Chu Qingjiu and Qi Wu shouldered their backpacks and waited together to enter the instance.
Almost instantly, Chu Qingjiu's vision went black, as though someone had covered his eyes with a hand, and he lost consciousness.
When he opened his eyes again, he was on the sofa in the safe house.
There were eight men in this instance. Qi Wu grabbed Chu Qingjiu's hand the moment he woke up, only to find Chu Qingjiu looking at him coldly, with what seemed to be... a trace of hurt.
Chu Qingjiu had considered the possibility that Qi Wu was putting on an act to deceive him, but he had never expected Qi Wu to keep it up for half a month, or to make it so convincing that he had almost believed it.
His breath caught slightly, and his lashes fluttered twice, as though an oncoming wave of suffocation was about to engulf him.
He pressed a hand to his chest and hunched over slightly, holding himself back as if enduring some hidden pain.
Had nothing in their half month together been worth even a little affection from Qi Wu?
"Cough, cough..."
Chu Qingjiu pulled his hand free of Qi Wu's and turned away to cough, his eyes rimmed entirely in red.
All those sweet words had been lies. Nothing Qi Wu had done held the slightest genuine feeling. It had all been a lie. He had known that perfectly well, so why had he believed it?
"Cough, cough..."
Blood seemed to well up in his throat. Its sharp, metallic taste tormented him, and he could only furrow his brows and suppress the urge to cough, just as he suppressed the desires in his heart.
Chu Qingjiu looked as though he would cough his lungs out. The corners of his eyes were already glistening with tears, making him look pitiful and helpless.
Qi Wu tried to embrace Chu Qingjiu, but Chu Qingjiu dodged him. There was a startling smear of scarlet blood at the corner of his mouth. Qi Wu's eyes were full of heartache, yet he had no idea why Chu Qingjiu was rejecting him.
"Gege... what's wrong?"
Qi Wu looked close to tears himself. His beautiful amber eyes were wet, and his brows drew together in anxiety, his concern for Chu Qingjiu plain to see.
Chu Qingjiu glanced at him and gave a cold laugh, wiping the blood from his lips with the back of his hand. Qi Wu really was something. He felt no affection for him whatsoever, yet could still pretend to be utterly devoted to him. It was truly an eye-opener.
Acting talent like that was utterly wasted outside show business.
The other six men watched in complete bewilderment, though they could glean the general picture from the pair's relationship. As far as they could tell, this was a sickly older brother bringing his younger brother into an instance.
Chu Qingjiu steadied his breathing, his expression indescribably cold. Without sparing Qi Wu a glance, he turned to the other six players. "Let's introduce ourselves first."
The other six players each had their own distinguishing features, but all of them were good-looking. Some had an appealing air about them, while others had good physiques.
The most strikingly handsome among them was probably the man in a fitted suit. Around six feet tall, with sharp brows and bright eyes, he had the air of a domineering CEO.
His manners were impeccable, too. Rather than looking down on Chu Qingjiu for his poor health, he gave him a gentle smile. "Hello. You can call me Gu Yanze."
"Chu Qingjiu."
This was Gu Yanze's fifth instance, matching the number listed under Qi Wu's assumed identity. The other five had all entered three or four times, leaving Chu Qingjiu with the least experience.
The others present generally had affection scores of around 20 toward him. Chu Qingjiu was sickly, after all.
Apart from Qi Wu, whose affection toward him stood at 0, Gu Yanze had the highest score of anyone at 50.
Chu Qingjiu had no intention of staying with Qi Wu in this instance. He felt certain that Qi Wu would keep putting on an act to deceive him, and he did not want to go through that feeling of being deceived again.
Meanwhile, Qi Wu could only watch Chu Qingjiu chat with Gu Yanze in bewildered longing, grinding his back teeth so hard they almost cracked.
Once the safe period ended, they received a system notification.
[Instance name: Xiangxi: Heart-Losing Gu] [Instance difficulty: Two stars] [Instance survival rate: 17.1% (Current number of players who have cleared it: 3,211)] [Instance introduction: This is a remote village in Xiangxi, home to the women of the Gu Miao Tribe. A group of lost tourists entered the village and became the women's husbands. The Mind-Losing Gu is a means for the Miao women to test their husbands' fidelity. Anyone who fails to obtain the antidote within three days will have their heart devoured by the gu and die.] [Instance requirements (choose one): 1. Find the Miao woman who planted the gu in you and obtain the antidote. 2. Kill the Gu Ghost Woman hiding among the Miao women (extremely dangerous).]
The Mind-Losing Gu was a type of love gu, but unlike the love gu that required ten years of feeding with blood from the heart, it did not take nearly so long to cultivate. One could be obtained in three months, and the Mind-Losing Gu had an antidote.
As time passed, someone infected with the Mind-Losing Gu would suffer an increasingly slow heartbeat and grow weaker and weaker. In the end, even after their heart stopped beating, they would remain conscious.
Then they would feel the agony of their heart being eaten away, bit by bit, until they finally died from its loss.
A dark-skinned, tough-looking man with massive pecs said, "If we kill all the Miao women, wouldn't that complete the second objective?"
The muscular man was named Wu Zhong. A fitness instructor entering his third instance, he had an excellent physique and could probably knock down two Chu Qingjius with a single punch.
Qi Wu immediately rejected Wu Zhong's idea. "That won't work. If the Miao woman who planted the gu dies before we get the antidote, we'll die with her."
After saying this, he looked at Chu Qingjiu, plainly seeking praise, and gave him an innocent smile. "Gege, am I right?"
But Chu Qingjiu did not even glance at him, acting as though he had heard nothing. Qi Wu's entire expression changed.
His lashes drooped, his lips pushed into a pout, and the corners of his mouth turned down. He looked like an abandoned puppy.
Seeing how awkward Qi Wu looked, Gu Yanze promptly smiled and praised him. "What a clever kid."
Gu Yanze really was the head of a company, and he was twenty-nine this year. To him, Qi Wu was indeed a kid.
But Qi Wu did not appreciate it. He had no idea why Chu Qingjiu was suddenly giving him the cold shoulder. Even back in the Mutual Aid Society, Chu Qingjiu had never ignored him. At most, he had been a little distant, but he had still responded.
Now, however, Chu Qingjiu would not even raise his eyes to look at him. Instead, he ignored him as though he had heard nothing, leaving Qi Wu feeling deeply wronged.
It was as though, in a single instant, Chu Qingjiu had withdrawn all his boundless indulgence, taking back his never-spoken feelings along with it. He was as cold as a stranger.
It gave Qi Wu a premonition-
He seemed to be about to lose Chu Qingjiu.
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