That," he pointed at the basin. "Where does ite from? Why do you and Tang Ye have one each? What about me?" he pouted his lips to make himself look extra pitiful.


    Nian let out a little sigh, "Sometimes I forget you''re a newbie. This is amon prop ''Basic Necessity'', the contents will differ depending on the type of Cycle you are in. It is a must-have prop for yers and it costs only 20 points. If you can get out of this ce alive, you will also be able to buy this."


    "Common prop?" Jin Jiuchi''s eyes widened in awe. "You mean, it''s the same magic trick as Xinxin''s chicken toy and your talisman?! Wow... how many props do you have on you, Nian''er?" At that moment, he suddenly recalled the silver needles that could appear and disappear freely between Nian''s fingers. Now that he thought about it, it must be a prop as well!


    How enviable! He also wanted to own props ¨C lots of them!


    Nian tilted his head to nce at Tang Ye who had already pulled the stic curtain around him with water streaming down from the shower head, then gave Jin Jiuchi a meaningful look. "Not a lot. Most of them aremon props."


    Oh, oh! Jin Jiuchi understood in an instant. This kind of matter should be kept a secret! He had warned Nian that Tang Ye was not a person who could be trusted, and thus Nian was heeding his words by keeping his guard up around the man!


    Jin Jiuchi sent him a wink and mouthed an ''OK''.


    But then...


    "What about me?" He tugged on his shirt sadly. "I don''t have any spare clothes to change into nor do I have soap. Do I have to go without changing until we leave this ce?"


    Nian shot him a re full of disgust, appalled that Jin Jiuchi could even entertain such a thought after the amount of running and sweating he had done today. He deliberated over his choices for a while, and with a look as if it physically pained him to do so, he offered another transparent zipper bag for Jin Jiuchi. "Put your dirty clothes there. As for spare clothes... I think I have a few at my disposal. It will be a little tight for you though, so you have to endure it a bit."


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes had already brightened up since the moment Nian handed the zipper bag to him, and with each word Nian said, his smile became wider and wider. He looked so happy as if he was going to fly away soon. "Nian''er¡ª" he opened his arms wide to smother the jade doll in a hug.


    Except before he could take a step forward, Nian hurriedly held up a palm and shouted, "Stop!"


    Jin Jiuchi instantly froze in ce still with his arms outstretched, his smile wilting into a sad and mournful look. "Nian''er..." Nian could almost see a pair of folded ears on his head.


    ''You damn husky!'' Nian gritted his teeth angrily. Like hell he was going to let this sneaky wolf touch him all over again! He opened the zipper bag and seethed, "Hurry up and put your clothes in here before I change my mind!"


    s, he regretted his words one secondter when Jin Jiuchi started to strip.

 Chapter 27: Brotherly Bond

    <h4>Chapter 27: Brotherly Bond</h4>


    "Wait¡ª" It was toote by the time he blurted out that word for Jin Jiuchi was already grabbing his shirt by the back and smoothly dragged it over his head.


    In a blink of an eye, there was so much honey bronze skin, smooth and well-defined muscles that Nian was getting bedazzled. He could feel himself gawking as he ran his gaze over the sharp dip of Jin Jiuchi''s corbones, the wide breadth of his shoulders, his brown and pebbled nipples, the solid and sinewy chest muscles that narrowed down into tapered waist, until it eventuallynded on the sexy mermaid lines and a happy trail that led to the dangerous territory beneath.


    Just as Nian thought that the situation couldn''t get worse, Jin Jiuchi quickly took off his trousers along with the boxer briefs.


    And there he stood, in all his naked glory and mouth-watering figure.


    ''As expected, it is really... huge...'' Nian thought as his heated gaze zeroed in on the area between Jin Jiuchi''s thighs. ''No, it''s beyond huge. C¨CCan a human really have such a size? He must not be a human. Yes, that must be it!''


    "Wait?" Jin Jiuchi tilted his head to the side, utterly oblivious to the fact that he was being ogled at. "Did you tell me to wait, Nian''er?"


    Nian snapped back to his senses and hastily dragged his eyes back to Jin Jiuchi''s face. However, the image of that monstrous cock was already imprinted behind his eyelids as clear as daylight, and when he looked at Jin Jiuchi''s aggressively gorgeous features, only one thing came to mind ¨C only such a perfect body could suit this man.


    Nian was thankful for the sound of Tang Ye''s shower that masked the echo of his loud heartbeat. He could also easily attribute the flush on his face to the increasing humidity in the room. With an expression as t as the asphalt, he tilted his head toward the zipper bag in his hands. "Put your clothes inside."


    "Oh, oh!" Jin Jiuchi balled his clothes haphazardly before stuffing it into the bag. Nian could not even berate him for it because of how close their position was right now, so close that Jin Jiuchi''s monster of a cock was right in front of¡ª no! Nian shook his head like a rattle drum. For God''s sake, stop leering at him like you have never seen another man''s body before! Have you gotten too close to him and been infected by the perverted virus?!


    But he had to admit, out of the naked bodies he had seen, Jin Jiuchi''s was the most alluring and beautiful...


    Clenching his teeth tight, Nian sealed the zipper bag and with a wave of his hand, it disappeared into thin air.


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes flew wide and he took one step closer, looking back and forth in shock and wonder. "Where has it gone?! How did you do it, Nian''er?!"


    Instead of answering him, Nian bent down and grabbed two bottles from his basin. "Give me both of your hands, palms up." When Jin Jiuchiplied with a puzzled look, Nian proceeded to pump two blobs of liquid soap into each of his hands. "The right one is body wash, the left one is shampoo. Bye." After saying that, he tugged on the stic curtain to close around him, shielding him from the massive six feet tall eye candy that was Jin Jiuchi.


    He ignored Jin Jiuchi''s mournful cries about how cold and heartless he was and how brothers should shower together to strengthen their brotherly bond...


    To hell with his brotherly bond! Sneering, Nian took off his trousers and underwear, folded them and kept them in his zipper bag before turning on the shower, allowing the noisy rattle of water thrumming against the cemented floor to drown Jin Jiuchi''s voice away.


    As the cold water rained down on him, Nian breathed out a sigh of relief.


    Fortunately, he was in the body of a child now. Or else, he had no idea what would happen if he had to room together with such a fine (albeit a little not right on the head) specimen for the next few days...


    ...


    Jin Jiuchi stared at the stic curtain in front of him and sulked. Though hazy, he could see Nian moving to smear soap on his body, causing the sweet scent of rose and milk to linger in the air. His hand itched to brush the curtain away and slipped under the shower together with Nian ¨C because what kind of brothers were they if they did not take a shower together?!


    s, before he could even act on it, Nian''s voice sounded through the running water, threatening. "Don''t you daree here or else I will cut off that thing between your legs!"


    Gasping, Jin Jiuchi reflexively covered his crotch by crossing his legs, feeling chills run down his spine just by the mere thought of it. "Cruel!" He cried out, aggrieved. "Nian''er, how can you be so cruel to me?!"


    Of course, Nian gave no answer to that.


    Feeling wronged, Jin Jiuchi could only focus on his own shower lest Nian would finish first and leave him behind. He looked at the two blobs of soap in his hands and blinked in confusion. Which one was the shampoo and which one was the body wash again? Jin Jiuchi''s mind drew an abrupt nk. Shrugging, he turned on the shower and roughly rubbed both hands all over his hair and body, letting the two kinds of soap mix into one.


    Hmm, it smells so good! No wonder Nian''er always exuded a nice and sweet fragrance, so it was from the soap!


    Jin Jiuchi yed with the bubbles while relishing in the fact that he was also starting to smell good like the jade doll. Behind him, the sound of running water stopped and Tang Ye called out, "Brother Yang, Little Brother, I''m done! I will wait for you two outside, okay?!"


    "Okay!" Jin Jiuchi replied with his eyes closed and head tilted up, enjoying the prickles of water that fell on his face. When he heard nothing from the next stall, he raised his voice and asked, "Nian''er, will you be done soon?! Wait for me, okay? I will finish real quick!"


    No one answered him.


    All of a sudden, Jin Jiuchi''s scalp turned numb and the hair on his body stood up on its end. He fumbled to turn off the shower and as soon as he did, the entire room turned deadly silent. There were no sounds from the next stall, no sshing water, no signs of movement ¨C nothing. In fact, he could not even detect Nian''s presence anymore.


    "Nian''er...?" His voice echoed all around and bounced back to him again as if hundreds of Jin Jiuchis were talking at the same time.


    For one long moment, Jin Jiuchi stood there naked and dripping wet, dazed, as he wondered if he had called out toote and Nian had gone out without telling him. But how could that be possible? He would have known for sure if Nian went out because the jade doll would need to walk past him in order to reach the door. But like this, it was more like... Nian had vanished into thin air...


    Or... was it him?


    Jin Jiuchi reached out a hand intending to brush the stic curtain away, but in that exact moment, he felt his throat spasm as something crawled up...

 Chapter 28: Am I Dying?

    <h4>Chapter 28: Am I Dying?</h4>


    "Ugh¡ª!" Jin Jiuchi''s stomach flipped and he sped his mouth shut, resisting the urge to hurl.


    Again, he felt something squirm in the depth of his throat. Not bile, but something smaller, thin and solid just like... a finger?


    It pressed on the base of Jin Jiuchi''s tongue as though trying to wiggle its way out, sending a burst of bitter and sour taste exploding all over his oral cavity. It was like he had eaten a piece of rotten, moldy meat that had been left in a stuffy and locked room for weeks.


    Another wave of nausea churned his stomach and Jin Jiuchi desperately held himself back from vomiting to the point where his eyes watered. He was positive he had never stooped so low and resorted to eating something dirty even when he felt so famished that he could die, so where did this little fingere from?! Had he eaten it while sleepwalking?!


    By now, the finger was steadily reaching out of the column of his throat inch by inch. Jin Jiuchi could even feel the scratch of the blunt nail on his pte as though forcing him to open his mouth...


    In that one suspended moment, a distant memory shed through his mind out of nowhere.


    The air around him was hazy as if nketed by a thickyer of fog, but somehow he knew that he was looking at the white ceramic tiles of his room in the asylum. He was kneeling with his head hung low. An indistinct voice echoed in his ears from above, "I told you to stop being picky! Do you know what happens to children who like to pick on their food? It will get angry at you and crawl out of your stomach! Do you want that to happen?!"


    ''So what they said is true!'' Jin Jiuchi thought fuzzily amidst the relentless attack of nausea, aggrieved. ''I am being picky again and now my food is angry. It want to crawl out of my stomach!''


    No, Jin Jiuchi couldn''t allow it to happen! When the finger forcibly pried his gritted teeth open, Jin Jiuchi opened his mouth wide and bit down on the finger before it could escape!


    The crunchy and crisp sound of broken bones reverberated through his ears. Jin Jiuchi closed his eyes and willed himself to ignore how horrible it tasted as he continued to chew on the finger and swallow it back to his stomach!


    Almost in an instant, a shrill scream resounded in a far distance. "AH¡ª!"


    The harrowing silence receded like a cicada shedding its shell and all kinds of sound suddenly exploded into his eardrums. Jin Jiuchi could once again hear the thrum of water pping against the floor from the next stall, the rustle of footsteps as Nian moved to grab something from the basin, and also the faint conversation between Tang Ye and Xinxin outside...


    Jin Jiuchi braced his hand against the wall and retched. "Huek¡ª!"


    The sounds next stall paused for a second. "...What''s wrong?"


    Jin Jiuchi wanted to answer that, yet as soon as he opened his mouth, what came out was only a retching sound, this time louder. The muscles on his entire body tensed, his throat spasmed and in the next second, dark colored liquid gushed out of his mouth, it was akin to coagted blood. And interspersed between the blood was pieces of red meat and small clumps of hair.


    He faintly registered the screech of curtain being yanked aside, then Nian''s horrified voice sounded, "Yang Rouchuan!" He hurried to Jin Jiuchi''s side and grabbed his arm when he swayed on his feet, "What''s wrong? Are you okay?!"


    ''Who the hell is Yang Rouchuan?'' Jin Jiuchi thought dizzily. But then the recollection hit him one secondter, ''Oh right, it''s the name I introduced myself with...''


    s, to be called amb skewer in such a horrible situation made it all the more ridiculous, he couldn''t help but choke out a hoarseugh as blood kept dripping out of his mouth.


    "You still dare tough?!" Nian hit his arm angrily. "This is why you shouldn''t be greedy and put everything into your mouth! Look at you, this must be due to that meat sauce you ate this morning!"


    Jin Jiuchi became aggrieved again. Feeling a little weak on his knees, he crouched down and argued in a weak voice, "But we shouldn''t waste food... and the meat sauce is delicious..."


    "Delicious, your ass!" Nian was so furious that he almost whacked Jin Jiuchi on the head to see if he could force the man''s head work a bit more properly this time. From which angle did he see that poisonous meat sauce as delicious?! And what did he say again ¨C ''shouldn''t waste food''? Was this man stupid or blind?! That kind of thing could not even be considered food!


    s, when he saw Jin Jiuchi panting so roughly with blood smearing over half of his face, looking as if his lifespan had been cut into half, Nian found his heart softening by a small fraction. He gingerly ced his hand on the man''s shoulder and patted it twice in an attempt tofort. "...Are you okay?"


    "Not okay..." Jin Jiuchi immediately seized the chance toin and whimper with a pitiful look, "Nian''er, I just ate something so, so disgusting! I think I''m going to die because of how bad it tasted! Wait... am I dying right now? Will I end up like Old Guan?!" The more Jin Jiuchi said, the more horrified he became.


    Nian was speechless. "... Don''t worry. Judging from how lively you are, it looks like you won''t die anytime soon."


    Indeed, as soon as Jin Jiuchi hurled out that unknown liquid, he felt himself slowly getting better and better. Not only that, he also perceived a slight increase to his strength, it was as if he had just consumed an energy potion ¨C of course, disregarding how it was shaped like a finger and tasted like rotten trash.


    But how could he admit this out loud?


    He buried his face into the crook of his arm and pretended to cry, "Boo-hoo! How cruel of you, Nian''er! Is this how youfort someone on their deathbed?!"


    By now, Nian already realized that Jin Jiuchi was merely being dramatic again. Holding back a curse, he hurriedly summoned his towel, wiped his body haphazardly and got dressed in record''s time, thankful for the fact that Jin Jiuchi was too upied with polishing his acting skills to notice his nudity.


    "Are you done?!" He barked out angrily. "Hurry up and wash your mouth or else I''m going to leave you behind!"


    That threat was more than enough to spur Jin Jiuchi to move. Foregoing his Oscar worthy acting, he hurriedly gurgled his mouth thrice until the putrid taste faded to an ignorable level, then epted the clothes that Nian handed him. The boxer was a no-go since it was too small ¨C Jin Jiuchi''s little brother was unable to breathe within that suffocating cocoon! ¨C and thus he could only resort to wearing sweatpants directly. Even then it was short enough that it stopped at an awkward length in the middle of Jin Jiuchi''s calf.


    Jin Jiuchi couldn''t help but get amused, "Oooh, Nian''er, is this your clothes? So even in your real form, you''re also a¡ª" the word ''shortie'' was stuck on his throat when all of a sudden, a horrified cry sounded from nearby.


    It was... Xinxin!


    Jin Jiuchi and Nian stared at each other for one second, then they rushed outside in unison with Jin Jiuchi''s upper body still bare. "What''s wrong?!"


    They found Xinxin and Tang Ye leaning over the railing while looking down at something, so petrified that they did not even hear Jin Jiuchi and Nian''s approach.


    Curious, Jin Jiuchi walked over and peered down to see what they were staring at. And once he registered what it was on the ground floor, he instantly sucked in cold air.

 Chapter 29: Female Corpse

    <h4>Chapter 29: Female Corpse</h4>


    "What is it?" Nian grabbed onto the railing and went on his tiptoes. But still, all he could see was the solid expanse of painted wall. Damn this shortie! "What is it? Hey, tell me!" He shook Jin Jiuchi''s arm beside him, urging the man to share what had caused a ruckus downstairs.


    For God''s sake, he had never felt troubled when he used this form in the previous Cycles, not even when he had to trudge through mountainous paths under the scorching heat of summer, but who could have expected that he would be tempted to change his mind twice in this Cycle?!


    Jin Jiuchi turned to face him with aplicated look. He parted his lips to answer, but then closed it again when he realized that he had no idea how to exin it. In the end, he merely shook his head and bent down to scoop the jade doll into his arms. "You''d better see it for yourself..."


    Nian scrambled to hold onto Jin Jiuchi''s broad shoulders for purchase, his butt sitting on the crook of the man''s arm like a baby. He would have minded their sudden proximity, the sensation of Jin Jiuchi''s powerful arm cradling his hips and the heated skin pressed against his back had they been in any other circumstances. s, right now he could not even be bothered about it and hurriedly looked down to see what was going on.


    He instantly knew why Jin Jiuchi had gone speechless.


    Sprawled in the middle of the first floor was a body with limbs crooked in awkward angles. d in a pure white dress, her long hair spread around her like spiderwebs. Because she wasying face down, they could not see what her appearance was like, but in this ce there were only two female yers. One was Xinxin, who was standing here in this floor with them, so the oneying there could only be¡ª


    "What''s with all themotion?"


    Sister Hong poked her head out from the fourth floor and looked down, frowning when she saw the female corpse downstairs. A suspicious flush dotted her cheeks as her hands moved to tie the gown tighter around her body. Zhi showed up beside her with messed up hair as though someone had run their fingers through it. Apparently, both of them had been ''preparing'' to sleep.


    "What the hell..." Zhi murmured with knitted brows.


    "S¨CSister Hong, Brother Zhi..." Tang Ye stammered out as he tried to put on the most serious look he could muster in the face of such intimacy. "Xinxin suddenly saw a body falling from the upper floor and that''s why she screamed." He furrowed his brow and nced down at the female corpse doubtfully. "Wait, there are only two female yers in our team, so if Xinxin and Sister Hong are here, so who..." he trailed off, his eyes widening in realization.


    Indeed, there were only two female yers in this Cycle. But what if it was not a yer? The only woman aside from the yers they had seen in this ce was...


    Madam Liu, thendy!


    The same realization also crossed everyone''s mind at once. Without a word, everyone rushed downstairs.


    "Put me down!" Nian hissed in a low voice as Jin Jiuchi carried him down the stairs.


    "No can do~" Jin Jiuchiughed out loud. The strands of his hair were still dripping with water that slowly cascaded down his cheeks, giving him a cheeky yet sexy look. "Nian''er, your legs are so short. By the time you get downstairs, everyone will have finished inspecting the scene!"


    ''Damn this shortie!'' Nian cursed again for the second time tonight.


    Indeed, Jin Jiuchi''s legs were very long and powerful ¨C Nian had already seen the toned calf muscles back in the shower ¨C and coupled with the fact that he was rushing down from the third floor, it made him the first person who arrived at the first floor.


    Nian jumped down from Jin Jiuchi''s arms and stepped forward to inspect the female corpse. With a wave of his hand, a pair of ck leather gloves appeared in his palm and he slipped them on with practiced ease.


    "Wow!" Jin Jiuchi pped from where he was standing. "Another excellent magic trick! As expected of Nian''er!"


    Nian ignored him, of course.


    Crouching down, he brushed away the hair that covered the corpse''s face and frowned when he finally saw her appearance. He could hear footstepsing down the stairs, but just as he was about to stand up, his peripheral vision caught sight of a crumpled piece of paper in the corpse''s loosely clenched hand.


    Tang Ye and Xinxin burst out from the staircase, with Sister Hong and Surnamed Zhi right behind them.


    "Who?! Who is it¡ª" Tang Ye''s words got stuck in his throat once his eyesnded on the female corpse''s face. He''d had his own suspicion; nheless, seeing Madam Liu''s nk wide eyes and twisted look as if she had seen something extremely horrifying during herst moment still shook him down to the core. "How... How could it be the main NPC..."


    They stood around the corpse in a circle, frowning. The NPC who issued them the task was dead? How? If Madam Liu was gone, then who would give them the tickets on thest day?!


    "Nian''er, Nian''er..." Jin Jiuchi pulled the jade doll to the side and asked in a whisper. "NPCs don''t usually die?"


    "No," Nian shoved a shirt to the half naked Jin Jiuchi and replied with a solemn face. "There is no conflict of interests between NPCs and yers, so there''s no need for us to seek trouble with them. Moreover, they are the ones who will give us the bus ticket. If we kill them, then how are we supposed to get out of this ce? This is the first time I have seen the death of an NPC..." he frowned. "Is it because of the Nightmare?"


    Jin Jiuchi slipped on the shirt awkwardly. As expected, it was too tight for him, especially around his shoulders and chest. s, he could not even bring himself toin about it right now. His gaze once againnded on Madam Liu''s corpse, or to be exact...


    ...the index finger on her right hand that was missing.


    Rather than being severed by a sharp object like a knife, the wound looked jagged and uneven as if... it had been bitten off by someone...


    Once again, he recalled the squirmy thing that almost crawled its way up from his throat. It couldn''t be Madam Liu''s finger, right? How did her finger get into his stomach to begin with?!


    Jin Jiuchi was certain that he had never eaten someone before ¨C let alone someone who had served him such delicious meat sauce. He was not that immoral!


    Surely, he couldn''t be the one who killed her, right...?


    .


    .


    Mini theater


    Jin Jiuchi: Would you believe me if I said that I didn''t do it on purpose? 0.0 look at my innocent face...

 Chapter 30: Spider Nest?

    <h4>Chapter 30: Spider Nest?</h4>


    Heavy tension permeated through the atrium as the yers stared at the tragic corpse of the NPC.


    In the end, it was Tang Ye who broke the silence first. "I don''t really understand..." a nervousugh bubbled out of his throat. "How can something like this happen all of a sudden? Sister Hong, Brother Zhi, you two... have you encountered such a situation in your previous Cycles?"


    Both of them shook their heads in response. There was none of the usual arrogance and disdain in Sister Hong''s face, only somberness. "Never. This is the first time I have seen a dead NPC. When it happened, what were you guys doing?"


    Tang Ye pointed at himself, Xinxin, Jin Jiuchi and Nian, "We were taking a shower. I even talked to you when I came out, right?" Thest question was directed to Jin Jiuchi and Nian.


    Indeed, he had heard Tang Ye''s voice a moment before that bizarre finger squirmed out from the depth of his throat. And judging from the wound on the corpse''s hand, it really looked like the finger belonged to thendy. Jin Jiuchi still did not have the slightest idea why that finger would appear in his stomach, nor whether he was the one who had caused her death. But somehow, it did not sit well with him to stay mum. At least, he should tell everyone what had happened to him and ask for their opinion, right?


    However, just as he was opening his mouth, Nian took hold of his wrist and gave it a little squeeze. He nodded at Tang Ye and informed everyone at the same time, "That''s right. My stall and this man''s were next to each other, and Tang Ye was opposite us. We could definitely tell if something has happened to the other."


    "Right, right!" Tang Ye nodded like chicken pecking rice.


    "Nian''er..." Jin Jiuchi murmured, puzzled. Of course, he realized the hidden meaning behind this gesture. The jade doll wanted him to keep it a secret. But why?


    Nian merely shot him a pointed look that seemed to say, ''We will talk about thister so shut your mouth if you don''t want to die.''


    "Brother Zhi and I could also prove each other''s alibi," Sister Hong stated with a deep frown on her face. "So if it''s not us yers, then how could the NPC die all of a sudden?"


    Amidst the prolonged silence, the man surnamed Zhi suddenly crouched down and flipped the corpse''s body so it was lying face up, earning him a surprised cry from Xinxin and Tang Ye. Disregarding their shock, he methodically searched the body and paused when he saw the missing index finger, but in the end he stood up and shook his head. "No clues. You said that you saw her falling? From where?" he asked Xinxin.


    Full of trepidation, Xinxin stammered out with a pale face, "I saw her... falling from Old Guan''s room..."


    Everyone''s faces sank.


    "Old Guan''s room?" Sister Hong asked sharply. "Are you sure?"


    Xinxin''s shoulders shrunk a bit, but she still nodded fearfully. "It''s room 507. I couldn''t have mistaken it..."


    This morning, they had watched with their own eyes as Old Guan transformed into a puddle of blood and melted substance in a matter of seconds, so why would thendy jump from Old Guan''s room all of a sudden? No matter from which angle they inspected it, these two events did not coincide with each other at all!


    "Let''s go," Sister Hong demanded with a grim look. "I think we need to check Old Guan''s room. There is still half an hour until ten pm. We will make it back into our rooms before then."


    No one raised a protest for they were none the wiser regarding the mysteries around Madam Liu''s death. Sister Hong and Brother Zhi took the lead to climb the stairs, with Xinxin and Tang Ye following behind.


    When Jin Jiuchi saw that they were out of earshot, he finally couldn''t hold himself back anymore and asked, "Nian''er, why did you stop me just now?"


    "Are you stupid?" Nian red. "Do you know what will happen if they discover that you have something to do with the NPC''s death? Even if you are not the real killer, they will still make you a target! This is the main NPC we are talking about. Without her, we may be trapped in this Cycle forever! What do you think they will do to you if they find out about it, huh?!"


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head and tried to imagine it. "Well, that really sounds like bad news..." Not only would he be despised to death, that Hong woman might even grab a knife and chop him into pieces. Just thinking about it was enough to send shivers down his spine.


    "But on another note," a teasing grin spread across his face as he poked Nian''s soft cheek shyly. "Nian''er, are you protecting me? You are, aren''t you? As expected, Nian''er loves me the most!"


    "L¨CLove..." Nian sputtered out of shock. How the hell could Jin Jiuchi blurt out something so disgusting without even batting an eyelid?!


    "Oh, say no more." Jin Jiuchi hushed him softly, his silver eyes twinkling like a sneaky wolf who had managed to take a bite out of his prey. "Gege has received your love very well. If you keep giving me more, I think I''m going to cry!"


    "...Gege, my ass!" Nian was so furious that he could only bark out a coldugh. Feeling so stifled but with nowhere to vent, he rushed forward to kick Jin Jiuchi right on the shin. "There, take more of my damn love!"


    "Ow ow ow...!" Jin Jiuchi clutched his throbbing leg and hopped in ce. He gazed tearfully at the jade doll who had quickly rushed up the stairs to catch up with the others. How could Nian''er be more and more violent with each passing day?!


    Sigh... tough love was truly difficult.


    Wiping his nonexistent tears away, Jin Jiuchi hurriedly chased after the jade doll with his long legs. "Nian''er, wait for me!"


    The door to room 507 was wide open when they arrived, with Sister Hong, Xinxin and Tang Ye frozen in the corridor, each spotted with an aghast look on their faces.


    Jin Jiuchi frowned when a foul odor started to assault his nose even when he was still meters away. "Ugh, what the hell is this smell..." he pinched his nose and resolutely decided to breathe through his mouth like a foolish goldfish. s, ever the curious, he couldn''t resist to get closer and take a look. Exactly what had caused the others to show such a terrified expression?


    "What are you guys looking at..." Jin Jiuchi''s voice petered out as he gaped at the scene in front of him, utterly speechless.


    The first thought that popped up in his mind was ¨C ''Holy shit, did I stumble into a spider nest?'' But then he recalled that this was Old Guan''s room and Old Guan was not a spider, and thus this could not be considered a spider nest.


    Every crook and cranny of the room in front of him was heavily tangled with criss-cross strands of ck silk that stretched from the floor to ceiling, creating an intricate web-like pattern that filled the entire space. The strands were thin and looked soft at a nce, yet Jin Jiuchi''s instinct told him that they would be able to cut through flesh as easily as tofu. They also shimmered eerily under the dim light as though pulsating with a life of their own.


    And right now, Surnamed Zhi was fearlessly trudging through the sea of ck silk with a fire torch in his hand.


    .


    .


    .


    A/N: Shoutout to Dripping Void, ArcaneMag, VitaminCdotC and others who have given WBNC 16 GTs during the short time it has been contracted! Thank you so much for your support!


    From now on too, please continue to show support for the book through PS, review, GT and gift ><

 Chapter 31: Husky In Dilemma

    <h4>Chapter 31: Husky In Dilemma</h4>


    After being exposed to Xinxin''s suave screaming chicken and Nian''s magical zipper bag that could appear and disappear at will, Jin Jiuchi could easily guess that the torch in Zhi''s hand was also a prop. Thus he no longer gasped and wow-ed like a countryside kid. Instead, he pointed at the man whose figure was almost buried amidst thebyrinth of silk and asked the people behind him, incredulous. "Is he allowed to do that?"


    At once, Tang Ye and Xinxin''s eyes snapped to Sister Hong who had her arms crossed in a holier-than-thou posture as usual. She raised her chin and harrumphed, "Someone has to go check the room out either way, so what''s wrong with him going? Otherwise, do you want to rece him?"


    Jin Jiuchi blinked at her slowly and tilted his head to the side, trying and failing to keep the corner of his lips from raising. "I can...?"


    Now that Sister Hong was offering, how could Jin Jiuchi bring himself to refuse? How many times could someone stumble upon this bizarrely beautiful scene in their lifetime? Once? Twice? If Jin Jiuchi did not try it out, then it would be his loss! His teeth were already itching when hey his gaze on the soft strands of ck silk for the first time.


    He wanted to throw himself into it! He wanted to roll around inside and had the silk cocooned around him tightly!! Would it be as soft and fluffy as Nian''er''s hair or would it be sharp enough to slice a chunk of flesh off his body? Either way, all that was lost could be re-grown back, but this kind of experience was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Only a fool would miss it!!


    "You... what?" Sister Hong was so shocked that she could only gawk at him. "You want to go inside?" She was only saying it out of sarcasm but who could have guessed that this freak would really take it into heart?! No, he was not only a freak, but an utter lunatic too! Did he have a death wish or something?!


    Apparently, Nian and Sister Hong''s thoughts aligned for the very first time tonight. "You crazy weirdo, do you have a death wish or something?!" He seethed in suppressed rage.


    Jin Jiuchi merely furrowed his brows in response. "Death wish? Of course not, I still want to live for a long, long time. Moreover, why do you think that going inside means death, Nian''er? What about Brother Zhi, then?"


    Everyone was rendered utterly speechless when they heard it. What the hell was up with his question? Just in one nce, anyone withmon sense could tell that this room spelled big trouble!


    And the fact that Brother Zhi willingly took such a huge risk to explore... everyone suspected that it had something to do with Sister Hong. Otherwise, how was it possible for him to put himself in danger for their sake? He did not look like someone noble enough to do so!


    s, for fear of Sister Hong''s retaliation, they did not dare to say anything. Either way, this ended up working in everyone''s favor...


    "You..." Again, Nian was so furious that he could only bark out a chillingugh. But at the end of the day, he had spent more time with Jin Jiuchipared to anyone else and thus had started to grasp his temperament quite well. "You want to go in? Fine," he sneered. "But can you bear the smell?"


    Jin Jiuchi: "..!" T¨CThat''s right, the room smelled so horrible that he could die if he had to breathe it in...


    Nian continued in a deadpan look, "If the smell ended up sticking to you, then you''re not allowed to get on the bed tonight."


    Jin Jiuchi: "...!!"


    The threat worked wonders on Jin Jiuchi, who had spent a blissful morning waking up to the sight of a sleeping angel. H¨CHow could Nian''er be so cruel to deprive him of such a divine sight?!


    "Of course," Nian spread his hands with a fake helpless look. "What right do I have to tell you what to do? Just do whatever you like."


    Jin Jiuchi looked at the mysterious room and Nian back and forth, full of dilemma. He was akin to a husky who was asked to choose between going outside to y and a rare opportunity to cuddle with his owner. On one side, he would be able to y and roll around in the snow to his heart''s content, but on the other side, his owner would not let him enter the house for the rest of the night...


    Full of tears and grievance, Jin Jiuchi could only take a step toward Nian, causing the jade doll to put on a look of satisfaction.


    On the side, Sister Hong let out a sneer, "A pair of idiots." She turned to the room and called out, "Brother Zhi, is everything okay?! Did you find something?!"


    Jin Jiuchi secretly bared his teeth at her just out of spite.


    "Wait," the man replied from inside. "It seems like there is something here..."


    By now, Surnamed Zhi had already reached the inner part of the room, and if theyout of each room in this apartment was the same, then Jin Jiuchi surmised that he must be somewhere around the bed right now. Other people might not be able to see what was going on inside due to theck of light ¨C as they could only follow the faint flicker of me from Zhi''s torch ¨C but it was different for Jin Jiuchi. He squinted his eyes and saw that Zhi was bending over the nightstand while rummaging through the drawer as though looking for something.


    Just then, a subtle movement from the side caught Jin Jiuchi''s attention and when he shifted his gaze there, he felt his entire body freezing in shock.


    The strands were moving.


    The silk strands were moving on their own aaaah! They were really alive!!


    Utterly spellbound, Jin Jiuchi watched with sparkling eyes as the burnt end of the strands slowly mended themselves together again to form a brand new string; thicker, stronger, and they glinted like sharp metal when light was reflected off them.


    Most importantly, they were now inching closer to the unsuspecting Zhi.


    "Uh-oh..." Jin Jiuchi blurted out.


    "What?" Nian turned to him upon hearing that. However, he did not have the chance to voice his question because in the next second, a muffled grunt of pain resounded from inside and the torch died out with a soft hiss.


    An abrupt darkness engulfed the entire room. Everyone watched, dumbfounded, as the silk strands moved to fill the space on the door akin to a venus flytrap that finally mped its mouth shut after devouring the prey.


    Everything happened so fast that no one could react. By the time they snapped out of their trance, they could no longer sense Zhi''s presence...

 Chapter 32: Flame Larceny

    <h4>Chapter 32: me Larceny</h4>


    For two nerve-wracking seconds, everyone stood frozen in ce as they stared at the wall of pulsating ck silk in front of them. Until the end, the stagnant silence was shattered by Xinxin who staggered backward and let out a terrified scream. "AH¡ª!"


    At once, the scene descended into utter chaos.


    Tang Ye took a few steps forward and hovered over the door, wanting to save Brother Zhi yet also did not know where to start. "Oh nonono...! Brother Zhi, are... are you okay?! Can you give me an answer?!" He called out in a panicked tone. But upon hearing no sound from inside aside from the quiet rustle of silk, he turned to ask Sister Hong for advice, "Sister Hong, what should we do? Brother Zhi is trapped inside!"


    Sister Hong finally snapped out of the trance she was in. Herplexion was horribly pale, but she quickly regained herposure instead of losing her shit like Xinxin and Tang Ye did.


    "Step aside," she ordered.


    Tang Ye''s eyes lit up and he quickly moved to make some room for Sister Hong... only for the woman to grab the door and m it shut!


    "Sister Hong?!" Tang Ye and Xinxin cried out in disbelief.


    "What?" Sister Hong hissed in a low voice. "Do you think I''m capable enough to rush in and rescue him? If he couldn''t even make it out alive, what about me?! Haven''t you seen how powerful and deadly that silk monster is?! If something also happens to me, then what? Can the four of you ¨C second-timers, a newbie and a child ¨C make it out of this Cycle alive?!"


    Tang Ye and Xinxin fell silent at that, their faces twisted horribly as if they had eaten a fly. As much as it pained them to admit it, what Sister Hong said was true. In this Cycle, she and Brother Zhi were the two most experienced yers. Hell, Brother Zhi must be the most powerful yer among them. But now that an ident had happened to him, could they risk losing Sister Hong too?


    "But..." Xinxin sobbed softly. "But can we just leave him alone like this?"


    "Do you think I''m too cruel?" Sister Hong sneered coldly. "Then I''m sorry to tell you that from now on, you will see people a thousand times crueler than me. You have to learn that a sacrifice is necessary sometimes for greater good." After making sure that the door was tightly shut and the silk monster would not be able to get out, she turned away and started to walk toward the stairs with her back ramrod straight. It was as if the one she had lost was not a partner and a human being, but a dog she could discard at will. "Let''s go. It''s almost ten pm."


    Tang Ye and Xinxin cast a few hesitant nces at the door, but left with no other choices, they could only follow behind Sister Hong with a depressed look on their faces.


    "What are you looking at?" Nian asked with a re upon seeing that Jin Jiuchi was still rooted in ce while staring at the door unblinkingly. "Don''t tell me that you are still entertaining that foolish idea. Haven''t you seen what happened to that man?"


    "But, Nian''er," Jin Jiuchi tilted his head to the side in confusion. "I don''t understand. Why did she say that a sacrifice is necessary sometimes?"


    Nian let out a sigh and reminded himself that this man''s mindset was really simple like a child. Foolish, even. And that''s why he had to be extra patient and amodating. "Do you remember what I said about the death condition?" he asked.


    Jin Jiuchi nodded. "You mean, that room is also a death condition?"


    "That''s right. At first, we still had no idea what would happen if we went inside. Would it be safe or would we be attacked by the ck silk? We didn''t know. That''s why Sister Hong sent that man to scout the surroundings. If he could find something that would give us a clue as to why Madam Liu fell from this room, then all is good. And if he died, then we would learn to be cautious from now on. Though it sounded cruel, I have to say that this is indeed the way to survive in the Cycle."


    The strong preyed on the weak. The line between moral and evil was blurred to the point of unseen.


    At the end of the day, humans were selfish beings who thought of themselves first and foremost. Under desperate and extreme situations, how far would they be corrupted by the malice in their hearts?


    In the end, what made them different from the terrifying creatures here?


    Nian shook his head to dismiss the useless thoughts. "Let''s go back," he told Jin Jiuchi. s, he had taken two steps before realizing that Jin Jiuchi did not move at all. Not only that, he was back to staring at the door! Annoyed, he snapped at the man, "What the hell are you waiting for?!"


    Jin Jiuchi turned to him with a slow blink. "But Nian''er, he is not dead yet."


    Nian was taken aback, "...What?"


    Before Nian could even register what Jin Jiuchi meant by that sentence, a loud rumble resounded through the air and the walls started to shake. Even Sister Hong, Tang Ye and Xinxin who were already halfway down the stairs hurriedly rushed back again, shocked.


    They saw the door, which Sister Hong had shut before, mmed open again with a loud bang and a huge ball of fire rolled out.


    No, it was not a fireball, but a person cloaked in me from head to toe as if they were burning from within. Even the face and hair was not spared.


    "Brother Zhi!"


    Surnamed Zhi rose to his feet and exhaled a puff of white smoke from his mouth. Quickly, the fire dissipated from his body to show a face everyone had been familiar with. A few cuts marred his face and body, still oozing with blood. But aside from that, he waspletely untouched by the me itself.


    He raised his hand to show a leather journal, his piercing gaze fixed on Sister Hong who looked like she had just seen a ghost. "Found it."


    Skill Card: me Larceny


    Skill Type: Fire Maniption


    Skill Level: 5


    Skill Description: Those condescending gazes befall you, for you are a thief. Yet they have no idea that fire is burning under your veins. Your fiery power, a stolen gift that can lift you from your dark plight.


    Prop: Willguard Amulet


    Prop Level: Valuable


    Prop Usage: Defend against mental maniption from level four skills or below.


    Status: In use


    [Congrattions! You have sessfullypleted the special task from the Nightmare ¨C ''Sacrifice yourself in front of other yers''! You are only one step away from bing a Veteran yer! Please try your best to earn the ticket and return to the real world!]

 Chapter 33: Skill Card

    <h4>Chapter 33: Skill Card</h4>


    "B¨CBrother Zhi!" Tang Ye ran back again with a huge relieved smile on his face. "Thank God, you''re okay! That was such a close call! We thought something bad had happened to you inside! By the way, what is..." his gaze moved to the leather journal in Zhi''s hand, only for Zhi to slip it inside his pocket. The indication behind his action couldn''t be clearer ¨C he would not let anyone see this item he had brought out at the expense of his own life.


    The atmosphere turned extremely awkward after that.


    Tang Ye opened his mouth to say something, only to close it again because he had no idea what to say. After all, they were the ones who had decided to leave Zhi to fend for himself, and he had no idea how much the man had heard.


    Wouldn''t it be too shameless of them to force him to reveal the content of the journal after everything they had said and done?


    Of course, the same thought also crossed Sister Hong''s mind. Her expression was twisted horribly, her face alternating between red and white. It was unknown what kind of thought was running through her mind. Did she regret leaving Zhi behind so decisively? Or was she thinking that it would be better for him to die inside once and for all? Whatever it was, she had made a big mistake this time.


    "I¨CI will return to my room first," she left that one sentence before turning around and hurriedly going down the stairs.


    Zhi did not say anything either. With a casual gait as if nothing happened at all, he strode toward the stairs to head back toward his own room, disregarding Tang Ye''s feeble attempt to stop him.


    "W¨CWhat should we do?" Tang Ye whispered with a bleak face.


    Xinxin shook her head fearfully. She nced at the clock and was startled to find that only five minutes were left until the curfew. "L¨CLet''s go back first!" She yelped and hastily rushed away.


    With no other choice, Tang Ye could only move to his own room that was only two doors away from Old Guan''s room. He held the doorknob and turned to Jin Jiuchi and Nian with a bitter smile, "Goodnight, Brother Yang, Little Brother. You should hurry back to your room too."


    As soon as the door closed behind Tang Ye, Nian bit out, "Don''t."


    Jin Jiuchi mped his mouth shut with an amazed look. How did Nian tell that he wanted to speak without even looking at him?!


    "Let''s go back to our room first before you say anything." He nced at the clock and saw that less than four minutes remained. Sighing, he crossed his arms and raised his chin to give Jin Jiuchi amand, his little adorable face was lofty and cold. "What are you waiting for? Didn''t you say that it would be faster if we used your long legs?"


    "Pfft...!" Desperately holding back hisughter, Jin Jiuchi scooped the jade doll into his arms and immediately took off running to the third floor.


    Wait, did it mean that Nian had acknowledged that he was a shortie? But they could leave this talk to another time. There were so, so many more important things he wanted to say and he felt like he was going to explode if he did not let them out soon! Thus, as soon as they barged into their room and closed the door behind them, Jin Jiuchi immediately blurted out, his entire body buzzing with thrill and excitement,


    "What was that?!" He sounded almost breathless, the words flowed out of his mouth without a second pause. "Did you see that, Nian''er? You saw that, didn''t you? His body! His entire body was burning from head to toe! How did he do it?! Don''t tell me that it''s a prop because I will not believe it! Oh my God, this is another level of magic trick! Can you do it, Nian''er? Wait, can I... can I do it too?! I wanna try!!"


    Nian had already expected that this would be the thing Jin Jiuchi was going to talk about since he saw the man''s dumbstruck face when Zhi rolled out of that silk hole as a fireball. With a deadpan face, he waited until Jin Jiuchi stopped talking before he asked lightly, "Done?"


    Jin Jiuchi gave a slow blink. "...You want me to say more, Nian''er?"


    "Don''t." Veins popped on the jade doll''s forehead. He kneaded his temple and sighed, "Alright, I will exin it a bit for you, so listen well. Aside from props which you can give, buy or sell at will, there are also skill cards, which grants us a superpower like Zhi''s. They are all the rewards given by the Nightmare once you make it out of this ce. So if you''re still alive until then, you will definitely get it too, albeit I have no idea what your skill card will be like. Unlike props, the skill card will be automatically bound to you, so it is a skill that belongs exclusively to you alone ¨C unless you are killed by another yer. If you are killed, then your skill card''s ownership will be transferred to them, so you must be careful when dealing with another yer."


    Jin Jiuchi nodded again and again, eyes sparkling in wonder. Skill cards! How marvelous! And did Nian say that he would also receive his soon? Oh, Jin Jiuchi couldn''t wait for that day toe! "And¡ª"


    "Sssh!" Nian hushed him with a grim look. He soundlessly moved to the window and brushed aside the curtain with one finger, and only then did Jin Jiuchi realize that the paper dolls were on the move again.


    Jin Jiuchi also slid closer to the window and pressed his ear to it, though this time he took care not to get close to the jade doll again for fear that he would be pinned to the window again. He did not want to be forced to take in that horrendous odor for the second time! His sharp ears picked up the familiar noise of crinkling papers and ghostly music, but tonight...


    "The music is getting louder," Nian voiced Jin Jiuchi''s thought out loud, his expression somber. "What is the purpose of the paper dolls? Is it to patrol around the apartment? To hypnotize yers with their music? Or is there another purpose we still haven''t found out yet?" he mumbled, more to himself than to Jin Jiuchi.


    That''s right, Jin Jiuchi acutely perceived that something was different with the celebration music tonight. Ifst night, the sound of gong and trumpets still sounded hazy and vague as if it hade from somece far away, then this time it was like ayer of curtain had been lifted. Jin Jiuchi could even hear a faint humming of the upbeat song.


    But that was not the only difference tonight. Aside from the paper dolls, there was also another sound... tapping and scuttling, light and quick, just like...


    That''s right, just like the sound of tiny legs moving across a t surface!


    And the source of the sound was...


    Jin Jiuchi quietly raised his eyelids to the ceiling and what he saw there immediately caused him


    to suck in a sharp breath.

 Chapter 34: Warm And Solid Cushion

    <h4>Chapter 34: Warm And Solid Cushion</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi stared unblinkingly at the nightmare creature clinging to the ceiling on the corridor outside. It was a grotesque sight, a twisted abomination that defied all logic and reason. Just like the blood parasite, but a thousand times creepier.


    The top half of its body was that of a woman with a torso and arms that looked eerily human. But from the waist down, the creature''s body resembled a spider with four pairs of long, spindly legs that moved in a bizarre, insect-like way. As it crawled across the ceiling, the creature''s spider legs tapped against the surface in a stato rhythm. Thanks to Jin Jiuchi''s excellent eyesight, he could even spot the wiry ck hair that covered its legs, the dark color standing out against the pale, sickly skin of its human torso. Its sharp mandibles clicked together hungrily, its eyes ¨Crge and multifaceted ¨C gleamed in the dark corridor with sinister intelligence. However, this bizarre sight was not one that shocked Jin Jiuchi the most.


    It was the creature''s face that looked just like... Madam Liu!


    "N¨CNian''er..." He reached out haphazardly to draw the jade doll''s attention and ended up patting him right on the head. "Nian''er! Nian''er! Nian''er!"


    "What?!" Nian angrily swatted his unruly paw away.


    "Look up. There''s something else on the ceiling."


    "What?" Nian raised his head, yet he could not see anything past the boundless darkness of the corridor outside. He could only spot something dark and huge moving, but that alone was already enough to send rm bells ringing through his mind. "What is it you are seeing?"


    Jin Jiuchi btedly realized that Nian''s eyesight was not as good as his, thus he took it upon himself to describe the abomination he had seen with simple and limited vocabry. However, the words ''half woman and half spider with Madam Liu''s face'' was already enough to give Nian a clear image of what kind of nightmare was waiting for them outside.


    As the paper dolls were getting closer and closer to them, he silently tugged Jin Jiuchi to sit on the floor, his little forehead furrowed deeply. "I think I have figured out the main rules of this Cycle."


    Jin Jiuchi blinked a few times in confusion. "Uh... great?"


    Nian shot him an exasperated look and exined it in a way that a simple-minded fool like Jin Jiuchi could understand. "I have told you before that the most important thing after entering the Cycle, aside frompleting the task by the NPC and earning the return ticket, is to find out all of the death conditions. Only this way can we avoid triggering it and increase the likelihood of our survival."


    "Oooh!" Jin Jiuchi hit his palm with a fist. His expression was full of awe as he praised the jade doll wholeheartedly, "Nian''er is so good! It''s only the second night and you already figured them out?!" He wanted to continue singing praise to high heavens, only for Nian to mp his mouth shut with a small yet ruthless palm.


    "Don''t be so loud! Do you want to attract them again likest night?!" he hissed in a low voice.


    Jin Jiuchi gave him a wounded look and signaled that he would be silent, and only then did Nian let him go, not without sending him a warning re.


    They waited for a few minutes until the paper dolls walked past their room and ascended the floor before Nian got up to switch on the light and re-joined Jin Jiuchi on the floor. s, before he could even settle down, Jin Jiuchi suddenly tugged on his arm, causing him to lose his bnce andnding straight on the man''sp.


    Jin Jiuchi winked at him with a roguish look that made Nian want to bash his head. "Won''t it be better this way so we can talk quietly?"


    ''Patience,'' Nian repeated to himself like a mantra. ''This man is nothing but a husky. He doesn''t understand anything at all!''


    Through their close interaction these past few days, he had realized that Jin Jiuchi severelyckedmon sense which ordinary people possessed. He would often spout out weird nonsense and do things that would cause him to bebeled as a pervert. When in fact, he truly did not mean anything by that at all! That''s why Nian learned not to take anything the man said at face value. Even though his appearance was one of a high-caliber specimen, inside he was no more than a five years old child!


    Toozy to argue, Nian made himself morefortable on Jin Jiuchi''sp, treating him just like an overly warm and solid cushion, then he reached into his pocket and took out a piece of crumpled paper.


    "Hmm?" Nian was startled when the vibration of Jin Jiuchi''s questioning hum reverberated from the man''s chest to his back, sending small tremors of shock throughout his body. Then Jin Jiuchi ced his chin on Nian''s small shoulder and reached out to open the folded paper, which automatically caused Nian to be engulfed within his powerful and muscr arms. "What is this? A newspaper clipping? Nian''er, this is the thing you took from Madam Liu''s body downstairs, right?"


    The man''s heated exhale fanned across the tender skin of his neck, causing him to shiver and let out an involuntary gasp, and his voice... oh that deep and low voice that rumbled right into his ear...


    Nian took his words back! It was simply impossible to treat this man like a cushion when he was oozing intense male pheromones with every breath he took!


    Nian clenched his teeth. He had no idea whether to be grateful or regretful that he was in this form now...


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi sniffed the air a few times, then he abruptly pressed his nose to Nian''s pulse point and took a deep inhale out of it, sounding intoxicated. "Nian''er, your smell bes sweeter..."


    ''This damned husky!!'' Unable to endure it anymore, Nian summoned his needle and stabbed Jin Jiuchi''s arm with it, effectively locking his movement in ce. He rolled out of Jin Jiuchi''sp and red at the man who was looking at him with a pair of mournful and betrayed eyes, his chest still heaving both from fury and adrenaline raging in his system.


    ''If I don''t teach him a lesson now, then I will cut my head off and let him y with it like a football!''

 Chapter 35: Three Victims

    <h4>Chapter 35: Three Victims</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi was extremely aggrieved. He truly had no idea what he had done to make Nian get so angry, resulting in him getting paralyzed with his two arms locked in a circle in front of him.


    He tried to defend his innocence, only to find that his lips seemed to have been glued and he could only make muffled ''hm-mmf!'' sound from his throat. Thus, he could only put on a wronged, pitiful look, almost squeezing out a few droplets of tears out of his eyes. Yet it only served to enrage Nian even more.


    "Don''t give me that face, you crazy pervert!" He seethed and settled on the floor a few steps away from Jin Jiuchi, out of thetter''s reach. "Who told you to be so touchy-feely? You''d better stay like that until the effects of the needle wear off!"


    ''But Nian''er, you don''t smell like you dislike it though!'' was what Jin Jiuchi was saying, though what Nian heard was only a series of unintelligible ''mmmph''.


    (It was fortunate that he was unable to say it out loud, otherwise Nian might really strangle him to death in a fit of rage and humiliation.)


    With a harrumph, Nian smoothed out the newspaper clipping that had identally got crumpled due to his shock earlier. He ced it on the floor and pushed it in front of Jin Jiuchi so the man could read it. "This is what I found on the corpse earlier. I forgot to tell you that this is a low level Cycle. It means that the level of difficulty is low, and as long as you do not act out of line, then you won''t die." He emphasized each word heavily as though wishing for nothing but to drill the sentence into Jin Jiuchi''s hard skull.


    "It also means that the main clues about the death condition in this Cycle will be spread here and there. So long as you find them, your survival will pretty much be guaranteed. This," he pointed at the newspaper clipping. "is one of the main clues. I suspect that the journal Zhi found in Old Guan''s room is also another clue."


    The newspaper clipping in front of Jin Jiuchi was old, yellowed and tattered on the edges, looking like it had braved through centuries tond in this apartment. He squinted his eyes and slowly read through them,


    [A runaway serial killer is found hiding in Shishen Apartment? A joyous ceremony turns into tragedy!


    Zhao (18) was found brutally murdered on the eve of her own wedding inside the bridal chamber. Her body was chopped and mutted into pieces. The murder weapon is believed to be a cleaver or another simrly heavy and sharp tool. The nearest local station was quickly alerted, and only then did they discover two other murders that are suspected to be done by the same person. The two other victims ¨C Liu (36) and Dong (45) ¨C seemed to have been confined and tortured for days. On the other hand, Zhao''s father (58) went insane right away after finding his daughter''s body. In the end, he was sent to...]


    The article was abruptly torn off after that, leaving Jin Jiuchi who was still reeling in shock.


    Zhao''s father? Old Zhao? He went crazy and was sent to... the asylum where Jin Jiuchi was? That''s right, it must be it. But why did Miss Zhao say that her father was dead?


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes then moved to the small monochrome picture attached to the clipping. It was the photos of the victims and Jin Jiuchi recognized all three of them at once. They were Miss Zhao whom he had just metst night, Madam Liu thendy who had served Jin Jiuchi the delicious pot of meat sauce, and thest one was...


    "Hmm-hmm-hmpph!" As Jin Jiuchi could not even move his head, he could only move his eyes like crazy to let Nian know that he had something important to say.


    "What?" Nian shot him a suspicious look.


    "Urgh!" Jin Jiuchi rolled his eyes exasperatedly, then he pointedly gestured at the clipping with his eyes. ''Take your needles out!'' he tried to convey. ''I have something to tell you!''


    Still skeptical yet also curious about what Jin Jiuchi wanted to say, he gingerly took out one needle so that Jin Jiuchi could at least move his mouth. Almost in an instant, Jin Jiuchi felt the force gluing his mouth shut faded away and he immediately took in huge gulps of air like a fish who had been hooked out of the water. "Puah! Ha... ha, Nian''er! How can you be so cruel?! You¡ª"


    "Get to the point," Nian brandished his needle with a threatening look. "Or else I will stab this into your body again and leave you alone for the rest of the night."


    How cruel! How could there be such a bad kiddo like Nian''er in this world? With imaginary tears drenching his face, Jin Jiuchi sniffled and pointed at the faded photo of thest victim surnamed Dong. "Nian''er, he is the one! Do you remember me saying how I saw someone through the fourth floor window before we entered this ce? This is the face I saw back then!" Then he put on a smug look as if saying, ''How is it? My information is important, right?!''


    s, Nian did not even deign to give him a nce, leaving Jin Jiuchi to sulk on his own. "So that''s how it is..." he stared at the newspaper clipping with a thoughtful look.


    "Okay, hear me out," Nian told him seriously. "I think I have mainly figured out the main rules in this ce. As I have told you before, the level of difficulty in this Cycle is low and the probability of survival is more than fifty percent." Of course, it was without the additional presence of the Nightmare, Nian added inwardly. "There are six of us¡ª"


    "Seven," Jin Jiuchi corrected with a pout. How could Nian leave him out?!


    Nian took a deep inhale to curb his killing intent. "Seven," he said with extreme patience. "There are seven of us, divided into six rooms. We are spread into three floors and each floor will contain one victim ¨C or in this case, nightmare creature. We, Sister Hong and Old Guan are the more ''unlucky'' yers because the nightmare creatures reside in our rooms, whereas Xinxin, Tang Ye and Zhi obtain theplete safe zone."


    Jin Jiuchi nodded as understanding dawned on him. So that was why Xinxin, Tang Ye, and Brother Zhi did not show any signs that they had encountered anythingst night. On the other hand, Old Guan... Jin Jiuchi clicked his tongue in pity. He could not imagine how that timid man must have felt when he encountered the spider version of Madam Liu. It was already good that he was not terrified to death.


    Well, in the end, he was still dead though...


    "Wait," Jin Jiuchi suddenly recalled something. "How about Sister Hong? She did not say anything this morning either."


    "There are two possibilities. First, she stayed silent because she wanted to gauge our reaction. Or second..." Nian gave him a pointed look. "She did not stay in her roomst night and thus did not encounter the nightmare creature."


    Jin Jiuchi wrinkled his nose in disgust when he recalled the pungent stench on the woman''s body. "It must be the second possibility, then."


    Nian''s face grew somber, making his purple eyes look darker and colder than usual. "That''s where the problem lies. Do you know why that spider creature can go around the apartment freely tonight?"


    "Why¡ªoh!" Jin Jiuchi''s eyes widened as he connected two and two together. "Do you mean to say that it''s because Old Guan ran out of his roomst night and hence, he identally let that creature free?"


    Nian showed a pleasantly surprised look, not expecting Jin Jiuchi to figure out the rules so quickly. How rude! Did Nian think that he was an idiot or something?! Seeing that Jin Jiuchi looked affronted, the jade doll cleared his throat and resumed his lofty and dignified air. "You are right. Those creatures are freed because the yers open the door for them, otherwise they can only show themselves with no way to harm the yers. Do you remember the first rule thendy told us? Nevere out of our room past curfew. That rule is actually created to save and protect us. But now, in addition to the paper dolls, Old Guan has freed the spider creature, and Sister Hong has also set the creature in her room free. And worse still, they will get stronger and stronger as the days pass."


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head. The more he listened to the jade doll''s words, the more confused he was. "Why is Nian''er unhappy? Going by what you have just told me, if we stay here when the nightes, then we will bepletely safe and Miss Zhao can''t get out of this room, nor can she harm us... right?"


    For one long moment, Nian stared at him with an inscrutable look and then his lips curved into a grim smile. "Who says that I will just stay in my room until thest day?"

 Chapter 36: But You Love Me!

    <h4>Chapter 36: But You Love Me!</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi gaped at him, utterly bbergasted. What did the jade doll mean by that? Did he just say that he would still go out after curfew and risk being caught by that bizarre spider aka Madam Liu version two?!


    "NO!" he hollered out loud. If he could move, he would have shot up to his feet and grabbed Nian by the shoulders, shaking him to see if he could shake the water off his brain. Who was the one whockedmon sense here? Had he even looked at himself in the mirror?! Nian''er was so tiny, what if he was swallowed by that spider creature in one gulp?! The more Jin Jiuchi thought about it, the more aghast he was. "Nian''er, you can''t! You¡ª"


    "Ssshh!" Nian hastily shushed him with a dark re. "Keep your volume down!"


    Jin Jiuchi did not listen, of course. Not only that, he also shouted louder. "Ah, ah, ah! Help¡ª there''s a bad Nian''er here! He wants to¡ªhmpph!" The needle was stabbed into Jin Jiuchi''s body again, sealing his mouth shut in an instant.


    Towering over Jin Jiuchi like a sadistic and cruel young master, Nian barked out a chillingugh with an expression as dark as the bottom of the pot, "Why the hell do I keep you alive until now? I shouldn''t have stopped you when you wanted to enter Old Guan''s room earlier!"


    "Hmmph hmm hmm!!" But Nian''er, you love me!!


    Nian snapped at him angrily, "Shut up!"


    He red at the annoying man in front of him. Even though he had no idea what Jin Jiuchi was saying, he instinctively knew that it was nothing good. He should have just kept Jin Jiuchi in this state until they got out of the Cycle so that the man would not cause him any trouble!


    This time, Jin Jiuchi indeed shut himself up, but not because Nian''er ordered him to.


    He raised his gaze to the ceiling and quietly perked his ears up. Seeing him like this, Nian also turned vignt and lifted his head to follow his line of sight. There was nothing on the ceiling above them, except¡ª


    Sssh... sssh...


    A strange sound entered their ears. It''s a slow, dragging noise like something heavy being dragged across the floor. Nian''s body grew tense and he slowed his breathing, his purple eyes gleaming in a sharp light. The sound persisted, echoing all over the silent room as if it had been magnified ten folds to strike fear into people''s hearts. The more he listened to it, the more he felt like... that''s right, it sounded just like someone dragging their limp leg around!


    A possibility instantly shed through his mind. The third victim? The one surnamed Dong? Excluding the paper dolls and the spider creature, then it could only be him.


    The two of them waited with bated breaths as the dragging sound got further and further away until itpletely ceased and only eerie silence remained. The tension in the air slowly dissipated and only then could Nian allow himself to rx. s, the fact that he knew almost nothing about the creatures gnawed on his mind, making him restless and uneasy. He was fairly certain that the journal in Zhi''s hands contained a main clue ¨C it could be the creatures'' weakness or even how to defeat them. And to obtain it... perhaps he had to strike a deal with the man tomorrow.


    Ignoring Jin Jiuchi''s puppy eyes that were staring unblinkingly at him, hey down on the bed and made himselffortable under the cover.


    "Mrrphh!! Hmm nghh!!" Nian''er, what about me?! You can''t be serious about leaving me like this for the rest of the night, right?!


    "Don''t tire yourself out," Nian said in azy tone, sleepiness starting to drag behind his eyelids. "You have to keep watch tonight. If the nightmare creaturees, wake me up."


    Jin Jiuchi was practically in tears now. "Hmmm!!" How am I supposed to wake you up like this?!


    Nian did not tell him how the effect of the prop onlysted for two hours at most. ''Let''s just teach him a lesson so that he will not dare to move his stinky paws again,'' he thought viciously. With that thought in mind, he drifted off to a peaceful slumber, leaving Jin Jiuchi to fend for himself.


    That night, Miss Zhao did not drop by to visit either.


    ***


    The next day, they were woken up by Xinxin''s horrified scream. "AHH¡ª!"


    Nian jolted out of his deep sleep, and his instinct immediately kicked in to clear the haze of drowsiness from his mind. rm bells rang in his mind. This was the second time he had fallen asleep so soundly inside the Cycle, and he had done it twice in a row!


    He snapped his eyes open with a light gasp, only to feel the heavy nket weighing down on him suddenly moved away and spoke in a hoarse and sleepy murmur,


    "What the hell is that..."


    Nian instantly went still, too stunned to react for a while. The searing heat of Jin Jiuchi''s body still lingered on his back and practically his entire body, and he slowly turned around to find the man sitting up on the bed with mussed up hair. His upper body was bare, disying the flex of those glorious, mouth-watering and taut muscles as he stretched his waist and let out a huge yawn.


    "Nian''er?" Jin Jiuchi''s voice barely brought him out of daze. "Someone is screaming outside. Shouldn''t we check it out?"


    "You..." Nian sat up and wiped the corner of his mouth, relieved when he did not find any traces of drool there. He choked out, "Why aren''t you wearing your shirt."


    "Too tight," Jin Jiuchiined in a grumble. "You can''t expect me to wear that in my sleep. I will be suffocated to death! Okay, okay, don''t look at me like that. Geez, I will wear it now, okay?" Murmuring about how strict and fussy Nian''er was, he grabbed the shirt he had tossed asidest night and slipped it on to cover his bare body.


    Nian let out a relieved sigh. Finally, he could think again. The sight of this damned husky''s body at such an early hour was seriously so distracting...


    "Let''s go," he got out of the bed, put on his shoes and went to open the door.


    Xinxin was standing over the corridor railing while peering down, her face ghastly pale. She yelped in surprise upon hearing the door open, only to rx again when she saw Jin Jiuchi and Nianing out. She looked one second away from bursting out into tears. "Y¨CYou guys are here..."


    Nian tugged the hem of Jin Jiuchi''s shirt and gave him a signal.


    Raising his brow, Jin Jiuchi chuckled and scooped the jade doll into his arms again, helping him to see what was going on downstairs. Madam Liu''s corpse was still there in the same position they had left herst night. The question of how she could still be there when the spider creature was moving aroundst night crossed his mind for a split second, but then he was quickly distracted by another sight.


    There was not only one corpse downstairs, but two.


    As for the other one...


    It was none other than Sister Hong.

 Chapter 37: Unused Kitchen

    <h4>Chapter 37: Unused Kitchen</h4>


    Simrly to Madam Liu, Sister Hong died with her limbs twisted in crooked angles and her neck broken. Even at herst moment, her eyes were still wide in fear and unwillingness, so vivid it was as if she could spring up at any second and revive as a vengeful ghost.


    "I... I didn''t hear anything at allst night..." Xinxin whispered tremblingly.


    Tang Ye''s face was grim. "Me too."


    Nian turned to Jin Jiuchi with questions in his eyes. He had witnessed how sharp and acute Jin Jiuchi''s senses were and if there was someone who noticed the ruckusst night, then it could only be him. In response, Jin Jiuchi, who was draped bonelessly over the dining table, replied in a careless tone, "Ah... I seemed to have heard an argument and some fightingst night?" However, he had not paid it too much attention for he was quickly growing numb having to hold the same position for so longst night.


    Seeing his unusually low spirit, Tang Ye couldn''t help but ask in concern, "Brother Yang, are you okay...?"


    It was still fine if Tang Ye did not bring it up, but now that he did, Jin Jiuchi could not contain the sorrow and grief in his heart anymore. He straightened up and shot an using look at the jade doll. "Isn''t it Nian''er''s fault?! He kept me up all night, tired me down to the bones and forced me to keep the same exhausting position! My waist, arms and calves are still sore now!"


    Xinxin almost spurted out the water she was drinking. She coughed while covering her mouth, "S¨CSorry..."


    Tang Ye''s face turned red. W¨CWhat was he thinking?! Little Brother was just a child, for God''s sake! Moreover, both of them were brothers! But why did Jin Jiuchi''s words sound so...


    "Shut up!" Nian snapped at him angrily. What the hell was up with this crazy pervert? What ''kept me up all night''? It was only two hours, for God''s sake! Hadn''t he learned his lesson fromst night?! Or did he want to get stabbed again?!


    Just in time, Zhi walked in through the door and a hushed silence immediately fell over the table. All of them had an inkling that Sister Hong''s death must have something to do with him, yet no one dared to confront him about it at all. The initial seven people were reduced to five within the span of a day. The dining hall had never felt as spacious as it was today.


    "G¨CGood morning, Brother Zhi..." Tang Ye greeted him nervously, only to receive no reply in return as Zhi sat down on another table for two on the other side of the hall, adding on to the awkwardness in the air.


    Cloaked in this tense atmosphere, they waited and waited but the cooks who were supposed to bring their food did note at all.


    Jin Jiuchi rubbed his growling stomach and pretended toy down like a corpse, his spirit was at an all-time low. "I''m going to die... I''m going to die this time for sure..."


    Sensing that something was off, Xinxin stood up from her seat and tugged on her bangs clipped with cyan blue hairpin. "Um... let me check the kitchen."


    "Oh, me too!" Tang Ye volunteered to apany her, and both of them left the dining hall.


    After the two of them disappeared from sight, the jade doll made a move to jump down from the chair. "Wait!" Jin Jiuchi caught his wrist in a hurry. "Nian''er, where are you going?"


    Nian shrugged him off with an impatient look. "None of your business. Stay here and don''t bother me."


    Jin Jiuchi let out a sharp gasp and clutched his chest as if the jade doll''s words had physically hurt him. But Nian was unmoved and resolutely ignored him with a frosty expression. As such, Jin Jiuchi could only watch, aggrieved, as the jade doll strode toward Zhi''s table and took a seat opposite the other. At first, Zhi did not even deign to give the silver-haired boy a nce, but then Nian said something to him that caused Zhi to show a look of surprise, and the two of them started to talk in a quiet, hushed voice.


    The distance between them was too far for ordinary people to hear what they were saying. But how could it ever deter Jin Jiuchi from eavesdropping? With a sullen look, he pricked up his ears and concentrated all his senses on that table and eventually, pieces of faint conversation drifted to his ears.


    "...deduce the death condition..."


    "That''s right, I have discovered almost all of them."


    "What do you want?"


    "Simple, let''s cooperate and¡ª"


    Xinxin and Tang Ye burst in through the door with a panicked look on their faces, distracting Jin Jiuchi into missing out on thest sentence Nian was saying. "I¨CIt''s bad!" they fumbled to say. "Everyone disappeared!!"


    "What?!" Jin Jiuchi shot up to his feet, aghast. "What do you mean by that?!" If there was no one to prepare food in this ce, how was he supposed to eat?! Did it mean he had to starve himself again?!


    The three of them ended up following Tang Ye and Xinxin to the kitchen located in the back of the apartment, essed through a narrow hallway.


    The heavy door creaked open to reveal a dimly lit room. Dust covered every inch of the surface, including the old wooden cabs and shelves that lined the walls. Arge cast-iron stove sat in the inner part of the room with its top covered inyers of grime and cobwebs. The oven door hung open to show a dark and sooty interior. There were no dishes or utensils in the sink or on the counters, only a few old cans and bottles scattered around the room, some of which were filled with murky and dubious liquid. The stale and musty air was heavier and more intense than usual, it was as if this room had long been forgotten and left alone for decades until Tang Ye and Xinxin opened it up.


    Everyone''s faces turned grim when they took in the abandoned kitchen that was permeated with a sense of neglect and decay.


    "What the hell..." Jin Jiuchi blurted out as he stared at therge spider hanging from the cobwebs on the ceiling. "When was this roomst used? What about our food yesterday..."


    Just the mere thought of them eating the food produced from this filthy kitchen was enough to send a wave of nausea over their stomach.


    Without a word, Zhi turned to the staff quarters near the kitchen, and the four of them trailed behind him like baby ducklings. For the entire morning, they turned the whole floor upside down, yet aside from the yers, no one remained in therge apartment.


    Xinxin swallowed and voiced the doubts in everyone''s mind, "Is it because of Madam Liu''s death...?"


    The main NPC''s death caused an imbnce to the entire Cycle, resulting in the disappearance of the cooks who should have sustained the yers'' stomach for their entire stay here. It made sense when they thought of it, but now, they were faced with an extremely grave problem.


    They still needed to stay in this Cycle for three more days, so what should they do about the food?!

 Chapter 38: Puppy With Fragile Heart

    <h4>Chapter 38: Puppy With Fragile Heart</h4>


    The shortage of food ended up bing a huge blow to everyone, especially Jin Jiuchi who already felt like dying right now.


    The familiar pang of hunger gnawed on his insides, sending a burst of acrid taste over the base of his tongue. It made him feel restless all over and awakened some memories he''d rather forget.


    Oh he was no longer a stranger to this feeling. After all, back in the asylum, they used to starve him like this just to make him obey. But in the end, what did he do? Did he sumb to hunger and bow his head like they wanted, or did he insist on fighting to death?


    Wait, why couldn''t he remember...


    "Impossible!" Tang Ye''s voice snapped him out of his trance. The young man had a pinched look on his face as he remarked, "This is only a low-level Cycle, so how can the difficulty be so high?!"


    It seemed like Jin Jiuchi was not the only one who was getting agitated by each passing second. But speaking of ''difficulty''... hadn''t Nian told him about itst night? In low-level Cycle, as long as one obeyed the rules and did not act out of line, then they would not die. But the fact right now proved otherwise. Not only did they have to be vignt against three nightmare creatures at night, they also had to take care of their stomachs.


    All of a sudden, Jin Jiuchi recalled the jade doll saying something about how the presence of the Nightmare would increase the level of difficulty by a few folds. He raised his head to look at the ss stained roof and found nothing there except for the stretch of overcast sky. Ah that''s right, the Nightmare would only appear at night.


    He then nced at Nian beside him just in time for the jade doll to turn to him too. Their gazes collided in midair and Jin Jiuchi sent him a grin out of habit. ''What?'' he mouthed.


    The jade doll ignored him ¨C how rude! ¨C and shared his opinion with everyone, "I don''t believe that the Cycle will starve us like this, especially a low-level Cycle. There must be edible food around here somehow."


    The three others nodded in agreement. It was better to hold on to hope rather than sumbing to the bleak future.


    "Moreover," Nian added with a thoughtful look. "This is the first time I have ever seen the death of the main NPC in the Cycle. Does it mean we don''t have to continue with the task? Or do we still have to follow it to the end? What if we finish it sooner? Is it possible for us to obtain the tickets and get out of this ce before the sixth day?"


    Tang Ye''s eyes lit up. "What Little Brother said makes sense! We still have no idea what will happen once weplete the task. There is a possibility that we will earn the tickets and the bus will arrive sooner! Okay, let''s do it like this today. We will separate into two groups. The first group will search for food, while the second group will continue to decorate the wedding venue on the sixth floor. How about it?"


    No one objected to Tang Ye''s suggestion.


    "Err... I think I will choose to decorate," Tang Ye took the initiative to say. "How about you guys?"


    "Me!" Jin Jiuchi raised his hand in the air. "I will search for food!" There was no way he could work while his future meal was still uncertain. Either way, he believed that his nose would be useful at a time like this!


    Surprisingly, the jade doll echoed along, "I will search for food too."


    Zhi said, "Count me in."


    Tang Ye turned to Xinxin with a hopeful look, causing thetter to have no choice but to nod, "Then... I will decorate the sixth floor with Tang Ye."


    "Okay!" Tang Ye pped in satisfaction. "Let''s meet here again during lunch, everyone!"


    Tang Ye and Xinxin headed straight to the sixth floor, leaving Jin Jiuchi, Nian and Zhi behind. The two of them shared a look that Jin Jiuchi could not understand, then Zhi said, "I will search the kitchen first."


    Nian nodded, "I will start from the second floor then."


    After that, the two of them parted ways, leaving the dumbfounded Jin Jiuchi behind. Wait a minute... why were they talking as if Jin Jiuchi did not exist? What about him? Where should he go?!


    "Nian''er, Nian''er..." he trotted behind the jade doll like a lost puppy. "Can I follow you?"


    Nian replied without looking at him, "Up to you." Yet in Jin Jiuchi''s ears, it was like he was saying, ''I can and will push you down the stairs at any moment, so you''d better watch out.''


    Jin Jiuchi was confused and aggrieved at the same time. He could not understand why Nian seemed to be giving him the cold shoulder. Was it because of theck of food?


    "Nian''er," he looked back to make sure that Zhi was no longer within earshot, then he leaned down to whisper into the jade doll''s ears. "What kind of deal are you making with that man?"


    Nian felt a warm exhale brushing against his earlobe, followed by that deep and hushed voice so close to his ear. "You...!" he snapped his head toward Jin Jiuchi, all the while covering his burning earlobe. This damned husky truly had not learned anything at all! Invading another person''s personal space so carelessly, did he want to anger Nian to death?!


    "What does it have to do with you? It''s none of your business!" He vented his suppressed anger on the man.


    All he wanted was to achieve his purpose and get through this Cycle safely, but with Jin Jiuchi, he seemed to have been thrown into a loop of unending troubles and confusion. The rm bells in his mind were already ringing, warning him that the peace he had painstakingly secured would be shattered if he were to keep the man by his side. Hadn''t it happened already? If not for Jin Jiuchi, his presence would still be overlooked by the other yers, and he wouldn''t have needed to watch his actions and words so carefully like now!


    And the most infuriating thing was, Jin Jiuchi always had a way to make him give in despite his weird and bizarre antics! That''s why he decided to create some distance between them starting from today, but why was this man looking at him with such sorrowful eyes as if he had been abandoned?!


    "Nian''er, do you hate me now?" he murmured in a quiet voice. "Do you also think I''m weird and can''t wait to get as far away from me as possible?"


    Nian felt strangely flustered when he caught a watery sheen forming in Jin Jiuchi''s silver eyes. It couldn''t be... was he really crying because Nian snapped at him?! He was such a big guy, for God''s sake, so how could he act so childish and gullible?! How unfair, it made him feel like a bastard for speaking so harshly!


    Nian cursed his decision to enter this Cycle in the first ce that resulted in him gaining a six feet tall puppy with a fragile heart. "Forget it..." he pressed on his aching forehead, already resigned to his fate. "Just follow me, but if you dare to run around as you please, then I will break your legs and throw you to the spider creature!"


    Jin Jiuchi immediately perked up as if he had been granted amnesty, his silver eyes sparkling like stars. The tears that were pooling in his eyes also dried up with a poof and vanished like a droplet of water under the scorching sun. No traces of the previous sadness could be detected on his face.


    "Okay, I will listen to Nian''er!" He shed a wide grin, disying his sharp canine teeth. If he had a tail, it would be wagging like mad behind his back right now.


    Nian turned away and continued to walk with a harrumph. Though inwardly, he was feeling quite dubious. Why did he feel like he had been deceived by a certain husky''s tearful act?


    .


    .


    A/N: this chapter is now with fanart! Thanks to HidingPig57 who has drawn chibi JJ and SN for us <3<3<3 please scroll through the paragraphments to find the art and show your love there! ><

 Chapter 39: Food And Danger Detector

    <h4>Chapter 39: Food And Danger Detector</h4>


    Meanwhile, in the back kitchen.


    Zhi pushed open the heavy door and took a step inside, his vignt eyes taking notes of the surroundings.


    Toward thepressed and musty odor in the air, he did not even bat an eyelid and merely wrinkled his nose to show his difort. His eyes immediately went to the wooden cabs and shelves. If there was a ce to store food, then it could only be there.


    With a flick of his hand, a dagger appeared in his palm and he held it in his grip as he trudged deeper into the neglected kitchen. He used the tip of the dagger to hook the cab handle and yanked it open, coughing when the movement caused the thick dust to st him right on the face.


    Inside the cab was nothing more than a stack of antique tes whose surface had been covered by a thinyer of dust.


    Leaving it alone, he moved to the next cab. But at that moment, a slight movement entered the corner of his eyes. Startled, he turned around, his grip tightening around the dagger ready to throw it forward... only to see that it was only a little gray mouse peeking at him from behind the can on the floor.


    "Ciit...!" the ruby-eyed mouse let out a squeak and hurriedly scrambled away once it saw that it had been noticed, and Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.


    So it was only a mouse...


    There was nothing strange about seeing a mouse or two in the kitchen. His tense muscles loosened and he went to rummage through the cabs again.


    Unaware that behind him, in the dark corners where the light could not reach, numerous pairs of tiny ruby eyes snapped open one after another, staring unblinkingly at him.


    ***


    "Ah, that''s right," Jin Jiuchi suddenly recalled something when they were walking down the second floor''s corridor. He bent down to catch Nian''s purple eyes, asking for the second time, "What kind of deal are you making with that man, Nian''er?"


    The more Nian thought about it, the more he felt like he had been tricked by Jin Jiuchi''s crocodile tears and thus, he refused to look at the man''s deceitful face. "None of your business," he stated coldly and came to a stop in the room closest to the stairs ¨C 201. The shortage of food had arrived at the perfect time. Now he would be able to do what he had been nning for since entering this Cycle under the guise of searching for food.


    ...If only this damned husky did not stick to him like glue.


    Why did he tell Jin Jiuchi to follow him again? Water must have entered his brain for him to blurt that out in the heat of the moment. He should have kicked this man as far away as possible!


    "So cruel..." Jin Jiuchi grumbled, feeling extremely wronged. "I''m telling it for your own good. Nian''er, that man smells funny and treacherous. I reckon that he must have done a lot of thieving acts in the past. So you must be careful not to get cheated!!"


    ''Are you the reincarnation of a hound?'' Once again, Nian found himself wandering. He grew amused by the unexpected concern he found in Jin Jiuchi''s words. Exactly who was the newbie and who was the veteran here?


    "I can tell at a nce that he is not a good person," he let out a light scoff. "You will meet more people like that the longer you spend in the Cycle. Even if someone is a respected schr in the normal world, here, there is no telling how many people they have harmed just to survive. Isn''t it repulsive?"


    As he spoke, he pulled out a familiar yellow talisman from his pocket, ready to stick it to the door in front of him when he suddenly perceived a heated presence approaching him from behind.


    "Hmm..." Jin Jiuchi sniffed on the back of the jade doll''s neck. "But you still smell pure and¡ªoww!" He held his throbbing cheek and cried out abuse, "Nian''er, why did you p me?!"


    "...And you still dare to ask why!" Nian gritted out with his cheeks flushing red. He rearranged his long silver hair to cover his neck so as to not give this crazy pervert another chance to smell him again. ''Pure''? Did he just say ''pure''? How could he tell that Nian was still¡ª


    Nian choked, unable to finish that line of thought lest he would really be angered to death. As expected, this man was really a crazy pervert through and through!


    No longer giving Jin Jiuchi any attention, he turned away with a huff and pped the yellow talisman on the door. Almost in an instant, the cinnabar on the talisman glowed red, then it started to wiggle out of the paper in lieu of slipping into the room through any cracks it could find.


    "Wow...!" Jin Jiuchi''s silver eyes flew wide in wonder, and he turned to look at Nian with awe. "Another excellent magic trick!!"


    He was ignored, of course.


    Upon receiving the signal from inside, Nian held the door handle and pushed it open to reveal an empty room which looked like it belonged to a young woman. The things inside were neatly organized; tworge plush dollsy on the bed covered in light pink sheets, and a dressing table stood against one side of the wall with a few tubes of cosmetics and various skin care lined up on it.


    Nian''s eyes brightened when he saw this. Surely, this kind of person must have one or two snacks stored in her room, right?


    "Let''s search here," he said as he walked into the room, but then he noticed that Jin Jiuchi merely stood on the doorway without taking a step in. He furrowed his brow, "What''s wrong with you again?"


    "Nian''er..." Jin Jiuchi tilted his head in confusion. "Do you want to get those plush dolls?"


    Nian rolled his eyes. He could not even begin to guess what was running through Jin Jiuchi''s mind for him to ask this kind of ridiculous question. In this ce where their life and death remained uncertain until the veryst second, who would care about plush dolls?!


    "We are searching for FOOD," he emphasized each word, wishing that he could be tall enough to whack Jin Jiuchi on the head.


    Jin Jiuchi blinked. "But there''s no food here though?"


    "What?!"


    "If you want food..." Jin Jiuchi took a step back and sniffed the air. He then pointed at the room diagonal to the one they were at. "You can find it there."


    By now, Nian did not even bother to question how superb Jin Jiuchi''s sense of smell was ¨C especially when it was rted to food. He rushed forward and angrily kicked Jin Jiuchi on the shin, earning him a yelp of surprise, "Tell me sooner if you can smell something like that, you damned husky! I wasted one prop just for nothing!"


    "Ow¨C ow ow ow!" Jin Jiuchi clutched his leg while jumping around, eyes wide in bewilderment. "H¨CHusky?! How am I a husky?!"


    Enraged, Nian stomped toward the room Jin Jiuchi pointed at, his purple eyes burning bright in rage. He did not even realize how much trust he had in the man to follow his words without a question.


    ***


    At lunch time, everyone gathered again in the dining hall.


    "Wow..." Tang Ye''s eyes went huge in awe as he stared at the assortment ofpressed biscuits, potato chips, and a sealed can of cookies on the table. His eyes moved to the smug Jin Jiuchi, so happy that he almost shed tears. "You guys found all of these within four hours?! Yes, we will definitely be able to survive today just fine!"


    Xinxin couldn''t take her gaze off the food, her throat bobbing hungrily, "T¨CThere is so much food..."


    "Hehe," Jin Jiuchi rubbed his nose with a proud look. "Ain''t I awesome?"


    "Yes, yes! Brother Yang is awesome! The most awesome in the whole world!" The two of them continued to spout rainbow farts, making Jin Jiuchi''s nose turn up higher and higher to the sky.


    Beside him, Nian subtly rolled his eyes. Okay, maybe he was a little impressed. Jin Jiuchi''s sense of smell was more acute than he expected. Not only could he detect a sealed can of cookies from outside the door, he could even tell if there was something suspicious inside, saving Nian from having to use up his talismans!


    Nian could finally find a reason to keep Jin Jiuchi by his side despite the man being annoying, perverted and childish.


    Food and danger detector. En, it sounded quite nice.


    "Brother Zhi!" Tang Ye waved at the man who had just stepped in through the door. "Come here and look at what Brother Yang had found for us! How about you? Do you find something?"


    Zhi reached into his pocket and took out a package ofpressed biscuits, cing it on the table. "Just this."


    "Okay, okay, that''s alright. I''m sure we are all starving right now. How about we share..."


    Nian felt something tugging on his sleeves and he raised his head to find Jin Jiuchi staring at him with a rarely solemn look on his face. His heart skipped a beat and when the man led him away from the crowd to the corner of the hall, he followed along without a word.


    "What''s wrong?" He asked after they were already out of earshot, not knowing why he was lowering his voice.


    "Nian''er," Jin Jiuchi stared at him seriously. There was none of the silliness akin to a husky he had always shown. His sharp jaws were tense, and his silver eyes hardened into steel, giving him an air of aggression that caused Nian''s heart to race.


    "W¨CWhat is it?"


    "That man..." Jin Jiuchi furrowed his brows. "That man who came inst, he is not Brother Zhi."


    .


    .


    A/N: there is a mass release event on 11th, 20th and 26th May so please wait for it ^^

 Chapter 40: Does It Hurt?

    <h4>Chapter 40: Does It Hurt?</h4>


    As soon as the full meaning behind Jin Jiuchi''s words sank in his mind, Nian''s face immediately turned pale, making his already fairplexion be ghastly. It was fortunate that Jin Jiuchi''s towering height stood as a shield and covered him from the others'' sight. "He... is not Zhi?"


    "I... think so?" Jin Jiuchi scratched his head in confusion. "He still looks and acts like Brother Zhi, but his smell has bepletely different. It''s like..." he wrinkled his nose in thought. "That''s right, it''s like the smell of kitchen and paper dollsst nightbined into one! What is going on here, Nian''er? How can someone''s scent change in a blink of an eye? It shouldn''t be possible, right..."


    Amidst Jin Jiuchi''s babble, Nian took a few deep inhales before he managed to regain hisposure. Hisplexion quickly reverted to normal, only theck of color on his lips betrayed the turmoil he was feeling inside. He knew better than to doubt Jin Jiuchi''s keen nose, so the only possibility left was¡ª


    "He has been reced by a nightmare creature..." Nian whispered, aghast. "It must be a creature with the ability to camouge. But how...? Nightmare creatures are supposed to appear only at night, so how could this one attack a yer in the daylight? And to imitate him so skilfully in such a short span of time..."


    What Tang Ye said earlier was right. The difficulty of this Cycle was too high for a low level one. In hindsight, aside from advancing yers who ought toplete tasks from the Nightmare itself, the rest of the yers could just stay as a salted fish in their room each night and pass through the Cycle safely. That''s how low-level Cycles ought to be.


    The fact that this small Cycle held more than one nightmare creature was already an anomaly in itself. Furthermore, the nightmare creatures just had to reside inside the room of the timid Old Guan, Sister Hong who had her own hidden agenda, and also... himself, who entered this Cycle for a specific purpose. Compared to Xinxin, Tang Ye, and Zhi, the possibility of them letting the nightmare creature free was almost guaranteed.


    Was it only a coincidence or... was it due to the presence of the Nightmare, after all?


    "So you mean... Brother Zhi is dead?" Jin Jiuchi became more and more confused. Analyzing the situation or anything that required him to use his brain was not really his forte. "But Nian''er, you saw itst night. His skill card is so powerful. He can literally burn everything like... boom! So how could he die just like that?"


    "Unless..." Nian''s face was grim. "The nightmare creature is strong enough to catch him off guard. I think we should find some time to check the kitchen."


    For some reason, Jin Jiuchi liked it very much when Nian''er said ''we''. He couldn''t keep the grin off his face. "Oh, oh, are we going to find his body? Count me in!"


    Nian cast him a skeptical side eye. Why was he so happy to search for a corpse? Crazy pervert.


    "For now, we shouldn''t alert him yet," he advised Jin Jiuchi seriously. He did not like to engage in a battle where he knew almost nothing about the other party. "I will find a chance to inform Xinxin and Tang Ye, so you should watch over your words and actions around him too."


    Jin Jiuchi was quick to reassure the jade doll, "Don''t worry, Nian''er. You can count on my acting skills! He definitely will not discover anything amiss!"


    A deep frown marred Nian''s little forehead as he walked back to the crowd with Jin Jiuchi humming a random tune behind him. Why did he have a hunch that things would go haywire?


    "Brother Yang! Little Brother!" Tang Ye called out to them warmly and gestured at the food that had been divided equally into five. "Have a look! What do you think about this?"


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyesnded on the portion in front of Zhi, and his eyes almost turned green when he saw the nightmare creature obtain the biscuits he had been eyeing since the start. He grumbled under his breath, "It''s not like he can eat it¡ªoww!" He let out a pained yelp when his foot was stomped ruthlessly by Nian.


    Nian shot him a re that was sharp enough to kill, but when the others turned to him, he stered on an apologetic look and said in a timid tone, "Sorry, Brother Yang. I didn''t do it on purpose. Does it hurt?"


    Jin Jiuchi sputtered out an incredulousugh because how the hell could it not hurt? It hurt so much that his foot would surely swell tonight! s, as he looked into Nian''s purple eyes that radiated killing intent, he suddenly recalled the two arduous hours of being paralyzed under the magical needles. Aggrieved, he could only lie with tears in his eyes, "No, it doesn''t hurt at all..."


    Nian curbed his killing intent to show a satisfied look. He then nodded and told Tang Ye, "I think this distribution is good. I don''t have anything to say, nor does he." He grabbed his own portion and shoved Jin Jiuchi''s into the man''s arms.


    For the rest of the day, they continued to decorate the wedding venue on the sixth floor. With the absence of Madam Liu to oversee their work, they could only grab whatever crimson silk and banners they could find in the storage to add finishing touches to the venue.


    True to Nian''s suspicion, whatever nightmare creature that had reced Zhi seemed to possess extraordinary camouging skill. Or perhaps it was also due to Zhi''s solitary and cold demeanor that forbade anyone froming close, nobody realized that someone among them was actually not a human. Nian tried to observe the man during their working hours, yet much to his dismay, he could not discover any unusual behavior.


    If not for Jin Jiuchi''s acute sense of smell, he would not have noticed anything either. Chills ran down his spine whenever he thought about it. This nightmare creature could not be underestimated at all!


    With the effort of four yers ¨C and one nightmare creature ¨C stemming from desperation and fear of hunger, they finally finished 80% of the decoration before they decided to call it a day. By then, it was already a little past seven pm, with only the dim lights illuminating the darkness in the apartment.


    Tang Ye joined them in the shower again, while the nightmare creature disguised as Zhi had returned to the fourth floor.


    As the four of them were walking together toward themunal shower, Tang Ye looked down through the corridor railing and gulped when he saw Madam Liu''s corpse on the first floor, whereas Sister Hong''s body had vanished without a trace. "Is it okay for us to leave her just like that? Should we... I don''t know, covered her with a white cloth or something?


    Jin Jiuchi looked at him strangely. "Why should we?" Wouldn''t it be futile for them to do so? After all, Madam Liu would revive as a nightmare creature when the clock struck ten...


    Tang Ye, who still had no idea about the spider Madam Liu, was stumped by Jin Jiuchi''s question. Why, he asked... how was he supposed to exin that it wasmon sense? For theck of words to say, he could only keep mum until they finally arrived at themunal shower.


    Just likest night, Xinxin offered them a tentative nod before heading toward the women''s room.


    "Ah," Jin Jiuchi finally recalled what he had wanted to askst night before he was distracted by Nian and Tang Ye''s washing basin, the finger in his throat and Madam Liu''s corpse. He pointed at the female sign on the wall and asked out loud, "This is only for women, right?"


    Xinxin abruptly froze in her tracks.


    "Um... yes?" Tang Ye answered hesitantly, not understanding why Jin Jiuchi had to ask something so obvious. Nian also stopped to give him a look that said ''what kind of trouble are you up to again?'' "Brother Yang, you can see that the female sign is wearing a skirt while the male is not..."


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head to catch Xinxin''s stunned eyes. "Then why are you using this room?" he asked in genuine confusion.


    Tang Ye and Nian: "...Huh?"


    Two secondster, the implication behind Jin Jiuchi''s sentence finally dawned on the two.


    Tang Ye snapped his gaze to Xinxin, so shocked that he could barely form a coherent sentence. "Y¨CY¨CYou... you are a male?!!"

 Chapter 41: Scarred For Life

    <h4>Chapter 41: Scarred For Life</h4>


    Xinxin, who wore a girly hair clip, who had delicate features that people would call ''moe'', who was so timid that she would be the first person to scream and cry every time something happened... was actually a ''he''?!!


    All at once, Tang Ye recalled the instances when he had tried to chat Xinxin up, ttered her, flirted with her, and even offered to take over some heavy work on her behalf. To think that such a cute and delicate girl was actually a boy to begin with... Tang Ye suddenly felt his vision going dark.


    Xinxin let out a nervousugh, "B¨CBrother Yang, what are you talking about..."


    Hearing that, Tang Ye was instantly rejuvenated and he clung to Xinxin''s words like a dying man gripping onto thest straw. "That''s right! On what basis do you say something like that, Brother Yang? Xinxin is so cute, how can you use her of being a boy?!"


    Jin Jiuchi tilted his head, amused and puzzled in equal measure. He had known since he smelled Xinxin for the first time that he was a male, and that''s why he was utterly baffled when he saw him entering a different shower room from them. But why were Xinxin and Tang Ye so insistent on not acknowledging the truth? "But I didn''t use him," he tried to defend his innocence, not realizing that he was steadily pushing Tang Ye into a brink of despair. "If you don''t trust me, just let him shower together with us?"


    "S¨CShower together..." Tang Ye sputtered out. He looked at Xinxin''s tiny and delicate stature, and his face flushed when he imagined ''her'' taking a bath with them. However, before he coulde to Xinxin''s rescue, he was beaten by the other person.


    "How..." Xinxin sniffled with a wronged expression. "How did you find out? I thought I had concealed myself very well..."


    Tang Ye: ...?!!


    Jin Jiuchi let out a victoriousugh. "Well, you forgot to conceal your scent! It''s so obvious that¡ª" he leaned over Xinxin, ready to take another whiff so that he could keep the scent in mind when a strong force suddenly hauled him from behind, dragging him toward the shower.


    "You damned husky!" Nian gritted out in anger as he continued to yank the struggling Jin Jiuchi inside. "Don''t sniff other people as you please!"


    "Ah, ah, ah...!" Jin Jiuchi had difficulty gaining his bnce when he had to walk backwards. He cried out for mercy to no avail, "Nian''er, Nian''er, don''t pull on me!!"


    The scene of a small child dragging a big adult twice his size behind him was so bizarre that Tang Ye could only gape, unable to react for a moment. When he finally snapped back to his senses, he saw Xinxin passing by him to enter the... men''smunal shower.


    No, no, it couldn''t be...


    Still feeling utter denial to the reality in front of him, Tang Ye scrambled after the three people who had entered first. His gaze fleeted past the half naked Jin Jiuchi who was pestering his little brother to take off his clothes and shower together, tond on Xinxin who had taken space in the stall opposite the two.


    He watched, frozen, as Xinxin held the hem of ''her'' shirt and pulled it over ''her'' head to reveal a wide expanse of fair milky skin and a chest as t as board, and then when ''she'' tugged down her trousers...


    ''Damn!'' Tang Ye was certain he cked out for a split second when he saw the thing hanging between her legs. ''How... it''s b¨Cbigger than mine...''


    "What?" Xinxin shot him a quiet re when he noticed Tang Ye gawking at him. He tugged on the stic curtain so that only his head was showing, but it was no use for the sight of the boy''srge appendage had already been seared to the back of Tang Ye''s eyelids. He stuttered with an angry yet bashful look, "S¨CStop staring at me like that! Never saw a drag queen before?!"


    A drag queen...


    A drag queen...


    A drag queen...


    Those words reverberated in Tang Ye''s mind again and again like a curse. Coupled with the fabulous sighting he had glimpsed upon earlier, Tang Ye felt like his lifespan had instantly been cut into half. He clutched his chest with a pained look, "Why didn''t you tell me sooner...?!"


    Xinxin blinked and said innocently, "Where''s the fun in that?"


    Muffling in a chuckle, he yanked on the stic curtain so that it covered his body from sight, then he started to shower while humming a random tune, leaving Tang Ye to deal with his ashen heart that had been scarred for life.


    ***


    At first, Nian thought that he would need to find a suitable time before curfew to warn Xinxin and Tang Ye about the nightmare creature who had disguised himself as Zhi, but now that all four of them were showering together, he immediately seized the chance to do it. He still had no idea how superb that nightmare creature''s hearing was, but he still turned on all the showers in the room to mask the secret conversation.


    And as expected, Xinxin and Tang Ye were horrified when they heard the news. Thanks to Jin Jiuchi''s admirable feat in exposing Xinxin''s real gender earlier, the two did not even doubt it a bit when Nian told them that it was Jin Jiuchi who had noticed something was off.


    "Damn..." Tang Ye felt like he couldn''t endure any more surprises tonight. First, he found out that the girl he had been wooing turned out to have a bigger asset than him, and then one of the yers had died without anyone realizing?! He rubbed his face roughly, "What the hell is wrong with this Cycle?! Two of our most experienced yers are dead and now, there are only the four of us left!"


    Xinxin sped his mouth in shock, tears pooling in his eyes. "Brother Zhi..."


    Nian shot him aplicated look. He, too, had not realized that this ''girl'' was actually a fake. It seemed like the Cycle was indeed filled with many unique people. He informed them, "That''s why I am nning to check the kitchen before curfew tonight."


    Jin Jiuchi corrected him seriously, "It''s ''us'', Nian''er. Not ''I''!"


    Nian rolled his eyes, but then nodded. "Me and this man are going. So how about you two?"


    Shocked, Tang Ye tried to stop Nian and Jin Jiuchi from going, "Why would you want to check the kitchen? What if there''s a nightmare creature waiting for you there?! Furthermore, we are not even certain that Brother Zhi''s body is still in this Cycle or not!"


    Xinxin nodded wholeheartedly in approval.


    "Just checking," Nian said without borating further. "The nightmare creature has harmed someone today. I don''t think he will be able to do it again within such a short time lest he will be breaking the rules in the Cycle."


    What Nian said made perfect sense. It was not only the yers who had to adhere to the rules, but the nightmare creatures were also bound by it, for the Nightmare had always been neutral and impartial. Just like a God... or a superior being who looked at lowlives with indifferent eyes.


    Tang Ye and Xinxin deliberated for a while and decided not to go. Nian did not fault them. At the end of the day, humans would always prioritize themselves first and foremost before others.


    It was not like Nian was such a saint either. What did Zhi''s life and death have to do with him? However, they had made a deal, and the thing he wanted ¨C the journal ¨C was still with the other man. Nian needed it if he wished to achieve his purpose in this Cycle. It did not actually matter to him whether Zhi''s body had disappeared or not. What was most important was the journal. It was an item from the Cycle, so even if Zhi was gone, the journal must still be there on the ce where he had met his demise.


    And for that, he had to make a trip to the kitchen.


    The four of them parted ways after that, with Nian and Jin Jiuchi heading to the first floor. The hour hand of the clock was pointing at eight, with the minute hand at four. They had less than two hours to check the kitchen and returned to their room before curfew.


    "Are you ready?" Nian asked as they stood at the mouth of the dark hallway leading to the back kitchen. It was pitch-ck all around as if the ordinary hallway had transformed into the gaping maw of a beast, ready to devour them at the slightest carelessness.


    Jin Jiuchi had his hands shoved into his pocket. Hearing the jade doll''s words, he blinked and returned the question, "How about you, Nian''er? Are you ready? If you''re afraid, don''t hesitate to tell me." He patted his puffed-out chest with a reassuring grin. "Gege is here with you!"


    Scoffing, Nian took a step forward without any hesitation.

 Chapter 42: Perfect For Dinner

    <h4>Chapter 42: Perfect For Dinner</h4>


    The deeper they entered the narrow hallway, the darker the surroundings and the colder it became. It was as if they were stepping into a whole different realm, one where the light could never reach. However, it was within this expanse of darkness that Jin Jiuchi''s vision worked better and his silver eyes started to glow with an inhumane radiance.


    They stopped in front of the heavy wooden door. Jin Jiuchi tilted his head to look at the jade doll who seemed to have no difficulty navigating in the dark like he did. "Nian''er, you can also see?" he asked, unable to keep the disappointment off his tone. He had been looking forward to holding Nian''s delicate hand and leading him around like a fragile little prince. s.


    Nian cast him a furtive nce. Though he had no idea what Jin Jiuchi was thinking about, he instinctively knew that it was nothing good.


    In the narrow and pitch-ck hallway, Jin Jiuchi''s tall and broad figure loomed over him like a creature of shadows. And due to theck of light, his pupils had expanded almost in a beastly way as if he was a predator staring at his prey right in the eye. If Nian had not known that this was a silly husky, or if he had been standing on the mouth of the hallway and saw nothing but a pair of glowing eyes floating in midair, he would have certainly freaked out. Fortunately, he had seen those eyes once and thus, he did not feel as surprised anymore.


    Instead, the more he looked, the more it gave off an air of demonic beauty. Almost... hypnotizing.


    By now, he was almost certain that Jin Jiuchi was not a human, albeit it looked like the man did not realize it himself. Of course, Nian had no intention of telling him ¨C not for the time being. Whatever Jin Jiuchi was, Nian still had no idea where he came from or what his purpose was. And for that reason alone, it would be better not to beat the grass and alert the snake.


    After all, who would know for certain that this one was not poisonous despite his harmless appearance?


    Nian shook his head to shelve the thoughts for the time being. He said in response to Jin Jiuchi''s question, "If you have gone through more Cycles, the Nightmare will slowly enhance your physique, and that includes your vision." When Jin Jiuchi made a curious noise in his throat, Nian added after some thought, "...Of course, it won''t be as good as yours."


    Happy to be praised, Jin Jiuchi said proudly, "Of course, I was born like this. It''s natural!"


    ...Or was he? He could no longer remember.


    Nian hummed and turned his gaze back to the front. "I will take the lead and you will guard the rear. We will watch each other''s backs in case there''s something inside, understand?"


    Jin Jiuchi agreed readily, "Okay, Nian''er~"


    "Let''s go back alive," Nian murmured under his breath as he pushed the door open, shielding his mouth and nose with his sleeves when a cloud of dust weed him. "I refuse to die in this filthy ce."


    The kitchen looked no different than when they saw it in the morning, if not for the thicker dust and long spider cobwebs that hung over the ceiling. Almost as if a few more years had passed since someone stepped in again. Learning from his previous experience, Nian halted in the middle of the room and asked Jin Jiuchi, "Can you smell him?" His purple eyes vigntly watched the surroundings, attuned even to the smallest change like the shift in the air. But so far, he could spot nothing suspicious.


    "Hmm..." Jin Jiuchi sniffed the air only to scrunch his face in disgust when the foul odor assaulted his nose. "No, nothing at all. But do you know what this ce smells like, Nian''er?"


    "Hmm?"


    "Rats. Lots of rats." As Jin Jiuchi spoke, he slowly turned his head to look at the dark space behind the door, his silver eyes gleaming almost in an excited light when he caught a dozen of ruby little eyes staring back at him. He ran his tongue over his sharp canines, "...Perfect for dinner."


    "What?!" Nian whipped his head around in shock, but at the same time, those ruby eyes fell shut and he could see nothing but a swathe of darkness. He was utterly repulsed by what Jin Jiuchi had just said, "You want to eat rats for dinner?!"


    "Why not? They''re bite-sized, meaty and quite delicious," Jin Jiuchi shrugged. When he saw the jade doll''s stricken look as if wishing for nothing but to bleach his brain and ears, he had to muffle in a chuckle. He reached out a hand and swiped the pad of his thumb gently over the jade doll''s cheek, cooing softly, "Of course, it is not something that Nian''er should eat. I didn''t have a choice either. I was so hungry and..." he trailed off and pursed his lips.


    The time he spent in the asylum had already turned fuzzy in his mind, but he would always remember the hunger ¨C that unpleasant feeling of never being full. It had been etched so deeply into his bones and soul to the point where he would turn agitated every time his stomach growled. But he shouldn''t dirty Nian''er''s cute and beautiful ears with something like this, right?


    "...Forget it," was what he said in the end. With a cheerful tone, he asked, "Anyway! Does Nian''er wants to find Brother Zhi''s body? Too bad I can''t smell him here."


    ''What caused you to be so hungry that you had to resort to eating rats?'' Nian wanted to ask, but then he held himself back in the end. Now was not the time to be distracted.


    "Not his body," he shook his head. "It''s reasonable that you can''t detect him. Seeing how so many hours have already passed, most likely his body has been wiped out. I want to find the journal he had with him. It''s an item from this Cycle so even if his body vanished, the journal should still be here."


    Jin Jiuchi recalled the item Zhi had brought out of Old Guan''s room and gave an ''oh''. Nian had told himst night it was another main clue, aside from the newspaper clipping he had right now. "But Nian''er, what if that nightmare creature has taken the journal with him?"


    Nian''s face turned grim. "Then that will be the worst case scenario. We have to confront that creature and snatch the journal from him."


    It seemed like they had really jinxed themselves this time. Despite rummaging through every cab and shelf and almost turning the entire ce upside down, they could not find the journal. By then, more than one hour had already passed.


    Nian set his lips into thin lines, "Let''s go back first."


    Jin Jiuchi hummed in approval. As he trailed behind the jade doll, his gaze involuntarily drifted to where he had seen the rats, only to find nothing but empty space.


    The two of them quickly returned to the room before curfew.


    Nian went to wash his hands and face in the basin, still with a somber expression on his face. On the other hand, Jin Jiuchi was recalling the rats he had seen in the kitchen earlier. They were no ordinary rats, he was certain of it. They gave off the same feeling as the paper dolls and spider Madam Liu, albeit a little milder and weaker. What was it, he wondered? Another nightmare creature?


    He was quick to give up on the analysis. He should have known that using his brain would lead him to nowhere! Turning to the jade doll, he was ready to share what he had seen when a faint knock resounded on the door.


    Nian snapped his gaze up, sharp and alert. "Who is it?"


    "It''s me," Zhi said ¨C or to be exact, the nightmare creature who was currently disguising himself as Zhi.

 Chapter 43: It’s Gone

    <h4>Chapter 43: It''s Gone</h4>


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes flew wide in surprise as his gaze met Nian''s in midair. "Nian''er¡ª" what was that creature doing here?! s, the rest of Jin Jiuchi''s question was stuck in his throat when Nian mped his mouth shut with a wet hand and gave him a signal to stay silent.


    Jin Jiuchi nodded again and again before Nian let him go. The two of them moved to the window and brushed the curtain aside to peek outside. Indeed, it was Zhi who was standing outside their door.


    Jin Jiuchi mouthed fiercely, ''What does he want?!''


    Nian shrugged for he was none the wiser. His gaze fell onto the clock and saw that only fifteen minutes were left before the curfew. After deliberating over his choices, he finally replied, "What do you want? It''s almost ten pm. If there''s something you want to talk about, then let''s talk tomorrow." He treated the man outside like a yer, careful not to let the nightmare creature realize that his cover had been exposed by Jin Jiuchi early on.


    Zhi fell silent when he heard that. However, he did not move from the door.


    Heavy tension brewed in the air with each passing second. Nian kept his gaze on the nightmare creature as he silently summoned his needles, ready to throw them forward shall the man make a move to break down the door.


    But it seemed like his fear was unfounded because in the next moment, Zhi turned away and left.


    Jin Jiuchi let go of the breath he was holding and slumped against the window. "Oh God... that surprised me! I thought that we''re going to fight so soon!" He showed off his fist and sharp teeth to the jade doll. "Look at me, I''m already prepared!"


    "Even if the Nightmare is present, it''s still impossible for him toe in," Nian said calmly as if the person who was gripping silver needles a few seconds ago was not him. "First, this is only the third night, we are practically still halfway through the Cycle so it is not possible for the creature to get powerful that soon. It''s the fourth night and beyond that we have to worry about. Second, this room is already upied by another nightmare creature."


    "You mean to say," Jin Jiuchi blinked slowly. "Miss Zhao is protecting us?"


    Nian cast him a speechless look. He was talking about boundaries and rules, so how did Jin Jiuchie up with such an absurd theory? A nightmare creature protecting yers? He''d better wait for a blizzard in the peak of summer than wishing for that to happen!


    He palmed his forehead in exasperation and said, "Forget it." Better not to discuss things with someone with a few loose screws on his head. Turning around, he took off his shoes and climbed on the bed. "Last night, the nightmare creature did not show up, so there is a fifty percent possibility that she will tonight. Let''s take a short rest first in case we have to deal with herter."


    Jin Jiuchi scratched his head in confusion. What was it? Did he say something wrong? Was it not because Miss Zhao was here that the creature outside could note in? Still keeping the doubt in his mind, Jin Jiuchi walked to the basin, washed his hands and face carelessly before he locked the door, switched off the light and climbed on the bed.


    But Nian was wrong this time.


    Miss Zhao still did not appear that night and the two of them slept soundly until morning.


    ***


    They started the fourth day with finishing the biscuits and potato chips from yesterday.


    "We have to look for food again," Tang Ye said, desperately trying not to look at Zhi''s direction lest his expression would give something away. He squeezed out a smile toward Jin Jiuchi and Nian. "Can we rely on Brother Yang, Little Brother and... B¨CBrother Zhi again for this? Anyway, there is only little left of the decorating, so Xinxin and I will be able to finish it on our own today. Right, Xinxin?"


    Xinxin nodded glumly and rubbed his stomach that was not even half full.


    "Leave it to us," Jin Jiuchi told them with a strained smile. The five pieces of biscuits he had eaten earlier was not even enough to fill the gap between his teeth. He was more than eager to explore the building and chomp down the first food he could find.


    Tang Ye and Xinxin made their way to the sixth floor to continue their work, leaving Nian, Jin Jiuchi and Zhi again just like yesterday. The only difference was one of them was no longer human. Nian took a deep breath to brace himself and turned to Zhi with an apologetic smile, "Sorry aboutst night. What do you want to talk about?"


    Zhi stared at him expressionless for two seconds, almost making him sweat, before he replied in a gruff voice, "Our deal."


    Shock coursed through his entire body, albeit he showed none of it on his face. The deal? Yes, he had made a deal yesterday with Zhi, but how could this nightmare creature know it?! Don''t tell him, aside from the camouging ability, could he have read all of Zhi''s memory when he killed him...?


    "What about our deal?" he asked.


    Zhi shot Jin Jiuchi a subtle look, but Nian told him impatiently, "It''s okay to let him hear. We''re a team."


    If Jin Jiuchi was not feeling so hungry that he could gnaw on wood, he would have jumped in joy and ran around in circles hearing Nian''s sentence. s, as of now, he gave no other reaction aside from an amused arc of his lips. Nian cast him a hesitant nce, presumably noticing that Jin Jiuchi''s reaction seemed off and muted this morning, but then his attention was quickly drawn away when Zhi said,


    "You said that you have deduced the death conditions. You missed one. Yesterday, I was attacked in the kitchen."


    This time, Nian was truly caught off guard and it showed on his face. The nightmare creature readily exposed some information to them? Was it to make them lower their guard down?


    "You were attacked in the kitchen?"


    "Mn," the nightmare creature nodded. "By a dozen rats. They''re vicious and bloodthirsty. Be careful." After saying that, he turned away and intended to leave, but Nian hurriedly stopped him.


    "Wait!" He eximed. "What about the journal?! You promised to let me have a look at it!"


    Zhi did not turn around. "It''s gone," he said, causing Nian''s face to darken. "When those rats attacked me, I was too busy defending myself and the journal was lost in the process. I couldn''t find it anywhere after that."


    ''Liar'', Nian almost spat at him. He would have believed it if he had not checked the kitchenst night. There were no traces of fight ever taking ce there! Moreover, Zhi''s skill card had something to do with me so if he used it, the burn marks must still linger on the walls and wooden cabs, but he spotted nothing but ayer of thick dust!


    "Then can you just tell me the content?" Nian challenged.

 Chapter 44: Intense Hunger

    <h4>Chapter 44: Intense Hunger</h4>


    There was a subtle pause before the nightmare creature replied, "...I haven''t had the chance to read until the end. But what I know is, it''s a diary belonging to the previous tenant here, Surnamed Dong." He continued to walk away after that, not giving Nian any time to respond.


    Jin Jiuchi''s narrowed eyes fell on the man whose right leg was slightly limp with specks of blood seeping into the trousers and he sniffed the air, keeping the scent in mind.


    "Dong..." Nian murmured under his breath. Frowning, he took out the newspaper clipping from his pocket and read through it once again. "The three victims of the serial killer are Zhao, Liu and Dong. So it is really the third nightmare creature..." his eyes traced over the faded words as though the answer mighte out to him if he stared hard enough. "Why would he divulge something like that to us? It''s almost like... he is giving us a warning..."


    But wasn''t he the one who killed Zhi?


    Nian was baffled. Out of the Cycles he had entered, this ought to be the most troublesome and treacherous one. Previously, he only needed to focus onpleting the task from the NPC and watched out for the nightmare creatures and other yers alike. He trusted no one but himself, and he regarded everything else as a dangerous factor.


    The nightmare creatures ¨C as the name implied ¨C were an utter nightmare which existed solely to strike fear and despair into the yers'' heart. They were coldblooded, merciless and detached, almost as if they were machines created for the sole purpose of killing. As yers continued to navigate through mid-level and high-level Cycles, they would find the creatures that resembled humans so much that sometimes they would be mistaken as a yer. They were extremely cunning, vicious and malevolent.


    Yet it was not until he entered this Cycle that he discovered the timid Miss Zhao ¨C who dared not appear in their room since the first night, the miserable Madam Liu who was most likely killed by Jin Jiuchi and now, Mr. Dong who warned them about the danger in the kitchen.


    This was clearly a low-level Cycle, but why... did Nian see a resemnce of humane feelings in them?


    Impossible. Nian quickly crossed the thought out of his mind. How was it possible for a nightmare creature to have feelings? It was utterly ridiculous!


    "It looks like we have to drop by the room where he came out from. It''s 404, Sister Hong''s, right? What do you¡ª" he raised his head to find that Jin Jiuchi was lost in thought. Nian frowned and examined Jin Jiuchi carefully, "What''s wrong with you?"


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi blinked slowly as though waking up from a dream, and he finally turned to the jade doll, "What did you just say, Nian''er?"


    "What''s wrong with you?" Nian asked again, his frown deepening. "Since this morning, you have been..." listless, in a low spirit, often lost in thought, without your usual energy. Many words shed through his mind but in the end, he settled with, "...quiet."


    "Ah," Jin Jiuchi ran his fingers through his hair and let out a frustrated sigh, sulking. "Nian''er, I think I''m dying. Will you be sad if I die?" As soon as his question settled in the air, a loud growl resounded through the air and the source was none other than Jin Jiuchi''s stomach.


    ''So this damned husky is merely starving,'' Nian rolled his eyes upon seeing that Jin Jiuchi was being dramatic again. "Let''s go. Yesterday, we searched the entire second floor, so let''s start with the third now. After that, we will make a trip to room 404."


    He turned away and started to walk toward the stairs, and thus he failed to notice the way ck started to permeate Jin Jiuchi''s silver eyes as if a droplet of ink had been dropped into a ss of clear water, and his pupils shrunk rapidly into slits with gold in the middle.


    But when he blinked again, his eyes had returned to normal. It was so fast that he did not even realize it himself. He hurried to chase after Nian who had disappeared from sight.


    They stepped on to the third floor and Nian asked, "So, which room is it?" He had learned from experience that it''d be better to hand over the task of food foraging to Jin Jiuchi to save his energy and talismans. Either way, he did not have to worry that Jin Jiuchi would miss thanks to his gluttony.


    However, instead of moving, Jin Jiuchi''s feet stayed rooted in ce.


    Did he get lost in thoughts again? Sensing that something was off, Nian raised his head and was taken aback when he saw the sunken look on Jin Jiuchi''s face.


    "No food..." the man looked as if he had lost his soul, his silver eyes vacant. "I can''t smell anything..."


    Nian''s heart skipped a beat. "W-What do you mean? Your nose is not working?"


    "No, Nian''er," Jin Jiuchi gently informed him of the terrible news. "There is no food on this floor."


    Nian narrowed his eyes as he weighed the possibility of Jin Jiuchi lying, but then the man truly looked as if he had nothing left to live for. It was not like Nian did not trust his words, but... how was it possible that there was no food on this floor? How were they supposed to live then?!


    With his little face somber, Nian told him, "Let''s check the fourth and fifth floor."


    But again, Jin Jiuchi shook his head to indicate that he could find no food.


    Refusing to believe it, Nian chose five random rooms among the three floors, pped his talismans on them and upon receiving the clear signal, he broke in and turned the rooms upside down. Jin Jiuchi merely stood on the doorway and watched him with an inscrutable look on his face, swallowing and rubbing his stomach once in a while, feeling so hungry he could go insane.


    Nian quickly rummaged through the drawers, wardrobes, even the bottom of the beds where Jin Jiuchi had found a small package of potato chips yesterday, but this time, he had really run out of luck.


    "How..." he stood in the middle of the messy room, his face pale. "How is it possible?"


    Jin Jiuchi leaned against the doorway sluggishly, not even wishing to move his body unless necessary. "I''ve told you, Nian''er..."


    At lunchtime, when they finally broke the news to the others, their reaction was pretty much the same as Nian, if not more.


    Tang Ye''s expression sank and a flicker of suspicion shed through his eyes which did not go unnoticed by Nian, whereas Xinxin looked like he was going to faint straight on his feet.


    Amidst the somber mood in the air, they managed to finish the decoration of the wedding venue. The dusty and empty space was no more; round tables and chairs were spread over the floor to amodate guests. Red silk hung over the ceiling and the floor was covered in a thin red carpet.


    They had finished the task two days earlier than the allocated time but... what about the return ticket?


    The four of them stared at thevishly decorated sixth floor, dazed, before Tang Ye chimed in a suggestion, "How about... waiting until tomorrow? That''s right, let''s wait a little bit. Who knows that the ticket will appear by itself in our room, right?"


    No one raised an objection to his words, for what could they do except to wait? Left with no other choice, they could only wash up briefly and return to their respective rooms.


    "Be careful of Tang Ye," Nian said as soon as the door closed behind them. "He is starting to doubt us."


    "Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi blinked, surprised at the sudden warning.


    "He suspects that we are hoarding the food for ourselves," Nian gave a wry smile. "Honestly I didn''t me him. If I were him, I would also suspect the other yers. I don''t know whether it''s the Nightmare at work, but the hunger this time feels unusual. It''s more... intense and severe, almost like it is messing with our sanity. You have no idea what that kind of person will do when they''re not in their right mind, so be careful."


    Nian advised the silly husky seriously for fear that he would die without even knowing who killed him or how he died, but he failed to realize that before Tang Ye... perhaps the person he should be most wary of was Jin Jiuchi, first and foremost.


    .


    .


    A/N: [4/4] This is the end of the first mass release event! Please wait for the next mass release on 20th ^^


    On another note, please read the important announcement on author''s note below!

 Chapter 45: The Best Bride!

    <h4>Chapter 45: The Best Bride!</h4>


    They hurried to wash up and get into the bed. However, sleep eluded them tonight, half for fear that they would be met with an unexpected ambush, while the other half was due to dreadful hunger. Aside from the few pieces of biscuits in the morning, they had only drunk water to pad their stomach all day long and it made them feel more ufortable instead.


    "Nian''er," Jin Jiuchiy on his side and stared at the jade doll''s exquisite side profile. "You told mest night that it''s the fourth night and beyond that we have to be wary of. Tonight is the fourth night. Do you think something will happen?"


    "Definitely," there was no hesitation in Nian''s tone when he said this. He opened his eyes and tilted his head sideways, only to be stunned when he looked into Jin Jiuchi''s eyes. Was it only him or... this silly husky''s eyes seemed to glow brighter? Must be the trick of light. Shaking his head, he added, "It''s already weird that the nightmare creature in our room doesn''t appear aside from the first night. It''s been giving me a bad feeling, like the calm before a fierce storm. I mean, just look at Old Guan and Sister Hong whose rooms were also upied by the nightmare creatures. Both of them are dead. Next... it should be our turn."


    Even though Nian said that, less than ten minutester Jin Jiuchi found that his breathing had be deep and long. He had fallen asleep so deeply, just like a baby.


    Jin Jiuchi propped his head up with a palm and let out an amused scoff, "Be careful, he said..." He reached out to pinch the jade doll''s tiny adorable nose. Even then, he did not react except for the twitching of his brows.


    Jin Jiuchi, however,y wide awake as he stared at the ceiling until the hour hand of the clock pointed at ten.


    Almost immediately, the light bulbs outside snapped off one after another and the paper dolls roused from their slumber, ying their celebration music that reverberated all over the apartment. Jin Jiuchi had no idea whether it was because they had finished decorating the wedding venue, but the music sounded especially clear and melodious tonight, almost as if a joyous wedding wasmencing right at the moment.


    Somehow, if he closed his eyes, he could imagine the resplendent of the bride''s wedding dress that trailed behind her back with every step she took. Crimson silk hung over the entire apartment as the tenants leaned over the corridor railing to scatter flower petals in the air, whistling and singing along with the music...


    Jin Jiuchi snapped his eyes open, and the scene in front of him abruptly changed.


    He was still in room 301, albeit the interior was drastically different now. Crimson canopy draped over the bed posts above him, and the bed he wasying on was covered in bright red sheets.


    He propped himself up in confusion. "Wait, hasn''t Nian taken these off the first night we..." his voice trailed off when he turned his head, only to find that the space beside him was empty.


    "Nian''er?!" Shocked, Jin Jiuchi shot up to his feet and looked into the bottom of the bed to see if the jade doll had identally fallen off in his sleep. But he found no one. "Nian''er, where did you go?!"


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes fell on the flickering candle on the table that cast a golden glow in a small circle, illuminating the person who had been sitting there since God-knows-when.


    The bride was d in her silk crimson dress adorned with intricate embroidery and ornate designs in gold. Due to the red veil covering her head, Jin Jiuchi couldn''t discern her expression clearly but he could tell that she was staring fixedly at him.


    Jin Jiuchi''s eyes lit up when he recognized who it was. "Miss Zhao!" He bounded to the table and made a gesture around his torso. "Did you see Nian''er anywhere? He''s this tall, super pretty and adorable but oops¨C of course, the bride is the most beautiful on her wedding day! Are you getting married today, perhaps? Have you seen the wedding venue we decorated? How is it, how is it? It''s quite good, if I have to say! The others are waiting for this thing called the return tickets. You don''t happen to have those lying around, do you?"


    When he saw the bride went deathly still without answering any of his inquiry, Jin Jiuchi tilted his head, puzzled. "Miss Zhao...?"


    Finally getting the chance to insert herself amidst Jin Jiuchi''s long spiel, the bride lifted her arm, the silky long sleeve sliding down her smooth skin as she pointed at the empty seat opposite hers.


    "Um, I don''t think it''s very good for me to stay here for long lest your groomes backter..." Though he said that, he still gingerly sat his butt down on the wooden chair. He cleared his throat, "So, have you seen Nian''er around?"


    The bride still did not speak, but all of a sudden a very appetizing aroma wafted into Jin Jiuchi''s nose. His eyes widened when he lowered his gaze to see a te of roasted peanuts, baked cookies and a pot of fragrant tea. Having not eaten all day long, Jin Jiuchi started salivating as soon as his eyesnded on the food. "W¨CWhat is the meaning of this?" he peered up at the bride with hopeful eyes. "Are you offering these to me? Can I...?"


    The bride nodded.


    "Miss Zhao...!" Jin Jiuchi was so touched that he was going to cry. "How can you be so kind?! You are the best bride in the world!" Thest of Jin Jiuchi''s words were muffled for he was already stuffing his mouth with the cookies and chewing with his cheeks bulging. "Hmm, delishcious!!"


    "You... are not afraid... of me..." she muttered in halting words, her voice scratchy and unpleasant as though it had been a long time since shest spoke.


    Jin Jiuchi cracked the peanuts and threw them into his mouth, his eyes held confusion within. The meaning behind it was clear, ''Should I?''


    "Even though... I look like this...?"


    Without a warning, a strong breeze blew by in the enclosed room and lifted the crimson veil off her head. The candle flickered wildly as if it was going to die out at any moment, and the faint light fell on the bride''s bloody and badly mangled face that looked as if someone had used a sharp weapon to chop it again and again. Her eyes were two terrifying ck holes staring straight at Jin Jiuchi, while her exposed flesh was red with its muscle tissues twitching and pulsing.


    In the next instant, blood began to ooze out of her entire body and pooled around her feet, permeating the entire room with the thick metallic stench.


    Jin Jiuchi''s jaws dropped, but he hurriedly closed it again for fear that the food would fall out of his mouth. He chewed and swallowed in haste, only for the food to be stuck on his throat. Coughing, he scrambled to grab the small cup of tea in front of him and downed it in one gulp, then he let out a sigh of relief.


    "You..." Jin Jiuchi started to say, his gazeplicated.


    ***


    On the other hand, while Jin Jiuchi was spending leisure time with the nightmare creature, anotherpletely different scene was taking ce in the same room.


    The chair was toppled; the bed had a few shes on them as though a sharp de had torn through them, the bright red sheets and silk canopy that originally on the chair was now strewn all over the floor.


    At the moment, Niany amidst the rumpled silk with his face flushed red from exertion, both of his hands were pressed to the floor beside his head by the man looming above him ¨C Jin Jiuchi.


    A low growl resounded from Jin Jiuchi''s throat as he leaned forward and took a sniff of Nian''s neck. His chest made a pleased rumble like a predator who was satisfied with the quality of prey he had caught. Gasping, Nian tried to knee Jin Jiuchi''s stomach but arge hand gripped his leg before he could do so, pinning him to the ground with no way to escape.


    Nian gritted out with veins popping on his sweaty forehead, "Snap out of it, you damned husky!!"


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