Editor: Kitty
Thank you, Kiya for the Ko-Fis—Bonus chapter (3/3)
Luo Jian was born in a small county. His family was relatively poor at that time, but his parents had some social connections. They had enough that they had no problems putting three meals on the table. However, Luo Jian could vaguely recall that he was ill when he was a child. He had been very sick. He could remember seeing his parents crying. Later, he was sent to live with his grandmother in the countryside to recuperate and stayed there for a period of time.
But those memories were too unclear. He only remembered that his grandmother lived in a yellow mud-brick house, and there was an osmanthus tree by the door of the house. During its blooming season, the flowers were very fragrant. There were also large fields and mountains in the distance.
Luo Jian remembered that his grandma made sweet osmanthus cake, and the sweet and greasy taste seemed to remain in his memories. He remembered that his grandma had once taught Luo Jian how to make those cakes, but now, Luo Jian had forgotten everything. After his grandma’s death, such craft seemed to become a lost art.
Ah, that’s right. Luo Jian still remembered someone whom he seemed to have known from the small village in the countryside. It was a man, but he couldn’t remember who he was. His memories seemed to be disjointed: sometimes the memory was present, sometimes the memory was gone. But that was clearly the most memorable part of his childhood.
Luo Jian’s hometown was not far from where he used to work. Travelling there by bus would take just a little over two hours. After leaving home, Luo Jian had thought of going back many times, but he was deeply afraid of something and became hesitant. But the more Luo Jian hesitated, the longer he dragged out returning, and the less courage he had to return home. As a result, he ended up dragging on many years before returning.
“I’m so f*cking unfilial,” Luo Jian said to himself. Although he had been sending money to his mother’s account on time every month since he started earning money, he had not been home for so many years, and he did not know how to face his parents when they met. Luo Jian was afraid. Even if he was already on the vehicle to return home, he did not feel at ease.
“Oh, right. I have to pay a visit to Ah Lan’s parents.” Luo Jian thought of the recent happenings and also thought of Feng YuLan, who was currently missing. Luo Jian frowned, worried. He did not know how Feng YuLan was doing.
—-
While Luo Jian was taking the bus to return home, Feng YuLan’s situation was not optimistic.
Feng YuLan roughly knew that he was in a basement without windows, and there was only one door here. The basement was full of medical equipment. He lied on a sickbed, covered with a thick quilt and with an oxygen tube inserted in his nostrils and mouth. There was a hanging bracket by his left side with several bags of bright red IV drips. The IV needle was in his arm, and strange fluids were being pumped into his body. All this made Feng YuLan feel strange and queer.
On his right was a cardiometer, which showed his heart rate, and beyond this cardiometer, Feng YuLan could clearly see an operating table. It seemed that someone had just finished using the operation table, and there were still some blood stains on the ground that had yet to be cleaned.
There was a strange smell in the air; it was the bizarre combination of disinfectant and blood.
Feng YuLan wanted to move, but when he raised his arm a little, he felt a searing pain shoot through part of his core and almost fainted. Therefore Feng YuLan had to settle down a little bit and lie on the bed motionlessly. He could only open his black eyes wide to try to observe the surrounding environment.
I should have not died, Feng YuLan thought, but where is this?
His last memory was a little fuzzy. He seemed to remember that he was talking to Luo Jian, but he could not remember what he said for a while. In a trance, Feng YuLan felt that he had a dream. In the dream, there had been someone talking to him all the time. He said, “Endure for a little longer and survive.”
This sentence seemed to have been repeated many times by that person, and it almost became his belief.
So Feng YuLan survived. He was able to lie here, open his eyes again, and breathe air.
Feng YuLan daydreamed for a while. Suddenly, he heard the basement’s door being pushed open with a long creak. Feng YuLan closed his eyes in a hurry, but the cardiometer beside him honestly reflected the change in his heart rate.
However, Feng YuLan did not intend to open his eyes and adamantly closed his eyes. He heard footsteps, and someone approached him slowly. After a while, Feng YuLan clearly felt a hand touch him and rest on his forehead.
“Still have a slight fever,” someone said. The voice was very familiar. Feng YuLan tried to recall who the voice belonged to, but he could not remember.
“Are you awake?” The voice continued talking.
Feng YuLan did not respond to him and kept his mouth closed.
The other person seemed to be laughing. The voice sounded little elated but also carried a sense of fatigue that could not be hidden. “You’d better sleep. Your operation has just ended, and your body is still very weak.”
Feng YuLan finally could not help it. He opened his eyes to see what the man looked like, but as soon as he opened them, the other side moved his hand from Feng YuLan’s forehead to his eyes, covering Feng YuLan’s vision.
Feng YuLan asked him, “Who are you?”
“……I am Duan Li.”
“Duan Li…?” Feng YuLan’s memory was so muddled that he didn’t remember who Duan Li was. He frowned and continued to ask, “Did you operate on me?”
“No, I have a friend who is a doctor.”
“Am I ill?”
“Yes, you are very ill.”
“Then when can I get better?”
“Soon.”
“All right.” Feng YuLan felt a little helpless and said, “Can’t I see you?”
It seemed that the other party hesitated for a while. After a long time, he moved his hand away from Feng YuLan’s eyes. Feng YuLan could see the other party’s face when he turned his head a little. With one glance, Feng YuLan’s eyebrows tightly scrunched, and he said, “It’s…… It’s you? ”
Actually, Feng YuLan’s memories were pretty chaotic. At present, this person looked very familiar, and it was a kind of familiarity that he commonly associated with hatred. But for a while, Feng YuLan could not figure out who the other person was.
Duan Li thought that Feng YuLan was disgusted with him. He turned his head quickly and did not look at Feng YuLan directly. His cold voice did not give away his emotions. In such a tone, he said, “You should sleep. You cannot eat when your internal organs are damaged, and you can only have fluids. I’ll come to see you later, so don’t worry.”
After he finished what he was saying, Duan Li wanted to leave, but Feng YuLan suddenly reached out and grabbed Duan Li’s wrist. Duan Li was a little stunned and turned to look at Feng YuLan. Feng YuLan frowned tightly and stared at Duan Li. His fingers dug deeply into Duan Li’s flesh, and it seemed that Feng YuLan was using all his energy to do it.
“It’s you…!” Even though his memories were still quite jumbled, Feng YuLan seemed to realize something. He gave Duan Li a deadly glare as he gnashed his teeth in anger and spit out each word. Duan Li was silent for a while. He slowly broke away from Feng YuLan’s hand. Feng YuLan did not have much strength left and was not able to catch him again, so he could only glare at Duan Li maliciously.
“It’s me,” Duan Li suddenly laughed, moving closer to Feng YuLan and reaching out to touch Feng YuLan’s hollowed cheek. Poor Ah Lan was injured and sick. He was so emaciated that he did not have much meat in his little face.
Duan Li did not know if Feng YuLan was upset. Suddenly, he lowered his head and kissed Feng YuLan’s eyelids. Feng YuLan could not help but close his eyes, and he felt that his eyelids were wet and itchy. He was upset and groaned. Seeing this, Duan Li did not intend to give up. He kissed all over his face and moved his lips to the side of Ah Lan’s mouth. At this action, Ah Lan’s anger rose from the depths of his heart, and his malicious intent grew as his courage spiked. He bit Duan Li’s lips fiercely, and a bloody taste filled Ah Lan’s mouth.
Duan Li merely laughed and caressed Ah Lan’s neck with his fingers. Ah Lan suddenly felt shocked since his body under the quilt did not seem to be dressed. His clothes might have been stripped off during the operation. All of a sudden, Ah Lan felt emboldened, so he raised the only hand that could move and pushed Duan Li hard. He thought Duan Li would not give up, but he unexpectedly released Ah Lan immediately.
“Did I crush you? Is it uncomfortable?” Duan Li was very concerned. His actions scared Ah Lan so much that cold sweat was rolling off his body. The sheets under his body were soaked by his sweat.
“You…… You…… You stay away from me!” Ah Lan’s heart felt a little ticklish, and it was a pity that he could move for the time being. Otherwise, he would definitely jump three meters away and try to be as far away from Duan Li as possible.
“Don’t be afraid. You need to sleep,” Duan Li comforted him and tucked him in.
Did this guy get hit by a car? Or was his head filled with water? There was definitely something wrong with him! Inwardly, Ah Lan was complaining incessantly. Although his memories were a little muddled when he woke up in the beginning, he now began to remember what had happened. This fool Duan Li was a demon that did not even bat an eye while killing people. When the hell did his personality change? There must be something wrong. It must be a conspiracy!
Ah Lan, Ah Lan! Feng YuLan said to himself inwardly, You must not be cheated by the good looks that this fool has! You must find a way to escape from the devil’s claws and run towards a better tomorrow!
Duan Li looked at Feng YuLan’s face. As he looked at it, he felt that it was somewhat funny. He lowered his head and kissed Feng YuLan’s nose. He grabbed his hand and put it under the quilt. “Go to sleep,” he said.
Ah Lan was really tired. He was too weak, and his eyelids became heavy. Muddleheaded, he could only close his eyes. Within two minutes, his breathing became stable. By his side, Duan Li watched him for a long time. He suddenly took out a thick book from some unknown place. It was Ah Lan’s grimoire. Duan Li looked at it and placed the book by Feng YuLan’s bedside.
After that, Duan Li sighed. From his pocket, he took out a piece of paper, which was printed with purple patterns. The paper caused worry to rise up from the depths of his heart, because on it, the contents were as follows:
[Dear Mr. Duan Li:]
[Your wit has freed you from the fate of a NPC. Congratulations on becoming a player again. You will join the team of Luo Jian and co. and continue to wander the magical secret chambers. Despite this, I cannot agree with your opportunistic behaviour, so the following punishment will be imposed upon you—]
[In the next secret chamber, you and your team will be forced to enter the ‘Chaos Chamber Battlefield’ together with other teams. However, there is an insufficient number of players in your team, so the secret chamber will automatically equip your team with a strong partner.]
[We will not allow any player to violate the rules, regardless of the outcome.]
“This is a f*cking threatening letter.” Duan Li shredded the paper and came to Ah Lan’s side again, staring at him in a daze.