“What else?”
Doctor Li stared at him with a look of despair. The shadow cast on the wall involuntarily stretched out eight tentacles. It was so emotionally active that it was about to reveal its true form.
“Are you gradually getting better because of the collection of inspirational quotes I searched on my phone every day?!”
Eight octopus-like tentacles pointed to one side with a “swish”.
As it moved, Jian Xie’s eyes swept across the bookshelf placed in the other person’s office.
There were books on it, such as “Daily Tips: Three Steps to Get Rid of Anxiety”, “How to Make Your Depressed Self Smile”, and “Psychological Traps: From Entry to Death”, which were enough to show how much hard work the other party had put in pretending to be his psychiatrist.
He couldn’t help but: “…………”
It sounded incredible at first, but thinking about it carefully…
It seemed that everything was not without trace.
After each consultation, Jian Xie would feel refreshed, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders. This was why he would repeatedly accept consultations arranged by the community. Otherwise, based on his personality, he would not continue wasting time if the first visit was ineffective.
And this obviously couldn’t be attributed to the chicken soup literature that Dr. Li crammed on the spur of the moment.
The most powerful evidence for this conclusion was the other party.
It couldn’t even make itself happy and let go of its eight tentacles to become a carefree special A-level monster, let alone Jian Xie who always had a blank expression and looked bored.
If one thought about it from a supernatural perspective, if he really was feeding on the monsters’ fear… then that made sense.
“Better?”
At the same time, Jian Xie caught the key words the other party had just said, frowned and asked, “Why do I need to get better if I’m not mentally ill?”
Although this was a doubtful question, he subconsciously made his own inference before waiting for the answer.
Jian Xie trusted his own judgment more than other people giving him straightforward answers.
A year ago, he was the only one who miraculously survived a tragic car accident that killed both his parents.
It wrote on the gift; Happy First Anniversary.
He feeds on monsters’ fears… just like Special A-levels. The only difference was the target.
…He was feeding It entirely.
Jian Xie’s mind flashed through the attached information he received from Cheng Li, which introduced an extreme situation that might not exist.
Special A-level monsters may have the ability to control the dead and occupy corpses. All the horrific accidents in the morgue related to “incomprehensibility” and “paradox of common sense” were all within the scope of their capabilities as long as they were full of horror and chaos.
However, the information did not mention resurrecting the dead and allowing them to retain their original consciousness. After all, monsters only meant to kill, and there had never been a precedent for them bringing back the dead.
But if it was the unknown existence in his body right now…
Jian Xie didn’t know what else It couldn’t do.
If the side effect was that he needed to devour a monster’s feelings of fear… then this side effect was very small.
[Seems like you’ve figured it out… but not entirely.]
Although there was only a slightly deep voice, one could easily imagine the other party supporting their chin with their fingers overlapping with that indifferent look akin to looking down on everyone.
[Don’t worry, you’re still human.]
It curled It’s lips slightly.
Jian Xie felt the hair stand up on the back of his neck because of these gentle words. The itchy feeling made him subconsciously close his eyes and hug his cold arms, as a result he missed the way Dr. Li’s pupils constricted instantly as he subconsciously retreated and looked at his back in horror while shaking all over.
It was afraid.
Any other special A-level monster that was considered abnormally strong in the eyes of the world would never dare to act rashly in such a situation. It would be so scared that its predation field would explode.
The other side didn’t even release their predation field, but just used the shadow to create a mimicry!
There was a huge gap between them…
It was like the difference between an ant and an elephant.
Although he was at the center of the storm, Jian Xie didn’t know what he looked like now.
His shadow that was normally cast on the floor had now disappeared, leaving only a thin black line connecting to the soles of Jian Xie’s shoes, indicating the connection between the two beings. It could not leave the other’s body. At least at this moment, they were some kind of evil existence that was one and the same.
In this afternoon when the sun was shining brightly, the room suddenly became extremely cold. Black shadows floated up and formed a vague, abstract misty human figure.
As a teenager in his third year of high school, Jian Xie was already 1.75 meters tall. His thinness made him look particularly tall, hence, he was considered the tall type.
However, this ball of black fog was nearly two meters in size, large enough to completely wrap up his body, making the teenager look particularly petite.
[You’re not dead.] It’s attitude was lazy, [And you will not die in the future. Because I won’t allow it.]
Although it sounded like a casual promise from the other party, the overwhelming strength It demonstrated gave people a sense of security that It would ensure its realization.
It felt as if even if Jian Xie really died, this guy would snatch him away from the hands of the god of death—
Wait a minute, it seems like It itself was the god of death in some sense? Obviously, he was the one who was in the most danger around It, right?
Jian Xie suddenly came to his senses: “…”
Hah, I almost got fooled.
Dr. Li felt terrified in his heart as he stood right in front of Jian Xie and got ignored, but at the same time he couldn’t help drooling at Jian Xie.
There was really no way around it, this was a physiological reflex of being a monster.
Just now, it was so scared that it subconsciously released its predation field to protect itself, which made Jian Xie smell even more fragrant in front of it.
And it was the kind of scent that even a Special A-level monster could not resist. It was definitely not because it’s self-control was too weak.
“I’m craving spicy grilled octopus.” Sensing its eager gaze, Jian Xie said expressionlessly, “I didn’t have lunch, so let’s eat outside.”
The black fog behind him turned It’s head and looked at the special A-level monster that was temporarily maintaining its human form in the room.
Hearing this, Dr. Li’s expression twisted. The eight tentacles in its shadow instantly curled up into a ball, looking as pitiful as possible.
With a plop, it hid under the table, trembling and not even daring to cry out in pain when it hit its head. It just held its head and swallowed madly before crying out, “I’m not hungry… I’m Dr. Li now, and I have a business license. Eating me is against the law, society does not allow such crazy behavior…”
It has already voluntarily given up its identity as a Special A-level monster and was going to start to live as a human from today!
Jian Xie: “…………”
What a really high level of awareness.
He was about to say something, but suddenly, his movements paused and his expression became a bit subtle.
Tasty.
…It’s really tasty.
The smell emitted by Dr. Li in front of him was even more fragrant than a spicy grilled octopus, which made his appetite increase immediately.
A monster’s fear was actually more delicious than he thought.
After a long period of silence, Dr. Li loosened his hands that were hugging his head and raised his head, just in time to see Jian Xie’s expression as the other blatantly ogled.
“…………”
Wait a minute, don’t act recklessly!
*
It was six o’clock in the evening. The community was filled with residents who had just finished their meals and were scattered around the fitness equipment chatting.
Jian Xie walked past the security guard who was dozing off under a parasol.
After bullying Dr. Li, Jian Xie left the clinic with a refreshed look on his face, which received a confused gaze from the receptionist.
She seemed to want to ask him something, but when Jian Xie looked over, she lowered her head helplessly.
This was his first weekend off in the past year.
He has no work today or tomorrow.
He had been doing quite well at the takeaway shop before, but he didn’t expect something fatal to happen yesterday.
Although the death had nothing to do with him essentially, and he was just a delivery man passing by, Jian Xie was still tactfully persuaded by his boss to quit with this reason and became a free man without a part-time job for the time being.
But he also received an extra month’s salary because of this, so it wasn’t particularly depressing.
[Do you really need money?] It’s voice was playful, and it was hard to tell whether It was being genuine or insincere.
“No,” Jian Xie refused straightforwardly, answering with righteousness, “As a youth under the red flag, I simply love labor.”
He certainly didn’t believe that It purely meant well.
[……]
Just in front of Jian Xie, a man who was playing with his mobile phone was about to pass by him, but the dog on the other end of the leash suddenly started whimpering, rolling on the ground and refusing to move. Even when the leash was pulled, it refused to get close to Jian Xie. Its four legs were shaking as if it had Parkinson’s disease.
Small animals were most sensitive to the malice emanating from humans.
And it was obvious that it could sense that there was something frightening in the shadow behind the good-looking human opposite.
Seeing this, the dog owner looked at the dog awkwardly, then looked at Jian Xie’s overly pretty face, feeling even more ashamed: “Sorry, bro.”
Jian Xie: “…”
He was actually avoided by an angel dog.
Although the dog owner was a teenager of the same age, he subconsciously looked at Jian Xie’s face and lamented why the gap between people was so big. He couldn’t help asking,“Are you also a resident of this community? I haven’t seen you around.”
“I’m not usually in the neighborhood at this time.” Because I work part-time.
“Oh……”
After saying goodbye to the teenager with a thoughtful look on his face, Jian Xie walked back to his corridor with extremely complicated feelings. The traces of the sun had disappeared and the cold and damp air instantly occupied the space around him, making him pull up his coat.
He didn’t know why, but the building where he lived was always so cool.
Even on a sultry afternoon, walking into here felt like entering an ice cellar, which was more effective than an air-conditioned room.
Before crossing the corridor and climbing the stairs, he took a particular look around and found that the old elevator was still under repair.
This elevator became like this about half a month ago. It was said that it was due to aging equipment, but Jian Xie subconsciously felt that this was not the main reason for its suspension of operation because sometimes when he returned home late at night, he could still hear the sound of the elevator moving up and down.
At first glance, the elevator entrance could be seen sealed with yellow talisman papers with incomprehensible symbols written in red ink, which were a bit creepy.
Next to the elevator buttons, there was a black and white missing person notice that looked straight from a tabloid. The yellowed paper looks like it may be several years old. The photo printed on it has faded from it’s original color, making it impossible to see the face of the missing person clearly.
Jian Xie withdrew his gaze.
Although it looked suspicious, he really didn’t have much curiosity about it unless trouble came to him on its own.
…Have to climb to the seventeenth floor again.
In fact, Jian Xie had considered moving to a new house. After all, before his parents had a car accident, their family did not live in this ordinary neighborhood. However, part of the money was spent on funeral ceremonies, and some was given to unknown relatives who came to take a part of the money. In the end, he was left with very little money.
The house they lived in previously was not fully paid for, and the high monthly mortgage payments had not yet been paid off, so it was temporarily mortgaged to the bank.
He didn’t know when his parents bought the house, but after liquidating it, this other one was the only house he had left to live in.
Because he couldn’t over-expend his physical strength, Jian Xie moved as slowly as a snail, taking him twice as long as a normal person to move himself up.
However, just as he took out the key to open the door, he keenly felt a gaze coming from behind.
Jian Xie paused and turned around.
The other person seemed to be frightened by his sudden action and turned around in a flurry with the tips of her ears and neck turning a faint pink because of shyness.
“Y-you came back a little early today…”
Noticing that Jian Xie was still looking at him, he lowered his head even further until his slightly long hair covered his ears. He murmured softly, “Sorry, I couldn’t help it, I was curious…”
“It’s okay.” Jian Xie said, “By the way, I used your wifi today, thank you.”
This was his socially anxious neighbor, and also the nice guy who often let him use his wifi.
Jian Xie would rarely see him go out, as if he didn’t need to go out for a walk or sunbathe. And every time he ran into him, he would immediately shrink into a ball in shyness, like a hedgehog curling up when encountering danger. When Jian Xie would try to poke him, he would turn into a mimosa plant.
“No, i-it’s okay, it’s for you. Why did you go home early today…?”
The neighbor stumbled and leaned his head against the door, like an ostrich burying its head in the sand. He seemed to be blushing because of Jian Xie’s unexpected words.
“It’s because my part-time job was canceled,” the sympathizing Jian Xie said. Maybe this was a severe case of social phobia, that was why he behaved so stiffly when talking to strangers.
At this moment, he inserted the key into the door, turned and opened it so he didn’t have to embarrass the other party any longer, “I’m going in first. Bye.”
“B-bye…” the neighbor murmured.
With a gentle “click”, the door was closed and Jian Xie’s figure disappeared from sight.
It was not until a long while later that the neighbor raised his head. That pretty face had flushed in just a few seconds.
He took out the key with trembling hands and spent a long time trying to align it with the keyhole. Only after he took several deep breaths and calmed down did he slowly open the door of his house, revealing the scene inside.
It was pitch black. Even in the living room, there was no light.
It was not just that the lights weren’t on, but that there was no lighting installed in the entire house, as if the people living in it didn’t need light.
Almost immediately after the door closed, the neighbor melted on the spot.
Literally melted.
The handsome young man has disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving only a pool of flowing sticky unknown dense black liquid, making gurgling sounds on the floor.
“So happy, so happy… Jian Xie likes us…”
“Soon, I won’t have to stand at the door waiting for him to come home anymore.”
“He will be friends with us…”
The author has something to say:
Neighbor: Go out and upgrade your Wi-Fi to 5G now!
