Chapter 60
After a long moment, Xing Nuo finally recovered from his shock.
He stood up, walked around the large bag, and stared at it, his mouth agape.
He looked up at Wen Xingxue, his ugly little face filled with wonder.
“Big Brother, what’s this? You buy?”
Wen Xingxue nodded, pulling down his black mask, revealing his pale face, a faint smile playing on his lips.
“Bought it for you.”
Xing Nuo stared at him, his button eyes wide, his head tilted in confusion.
“Why?”
Buy so many expensive things for Zaizai.
Xing Nuo was just an ugly little clown doll that everyone disliked.
He remembered something Shen Wen had said and scratched his cheek.
“Daddy said…no one nice to you for no reason…only family.”
Like Daddy and Big Brother, who loved and spoiled him unconditionally.
He could accept their love without any burden.
But what about this Big Brother?
Xing Nuo, puzzled, asked the question.
Wen Xingxue, his eyes half-closed, seemed to be pondering the same question.
After a long moment, he chuckled and ruffled the clown doll’s messy hair.
“Strange. The moment I saw you, I felt like I should pick you up.”
A dirty little doll lying next to a trash can, somehow brave enough to wander around the central city alone.
He had looked so small and lonely. Wen Xingxue had stopped, and, as if compelled by some unknown force, had brought the ugly doll home.
He thought about it, but he couldn’t explain his strange attachment to the doll.
“No reason. Don’t think too much. Let’s see if these clothes fit.”
He took out a warm yellow sunflower-print jacket from the bag and handed it to Xing Nuo.
“Try it on.”
Xing Nuo hugged the little jacket, touching the embroidered sunflower, and felt a sudden pang of sadness.
His daddy and brother knew Zaizai loved sunflowers.
This strange Big Brother, despite calling him ugly, had still considered his preferences when buying these clothes.
Xing Nuo sniffled and, going behind the large bag, struggled to put on the jacket.
Wen Xingxue sat cross-legged on the carpet, emptying the bag and sorting the items.
He folded the clothes and jackets, put the hats together, and even though he hadn’t found any shoes that fit the doll, he had bought a few pairs anyway.
Whenever he found a nice outfit, he would call Xing Nuo.
“Come here, this one looks better than the last one.”
Xing Nuo, having just changed into another outfit, panted, exhausted.
He was like a little fashion model, constantly changing clothes and running around.
Finally, after trying on numerous outfits, he tripped on the carpet and fell face-down, his clothes scattered around him.
He simply rolled over, his little hands on his tummy, and lay there, motionless.
Wen Xingxue was still sorting through the dozens of bow ties he had bought.
He rested his chin on his hand, thinking about how to match them.
He looked up and saw the little doll lying on the carpet, looking lifeless.
He paused, then chuckled, walked over, and picked up the exhausted little doll.
“Tired?”
Xing Nuo, dangling in mid-air, continued to lie there, his eyes closed.
Wen Xingxue, amused by the little thing’s antics, poked his soft tummy.
“Alright, no more trying on clothes.”
Hearing this, Xing Nuo finally opened his eyes.
“Okay,” he replied.
Wen Xingxue chuckled, placed the dramatic little clown doll on the bed, and found a small, star-patterned blanket.
“Go to sleep if you’re tired. It’s late.”
Xing Nuo, exhausted, snuggled under the blanket and instantly fell asleep.
Wen Xingxue stood by the bed, looking down at the little clown doll. After a long moment, his smile faded.
He returned to the living room and continued folding the clothes he had bought for the doll.
The night was quiet, a silver moon hanging in the sky, similar to the previous night.
In Toy Town, brown bears and tigers patrolled the streets, circling the factory.
They stopped and questioned any suspicious-looking humans, especially those who resembled Wen Xingxue from behind.
The entire town was on high alert after Wen Xingxue’s intrusion into the factory last night.
The streetlights remained on all night, and teddy bears patrolled every corner.
Not only the toy animals were on high alert.
The players staying next to Wen Xingxue’s house also kept their lights on, watching his every move.
Although they still didn’t know what was in the factory, they were sure it held the key to the dungeon’s secret!
But the night was quiet and uneventful.
The light in Wen Xingxue’s house remained on all night, but despite using their abilities, the players couldn’t detect any movement.
The players sharing rooms to save money exchanged glances, puzzled.
“Is Wen Xingxue not going out tonight?”
“It’s almost dawn. He probably won’t.”
“Damn it, we waited all night for nothing!”
Wen Xingxue, having successfully avoided both the teddy bears and the human players, neatly arranged the clothes and hats in the basket.
He looked at the full basket and nodded in satisfaction.
Good. Now his little clown doll wouldn’t look so pathetic.
He put the basket in his spatial storage watch, lay down on the bed, and closed his eyes, having stayed up all night.
Despite the town’s heightened security, Wen Xingxue seemed completely relaxed for the past two days.
During the day, he would take the clown doll shopping, adding more cute clothes and accessories to the basket.
At night, he would dress the doll in the new outfits, even if Xing Nuo protested and refused to cooperate.
Whenever Xing Nuo played dead, Wen Xingxue would try to bribe him with other small toys.
Although Xing Nuo rarely took the bait, Wen Xingxue enjoyed the dress-up game.
Finally, Xing Nuo, waving his little round hands, patted Wen Xingxue’s face, trying to snap him out of it.
“I not fashion doll! Can’t wear so many clothes!”
Wen Xingxue hummed, unmoved.
He looked at a newly opened clothing store and stroked his chin thoughtfully.
“We still need some winter clothes. We don’t have any yet.”
Xing Nuo, his arms drooping, sighed and lay down on the sofa, like a small, salted fish devoid of dreams and hope.
In the end, he was still dragged out by Wen Xingxue.
Just as they left their small, fenced yard, before they could even close the gate, they heard a surprised yell from next door.
“You turned into a doll!”
Xing Nuo, startled, poked his head out of Wen Xingxue’s pocket, craning his neck to see.
Wen Xingxue, afraid he would fall out, poked him.
“Such a nosy little thing. Don’t fall out.”
Xing Nuo, his head tilted, not having heard clearly, continued to look.
The other players, who hadn’t gone to work yet, emerged from their houses.
“What’s wrong? What were you yelling about?”
“A doll? Did someone lose their doll? Can they still participate in the competition in two days?”
The player who had yelled pointed at the nightstand, his voice trembling.
“Yu Bin…he…he turned into a doll!”
The human who had been sleeping on the bed was gone, replaced by two plush dolls on the nightstand.
One was the doll Yu Bin had chosen before entering the town, named Xiaoguo.
The other was a doll that looked exactly like Yu Bin!
The players crowded around the nightstand, looking at the two dolls, a chill running down their spines.
He hadn’t even failed the dungeon yet. How could he have turned into a doll?!
And a lifeless one at that!
As they were discussing this, Xiaoguo, Yu Bin’s doll, suddenly spoke, its voice clear and bright:
“Yu Bin said he wants to stay here and be best friends with Xiaoguo forever!”
Xiaoguo smiled, its mouth stretching wide, its cute face now strangely terrifying.
The players’ hearts sank.
They clearly remembered that the dolls they had chosen before entering the town were inanimate objects!
But now, Yu Bin had become a lifeless doll, and his doll, Xiaoguo, had come to life!
They didn’t dare think about how all the living dolls in this town had come to be.
They took a couple of steps back and turned to Yu Bin’s roommate, wanting more details.
But the roommate wasn’t close to Yu Bin and could only recall a few insignificant details.
“…Yu Bin was quite introverted, and he loved buying clothes for his doll. He didn’t have many points, and he spent most of his earnings on the doll.”
The roommate’s eyes suddenly widened.
“I remember now! He was really attached to Xiaoguo. He even said he wished Xiaoguo could be like the teddy bears in Toy Town, with its own consciousness!”
The players gasped.
“So, the doll swapped places with him?!”
Not having witnessed the transformation themselves, they hadn’t thought it was anything to be afraid of.
But now, looking at the doll version of Yu Bin, its smile fixed and unnatural, they felt a surge of fear.
Becoming a lifeless doll seemed worse than death!
A player took a couple of steps back, looked at the plush toy in his pocket, and screamed.
“No! I don’t want this doll anymore! It’s too creepy!”
Another player, calmer, said sternly:
“You don’t want the doll? Then you’re giving up on the doll exhibition. You might as well just admit defeat now.”
And wouldn’t the consequence of failing be turning into a doll anyway?
