To avoid passing out from low blood sugar while bathing, he picked up a candy from the bed and popped it in his mouth.
By coincidence, it was grape-flavored.
The sweet-and-sour taste melted on his tongue, once again summoning certain images.
The candy the demon had fed him last night had dissolved especially quickly, thanks to the tentacle stirring in his mouth.
As soon as he entered the bathroom and stripped off his clothes, seeing the red marks all over his body, Zhong Nian’s face turned from peach-pink to tomato-red, his cheeks puffed like a balloon ready to pop with one poke.
He stomped heavily out of the bathroom, patta patta, grabbed the Dagger from the wooden table, and charged downstairs. Without glancing at the stunned players at the dining table on the first floor, he rushed straight to the kitchen and found the Whetstone the Masked Man had used to begin sharpening the blade.
Amid the teeth-gritting scraaape scraaape sounds, the players having lunch forgot their food, watching the young man in the open kitchen grind away furiously with varied expressions.
Anyone could see he was angry; even the hairs on his head stood on end, swaying left and right with vigorous momentum matching his sharpening motions.
But…
The Skinny Man, unable to stay seated, stood up in disbelief: “N-No, how are you still alive… coming down from upstairs?”
Though he corrected himself quickly, Zhong Nian heard it clearly.
He couldn’t be bothered to respond or explain, merely humming indifferently without lifting his head.
The demon’s tentacles had knocked over plenty of things in his room overnight, flailing wildly.
Even the soundest sleepers among the players had been woken, but no one dared venture out to check, relieved they hadn’t been chosen that night.
After dawn, someone had tried his door—it wouldn’t open—and they’d gathered to speculate.
One theory was that Zhong Nian had returned, only to unluckily become the Devil’s prey again.
Either way, they thought he was as good as dead.
Even at noon, with no movement from the room, it confirmed their suspicions.
So no one expected Zhong Nian to reappear intact—though his appearance was a bit off.
He’d changed clothes, clean and bright, which made his own colors even more vivid.
That naturally beautiful face bore intriguing marks: slightly swollen eyelids, red under his eyes, and lips blood-red like ripe cherry flesh, as if roughly abused.
Combined with his ashamed and furious expression, it made people suspect he’d been bullied.
In these players’ Live Stream Rooms, the moment the young man appeared, the barrage of comments exploded.
【Aaaahhh Wife, you finally showed up!! I really thought you were gone 55555】
【Worth staying up all night for. Seeing you brings me back to life.】
【Close call, almost became a young widower.】
【What the hell happened last night? Why does my Baby look like this after one night? Like he got fcked.】
【Must’ve been kidnapped by the demon…】
【Damn, why didn’t he go live? Driving me crazy.】
Jie Jialiang set down his iced coffee and walked over, leaning on the island counter with a concerned look at Zhong Nian: “Last night you vanished midway and never came back. Everyone was worried. Can you tell us what happened?”
“Curious?” Zhong Nian picked up the Dagger and inspected the blade.
The Masked Man had sharpened it well just yesterday; it was already razor-sharp.
The cold gleam reflecting off the blade lit the young man’s face, fading the ambiguous colors there and highlighting the clarity and brightness of his eyes, as if they could see through everything.
Meeting that gaze turned toward him with the blade’s light, the concern on Jie Jialiang’s face faded slightly, his smile straightening.
“If you’re so curious, next time the demon picks me, I’ll heartily recommend you next door.”
Jie Jialiang’s expression stiffened: “The way you say that… I was just concerned about you.”
“Got it.” Zhong Nian replied offhandedly, grabbed a piece of bread from the cabinet, and headed out with the knife.
“Where are you going?” Jie Jialiang asked, following.
Zhong Nian shot him a furrowed glance, mouth stuffed with bread making his cheeks bulge. He said nothing, but his little face clearly conveyed: What’s it to you?
Jie Jialiang smiled: “Looking for that Masked Guy, right? Why not sit and eat first, then we all go together.”
Zhong Nian: “No need.”
Jie Jialiang raised a brow: “Sure you want to go solo again? Even without fog, it’s not safe. If you’re in such a hurry, I won’t eat—I’ll go with you now.”
Zhong Nian was about to refuse when Jie Jialiang added: “My Live Stream Room friends are urging me to stick with you too, to protect…”
Clang!*
Zhong Nian had already opened the door and left.
Leaving behind a rigid Jie Jialiang and the stunned players.
【What’s with that look from Wife earlier? Felt it.】
【Who needs his protection? My Wife? Totally unreliable.】
【Xie has some skills, but still~】
【Verdict: xjl is all show.】
【I thought I was the only one… Now Xie looks more and more off to me.】
【I’ve wanted to say it: He claims to be so worried about my Baby, went out searching this morning, but didn’t seem urgent—like just clue-hunting on the way. Still ate and drank as usual, even leisurely ground artisanal coffee.】
【Hypocrite.】
【Only here for Wife; wouldn’t stay in these Live Stream Rooms otherwise, just boosting their views.】
【Good news: Baby went live.】
【!!】
That one reminder turned the heated barrage into dead silence, like it had frozen. Only the viewer count in the upper right plummeted dramatically—from five digits to two in a blink.
Where had the viewers gone? Obvious.
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