The man was wrapped in a wet and cold gloom. His once-bright, emerald-green eyes seemed to have lost their light, mixed with a monstrous, destructive fury.
However, upon seeing the condition of the youth in the spring, the mad frenzy on him instantly extinguished, replaced by disbelief and panic.
He jumped into the spring without a moment’s hesitation, walked quickly to the youth’s front, but then stopped abruptly. The fingertips suspended in mid-air trembled constantly, as if he did not dare to touch this youth he had yearned for day and night.
Tears slid down his cheeks, and after his throat choked for a long time, Han Yujiu finally managed to say a sentence with great difficulty: “Fool.”
“You were a fool before, and you are still a fool now.”
“How am I ever worth you doing this?”
Distant memories exploded in Han Yujiu’s mind alongside the end of this sentence.
(Memory of the Slave Arena)
“Xiao Jiu, how are you doing?” The youth who spoke looked extremely good-looking. Even with baby fat on his face, it was not hard to foresee his future elegance.
And Xiao Jiu, who stood before him, was dressed in tattered rags. Squatting in a snowy courtyard, his body was curled up into a ball, seemingly trying to resist the bitter cold.
Xiao Jiu did not make a sound, nor was the youth annoyed. He squatted down slowly, took off the only thin outer garment on his own body, draped it over Xiao Jiu’s shoulders, and then pulled Xiao Jiu into his embrace.
After completing this series of movements, the child called Xiao Jiu finally raised his head and glanced at him.
Clearly shaking even more violently than him. What was he trying to brave here?
Seeming to see through Xiao Jiu’s thoughts, the child curved his eyes, revealing white teeth, and smiled as he said: “It is fine, I am not afraid of the cold!”
Xiao Jiu was dazzled by such a bright smile and buried his head deeply into the other’s embrace, unable to utter a single half-word.
“Do not hit him! Hit me! Just hit me instead!”
The burning pain on his body turned into a warm embrace. Xiao Jiu was stunned. Raising his head to look, he only saw drops of blood trickling down that person’s cheek right in front of him.
Realizing that this person was taking beatings on his behalf, Xiao Jiu wanted to get up urgently, his body struggling and writhing continuously.
Unfortunately, the youth only thought he was frightened, and his voice was intermittent yet still gentle:
“Xiao Jiu, do not be afraid. Xiao Zhou does not hurt.”
Xiao Jiu wept with muffled sounds. He was too thin and too weak; he simply could not push the person off his body.
“I do not want this! Get off me! Get off!”
The breath of the person on top of him grew weaker and weaker, yet he still continuously spoke to comfort the child he was protecting in his arms:
“Xiao Jiu, do not be afraid. Someone will come to take you home very soon.”
“We can go home right away.”
The youth’s head slowly drooped, pressing onto Xiao Jiu’s shoulder, so heavy that it made him breathless.
Xiao Jiu shook his head, tears streaming down his face as he roared loudly: “I do not want it! I do not want to go home anymore!”
“I want you to wake up!”
“Wake up. I am begging you.”
“I am begging you.”
At this time, the slave arena was terrifyingly chaotic, yet the youth’s embrace was warm and tranquil.
Xiao Jiu was unwilling to leave for a long time, until he fainted from crying in the other’s arms and was taken back by the demon clan.
It was over. This torture was over, and Xiao Jiu’s heart was also lost. Lost upon Xiao Zhou.
(End of Memory)
“But Xiao Zhou is back, and Xiao Jiu’s heart has also returned.”
Han Yujiu smiled. This smile held not a shred of gloom, only thick, concentrated love.
At the same time, the youth in the spring also opened those soul-stirring eyes. Seeing the person before him, he was stunned for a moment, and then curved his lips into a weak smile.
The two gazed at each other, and all their deep affection remained unspoken.
[Detected increase in happiness value. Happiness value 75]
[Happiness value 93]
[Happiness value 100]
[Congratulations, Host, task completed.]
The continuously rising happiness value was within Yun Qingzhou’s expectations, but he had not expected it to reach the maximum value directly.
He had thought that Han Yujiu would at least spend a longer time guarding each other with him before feeling truly happy.
Hearing the question in Yun Qingzhou’s heart, the system could not help but speak:
[Zhou, perhaps for Han Yujiu, as long as you are still alive, are willing to acknowledge the past between the two of you, and give him a bit of affection, he is already satisfied.]
[He is the easiest one to coax among all these worlds.]
[Are you still going to depart from this world?]
“Depart.”
The system sighed. Yun Qingzhou was even more ruthless than they had imagined, and that gentleman’s path ahead was likely to be very long.
[Preparing to depart.]
[3, 2, 1. Departure successful.]
The moment the system’s voice faded away, Han Yujiu pulled the youth before him into his arms. Even though it was a warm body, he still felt an incomparable chill and panic, as if the youth at this moment was merely a puppet with an empty shell.
The man’s heart beat violently, and he involuntarily raised his head to look, as if he saw a noble, tall yet ruthless back in the void walking away from him without turning back even once, not even holding the slightest bit of lingering attachment.
The Second World Begins
“Brother Li, why are you sitting here smoking? Are you thinking of that fellow again?” The questioning youth looked fairly handsome with a slender figure.
The man before him called Brother Li was exceptionally handsome with deep facial features, sword-like eyebrows slanting into his temples, starry eyes, bronze skin, and a tall stature.
Brother Li was lazily leaning against a tree at the moment, biting a cigarette between his light pink thin lips, looking very casual and carefree.
Hearing the youth’s question, he raised his eyebrows slightly amidst the swirling smoke and did not answer.
After a long while, he finally spoke to the several men and women sitting or standing around him: “Let us go. This is the third-to-last instance.”
[You have entered the instance: Divine Descent.]
[Player identity loading: Unknown]
[Identity: Unknown. Age: Unknown. Combat Power Level: Exceeding Threshold]
[Warning! Warning! Extreme danger! Detection system damaged, welcome Player Zhou entering the game!]
“Tongzi, what is this?”
Before Yun Qingzhou was a blue light board, at the bottom of which was a red strip indicating that it was loading.
[This is the Big Shot Dominating the Infinite Game world. Zhou, your current identity is the Infinite World Boss, but you need to hide your identity and blend into the male protagonist’s team.]
[Your task is to gain the male protagonist’s trust, then expose yourself in the final world to catch the male protagonist off guard, and finally lose to the male protagonist, fulfilling the male protagonist’s wish to conquer the infinite world.]