Li Fei ran to the room at the very end and pushed the door open easily.
He couldn’t wait to squeeze inside. But upon seeing the furnishings in the room, his expression filled with disappointment.
“What the hell? I thought there would be treasures!”
There was no gold in the room, no jewelry, not even a window.
The decor was very European in style. Black silk drapes hung in the four corners, and white candles burned slowly on the walls.
After Li Fei entered, the candles flickered, elongating his shadow.
In the exact center of the room sat a pure black coffin imprinted with a cross.
Li Fei approached the coffin cautiously, muttering, “Are we filming a movie? Maybe the treasures are hidden inside the coffin?”
The fact that nothing dangerous had happened gave Li Fei a strong sense of confidence.
He walked boldly to the side of the coffin, his fingers gripping the edge.
The moment Li Fei actively approached and tried to open the coffin—
Outside the door, the black cats that had run out of the paintings seemed to sense a terrifying creature. They all jumped back into their frames and froze motionless.
“I have a feeling something bad will happen if I open it. Forget it, go big or go home!”
Using all his strength, Li Fei shoved the coffin lid completely open in one go!
“Is there gold inside?”
Li Fei leaned in expectantly to look. When he saw the “thing” inside the coffin clearly, he froze on the spot.
Inside the coffin was neither gold, nor jewelry, nor precious items of the Infinite Flow world.
Instead, it was an incredibly handsome man.
His appearance was very much like a medieval vampire. His skin was pale to the point of transparency, his features exquisite and sharp. His brows were deep-set, and his thick eyelashes were like the tail feathers of a black raven—magnificent and dense.
He lay quietly in the coffin, hands folded over his abdomen, with no perceptible breathing.
“A dead person looks this good?”
Li Fei, refusing to believe his luck, leaned further into the coffin. Apart from fresh flowers, he didn’t see any jewelry.
“Is it hidden under the body?”
Li Fei reached out. Just as his fingers were about to touch the skin, he glanced up inadvertently and met a pair of blood-red vertical pupils.
“Holy sh*t!”
Li Fei was badly startled by this scene and stumbled back a few steps.
The person in the coffin had awakened at some point. Those cat-like eyes were staring silently at Li Fei.
Thinking the person was dead, only to lock eyes with them the next second—this scared the hell out of Li Fei.
And then came something even more fatal: the sound of a scythe dragging across the floor drifted from the hallway!
Li Fei knew that sound all too well!
The day Lin Zhe died, he had been brutally beheaded by that scythe.
Li Fei still couldn’t forget that bloody, terrifying scene!
Once caught by the Apartment Security Guard, only death awaited.
Li Fei didn’t want to end up like Lin Zhe.
Trembling, he pulled the dagger from his pocket, aimed it at the lazy man slowly rising from the coffin, and shouted:
“You being arranged in this room on the Top Floor means your status is definitely not simple! I command you, get me out of here!”
The man didn’t reply. He merely propped his forehead up with one hand wearily, looking as if he hadn’t fully woken up. His eyelids drooped, and his overly long lashes cast a fragile shadow beneath his eyes.
Li Fei gritted his teeth. The sound of the scythe scraping the floor in the corridor was getting closer. His nerves were stretched to the breaking point!
“If you don’t take me out, don’t blame me for killing you right here!”
Seeing the man remain indifferent, even ignoring his existence entirely, stung Li Fei’s nerves.
Since that scythe demon is targeting me, I might not escape anyway. I might as well drag someone down with me before I die!
A ruthless look flashed in Li Fei’s eyes. Gripping the dagger, he stabbed toward the man’s chest.
The instant the tip of the dagger touched the skin, the man’s body instantly dissolved into a swarm of bats and vanished from the coffin.
The bats’ sharp claws scratched Li Fei’s face, making him scream in pain!
Combined with the life-demanding sound of the scythe outside, Li Fei clutched his bleeding face, gritted his teeth, and dashed out!
The corridor was full of black cats. They possessed the same blood-red vertical pupils as the man, and they all looked up, staring unblinkingly at Li Fei.
He kicked away a few black cats blocking his path and sprinted desperately toward the stairwell!
Only to find that demon leaning against the wall, hugging his scythe with a half-smile, waiting for him.
“Didn’t you notice?”
Li Fei looked at Berus warily. “N-notice what?”
Berus chuckled lightly, raised a finger to point at the stairs, and teased:
“You were already dead.”
Li Fei looked in the direction he was pointing and instantly saw his own corpse lying on the stairs.
The moment he stepped onto the Top Floor, he had already died.
Berus leisurely twirled the scythe in his hand and hooked it gently toward Li Fei.
The light in Li Fei’s eyes gradually vanished. His body turned into a soul wisp and was finally sucked into the scythe.
The corridor became quiet again.
Berus looked around the empty hallway. Just as he was preparing to hoist the corpse from the stairs and slip away quietly—
“Berus.”
The magnetic, deep voice sounded like a cello being played, exuding elegance.
Berus, failing to escape in time, wore a “mask of pain.” He turned around reluctantly.
“Boss,” Berus called out, carrying the scythe on his shoulder. “You were woken up!”
Berus shifted to a more comfortable position against the wall, grinning cheekily.
“How about I put the coffin lid back for you? I guarantee I’ll press it down real tight!”
Hearing this, the tall man standing opposite Berus looked at him expressionlessly.
“Okay, okay, okay, I was just joking!”
Berus waved his hands hurriedly, signaling surrender.
Even after all these years, every time he faced this man, he felt uncomfortable all over, as if ten thousand ants were crawling on him.
“By the way, my Lord, Jörmungandr[1]T/N: Jörmungandr is the Midgard Serpent in Norse mythology, a colossal sea serpent born to Loki and the giantess Angrboða. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1403306_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1403306_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); is going crazy trying to find a suitable Ferryman to take the Cutie into a dungeon.”
Jörmungandr was the Doctor’s name.
It’s because “Doctor” rolled off the tongue more easily; everyone had tacitly switched to that over time.
“But a lot of Ferrymen have died. Plus, the conditions are strict. The remaining Ferrymen are spinning like tops; they have absolutely no time to mentor the Cutie.”
Berus thought of something. He lifted his chin with a wicked smile, revealing the collar buckled tight around his neck, and volunteered:
“How about, my Lord… you unlock my restraints, and I’ll take the Cutie!”
The red-eyed man looked up, studying him quietly.
After a simple three-second stare, Berus put away his cheeky expression, stood up straight, and buttoned his collar properly.
If they really couldn’t find a suitable Ferryman, letting Berus take Xu Xingyuan into the dungeon was the most appropriate choice.
Just as Berus was pondering how to trick the other into agreeing, he heard the man speak his second sentence:
“I will teach Xu Xingyuan.”
References[+]