The noise of the victory celebration banquet seemed to have been muted.

Su Nian stared at the corner; the man in the waiter's uniform was nowhere to be seen, as if the strange eye contact and cold smile from just moments ago were merely hallucinations born of her heightened tension. But the text message from an unknown number on her phone screen clung there like a venomous snake, clearly reminding her—it wasn't a hallucination.

[Good job. "The Key" lives up to its name. We'll see each other again soon.]

The term "Key"... this name, like an icicle, instantly pierced the fleeting passion and excitement of the e-sports world, pulling her back to the cold and dangerous reality of her entanglement with the "Star Skeleton" organization. Had this organization, hidden behind the e-sports storm, already extended its tentacles here? Or was there some kind of connection between Lin Qi and "Star Skeleton"?

"What's wrong?" Xie Chen keenly noticed Su Nian's sudden stiffness and change in expression. He immediately leaned down, following her gaze to the empty corner, his brows furrowed, his voice carrying a barely perceptible tension, "What did you see?"

Su Nian quickly composed herself, turned off her phone screen, and turned to Xie Chen with a reassuring smile, saying, "It's nothing, I'm just a little tired and my eyes are blurry." She couldn't reveal the "Star Remains" here, in front of everyone. That would drag Xie Chen and the entire NF team into a deeper danger beyond their comprehension.

Xie Chen gazed at her, her image clearly reflected in his deep eyes, filled with complete trust, yet also a lingering doubt. He didn't press her, but instead tightened his grip on her hand, as if to confirm her presence and safety. "Let's go back when we're tired."

He turned to Manager Wang and the coach, who were still excitedly discussing, and said, "She's tired. I'll take her home to rest." His tone was one of unquestionable certainty.

Seeing Su Nian's slightly pale face (partly feigned, partly genuinely shocked by the text message), Manager Wang quickly nodded, "Okay, okay, Sister Nian, you've worked hard today. Go back and rest! Leave the rest to us!"

Xie Chen said no more, put his arm around Su Nian's shoulder, and in a protective gesture, walked through the noisy crowd and left the celebration banquet. His back was tall and cold, shutting out all the speculation and discussion.

Back at the base, in the quiet space that belonged to the two of them, that clingy dependence became even more pronounced in Xie Chen.

He followed Su Nian almost step by step back to her room. As soon as the door closed, he gently wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, rested his chin on her neck like a large dog seeking comfort, took a deep breath, and felt her light scent lingering around his nose. Only then did his tense nerves seem to relax a little.

"Today... was great," he said in a muffled voice, his tone a mixture of relief and lingering fear. Heaven knows how much willpower he needed to resist the urge to take Su Nian away when he was at the exhibition match, with countless eyes staring at Su Nian, some of them possibly harboring ill intentions.

Su Nian relaxed her body, leaning against him, feeling the warmth and strong heartbeat from his chest. The chill that had risen in her heart because of the "Star Skeleton" text message was dispelled somewhat. She patted his hand wrapped around her waist, her tone light and teasing: "Of course, don't you know whose support I am?"

Xie Chen gave a soft "hmm," tightening his arms around her, almost greedily absorbing her warmth and presence. Today, Su Nian on the field shone brightly—calm, powerful, and perfectly in tune with him. She was so beautiful that it made his heart tremble, and it also stirred a hidden unease deep within him like weeds—could he truly hold onto someone so wonderful? Would she one day, like before, suddenly disappear, leaving him alone in the abyss of despair?

This extreme fear of loss, originating from the depths of his soul, forms the cornerstone of his yandere core. He needs to fill that unease through close, even obsessive, possession and reassurance.

"From now on... don't face those kinds of situations alone anymore." He whispered, his voice carrying a hint of vulnerability and domineering power. "Tell me about everything, and wait for me."

Su Nian's heart stirred slightly; she could clearly sense the undercurrent of his emotions. She turned around to face him, cupped his face in her hands, and made him look directly into her eyes. His eyes were deep, like a night sky hiding stars, yet at this moment they clearly reflected her image, filled with complete dependence and a hint of unease.

"Okay." She agreed earnestly, her fingertips gently tracing the slight furrow in his brow. "I won't face this alone. We'll stay together until we win that championship, okay?"

This is both a promise and a reassurance.

Xie Chen stared intently at her, as if trying to etch her image into the depths of his soul. After a long while, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he pulled her into a tight embrace again, so tightly that she almost suffocated, as if he wanted to crush her and integrate her into his own bones and blood.

"Mmm." He uttered a muffled and hoarse single syllable, with a resolute determination that came with a do-or-die attitude, "The championship, and you, I want them both."

The resounding success of the exhibition match completely cleared Su Nian's name, causing her popularity to skyrocket. The "Silent Couple" (a nickname for the couple) also reached unprecedented heights, becoming a phenomenal traffic driver in the esports world. NF team seized the opportunity and officially announced that Su Nian had joined the team as a support player to compete in the upcoming Summer Split.

The official announcement was accompanied by a photo of Su Nian wearing the NF team uniform. In the photo, she has a calm look in her eyes and a confident smile on her lips, forming a wonderful composition with Xie Chen next to her, who is expressionless but has his eyes focused on her.

The internet is buzzing with excitement, and the anticipation for a new bot lane duo in the game has become the mainstream sentiment.

However, the battle in the shadows has not stopped.

The league's investigation into Lin Qi is ongoing, but progress is slow. Lin Qi has deep roots in the esports scene and intricate connections with the capital behind the tG team, making it difficult to find direct evidence to convict him. He himself has acted as if nothing is amiss, even feigning magnanimity when asked about the matter by reporters at a business event, stating that he "believes the league will handle it fairly and doesn't want personal grudges to affect the league environment"—a masterful performance.

On the other hand, Su Nian secretly instructed 088 to try and trace the source of the text message, but the result was like throwing a stone into the sea. The number was an unregistered black card, the location of the base station sending the signal was unclear and went through multiple hops before finally disappearing overseas. The other party clearly had extremely high counter-surveillance capabilities.

"Star Skeleton" is like a giant beast hidden in the deep sea, only occasionally revealing a scale or claw, yet it sends chills down one's spine.

After training that day, Xie Chen was called to a meeting by Manager Wang, seemingly to discuss negotiations with a new sponsor. Su Nian returned to her room alone. Just as she closed the door and prepared to wash up, the room light flickered briefly before going completely out!

Is there a power outage?

The base has backup power, which usually restores power within seconds. But this time, the darkness lasted for almost a minute. In this unusual silence and darkness, Su Nian keenly sensed an extremely faint yet chilling aura permeating the air—similar to the interference she felt at the "Star Remains" outpost, a mixture of negative energy and lingering soul echoes!

She immediately became alert, and the power of the Ice Soul quietly circulated within her body, ready to be unleashed.

The backup power finally kicked in, and the lights came back on.

Everything seemed to have returned to normal. But Su Nian's gaze suddenly fixed on the desk by the window—

There, where she had once carefully tended a thriving little cactus, now stood, that resilient plant was rapidly withering and turning black before her very eyes, finally turning into a small clump of black ash, as if some invisible force had instantly drained all its life force!

At the same time, the Starry Ice and Snow Brooch that Su Nian wore around her neck, which had been silent all along, suddenly emitted an extremely faint yet incredibly sharp stinging sensation!

This is not a dormant state due to energy depletion, but rather... a warning! It is a strong rejection of some malicious and destructive force!

Su Nian's pupils contracted sharply, and her heart sank.

This was not an accident.

The "Star Remains"... or forces related to "Star Remains," have infiltrated the NF base! Their goal is clearly not just to interfere with the match!

Just then, the door was pushed open, and Xie Chen walked in. His face showed a hint of weariness from reminiscing, but when he saw Su Nian standing in front of the desk, staring solemnly at the cactus that had turned to ashes, his weariness was instantly replaced by vigilance.

"Niannian?" He walked a few steps to her side, followed her gaze, and his brows immediately furrowed. "What's going on?"

Su Nian took a deep breath, knowing she couldn't hide it any longer. At the very least, he needed to know about the potential threats within the base.

She pointed to the clump of black ash, her tone heavy: "There was a brief power outage of one minute, and then it turned into this." She paused, looked up at Xie Chen, her eyes filled with unprecedented seriousness, "Xie Chen, I think... we might be being targeted, and not just at the level of Lin Qi. There might be... something more dangerous in the base."

She didn't directly say "star remains," but she believed Xie Chen would understand the implication in her words. They shared a soul connection; some feelings didn't need to be spoken.

Xie Chen's face instantly darkened, a terrifying storm raging in his eyes. He reached out, his fingertips lightly touching the cold ash, a familiar yet utterly repulsive sensation of residual energy traveling up his fingertips. He clenched his fist tightly, his knuckles cracking.

He looked up, surveying the space he had thought was safe, his eyes sharpening like a hawk's, filled with the rage and murderous intent of someone whose territory had been invaded.

He pulled Su Nian close, shielding her tightly behind him, his voice as cold as the Siberian wind:

"It seems that some insects are just eager to die."

He looked down at the brooch around Su Nian's neck, which still seemed to be slightly warm, and a look of understanding and deeper solemnity flashed in his eyes.

"Don't be afraid." He pulled her closer, his voice low but carrying a resolute promise, "With me here, no one can touch you."

However, even in his strong and warm embrace, Su Nian's heart was not completely at peace.

She clearly felt that, through the soul link, besides Xie Chen's undeniable protectiveness, there was also a trace of... an extremely subtle, seemingly originating from the very source of his soul, a tremor of some unknown power and... a faint resonance?

This feeling was fleeting, but it set off alarm bells in Su Nian's mind.

Could there be some other connection between Xie Chen and the power of "Star Remains" besides hatred, that she is unaware of?

(End of Chapter 91)