Chapter 84: [Bonus Chapter]What Would You Do?

    "Wha—" The Broker was so shocked that he choked on his saliva, coughing. "You suspect that he’s a—what?!"

    "Have you been to a high-level Cycle?" Shen Nianzu asked. It was said that the difference between high-level and mid-level Cycle was akin to Heaven and Earth. If the range of activity in mid-level Cycle was limited only to a small city, then high-level Cycle could encompass the whole continent; it was as if the players had been transported into a completely different world. However, the level of difficulty and death rate would also increase exponentially. Most players would be content with challenging mid-level Cycle, as the risk-to-reward ratio was the most optimum. Only the powerful, insane and desperate players would dare to go into a high-level one!

    The Broker shook his head in response, then he asked curiously, "Have you?"

    "Once," Shen Nianzu said with his lashes lowered. Even though he was sitting in a bright and spacious office, it was like a heavy shadow had been cast upon his silhouette, giving him a somber and grim aura. "In that Cycle, the nightmare creatures... they resembled humans so much that it shocked me. Not only that, they were also aware of their own identity as they referred to themselves as superior beings who have survived the evolution process. They are extremely cunning, intelligent and full of malice toward us. And for them, we are nothing but weak and insignificant humans who have encroached upon their homeland."

    He had received the death curse exactly in that high-level Cycle and that’s why he did not dare to take it lightly, for he knew that the witch was telling the truth when she said that she was going to return from death just to kill him.

    The Broker listened with great interest as this was the first time he had ever heard a top player sharing about his experience in the high-level Cycle. "Superior beings, huh? A lot of people in the forum have speculated about what the Nightmare Cycle truly is, but so far the most popular opinion is how it’s actually a universe that is starkly different from ours – a universe filled with magic, superpower and creatures that’s beyond our scope of logic. Are you implying that you believe in this theory too, Nian?"

    "Don’t you think that’s the case?" Shen Nianzu raised his eyelids to give the man a pointed look. "Every time we challenge the Cycle, we have to hold the ticket and board the bus. And when we want to go back, we have to search for the return ticket. What are we, if not guests from a foreign land?"

    "And the reason why you suspect JJ is a nightmare creature is because..."

    Of course, that was because Jin Jiuchi did not need the ticket to board the bus. Unlike the other players who needed the ticket as ’identity’ to enter the Cycle, Jin Jiuchi did not need it... because he was the ’real citizen’ and not a ’guest’. Or so was Shen Nianzu’s speculation thus far. His mysterious identity notwithstanding, the fact that he could look at the Nightmare in the eye without getting affected also had to be taken into consideration.

    It was the only explanation Shen Nanzu could come up with to explain the mystery around Jin Jiuchi.

    But toward the Broker, he merely said, "I have my own reasons to doubt him. Did you not see anything else when you read his skill card?"

    "Hmm..." The Broker scratched his chin in contemplation. He was curious to death as to what Shen Nianzu had observed to come to this conclusion, but he also knew that he would not be able to get anything else out of the man. In the end, he could only sigh and shake his head helplessly, "No, I didn’t see anything past the usual. Perhaps it’s because I am only on level Queen, my ability is still inadequate."

    Shen Nianzu nodded, having expected this kind of answer. "Thank you for your assistance." He took his phone out of his pocket and tapped on it a few times, and in the next second, the Broker received a new notification saying that a player had transferred points to him. "I have paid the full price. Don’t forget to send Dance of the Wind’s information to me later."

    "Ha!" A shocked laugh escaped the Broker’s lips when he saw the newly added points in his profile. Five thousand. Shen Nianzu had paid him five thousand points! It was way more than what he usually charged his other clients!

    Seeing that the silver-haired man was ready to leave, he stood up and offered his hand, beaming from ear to ear. "I will surely send it to you tonight at the latest. It’s a pleasure to work together with you."

    "Likewise," Shen Nianzu shook his hand briefly. Turning around, he made his way to the door when the Broker called out to him all of a sudden.

    "Nian."

    Shen Nianzu halted on his tracks, tilted his head sideways and raised an inquiring brow. Then he heard the man ask,

    "What would you do if he really turned out to be a nightmare creature?"

    ***

    "Nian’er!" Jin Jiuchi’s eyes immediately lit up when he saw Shen Nianzu walking out of the room, and he hurried to approach the jade doll to grab his hand. "Are you done with the talk? Shall we go now? Oh, don’t worry, I didn’t eavesdrop on you at all! I can give you my word!"

    Shen Nianzu looked up at the man in front of him as the Broker’s earlier question reverberated in his mind.

    What would he do if this man was really a nightmare creature?

    If only... if only Jin Jiuchi was a normal person whose past was not shrouded in mystery and whose background was not dubious, he would have immediately acted on this pull of attraction between them and dragged the man to his bed last night. Alas, his cautious nature prevented him from letting his guard down solely due to the lure of fleeting desire. If there was one thing he had learned in the Cycle, it was to stay away from anything bewitching and appealing. For the more beautiful they were, the more lethal the poison they hid underneath. The glimpse of Jin Jiuchi’s sinister side was already more than enough to alert him on how dangerous this man could be.

    Last time, Jin Jiuchi was satisfied with only taking a bite out of his neck, but what’s next? Would he rip off his throat?

    "If he is proven to be a nightmare creature," he recalled what he had said to the Broker just a moment ago, his purple eyes as frosty as the peak of a snow-capped mountain. "I will get rid of him at once. Until then, I will keep this liability by my side."

    In response to Jin Jiuchi’s question, he nodded and lightly squeezed the warm hand holding his, "En, I’m done. Let’s go."

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    A/N: Who agrees with our jade doll that JJ is a nightmare creature? *raise hand* Drop your own theory in the comment section!

    Hehe that explains the ’slow romance’ tag I have added in the synopsis. Until SN can completely trusts that JJ will not harm him, he will not open his heart fully. But *cough* romance is slow, it doesn’t mean ’other things’ are slow as well *smirk*

    There will be no monthly or weekly goals for this book as I fear that I will not be able to fulfill it *cry in procrastination* but I will drop a bonus Chapter if this book receive a super gift *cough* yes, this is totally a bribe so you should do it :p