Brother

The girl turned around, and the voice in her heart vanished.

With unsteady steps, she crossed the threshold and joined her classmates.

This group of husks looked like a pile of lambs awaiting slaughter, crammed together behind a fence.

Perhaps because all eight sacrifices had finally been gathered, they no longer bothered maintaining the behavior and speech of normal people. Even the child who had been asleep the entire time opened his eyes and rose from the floor.

Like puppets, they took two synchronized steps, then lined up neatly against the wall, bodies rigid as they stood upright.

The girl who had survived huddled in the corner, even more terrified than before.

She stared in horror at the row of bodies before her. Every one of them wore the exact same curve at the corners of their mouths, smiling as they stared back at her.

“Hello,” they said in unison. “See? None of us are abnormal. Why don’t you make a wish?”

They took one step forward, their voices rising slightly.

“Why don’t you make a wish?”

“Because I haven’t made mine yet.”

A smiling male voice spoke.

It was Zhu Yan… Zhu Zeyu.

He lazily straightened from where he had been leaning beside the door, the last traces of redness still lingering at the corners of his eyes.

“My friend promised to grant me one wish. That’s fine, right?”

The “people” who still retained vital signs stopped woodenly in place.

Inside the wooden crate, Qiu Lingfeng excitedly straightened up, his eyes glowing red with exhilaration.

He had still overestimated Hunter No. 1.

At first, he had nearly thought the other man wouldn’t fall into the trap he had set, and that he would have to come up with another plan.

But now…

Under the gaze of the Mist, Qiu Lingfeng tightened his grip on the silver card without tearing it.

Now, perhaps a single [Wish Fulfillment] would be enough to settle everything completely.

This silver card, which he had kept as a trump card, might not even need to be used.

Something this precious was better saved for later.

He heard Hunter No. 1 let out a soft laugh. Then came the crisp sound of hard boot heels striking the bluestone floor.

He knew that Hunter No. 1 had turned around to close the door. The hinges groaned under the strain for a while before the door shut with a click.

Zhu Yan twisted his fingers and activated the [Conceal the Heavens and Cross the Sea] talisman.

How could he let the [Frenzied Happy Land] discover such a good show?

“Do you still have the strength, Bro?” Zhu Yan asked.

Just thinking about what he was going to do to Qiu Lingfeng made him want to laugh.

That amusement seeped into his voice. From Qiu Lingfeng’s perspective, it sounded as though Hunter No. 1 was already unable to contain his delight.

“I’m fine.”

Using Qiu Dehai’s voice, Qiu Lingfeng replied steadily, “I can hold on. Make your wish. I guarantee there won’t be any side effects.”

Zhu Yan opened the ability [Catalogue of Rules] and decisively chose to use Rule One, transforming Guanyin Hall into [A Room You Cannot Leave Unless You Commit Suicide].

“Okay.”

As Zhu Yan spoke, the wisp of Mist remained invisible while slowly condensing into a hand behind Qiu Lingfeng.

“My wish is a rather big one. Thanks in advance, Bro.”

Qiu Lingfeng laughed heartily. “You’ll still need to rely on my face in the future, so what are you thanking me for? Just tell me what you want. Don’t hold back!”

That was, indeed, the truth.

As long as he could hand over a head that looked exactly like Zhu Zeyu’s, he would have a bright future ahead of him!

Outside the wooden crate, Hunter No. 1 fell silent for a moment.

“The horror creatures of the [Eye of the Abyss] are hunting me down,” he said several seconds later, his voice filtering through the thin wooden boards and into Qiu Lingfeng’s ears. “As for me…”

Qiu Lingfeng’s heart sank slightly, and the smile vanished from his face.

Did he want to cancel the manhunt?

Did he want the horror creatures of the [Eye of the Abyss] to forget about it?

He had no idea whether [Wish Fulfillment], an ability whose theoretical level had no upper limit, could accomplish something like that.

But if the other man made that wish, then whether he lived or died, Qiu Lingfeng’s own plan for wealth and glory would fall apart.

“…I thought of a plan that can deal with this.”

Zhu Yan continued, knowing that Qiu Lingfeng had relaxed a little, though his heart remained suspended.

“What plan?” Qiu Dehai’s voice asked nervously.

Hunter No. 1 gave a cold laugh.

“A couple of days ago, I went to the [Recitation Stage].” Qiu Lingfeng heard the young man’s calm voice. “I gave my friend the [Vine-Cage Woman] two bottles of special-edition [Trembling Pleasure]. They can make someone look like me.”

The information was so overwhelming that Qiu Lingfeng froze for a moment.

But the young man outside did not give him time to think.

He simply continued in a calm, indifferent tone, as though the matter were utterly insignificant.

“I asked her to notify the broadcast and send those two bottles of [Trembling Pleasure] to you. Qiu Lingfeng, wearing Qiu Dehai’s skin suit, standing close to me, ambitious and hungry for power.”

“As long as you drink the [Trembling Pleasure], everything will become easy.”

“Bro, underneath that skin suit, you already look exactly like Zhu Zeyu, don’t you?”

Qiu Lingfeng began to tremble.

He understood.

The face beneath the Qiu Dehai skin suit twisted violently, the muscles around his lips drawn taut, his mouth pressed into a furious, razor-thin line.

“What do you mean? What did you mean by your first sentence?”

Qiu Lingfeng was furious because Zhu Yan had provoked him so blatantly.

But he absolutely could not afford to lose himself to anger now!

Hunter No. 1’s arrangement appeared flawless, but there was no way he could be manipulated so easily.

The Strategic Analysis Department had analyzed Hunter No. 1’s abilities and weaknesses.

As long as his defense remained intact, the other man could do nothing to him!

With a sharp ripping sound, Qiu Lingfeng tore the silver card in his hand apart.

Clenching his teeth, he waited for the item to take effect while continuing to stall for time.

“What do you mean, ‘make someone look like you’?”

Hunter No. 1 laughed contemptuously.

“Wow.” Zhu Yan imitated Qiu Lingfeng’s sticky, cloying tone. “Because I am Zhu Zeyu, Bro. Originally, I was supposed to go to another instance today…”

Qiu Lingfeng’s eyes widened.

Cold sweat soaked his forehead. Beneath the skin suit, his face felt stifled to the point that he could barely breathe.

“You… Zhu Zeyu…”

“That’s right.”

Hunter No. 1’s tone was as light and playful as a cat toying with a mouse.

Qiu Lingfeng’s hand clenched tightly around the hem of his clothes.

I’m going to die.

Why hasn’t anything happened yet?

The silver card… How long is this silver card going to take before it activates?

“Let me think.”

Hunter No. 1’s voice came from outside the wooden crate.

Zhu Yan decided to give Qiu Lingfeng a little more time to wait. After all, the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment.

“You’re pretty smart,” he remarked. “At the very least, you knew to go ask around at the [Nightmare Bookstore]. To be honest, Bro, I quite admired you the moment I saw you there.”

A short breath escaped from inside the wooden crate.

“You knew everything?” Qiu Lingfeng’s voice turned icy. “You’ve been by my side from the very beginning?”