Chapter 45: Horror Variety (End)
Seeing the ghost covered in bandages squat down onto the floor and curl up into a ball without saying a word, Cheng Zhi Chu blinked his eyes a few times and couldn"t help but feel a strange sense of pity for the ghost.
Is he feeling very low self-esteemed over its own appearance or did Zhou Luo Chen do something to him so that his face was disfigured?
No matter what Zhou Luo Chen that pervert did, the current Cheng Zhi Chu wouldn"t be surprised. But this was just his own guess. After all, the reality instance didn"t require him to uncover the truth. He didn"t find any clues, so he also had no idea about the ghost"s ident.i.ty. It was probably just a poor man who was killed by Zhou Luo Chen.
"If you"re not Zhou Luo Chen, then who are you? Why are you here? Is your death related to Zhou Luo Chen?"
In order to kiss the ghost, Cheng Zhi Chu felt that it was necessary for him to get close to him, so he knelt down and looked at the ghost curiously.
The ghost didn"t answer, but his body continued to tremble gently. Cheng Zhi Chu saw him remaining silent and quietly shortened the distance between the two. When he was almost right next to the ghost, he could faintly feel the ghosts cold body temperature.
"Zhou Luo Chen didn"t kill himself. Was it you that killed him?" Cheng Zhi Chu asked. "Hmm…..If it really was you then I want to say that you did a good job. He deserved that."
Hearing he say this, the ghost finally had a reaction. He raised his head slightly and revealed a pair of beautiful eyes as he secretly glanced over at him.
"I"m curious. When did you get to know me? Why do you like me?"
Cheng Zhi Chu asked him with a calm voice. He couldn"t help but feel strange inside. He felt like a criminal trying to lure the naïve and pure child before him before doing something terrible to him.
"With you wrapped in bandages, don"t you find it suffocating?" Cheng Zhi Chu tentatively reached out and gently placed his hand on the back of the ghost"s hand. "Do you want me to help you take it off?"
The ghost suddenly raised his head. With slightly widened eyes, he looked seemingly frightened and he proceeded to back away. Cheng Zhi Chu however was bold enough to hold onto his hands and instantly pry away a large chunk of bandages from the ghost"s hands.
The bandages peeled off and revealed long and pale fingers inside. The tips of the fingers were a little transparent and it looked like those of an ice sculpture. It was a very good-looking hand.
His face must be very good looking too?
Cheng Zhi Chu was stunned. He accidentally let the ghost take away his hand. His thoughts were a little messy and he couldn"t help but try to guess what kind of face could be hidden under the bandages.
As for the fact that he was about to kiss a man, Cheng Zhi Chu had long become numb to it and there no longer was any turmoil in his heart. He even began to suspect that there are no female bosses in the instances.
He had no specific requirements. At the very least, if the boss takes on a more human appearance, he is very satisfied. After all, he had not forgotten that some of the silhouettes in the boss photobook didn"t look human at all…….
The ghost moved to hurriedly pick up the bandages from the floor and seemed to be trying to stick it back on. Cheng Zhi Chu immediately grabbed his wrist and said: "Your hand is so beautiful. Don"t try to cover it up okay?"
"………"The ghost was silent for a few seconds. It then slowly released his hand like it was silently accepting Cheng Zhi Chu"s words.
Cheng Zhi Chu felt elated. He said: "You"re not taking off the other bandages? Ah….That is of course if you don"t mind." He noticed that the ghost appeared to be very reluctant and added, "Then just the bandages on your mouth. I want to talk to you. Do you think that"s okay?"
The ghost looked up at him with a look of confusion in its eyes. More of it however was joy. After hesitating for a moment, it peeled off the bandages over its mouth and revealed a pair of pale lips.
"……What do you want to talk about?"
After falling silent for a moment, he spoke up. But perhaps because he had not spoken for a long time and was not used to talking, his voice was a little hoa.r.s.e and you couldn"t tell what his original voice would have sounded like.
Maybe it was because he had gradually let himself go, at this moment he conversely held onto Cheng Zhi Chu"s hand tightly. With his head lowered, he was unwilling to let him go. Towards Cheng Zhi Chu"s intimate actions, he was both a little confused and a little happy.
He didn"t expect to see that, after sending Zhi Chu into the painting, Zhi Chu would not be afraid of him and would even ask to see him. If he knew that this would be the case, he probably would not have sent Zhi Chu into the painting in the first place.
He would send Zhi Chu into the painting mainly because it was his only chance to approach Zhi Chu using his original appearance.
In the painting, he could take over his teenaged selves" body. Although he couldn"t control himself, he was plenty satisfied with being able to be so close to Zhi Chu.
However, he couldn"t control the paintings timeline. Once they entered the painting, time would always start from when Cheng Zhi Chu and Zhou Luo Chen met for the first time and stop when he and Zhi Chu met. It was only a short ten minutes of encounter.
He hated his current face. He didn"t dare to appear like this in front of Zhi Chu but he also wanted to see Zhi Chu so he could only bring Zhi Chu into the painting and create this "game".
Even if Zhi Chu was found by Zhou Luo Chen nothing would happen and he would only be taken out of the painting.
And he had said that if he lost the game, he would make him stay here with him forever. This was naturally also something that wouldn"t happen. He didn"t dare meet Zhi Chu, let alone leave him here so how could he do something like that?
He just wanted to talk to Zhi Chu a little using his former appearance. That was all.
So, for things to turn out like this and the fact that he was able to get close to Zhi Chu, it was something that he didn"t even dare dream about.
"What do I want to talk about?"
Hearing the ghost"s question, Cheng Zhi Chu stalled for a few seconds. Although he obviously had a lot of questions, when he was asked by the ghost, he could only think about how he could kiss it.
He thought about it and then asked a simple question. As he asked this, he slowly moved closer.
"What is your name?"
Noticing that his face was moving closer, the ghost was a little overwhelmed. He backed away slightly and subconsciously muttered: "Bai————"
But just when he was about to say his name, he quickly stopped himself. He looked down and a bitter smile appeared on his lips as he shook his head gently.
He no longer needs this name………
At the same time, Cheng Zhi Chu lifted his heels slightly and gently touched his lips with the ghosts" lips.
【Boss photo collected. Congratulations for clearing the instance "Horror Variety".】
【Clearance Rewards: Experience x3000, Survival Points x2000.】
【Congratulations on completing the main task. You can leave the instance by leaving the villa.】
The systems notification sounded, and Cheng Zhi Chu saw the ghost"s body turn into a glowing crystal and gradually dissipate in the air. He remained standing there and wasn"t able to return to his senses for a while.
Although he had always felt that this ghost was probably the boss of this villa, it was something that could only be confirmed after he manages to collect their photo. However, even until the very end he didn"t know the ghosts name nor its true ident.i.ty.
When he disappeared, he appeared to look a little sad…….
Recalling the ghosts look at that time, for some reason Cheng Zhi Chu also felt a little sad. It was as if he had forgotten something very important.
Fortunately, he still had his Boss Photobook. It would have a boss introduction so he could at least check the ghosts name through this.
But when he opened it up, Cheng Zhi Chu was stunned.
【ID: 039】
【Name: ?】
【Source: Horror Variety】
【Difficulty: ?】
【Note: It"s better for you to forget about him.】
The ghost in the photo only revealed its back, never turning around.
[Why is there no name in the photobook?] Cheng Zhi Chu asked the system with surprise. [Was it because I didn"t get that information in the instance so it would similarly not be shown in the photobook?]
【No. The photobook should reveal all the information about the boss. As for something like this, I also don"t know what is going on….】 The system answered hesitantly, 【Maybe it is because he refuses to disclose it.】
Why is he unwilling to say it?
Cheng Zhi Chu stared at the ghost"s back for a while before closing the book in confusion. He would probably never be able to find out the answer to this question.
【That is not necessarily true. In fact, you may still find out.】
The system said: 【It looks like I haven"t told you about it but there is an energy shared by these bosses. The more photos you collect, the stronger their power will get and they will slowly leave the photobook. After acquiring a certain amount, you can summon them out and use their powers in other instances.】
【 Leave the photobook? Are you saying that one day they might suddenly pop out from the book?】
Cheng Zhi Chu was shocked. Compared to whether or not he could use their powers, he was more worried about the bosses suddenly appearing. It would be fine if it was that unknown ghost or Xie Yuan Huai but if an evil spirit like Joshua escaped, he was afraid that he would become a mutilated corpse on the spot!
【No such thing will happen. They can"t come out by themselves. They need to be summoned by you.】
The system said: 【But right now you haven"t collected enough. You"re still a long way away from being able to summon them. Don"t forget, you still have 183 more bosses.】
Cheng Zhi Chu: 【……I don"t need to you remind me of these kinds of things!]
【Why don"t you need a reminder? You need to speed up your progress. At this rate, you would probably not be able to collect it all even after you reach 80 years old. Don"t tell me you expect to rely on the beauty of an 80-year-old to seduce those bosses?】
[Stop talking nonsense! Since when did I seduce them?!]
Cheng Zhi Chu and the system bickered as he walked out the villa, officially ending the instance.
In this instance, a cameraman had pa.s.sed away. As this was also a reality instance and the nature of death was equivalent to a murder, Cheng Zhi Chu was originally worried about what he should do but the system rea.s.sured him that he would be revived immediately.
[Revive?]
Cheng Zhi Chu was shocked. He quickly asked: [Is there a resurrection function in this game?]
【Resurrection does not exist. Once a player dies, they cannot be resurrected. To be precise, the cameraman will not be resurrected and instead the instance will be "reset".】
【You should know that some instances in this game can be entered repeatedly. When ever a player clears it, the boss and monsters that were killed would be reset and they would wait for the next batch of players to enter and restart the instance.】
【This is a game mechanism. All elements that are "non-players" can be reset. That cameraman wasn"t a player and just an innocent pa.s.ser-by that met his end so he could be reset and thus resurrected.】
【And because this is a reality instance, it is a special circ.u.mstance. After our research, we feel that it is necessary to modify some people"s memories to avoid unnecessary trouble.】
【Besides you and Ji Yun Xiao who are players and will retain all the memories, the others will have their memories modified. This will include Bai Xi Xing, the program staff and those fans.】
【 However, we won"t change it a lot and would try to keep it as close to the original as possible. As for how they would modify it, you will know if you watch the show when it broadcasts.】
The system suddenly chuckled like it had some bad intentions: 【I have also changed the recording a little. You will have an interesting ident.i.ty.】
Cheng Zhi Chu"s heart dropped: [I"m telling you, don"t do anything unnecessary!]
【Relax, how can I do something unnecessary? It"s actually a good thing for you……】
The system laughed very sneakily, and Cheng Zhi Chu felt more and more uneasy. He quickly walked out of the villa and went to the villa opposite it because he still remembered that Bai Xi Xing had walked out of it earlier in the day.
After all, he currently doesn"t have his phone. The phone was still over at the recording studio and it was quite late now so the bus carrying the fans had left a long time again. This villa location is also very large so he also couldn"t leave on his own.
Fortunately, after ringing the doorbell Bai Xi Xing was in the villa and had come over to greet him.
Seeing that Cheng Zhi Chu had left the villa safely, Bai Xi Xing revealed a smile and spoke up:
"Junior Cheng, I didn"t expect you to be so powerful to actually be able to get rid of the ghost in the villa." As he said this, Bai Xi Xing paused for a moment, "I don"t know if it is too abrupt of me to ask this question but, which master are you under?"
Cheng Zhi Chu: "Ah……Huh?"
Which master? What master? ———f.u.c.k. He now understood. It must be because the system had done something strange to Senior Bai"s memories!
【Heheheheh…………】
The system laughed slyly. The meaning behind it was self-evident.
This trash system. I"ll teach you a lesson when we"re back!
Cheng Zhi Chu"s face changed a little. However, he couldn"t do much about it and could only haphazardly explain to Bai Xi Xing that he didn"t have a master and just got lucky.
Bai Xi Xing just thought that it was something that he couldn"t disclose and didn"t probe any further. He looked down at the time on his phone and said: "It"s already late. How about staying here for the night? I"ll drive you back tomorrow morning."
"How can I do that?!" Cheng Zhi Chu shook his head. He said in a flattered voice: "This is too bothersome for senior."
"It"s not a problem at all. We have plenty of spare rooms here so it"s very convenient. Also, this place is the countryside. If I don"t drop you off, how are you going to get back?"
Bai Xi Xing laughed: "Moreover, I should be the one thanking you. You helped me get rid of the evil spirit in the villa. If not, I would probably die there someday. Anyway, it"s just one night, it"s not a big deal."
"Then……..I"ll have to trouble senior. I"m really sorry about this………."
"Seeing Bai Xi Xing being so considerate and after considering his own situation, Cheng Zhi Chu realised that he indeed didn"t have a means to go back. He could only wait for Bai Xi Xing to send him back to the city tomorrow to pick up his phone and go home."
"Oh, that"s right. I still have senior"s phone here. Thank you senior."
Cheng Zhi Chu took it out from his pocket and pa.s.sed the phone over to Bai Xi Xing. Earlier, he had used it to communicate with the ghost and it was time for him to return it to its original owner.
"You don"t have to thank me." Bai Xi Xing smiled. He raised the phone and said, "Let"s head inside first. After going in, you should call your family and let them know that you won"t be going back tonight."
"Ah…..Yes, I have to call my family." Cheng Zhi Chu scratched his head with slight embarra.s.sment. He had almost forgotten about it.
"Let"s go in. We"ve been standing at the door for too long."
Bai Xi Xing hooked up the corner of his lips and gestured for Cheng Zhi Chu to enter the house. At this moment, the two suddenly heard laughter coming from a villa in the distance. It was a group of drunk young people helping each other out to who-knows-where in the middle of the night.
"Senior, that is?" Cheng Zhi Chu casually asked.
"Probably is some party." Bai Xi Xing shrugged nonchalantly, "Some people just like to play."
Cheng Zhi Chu nodded and was no longer curious. He then casually glanced over to the side and, when he saw a particular figure, his expression suddenly stiffened. He then quickly tried to rush into the villa.
"………Cheng Cheng?"
At this moment, tha man also happened to notice Cheng Zhi Chu standing under the streetlight. The hand that was loosening his tie paused and he immediately walked over. With a magnetic voice that also sounded a little anxious, he called out: "Cheng Cheng!"
f.u.c.k, why did he run into Gu Zhen here!
"Senior, hurry and take me inside!"
Cheng Zhi Chu"s expression was pale as he tugged at Bai Xi Xing"s clothes and pleaded with him. Bai Xi Xing looked at the person approaching them with raised eyebrows and didn"t immediately let Cheng Zhi Chu enter the villa. Instead, he moved in front to shield Cheng Zhi Chu.
Bai Xi Xing spoke to that handsome man with a smile that was also not quite like a smile: “Young master Gu, do you have business with Zhi Chu?"
? Why is senior suddenly calling him by his name?
Cheng Zhi Chu was stunned. That thought flashed through his mind, but he didn"t think much about it and just continued to hide behind Bai Xi Xing. He turned around and tried to avoid eye contact with the oncoming person.
"Sorry Mr Bai. Please move aside."
Gu Zhen"s words were polite and courteous, but the look directed at Bai Xi Xing was very cold.
"Cheng Cheng is my lover. I have something I want to say to him alone, so I won"t bother Mr Bai."
Bai Yi"s Diary (Part 45)
For some reason I"m feeling a little uncomfortable.
Maybe it"s because I haven"t seen Zhi Chu for a long time.
Bai Xi Xing"s Diary (Excerpt)
Although I have been paying attention to Cheng Zhi Chu"s affairs, I didn"t get someone to follow him around 24/7 so I don"t know everything about him.
For example……Huh? When was my cousin cheated on?
Although he isn"t even qualified to be cheated on.
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KK has something to say:
The end of another instance! I can"t help but think that this boss was also rather pitiful…. ?