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Bonus chapter! Thank you to JustSomeOne for the donation! ^^
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The sky grew darker, so dark it was hard to see clearly. Yet most of the rooms in the residential complex remained unlit—pitch-black and oppressive, giving off a lifeless, suffocating feeling.
Inside one of the apartments, two strikingly handsome young men stood facing each other across a mirror. One had stiff, pursed lips, while the other wore an unnervingly bright smile. The scene was utterly bizarre.
Ruan Qing had no idea how he’d ended up here.
He hadn’t waited for Lan Xu to take him to Ren Yanqing’s room. The moment Lan Xu slipped the spoon into his pocket, darkness swallowed Ruan Qing whole.
By the time the world brightened again, he was no longer inside the spoon’s reflection.
Instead, he was trapped in another mirror’s world.
And standing before the mirror… was *himself*.
A ‘Ruan Qing’ currently cleaning blood from his hands.
Not far away lay a corpse, sprawled in a pool of crimson.
He had stumbled upon ‘Ruan Qing’s’ murder scene.
Ruan Qing’s heart sank. Without hesitation, he forced himself to mimic the reflection’s movements, pretending to be nothing more than a mirror image.
As long as ‘Ruan Qing’ didn’t realize he’d been discovered, he might still show some restraint. But if he knew the truth, things would spiral into something far worse.
Yet Ruan Qing had underestimated ‘Ruan Qing’s’ sharpness—and the depths of his depravity.
His lips pressed into a pale, rigid line as he tugged self-consciously at his undone shirt, shielding himself from ‘Ruan Qing’s’ predatory gaze.
The other young man watched his stiff movements, his smile widening into something grotesque. "You know… everyone who’s found out my secret has died."
He didn’t wait for a reply before continuing, his tone dripping with mock regret. "What a shame. Why did you have to figure it out?"
"I really wanted to let you live."
His voice was soft—so soft it sent chills down the spine. His eyes, cruel and detached, fixed on Ruan Qing as if he were already a corpse.
Ruan Qing’s face drained of color. He clutched his shirt tighter, instinctively backing away.
‘Ruan Qing’ smirked and raked a hand through the loose strands of hair falling over his forehead, pushing them back. Only a few rebellious wisps remained, framing his face.
His usually harmless features now looked sharp, aggressive—amplified by that sinister smile and those ruthless eyes. The air around him practically thrummed with malice.
After running his fingers through his hair, ‘Ruan Qing’ tilted his chin up slightly and spoke in a slow, deliberate voice, "Beg me."
"If you beg, I might consider letting you go."
Ruan Qing’s eyelashes fluttered uneasily. His face pale, his slender fingers clenched tighter before he finally whispered, "...Please."
‘Ruan Qing’ let out a soft laugh at this, shaking his head slightly—clearly dissatisfied with the answer.
Then, he reached out and touched the mirror, his delicate fingers sliding slowly downward, carrying an indescribable air of seduction.
His gaze followed the path of his hand, his eyes brimming with dominance and aggression—as if he weren’t tracing the mirror’s surface, but Ruan Qing’s body.
Finally, ‘Ruan Qing’s hand paused where the reflection showed Ruan Qing gripping his own shirt. He lifted his eyes to meet Ruan Qing’s.
"You know how to beg properly, don’t you?"
Silence engulfed the room. Ruan Qing’s grip on his shirt tightened, his body stiffening further.
Though ‘Ruan Qing’ hadn’t specified how to beg, his movements and gaze made it painfully obvious.
Anyone with half a brain would understand exactly what he meant.
Ruan Qing bit his lower lip hard, his long lashes trembling uncontrollably. Hesitation and helplessness flickered in his eyes before he finally turned his face away, avoiding ‘Ruan Qing’s stare.
As if struggling to make a decision.
‘Ruan Qing’ watched the fragile, defenseless boy in the mirror, waiting patiently for his answer.
He’d already dealt with those five intruders. No one would disturb them now—he had all the time in the world to let the boy realize…
That he could only belong to him.
That he was the only one who could protect him.
The only one who could give him a safe, happy future.
A future for just the two of them.
The mere thought sent a thrill through ‘Ruan Qing,’ his excitement barely contained.
The room fell into a suffocating silence, each passing second stretching the tension unbearably.
And slowly, ‘Ruan Qing’s patience began to wear thin.
Since Ruan Qing had turned away, his gaze was fixed on a dim corner of the room. His eyes lowered almost imperceptibly—
As if sending a signal to someone.
‘Ruan Qing’ didn’t catch the subtle movement, but his own eyes narrowed for a split second. He turned his head, following Ruan Qing’s line of sight.
It was a dark corner.
Though corners could hide things, 'Ruan Qing' could sense that there was nothing there—no living person, no vengeful spirit, nor any other presence.
The mirrored world was a reflection of reality. Whatever existed outside, existed inside.
So if there was nothing unusual outside, there should be nothing unusual inside either.
The mirrored world was the safe haven he had created for the young man—the only safe place in this entire scenario.
Here, one wouldn’t be corroded by the ‘god’s’ power, and the mirror itself barred vengeful spirits from entering.
Even he was no exception.
The only reason he could enter at all was because he shared a body with the young man, inexplicably making the system recognize him as alive.
That, coupled with the lingering traces of the boy’s living essence on him, had briefly convinced the mirror to accept him.
But as the young man’s body changed, that living essence faded—and with it, the mirror’s recognition. He could no longer come and go freely.
If even he couldn’t enter, then no other vengeful spirit stood a chance.
Yet, when the young man looked over, 'Ruan Qing' got the distinct feeling that something was there.
Even if only for a fleeting second.
'Ruan Qing' stepped closer to the mirror, his gaze shifting to the spot where Ruan Qing had been looking. A faint trace of danger flickered in his eyes.
Meanwhile, Ruan Qing trembled slightly at his approach, his delicate frame tense. Unease and helplessness washed over his face, as if frightened by 'Ruan Qing’s' proximity.
Finally, he lowered his head and spoke in a small, shaky voice:
"I’ve… made my decision."
After saying this, he forced himself to step forward, closing the distance between them until he stood right before the mirror—blocking most of its already narrow surface.
His eyes met 'Ruan Qing’s'—lost, vulnerable, unbearably fragile.
"What… do I need to do?"
As if afraid of being misunderstood, his misty eyes wavered, and he hastily added, "You’re outside the mirror, I… I don’t know how—"
'Ruan Qing’s' gaze had been fixed on him the entire time. But now, his eyes drifted downward, settling on the hand clutching at the shirt.
His voice was low, rough—almost a growl.
"Show me. Take it off."
Upon hearing this, Ruan Qing’s fingers tightened involuntarily, his knuckles whitening from the force. Finally, his lashes fluttered faintly as he stiffly, slowly loosened his grip.
Perhaps because it was his first time doing something so utterly shameful, his body was rigid, his movements painfully slow—agonizingly so. Slow enough to torment, slow enough to make 'Ruan Qing’s' heartbeat quicken uncontrollably.
'Ruan Qing' stared fixedly at the boy in the mirror, unwilling to even blink. The atmosphere in the room grew thick with unspeakable tension.
The boy’s shirt had already been fully unbuttoned, and as his hands gradually released their hold, the fabric slipped open once more.
Whether from overwhelming nervousness or the chill of exposed skin, his slender frame trembled slightly. His jade-like skin was tinged with delicate pink, breathtakingly vivid, flushed with a captivating rosy hue from the exposure to the air—so beautiful it was almost unbearable.
Just the sight of it made the darkness in one’s heart take root like wild weeds, spreading uncontrollably.
He wanted to leave marks on him. He wanted to pin him down and do unforgivable things to him.
In truth, the man could have easily gone without a shirt—Ruan Qing’s was still on, after all, merely loosened slightly. Even his slender waist was only half-visible, obscured by the fabric, nothing truly indecent.
Yet 'Ruan Qing’s' breath hitched. His gaze burned into the reflection, his voice hoarse and low.
"Keep going."
Ruan Qing’s hands hovered at the edge of his shirt, frozen for a long moment. Finally, he shut his eyes, fingers tightening as if steeling himself to strip it off completely.
But just as he was about to—
Crack.
The mirror linking illusion and reality shattered without warning.
Not into broken shards, but into dust, dissolving into nothingness, erasing the scene it had reflected.
The charged moment vanished the instant the mirror did.
'Ruan Qing’s' expression twisted into something terrifying. He turned sharply, his glare landing on the figure standing in the doorway.
Lan Xu met his gaze and offered a faint smile.
"Seems I’ve interrupted you."
"My apologies."
His tone was anything but sincere. Though his face wore regret, his eyes and voice dripped with mockery—as if he found 'Ruan Qing’s' behavior utterly contemptible.
'Ruan Qing' adjusted his shirt, unfazed by the bloodstains dampening the fabric, and methodically fastened each button.
Then—
In the blink of an eye, he vanished.
And reappeared right in front of Lan Xu.
Just before ‘Ruan Qing’ could strike, Lan Xu leaped backward, vaulting straight over the corridor railing and leaving ‘Ruan Qing’ slashing at empty air.
Without hesitation, ‘Ruan Qing’ gave chase. The two figures grew increasingly distant, eventually vanishing into the shadows ahead.
But the real Ruan Qing knew none of this. As the mirrored world plunged into darkness, he exhaled sharply in relief and hurriedly pulled his clothes back on.
Just as he finished buttoning his shirt, a faint, almost imperceptible sound came from the corner—like someone whispering.
The voice was too soft to distinguish its gender or even the words spoken. In fact, if one weren’t paying attention, it might not even register as human speech at all.
Yet Ruan Qing seemed to understand. He shook his head slightly. “He won’t let me go.”
From the moment he’d entered this dungeon, there was never any chance of being spared.
