Eye of Emotion

After eating and drinking his fill on the snack street, Su Li returned home and walked over to the full-length mirror. To his surprise, a pattern resembling an eye, formed from black and red markings, had appeared on his back, looking eerie yet beautiful against his jade-white skin.

"Master, scans indicate that this is the Eye of Emotion, but it doesn't seem to pose any danger to you."

"Of course it doesn't. Otherwise, I wouldn't have let it appear on my body," Su Li said as he examined the markings on his back.

In his previous life, Su Li had stumbled upon a wondrous object: an eye composed of what looked like patterns carved from stone, identical to the one on his back. He had no idea whether it had formed naturally or been made by someone.

At first, Su Li had known neither the object's name nor its purpose, and Yuan could only detect a peculiar energy within it. But when Su Li carried it on him and infused it with Witch Energy, he discovered that the emotions people around him felt toward him became visible, as though made tangible, and could be harnessed and guided.

Different emotions had different colors. Affection was pink, anger red, disgust gray, fear cyan, and so on.

The holder could guide these emotions. For example, if someone liked Su Li, continuing to guide their emotions would make them like him even more. For someone who feared him, such guidance would cause mental disturbances, and with enough energy, he could drive them insane with terror.

Absorbed emotions could also be converted into other kinds of emotional energy for use.

That was why Su Li had named it the Eye of Emotion. In his previous life, he had accidentally crossed worlds while researching the object further in his laboratory.

In this life, it had actually ended up on his body. Had it fused with him? Still, Su Li sensed no threat from it. Since it was now on his body, it was one of his powers. Even if it did pose a threat, he was confident he could suppress it.

"Master, it appears to need a large amount of emotional energy to fill it, and it seems it can also complement Witch Energy."

Su Li smiled faintly. "Then isn't the entertainment industry the perfect environment? The more people pay attention to me, the stronger I'll become."

The production team for "Brave Challenge" posted the upcoming episode's guest list on Feibo ahead of time, and the comments section was full of all kinds of remarks.

[Holy shit, what a star-studded lineup. Even an award-winning actor and a queen of pop are coming.]

[Chichi's joining too! Chichi is the prettiest!!]

[Aaaaaah, Yuhao's on it too!]

[Won't this show be a piece of cake for Yuhao?]

[Our darling Chen Zhuo is in this episode too! As one of his fangirls, I'm definitely watching!]

[Who's that last one, Su Li? Never heard of him.]

[This guy is so good-looking!!]

[What good are looks? We'll be lucky if he doesn't cry from fright and drag everyone down.]

[Anyone who's watched the first two episodes knows that looks are useless on this show. You need brains and guts.]

That Feibo post alone brought Su Li's account over thirty thousand new followers.

He was meditating at the time. Feeling the constant influx of emotional energy and his own Witch Energy gradually growing more abundant, Su Li couldn't help curling his lips into a smile.

A few days later.

Su Li set off for C City to record the show. Zhou Jing was waiting downstairs, ready to drive him there herself.

"Su Li, the other guests this episode are award-winning actor An Hui, queen of pop Cheng Sirong, popular young actress Meng Chichi, popular young actor Zhao Yuhao, and Chen Zhuo, a member of the newly debuted boy band dx. All of them are much more famous than you and have higher standing in the industry, so you need to watch yourself when you get there."

"Getting along with the others will be good for you. Just do your own part on the show. If you're too scared, don't try to tough it out, understood...?"

Like a mother whose child was about to leave for college, Zhou Jing kept endlessly reminding Su Li of everything he needed to watch out for.

Su Li gave her an obedient smile. "All right, Zhou Jing. I understand."

This episode's filming location was a huge Manor in C City, with an underground garage, a swimming pool, artificial rock formations, and even a small lake. The house resembled a castle. According to Zhou Jing, no one had actually lived on the Manor for a long time. It had only been rented for the shoot, and a considerable sum had been spent cleaning it up.

Upon arriving, he found that three people had already gotten there: An Hui, Zhao Yuhao, and Chen Zhuo.

The award-winning actor An Hui looked to be in his early forties, with rugged, handsome features. His superb acting had earned him numerous awards, and he had starred in many high-quality films. He came across as very mature and steady.

Zhao Yuhao, meanwhile, was a pretty-boy actor whose popularity had soared after he played the male lead in a recent hit idol drama. His fans were almost all young women, and with the added boost from "Brave Challenge," he had frequently appeared in Weibo's trending searches lately.

Chen Zhuo was a member of dx, a boy band that had become hugely popular over the past year. With flaxen hair and handsome features, he had a sunny, cheerful image and was the group's youngest member.

When Su Li entered, the staff and guests inside couldn't help pausing in surprise.

His ear-length black hair was neatly styled, and the walk had brought a rosy flush to his fair cheeks. His foxlike eyes were clear and beautiful. He had dressed simply today, in a white T-shirt, light blue jeans, and white sneakers, but paired with his face, the ordinary outfit looked fresh and innocent, yet stunning.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Su Li." The moment he entered the Manor, he had noticed there was something interesting about it.

Only then did everyone seem to come to their senses. An Hui smiled and nodded at him. "Hello, I'm An Hui." His tone struck just the right balance, neither overly familiar nor distant.

Zhao Yuhao greeted him too, though rather perfunctorily. Su Li could clearly see the gray emotion drifting around him.

Su Li's smile deepened. Just then, he saw Chen Zhuo step forward and extend his right hand. "Hi, I'm Chen Zhuo. Su Li, you're really good-looking." Curiosity shone in his eyes.

Su Li seemed to pause for a moment, then smiled and shook his hand. "You're very handsome too." Chen Zhuo immediately blushed, looking utterly delighted.

A sucker for a pretty face? How cute, Su Li thought, looking at the faint, barely perceptible pink around Chen Zhuo.

Just then, a commotion sounded outside. As it turned out, award-winning actress Cheng Sirong and rising young actress Meng Chichi had arrived together.

Cheng Sirong was in her thirties, with striking, elegant features and a sharp, confident outfit. Meng Chichi, meanwhile, had an innocent face and cultivated the image of a demure, refined young lady. She wore a light blue dress and white low heels.

The two came in and greeted everyone. When Cheng Sirong reached Su Li, her eyes lit up. "Oh! We even have such a handsome young guy this episode. Looks like I made the right choice coming here. What a treat for the eyes!"

Su Li replied politely, "You're too kind, Sister Cheng. You're the truly beautiful one."

"Now that's what I like to hear! Call me your big sister, and I'll have your back from now on."

Zhao Yuhao frowned slightly. In his opinion, Su Li was some nobody from who knew which tier who only knew how to deliberately suck up to people. The others only believed him because his looks had blinded them. But whatever happened, once the show began, he, Zhao Yuhao, would be the center of attention, while the unknown Su Li would only serve as his foil.

Meng Chichi didn't pay him much attention either. She thought Su Li was good-looking, certainly, but he was far too obscure, and getting close to him would offer no benefits. This time, her manager had tasked her with interacting more with the highly popular guests, ideally generating some publicity so that her own popularity and buzz could climb further.

"Yuan, do you see? These sources of nourishment are so interesting. The energy they provide is simply wonderful." Su Li was feeling very pleased.

"Master, these ordinary people are scheming, restless, and shallow, so their emotions are a tangled mess. They're adequate as nourishment for the Eye of Emotion." A measure of dismissiveness seeped into Yuan's voice.

"Oh? I'm scheming too. Why don't you say that about me?"

"Everything you do is right, Master. These sources of nourishment can't compare to even a single hair on your head."

"How did you get so sweet-tongued? You must have learned quite a bit while scanning Blue Star's online world~" Only now was there genuine amusement in Su Li's eyes.

"Master, Yuan means every word."