Chapter 148
Chapter 148
An icy light glinted in Xiao Huai’s eyes. He remained silent, giving Qi Sha no reaction at all.
Qi Sha had assumed it was easy to make him angry, but then she noticed the calm beneath his expression.
He was not angry. He simply did not care.
The chill in his eyes came from his innate aloofness.
“You don’t feel anything?” Qi Sha was somewhat perplexed. Weren’t humans ordinarily supposed to empathize and offer a few heartfelt remarks?
Xiao Huai answered with a question of his own. “Do I need to?”
“You could tell me what you think.”
Xiao Huai suddenly gave a cold laugh. “I just think you’re boring.”
“Boring?” Qi Sha frowned. She was telling him something extraordinarily interesting. How could he possibly call it boring?
“Yes. When you disguised yourself as Xiaotian, didn’t you hope, even once, that someone would save you? You called him ridiculous and claimed that watching a favored son of heaven fall brought you pleasure, but is that really what you think?”
His gaze shifted past her. “You’ve met all kinds of people, but there can’t be many like him in a horror game, can there? Why else would you have taken his soul?”
As Xiao Huai spoke, his face retained a timeless serenity, untouched by the changes of the world. And yet his eyes evoked stars and fire descending into a forest abyss.
A single glance, and all things came alive.
Qi Sha froze for a moment.
With a few casual words, he had exposed the truth she had buried beneath layer upon layer of fog.
Why had she taken the soul of a man like that?
Because he was different.
If he had not wanted his daughter resurrected, how could he have fallen into her trap and willingly surrendered his soul?
Before she could recover, Xiao Huai waved to someone behind her. “You’re here.”
“Huh? Xiao Huai? You’re here?”
“Mm.” Xiao Huai nodded lightly, his gaze settling on the big-eyed monster in a dress beside Su Muhan.
He and the flaxen-haired young man had wandered for so long without finding the exit because he had taken the wrong person.
But Su Muhan and the others had brought the right one. After walking for only a few minutes, they found Xiao Huai.
Everyone froze when Qi Sha turned to look at them.
So Qi Sha was here!
Su Muhan realized Xiao Huai really had lured Qi Sha away and immediately felt vindicated in her choice.
Qi Sha glanced from the group of players to Xiao Huai, a laugh escaping through her nose.
“You have more team spirit than I imagined. Not a single one of you died?”
Ordinary players in the past would have been surrounded by dozens of monsters on their way to the main laboratory after finding her there, barely surviving the ordeal.
The hunt would have continued after they found her. Then, just as they neared the exit, she would reveal her true form and plunge the few survivors into utter despair.
But thanks to Xiao Huai, they had avoided all of it.
Not only had the players heading for the main laboratory escaped the monsters’ assault, but Xiao Huai had also led the false Xiaotian away, allowing them to take the real Xiaotian without incident.
Qi Sha folded her arms across her chest. “I’m not the boss responsible for hunting you this time, so you may leave. Just a friendly reminder: if you don’t hurry, my little pets will wake up and eat every one of you.”
Most of her instances were hunts. They were extraordinarily fortunate that Qi Sha was not the boss pursuing them this time.
The others immediately sprinted forward without another word. At that moment, however, Xiao Huai slowly transformed into the man’s likeness.
Faint firelight washed over his graying temples. Though his appearance was identical to the man’s, the presence in his eyes and brows could not be replicated. Shadows traced the contours of his face, while those eyes burned with tenderness and passion.
He looked like a mature man, yet possessed the wild, untamed spirit of a youth.
At that moment, Qi Sha looked through Xiao Huai and saw a shadow of the man as he had once been.
A favored son of heaven.
He, too, had once looked just like this.
Qi Sha’s lashes trembled. For a long time, she said nothing.
The little monster leaped up when she saw Xiao Huai and threw herself into his arms, as if crying, “Daddy, Daddy, I love you so much!”
The other players were momentarily stunned by the sight.
Who exactly was Xiao Huai? How could he transform into someone else?
But they had no time to ask. Running footsteps were already pounding through the adjoining passage.
They exchanged looks and immediately rushed outside.
As she ran, Su Muhan asked Xiao Huai, “Um, may I ask why you took his form?”
Xiao Huai kept his gaze on the little monster, who had not stopped staring at him. He said softly,
“Before he died, perhaps he imagined escaping this place with his daughter too.”
Su Muhan could not explain why, but although Xiao Huai’s tone was flat, his words filled her heart with warmth.
If that man were still alive, how fervently would he have longed to lead his daughter out of this terrible place?
Sadly, not every ending was a happy one.
Far too many beautiful things were no more than empty dreams.
The passage grew brighter and brighter. When the light swelled to its peak, the little monster gradually faded away, as if she had finally left this place for good.
The announcement that the main mission had been completed sounded in the players’ ears.
[Qi Sha’s game has ended. Congratulations on your victory. Exiting world…]
[Calculating game results. The reward has automatically been issued to the best-performing player.]
Xiao Huai did not receive a new gold coin. Just before she vanished, shock appeared on Su Muhan’s face.
She had received the coin.
Xiao Huai was not surprised. He had not brought the real Xiaotian here. Besides, the gods did not seem to care whether he obtained this coin.
And this was not the only way to leave the game.
As in the previous game, everyone slowly fragmented and disappeared.
From far away, Qi Sha silently watched Xiao Huai.
She could not help murmuring, “So you perfectly match my aesthetic ideal.”
The souls of those people appeared in her hand. With a faint tremor of her fingertips, they scattered like butterflies.
“They’re no fun after being locked up for too long.” As she spoke, she retreated into the darkness.
Yet as if compelled by some mysterious force, she still turned to take one final look at Xiao Huai.
That single look lingered for a long time.
Xiao Huai returned to his original appearance and raised a hand. A blue butterfly alighted on his knuckle. Even against the light, the elegant contours of his features remained clear. At that moment, Qi Sha caught the faint smile playing on his lips.
When he smiled, the natural coldness left his eyes and brows. That vivid smile broke through the deathly stillness, radiating a light that seemed capable of melting the darkness.
She truly… wanted to look at him a little longer.
Qi Sha was still dazed when Xiao Huai completely left the game instance.
In the end, she could not keep from frowning. Looking up, she said, “Edwin, oh Edwin. So you do have excellent taste.”
* * *
When the game ended, Xiao Huai and the others all emerged. Su Muhan sought him out immediately.
She tried to take the gold coin from her pocket and give it to Xiao Huai. She understood that without him, more than half of them might truly have died in that game.
Xiao Huai shook his head, then declared loudly, “That was easy. Another gold coin for me.”
The other players could not help looking at him.
He had not received the coin, yet he claimed he had.
For the time being, Su Muhan would be safe.
Xiao Huai did not care whether he had one coin or two. He only knew that without the teamwork they had shown, Qi Sha’s game would have become a grueling battle.
Su Muhan stood frozen in place. Xiao Huai stretched. “I’m a little tired. Good luck, everyone.”
“But…” Su Muhan hesitated.
Xiao Huai placed his index finger to his lips in a shushing gesture. The line of his pursed lips lifted slightly. “Thanks.”
Su Muhan clenched the coin in her pocket. She understood what Xiao Huai meant.
But she was the one who had wanted to thank him.
As Su Muhan watched Xiao Huai walk away, she prayed silently that he would succeed in escaping this special instance.