GRMFBS CH57

Gu Jiancheng maintained his body temperature, constantly monitoring Zhan Yan’s breathing and heartbeat. 

Every slight change in his breathing frequency or heart rate made his heart clench. This made Gu Jiancheng somewhat resent his own abilities.

Everyone in the Infinite World knew that the Shadow of Deep Shadow was the most terrifying ability among all Infinite players. 

It could attack, control, defend, and possessed various mysterious and unpredictable powers. 

However, he had no way to heal. Extreme power also brought extreme flaws.

Gu Jiancheng could not use any healing abilities. 

Even the most basic recovery spells that everyone else could exchange for points from the Infinite Main God – he himself didn’t need them. His Shadow could be used to restore his own condition. 

He also couldn’t do what others could, like injecting his power into another person’s body to regulate their physical condition, because his Shadow was contaminated. 

Therefore, at that moment, the only thing he could do was maintain his body temperature.

This sense of powerlessness gave Gu Jiancheng the illusion that he was a fragile, incompetent ordinary person. 

He felt uneasy and at a loss. Yet, the one in his arms, the one who made him feel uneasy and at a loss, was truly a fragile ordinary person. Just… perhaps a cold wind, or stepping into cold water, was enough to make him weak and in pain.

Gu Jiancheng carefully held Zhan Yan. 

He realized he needed to accumulate some healing items. 

He could protect Zhan Yan from injury, but it was difficult for him to protect him from getting sick. 

Fortunately, he felt Zhan Yan’s body temperature dropping, which brought him a little relief. 

He carefully pulled out Zhan Yan’s thermometer; it read 38.4°C, it was indeed dropping. Gu Jiancheng breathed a sigh of relief, gently embraced him, and unconsciously fell asleep as well.

When he woke up again, he felt someone squirming in his arms. Opening his eyes, he saw Zhan Yan’s eyes shining brightly, propping himself up, trying to climb out of the quilt. “You’re awake,” he whispered. 

“I woke up. It’s too hot.” 

Gu Jiancheng touched his forehead; it was damp with sweat, but his temperature was normal, and he seemed to have regained his spirits. 

“I feel better,” Zhan Yan said.

The heat he felt now wasn’t the scorching heat from when his fever first started; it was purely from being wrapped in a thick quilt with another heat source during an autumn heatwave. 

Moreover… in the Gossip System, the “Domain” sub-menu, which had been inactive, had somehow filled up a bar and given him a small star: 

[You’ve already dreamed it, what more function descriptions do you need?] 

He wasn’t simply having a fever; he was “evolving.” 

The things in his dream were probably related to the events of twenty-six years ago, but Zhan Yan didn’t want to think about it for now; he just wanted to take a shower. He was drenched in sweat.

Gu Jiancheng braced himself against the bed railing and nimbly jumped down. Zhan Yan watched his cool move with envy, then obediently climbed down the ladder.

While showering, Zhan Yan began to recall his dream. 

After the fever subsided, Zhan Yan felt exceptionally clear-headed. This dream didn’t have the usual blurriness or fading memory over time that normal dreams did.

 The dream remained exceptionally vivid, every detail could be clearly recalled. The one-eyed dragon and the candle reminded Zhan Yan of a mythical creature: the Candle Dragon (Zhúlóng). 

However, the traditional image of the Candle Dragon was uncertain; some said it had one eye, some two; some said it held a fire essence in its mouth, while others claimed it had no such thing, its name simply being Candle Dragon.

He decided to search the Gossip System.

[Heavy rain in Duyi City. Matthias and three transformed fish demons continued to play mahjong in a power-outage room with knee-deep water, lit by candles. When police officers advised them to evacuate, they all said they were fine, as they had offered sacrifices to Grandpa Dragon King.]

…System! Is this how you’re supposed to use the fuzzy search function?! There was “candle” and “dragon,” but what did this have to do with the Candle Dragon?!

But Zhan Yan couldn’t help but search for the follow-up to this piece of gossip. 

They had genuinely offered sacrifices to Grandpa Dragon King, but while the three fish demons were calm, how did Matthias get involved?! 

Oh, right, Comrade Matthias the Great Traveler had visited Duyi City and had just sent him photos yesterday, saying he would send him local specialties. 

During his travels, Matthias the Great Traveler, who hadn’t even mastered Chinese yet, first learned the art of playing mahjong. He could already shout “Pong!” and “Hu!” very authentically. 

Matthias now firmly believed in mysterious powers and was completely swayed by the three fish demons. 

He joined them in worshipping Grandpa Dragon King, thinking he could continue to dominate the mahjong table in the heavy rain! 

Now, the three fish demons had been taken to the Abnormal Affairs Bureau for “education” for deceiving a foreign friend. What delicious gossip!

But he needed to adjust this fuzzy search. If the Candle Dragon existed, it would undoubtedly be a very powerful great demon. He’d search the forum after his shower.

Outside the bathroom.

Zhan Yan’s phone suddenly rang. He hadn’t done his morning exercises today because of his fever, so his step count hadn’t moved. His family had been asking in the group chat, but Zhan Yan hadn’t replied, so they simply called.

Zhan Yan was showering. 

Gu Jiancheng looked at the words “Mom” displayed on the phone screen, as if facing a formidable enemy. He felt nervous, an unfamiliar kind of tension. 

This was a completely different kind of nervousness compared to facing a boss in the Infinite World! But why be nervous? 

He was just a normal classmate. He could simply say he was Zhan Yan’s classmate and that Zhan Yan was showering.

The call connected, and the gentle, kind voice of a middle-aged woman spoke from the other end: “Hello? Yanyan…”

“Hello, Zhan Yan’s classmate is showering. Can I help you?”

The other end of the phone froze for two seconds.

Gu Jiancheng: …

Zhan Yan had just finished his shower and came out to take the call, squinting at Gu Jiancheng, unable to stop smiling. “Hello? Mom, I’m fine. I had a bit of a fever this morning, but it’s gone now.” 

“I worked up a sweat, so I was just showering.” 

“My classmate is taking care of me, hahaha, he just had a slip of the tongue. I’m really fine.”

Zhan Yan had just turned off the water when he heard Gu Jiancheng’s silly words. 

He wrapped himself in a towel and came out before he even had a chance to dry off. 

His wet hair clung to the sides of his face and neck, and water droplets trickled down his strands, gliding over his skin and into the towel. Gu Jiancheng silently grabbed a dry towel and helped him dry his hair.

Zhan Yan hung up the phone and laughed uncontrollably at Gu Jiancheng. 

He sighed, “What are you going to do in the future? I have a large family, you know.” 

But rather than saying Gu Jiancheng was bad at socializing, it was more like he wasn’t good at responding to other people’s kindness. It was as if… no one had ever been kind to him before.

Gu Jiancheng sat on the chair behind Zhan Yan, his fingers gently tracing his scalp as he dried his hair, causing a tingling sensation. 

“I can practice more privately, so I won’t be so nervous when I meet them. Can you practice with me?” 

He leaned forward, his breath brushing Zhan Yan’s neck.

Zhan Yan’s breathing hitched, and he subtly smacked his lips. This person was also very good at taking advantage!

After Ji Yueming finished the call, she sent the news to everyone else. 

Knowing that Zhan Yan had a fever that morning, everyone was very worried. This was mainly because the timing was too unfortunate. 

Beiling City had just experienced the Grabled Anomaly No. 2 . 

That guy had been running rampant all over Beiling City. Although the Abnormal Affairs Bureau conducted follow-up checks, who could be sure where those “flies” had landed and what impact they might have left?

Ji Yueming and Zhan Yunkai were a little more at ease, as both big figures had confidence in the protective talismans they had placed on Zhan Yan. 

However, Zhan Jinli and Zhan Suiru were not so reassured. 

Zhan Jinli was currently just a former Ghost King, and his power was still incomplete. 

Moreover, the Ghost King Seal was not specifically for protection; it was more for deterrence. Zhan Jinli was unsure if such an evil anomaly would be able to break through the protection of his Ghost King Seal. 

Zhan Suiru, for the same reason, although her creation ability was strong, it wasn’t her original ability, making its use inevitably less refined. When facing a bizarre entity like the Grabled Anomaly No. 2 , she also harbored concerns.

It would be best to get Zhan Yan a check-up! Zhan Suiru quickly calculated in her mind and found a reason for Zhan Yan to come home: “

Yanyan, you don’t have classes this weekend, do you? Mom’s birthday is coming up soon, why don’t you come home?”

Zhan Yan: “…Mom’s birthday is on Wednesday!” If he went back for the weekend, he’d still have to come back to school for classes on Monday, so he’d miss it anyway.

Zhan Suiru: “It’s fine, we can celebrate Mom’s birthday early.” “I asked, and Mom said it’s okay.”

Ji Yueming strongly agreed with this idea. She had confidence in her lightning talisman, but that didn’t stop her from worrying about her son. Having Zhan Yan come back so she could see him would put her mind at ease.

Zhan Yan: “Alright then, I’ll go back this weekend.”

He hadn’t eaten much that morning, and now that his fever had subsided, he started to feel hungry. Gu Jiancheng went out to buy food, and Zhan Yan took the opportunity to log onto the Supernatural Forum and start researching the Candle Dragon.

The information was very scarce, almost the same as what he could find directly on Baidu. This situation was abnormal. Any famous great demon, even if they preferred to live in seclusion, would at least be mentioned on the forum as someone who had lived in seclusion for many years. 

But there was no mention of the Candle Dragon. Regarding the Candle Dragon, there were only a few legends passed down through the ages. 

Compared to the gossip about other great demons on the forum, this information seemed cold and distant, as if the Candle Dragon didn’t exist in this world. Perhaps what he saw in his dream wasn’t the Candle Dragon? But what other demon fit that description?

Zhan Yan searched around but couldn’t find anything. What was going on? Did he dream wrong? That shouldn’t be the case; his dream was certified by the Gossip System!

Zhan Yan suddenly thought of a possibility. The forum was established twenty-four years ago, and the Infinite Event happened twenty-six years ago. What if the Candle Dragon disappeared along with the “Infinite Event” twenty-six years ago?

The weekend arrived, Zhan Yan went home, and Gu Jiancheng also left school. He carried a small flower bud from a Corpse Flower Konjac clone to the black market. As soon as he entered the inner ring, he started looking for a broker.

“Who has bought the Mind Seeker from you?” 

Gu Jiancheng interrupted the broker’s lengthy pleasantries, getting straight to the point. His direct question startled the broker, who sat bolt upright in his chair.

The Mind Seeker was a prohibited item. 

Of course, this wasn’t to say that the broker didn’t sell prohibited items – what kind of black market wouldn’t sell prohibited items? 

But the Mind Seeker was a prohibited item among prohibited items. This thing originated from Infinity and didn’t exist in their world. 

The Mind Seeker was rare in Infinity, and even fewer people in this world knew of its existence. 

The Mind Seeker’s name came from “telepathy,” and as the name suggested, it was something that could know the thoughts of others. 

However, there were many abilities and items related to mind-reading; only the Mind Seeker was prohibited. 

This was because, in addition to mind-reading, it also had the ability to manipulate thoughts, and it was planted in a person’s soul. If controlled while alive, one couldn’t escape even after death.

“I’ve never sold such a thing,” the broker said.

Gu Jiancheng had only activated his voice, moving through the shadows impatiently, “I’m asking you about things that circulated from the black market.”

That Corpse Flower Konjac demon had been modified and bore the mark of a Mind Seeker. 

A Mind Seeker wouldn’t normally leave a mark. As far as Gu Jiancheng knew, there was only one pervert who did this: Monster Doctor. This guy was a severe abuser of the Mind Seeker, not only enjoying dissection and stitching but also liking to leave his “brand” on his test subjects using the Mind Seeker. 

The modification traces on the Corpse Flower Konjac demon were not heavy, and the brand was deeply hidden, but it was exactly the same as Monster Doctor’s mark. 

Although he had used the magician’s spirit board to investigate last time, it said that Monster Doctor was dead. But the facts were now laid bare. Either Monster Doctor was still alive, or a new perverse imitator had appeared.

No matter which it was, if they dared to appear, he would kill them!

The broker was still dawdling, saying that the black market had too much traffic for him to control. Gu Jiancheng had already stepped out of the shadows. He stopped in front of a door and tapped twice unhurriedly: “Open up.”

The broker flinched.