Chapter 81

"..." Pei Yuheng stared at the cleaning tools in Xie Xubai's hand and fell silent.

He tried to comfort himself, saying that people generally don't follow basic logic when they're looking for trouble.

But he looked up and glanced around the dirty and messy private room.

Bottles of liquor lay scattered about, cigarette butts burned into the table. Wrinkled clothes were strewn everywhere, and the stench of alcohol and cigarette smoke was stifling and pungent.

Pei Yuheng didn't understand the significance of keeping such a place clean.

Not only was he puzzled, but the other rich kids, holding their wine bottles, were equally bewildered as Xie Xubai burst through the door with a loud bang.

Startled, someone couldn't help but tremble, spilling the wine from the overturned bottle and causing it to spill all over their lower back.

This wasn't ordinary liquor; it had been kept warm in an ice bucket for three hours, with a cool, white mist still floating on the bottle. He was so cold he immediately clutched his crotch and jumped up and down, yelling, "Holy crap! Where's the paper?! Where's the paper?!"

Chaos ensued immediately.

Those around him scrambled to find tissues to wipe the wine away. The others, regaining their senses, glared at Xie Xubai and gestured with their chins toward the magician: "Xu Yang, what's up with this guy?"

This wasn't part of their playful and hedonistic script.

Moreover, after Xie Xubai entered, he only spoke to Pei Yuheng, completely ignoring the others.

When the cleaning staff brought their tools over, this person's gaze lingered more on the cleaning staff's faces than on them.

A group of spoiled brats, who are usually the center of attention and the center of attention, can hardly stand being looked down upon.

This bar's VIP rooms require a card to enter.

Xie Xubai didn't have a card, so he could only have been led in by the magician.

The group of people stopped what they were doing at the same time, including the two who were still wiping their pants, and stared intently at the magician, as if demanding an explanation from him.

bite.

A system notification sounded.

Please adhere to your current role and do not violate the character's established traits.

At that moment, the notification sound didn't ring in the magician's head.

A cool breeze brushed against his ear, as if a cold, lifeless ghost were close by, blowing out icy breath that made the hairs on the back of his head stand on end.

The rich kids also looked very abnormal, their faces as pale as paper, their eyes bulging out as if stiff, moving up and down with the magician's movements, staring intently, like living dead who had smelled the stench of flesh, ready to pounce at any moment.

Having weathered so many storms, the magician quickly realized that this was a harbinger of the impending doom.

He violated the character's established rules!

As a bullying young master who colludes with this group, how could he possibly bring in an outsider before taking action against Pei Yuheng, and ignore Xie Xubai's arrogant attitude?

The magician and Xie Xubai were only working together temporarily, so there was no real teammate affection between them.

Between playing the original owner of the body and covering for Xie Xubai, he naturally chose the former. He gruffly questioned Xie Xubai, preparing to turn the tables and distance himself: "What's going on? I'm wondering the same thing. I say, Pei Yu, you... ummmmm!"

Before he could finish speaking, golden spiritual energy shot out, bound the magician tightly, and threw him onto the sofa, even gagging him.

The magician looked up in surprise and met Xie Xubai's gaze.

From those calm and unwavering eyes, he instantly realized that Xie Xubai's earlier emphasis on "I will take the lead in the whole event" was definitely not just empty talk.

While bewildered, he was also astonished by Xie Xubai's decisive and ruthless actions, which showed no hesitation whatsoever.

However, it's better to take action directly. Anyone with eyes can see Xie Xubai attacking the magician, and they certainly won't consider the two of them to be in cahoots.

All the sinister gazes that had been fixed on the magician shifted to Xie Xubai.

—The rich kids believed it; they thought Xie Xubai had tricked and kidnapped the magician to help Pei Yuheng out of trouble.

One of them shouted angrily, "How dare you come here and cause trouble for our place without even finding out who these young masters are? Beat him up!"

The others immediately rolled up their sleeves and stood up. Their bodies, which had been drained of energy by indulging in wine and women, suddenly swelled up and became tall and imposing when they were angry.

At the same time, the bluish-black corpse aura enveloping their faces became even stronger, and a faint stench seemed to permeate the air, sending chills down one's spine.

It turns out they had already transformed into monsters.

Several people rushed forward at once, their huge shadows looming over them, creating an extremely oppressive atmosphere.

Xie Xu rolled his eyes without blinking, and his golden spiritual power transformed into a long whip that swept across the air. With a loud "whoosh!", everyone was knocked off their feet.

"ah!!"

The wealthy young men never expected that Xie Xubai, who looked so thin, would be so ruthless.

If they had seen before what methods Xie Xubai used to deal with the Thousand-Faced Monster in Yan Shuo's consciousness world, they would probably have knelt down on the spot.

At this moment, they still clung to the hope that "I can fight back," baring their teeth and yelling, "You son of a bitch, ah!"

When Xie Xubai was disciplining them, he only used his mental energy, put his hands in the pockets of his white coat, and stood there calmly watching them scatter around the room with their heads in their hands, without even raising an eyebrow.

His eyes, with their indifferent light color resembling crystal, exuded an imposing aura that made the group dart about, none daring to approach him even a fraction of an inch.

After being whipped until their skin was torn and bleeding, the men immediately lost their spirit, writhing on the ground in pain and begging for mercy.

"Who are you? My parents are rich, please don't kill me!"

"Brother, spare us! Hero, spare us! We were blind just now, please spare us!"

"They're the ones causing you trouble, it has nothing to do with me!"

...

The VIP rooms have excellent soundproofing, and besides, these scumbags had already spoken to the bartenders beforehand about their dirty scheme.

Even if someone heard the commotion, they wouldn't come over; they would just secretly marvel at how cleverly these young masters were playing.

The rich kids screamed and wailed at the top of their lungs, but they couldn't get a single staff member to help them. They tasted the bitter fruit of their actions and cowered in a corner in fear.

Thinking of Pei Yuheng's past experiences, Xie Xubai felt no pity for these people.

He pondered, considering the possibility of uprooting the families behind them who had aided and abetted the evildoers.

He made a decision that once this matter was resolved, he would definitely put the establishment of a law enforcement organization on the agenda when he returned.

When the group was on the verge of death, Xie Xubai used his mental power to bind the spoiled young men tightly, hanging them upside down in the center of the room.

The monsters are incredibly strong; as long as they have a breath left, these people won't die.

Looking at the terrified, speechless "Hanged Men" before him, the magician swallowed hard and subtly shrank back.

He was wrong; he shouldn't have doubted Xie Xubai's heartlessness and indifference.

Compared to these guys who were beaten to a pulp, he was treated so gently, being tied up and thrown on the sofa.

Xie Xubai turned to look at Pei Yuheng, who was standing there stiffly, and reminded him, "What are you still standing there for?"

Pei Yuheng wasn't just stunned; he was completely caught off guard.

He works in the field of biotechnology; he can tell whether an organism is alive or dead with the naked eye.

So why did the bodies of these rich kids suddenly become like corpses? Large patches of lividity spread across their bodies, turning brown or even black, indicating that they had been dead for at least three or four days.

Why was Xie Xubai able to use that strange golden light as a weapon? And why did everyone present seem completely unsurprised?

Originally filled with questions, Pei Yuheng suddenly awoke as he watched the light whip lashing powerfully in mid-air.

He reflexively and unnaturally shrank back, his muscles tensing almost imperceptibly, but when he heard Xie Xubai's question, he suddenly came back to his senses.

"I..." Pei Yuheng tried to remain calm, but his mind was in turmoil. Meeting Xie Xubai's eyes, he felt somewhat at a loss. He forced himself to remain composed and asked, "Was that Taoist magic or immortal technique you used just now?"

Pei Yuheng is not a completely ignorant human being. He once inadvertently glimpsed the true nature of the world and came to find Xu Yang and others in order to seek the truth.

Those who glimpse the true nature of the bizarre world often go mad and turn into monsters because they cannot accept the forbidden knowledge.

But there are also exceptions like Xie Xubai.

Lu Xiangcai was convinced that Xie Xubai was the only human who would not turn into a monster.

Xie Xubai, however, felt that this was not entirely true, citing Pei Yuheng as an example.

He didn't sense any strange aura from Pei Yuheng. Either he hadn't fully awakened yet, or he had encountered an unbearable upheaval later, causing a mental breakdown and turning into a ghoul.

At this moment, Pei Yuheng racked his brains trying to explain the current scene with his self-awareness, much like Xie Xubai's bewildered state when he first awakened.

Xie Xubai desperately wanted to reveal the whole truth.

If he helps Pei Yuheng gradually understand the truth of this world, just as Lü Xiangcai helped him, perhaps Pei Yuheng can become the second human who will not be alienated, just like him.

However, Xie Xubai had only just had this thought.

thump!

A rapid heartbeat came from his chest, and the palpitations were hard to ignore, causing Xie Xubai to unconsciously frown.

This was the power of the rules warning him that Pei Yuheng had to develop obsessive-compulsive disorder, had to perfect all the settings, and could not hinder the great process of history.

Otherwise, the First Hospital, including Pei Yuheng's hospital, would cease to exist—a butterfly flapping its wings in the long river of history can stir up a storm that is enough to cause annihilation.

Xie Xubai replied, "It's neither Taoist magic nor immortal arts."

Seeing that Pei Yuheng still wanted to ask more questions, Xie Xubai raised his hand to interrupt him: "Stop talking nonsense and do what I asked you to do first. Once I can see your sincerity, I will naturally tell you everything you want to know."

The magician couldn't help but twitch his forehead upon hearing these impolite and demanding words.

But Pei Yuheng simply composed himself and began cleaning.

He first took off his large, cumbersome black jacket, then rummaged through his cleaning tools and found a stain-resistant apron, which he neatly wrapped around his waist.

The shirt sleeves were casually rolled up to the elbows, revealing the well-defined muscles of the forearms. The wrist bones were thin and prominent, the skin was very thin, and a few slender blood vessels were faintly visible on the pale skin.

It looks frail, but it's actually quite strong.

Xie Xubai remembered that they first met on a street in the middle of summer. Knowing that Pei Yuheng was coming, his mother prepared a table full of delicious food in advance and was busy in the kitchen. She then asked him to come to the door to greet him.

He squatted under the shade of a tree, watching the flow of people coming and going at the intersection.

The cicadas chirped incessantly in the height of summer, their calls making him dizzy and drenched in sweat.

Until a pair of large hands reached over his head, their skin as soft and cool as silk, dispelling the summer heat, and gently lifted him up.

Even though Xie Xubai had never met Pei Yuheng before, he could recognize him at a glance when he was a child.

He didn't know if it was because the person was good-looking or because he was too hot to think clearly, but he asked the person with a dry and expectant look on his face: Uncle Pei, are you my father?

Xie Xubai couldn't remember Pei Yuheng's reaction at the time, only that those big hands gently rubbed his head again and again, and then he was carried to buy ice cream.

The ice cream melted before Xie Xubai realized it, dripping down the stick and onto his lips so fast he didn't have time to react.

He panicked, afraid that the ice cream would drip down and stain his clothes and Uncle Pei, so he quickly reached out to catch it.

But before that, Pei Yuheng reached out his hand first.

Those clean, beautiful hands, exuding the cool scent of pine and cypress, wiped his lips without any hesitation, letting the sticky ice cream water soak all over their hands.

As a child, Xie Xubai had a question: why did Uncle Pei tell his mother that all the adoption procedures were completed, and later his mother turned into a star in the sky, and the people from the children's welfare home came three times in succession, but Pei Yuheng did not show up to adopt him.

Xie Xubai now realizes, to some extent, that Pei Yuheng was preoccupied with his own problems at the time and missed the opportunity due to a series of unforeseen events.

Pei Yuheng filled the bucket with water, poured in the cleaning agent, picked up a rag and a small shovel, and began to carefully clean the tiles.

People who don't do housework regularly can't perform this set of movements smoothly.

The magician couldn't help but be suspicious.

In the original owner Xu Yang's memory, Pei Yuheng was a member of the collateral branch of the Fu family. He had maids and servants to serve him. He was a young master who never lifted a finger. How could he be so skilled at doing odd jobs?

Pei Yuheng wiped a single tile two or three times over, as if he had a slight case of obsessive-compulsive disorder...

Just as the magician was thinking this, he heard Xie Xubai's reminder.

"Look, is this place even clean? You can't wait to move it?"

Pei Yuheng paused, staring at the spot Xie Xubai was pointing to. After a long while, he finally saw a grain of sand-like grime in the crack between the tiles, which was as thin as a hair.

Pei Yuheng: "..."

He paused for two seconds, then used a small shovel to scrape off the mud.

However, this is not the end.

"Can't you see that huge wine stain here?"

"When I say inside and outside the room, I'm including the ceiling, of course. You say you're too short? If you can't reach it, move a chair over, stand on it, and use the telescopic pole."

"Who would leave the sink completely wet when cleaning? Wipe it clean now, don't leave things to do until the end."

The blood of the wealthy young men dripped onto the floor, turning a filthy black. Xie Xubai pointed and said, "And this—"

With a snap, Pei Yuheng expressionlessly slammed the mop head onto the floor where the blood was.

In an instant, sewage splashed out, soaking Xie Xubai's trouser legs.

Xie Xubai met the eyes of his Uncle Pei, which seemed to be overflowing with murderous intent. He twitched his eyelashes almost imperceptibly and said calmly, "Try not to clean it like this, it will cause big problems."

Pei Yuheng said coldly, "Is that so? Forgive my ignorance, but I would like to trouble this expert to tell me what problems might arise?"

Xie Xubai shifted his gaze and channeled his mental energy to stimulate the few drops of blood.

A few streaks of golden light fell on the filthy black blood, and the blood that had been feigning death immediately began to convulse as if it had come alive, waving its long, thin tentacles wildly.

Just like the flesh and blood that Fu Zong detached from his body, this detached blood can also attack people!

They seemed to possess a certain level of intelligence, realizing that Xie Xubai was not easy to deal with, and immediately spread their antennae like spiders kicking their legs, viciously pouncing on Pei Yuheng on the other side.

Pei Yuheng didn't have time to dodge and hurriedly put his arm in front of his eyes.

Xie Xubai pulled him aside in time, and a golden light swept by, enveloping and binding the blood.

Even when caught, these little creatures wouldn't stop, their filthy tentacles flailing about, even scraping a deep, long crack in the wall!

As he stared at the crack, Pei Yuheng's pupils dilated slightly.

He stretched out his hand to measure the length and was horrified to discover that the power was enough to slit a person's throat!

"Monsters like them, hidden among the people, are everywhere in the world."

"Some monsters can be resurrected even if only a piece of flesh the size of a fingernail remains, so cleaning must be meticulous."

Xie Xubai's voice was like a heavy hammer striking Pei Yuheng's heart: "If you can't do it and leave behind a bunch of problems, you'll be the one who dies."

Knowing that Pei Yuheng was very responsible, Xie Xubai emphasized, "And what about the cleaners who come to clean up later and the customers who pass by? What do you think they will do?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Yuheng, still feeling lingering fear as he touched his chest, gasped for breath, his brows furrowing instantly. He sincerely apologized, "I'm sorry, I'll be more careful."

He originally thought Xie Xubai was just being nitpicky, but he didn't expect him to have such good intentions.

Xie Xubai's emphasis was clearly effective; the magician heard a "ding" sound.

[Character Pei Yuheng, "Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder" Development Progress: 60%, please keep up the good work.]

“It’s okay if you don’t notice it now,” Xie Xubai said. “I will supervise you until you develop absolutely good habits.”

His tone was firm, indicating his determination to succeed.

Pei Yuheng turned around abruptly and met Xie Xubai's serious, shining eyes. His hand, which had just picked up the rag, trembled in horror, and a sudden sense of foreboding arose.

His scalp tingled, and he wanted to refuse, but Xie Xubai didn't give him a chance to refuse at all, saying two words firmly: "Continue."

For Pei Yuheng, it was an extremely painful night.

For a full eight hours, he lost count of how many times he heard Xie Xubai say "wipe it again."

To prevent his palms from being blistered and chafed, Xie Xubai thoughtfully used his mental power to cover them with a thin film glove.

So Pei Yuheng couldn't find a reason to stop and rest, so he kept wiping the tiles, sweeping and mopping the floor, and even meticulously cleaning the crevices with cotton swabs several times.

Under Xie Xubai's supervision, he cleaned the entire private room, inside and out, including the corridor outside.

It wasn't until daylight that Pei Yuheng finally received Xie Xubai's permission to leave.

He was in a daze as he went downstairs. Seeing the spilled drinks all over the bar floor, he almost reflexively went back to get a mop to clean it up. Luckily, he snapped out of it in time, and with a jolt, he walked away quickly with a dark face.

Inside the private room, the spoiled young master who had been hanging upside down all night was taken down.

Xie Xubai implanted mental suggestions in each of them to prevent them from going back to cause trouble for Pei Yuheng.

The magician sat on the sofa with his legs raised—Pei Yuheng had wiped the floor tiles so clean they were like mirrors, so he couldn't put his dirty shoes down.

It wasn't that he was embarrassed, but throughout the entire night, whenever his foot showed any inclination to step on the ground, Xie Xubai's eyes would glance over, making him involuntarily shrink back.

This seems to be another way of protecting Pei Yuheng.

Although it seems unlikely that players would have any connection with NPCs, Xie Xubai also shares the surname Pei, which feels a bit unsettling.

The magician stroked his chin, and after a long pause, asked with a seemingly casual smile, "Pei Yu, if I were to say that I want to say something to Pei Yuheng—"

Swish.

Golden light condensed into a sharp blade, hovering around the magician's neck. It was so fast that he had no time to react.

After giving the last spoiled brat a mental suggestion, Xie Xubai looked up at the magician's frozen smile and said calmly.

"Give it a try."

Author's Note:

Ugh, they always remove the paragraph comments after revising the text! *slams table* (▼皿▼#)