Chapter 50 Part 2

“I’ll help.” Jie Jialiang stepped forward. His outstretched hand froze just before touching, stopped by the Masked Man’s icy glare.

His gaze shifted down. The Masked Man’s spear hand was tensed, veins bulging on the back, ready to strike at any moment.

The smile in Jie Jialiang’s eyes faded instantly. He withdrew his hand.

Zhong Nian didn’t notice their brief clash. Even if he had, it wouldn’t have registered.

After helping the Masked Man into the room and onto the bed, he immediately went downstairs for supplies. Returning to his own room and pushing open the door, he belatedly realized he’d taken the man to the wrong room.

In his rush, he had instinctively chosen the door that felt safest and most familiar.

But the man was already lying on his bed, badly injured. There was no need to move him again.

Zhong Nian held the box forward. “I’ll cut your clothes open first.”

The Masked Man gave a low hum. He leaned against the headboard, eyes downcast, making it hard to tell if he was conscious or delirious.

Zhong Nian could see he’d been holding on by a thread. Only after lying down did he relax and release the Silver Spear.

Seeing him like this, Zhong Nian moved with utmost care, afraid of aggravating the wounds.

The outer jacket was fine—just remove it. The real issue was the tight T-shirt underneath, which had to be cut open with scissors.

Zhong Nian’s expression was grave and tense, but his hands were steady.

The sharp scissors snipped an opening bit by bit, revealing the taut, defined lean musculature beneath.

After removing the easy parts, he poured hydrogen peroxide on the sections stuck to the wounds. He had towels ready on the bed to avoid wetting the sheets.

He had done this a few times for Ke Zhengchu in the previous Instance, so he was practiced.

When using tweezers to peel away cloth fragments, he said softly, “This might hurt a little. Bear with it.”

There was a coaxing tone, his ending soft.

It was like the most effective anesthetic. Besides, this injury was nothing to the Masked Man.

His pain tolerance was exceptional. At that moment, nothing else mattered but the youth before him.

The youth worked earnestly, brows slightly furrowed, a sheen of sweat on his forehead. From tension, his long downcast lashes trembled like butterfly wings. His red lips pressed together.

He didn’t notice the pale expanse of his neck exposed as he leaned forward, nor the view from his collar.

From the Masked Man’s angle, he saw places usually hidden.

Like red plum blossoms blooming fiercely in the snow.

Swollen.

And some intertwined ambiguous red marks, from who knew what restraint.

His gaze shifted up to the lips, abnormally red since first sight that day.

“…”

Zhong Nian clearly heard the Masked Man’s breathing grow heavier. He paused quickly and looked up. “Did I pull too hard?”

Under the Face Mask, he could only see turmoil in the man’s eyes. Such unrest was rare for him.

The Masked Man’s breath was unusually erratic as he spoke. “…It doesn’t hurt.”

Zhong Nian assumed he was toughing it out and lightened his touch.

Then he heard the Masked Man ask, “Last night, did something happen?”

“Something did happen…” Focused on the wound, Zhong Nian’s thoughts and words weren’t fluid.

He held nothing back from the Masked Man and told the truth. “On the way back from the Church to the Cabin, a Devil grabbed me. Then an Octopus Demon came—it snatched me away and brought me back. Its tentacles were especially overboard with me…”

Zhong Nian bit his tongue, stopping himself from saying more. His face flushed and paled.

The Masked Man pressed. “How was it overboard with its tentacles?”

“Nothing. It brought me back and left.” Zhong Nian brushed it off. Seeing the Masked Man’s deep eyes fixed on him made him guilty. “See? I’m fine now, right?”

“Is that so.” The Masked Man’s tone invited deeper thought. “Including places I can’t see?”

Zhong Nian thought he was worried about other injuries. “I’m really fine. Don’t worry about me—your wound is the priority now.”

Two bloody holes made it unclear what had caused them, plus several bite marks.

Handling the ragged flesh, the heavy metallic scent made even Zhong Nian frown.

“Was it the Devils that hurt you?”

The Masked Man: “Mm.”

Zhong Nian’s expression shifted slightly. “They… can enter the Church?”

The Masked Man provided specifics. “Between midnight and six in the morning.”

Locked in the Confessional, it was no different from being fed to the Devils.

Thinking back on the past two nights, staying in the Cabin was much safer. At least those who stayed in their rooms hadn’t been eaten.

Only Zhong Nian had been targeted by different Devils in a row, but he’d escaped unscathed each time.

Staying cooped up in the Cabin forever wouldn’t clear the Instance, though. No solution.

As Zhong Nian pondered, he finished treating the wounds. “Eat something and rest.”

He brought over the Flower Basket, gesturing for the man to choose. But the Masked Man didn’t take food—instead, he picked the most eye-catching Flower Garland inside.

He examined it briefly before placing it on Zhong Nian’s head.

The Children’s handiwork was skillful; the flowers were the prettiest and brightest, suiting Zhong Nian’s coloring perfectly.

His already beautiful face, framed by the flowers, resembled a naive, romantic woodland sprite.

Before he could admire it enough, Zhong Nian removed it helplessly. “Don’t mess around. Eat something.”

He placed a bag of Cookies in the Masked Man’s hand and asked curiously, “Do you need to take off your Face Mask to eat? Want me to help?”