Chapter 23: Black Death and Deities 05

【…】

【Reasoning Judgement in progress…】

【Reasoning reasonable. Identification successful.】

【——A parent’s love is the greatest.】

Jian Bumian hadn’t expected his impromptu move would actually succeed. He pressed on: “Then, is this thing I’ve identified a Deity or a monster?”

Actually, it didn’t matter which it was, as long as it didn’t prevent him from eating it.

【…】

The red text fell silent.

Moments later, new text appeared.

【He is the God of Darkness.】

【Whether he is the Deity who can save humanity and eliminate the plague, however, must be determined by the players themselves.】

The red text disappeared.

The dim light of the oil lamp flickered. Jian Bumian slowly straightened up, patted the little boy’s fluffy head, and grinned: “See? Didn’t I bring you to meet your Papa?”

The little boy didn’t speak. He hung his head low, clutching the hem of Jian Bumian’s robe tightly.

It was hard to tell if he was happy or upset.

Jian Bumian felt he couldn’t grasp this child’s emotions.

The kid wanted a father; he’d brought him to meet a “godfather.” Wasn’t this something to be happy about?

Suddenly, a cold gust of wind swept past.

The flickering flame of the oil lamp was extinguished instantly. A few seconds later, the flame reignited eerily, the deep corridor suddenly flooded with dim yellow firelight.

Jian Bumian instinctively looked at the painting before him.

…The person in the painting had vanished! Only an empty background remained within the frame.

The viewers in the livestream room instantly felt their hair stand on end, while Jian Bumian was inwardly overjoyed.

…He didn’t even have to lift a finger to pry the food out of the painting?

In the next moment, the little boy, who seemed to have seen something, suddenly stiffened. His small, pale hands clutched Jian Bumian’s white robe. He whispered: “Ma, Mama, I don’t want a Papa anymore…”

Jian Bumian blinked, then opened his eyes again. Sure enough, in the darkness before him stood a tall, towering figure.

The man maintained the same posture as in the painting, eyes half-closed, standing in the darkness. He was like a perfect, icy ancient Roman statue. Even though he hadn’t shifted even half a step, he inspired a deep terror that seemed rooted in one’s very bones.

Yet Jian Bumian felt no terror. Only excitement. An appetite, long-starved, stirred restlessly.

He licked his lips. The lips, perfectly suited for kissing, bore a shallow, moist trace.

He wondered what the God of Darkness NPC would taste like.

Black Forest cake, maybe?

The man abruptly opened his eyes. The narrow shape of his eyes revealed golden pupils. He lowered his gaze to see Jian Bumian, who stood over a head shorter than him.

A magnetic, steady voice, like a fine, expensive cello, resonated slowly: “You are…”

Jian Bumian couldn’t be bothered to introduce himself, let alone drag things out like in the previous instance.

He stood obediently in place, tilted his head up, and asked with perfect politeness: “Sir, may I eat you?”

His voice was still very soft, without any temper. It would be a very suitable voice for sweet talk or singing. Pity he only wanted to use it to ask for food.

The man, upon hearing Jian Bumian’s request, furrowed his brows slightly.

Jian Bumian: “……”

If this NPC refused, he could only resort to force.

Although it did seem very immoral; after all, just moments ago, he and this NPC were playing “happy family.”

And the next second, he wanted to eat him.

The man’s golden eyes flickered. He said coldly: “You want to eat me?”

Jian Bumian nodded. His beautiful face showed no hesitation whatsoever.

The man was silent for a moment, then slowly approached Jian Bumian. His military boots stepped on the carpet with the silence of some great feline beast, intensely dangerous.

“It’s not entirely out of the question.”

Jian Bumian’s eyes lit up, his lips curling with delight.

The man continued in a deep voice:

“But only a little bit.”

The man’s thin lips bit onto the black glove. The glove fell to the ground. Sharp teeth pierced the pale, slender fingertip, and a bright red stream of fresh blood flowed out.

He leaned down and, catching Jian Bumian off guard, lifted the other’s chin, smearing the blood onto his lips.

The texture of the young man’s lips was warm, soft, reminding one of some delicious jelly.

The red, vividly bright blood bloomed like a gorgeous flower bud on his lips.

Jian Bumian subconsciously extended the tip of his tongue and licked the blood away from his lips.

…NPC blood was unlike ordinary player blood. It contained immense power, giving Jian Bumian an unprecedented sense of comfort. Something deep within his soul seemed to be clamoring to surge forth.

His eyes widened, lashes fluttering. Before his vision was the face of this NPC, breathtakingly handsome, nearly pressed completely against his own.

…Not enough.

Too little, not enough to eat.

Jian Bumian wanted to eat much more.

Yet the man, with merciless finality, said coldly: “I can only let you eat that little bit.”

Jian Bumian: “????”

?????

An NPC can’t be that much of a scumbag!

“And a small compensation is required.”

Jian Bumian: “……”

Why didn’t you say that before eating?!

Forced transaction!

Even so, Jian Bumian suppressed his inner displeasure. After all, if one was a person eating food, they really should pay. You couldn’t just freeload. He said blandly: “What compensation? I have no money…”

The man released his grip on Jian Bumian’s chin and looked down, staring at the lips just stained with his own blood. His gaze was profound.

“In this world, put me back together.”

“…”

Jian Bumian didn’t catch the meaning of those words.

He was about to ask for clarification, but the man had already vanished into the darkness. The portrait, too, was now empty of any figure.

…This NPC was asking him to help put him back together?

It wasn’t a jigsaw puzzle; how was he supposed to “put together”?

Jian Bumian frowned and opened his livestream, wanting to hear the viewers’ opinions.

But the viewers hadn’t seen the scene of the man feeding him blood, nor had they heard the conversation between the man and him.

The livestream’s camera had frozen at the moment Jian Bumian identified the portrait as “the child’s father.”

Then, for the first time ever, the livestream had lagged!

All the viewers were beside themselves with frustration.

After several minutes, the picture reappeared in the livestream room.

The person in the portrait had disappeared.

—The viewers all noticed the faint red marks on Jian Bumian’s lips.

Jian Bumian’s fair, pointed chin even showed faint finger marks, clearly from being pinched by a man.

【Aaahhh, was the wife kissed?!】

【Tell me he was kissed, he was kissed, and he was kissed fiercely!】

【Wife’s lips are so tender, can’t withstand kissing, hiss hiss!】

【Aaah, the wife was pinched by the chin and had his mouth pecked /////】

Jian Bumian: “……”

Why was this batch of viewers so imaginative?

The only relationship he had with that NPC was purely food-related.

Jian Bumian obediently explained: “I wasn’t kissing anyone. This… I just accidentally bit my lip while talking, and it bled a little.”

Indeed, he didn’t look like the type who would casually kiss people.

Jian Bumian closed the livestream.

The little boy, who had been silent to the side this whole time, tugged on Jian Bumian’s robe: “Mama, let’s go back. I… I don’t want to see Papa anymore…”

“…”

Jian Bumian: “Why?”

The child’s tone was unguarded and utterly frank: “I feel my Papa isn’t a good person. I saw him bullying Mama.”

Jian Bumian: “……”

A child, upon seeing “blood,” would indeed easily associate it with bullying.

Jian Bumian patted the little boy’s golden hair: “I don’t like your dad either.”

A shady, forced-transaction merchant—who would like that?

Midnight, 12:00 AM.

Jian Bumian survived because his reasoning for identification was correct.

Now, only scattered pockets of players remained gathered in the church hall, most of them veterans.

They had analyzed the failed identification reasonings of many other players and guessed that identification reasoning likely needed to relate to the background of this instance.

Even when their reasoning was barely reasonable, what they identified weren’t Deities, but monsters.

Some players had been killed by the monsters; a small portion of others survived just barely.

They were covered in blood, suffering major and minor injuries, in a state of ragged misery.

At the center of the church dome, lines of scrolling text appeared.

What appeared were the names of the surviving players and the “things” they had identified.

Either sources of Black Death contagion, or all sorts of bizarre monsters.

As Jian Bumian was coming down the spiral staircase, the scrolling text showed his name.

【Player Jian Bumian, Identification Reasoning Reasonable. Identification Result—God of Darkness.】

Jian Bumian actually identified a Deity?!

Some players’ expressions flashed with joy.

“We found a Deity! Doesn’t this mean we can proceed with the sacrificial ritual?! Once we complete the ritual, we can clear the instance!!”

New red text appeared on the dome.

【Note: Players must find the “correct Deity” before performing the sacrificial ritual.】

The massive, blood-red words pressed down on the players like insurmountable walls of heavy stone.

The correct Deity…?

The rules displayed at the very beginning of this instance… indeed emphasized it had to be the “correct Deity.”

This proved that more than one Deity existed in this instance.

And the players needed to distinguish which one was the correct one.

But… only two days were left, and they still had to use one of them to perform the ritual. That meant they had to find all the Deities by the end of tomorrow, and then decide which was correct.

There was a great deal to do.

And it would consume a great many lives…

All the players bore grim expressions.

Jian Bumian sat on the windowsill, letting the sunlight wash over him. His whole body baked warm. A gentle breeze lifted his robe, revealing the young man’s fair, slender ankle. The golden bells on his anklet chimed crisply in the wind.

Jian Bumian’s deductions aligned with what the players were thinking.

This instance contained more than one Deity.

He raised his hand and idly ruffled the head of the little boy next to him. The child’s hair was very soft, like petting a golden-shaded kitten.

The little boy’s attention was focused on the players in the church.

Even under the intense sunlight, the players were still shrouded in a heavy, overcast aura of death.

He scooted closer to Jian Bumian, pressing tightly against him, and muttered softly, timidly: “Mama, I’m scared…”

He stealthily reached for his mother’s hand, wanting to hold hands.

Unfortunately, Jian Bumian didn’t allow it, merely casting his gaze onto the child.

Have to admit, this NPC was very good-looking. Long, thick lashes, overly large blue eyes, soft golden hair, milky-white skin, and delicate, young features.

Like a little angel from Western paintings: golden hair and blue eyes, tiny wings, hovering around a woman blowing a horn.

Angel…?

Jian Bumian narrowed his eyes.

…Since the God of Darkness existed in this instance, could the opposite of the God of Darkness exist? The God of Light?

As for who the God of Light might be, an answer quietly surfaced in Jian Bumian’s heart.

It was truly very easy to guess.

Jian Bumian was just contemplating this when a sudden scream erupted among the players.

“The Divine Statue in the hall is gone!!”