Pride and Envy

Under the cover of darkness, a tall, slender figure moved forward along the shadows cast by the lights of the surrounding shops.

The gleaming scissors, with their sharp edges, disappeared into the very light footsteps.

The flower seeker made his way back to the clothing shop, and looking at the deserted night scene, he had a feeling that he had expected this.

Sure enough—when their tour group wasn't being led around by a guide, the wandering pedestrians on the street had completely disappeared.

It was all like a staged play, deliberately performed for them, a facade masking reality.

However, this was not the issue that the flower seeker was concerned about at the moment; he had only two purposes for participating in this interaction.

First, try to get the Yin Yang City ticket. That way, when the Yin Yang City opens, the Lingren will take him along. If he doesn't rely on himself, no one in the Single Prism will help him get anything anyway.

Secondly... he killed Hua Subai.

As can be seen from his name, from the moment he was created by the Lingren, his existence had only this one meaning.

He knew that Hua Subai was the president of Single Prism, but that was none of his business. He was loyal not to Single Prism, but to the Lingren himself.

Even these scissors are specifically designed to cut off "flowers".

Because the Lingren's dislike for Hua Subai was unparalleled.

With a gentle face devoid of expression, the flower seeker returned to the clothing shop and went straight through the main entrance.

The female boss in the red dress wasn't outside; she must have kept her promise and stayed in the backyard.

He opened the door leading to the backyard and, sure enough, saw the figure.

"Hmm?" The female boss was sitting in an empty chair, dozing off with her chin resting on her hand. Seeing him arrive, she looked up and asked, "Weren't you eating? Why are you back first?"

The flower seeker replied slowly in a gentle voice, "I'm full, and others have already come out. However, they chose to take a walk outside, while I just want to come back and rest."

The female boss looked at him for a while, seemingly not believing him.

Perhaps, as an indigenous person, the female boss knew far more about the rules of tour groups than they did, and therefore wouldn't believe his easily debunked lie.

"Then you should rest." The female boss's eyes narrowed again, as if she were about to fall asleep, but her nasal tone became somewhat subtle. "Don't touch other people's things."

The flower seeker did not answer, but instead walked with unhurried steps straight to a clean table.

That table was different from the others; it wasn't protected by any formations, offerings, or plants and animals. The neatly folded red robe was simply placed there openly.

It seemed to be something its owner had carelessly abandoned here, and even though it was linked to life, it was hardly taken seriously.

The flower seeker took this as a provocation.

If Hua Subai wanted to protect this garment, he had many ways to do so, but he chose the one that made him most fearless, even though the other party knew his malice and clearly knew how easy it was for someone to take advantage of an object that was related to their life.

Is this their real president?

The flower seeker tried to smile, but his upturned lips were stiff. He quickly gave up, thinking to himself that he really couldn't bring himself to show such a meaningless sneer.

He will only move forward towards his goal and will never do anything unnecessary.

So he gently took the large pair of scissors off his back.

His scissors resembled professional gardening shears, but an extended version, over a meter long from end to end, with an extremely sharp edge engraved with twisted floral patterns.

This pattern also appeared in a large area on his chest, echoing the pattern on the scissors, a secret unseen by others.

He relied on this sense of texture to search for that "flower" throughout the world.

The moment was about to injure the flower, the flower seeker's heart began to pound with excitement.

This is based on hatred... an indelible bond.

According to the flower seeker, in the past, Hua Subai completely angered the Lingren. After escaping from Single Prism with some unknown mentality, the Lingren has been searching for him all over the world.

But Hua Subai abandoned the guild he had built from scratch, gave up all the connections he had accumulated, and disappeared into the vast sea of people. How could he possibly be found so easily?

Hua Subai didn't even put up a fight, giving the Lingren no chance to make a move. When the Lingren's strength had grown enough to resist him, he simply left, leaving the actor to punch a pillow.

After that, the Lingren had his own plans. He searched for a vessel to disperse the curse that would cause his body to collapse until he could bear it, and then gradually withdrew the power from the vessel.

Before he discards the containers, they can still be his best henchmen.

... That's how it should have been.

Yu Xing was the chosen vessel.

But the Lingren's heart softened.

Because of that inappropriate moment of tenderness, the Lingren spent a long time playing with the innocent young master who had no blemishes—a time that shouldn't have been spent.

He hesitated, caught in self-doubt and contradiction, enduring endless suffering while yearning for the salvation that belonged to the ignorant.

It's unclear how long this tug-of-war will last; perhaps it will continue until the Lingren can no longer bear it, at which point he will harden his heart and end that suddenly fleeting illusion.

But Hua Subai returned.

Hua Subai exposed the Lingren's weakness, which infuriated Lingren. How could he allow himself to expose his vulnerability in front of his greatest enemy?

Hua Subai's face fueled the Lingren's hatred, and as Hua Subai approached Yu Xing, he also felt a surge of anger that something he hadn't killed was being defiled by someone else.

No, that won't work.

Rather than letting Hua Subai gain Yu Xing's trust, it's better to destroy him now. Yes, now is the perfect opportunity. Let Yu Xing... serve as a vessel, and let the innocent also fall into hell. That way...

Since he doesn't deserve salvation, then let everyone suffer.

In a moment of madness, the Lingren made a choice.

The flames spread, just like the jealousy and pain in my heart.

From that moment on, he destroyed his only friend in the world, replacing him with a monster filled with hatred and despair.

The monster, however, was more suited to the curse than expected. As expected of Young Master Yu Xing, even as a vessel, he was superior to others.

He was stronger than expected despite his chaotic state; he actually managed to escape using his own strength.

If the Lingren wanted to pursue her, he could have easily caught up with her at the very beginning.

But then he suddenly thought, things have come to this... let Yu Xing run. When Yu Xing gets tired of running and realizes that no one will tolerate a monster, she will naturally remember him.

Whether it's hatred or fear, as long as Yu Xing comes looking for him, he...

What can he do?

He only does things that make Yu Xing more afraid and resistant to him; that's how annoying he is.

The Lingren wanted to tie Yu Xing inside the Single Prism, within his reach, ignoring all of Yu Xing's resistance, to teach Yu Xing what it meant to have her hands covered in blood, with no way to turn back.

Before that, let the newly hatched little monster run around a bit longer.

The Lingren hypnotized himself, letting the monster run far, far away until even he couldn't find a trace of it.