Chapter 77
Ye Yihe closed his eyes, but felt his consciousness floating and drifting, like a butterfly futilely chasing the moon's reflection in the water, breaking apart and gathering again and again with the ripples.
He couldn't grasp anything, yet he felt countless past memories surging in his mind, even the scattered conversations became hazy, indistinct, and bizarre.
[He's so small, dirty, and skinny...]
[A shower and a good meal will do the trick.]
You'll definitely suffer a loss if you adopt him...
I'm not doing this to make money.
[Think about the students you've taken on. They don't seem to have any talent; they just take up your time and energy without bringing any benefits...]
Are you teaching me how to do things?
Ah, that's her familiar speaking style.
As he revisited these nearly forgotten memories in his dream, Ye Yihe almost let out a soft laugh, tinged with a nostalgic longing.
But he also knew clearly that his true childhood self had simply stood there numbly, staring at the tips of his shoes, without reacting to the gossip.
Perhaps worried that the unstoppable gossip would hurt his feelings, she would emphasize every now and then that she was especially happy because she had adopted him, and she would not hesitate to praise him even for the smallest things he did.
They really don't seem worried at all about spoiling him.
Ye Yihe unconsciously uttered this sentiment, but his tone was light.
Memories in dreams are like shimmering bubbles rising in the sunlight, shining brightly in fragments that are both dark and colorful, only to quietly burst apart.
These fragments not only pieced together his past life, but also intertwined to ultimately form the Ye Yihe we know today.
But... in the end, he did something bad.
Like fleeting bubbles bursting one after another, everything returned to the endless falling darkness and nothingness, and consciousness returned.
When Ye Yihe realized he was lying in bed, the first thing he felt was a tightness in his chest that made it hard to breathe, as if some heavy object was pressing down on him.
So heavy...
He seemed to have been affected before he lost consciousness. Could this be that monster called the Sea Princess...? This thought only flashed through his mind for a moment before he dismissed it.
After all, he didn't even need to open his eyes to know that the bed he was lying on was the one in Fyodor's Palace of Consciousness.
If that artificial sea hare could really catch up to the Palace of Consciousness, and Fyodor couldn't do anything about her, this body would have died long ago, before he woke up.
It couldn't possibly be sleep paralysis...?
These thoughts flashed through Ye Yihe's mind at lightning speed, only to be completely overtaken by a system notification that rang out, instantly clearing his mind.
One hundred and fifty points added to the resurrection points!? Really?!
Happiness came so suddenly?
Wait a minute, could it be that while he was unconscious after being hit, Fyodor took complete control of his body and incidentally killed that so-called "unknown and cunning guy who had his eye on him"?
...I never imagined that person would be so valuable!
The first time I encountered a recovery point, it was like getting it for free; I slept for a while and my health increased dramatically.
Ye Yihe happily opened his eyes.
He first glanced at the familiar starry ceiling, then his gaze fell to see what the culprit was causing his shortness of breath—
Fyodor was sleeping peacefully on his chest.
Ye Yihe was stunned.
There is no concept of temperature in the Palace of Consciousness, or rather, the temperature is always just right; you can cover yourself with a blanket if you want, or you can go without one.
But according to Ye Yihe's habit, just like how he would cover his stomach with a corner of a thin blanket even when it was so hot in the summer and he had to use a fan, he always covered himself with a blanket in the Palace of Consciousness.
At this moment, a special and rare weight appeared on that fluffy and soft quilt.
He seemed to have intended to just sit by the bed and watch Ye Yihe, but somehow he also fell asleep.
Ye Yihe happened to be lying on the side, and unintentionally became Fyodor's pillow.
"...!"
As he stared at the person, Ye Yihe unconsciously softened his breathing, making it light and slow.
Unlike him, who often likes to trim the ends of his hair, Fyodor always prefers to keep his short hair a little longer. At this moment, it falls softly and wispyly beside his face, blocking most of his vision.
Even though he became tall and slender as an adult, his youthful features remained delicate and refined, exuding a strong sense of boyish charm even without making any expression.
Coupled with the magnificent and intricate religious elements within the palace, when Fyodor closed his eyes to sleep, a slight furrow even appeared between his brows, revealing a sense of tranquility and a hint of restrained holiness.
Ye Yihe suddenly remembered that the last time he had seen him face to face in the Palace of Consciousness like this was when the temperature under the aurora was too cold, causing this body to have a high fever and fall into a coma.
Usually, they will leave one person outside to control the body, including when they are sleeping—unless there are special circumstances that cause the body to fall into a coma.
High fever... coma...
Ye Yihe suddenly reached out and placed the back of his hand on Fyodor's forehead, and unsurprisingly felt a large area of burning heat, almost no different from when he had a high fever last time.
In addition, he also discovered that Fyodor did not sleep in a prone position with his forearms crossed and pressed under his face—his left hand rested lightly on the edge of the bed, and he was half-turned as if he could not lift it up, using only his right hand to support his head.
Ye Yihe: "…………"
Even without using Xiao Ai (Xiaomi's AI assistant) to rewind, his years of training allowed him to keenly deduce that Fyodor's left hand must have been injured.
Because the wound was covered by clothing, he couldn't see how serious it was, which caused his immune system to kick in and develop a high fever as a complication.
Are you kidding me? He was just attacked by the enemy's mental abilities and fell asleep for a short while... just a short while!
As Ye Yihe withdrew his hand in frustration, his purplish-red eyes slowly opened.
Looking up slightly, his gaze met Ye Yihe's.
"You're awake?" He propped himself up.
Ye Yihe, who also sat up, noticed that Fyodor's speech was much slower than usual, and his voice was slightly hoarse.
Just like someone puts a classic vinyl record into the turntable of a phonograph, presses down the needle, and the record spins automatically. The melody that follows has a special resonance and flows out slowly like gold dust under the moon.
Even though the view beyond the goldfields is one of mysterious darkness and shadows, it cannot diminish its unique natural attraction.
Fyodor caused him to gain 0 resurrection points in the Norse vampire incident, but he also helped him turn the tables in this life-threatening crisis, earning him 150 points—counting all the incidents he had solved in the past, only the time he eliminated the [Port Mafia] organization had given him more resurrection points.
Ye Yihe stared at him for a long time without blinking before speaking at the same pace.
“This is the kind of question I should be asking you,” he raised an eyebrow slightly, shifting his gaze to the other man’s left shoulder. “Let me explain this.”
The following sentence wasn't even a question, but rather an imperative sentence with a slightly commanding tone—at this moment, Ye Yihe's aura was far stronger than Fyodor's.
Fyodor's smile, which was about to appear, froze for a moment.
“When confronting the enemy,” he coughed lightly, adopting an exceptionally upright and obedient posture, “I was accidentally shot.”
"careless?"
Ye Yihe raised his voice, "With Ivan around, why would he still be accidentally shot??"
Ivan's rock-based ability is the perfect counter to these firearms; ordinary bullets shouldn't be able to penetrate it at all!
"I didn't have Ivan accompany me,"
Even though Fyodor was as cold and imposing as he was when facing Kyogoku Natsuhiko, he lowered his voice even further when explaining at this moment—it's hard to say whether it was out of guilt for Ye Yihe's disapproving look, or a deliberate show of weakness to soften the other party's heart first.
“The mastermind, Kyogoku Natsuhiko, is an exceptionally cunning and cautious person. When he learned of your identity, he would certainly be wary of Ivan and Gogol, who possess powerful supernatural abilities.”
"Therefore, I must have no contact with them and only face Asukai with Ayatsuji Yukito in order to successfully lure him out to meet me."
Aside from Pushkin, who secretly cultivated the superpowered virus, Ivan and Gogol both used their superpowers publicly, and their physical characteristics were quite distinctive.
Although Dazai Osamu also used his supernatural ability [No Longer Human] to nullify the supernatural ability of that Takano Master, thus degrading his real supernatural ability to a mere trick.
However, [No Longer Human] does not have any obvious triggering characteristics or outward manifestations that violate the laws of nature. Apart from Takano, who is currently in prison, no one knows what Dazai Osamu did in that magic show imitation.
For Kyogoku Natsuhiko, [Pulling Objects] is a purely mental ability, and it is not the kind of aggressive intrusion that takes effect immediately and leaves the target helpless.
Therefore, he knew that once he appeared in front of Ivan and his men, unless he had a way to restrain them or was confident that he could kill them all, his own death was imminent. Although his own death was part of his final plan, the plan was not yet fully in place, and he did not want to use it unless absolutely necessary.
Fyodor also guessed that the other side did not want to face the powerful militant enemy directly, so he did not put any armor on his life, but instead exposed himself to the enemy in the most harmless way.
As for the agents monitoring Ayatsuji Yukito, the curtains in the apartment were drawn at the time, so they couldn't get a sense of the situation inside—plus, with Asukai accompanying him, the agents weren't worried.
This was a battle of wits, a contest of psychology and tactics. Both sides had their trump cards and used various schemes to dismantle the other's, ultimately determining the victor in a very brief exchange.
The stakes are Ye Yihe's life.
If the [Falling with Objects] ability remains unresolved, Ye Yihe will have to remain asleep until a way to break the curse is found.
Fyodor originally speculated that Kyogoku Natsuhiko's ability would automatically dissipate after his death—but based on the conversation he overheard while pretending to be unconscious, it appears that Kyogoku Natsuhiko's ability [Pseudo-Fall] is a self-regulating ability that can continue to be activated even after death.
He was indeed a very cunning and shrewd fellow. If any step in his response and counter-strategy had been missing, he could have safely led Asukai away. However, if it weren't for Dazai Osamu's "No Longer Human" delivering the final blow, they would have completely lost.
He exhaled a scalding breath silently, and Fyodor gave Yeykh a reassuring smile.
"In short, I am relieved to see that you have woken up safely."
"…………"
After listening to Fyodor's explanation, Ye Yihe got out of bed expressionlessly and stood next to the little mouse that was causing him no peace of mind.
As an external consciousness, he is not affected by the reflection of the body's debuffs. Once the monster's curse is lifted, he will be completely fine.
As for Fyodor... Hmph, even if this fever isn't as severe as the last one, you can still tell from his voice how weak he is, and his mind is also somewhat muddled and unable to function smoothly, which is why he gave me that smile.
Facing Ye Yihe's condescending, deathly gaze, Fyodor slowly blinked, trying to appear more docile. "Hmm?"
"You didn't take my promise to heart at all?" Ye Yihe laughed coldly.
Leaving aside the fact that she carved words on her forearm with a knife before, this is how she showed him that she cherished her body, as promised?
Last time he just didn't turn on the lights and bit his nails, but now he's gone too far, letting the enemy shoot himself!
Fyodor: "…………"
How could he tell his messiah that his original plan was for Kyogoku Natsuhiko to kill him, so that [Sin and Punishment] would be activated, allowing him to possess Kyogoku Natsuhiko's body and manipulate the remaining echoes of his supernatural abilities, thereby breaking the curse of [Possession]?
Because he had promised the other party that he would take care of his health, he abandoned this plan and instead used a roundabout strategy that required the assistance of Ranpo and Dazai Osamu.
The injury was expected and part of the plan, but at least it prevented his death.
However, stating this reason aloud will likely make the other person even angrier.
“I’m sorry about this,”
Fyodor's voice was slightly hoarse, with a soft, limp quality, like a marshmallow that had been baked by fire.
Please forgive me.
Ye Yihe paused for a moment before making the announcement without any hesitation.
"It's too late."
He glanced up and gestured for Fyodor to help him lie down on the bed.
Fyodor understood immediately and obediently did as he was told.
He wasn't wearing that thick, warm cloak; his body, dressed only in a pale white open-front shirt with purple trim, looked exceptionally thin, making Ye Yihe subconsciously think about what kind of dietary therapy he should use to nourish himself just by looking at him.
Not to mention he's now seriously injured...!
Especially that innocent and docile look in his eyes—even knowing he was probably doing it on purpose, it was really hard to feel any anger towards this guy.
Gritting his teeth, Ye Yihe still covered the disobedient but undeniably pretty little mouse with the blanket.
"You have a high fever and you still won't lie down? Are you afraid I'll kick you out of bed in your sleep...?"
After muttering his complaints, Ye Yihe finally tested his temperature with the back of his hand.
"Just lie here and don't move. I'll go outside to help you recover."
"I'll listen to you,"
Fyodor let out a slight chuckle, as if his scheme had succeeded, and then asked Ye Yihe in a slightly hoarse voice, his pronunciation carrying a hint of melancholy, as if he were worried about being disliked.
"Then, will you come back to be with me?"
Ye Yihe: "…………"
This time, his pause was even longer, as if he had been hit by some silent attack. Only after a long time did he hurriedly utter a sentence before his figure disappeared into the palace of consciousness.
"...Yes, it will."
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