ATFBETIBM Chapter 681.2

The girl: “So the diary we found in your room wasn’t real either?”

The siren: “Of course, it wasn’t entirely true. Everything was meant to shape the Countess as a pure and innocent character.”

He revealed a wicked, cruel smile, “Now, it’s your turn.”

Just as the countdown reached the final second, Ji Nansheng saw the notification that the side task had been completed.

The time ran out, and his vision went black.

The system’s voice echoed in his mind.

[Ding! Unfortunately, the [Deadly Voyage] copy has ended in total failure, with no survivors. The Dream Star remains trapped in the Siren’s territory, and everyone aboard has become food for the terrifying siren.]

[Since the player failed to complete the task, you will now face punishment.]

[Your punishment is to complete five sets of exam papers in a small dark room, with an accuracy rate of at least 70% before you can leave.]

[Friendly reminder: If you encounter questions you don’t understand, you can review the explanations provided with the same type of questions at the end of the paper to learn how to solve them.]

[If the player forcefully exits the game, you will be sent directly to the small dark room upon your next login, and you won’t be able to leave until the punishment is completed.]

[You are now being transferred to the small dark room. I wish the player a happy game.]

Ji Nansheng’s vision brightened, and he found himself in a classroom.

There was a podium and a blackboard in front, with empty seats all around him—he was the only one there.

On the desk in front of him were five sets of exam papers. He flipped through them and took a glance—Chinese, math, foreign language, physics, chemistry.

Was this trying to kill him?

What game would dare make players solve exam questions?

Yesterday Reappears dared.

It truly dared.

Ji Nansheng completed a math paper with tears in his eyes.

The system automatically graded it. Out of 150 points, Ji Nansheng scored 33.

[Ding! Exam failed, please retake the test, player.]

The math test in front of Ji Nansheng disappeared and was immediately replaced by a new math test.

He glanced at it and almost fainted.

It wasn’t the same test as before—they had changed the questions! They really changed them!

Yesterday Reappears, you really dare to change the questions.

Everyone in the barrage burst into laughter.

[The humor level of the anchor doing the test: 10%.]

[The humor level of the anchor scoring 33 on the test: 100%.]

[The humor level of the anchor realizing the questions have changed after retaking the test: 10000000%.]

[Haha, I’m dying of laughter. From now on, the game anchor has become an educational anchor.]

[33 points! I’m starting to worry about Nansheng. Will he end up living in the small dark room?]

[“Famous game host scores 33 points in a math test.”]

[So MasterJi is this bad at math? I suddenly feel confident. I could score 50 points on that test with my eyes closed.]

Ji Nansheng glanced at the barrage. Not only had the viewer count not dropped, but it had actually risen from five million to eight million.

The barrage was all filled with [HAHAHAHA], and everyone was there just to watch him take the test.

One person suffers, and everyone comes to laugh. His desire to log off suddenly vanished.

Ji Nansheng felt like crying but had no choice but to take the test seriously.

After 24 hours in the game—24 minutes in reality—Ji Nansheng finally escaped the small dark room and returned to the game lobby.

He was exhausted. “Guys, today’s live broadcast ends here. I’m logging off to rest. See you in the next live broadcast.”

Ji Nansheng crawled out of the game pod while panting. He glanced at the time and cursed, “Damn it”, quickly changing his clothes and rushing out the door.

He walked into a hotpot restaurant, and the steaming aroma hit him instantly, causing his stomach to clench and spasm.

After telling the staff he was “looking for someone,” Ji Nansheng weaved his way through several turns to find a semi-enclosed booth with a curtain labeled “Shunfeng Hall.”

As he pulled back the curtain, a smile appeared on his face. “Xia Chi, sorry, sorry, I’m late… fuck!”

His voice stopped abruptly. Ji Nansheng pointed at the young man sitting at the round table as if he had seen a ghost, “C-Countess?”

Then his gaze shifted, and he saw the man sitting next to him. His eyes widened further, “D-Dijia?”

Xia Chi slapped the table and burst out laughing, “Hahaha, come sit down, big anchor Ji.”

Ji Nansheng sat down in the only empty seat uneasily, his eyes still darting between the young man and the other man at the table nervously.

He wanted to say something but hesitated. In the end, he shot a pleading look at Xia Chi, “Xia Chi, aren’t you going to introduce them?”

Xia Chi was red, his face glowing like a succulent nourished by love. He swallowed a bite of fatty beef and began the introductions.

“This is my brother, Bai Lixin.”

“And this is my brother’s boyfriend, Dijia.”

Ji Nansheng’s expression became complicated.

He really was called Dijia. It seemed this was indeed the same player he had met in the game.

Recalling the embarrassment from the game, Ji Nansheng took a sip of water to cover up his embarrassment.

Then Xia Chi nudged the guy next to him, “And this is my boyfriend, Tan Yue.”

“Pffft!” Ji Nansheng spat out a mouthful of water, but thankfully he reacted quickly, turning his head and spraying it all onto the floor.

His eyes widened, “Ahem, ahem, ahem. What did you say? Tan Yue? Your boyfriend? When did you two get together?”

Xia Chi chuckled, “Not too long ago. I’m treating you all today to officially announce him to you!”

Ji Nansheng coughed, “Ahem, congratulations, congratulations. I wish you both a long and happy life together.”

Xia Chi finally introduced Ji Nansheng, “This is Ji Nansheng, my college classmate and roommate. Tan Yue knows him too.”

“Of course, you guys don’t have to treat him like my classmate. With 33 points on a math test, I wouldn’t recognize him as a roommate either.”

Ji Nansheng: “…”

Today’s students return all their knowledge to the teachers.

There were only five people at the table, and two were couples, so his presence felt somewhat unnecessary.

Ji Nansheng stuffed a large piece of beef into his mouth, his eyes still darting back and forth between Bai Lixin and Dijia.

As he swallowed the beef, he forced down his panic along with it.

He took another sip of water and, despite the embarrassment, asked Bai Lixin, “Uh, excuse me, handsome guy, may I ask if your face was authorized for the modeling in Yesterday Reappears?”

Bai Lixin rested his chin on his hand, “No, I am the siren.”

“Ahem, ahem, ahem.” Ji Nansheng choked again.

He quickly put down his water glass and hurriedly wiped his mouth with a napkin.

Xia Chi: “It’s not shameful to lose to my brother. My brother is someone who can even crush a horror game. A mere you, no big deal. I wanted you guys to meet, but I didn’t expect you to already know each other.”

Bai Lixin added, “I entered the game as a specially invited BOSS tester for the company, to assess the difficulty of the game.”

Ji Nansheng didn’t understand what “crushing a horror game” meant, but he understood Bai Lixin’s explanation.

‘So, the siren was actually played by a real person?’

‘Wasn’t it too realistic?’

He was totally abused.

Xia Chi stood up, “I’m going to the restroom. You guys eat slowly.”

Ji Nansheng: “…”

‘Eat what?’

The confidence he had when he smashed the crystal ball was now replaced by embarrassment.

He sat there uncomfortably, waiting for Xia Chi to return and lighten the mood.

But no matter how long he waited—five minutes, ten minutes—Xia Chi didn’t come back.

Ji Nansheng forced a smile and joked, “Xia Chi must’ve fallen into the toilet.”

Just as he said that, the curtain was abruptly pulled open.

Xia Chi rushed in from outside, “Brother, I think I just saw Samael!”

Bai Lixin and Dijia exchanged a glance.

Xia Chi sat back down, panting, “I was just at the door when I suddenly saw a man in a black trench coat pass by. He looked exactly like Samael.”

“I ran after him, but I chased him for two streets and still couldn’t catch up.”

“Now I’m wondering if I was just seeing things.”

Ji Nansheng had never heard this name before, so he asked curiously, “Who’s Samael?”

Xia Chi: “He’s a friend who’s been through thick and thin with us. He’s been missing for a long time, and no one knows where he is.”

Ji Nansheng pondered for a moment, “In today’s era of high communication, if someone’s disappeared but is fine, maybe it’s because they don’t want to be found?”

Xia Chi was indignant like a stubborn ox, “Why? Everyone cares about him, especially Emil.”

Ji Nansheng muttered under his breath, “How should I know?”

After the meal, Ji Nansheng was in a daze.

He had been classmates with Xia Chi for four years and had never heard that he had a brother.

At first, he thought it was just a distant relative he wasn’t familiar with, but from their conversation, it became clear that they weren’t even related by blood.

He could only understand half of their conversation, but it felt like these people had gone through many things together without his knowledge.

Strange. Where did Xia Chi suddenly find this brother?

After the meal ended, Ji Nansheng said his goodbyes, bought two cans of beer from a convenience store, and walked to a secluded park to drink in solitude.

After finishing one can, the more he thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt, and he suddenly stood up.

No, are they sick? Making a single guy watch two couples show off their love? Damn it! He wanted to be in a relationship too!

Suddenly, he felt the urge to pee, and Ji Nansheng quickly headed toward the park’s public restroom.

This park had community greenery indicators. Though not many people came to play, the facilities were well-maintained and clean.

Take the restroom, for example. It was made from top-quality materials and cleaned several times a day, always spotless.

Ji Nansheng hurried to a urinal and let himself go.

While he was relieving himself, he suddenly heard a strange sound.

It was like the soft mewing of a kitten, faint and weak, barely audible.

Ji Nansheng froze for a moment, and looked toward the row of single-stall cubicles in confusion.

Because the place was so clean, had cats started making nests here?

He quickly finished, zipped up, and washed his hands.

Then, he cautiously approached to take a look inside.

Because he was about to graduate, he moved out of the dormitory early. Now that he was renting a house by himself, he had been thinking about getting a cat.

Encountering a stray kitten seemed like fate, so why not adopt it?

He had only taken a couple of steps when a heavy thudding sound came from inside one of the cubicles.

Startled, Ji Nansheng froze in his tracks.

He frowned and looked toward the innermost stall.

All the doors to the other cubicles were open, except for this one, which was closed.

Was someone in there?

And the kitten from earlier?

Was someone abusing a cat in there?

Ji Nansheng held his breath. Just as he was about to seek justice, he heard an even stranger sound.

It was the sound of lips entangled in a kiss.

Mixed with the kiss were those same soft whimpering noises from earlier.

Ji Nansheng’s mind exploded with a boom, and his eyes widened in shock.

No, not a kitten.

There were people… in the stall…

“Wait,” one of the voices whispered, slightly breathless. “I think there’s someone outside.”

The other voice replied, “He’s already gone. Baby, you’re so sensitive right now, it feels like you’re dancing inside.”

Ji Nansheng’s pupils suddenly contracted.

Those voices were so familiar.

It sounded just like Bai Lixin and Dijia, the two people he had just had dinner with.

The squelching sound of saliva and suppressed moans echoed in the narrow space.

Ji Nansheng’s face turned bright red, and he fled in panic, unable to stop the images of the two from flashing in his mind.

One was calm and elegant, the other cold and aloof.

He never imagined they’d be so bold…