“Since you saw me and still undressed in front of me, you really have no shame and no sense of male virtue.”
Qing Li seized the initiative—so long as her skin was thick enough, the one who felt awkward wouldn’t be her.
Chu Ci’s tightly pressed lips curled into a teasing arc. His deep voice carried a subtle, inexplicable emotion as it lingered between his teeth: “I thought you wanted to see.”
Qing Li, whose thoughts had just been exposed: “……”
How was she supposed to argue that?
No—explain it!
Suddenly, Chu Ci’s body leaned closer, and the faint scent of disinfectant brushed past the tip of Qing Li’s nose. Startled, she quickly shrank back, only to fall straight onto the bed.
She stared at Chu Ci’s increasingly magnified handsome face, her fingers curling, clutching the bedsheet into a ball.
At the same time, she was calculating how to seize the moment and push Chu Ci down.
Letting herself be underneath? Impossible. One must strive to be “above others.”
At that moment, Chu Ci’s hand landed beside her ear. The man looked down from above, his slightly damp hair clinging softly, and those pitch-black eyes shimmered with a misty sheen.
Qing Li secretly swallowed her saliva and was just about to counterattack when…
Chu Ci picked up the black shirt that had fallen beside Qing Li and brushed past her forehead with lips that held a not-quite-smile.
Qing Li: “……”
“Since you don’t want to see, I’ll just put my clothes back on.”
The man put on his shirt, unhurriedly fastening each button one by one.
Qing Li, who had just been teased by male charm, secretly licked her little canine tooth.
Damn it, she really wanted to bite someone!
If she said she wanted to see, it would be the same as admitting she had deliberately hidden in the room to peep at Chu Ci.
If she said she didn’t want to see, then the duck at her mouth had gotten dressed and flown away.
“Dr. Chu is really good at undressing. I hope we’ll have the chance for some deep exchanges in the future—some proper sparring.” Qing Li snorted.
The car veered way too fast, but Chu Ci smiled faintly and said, “I’d be happy to accompany you.”
The two were perfectly in sync.
After Chu Ci finished dressing, Qing Li’s gaze fell on his neck. The surgical stitches on his neck were still densely sewn and hadn’t snapped even though his head had been taken off.
“Dr. Chu, what brand of surgical thread is that? It even restores itself?”
Qing Li’s eyes were full of curiosity. Upon closer inspection, she discovered that the surgical threads weren’t black, but dark red.
They were stitched into Chu Ci’s flesh—not to bind his limbs together, but rather, to prevent them from healing.
“These aren’t surgical threads.”
Chu Ci smiled faintly, tugging at the stitching at the corner of his mouth.
He lifted his wrist and, in front of Qing Li, calmly pulled off his own left hand.
The threads stitched at his wrist instantly came alive, stretching infinitely.
At the severed edge of his wrist, the cut was neat, but strangely, not a single drop of blood fell.
Chu Ci reattached his left hand, and the threads immediately pulled tight again, sealing up securely.
Qing Li’s brows furrowed slightly. From those stitches, she sensed an almost imperceptible trace of curse power.
As if to confirm her suspicion—
Chu Ci spoke calmly: “It’s a curse—one that will follow me for all eternity.”
His tone carried a hint of loneliness and melancholy.
Endless years.
Everything connected to him had long since vanished, and only this curse remained, keeping him undying and indestructible.
Qing Li, tactful as she was, didn’t ask any further. Everyone had their secrets, and Chu Ci—without a doubt—carried secrets far beyond ordinary comprehension.
Even if she asked, Chu Ci wouldn’t tell her so easily.
Night fell.
Darkness spread across the world, and with it came fear.
Suddenly, a shrill roar shattered the silence, piercing straight through the sky, making the hotel’s glass windows rattle and clang.
A chill surged through Qing Li, startling her. She pulled open the curtains and saw that in the pitch-black night sky, in the western direction, a monstrous cloud of ghostly aura was gathering.
An ominous sign.
A ghost of this level… Even she couldn’t help but have her pupils contract—encountering it meant one had to run without hesitation.
“These things always get unruly at night.”
Chu Ci stood beside Qing Li, his pale and cold face reflected in the transparent glass window.
Down on the street below the hotel, ghostly shadows flickered.
They seemed to have received a call suppressed by a higher level, and were numbly heading in the direction of the wailing sound.
“Dr. Chu, what exactly is happening to this world?” Qing Li asked with a serious expression.
Chu Ci didn’t answer. He raised his hand and placed his palm over Qing Li’s eyes, then slowly pulled it away.
When she opened her eyes again, the world before her had completely changed.
In the night sky, ten vast streams of red ghostly aura stretched across the heavens, each settled in a different direction.
Within each ghostly aura lurked an enormous ghostly shadow, roaring and howling madly.
Even from a great distance, merely looking at them from afar, a fine layer of cold sweat formed on Qing Li’s forehead.
A glimpse of the true face of the Horror World was slowly being unveiled before her.
“There are ten forbidden grounds in this world. Only when you possess the ability to freely traverse them will you be qualified to learn the truth of this world,” Chu Ci said lightly.
Toward this young girl who had piqued his interest, he unexpectedly had the patience to wait for her to grow.
He believed that this girl would not disappoint him.
“Dr. Chu, have you considered giving me a shortcut?” Qing Li asked with a bright, smiling expression.
She faintly sensed that Chu Ci’s identity was definitely connected to the forbidden grounds.
The Horror World was indeed even more dangerous than she had imagined.
Chu Ci chuckled. “You could also choose to stay by my side—I’ll protect you.”
But both he and Qing Li understood clearly: this was not what Qing Li wanted.
Qing Li was born rebellious.
Forbidden grounds, was it? Sooner or later, she was going to break into them all—and clean out every valuable thing inside.
The window opened, and the cold wind from outside poured in. Qing Li’s hair flew wildly, and on that youthful face bloomed a bold and unrestrained smile.
Chu Ci gazed at her smile. For a brief moment, an emotion flickered through his eyes—indescribable, and beyond understanding.
…
5 a.m.
The task completion notification sounded.
“Ding. Task completed. Congratulations to the surviving players for clearing this mission.”
Qing Li was lying on the bed, sound asleep, when the space around her began to distort gradually.
Chu Ci looked on calmly and said softly, “See you next time, little girl.”
A flash of white light, and Qing Li, holding her blanket, disappeared…
In the lobby of the player rest area, a large crowd had gathered, waiting anxiously.
The moment Qing Li appeared with her blanket, a group of people surged forward in excitement.
“Master! Master is finally back!”
“Wuwuwu, as expected of the Master. In such a terrifying place like the Horror World, she actually managed to sleep so soundly.”
“I can’t believe I once failed to recognize the Master for who she truly is. I deserve to die!”
“Why hasn’t the Master woken up yet? Should we wake her?”
“Are you fucking insane? The Master’s sleeping so soundly, and you dare disturb her rest? That’s simply unforgivable.”
“Shh, you’re disturbing the Master’s sleep.”
Someone quietly reminded them, and the surroundings immediately fell silent.
Everyone carefully maintained the silence, but their eyes were filled with burning excitement, reverence, and admiration as they looked at Qing Li.
As for Wang Tingting, who had also returned—
not a single person paid her any attention.