After deeming the other party a good-for-nothing, Wen Li unhesitatingly severed his mental connection with the horror livestream once again and continued with his own experiments.
However, this time, for some reason, he found himself unable to fully immerse in his research.
Although he had cut off the mental link to the horror livestream, the tablet on his desk was still playing the stream’s footage, occasionally emitting faint sounds.
The sounds were soft, yet they managed to irritate Wen Li, unsettling his mind.
Annoyed by the tablet disrupting his work, a flicker of displeasure crossed his eyes as he walked over, intending to simply turn it off.
But just as he picked up the tablet, his gaze was instantly captured by the boy on the screen, who was nibbling on a steamed bun. Wen Li paused.
He really is... too weak.
On the screen, the boy was curled up in a chair, his slender wrists looking as though they could snap with a simple twist. He was taking small, cautious bites of the steamed bun, appearing utterly pitiful.
So pitiful, in fact, that he seemed reluctant to eat too much of the bun. The boy’s conflicted, longing gaze as he stared at it was enough to stir anyone’s heartache.
How on earth did someone like this end up being targeted by the horror livestream?
Wen Li frowned slightly, his eyes fixed on the boy’s beautiful pair of eyes. He couldn’t help but suspect that something was wrong with the livestream system, so he continued watching.
He was only trying to figure out what was abnormal about the stream.
After all, if the livestream kept selecting such useless targets, it would undoubtedly slow down his own progress in becoming stronger—something he absolutely could not allow.
But he seemed to have misjudged. The boy was smarter than he had assumed. Wen Li watched as the boy slipped a small knife into his crossbody bag, his gaze darkening.
This person... seems to know he’s in danger.
Those targeted by the horror livestream aren’t supposed to know in advance. They only realize someone is trying to kill them once the hunter appears.
And hunters rarely kill their prey outright. They usually give their targets room to struggle, tormenting them until they break down mentally before delivering the final blow.
Only in this way can both the prey and the audience generate enough negative emotions to continuously fuel the eyeballs’ power.
But this frail boy, who could be crushed so easily, seemed to be aware that he had become a target.
In reality, this wasn’t the first time such a situation had occurred. There had been cases before where prey realized they were targets and began planning to counterattack the hunter even before the hunter appeared.
Wen Li had never interfered. If the prey knew in advance, they would simply fall into fear sooner, which in turn could generate more negative emotions. For him, that was a good thing.
Because even if the prey managed to turn the tables and kill the hunter, the negative emotions provided would still be enough. As for whether the prey or the hunter lived or died, it wasn’t important to him in the first place.
Wen Li inexplicably kept watching, even though he clearly knew someone this weak wouldn’t survive for long, even with advance warning.
Anyway, the boy would die soon—it wouldn’t waste much of his time.
The boy’s luck was terrible—or perhaps he was just too beautiful, attracting the desire of many hunters. Watching the boy being pinned down by a man in a dark corner, Wen Li’s eyes inexplicably flashed with a hint of displeasure.
He couldn’t trace where this displeasure came from; he hadn’t even realized he had already put his research aside.
It had to be said, the boy was truly clever. Even when aware of the danger he was in, he remained rational and calm enough.
He was skilled at playing pitiful, then seizing the moment when his opponent let their guard down to decisively escape.
There were many clever people, but very few who were ruthless enough toward themselves. Watching the wound on the boy’s neck, Wen Li’s heart skipped a beat, and his fingers gripping the tablet tightened slightly, with such force that a faint crack appeared on the screen.
That was the boy’s own handiwork, yet it was unbearably jarring—so jarring that a trace of violent irritation rose unbidden in Wen Li’s heart.
But it had to be said, the boy was simply too clever—clever enough to know how to use everything to his advantage, even his own life.
Wen Li watched expressionlessly as the boy was taken away by that group.
When prey gather together, they only attract more hunters. It wasn’t a wise decision.
The horror livestream ran nonstop, 24 hours a day. However, if nothing significant happened at night, the number of online viewers would drop considerably.
After all, as humans, they needed rest.
But tonight, the number of online viewers far exceeded that of previous nights—almost as many as during the day, even increasing slowly over time.
All simply because the boy was beautiful.
This reason seemed simple, yet it was somewhat unbelievable. After all, the horror livestream had seen beautiful prey before, and many hunters were handsome and elegant as well—but none had ever garnered as much attention as this boy.
The boy’s beauty was different from others’. His beauty made people covet him, made them want to hide him away.
Even he was no exception.
When he realized his thoughts were getting out of line, Wen Li finally snapped back to reality. It was only then that he realized he had been watching since nightfall straight through to dawn. Even when the boy was asleep, he, like the other viewers, hadn’t exited the horror livestream.
Previously, nothing had been more important to him than growing stronger—yet for nearly half a day now, he hadn’t once thought about his research.
This left Wen Li utterly astonished. At this moment, he seemed no different from those viewers in the horror livestream who had been bewitched by the boy.
No, it was even worse.
From a very young age, he had yearned for love, but unfortunately, what he sought never came to pass. Over the years, he had long since let go of any attachment to being loved.
Yet now, a long-lost desire stirred within him—a desire to receive the boy's love.
Wen Li’s fingertip lightly traced over the image of the boy's sleeping face on the screen, carrying an indescribable hint of danger and dominance.
If he wanted it, he would have it.
Making someone love you was the simplest thing in the world. Without hesitation, Wen Li hypnotized the boy.
—You like me.
—You like me to the point of obsession.
—You like me so much you’d be willing to die for me.
Wen Li felt an immense sense of pleasure as he gazed into the boy’s adoring eyes—a pleasure even greater than the thrill he felt when growing stronger.
Love me. Love me with all your life.
Wen Li knew the boy still retained his own thoughts, knew he was resisting the hypnosis, and even knew that he had read through his research journal.
But when the boy presented his phone number and confessed his feelings, Wen Li couldn’t help but be moved. He couldn’t help but forgive the boy for his boldness and deception.
It didn’t matter. Struggle all you want.
You will belong only to me. One day, he would make him willingly love him.
Wen Li felt a joy unlike any before. If he could be with the boy forever, growing stronger didn’t seem so important anymore.
Forever.
The word "forever" delighted Wen Li, widening the smile on his face. He liked that word.
But Wen Li never imagined that his "forever" with the boy would be so brief.
So brief it ended before it had even truly begun.
Wen Li knew the boy was ruthless, but he hadn’t expected him to go to such extremes—to use his own life to kill him.
Wen Li had long been corrupted by the power of the eyeball, transformed into a monster, no longer someone who could die from mere physical death.
If this body dies, then I’ll just get another one.
But at that moment, Wen Li could no longer care about anything else. Everything had happened too quickly—the boy had fired without the slightest hesitation, faster than Wen Li could stop him.
Once he realized the person in his arms had stopped breathing, Wen Li felt as if his heart were being squeezed tight by an invisible hand. It became hard even to breathe.
It hurt so much.
It was like being back in that cramped room, being kicked and beaten by that man, powerless to fight back.
No, this was even more suffocating.
He felt as though he were drowning—choking, unable to breathe, yet could only watch helplessly and hopelessly as the surface of the water drifted further away.
The faint light slowly faded, and his mind seemed engulfed by darkness, tightly wound in pain, without a moment’s relief.
It hurt so much.
So much that his heart felt hollow, as if something had been carved out, leaving behind a void where something vital should have been.
Wen Li didn’t know why he didn’t change bodies. Instead, he let himself fall, until he crashed hard against the ground.
The person in his arms had been well protected, completely unharmed—if not for the blood seeping from the boy’s temple, he would have looked merely asleep.
But the boy would not wake again. He would never again look at Wen Li with eyes full of affection.
Blood continued to spread beneath Wen Li, staining the ground red. He stared blankly at the dim sky, his pupils gradually losing focus.
So it was true, after all.
No one was ever willing to love him.
T/N: There will be 11 more POVs like this from different characters and then, this will fully be completed. (˶˃ ᵕ ˂˶)
