Xu He was engulfed in uncontrollable rage, his entire body radiating a terrifying and menacing aura.
If it weren't for the fact that it was Ruan Qing's body, that kick would have undoubtedly landed on 'Ruan Qing.'
The shattered dining table was a testament to the sheer force behind Xu He's strike. Had that kick landed on a person, it would have been instantly fatal.
But 'Ruan Qing' showed no trace of panic. He glanced at the spoon, now completely buried under the debris of the shattered table, then lazily raised his eyes to meet Xu He's gaze. His voice, dripping with disdain, carried a hint of mockery.
"How crude."
Xu He's eyes darkened completely, swirling with a storm of dangerous intensity.
He reached out to grab 'Ruan Qing,' but to his surprise, his hand closed on empty air.
Xu He turned his head to see the figure now standing a short distance away, his expression beyond grim.
It wasn't just Xu He; the others in the room shared the same look of dread, including Ren Yanqing. Their faces were all equally ashen.
When a malevolent ghost possessed a living person, it would disrupt the person's fate. A human body simply could not withstand the yin energy of a ghost.
Nor could it endure the unrestrained use of a ghost's power.
Take, for instance, the act of teleportation. A ghost could teleport or pass through walls at will, but a human could not. For a human, teleportation meant breaking the limits of physics.
And the human body was far too fragile to withstand such strain. At best, it would cause irreversible damage; at worst, it could lead to immediate death.
But that wasn't the most severe part. The most severe part was the ghost possessing the young man.
The others might not know who it was, but Ren Yanqing did.
It was undoubtedly Ren Qing, the part of himself he had severed.
Not long after obtaining that terrifying power in the graveyard, Ren Yanqing had discovered that the power was highly corrosive. It didn't just erode the body; it also consumed the soul, gradually turning the person into a part of the power's original owner.
That was why he had severed the part of his soul that had been corrupted.
If even he couldn't withstand the corrosion, how could the delicate young man possibly endure it?
A hint of uncontrollable panic flashed in Ren Yanqing's eyes. He took two steps forward and asked in a deep voice, "What do you want?"
"What do I want?" 'Ruan Qing' tilted his head slightly, his gaze settling on Ren Yanqing. In the next moment, the corners of his eyes curved, and he flashed a bright, almost radiant smile. "Of course..."
"I want you all to die."
After ‘Ruan Qing’ finished speaking, the room fell into complete silence. The five individuals present were all staring intently at ‘Ruan Qing.’
Ren Yanqing was momentarily stunned, then suddenly realized something.
The boy had been sealed in the basement. Who had released him? And how had he obtained the other body that Ren Yanqing had separated from himself?
That body had been his own contingency plan, a backup with no power whatsoever. So how had the boy managed to survive in this ghost-infested neighborhood until the fourth day?
There was no denying that the boy possessed a certain allure, a kind of magic that made people fall helplessly in love with him. But being loved by a vengeful ghost was no blessing—these ghosts only sought to drag their beloved into hell, ensuring eternal companionship.
Even they were no exception.
For a fragile boy to survive until the fourth day was nearly impossible—unless someone was helping him.
And that someone, without a doubt, was Ren Qing.
Ren Qing was a part of him. If Ren Qing had fallen in love with the boy, then…
Ren Yanqing’s gaze deepened as he stared at ‘Ruan Qing.’ This time, he acted without hesitation. If his suspicions were correct, Ren Qing would never allow the boy’s soul to be corrupted.
As for the human body, if it was damaged, they could simply seize another one for the boy.
Seeing Ren Yanqing take action, the others followed suit.
‘Ruan Qing’ showed no signs of panic. Under the influence of the yin energy from both himself and the boy’s possession, the body was no longer as fragile as before. He directly confronted the five of them.
The six of them immediately clashed, each fighting with lethal intent, holding nothing back.
But ‘Ruan Qing’ had underestimated the strength of the five and overestimated the body’s endurance.
After using less than a third of his power, excruciating pain shot through his brain and heart. Blood seeped from the corners of his mouth, and soon, his nose and eyes began to bleed as well, creating a horrifying sight.
The body could not withstand his power.
‘Ruan Qing’s’ face, now drained of all color except for the streaks of blood, wiped the blood from his lips and vanished from the room.
The five of them froze for a moment at the sight of ‘Ruan Qing’ bleeding, but quickly regained their composure and chased after him.
The room, which had been crowded just moments ago, was now eerily quiet and empty, save for a single corpse lying on the floor.
The body of Lan Xu had a gaping hole in its chest, and a pool of blood had spread beneath him, staining the floor a deep red. It was a gruesome sight.
It’s unclear how much time had passed, but a bizarre scene unfolded. The bloodstains on the ground seemed to come to life, eerily flowing backward and returning to Lan Xu’s body.
The gaping hole in his chest also began to heal, and miraculously, he started breathing again.
After his wounds had completely healed, Lan Xu opened his eyes. He slowly stood up, his face expressionless as he twisted his wrist.
It was as if his death had been nothing more than an illusion.
Once he finished stretching his wrist, Lan Xu strode over to the dining table. He moved aside the shattered fragments of the table and found the spoon that had been buried underneath.
The spoon wasn’t bent out of shape, but since the table had been completely destroyed, a layer of dust had settled on the spoon’s surface, making the reflection even blurrier.
However, no matter how blurry it was, it didn’t stop Lan Xu from seeing that stunning figure—the one that shouldn’t have been reflected in the first place.
The corners of Lan Xu’s lips curled up slightly, and a hint of indescribable pleasure flickered in his eyes.
***
After Ruan Qing switched bodies with 'Ruan Qing,' he was plunged into darkness. He couldn’t see anything, and even the sounds around him became almost inaudible.
He immediately realized that the reflective spoon must have been covered.
After returning to the mirror, Ruan Qing existed in the space reflected by the mirror, and all he could see was the reflection of the real world.
This meant that if the spoon was covered, his world would be plunged into complete darkness, and even sound would fade away.
Even if he could barely hear something, it was impossible to make out what it was.
Ruan Qing strained to listen for a while but eventually gave up, standing in the darkness and waiting for the final outcome.
He believed it would be the result he desired.
After what felt like an eternity, the darkness was finally broken, and the reflection of reality began to reappear.
Ruan Qing immediately looked out through the reflection, only to meet a strikingly handsome face the next second.
Ruan Qing’s expression froze. His eyes widened, his pupils contracted, and he stared in shock at the familiar face before him. He even took a few uneasy steps back.
Because it was… the face of Lan Xu, who was supposed to be dead.
Lan Xu let out a soft chuckle as he watched Ruan Qing retreat in fear. His low, husky voice carried a magnetic quality as he said, “What are you afraid of? I’m not dead.”
“That was just a trick of the eye.”
Ruan Qing didn’t believe Lan Xu just because of his words. He remained vigilant, watching him closely.
The strength of those fierce ghosts was not weak. Deceiving them would absolutely not be an easy task.
Lan Xu didn’t mind Ruan Qing’s wariness. He looked at Ruan Qing and spoke with a light laugh, his tone carrying a hint of implication. “You should know, right?”
“That person… isn’t you.”
Lan Xu didn’t specify who he was referring to, but anyone could guess who he meant.
Ruan Qing naturally knew who Lan Xu was talking about. His eyelashes trembled slightly, betraying his unease, and he pressed his lips together, remaining silent.
Lan Xu continued speaking at a leisurely pace. “If, by the last day, he still hasn’t left your body, you’ll lose your qualification to clear the game.”
After saying this, Lan Xu paused. His gaze drifted downward from Ruan Qing’s eyes, eventually settling on his lips. There was a hint of unspoken dominance in his stare, but his tone remained unchanged.
“With your strength, you probably wouldn’t be able to take back your body, right?”
Ruan Qing stared straight at Lan Xu, not interrupting him.
Because what Lan Xu said was true—if Ren Qing remained inside his body, he would undoubtedly be judged as a non-human entity.
One of the rules of the Infinite Horror Game was that players were forbidden from taking non-human entities out of a dungeon, and this included the players themselves.
Once a player became a non-human entity, they would completely lose their qualification to clear the game.
But there was one thing Lan Xu got wrong.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t take back his body—it was that he mustn’t take it back.
No one understood the changes in his body better than he did.
His body’s temperature was dropping, his heartbeat was slowing, and even his breathing was becoming fainter. It was no different from when he was in the <First High School> dungeon.
These were signs that he was nearing death.
This change was especially noticeable when he returned to his own body. However, when Ren Qing was inside him, there were no such changes.
This was also one of the reasons why he hadn’t broken ties with 'Ruan Qing' and still treated 'Ruan Qing' as himself.
His body needed someone to inhabit it, but that someone couldn’t be him.
It seemed… he had already been judged by the dungeon as a vengeful ghost.
If he wasn’t mistaken, returning to his own body would slowly kill him. Moreover, the Infinite Horror Game’s system would judge him as being possessed by a vengeful ghost.
In other words, even if he managed to survive until the last day by sheer luck, he would still lose his qualification to clear the level.
So, no matter the situation, he couldn’t clear it.
This instance was practically a death trap for him.
From the moment he entered this instance, he never had a real chance to clear it—not even when the system expended its power to send him back to the past.
Ren Qing was destined to die in this instance. This was the nature of the instance, its very design, and no one could change that.
That’s why, after he finally had the chance to leave the basement, he suddenly suffered a splitting headache and collapsed, dead.
It was the suppression from the instance. As the boss of this instance, Ren Qing was fated to die.
And he, too, was fated to die.
For him, every path in this instance led to death—even finding “Him” was no exception.
“Need help?” Lan Xu chuckled softly as he looked at Ruan Qing. “I can help you take back your body.”
Ruan Qing glanced at Lan Xu and replied indifferently, “What’s the price?”
Lan Xu gently rubbed his thumb against the spoon, his movements filled with tenderness and ambiguity, as if he were touching Ruan Qing himself.
“You belong to me.”
“Forever.”
Thank you for the chapter!!
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