Suddenly, Li Yuheng reached out and flicked Shu Bai's forehead hard, making a crisp "thud".
"No way, no way," he tilted his head, a smug smile on his lips, "Little Shubai spent the whole afternoon banging his head against a wall, and this is what he wanted to say?"
Shu Bai suddenly covered her forehead, "You—!"
"What do you mean, 'what do you mean, 'what do you mean'? Your forehead is so red, I thought you were going to cosplay as a little fireman~"
"...I'm serious."
Li Yuheng suddenly stopped laughing and stared intently at Shu Bai.
He leaned down, placed his hands on his knees, looked Shu Bai in the eye, and said in a deep and firm voice, "I'm serious too."
Shu Bai was slightly taken aback, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, but it was quickly covered by gloom.
Li Yuheng sighed softly, reached out and rubbed Shu Bai's forehead, which had been flicked red, his tone unusually gentle: "Little Shu Bai, do you know how terrible your acting is?"
"So, if force doesn't work, you'll try a softer approach?" A helpless smile played on his lips. "What are you afraid of?"
Li Yuheng's eyes gleamed with anticipation as he locked his gaze on Shu Bai.
“You don’t know, actually…” Shu Bai finally spoke, his voice low and hoarse, filled with suppressed madness, “…I’ve gone mad.”
Li Yuheng raised an eyebrow: "Oh?"
Shu Bai raised his head, his eyes gloomy and empty: "I don't know how many cycles I've gone through, but I knew I was going crazy. In extreme despair, people always imagine things that don't exist... to comfort themselves."
Li Yuheng watched him quietly without interrupting.
Shu Bai continued, “That time, I ‘saw’ someone. He said he could take us away from here. I was so happy… I thought we were finally saved. But then I found out that only I could see him.”
"So? You killed him?"
“Yes,” Shu Bai said coldly, “I killed that illusion.”
His dark eyes stared directly at Li Yuheng. "Later, I 'saw' him many more times... Every time he appeared, I would kill him directly. Anyway, he would disappear after I killed him."
Shu Bai's voice grew softer and softer, "But you're different."
Li Yuheng chuckled: "How is it different? Because I'm especially handsome?"
Shu Bai ignored his teasing and continued, "I can't kill you... Besides, Xi Feng and Madam Bai can see you too."
He stared intently at Li Yuheng, as if trying to see through his skin. "I'm not sure... whether I've gone even crazier, or whether you really exist."
If you're hallucinating, and I can't kill you... then just disappear on your own.
Please...
Li Yuheng was silent for two seconds, then suddenly reached out and pinched Shu Bai's cheeks, pulling them apart.
"Does it hurt?" he asked with a smile.
Shu Bai: "..."
He slapped Li Yuheng's hand away, his eyes dark: "Stop messing around."
Li Yuheng shrugged: "See, you know it hurts, which means it's not a dream. Xifeng and Madam Bai can see me, which means it's not an illusion. Xiao Shubai, you're not crazy, I'm just a bit special."
Shu Bai pursed his lips, a flicker of hesitation crossing his dark eyes, but it quickly returned to its icy tone: "How can you prove it?"
You can't even say who you are...
Li Yuheng blinked: "How do you want me to prove it? Break a boulder on my chest? Or wash my hair upside down?"
Shu Bai: "..."
Li Yuheng sighed dramatically, stretched out a hand and placed it flat in front of Shu Bai's eyes, then took one of Shu Bai's small hands and placed it in his own.
“Here’s what we’ll do,” he said in a mysteriously low voice, “I’ll slowly pull my hand out. If you don’t grab me, I’ll really disappear. But think it over, these days it’s not easy to find a handsome young man like me.”
Her small, pale hands were icy cold, but when enveloped in his warm palms, they appeared exceptionally fragile.
The little boy frowned, a hint of hesitation flashing in his dark eyes.
"Childish," Shu Bai said coldly, but did not withdraw his hand.
Li Yuheng's lips curled into a mischievous smile: "Then watch closely—"
He suddenly pulled his hand back sharply!
Shu Bai's pupils suddenly contracted, and he almost reflexively clenched Li Yuheng's fingers.
The small hand burst forth with astonishing force, its nails almost digging into Li Yuheng's skin.
Shu Bai stared intently at the hand he was gripping Li Yuheng's, a voice screaming wildly in his head: Let go! Let go!
But that hand seemed to have its own will, clenching tighter and tighter.
Li Yuheng laughed, his voice brimming with undisguised amusement: "Holding on so tightly? Looks like you don't want me to leave?"
Shu Bai remained silent.
He lowered his head, his black hair falling down, covering most of his face, revealing only a taut chin.
The small hand that was gripping Li Yuheng trembled slightly, but it did not let go.
He believed it.
Whether Li Yuheng was real or not, whether it was an illusion or a real person... he believed it.
Because he had no choice but to believe.
Like a drowning person grabbing onto the last piece of driftwood, knowing it might just be an illusion, yet still holding on tightly and refusing to let go.
"Kill me."
Li Yuheng's smile froze on his face: "What?"
"I'll kill you ten times, and I'll repay you ten times in return." Shu Bai's voice was terrifyingly calm. "Very fair."
"...Little Shubai, did you hit your head on the wall and damage it?"
Shu Bai ignored his teasing and said to himself, "Don't worry, this is just an incarnation of a part of my consciousness. Even if you kill me, I won't really die."
He paused, a strange smile creeping onto his lips. "Like this—"
To Li Yuheng's astonishment, Shu Bai suddenly plunged his hand into his own chest.
There was no blood, no wound; the little hand seemed to have reached into a thick black fog.
"Look," Shu Bai said softly, slowly pulling a beating, translucent heart from his chest.
His heart throbbed faintly in his palm, glowing with an eerie dark red light.
Li Yuheng's pupils suddenly contracted: "Shu Bai! You—"
"Slap."
Shu Bai crushed that heart without hesitation.
In an instant, his body shattered like a broken mirror, and he turned into a swirling cloud of black mist.
The black mist swirled in the air for a few seconds before quickly condensing back into the pale, thin little boy.
"Do you understand?" Shu Bai, who had just regained his composure, tilted his head, his tone as calm as if he were discussing the weather. "I used to do this all the time, and it didn't hurt much."
Li Yuheng's face darkened completely.
He grabbed Shu Bai's wrist: "Who taught you that?"
Shu Bai blinked: "No one taught me. In countless cycles, I always have to find something to do."
He tried to pull his hand away, but Li Yuheng didn't budge. "Let go. You haven't answered me yet."
"What should I answer? Should I kill you or not?"
“Yes.” Shu Bai nodded. “This is the most—”
Li Yuheng scoffed, "Stop, stop, stop. Why should I listen to you? Shouldn't I be the one to decide how to repay?"
Shu Bai paused slightly, a hint of confusion flashing in his dark eyes.
He asked hesitantly, "...How do you want me to repay you?"
Li Yuheng stared at Shu Bai expressionlessly: "Since you tried to kill me ten times in one go, then you'll repay me by doing it ten times in one go."
"Sure. But what for? You haven't made it clear."
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