Wen the High-Scoring Pervert

Jennifer suspected she had seen wrong. This big brother was actually going to Uncle Jack's apartment.

But Wen Xishu was incredibly steady. That calmness gave Jennifer some strength.

The corridor had turned into a Loop Building, a ghostly maze. Then the real exit might be inside one of the rooms on this floor.

Wen Xishu had not been certain either, until the prompt appeared.

"There are many rooms on this floor. Searching them one by one could easily cause a disturbance, and it would waste time. But if we consider Jack's words, the right choice becomes obvious."

"As always, Jack's words were actually very clear hints."

Jack's apartment was indeed on this floor.

It was not far from Jennifer's home. That was also why Remian, who lived upstairs, was so jealous.

The door was unlocked and hung half-open. An eerie, frigid aura seeped out from inside, making people afraid to approach.

Jack had once truly been a kind old man.

Before becoming a monster, he had trusted the people here deeply. He had never installed a lock on his door so that others could easily come to him for help.

There was a kind of person in this world who remained impoverished yet could still find happiness in helping others.

Wen Xishu did not waste any more time. He took Jennifer with him and walked inside.

The moment the two entered, "Jack" appeared in the corridor behind them.

Its face could not be seen clearly, because it was covered by the faces of several other residents.

It had torn off their faces and stitched them onto its own, like half a mask.

Four eyeballs, two crooked noses, and four strangely angled ears were sewn together with black thread.

Only its mouth was its own, still letting out frenzied laughter.

The laughter seemed to possess some eerie power, spreading into every room.

Only its own apartment remained unaffected.

Sunlight streamed into the room, but it did not make Jack's apartment seem bright or warm.

On the contrary, that faint light made the gloomy room look especially desolate.

Bare, somewhat damp walls stood silently. Two old, decaying chairs sat in the room, swaying slightly on their own without anyone touching them, creaking so harshly it set one's teeth on edge.

There was even a refrigerator in the room, but the smell wafting from it was nauseating.

It was the smell of blood.

Jennifer began to tremble. Wen Xishu held her little hand, and the warmth from his palm gave her something to rely on.

Even now, Wen Xishu did not speak. He merely typed calmly:

"Looks like these are seats prepared for us."

Wen Xishu sat down directly. At that instant, he felt as if he had lain down in an ice cellar, cold seeping into his bones.

The scenery around him also changed color, covered in a faint crimson hue. In his mind, a huge smiling face flickered in and out of sight.

Wen Xishu remained unmoved. He still beckoned Jennifer over, encouraging her with a smile that made her feel utterly safe.

So Jennifer sat down on the chair as well.

The performance began.

What Wen Xishu saw was bizarre.

A huge smiling face loomed over a city.

Yet no one in the city seemed to notice the smiling face blocking out the sky.

The face was not ferocious. It even seemed somewhat comforting. Beneath it stood a city called Moen.

It was a young city, and Jack, who was no longer young, was in Moen City Hospital.

He had been taught since childhood to smile at others, to be polite, and to become someone who could bring joy to people.

But the medical report declaring terminal stomach cancer made him unable to smile anymore.

When death drew near, whether you played the role of a workhorse or a layabout in society, you would realize—you were, in fact, a person.

At the end of his life, Jack wanted to be a person again. A good person.

Holding the medical report, he returned to that old building with heavy steps.

The apartment was absurdly simple: a kettle, a bed, two chairs, and a refrigerator that no longer cooled anything, now reduced to nothing more than a storage cabinet.

He found an old notebook and wrote down his wishes.

"As a colleague, I really dislike Remian slandering me behind my back. But I think life must have made him feel that he needed to be cruel."

"This world has many kinds of outerwear. Some keep you warm, while some keep you from being hurt by others."

"Perhaps Remian wore the latter."

"I have my own outerwear too. I hope it can be like Mother said, something that makes people happy."

"I should make peace with Remian. We are neighbors and colleagues, after all. At the end of my life, I do not want anyone to hate me."

"I only want people to remember me, whether at my gravestone or in their memories, as a good person."

Jack let out a long breath, a faint smile appearing on his face.

"I like spending time with little Jennifer. Though Yulia always says that men nowadays despise women with children, that men are practical and cruel."

"But in my heart, little Jennifer is truly adorable. She is one of the few people who likes my performances."

"The meaning of my life is to bring laughter to others, but before many people, I am meaningless."

"But little Jennifer is different... Little Jennifer and I agreed that tomorrow, she would come to my home and watch my new performance."

"The troupe has been doing worse and worse. I think perhaps I should add some stand-up comedy when I perform acrobatics."

"I am getting less and less able to keep up with young people's sense of humor, but Jennifer is even younger than they are."

Thinking that little Jennifer would come watch his performance, Jack's smile became warmer and more comforting. Even in clown makeup, he would not seem gloomy, frightening, or grotesque.

"And my good friend, Anderson. I have saved some money, but I do not think I will have a chance to use it."

"Anderson is a good person. In this building, he is the only one who often talks to me. Though he is busy, he still finds time to keep me company even when he is busiest."

"It would only be a waste to spend my money on myself. I should leave some for him... Maybe it could let him live a little better."

"Lastly, my mother. I am sorry, but I may have to leave before you..."

"Mother, I love you. I love you very much. I hope you can stay healthy and live a long life, though you too are tormented by illness..."

"What saddens me even more is that I am afraid I will no longer be able to work hard and earn money. My time is running out."

"I have always listened to you. I have eaten properly. My stomach illness definitely was not caused by going hungry, definitely not. I do not know how it happened either."

"I had always been living fairly well. Then I suddenly fell ill."

"But I will make myself look as healthy as possible before I come see you one last time."

When it came to his mother, Jack was somewhat insincere. He was afraid that after he died, his mother would think his stomach illness had come from not eating properly and blame herself.

In truth, he often went hungry and was painfully thin. But he did not want his mother to think that.

Just as he had always done, he only shared good news and never bad.

His confidante Jennifer, the woman he loved Yulia, his colleague Remian, his friend Anderson, and his mother.

These people made up Jack's life now.

That was why there was not even a door in his apartment that could be shut, and he never repaired them.

It seemed that if the doors remained open, these people would come in and talk to him.

Even if they came asking for help and added yet more trouble to his life already piled high with troubles, he still found it joyful.

Life was not a mirror. It would not necessarily answer a smile with a smile.

After writing the lengthy notebook entry that amounted to a farewell to the world, Jack sat in a daze for a while before heading upstairs.

He was going to find Remian.

Soon, he apologized to Remian. He did not mind Remian forgiving him from on high.

As long as there was no one left in this building who hated him.

He should have left then, but he suddenly thought that he should make things clear—he was about to die. How could a dead man still pursue the woman he loved?

He wanted Remian to know that Miss Yulia would not fall for someone like him, and after he died, Remian could have that apartment.

He wanted to support and bless Remian and encourage him to pursue love, even though Miss Yulia would most likely never like anyone in this building.

So Jack turned back and went to find Remian again.

Remian was on the phone.

"Yulia, please believe me. Jack's poverty goes without saying, but he is lazy too, and he has a rotten heart."

"You know his performances always disgust people, and he is no longer content with merely making adults sick."

"Last week, he suggested performing at a school..."

"How vicious can he be? Those children would be so pitiful! How many children would be traumatized by his ugly appearance? I will let everyone know his true face."

"Do you know? He does not love children! He actually hates kids."

"I heard he plans to invite Jennifer to watch his performance alone. Oh, please make sure Jennifer stays away from him too. She will have nightmares!"

Jack stood at the stairwell, the smile on his face long since frozen.

This kind of scene had happened more than once.

Sometimes Remian was speaking to the circus director, sometimes to Yulia. Remian always liked speaking ill of others behind their backs.

What protective coloring was there? Some people were simply bad.

The huge smiling face in the sky revealed a trace of malice.

Anderson was Jack's good friend.

All along, Jack had believed that having even one good friend in life was enough.

He wanted to say a proper farewell to Anderson and give him some money while he was at it.

But when he returned home and prepared to take out the money, Anderson and his girlfriend were already inside Jack's apartment.

"This place reeks of mildew. Why did you keep the money here?"

The woman spoke with disgust.

Anderson replied as if it were only natural:

"This dump is my savings box. No... it is my money tree."

"That idiot Jack always keeps money in the hidden compartment of this broken refrigerator. Really, no one but me knows there is money hidden in there."

The woman did not understand.

"If you take his money, won't he know it was you?"

Anderson gave an awkward laugh.

"Of course, but it does not matter. I can make up any lie, like saying I am sick, and that idiot will believe me."

"He will even worry terribly and ask whether I have enough. Sometimes, when he has no money, he tells me to wait while he goes and earns some doing odd jobs."

The woman was even more astonished.

"There are people like that in this world?"

Anderson's smile became more unrestrained.

"He prides himself on being someone who would give up everything for a friend, and I am his friend."

"So this money was mine to begin with. God saw how hard I had it, so he arranged for a living savings box to be my friend."

"Come on, darling. Tonight, I will treat you to a good meal, then we will get a room!"

Anderson wrapped an arm around the woman's waist. The woman vaguely felt that something was not right.

Anderson said:

"In this world, some people offer tribute to love. Of course, there are also people who offer tribute to friendship. I gave him imaginary friendship, so he gives me money. That is perfectly reasonable, isn't it?"

The woman nodded. Their laughter covered the sound of tears falling outside the door.

The smiling face in the sky had already become ferocious. Strange crimson light gleamed in its eyes, and even the clouds were dyed red.

Jack hid away in a sorry state. He wanted to scream hysterically, but in the end, he did not.

He only waited until Anderson left, then silently took out the little money that remained.

The bills rested in his hands, silently watching his sorrowful face. It was as though they were wondering who this man would give them to.

In this world, the rich had many ways to express love: a smile, a greeting, a post online thanking the world...

And countless people would rush to praise them.

But the poor seemed to have only money as a way to express love. When you had no money, everything you did seemed like an outdated circus performance...

It would not make people laugh. It would only disgust them and invite mockery. It should not have been like that.

Yet Jack still took the money, preparing to give it to Jennifer and Yulia.

He called Yulia, wanting to say, "Yulia, if you are busy, should I pick Jennifer up from school for you?"

But Yulia declined the call. When he called again, her phone said it was switched off.

So he walked toward the school. All along the way, Jack clutched his stomach. A pain like the collapse of the world gathered in his gut, churning and twisting.

At the school gate, he saw Jennifer—and Yulia too.

Yulia seemed to have gotten off work early today.

Perhaps because of Remian's call, Yulia looked at Jack with particular wariness.

Jack did not know how to face Yulia. He could only look at Jennifer.

"Little Jennifer, you will come see my performance, right?"

"Jennifer is not free tomorrow. She has tutoring." Yulia disliked everyone in this building equally.

"The day after tomorrow, I have make-up classes too."

"What about three days from now? Would that work? Even a few days later is fine..."

"No time, no time! I have make-up classes every day! And Jennifer and I are moving out soon. Stop bothering us! Jennifer, let's go."

Yulia left with Jennifer.

Jack had already been enduring with all his strength, but he ultimately could not bear it any longer. The pain made him drop to one knee and start dry-heaving, though he did not actually throw up anything.

He wanted to apologize to Jennifer. He should not have let the child see him in such a wretched state.

But Yulia had already taken Jennifer away, as decisively as if she were shaking off a plague.

Jennifer actually wanted to turn back and hug Jack. Her eyes glistened with tears, but Yulia gripped Jennifer's hand and sternly shouted:

"Jennifer, don't look back!"

Those were the last words Jack heard from Yulia.

Then laughter finally rose around him, but it was not happy laughter. It was ridicule. Jack began to sob loudly.

A grown man kneeling on the ground and crying drew the mockery of a group of children.

Jack suddenly wanted to give up struggling and lie on the ground to rest for a while, but just then, a call came in.

"Mr. Jack, we're from Moen City Fourth Nursing Home. Your mother had an accident not long ago."

"We... we did everything we could. Why don't you come to the nursing home?"

The phone fell to the ground. Its already cracked screen gained another fracture. Yet it made no sound. At that moment, the world seemed to stand still.

All the beauty and hope in his life died before he did.

The enormous smiling face in the sky had turned terrifying and distorted. The red glow in its eyes illuminated the world, draping everything in a layer of blood-red.

The mocking laughter came to an abrupt stop, but another deranged laugh faintly began to rise.

Under immense pressure, the man who wanted to bring joy to the world seemed to still be alive, yet also seemed to be dead.

What Jack did not know was that the Tower had already chosen him. His fate would not end here.

The two chairs stopped rocking.

Wen Xishu and Jennifer woke up at the same time. Jennifer's eyes were filled with tears. It was unclear whether she was frightened or saddened by Jack's experience.

Wen Xishu, however, looked calm. His attention had fallen elsewhere.

Two blood-red numbers appeared on the bare wall.

97, 61.

Wen Xishu frowned slightly, then smiled.

Notes appeared in his vision, but because his Magic Resistance was too low, they were still garbled text.

Even so, he guessed what the numbers meant.

As audience members watching this performance, Jennifer had scored 61 points, a passing score. It was a score suitable for an NPC, neither too high nor too low.

Wen Xishu, meanwhile, had scored 97 points.

He was so certain because although Wen Xishu could not decipher the garbled notes, he received another prompt.

You repeatedly shared the same thoughts as Deception Jack. Throughout the viewing, you felt no pity for Jack and instead developed a desire for slaughter. You only disagreed in one place.

You were practically Deception Jack's soulmate.

Obtained item: Invitation: Happy Jennifer.

Ghoul Jennifer's favorability increased.

Simply put, while watching the day Jack fell into despair from that special perspective, Wen Xishu had not cried like Jennifer or lamented Jack's misery.

He had even thought, How boring. Why are you crying? I want to see blood flow like rivers. Hurry up and become ten times stronger after going dark, then kill to your heart's content.

Thinking of how Jack truly went on a killing spree in reality afterward... Wen Xishu had even found it satisfying while watching.

Wen Xishu had not expected that this would earn him an unbelievable high score:

"So I sympathized with a pervert, and that got me a special item?"

Sure enough, there was a strangely textured invitation in his pocket. He opened it and saw:

Jennifer from the slums of Moen City has not been happy lately. Perhaps you have a way to make her happy.

Press your fingerprint onto the Invitation Letter to interrupt and pause the Strange Tower process, enter the corresponding floor of the Desire Tower to obtain important items, and unlock hidden plots in the Strange Tower and Slaughter Tower.

Wen Xishu was stunned.

He realized that Invitation Letters might be something only a very small number of people could trigger.

In his limited memories, it seemed that no one had ever mentioned such a thing.

This thing could actually ignore the Login Device's restrictions and forcibly transfer him to another Tower?

What surprised Wen Xishu even more was that the Invitation Letter mentioned not only the Desire Tower, but also the Slaughter Tower. The connection between the three Towers was even tighter than he had imagined.

He thought of the differentiated notes such as Ghoul Jennifer and Desire Jennifer. Could there also be a Slaughter Jennifer?

Little Jennifer suddenly spoke, interrupting Wen Xishu's thoughts:

"Big brother... look, the stairs have appeared!"