Chapter 61

Chapter 61

The general manager froze. “You know me?”

Xiao Huai remained calm. “No, but I’ve heard a great deal about you.”

Smugness appeared on the man’s face. He gave a pleased huff. “You have a discerning eye.”

“Of course he does. This boy is far more capable than you, Manager Tang.”

Victoria’s voice came from behind them. Dressed in a black evening gown, she looked like a goddess from an ancient myth.

She walked over and took the seat beside Xiao Huai.

Xiao Huai did not spare her a glance.

Malice entered Manager Tang’s beady eyes at Victoria’s words.

The Count waved a hand, and servants entered carrying trays. Other than Xiao Huai’s meal being different from everyone else’s, nothing appeared unusual.

The Count’s cold eyes swept over him. “Prepared especially for you. It was extracted only recently.”

A plate of transparent diamonds slick with blood sat before Xiao Huai.

Victoria ate her dessert as she watched for his reaction with a smile.

The malice in Manager Tang’s eyes deepened. He muttered, “My lord, how could you give such fine goods to someone like him?”

The Count glanced at him coldly. “Is his skin not of the highest quality?”

Victoria pushed a plate of cookies toward Xiao Huai.

“Xiao Huai, if you don’t want those, you can have these cookies instead. They’re delicious.”

Xiao Huai laughed. A bone-deep chill showed beneath the calm in his eyes, while the mockery in them seemed to circle endlessly through Victoria’s gaze.

This banquet was a trap. Not one person here wished him well.

Under everyone’s stare, Xiao Huai picked up a bloodstained diamond with his bare hand and put it into his mouth. His throat bobbed as he swallowed diamond after diamond.

Scarlet blood stained the corner of his lips like a field of roses bursting into bloom, burning and growing wildly in the depths of every observer’s heart.

Victoria froze. Just as she was about to withdraw the cookies, Xiao Huai caught her wrist.

Only her reflection remained in his dark red eyes. His icy voice sounded beside her ear.

“Were Liu Tongtong’s cookies from you?”

He spoke only that one line, yet Victoria felt as though he were seeing straight through her.

She hurriedly wrenched her hand free, her heart pounding. How could an ordinary human make a god like her feel afraid?

Was there another power within Xiao Huai that she had failed to detect?

More than that, Victoria knew her heart was racing not only because he had guessed correctly.

Blood shadowed the corner of his mouth, lending him an endlessly seductive air.

This was wrong…

Why was she developing such strange affection for a human player?

Xiao Huai swallowed every diamond. System notifications sounded again and again in his ears.

[Sanity falling. Current Sanity… Sanity continues to fall. Current Sanity: 40.]

Only when it reached forty did the system finally fall silent.

Agony tore through Xiao Huai’s entire body, but outwardly, nothing seemed wrong beyond the pallor of his face.

Satisfaction entered the Count’s eyes when he saw that Xiao Huai had eaten every diamond.

“Excellent. I look forward to seeing you successfully form a bud over the next two days.”

Xiao Huai glared at him. “My lord, I’m rather tired. May I go rest?”
The Count wiped his mouth elegantly with a white cloth, then reached to clean the blood from the corner of Xiao Huai’s lips as well. Xiao Huai turned his head sharply to the right, denying him the chance to touch him.

The Count raised an eyebrow. “Of course. A room has already been prepared for you. And so your design work won’t be delayed, I have thoughtfully arranged a private studio as well.”

“Heh. Thank you.” Xiao Huai rose and left.

The moment he stepped out of the dining room and stood alone beneath the moonlight, he crashed to the ground and began vomiting.

Every diamond felt like a blade piercing his organs. The pain was so intense that he could only grit his teeth and use one agony to drown out another.

His skin stung viciously, as though something were trying to burrow out from beneath it.

Moonlight illuminated the garden statues in all their varied poses. They raised their heads toward the distance as though searching for something.

Small flower centers grew from their stone skin.

Were they pursuing beauty?

Or madness in its purest form?

Exhausted, Xiao Huai leaned against a statue, his body utterly drained. He lifted his gaze toward the statue farthest away.

A mirror mounted upon it reflected the moonlight. Trembling, Xiao Huai forced himself up and walked toward it.

His reflection was as pale as a mannequin, cold sweat leaving him wretched and disheveled.

The only color on his body was the streak of red paint around his neck.

Xiao Huai lightly touched it. The cold sensation beneath his fingertip made his pupils contract. In that instant, a pair of dark eyes flashed through his mind.

Familiar, icy eyes.

Lu Yuanshi’s eyes.

Xiao Huai gasped heavily, one hand braced against the statue as he bent over, struggling for breath.

The sensation eased much of the pain from the swallowed diamonds. Sweat misted his lashes.

He looked up at the mirror and murmured, “Lu Yuanshi… just what are you capable of?”

His head a little clearer, Xiao Huai started toward the distant residential area.

The days he spent here would not be pleasant.

But everything was about to end.

Soon…

* * *

Three days later.

“Look. What’s that monster… that diamond fiend staring at now?”

Several white-coated staff members passed through the garden. A young man sat there, his face bloodless and his body covered in puncture wounds.

Even severely gaunt, the force of his features remained impossible to ignore.

The staff looked once, then hurriedly averted their eyes. “Incredible. The Count actually found a hide of such quality.”

“Has he bloomed? The seeds must have sprouted by now, at least.”

Excitement lit their faces, but the man leading them shook his head. “It’s strange. We’ve fed him so many diamonds, yet there’s been no progress at all.”

“A normal person would either die of pain or mutate after one day of eating diamonds of that quality. He hasn’t reacted at all. He really is a freak.”

“Hey, the diamond showcase is tomorrow. Let’s hurry and prepare. All the diamond fiends will be brought over tonight.”

It was already the sixth day. Tomorrow would be the final day.

The diamond showcase.

All the players would bring their work here. The following day, the diamond showcase would be held before the Diamond Factory.

Every employee would gather to enjoy this grand celebration of diamonds.