Chapter 16
Wen Linyu took a leave of absence from school. He couldn’t endure it any longer.
He had already mastered the school’s curriculum. He had been attending classes simply because he had nothing better to do. But now, maintaining his routine was impossible.
With his extended leave, only returning for exams, Wen Linyu was unaware of the strange rumors circulating at school—that he was being haunted by a ghost.
Four classmates had been hospitalized, one of his roommates had witnessed something unsettling in their dorm, and coupled with Wen Linyu’s recent personality change, the rumors gained traction.
It wasn’t unusual. Every school had its ghost stories.
But somehow, the rumors reached the Wu family and Wen Linyu’s parents.
Wu Shuhao’s fever had subsided, but even the most skilled masters couldn’t retrieve his lost soul fragment. He had been discharged from the hospital, but he was now prone to violent outbursts, frequently lashing out at his family.
His parents had aged considerably in just a few days, consumed by worry, anger, and resentment. They worried about their son’s future, angered by his reckless venture into the abandoned building, and resented Wen Linyu for not being there to take the brunt of the supernatural attack. If Wen Linyu had been there, the ghost would have surely targeted him, sparing their precious Shuhao.
With their pent-up frustrations and a desire to understand what had happened that night, they tried to contact Wen Linyu.
The calls went through, but no one answered.
He dared to ignore their calls? The nerve! They would teach him a lesson when they found him!
Meanwhile, Wen Hongbo and Lin Wanshow were also trying to reach Wen Linyu, equally met with silence. The butler had reported that Wen Linyu had moved out of the house, claiming he was going on a long trip. A long trip? Unacceptable!
Their health had suddenly deteriorated, and Wen Linyu wanted to leave. Did he know something? And the men they had sent the other night had collapsed before even reaching his door, as if blocked by an unseen force.
Wen Linyu must have known something. He was trying to escape!
They were frantic. If he escaped, they would be in trouble. But they were also relieved that they still had the leverage of being his parents. Finding him wouldn’t be too difficult.
Wen Linyu wasn’t intentionally ignoring their calls simply because they were his enemies. He still needed them for his get-rich-quick scheme. He was simply busy.
In a small town over a hundred kilometers from A City, the bathroom mirror of an ordinary motel room was covered in steam and frantic handprints.
Wen Linyu bit his lip, his hands braced against the glass door.
“Good boy, the other leg,” Gu Chi said, his hands covered in soap suds, his eyes sparkling with mischief.
He reached for Wen Linyu’s other leg. Wen Linyu closed his eyes, preparing to comply, then glanced down.
Gu Chi was kneeling before him, his sleeves rolled up, his clothes and pants damp from the hot water. He had spontaneously decided to bathe Wen Linyu, insisting that he not move a muscle.
The angle was… compromising.
Gu Chi looked up.
Wen Linyu instinctively kicked out. Gu Chi could have easily dodged, but he didn’t. He caught Wen Linyu’s ankle.
“Let go!” Wen Linyu snapped, his face flushed.
Gu Chi, of course, didn’t let go. He tightened his grip, then, with a mixture of curiosity and longing, leaned closer.
Wen Linyu froze, realizing what Gu Chi was about to do, and struggled: “You, let go of me!”
But the grip on his ankle was firm. A warm sensation grazed his skin. Wen Linyu’s face burned. “Disgusting!” he hissed.
Gu Chi looked at him, puzzled. A kiss on the foot is disgusting?
People kissed and cuddled cats and dogs, even burying their faces in their fur. Wasn’t that disgusting?
His apprentice’s feet were so soft and white, and they smelled nice.
In fact, Gu Chi’s sudden urge to bathe Wen Linyu stemmed from boredom during the car ride. He had been watching pet grooming videos and found the animals unremarkable, but he liked the contented expressions on their faces after being pampered.
He wanted to see the same expression on Wen Linyu’s face.
The result wasn’t quite what he expected, but his apprentice’s flustered anger was also endearing.
People used to call him ruthless and unpredictable. Recently, however, Wen Linyu had been calling him a pervert, and he was starting to realize it might be true.
—Anyone else who dared to kick him would be dead, but Wen Linyu doing it… he found it cute.
It didn’t matter. The great villain happily embraced his new persona, even contemplating turning Wen Linyu into a cat, not permanently, just for a few days, complete with ears and a tail.
“Hey! Why are you rewarding him?!” Suddenly, a familiar voice echoed in Wen Linyu’s mind.
“Little Tong?!” Wen Linyu was startled, then overjoyed.
“Hehe, it’s me!” 998, having received its payment, was now incredibly rich. It could travel to any world, but it had chosen to come here.
Heh, after ten years of slavery, I have to witness this bastard Demon Lord’s downfall!
And it was thoroughly enjoying the show. The Demon Lord hadn’t revealed his true identity and was now resorting to forced intimacy.
Although the live stream was heavily censored, 998 wasn’t a newbie system. It could clearly see Wen Linyu kicking Gu Chi, which, for the current Gu Chi, was more of a reward than a punishment! Look, he was enjoying it!
Tsk, tsk. I should record this and show it to all his subordinates.
The system munched on its cyber snacks, chatting with Wen Linyu.
The system’s presence lifted Wen Linyu’s spirits. Gu Chi’s bathing ritual became just that, a bath, with nothing more than that one unexpected kiss.
Wen Linyu didn’t bother questioning why Gu Chi hadn’t gone further. He had more important questions for the system.
“Little Tong, is Teacher… alright?” he asked directly.
998’s feathery face lit up. It glanced at Gu Chi, who was staring intently at Wen Linyu, and chuckled: “He’s doing great!”
“That’s good.” Wen Linyu smiled faintly, then hesitantly asked, “Did Teacher… mention me?”
“…” 998’s heart melted at Wen Linyu’s soft tone. It couldn’t bear to lie. “Yes, yes, he misses you very much.”
Wen Linyu, unsuspecting, his eyes shining, asked, “Really?”
Seeing the hope in his eyes, 998 felt a pang of guilt. It had intended to get revenge on the Demon Lord, but why was the host suffering?
Gu Chi, noticing Wen Linyu’s sudden good mood as he was putting a bathrobe on him, assumed it was because he enjoyed the bath. His voice was laced with amusement: “You liked it that much? That happy?”
Indeed, Wen Linyu was the first person he had ever bathed personally.
However, hearing his voice, the smile vanished from Wen Linyu’s face.
The system’s snacking slowed, its beady eyes gleaming. It anticipated Wen Linyu’s retort, something along the lines of “Who do you think you are?”, and it would be glorious!
Look, look, the Demon Lord’s smugness is gone, hahaha!
It immediately discarded the idea of revealing the truth, bursting into laughter.
Wen Linyu didn’t say those words, but his eyes conveyed the same sentiment. Gu Chi’s smile faltered, and he clicked his tongue in annoyance.
He retracted his earlier thought about Wen Linyu being cute no matter what. He wasn’t cute when looking at him with such disgust.
Wen Linyu didn’t speak to Gu Chi again. He had come to this town seeking a place to cultivate, hoping to eventually escape Gu Chi’s control. But now, a second option had presented itself.
He asked 998: “Little Tong, why is Gu Chi here? Can you send him back?”
Once he’s gone and you find out who he really is, you’ll be the one crying. The system put down its snacks. Being the only one who knew the truth was getting lonely.
It offered a random excuse: “I’m not strong enough to send him back.” It wasn’t entirely an excuse. It was the truth.
Wen Linyu fell silent, but he hadn’t given up. He asked: “Then, Little Tong, can you find me some techniques for rapid cultivation advancement?”
998 immediately understood his intentions, advising: “Honey, even if you cultivate for eight hundred years, you won’t be able to defeat him. It’s useless.”
“But—” A cunning smile appeared on its feathery face. “But you can play him!”
“Look, he’s interested in you. Pretend to comply, and when he’s head over heels in love with you, dump him! Mwahahaha…”
The thought was exhilarating!
Wen Linyu: “…”
He refused. Even though the system repeatedly urged him, arguing that Gu Chi was a villain and deserved it.
Gu Chi was a major problem, but Wen Linyu still didn’t want to toy with anyone’s feelings.
The system’s heart melted at his refusal. Waaaaah, its host, even after ten years as a villain, hadn’t changed his true nature.
Gu Chi, what did you do to deserve him?!
Although the system hadn’t offered any useful advice, Wen Linyu was still glad for its company. At least he had someone to talk to.
“By the way, Little Tong, I was in a hurry when I left, so I didn’t thank you for the cultivation reward. Thanks to you…”
998 choked on its snacks, suddenly remembering: “Huh? It wasn’t me.”
It had been so eager to escape that it had forgotten Wen Linyu’s payment. Feeling guilty, it quickly opened its store: “Host, I actually came here to give you your reward! Come, come, choose anything you want!”
Wen Linyu was still processing 998’s earlier response.
If his cultivation wasn’t from Little Tong, then who?
His teacher? No, his teacher had only guided him. Could it have been… Gu Chi?
He looked up to see the system’s store display:
[Ice Skin Jade Bones], [Charming Eyes], [Soul-Snatching Gaze], [Pleasure Enhancer], [Growth Agent], [Ecstasy Potion]…
What are these things? Is Little Tong a legitimate system?
