Translator: CinderTL
Perhaps this is what corruption feels like.
The Wu within him was constantly eroding his consciousness. Once he completely lost awareness, his body would become an empty shell.
Wu would take his place, living in this world.
At that point, he might become another supernatural event on the website, waiting for future generations to solve.
What should they call me?
Leaning his hands against the mirror, Jiang Cheng suddenly had this thought. His Shadow stood silently behind him, as if nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, in an abandoned park a few hundred meters from the studio, a black van approached.
Its license plate was covered, and it moved slowly. As it passed a fence, the door suddenly swung open, and a bulky figure in a burlap sack was kicked out.
"Ouch!" The figure rolled several times on the ground before stopping.
When Fatty finally freed himself from the sack, covered in dirt and grime, the black van was long gone. In the distance, a row of streetlights cast a faint glow, and Fatty's face lit up with joy.
He recognized the deli on the side of the road. It was long closed, but its sign was still lit.
This place wasn't far from the Doctor's studio. Every time Fatty went to the market, he had to pass by here. He vaguely remembered a deserted park nearby, and he figured the Doctor must be there.
Without hesitation, Fatty immediately ran toward the studio.
The moment he knocked on the door and saw the Doctor, Fatty almost burst into tears. "Doctor, I thought I'd never see you again!"
Jiang Cheng was secretly pleased to see Fatty back, but he maintained a stern expression. "What are you doing here?"
"Doctor, I know who's behind all this! It's the Night Watcher!" Fatty sat down on the sofa without any formality, gesturing wildly as he recounted his ordeal. "I'd just left when—guess who I ran into?"
"Who?" Jiang Cheng took a sip of his coffee, his tone casual.
"An Xuan!" Fatty's eyes widened.
Jiang Cheng's expression shifted slightly, perfectly matching Fatty's excitement. "Him? Was he alone?"
Fatty's eyes darted around. "No, there were seven or eight burly men. We fought for a long time in the downpour, but they eventually overwhelmed me with their numbers. They knocked me unconscious and carried me away."
Jiang Cheng considered An Xuan's skills and finally took a deep breath. "Go on."
"Then they locked me up and tortured me every day," Fatty said, growing more animated. "Chili water, the tiger bench, hanging me upside down, even threatening me with a branding iron—all to force me to reveal information about you."
"But who is Wang Fugui? I'd never betray a brother! I didn't utter a single word about you!" Fatty radiated righteous indignation. "Seeing my unyielding spirit, they realized I was a man of iron will. So they tried to corrupt me with beauty. They summoned several beautiful young ladies to..."
Seeing Jiang Cheng's darkening expression, Fatty abruptly cut off the story about his intellectual sparring with the young ladies. "Doctor," he whispered, "I think their real target was you. I was just taking a bullet for you."
"Mm, I understand," Jiang Cheng nodded.
Fatty's eyes darted around restlessly. When he realized the doctor had no intention of keeping him, he turned to Jiang Cheng with a look of genuine sincerity and said, "Doctor, Miss Lin isn't here. You need to be extra careful on your own. After all, you're alone. Even tigers have their moments of weakness!"
He deliberately emphasized the word "alone."
"Alright," Jiang Cheng replied, lowering his head to fiddle with his phone.
The atmosphere suddenly turned awkward. Fatty had been blindfolded in a sack all the way here, and he was both thirsty and hungry. More importantly, he was terrified of being kidnapped again once he stepped out the gate. Without the doctor, he was nothing more than a pathetic weakling with a combat power of five.
"Grrrrumble..." Fatty's stomach let out an embarrassing growl. As soon as he'd entered, he'd caught the aroma of instant noodles wafting through the air—Kangshuaifu Braised Beef Noodle.
"There's food in the fridge. Help yourself," Jiang Cheng said, casually picking up a newspaper and leaning back on the sofa to read, showing no intention of acknowledging Fatty. "But before you eat, take a shower and change your clothes. I just cleaned the second floor. Don't make a mess."
Fatty's eyes lit up at the news. He scrambled to his feet. "Great, great! Don't worry, Doctor."
After showering, Fatty headed straight for the kitchen. "Doctor!" his voice echoed from within. "Are you hungry? I can make you a midnight snack. How about steak? Brother Pi Ruan brought some over the other day."
Jiang Cheng sat at his computer desk, the rhythmic clatter of his keyboard filling the room. "Sure," he replied casually.
After finishing the steak, Fatty felt like he'd regained half his life. He leaned back on the sofa, letting out a satisfied burp. "Doctor, have you run into any trouble lately? I had a nightmare the other night where I saw you arguing with someone and getting beaten to death for being too mouthy. It scared me so badly I woke up in a cold sweat."
Jiang Cheng glanced sideways at the chubby man, regretting that he hadn't let the middle-aged men give him a good beating before letting him return.
Since he needed Fatty for the dungeon run, Jiang Cheng told him about recent events, but left out anything about Lin Wan'er, knowing that Fatty's mouth was no different from a loudspeaker.
"Boss Lin, I have no objections, but is this Huai Yi reliable?" Fatty asked anxiously, worried that if he wasn't around, Jiang Cheng would be swindled without even realizing it.
"It should be fine. I told him I'm Crimson. He wouldn't dare mess with me," Jiang Cheng explained.
Fatty gave him a thumbs-up, praising, "When it comes to being a scoundrel, you're the best, Doctor. Your mind is constantly spewing out evil schemes. Who would even think of impersonating Crimson?"
"But Doctor, your decision to bring Chen Qiang into the fold was brilliant. I knew he was the right choice," Fatty continued. "He's definitely not Crimson."
Fatty's words suddenly made Jiang Cheng feel uneasy. Fatty's mouth was like a divinely blessed oracle—good things never came true, but bad things always did.
"I... I'll think about it some more," Jiang Cheng hesitated before saying.
"When do we move?"
"Two days from now," Jiang Cheng replied. "I have something else to take care of before then."
"Understood, Doctor."
Late that night, lying on his familiar sofa bed, Fatty's happiness meter was maxed out. He turned his head to look at Jiang Cheng's bedroom and saw the door ajar, half-open.
Fatty had once speculated endlessly about why the Night Watcher had captured him, but he couldn't make sense of it no matter how hard he tried. In the end, he simply gave up thinking about it.
He decided to leave the problem-solving to the Doctor.
The next morning, just as dawn broke, Lin Wan'er arrived. After a few simple questions, she let Fatty go, which came as a huge relief.
(End of the Chapter)
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