Chapter 18: Death Acrobatic Troupe 18 Part 1

Even though the Malicious Ghost had blindfolded himself with a tie, the dangerous aura around him didn’t diminish by half. Instead, it gained an elusive, unfathomable Mystery.

The Malicious Ghost hooked a finger around the handle of a dinner knife, swinging it idly. Then, with a low, husky chuckle, he raised his hand—

The cold silver dinner knife traced a graceful arc through the air.

Jian Bumian’s pupils constricted physiologically.

In that instant, he could hear the whistle of the blade slicing through the air. The sharp tip of the knife was flying precisely, unerringly, toward his own head!

Actually, Jian Bumian was still a little bit afraid.

He was afraid of pain.

His body was very delicate, fearing cold, fearing hunger, and especially fearing pain. Even the slightest chafing when putting on clothes could make his skin feel a faint, vague soreness, let alone pain directly to his head.

But to eat delicious food, he could suffer a tiny bit of hardship, right?

“Slash—”

The dinner knife stabbed into the spot right next to Jian Bumian’s cheek! The blade gouged a large hole in the wooden board, deep cracks blossoming outward.

The black strands of hair that had covered Jian Bumian’s ears were instantly sliced through by the blade’s edge, floating apart in mid-air.

His ear, no longer hidden by hair, was exposed to the cold air. The pale, sensitive tip rapidly flushed crimson, the soft earlobe instantly turning bright red.

If the blade had deviated by just a few millimeters, Jian Bumian’s skull would have been instantly pierced and shattered by the high-speed throw of the dinner knife, blood gushing out.

Too dangerous.

There were still two knife throws left.

This time, the Malicious Ghost didn’t aim the blade at Jian Bumian’s head again, but lowered it significantly, aiming at other parts of Jian Bumian’s body.

Jian Bumian didn’t know where he wanted to stab him.

He wasn’t afraid, just delicate and afraid of pain.

Bad premonitions churned wildly in his heart, like a sudden torrential rainstorm.

“Slash—!”

The blade sliced through the cold air.

The pain Jian Bumian hated didn’t come to his body. Instead, a rush of icy air invaded.

The blade had once again grazed past his body.

But because the graze was below the waist, Jian Bumian couldn’t see where the knife had landed.

Jian Bumian didn’t know that the dinner knife thrown by the Malicious Ghost had torn through his black, close-fitting suit pants. The fabric split like a piece of paper torn in half, a long gash opening up.

Underneath the ripped fabric was precisely where Jian Bumian was wearing a Shirt Garter on his thigh.

The skin of his thigh, always hidden beneath the fabric, had been nurtured to be very sensitive.

Now it was tightly bound by the black shirt garter, already showing faint red marks from the constriction.

Coupled with the torn fabric, it held an abused beauty.

However, Jian Bumian only felt a bit cold on his thigh, not knowing his pants had been ripped.

Both dinner knives had been thrown, yet Jian Bumian was still completely unscathed.

Except for the few strands of cut hair and the torn pants.

…The Malicious Ghost might have done this deliberately.

Deliberately leaving Jian Bumian’s life hanging on the edge of Death, making his heart race wildly, making him tense and tremble, making his heart plead desperately to the heavens for survival, making his beautiful eyes well up with tears.

The Silver-haired Man’s long fingers hooked around the handle of Jian Bumian’s Butterfly Knife, swinging it idly up and down.

For the third knife throw, he was using Jian Bumian’s own knife.

The Viewers in the Livestream Room maliciously speculated about this Malicious Ghost. …Perhaps the Malicious Ghost wanted Jian Bumian to die at the hands of the Item he had worked so hard to obtain, designing a Death filled with irony.

Very much in line with the twisted tastes of a Roaming-Class Boss.

The Butterfly Knife spun rapidly between the Silver-haired Man’s fingers, finally stopping its tip—pointing straight at Jian Bumian’s eye.

The Malicious Ghost had finally lost patience, no longer toying with Jian Bumian, but wanting to kill him directly.

The Viewers in the Livestream Room finally understood why the Malicious Ghost had suddenly said to Jian Bumian earlier—”Your eyes are very beautiful.”

With this strike, Jian Bumian’s eye would be brutally pierced by the knife’s tip, the blade exiting through the back of his head.

The eyeball would shatter into pieces. The caramel-colored pupil would be like a crushed golden gem, the sparkling, shattered gem fragments mixed with tears and blood, splattering through the air.

A beautiful thing, at the moment of its destruction, would burst its radiance to the extreme.

This Malicious Ghost was truly perverse.

Jian Bumian’s expression showed no fluctuation. He calmly watched the tip of the knife aimed at his eye.

The blindfolded Malicious Ghost raised his hand nonchalantly and threw the delicate, dangerous Butterfly Knife towards Jian Bumian.

The Bullet Comments in the Livestream Room froze completely at that moment.

No one spoke.

In the next second, this Livestream Room would surely close with the outcome of the streamer’s Death.

“Slash—”

The double handles of the Butterfly Knife produced a sharp, clear sound as they cut through the air.

The Viewers in the Livestream Room didn’t see the bloody, gruesome scene they had imagined.

The Butterfly Knife… had actually been thrown to the floor…………?!

The sharp blade tip was embedded firmly in the red carpet.

Jian Bumian hadn’t died!

How was that possible!

The first two times Jian Bumian hadn’t been stabbed could be considered the Malicious Ghost’s twisted amusement, playing with people’s hearts. But the last time, the Malicious Ghost clearly intended to kill Jian Bumian.

There was no possibility the Malicious Ghost wanted to let Jian Bumian go.

Jian Bumian hadn’t been hit three times consecutively.

He self-loosened the strap bindings, walked a few steps onto the carpet, and casually pulled out the Butterfly Knife embedded in the rug. He slid it back into the sheath hidden under the hem of his Tailcoat, at his waist.

In Jian Bumian’s mind, the attributes for this Butterfly Knife had undergone a new change.

【Congratulations! Your Item—“A Butterfly Knife Suitable for Playing With and Threatening People”—has successfully absorbed the personal aura of an NPC! Item function unlocked!】

【Item Name: A Butterfly Knife Suitable for Playing With and Threatening People.】

【Item Function: Can be used to threaten an NPC within the Instance, compelling the NPC to serve you once (Note!! If the NPC is too powerful, the threat will fail! After three failed threat attempts, the Item will backfire against the Player! The Player will be Erased!】

【Number of uses: 1 time.】

Jian Bumian’s attention focused on the latter half of the Item’s function description.

Threatening NPCs was okay.

But one couldn’t threaten an NPC that was too powerful.

Otherwise, the Item would backfire against the bound Player, meaning Erasure and Death.

There was no such thing as a free lunch. Everything required a price, including the price of one’s own Life.

This Item… was way too risky, wasn’t it?

Jian Bumian let out a helpless chuckle.

He shifted his attention and looked toward the Malicious Ghost, who had just removed his tie.

The Silver-haired Man, seeing Jian Bumian completely unharmed, raised an eyebrow in surprise. He feigned mystery, saying, “Wow, you actually survived. What a pity.”

This pretty little Player didn’t seem to be just a vase that could only cry.

At the same time.

An announcement sounded in the Circus Hall.

“Jian Bumian! Please proceed to the Circus Hall to draw a lot within one minute! Otherwise, all will be Erased!”

Tch, why did this Instance love Erasure so much?

Jian Bumian faced the Malicious Ghost, but his footsteps were retreating toward the Hallway.

The Silver-haired Man narrowed his eyes, staring at Jian Bumian with an unreadable expression.

Jian Bumian smiled at the man, his laugh clear and pure.

“You were the one who said it. Three times consecutively, I wasn’t hit, so you’ll let me go.”

He winked his left eye. His beautiful eyes cast a playful and alluring wink at the Malicious Ghost.

“I’ll be right back.”

Immediately, he turned sharply and ran quickly toward the Circus Hall.

He dashed through the Hallway, the two slits of his tailcoat fluttering up in the wind behind him.

His whole person was like a young leopard cub leaping between high cliff edges. Beautiful, captivating, dangerous.

With ten seconds to spare, Jian Bumian arrived at the Circus Hall right on time.

He rushed to the draw bucket and randomly pulled out a paper slip.

Jian Bumian didn’t rush to open the slip. He leaned against the wall, panting heavily, his cheeks tinged with a faint, thin red.

Although he really wanted to quickly settle the matters in the Acrobatic Troupe and go devour the Malicious Ghost for a full meal…

…his body’s stamina still wasn’t great. Running all the way here, he needed to rest a bit.

Even though he was standing in an inconspicuous corner, the Players still noticed him.

Jian Bumian… actually came back alive?

And completely unscathed!

How on earth had he managed to survive against a Roaming-Class Boss?!

Jian Bumian heard mosquito-like whispers of discussion.

“As expected, you can’t judge a book by its cover. The prettier they are, the stronger they are.”

“I told you he would be fine. Just from the way he destroyed the Training Ground last time, I felt he was definitely not simple.”

“When he leaves this Instance, I want to tell our Boss to recruit him for our team. We can tackle Instances together.”

“Screw off, he should come to our guild!! When I get out, I’ll be the absolute first to invite him!!”

“…Fine, then let’s see if he’s even willing to join your broken-down guild! Not a single S-Rank Item! He won’t even look at you guys!”

Two Veteran Players were almost coming to blows over this inexplicable issue.

Jian Bumian: “…………”

He silently moved away and found a spot with light and quiet.

Jian Bumian opened the crumpled paper slip to see his acrobatic act this time.

The Acrobatic Troupe had previously stated that this acrobatic performance not only had to be completed but also had to satisfy the Noble Guest to survive.

However, just a few minutes ago, he had thoroughly provoked the Noble Guest.

The Viewers in the Livestream Room returned to their senses one after another and began discussing.

【Can Mianmian really survive? Not only did he use that Letter to deceive the Noble Guest, he also made the other party lose face embarrassingly during the Two-Person Blindfold Knife Throwing. No matter what acrobatic act Mianmian draws, the Noble Guest definitely won’t be satisfied with his performance.】

【This Noble Guest is also Mianmian’s Strategy Target. There are only two hours left. Can Mianmian really get him to say ‘I love you’?】

【I think it’s unlikely. Even though he has that Butterfly Knife Item, the Item says it’s useless against powerful NPCs. So, going round and round, this Instance is another death trap for Mianmian.】

【Everyone stop analyzing. Go back to the recording and admire wifey’s beauty just now. That scene where wifey winked at Mr. Malicious Ghost, then turned and ran away—it was simply deadly. Perfectly illustrated ‘flirt and run!’】

【The above comment is right, it totally struck my heart. Jian Bumian, forever god! Shashasha, when will we get to see wifey flip over and get topped~】

Jian Bumian ignored the strange and bizarre Bullet Comments in the Livestream Room.

Using the dim light, he thoroughly saw the acrobatic content written on the paper slip.

【Magic Show: Chainsaw Devil】

【Acrobatic Content: One person lies inside a rectangular box, while the other uses a Chainsaw to cut the box into three pieces. If after the cutting, the person inside the box remains intact, the acrobatic performance is complete.】

Magic shows, ever since the birth of the Acrobatic Troupe, had always been a highlight among the acrobatic acts.

The Viewers’ favorites were magic shows related to Death.

Like the one Jian Bumian had drawn now—”Chainsaw Devil.”

One person hides inside a box, and the box is cut into three pieces by a Chainsaw.

A normal person would instantly be severed into three bloody pieces.

But if the performer was an excellent magician, it would be a thrilling yet safe, marvelous performance.

Jian Bumian was the last person to draw a lot. His drawing meant that all the Players present had now drawn their own acrobatic acts.

The broadcast sounded in the vast Circus Hall.

“Congratulations to the biggest lucky star of this acrobatic performance—Jian Bumian! You have drawn the one and only two-person acrobatic act!”

“Since the acrobatic act ‘Chainsaw Devil’ is the first act to perform.”

“Please, Jian Bumian, choose your Death partner within two minutes! Otherwise, it will be considered a forfeit, and Acrobat Jian Bumian will be eliminated and Erased!!”

A two-person acrobatic act… knowing the habits of the Death Acrobatic Troupe Instance, there was a high chance one of the two would be hanging on the edge of Death.

Like the Acrobat acting as the target in the Two-Person Blindfold Knife Throwing.

The Acrobat to be cut into three pieces by the Chainsaw in the magic show.

In this situation, who would be willing to be Jian Bumian’s partner?

If they didn’t perform well, they’d be Erased. Even if they performed well, without the Noble Guest’s satisfaction, they’d still be Erased. And no one could say for sure if their own partner wouldn’t push them deeper into Death.

It was better to stick to their own acrobatic act and perform it well.

Hearing this news, Jian Bumian was slightly stunned.

Quickly, he reacted, curling his lips. “I’ve chosen my partner.”