Chapter 25: Old Soldier Toys

Tao Fangyi was getting ready for work.

Originally, after obtaining a physical body, he had planned to rest for over a month. But now he had to fight Wang every day. Wang always loved catching him off guard, goading Tao Fangyi into striking hard.

By the end of each bout, Wang was covered in injuries, lying on the ground laughing at who knows what. After the laughter subsided, he would insist on hugging and clinging to Tao Fangyi.

When they weren’t fighting, Wang lingered at Tao Fangyi’s side, egging him on to start another brawl.

The guy had nothing in his head but fighting. Tao Fangyi thought he should find something else to do.

And after learning that Tao Fangyi had gone to the Team Leader to get the files on a new Mission Target, Wang had gotten angry. He squatted in the corner, deciding to give Tao Fangyi the silent treatment.

“I won’t abandon you. I’ve already applied for you to work with me,” Tao Fangyi said.

A threatening, low growl rumbled from Wang’s throat.

“This new Mission Target is quite interesting. In his past life, he was a knife that gained sentience.” Tao Fangyi switched back to his doll body. He lifted the files inside the briefcase high, showing them to Wang. “Same type as me.”

The moment the document was handed over, Wang reacted as if seeing some grave threat, snarling at the stack of papers.

“This kid’s family is very well-off. They live in a Villa District and have help at home.” Tao Fangyi tried to soothe Wang. “The adults in his house definitely won’t smack their lips when they eat.”

“I hate kids,” Wang finally spoke, grinding his sharp fangs.

Tao Fangyi felt that Wang didn’t really hate Li Yao and Ren Xinxin that much. But his feelings didn’t count for much, so he asked Wang directly if he disliked them.

“It’s not dislike, and it’s not like either. They’re just… troublesome.” Wang didn’t like heavy things, like Li Yao’s past experiences.

Wang found them annoying.

It’s not like he caused those experiences. He hadn’t even been indirectly involved. Yet he still felt that weight pressing down on him.

As far as he was concerned, he was the one being affected by them.

“Didn’t your Team Leader say your future missions would all be troublesome? What if this kid’s parents are about to get divorced? Or maybe he isn’t their biological child at all, and his real parents want him back.”

Wang racked his brain, then added: “Or maybe he’s actually the Nanny’s kid, and she pulled a classic bait-and-switch.”

Tao Fangyi: “Huh? Isn’t that a bit too dramatic?”

Wang buried his head in the crook of his arm, refusing to communicate.

“If you’re not willing to go on the mission with me, I can leave you at home,” Tao Fangyi conceded a step.

“Don’t even think about it!” Wang gnashed his teeth.

“So you’ll come with me?” Tao Fangyi asked.

Wang nodded furiously.

“So do you want to follow me in your True Form, or as a doll?” Tao Fangyi’s tone turned cheerful. “This time, my appearance is an Orange Tyrannosaurus Rex!”

Wang: …

Wang: “Say that again? What are you?”

“Tyrannosaurus Rex!”

The Mission Target this time was a six-year-old boy who loved collecting all kinds of dinosaurs and cars.

Wang: “…Pfft hahahaha!”

Tao Fangyi: ?

Tao Fangyi had no idea what had tickled Wang’s funny bone, but once Wang started laughing, he couldn’t stop.

Luckily, Wang no longer resisted the mission. He followed Tao Fangyi to the Tech Department that handled body transfers, watching as Tao Fangyi’s appearance shifted into that of an orange-red Tyrannosaurus Rex.

“Can you touch your own feet?” Wang looked at his comically short forelimbs.

Tao Fangyi: “…” Oh. So that’s what he’d been pondering this whole time.

Tao Fangyi patted his now tiny little arms, feeling somewhat self-conscious.

Wang reached out with two fingers, pinching the T-Rex’s front claw and rubbing it vigorously.

“You can’t expose me this time,” Tao Fangyi reminded Wang.

“I knooow~” As Wang continued kneading Tao Fangyi’s claw, he pondered how a T-Rex was supposed to scare a child.

He kneaded for so long that the Warden responsible for altering appearances waited for a while. Seeing that Wang had no intention of letting go, the Warden simply snatched the T-Rex right out of Wang’s arms.

After that, Tao Fangyi was packaged into a box, becoming a free gift included with an online purchase for the new household.

The child in this new family was six—an age where kids already grasp the concept of ghosts. Even without Tao Fangyi deliberately trying to frighten him, the boy would be scared half to death by his own imagination.

Wang shrank himself down, traveling with Tao Fangyi during the delivery, planning to grow back to size once they reached the new home.

Tao Fangyi hadn’t lied. The family’s circumstances were indeed excellent.

While the little boy unpacked the T-Rex, Wang took a tour from top to bottom.

“Hey, why is their Backyard pool raising koi carps?”

“Their rooftop is actually growing vegetables. A whole trellis is covered in gourds. Why gourds of all things?” Wang kept chattering in Tao Fangyi’s ear. “The rich really do have too much time on their hands.”

The little boy brought Tao Fangyi to his Toy Room. A massive loop of Train Tracks covered the floor. The kid started the train, then grabbed Tao Fangyi, zooming around while roaring as he intercepted the locomotive.

Wang crouched down to scrutinize the child. “But he’s not as good-looking as those two kids, Li Yao and Ren Xinxin.”

Tao Fangyi sent him a thought: 【…You’re playing favorites now?】

“I mean it. His eyes are like tiny slits.” Wang felt a pang of worry. “What am I gonna do?”

【What do you mean, what are you gonna do?】 Tao Fangyi assumed Wang had noticed something problematic about the child.

“I’m afraid I won’t be able to stand this kid,” Wang confessed earnestly. “Even though they both screech, there’s a difference in how it feels coming from a pretty child versus an ugly one.”

Tao Fangyi: 【He’s not ugly.】

“He looks like a catfish that had its head squeezed flat,” Wang judged.

【That’s going way too far!】 Tao Fangyi condemned Wang. How could he give a child a nickname like that?

“He’ll face even harsher treatment once he hits puberty and starts catching feelings,” Wang said, finding a spot to sit down.

“You said he was a knife. So what crime did he commit?” Bored, Wang wanted to chat, but Tao Fangyi’s attention was entirely on the new child.

【Murder.】 Tao Fangyi said.

“He’s a knife. His master would be the one killing. What does that have to do with him?”

【But he became infected by the urge to kill.】

The Mission Target this time was indeed very similar to Tao Fangyi. He was a Bronze Knife from several thousand years ago, one that had cleaved through the bodies of countless enemies.

And gradually, it developed an Artifact Spirit.

It was an Artifact Spirit condensed from Fear and the Resentment of the dead, innately bloodthirsty and battle-hungry.

【At first, the wielder controlled the knife. But later, the knife started controlling the wielder,】 Tao Fangyi explained. 【Whoever held this knife had their nature corrupted. The longer they held it, the more violent they became. It would stir up the darkest, most shameful Desires lurking at the bottom of a person’s heart.】

Everyone who picked up the knife turned cruel and brutal. These wielders almost always ended up killed, and the one who killed them would pick up the knife in turn.

【The knife was imprisoned for over a thousand years, tortured for over a thousand years. It was finally executed over fifteen hundred years ago.】 No one knew how many reincarnations this was, but due to its unique nature, The Nineteenth Level sent Reservists to observe its condition after every rebirth.

“Such a powerful criminal, then,” Wang cupped his own face, looking at the child. “Does its True Form still exist?”

【No, it was destroyed.】 The Special Administration wouldn’t have kept something so dangerous.

What a pity.

Wang wanted to pick up that knife and test what his own greatest Desire was.

“Has this child been influenced by his past life?” Wang asked again.

【No. It’s been over fifteen hundred years. Who knows how many times he’s been reborn? Starting from several lives ago, no influence has been observed.】 Tao Fangyi explained.

“Why didn’t it just hide its bloodlust? Disguise itself?” Wang was puzzled. “It’s a knife. It could have gone after bad people.”

【At first, it did exactly that. But the craving for slaughter grows. Bad people aren’t always around. And what defines a ‘bad person’ anyway?】

【Murder and arson definitely count, but those people are ultimately few. Once you run out of that kind of ‘prey,’ do you lower the bar? What if someone is simply detestable—prone to petty theft, loathed by everyone around them? Would killing that person count as solving a problem for others?】

【Step by step, it relaxed its definition of ‘criminal,’ until the whole thing collapsed.】

【After all, those manipulated were individuals who already harbored evil thoughts. It merely amplified them. Since the evil was already there, the act of killing was the wielder’s choice. Therefore, it had nothing to do with the knife.】

Wang fell silent.

Sinking step by step, huh?

Would there come a day when he could no longer control himself? When he’d be thrown into The Nineteenth Level to suffer unimaginable torment? By then, Tao Fangyi would already be a Warden.

How would Tao Fangyi look at him?

Tao Fangyi could sense that Wang was somewhat unhappy, but he didn’t understand why.

He tried talking to Wang, but after a few mutters, Wang was still a bit listless, unable to muster any energy.

【Do you want a Bronze Knife?】 Tao Fangyi assumed Wang wanted a weapon.

“No.” Wang just felt a little upset.

If his spirit completely collapsed, he wasn’t worried about his own parents coming personally to arrest or deal with him.

His parents had long known exactly what kind of scumbag he was.

But he still wanted to maintain a relatively positive image in front of Tao Fangyi.

He couldn’t explain why.

Wang just didn’t want Tao Fangyi to ever look at him with those cold, indifferent eyes.

Tao Fangyi had never experienced a truly intimate relationship. The speed at which he could detach himself from any emotional bond must be terrifyingly fast.

Tch.

So annoying.

Wang didn’t say another word for the rest of the evening.

The Nanny tidied Tao Fangyi away into the Toy Box.

This room had Surveillance Cameras. Tao Fangyi used a Spell to block them, cautiously crawling out from the bottom of the Toy Box. He scrabbled at the edge with his stubby little arms, gently trying to soothe Wang. “Don’t be sad. How about we sneak out and play tonight?”

“I have a premonition that this mission will go particularly smoothly. No more accidents this time,” Tao Fangyi said.

“Rookie, it’s not good to let your guard down too much,” spoke a Robot beside them. “In every one of our missions, there’s always a chance someone won’t come back.”

Tao Fangyi: …

Wang: …

They both turned to look at the Robot that had climbed out of the Toy Box.

Wait.

Who the heck was this?