GRMFBS CH81

Bai Ze’s death was too tragic. No one had the chance to extend his life, the way Lin Yuan had extended Wan Yan’s soul. His life was gone, and his soul was nowhere to be found. Twenty-six years ago, the world was in chaos. Whether human, demon, or ghost, everyone was nearly exhausted, with little energy left to search.

They searched for a while but found nothing. They had to continue mending the broken world after the great war. Once things were more or less patched up, they resumed the search, but still, he was not found.

Bai Ze’s situation was unique, so the Wan Yao Alliance, the Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau, and Chaofu Mountain had all turned the world upside down for him. Since even they couldn’t find him, the most likely conclusion was that he was truly gone. The life of the living was lost, and the soul of the dead was likely gone as well. So, eventually, they stopped searching.

But twenty-six years later, Infinite, which had been shattered to pieces, resurfaced. Instead of hiding and cautiously building its strength, it took a risk to find Bai Ze. Infinite’s methods and powers were entirely different from theirs. For it to take such a risk, besides its desire for Bai Ze, could it be that it possessed some means to confirm that Bai Ze had not completely vanished?

If Bai Ze was truly still out there, he absolutely could not be allowed to fall into Infinite’s hands.

But this “Heart Guidance” technique was terrifying. Now that Zhan Yunkai knew of this vicious thing’s existence, he didn’t plan on letting anyone else get involved in such a critical matter. So he went alone to seek help from the Queen of the Nether River. The Queen of the Nether River was born from the Nether River and was the river itself; her soul was not a concern. Wan Yan’s soul contained Lin Yuan’s demon core, so it was impossible for him to be affected by the Heart Guidance without realizing it.

Wan Yan the cat looked up at the Chongming Demon King, and tears began to stream down his face.
Sob, my friend is dead!
Sob, and I don’t even remember him!
He felt wronged and heartbroken.

“Perhaps some of his soul remains,” the Queen of the Nether River said, raising her hand to scratch the little cat’s head. “So, help me look for him.”
Wan Yan nodded seriously. “Okay!”

With the Ghost King Wan Yan busy, the Ghost King Lin Yuan could investigate properly. He traced the clues of the Cursed Scales upward. Meanwhile, Shen Ying stopped pursuing the clues of the flesh-and-blood anomalies downward. It wasn’t that he was afraid to fight the Ghost King Lin Yuan, but there was no need. Since he knew someone else was handling these flesh-and-blood anomalies, he was happy to focus on investigating the Black Nest and the Monster Doctor.

When “Approaching Science” later told him that the Monster Doctor had now become an anomaly himself, Gu Jiancheng wasn’t surprised. It only made sense that he could become an anomaly and still be active. However, investigating the Magician’s side wasn’t easy either. As they investigated, the other party would hide and counterattack, so it was a grind.

Amidst the grinding investigation, they found time for classes and romance. For young people in love, it wasn’t always about formal dates. Drinking soy milk together during morning exercise, holding hands on the way, sitting together in class, passing a note, or exchanging a notebook—a simple glance and a smile were sweet enough.

They recently had a practical class at the affiliated veterinary hospital, and the two went together with their things. As students of veterinary medicine, their main focus was on livestock like cattle, sheep, and pigs, rather than cats and dogs. However, on their way to class, they passed the area where cats and dogs were treated, and Gu Jiancheng’s steps faltered at the doorway.

“What’s wrong?” Zhan Yan asked. His ears were currently filled with a symphony of noises from all the small animals.
“It’s nothing,” Gu Jiancheng said.

He went to class, finished class, and ate as usual. That night, after the dormitory lights were out and everyone was asleep, Gu Jiancheng quietly slipped into the affiliated veterinary hospital. The place where he had felt something was off was the room used as a pet operating room. Not long ago, during the cool autumn, a batch of stray cats and dogs had been neutered there.

When Wan Yan the cat was at Beiling Agricultural University, he had been very dedicated to his role as a cat. Before leaving, he grew sentimental—his chef was here! 

He couldn’t let anything happen! 

Wan Yan had been hearing the university students talk about “neutering, neutering” and got curious. So, before he left, he visited this place, which was like an execution ground in the eyes of stray cats and dogs. 

After satisfying his curiosity, he casually left the Ghost King’s Seal there, as if to say, “This place is under my protection!”

Gu Jiancheng stared grimly at the cat’s paw print hidden under the operating table.
What is wrong with the Ghost King Wan Yan?!

Gu Jiancheng’s spirit, which had only just relaxed for a couple of days, tensed up again. 

Fortunately, he realized the Ghost King Wan Yan meant no harm, so he didn’t let his tension boil over. 

He recalled all the ridiculous things the “Wish-Granting Cat” had done and gained a new understanding of Chaofu Mountain. If the Ghost King Wan Yan could pretend to be a stray cat to scam food and drinks, he couldn’t imagine what the other ghost kings of Chaofu Mountain were like. They were probably all unreliable.

That Ghost King Lin Yuan was recently investigating the flesh-and-blood anomalies. 

He had to stay as far away from him as possible, lest he also be a lunatic and get in the way of his own important business. 

As for the cat’s paw Ghost King’s Seal left here by Wan Yan, it was usually dormant, but if anyone were to use a large-scale offensive supernatural ability on the university grounds in the future, they would get slapped by a cat’s paw.

 Let’s just leave it. It’s a form of protection, anyway.

Gu Jiancheng went back, pretending he knew nothing. The next morning, he got up as usual to exercise with Zhan Yan. Zhan Yan had been exercising daily for almost a semester. Seeing his improved stamina, Gu Jiancheng had been secretly increasing his workload, and running an extra lap wasn’t too tiring for him anymore.

After the run, the two walked half a lap to cool down, then did some stretches to prevent lactic acid buildup. Zhan Yan lifted his leg onto the railing and began to stretch. He was quite flexible, able to touch his head to his knee. After a while, he felt his calf and asked Gu Jiancheng happily, “Hey, do you think I’m gaining muscle?”

Gu Jiancheng squeezed it. “It’s definitely firmer than before.”
Zhan Yan was quite proud. In the future, he wouldn’t be in a situation where he needed his brother to carry him after just a 3,000-meter run! When he got back to practicing with dumbbells, he would sooner or later be stronger than his sister!

Gu Jiancheng didn’t take his hand away and continued to squeeze, helping him relax his muscles. After several laps, Zhan Yan was inevitably sweating and panting, while Gu Jiancheng looked like he had just warmed up. Zhan Yan reached out and poked his firm arm, full of envy. “Hey, I never see you train that much. How is your stamina so good?”

 His physique was amazing too! The muscle lines were clear and fluid, moving with a rhythmic tension and relaxation during exercise, which was especially attractive.

Gu Jiancheng generously held out his arm for him to squeeze.
“Did you ever get extra points in sports for college admission?” Zhan Yan asked. With Gu Jiancheng’s ability to run 5,000 meters so easily, Zhan Yan felt it was a waste if he hadn’t.

Gu Jiancheng shook his head. His original world was very similar to this one. Before entering Infinite, he was also preparing for the college entrance exams and choosing his major, but he wasn’t a sports student.

Remembering the past, Gu Jiancheng couldn’t help but feel a little dazed. For him, those were things from a very, very long time ago, things he had never told anyone. 

“I originally… wanted to study human medicine,” Gu Jiancheng said with a light smile. 

“Later, by a strange twist of fate, I ended up in veterinary medicine.”

He looked into Zhan Yan’s bright, curious eyes and felt that it wasn’t so difficult to talk about these old stories after all.

After Infinite was gone, Gu Jiancheng fell into this world. He first recuperated. Later, when the wounds that could heal had mostly healed, the ones that couldn’t were left as they were. He wandered around, killing any anomalies he saw. 

When the forum appeared, he registered, took on missions when he saw them, and went to kill anomalies after accepting them. His life was a bit like his days in Infinite, except the missions were freely chosen and much easier than the instance worlds.

He didn’t use the points he earned from the missions; there was no need for them. At the beginning, Gu Jiancheng had sought out some healing-type ability users and exchanged for some rare medicines and artifacts through “Wan Shitou,” but none had any effect on his after-effects. Without Infinite, his after-effects were gradually worsening. Later, he gave up.

Gu Jiancheng had traveled to many places in this world but had little impression or knowledge of them. In his condition, he was in no mood for sightseeing; he was just finding things to do through missions. 

Later, Gu Jiancheng felt his after-effects were becoming unbearable. He couldn’t let himself truly become a madman; he wouldn’t let Infinite wear away the last bit of his will. If he couldn’t hold on, it was time to end it.

But before the end, what else was there to do? Continue killing anomalies? 

Gu Jiancheng felt it would be too miserable to spend his last days like that. Yet, he found he had nothing he wanted to do. 

In Infinite, all he thought about was how to survive and how to get out. Now that he was out, he had no more goals.

So Gu Jiancheng dug out his memories from before he entered Infinite, dusted them off, and tried to remember if there was anything he wanted to do back then. 

Oh… he was preparing for the college entrance exams. He wanted to be a doctor. He hadn’t experienced university life yet.

So Gu Jiancheng asked “Wan Shitou” for help, created a fake identity, and took the college entrance exam. 

But he made a mistake when filling out his preferences and, by a twist of fate, applied for veterinary medicine. The Gu Jiancheng of later days was no longer fixated on being a doctor. Veterinary medicine was fine too. He just wanted to find a university and experience the college life he had almost had. When the day came that he could no longer go on, he would end it all.

And then he met Zhan Yan.

“Yan Yan,” Gu Jiancheng said, lowering his head and rubbing his calf. “I don’t want to let go.”
Gu Jiancheng had thought about letting go. The more he liked him, the more he wanted to let go. And the more he liked him, the more he couldn’t let go. That time at the train station, Gu Jiancheng’s heart was churning almost uncontrollably, but when Zhan Yan walked towards him, he couldn’t help but flee.

Zhan Yan was so good, like a dream that could disappear at any moment, making one want to hold on tight. But if he really held on, he was afraid the dream would shatter. Gu Jiancheng thought about it all the way on the train and continued thinking about it at school, day and night, over and over, his heart in agony, yet not a single word would he say.

Later, on the day they both got caught in the rain and took a shower, Zhan Yan asked him to help dry his hair. It was then that Gu Jiancheng realized Zhan Yan had already placed him in the same category as his family. At that moment, with the damp little curls in his palm, Gu Jiancheng couldn’t help but think, I won’t let go.
You were the one who let me in first.

Zhan Yan had some leftover fruit candies in his pocket. He unwrapped two, one for himself, and stuffed one into Gu Jiancheng’s mouth. 

“Who said you could let go?”

 He propped his hands behind him, looking up at the clouds drifting slowly in the sky. He pulled back the leg that was resting on Gu Jiancheng’s lap, his ankle touching his knee, and smiled as bright as the sun. 

“Hey, you’re always overthinking things. You’re not thinking of breaking up with me, are you?”

Gu Jiancheng’s eyes darkened, the two black orbs looking as if they were about to ignite. 

He placed one hand beside Zhan Yan and leaned his upper body over him. The clouds drifted away again. The taste of green apple and grapefruit mixed together.

Both their lips were incredibly red. 

Gu Jiancheng whispered hotly and wetly into his ear, “I won’t let go. Let’s make it official; meet the parents, okay?”
Caught off guard, Zhan Yan agreed.