The Key NPC

"If I do what you're saying, will you let me sleep with you tonight?"

This again! How come he didn't know Yu Chen was a pervert? No, he still didn't know whether the ghost in front of him was Yu Chen for real. Xie Ai gritted his teeth and nodded. "I will. Save them!"

He held the knife tighter in his hands as he watched the man continue to stare at him as he caressed his cheeks. The man finally said, "I'll face so many consequences, you know?"

"Really? Like what?"

The man said nothing and continued to stare as if he were trying to engrave the man's image deep into his consciousness. Then he suddenly leaned over, pecking the white haired guy's cheeks. "I'm sorry."

Xie Ai's heart jumped to his throat once again. He opened his mouth as he asked, "W-what are you sorry for?"

The ghost shook his head and smiled, placing his palms on either of Xie Ai's cheeks. "I can't save you anymore. Just…. You'll find what you're looking for on the top floor of this building. Hurry up."

Before Xie Ai could say another word, he felt the palms on his cheeks get lighter and lighter until they disappeared. The man's face had a smile on it as he said, "Good bye."

Xie Ai raised his hand as if he wanted to catch the person's shadow, but he ended up with nothing but deep coldness at that spot. Then, even the coldness disappeared, revealing a throne room. Except for the empty throne, everything had returned to normal.

Even his two friends, who had disappeared a while ago, came back with bloody swords in their hands. They had layers of sweat on their foreheads, indicating they had had a fierce fight. Both of their clothes were even torn as they looked at one another and chuckled.

Xie Ai ignored them and looked around, trying to find that ghost once again, but he couldn't. His face was full of anxiety as he turned toward the throne and walked toward that place.

"I didn't know I'd get to fight you." Qi Jingguo clicked his tongue. "I missed this feeling."

Yu Weimin nodded but said nothing. They didn't say a word about what they had faced in the hallucination, but they both had a trace of joy in their eyes.

The two of them finally noticed Xie Ai behaving strangely as Yu Weimin's eyes narrowed.

Xie Ai searched the throne from top to bottom, even ended up counting all the cracks and traces of mold all over the place, but he couldn't see any evidence of that person.

He suddenly remembered what the man said.

First, Yu Chen seemed to be under someone else's control.

Second, he did something that could be harmful to him just to listen to Xie Ai's words.

The latter's face paled as he got up and walked toward the door in a daze.

A hand suddenly placed itself on his shoulder, jerking him out of his daze. He turned back to face Yu Weimin's narrowed eyes. "Something happened, didn't it?"

"Looking at your face, it must have something to do with Yu Chen." Qi Jingguo's eyes were covered with traces of worry as he walked over. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Xie Ai opened his mouth and closed it, shaking his head. He whispered, "Let's go to the shrine first."

Qi Jingguo clicked his tongue. "Wipe your face first."

"Wipe my face….?" Xie Ai raised his hand and touched his cheeks, only to find them wet.

His face twisted for the second time as he wiped them fiercely. Then he cleared his throat, walking outside into the corridor like nothing had happened.

The three of them started walking, as Xie Ai's pace was faster than ever. He didn't even fear the open ground this time, as he dashed at the fastest speed possible while raising his little knife into the air. So every time a gust of wind passed through him, his knife did the job of protecting him.

Of course, since he wasn't careful enough, he got several injuries, but they really weren't worth it. All of his mind was focused on Yu Chen as he rushed about and finally reached the other building.

But he still didn't stop there. He got to the staircase as he climbed up the stairs one after another, reaching the top after a while. By the time he reached it, he was gasping for breath.

He only stopped for a moment as he leaned against the wall. His friends had also arrived by then, as he nodded at them and walked toward the shrine with an anxious face.

The moment he entered, the darkness surrounding the place increased. There was a cloud of mist covering the ceiling as the black and red threads spread around the place, and they seemed to have increased in number.

The deity was similarly broken, but there wasn't anything else. Earlier, when they had arrived here, they were immediately sucked into a hallucination, but right now, even the hallucination or whatever it was didn't occur.

He stood there, trying to touch those threads, but they only passed through him, gracefully revolving in the air. Tears finally poured down his cheeks as he fell to his knees, staring at the broken deity in front of him.

Qi Jingguo spoke first. "Xie Ai, you don't have to tell me what makes you feel uncomfortable, okay?"

"No, I have to…" Xie Ai's voice trembled at this time as he wiped his face. "He said… There's something on the top floor of the building opposite this…."

His eyes widened at these words as he quickly stared at his friends. "It can't be that Yu Chen was the key NPC we were all searching for, right?"

"Why are you talking in the past tense?"

Xie Ai's attention went to the moment where the man had disappeared as his breath trembled. His lips parted, and he said, "He…. He won't appear anymore."

"What do you mean? What did you do?"

Xie Ai only shook his head, refusing to say another word. He would never tell them the truth about this matter since it also involved them.

Yu Weimin finally spoke, "Alright. Tomorrow, we will go and see what's there on the top floor."