Everyone subconsciously held their breath as the NPCs appointed two people who would be tasked with guarding the temple tonight. "You and you. You possess the most dedicated heart among all. Do not let us down like the previous two," they warned in a grave tone.
As soon as the NPCs walked away, Fatty collapsed to the sandy ground in devastation. His hefty fra quivered as he questioned his fate, "Why... Why must it be ?! I–I haven’t done anything special at all that can make get chosen!"
On the other side, Xinxin barely regained his bearings after the NPC pointed at him. His complexion was ghastly and fear was etched on his face. However, he was still doing much better than Fatty. He was fully aware that this was a trial he would face sooner or later, so it made no difference whether he was chosen today or tomorrow.
’This is only a low-level Cycle,’ he tried to reassure himself. ’I have gone through two Cycles before this, and I will survive this one as well. Yes, I can do it!’
He clenched his fists and tried to maintain a positive outlook. Shifting his gaze to the side, he noticed Shen Nianzu staring at him, "X–Xiao Shen..."
The little boy rely gave him a look, but Xinxin understood it nonetheless. His gaze turned resolute as he told himself again, ’I will be okay. Xiao Shen will be there with !’ Having witnessed Shen Nianzu’s capability with his own eyes, he did not even feel anything was wrong with relying on an eight years old boy, as the desperate situation had forced him to grab onto any straw that could save his life.
Soon, the players returned to their tent to wash up, and upon entering, Shen Nianzu paused when he saw that Jin Jiuchi was still in the sa position as the last ti he saw him.
Zipping the tent up behind him and making sure that no one was in vicinity, Shen Nianzu placed the water basin on the corner and shuffled forward to shake the man’s awake. "Jin Jiuchi," he whispered in a hushed tone.
When he received no response whatsoever, his heart abruptly sank to the pit of his stomach. No way... it couldn’t be, right? Had Jin Jiuchi’s ti finally run out? Was he unable to hold onto his body anymore, just as he had ntioned before? Shen Nianzu did not even realize how distraught he sounded as he shook Jin Jiuchi harder, crying out, "Jin Jiuchi!"
"Hush," ca the soft reply from the lifeless man that had Shen Nianzu’s heart fall back into place. "Don’t be so loud, Nian’er."
However, his relief instantly morphed into anger once he realized that this damned husky had ignored him on purpose earlier, scaring him again! He grabbed a fistful of Jin Jiuchi’s hair and yanked on it forcefully, earning him a pained yelp. "Can’t you respond faster next ti?" He gnashed his teeth. "And stop being so dramatic. You’re dead anyway, it’s not like you can feel the pain!"
"How cruel!" Jin Jiuchi pushed himself into a sitting position and clutched his chest with a woeful look. "Do the dead not have any rights nowadays?!’
"Damn right," Shen Nianzu sneered, refusing to get swept into the man’s rhythm.
In a few concise sentences, he proceeded to fill Jin Jiuchi in everything that had happened today; the blood-soaked temple hall, the two missing players, Anna’s half-transparent form he had glimpsed upon during the day, as well as his plan to join Xinxin in the temple tonight.
"I’m certain there must be so main clues in the temple, so I have no choice but to go. I need to find out if there’s a thod to bring your counterpart back from the other side. Moreover," he furrowed his brows. "What’s up with Anna? Is she even human?"
Jin Jiuchi chuckled, amused, "Nian’er, you said it yourself that she ca out from the gate of the afterlife. Do you think she can still be human?"
Those words caused Shen Nianzu to fall into deep thoughts. "You’re right. But if she’s not human, what is she? And why did she give us the task to build an oasis behind the temple when it’s clear that no source of water can be found beneath? Does it have to do with the underworld?"
Jin Jiuchi abruptly flopped down on the ground and thrashed his limbs around in a mock tantrum, nearly kicking the water basin with his long legs. "Ugh, Nian’er, don’t make think. My head has been hurting all day!"
Shen Nianzu hurriedly secured the basin before the clear water could be wasted, and he shot a fierce glare at Jin Jiuchi. "Behave, you stupid husky!"
With a huff, he began to wash his hands and face, all the while saying, "The NPCs will co soon to bring Fatty and Xinxin to the temple. I plan to leave after they’re asleep. What about you? Will you tag along or..." he turned around just in ti to see Jin Jiuchi’s smoldering gaze fixed on him – or to be exact, his little bare feet which he had just scrubbed clean.
His cheeks grew warm, and he quickly crossed his legs and hid his feet from sight. As he did not have to dig the pit, he was very clean compared to others. However, he had also sweated a lot during the day, and if he did not wash himself, his skin would beco sticky later at night and make him feel awfully uncomfortable.
He could still kick Jin Jiuchi out and have the tent to himself yesterday because the man was in his animal form, but it was different now. Jin Jiuchi was no longer a dog, and Shen Nianzu couldn’t simply chase him away for fear that his presence would be exposed to the other players.
"W–What are you looking at?!" He mustered his most fierce glare. "Do you not have the basic courtesy to close your eyes when soone else is bathing?!"
Jin Jiuchi stared at him with a mirthful look as if saying, ’What is basic courtesy? Can it be eaten?’ But the words that ca out of his mouth was, "But Nian’er, it’s nothing I have not seen before. Why do I have to close my eyes?"
Shen Nianzu almost choked on his breath and keeled over right there and then. "Y–You have seen ? When?!" He demanded, almost breathless in fluster. Was it yesterday? Or soti during the one week buffer when they spent almost every waking second in each other’s presence?!
Jin Jiuchi blinked innocently and told him in a matter-of-fact tone, "Of course, when we were showering together in Shishen Apartnt."
O–Oh, that’s right. Shen Nianzu had almost forgotten about that. But back then, he had only taken his top off in front of Jin Jiuchi, and not entirely naked! "Whatever," he snapped grumpily. "Turn around and close your eyes. Don’t open them unless I tell you so!"
"Hmph, how stingy..." Jin Jiuchi murmured under his breath, but Shen Nianzu heard him nonetheless. Under the jade doll’s murderous glare, he could only comply and turn around. He even slapped a hand over his eyes for good asure. "How about now?"
"Stay still." Shen Nianzu wiped himself up and changed out of his dirty clothes in a hurry, all the while keeping a vigilant look on Jin Jiuchi’s back to make sure that the man would not go back on his words. And surprisingly, he did not. Releasing a sigh of relief, Shen Nianzu told him, "Okay, you can open your eyes now."
Monts later, the NPCs returned to take Xinxin and Fatty away.
Shen Nianzu could hear the man crying and pleading, "I won’t go! I don’t want to go... please!!" But his words fell on deaf ears as the two NPCs forcefully dragged him toward the temple, and as a NEET who only sat in front of his computer and munched on snacks all day long, he was no match for the two bulky NPCs.
His despairing cries grew fainter and fainter, until it gradually vanished into the distance.
The night swiftly descended in the desert, and the temperature began to plumt toward the freezing point. Learning from his previous experience, Shen Nianzu wrapped himself in a few layers of warm blanket, while Jin Jiuchi sat sullen on the side for he had no chance to hold the jade doll in his arms anymore.
Shen Nianzu picked up his ears to listen, and as soon as he confird that the two NPCs had returned to their tent, he put the blankets away and asked Jin Jiuchi, "Ready?"
Jin Jiuchi nodded and gave him an ’OK’ gesture.
Alas, before Shen Nianzu could signal for Jin Jiuchi to leave, faint noises suddenly resounded from a nearby tent. Shen Nianzu’s movents halted and an imperceptible frown appeared on his forehead. Apart from themselves, Jiang Shun and Lang Zhenya were the only remaining players in the vicinity. Could it be—
"Ah, ah!" The indistinct cries, that were faint at first, steadily grew louder and louder until it echoed in the air. "Jiang Shun, t–too fast!! Hngg, it feels so good!" Intermingled with the soft and coy moans were a man’s heavy grunts, ragged breathing and the indecent sounds of flesh slapping against flesh.
As the realization sank in, Shen Nianzu’s purple eyes instantly flew wide and his face exploded in flas. T–Those two... what did they think they were doing here?!!
Amidst the loud pounding of his heart, the hair on Shen Nianzu’s neck stood on its end once he sensed a presence behind him, followed by a whisper beside his ear that was full of undisguised curiosity, "Nian’er, do you hear it?"
.
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Mini theater
Dark JJ’s honest thoughts when looking at Shen Nianzu’s petite feet: Those pretty little toes look sweet...
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