LABMY CH157

The surroundings were filled with people who had their mouths bound and tightly gagged. Only a few individuals still had their eyes and ears free. Behind him stood the detestable Jian Yuanbai, while in front of him, on the screen, was the black-clad man H, staring at him sternly.

Those two words felt like they would burn his tongue—Shen Tingyue couldn’t say them out loud.

Jian Yuanbai coughed lightly twice, just about to urge him when Shen Tingyue’s voice rang out.

Shen Tingyue: “What did you just say?”

“Insignificant worm?”

He lifted his chin slightly, his posture arrogant and proud. “Interesting. No one has ever dared to call me a worm before. You are the first.”

“As a reward for your courage, I will grind your bones to dust!”

The moment Shen Tingyue said this, H fell silent for a while before finally asking, “I was insulting him. Why are you so eager to take the insult upon yourself?”

Not just H—everyone tied up in the hall like dumplings was stunned as well.

Only Li Lijie couldn’t bear to watch and closed his eyes. There was no saving him. This person had completely lost his mind over love.

What kind of bewitching potion had Jian Yuanbai given him to make “her” so protective of her husband?

Now, it was Shen Tingyue’s turn to fall silent. He stubbornly held his ground, refusing to show weakness, and said with full confidence, “Insulting him is the same as insulting me! What about it?”

As he said this, the tips of his ears slowly turned red, and his whole body tensed up as if he wanted to shrink back.

He was only managing to hold on because of his sheer determination to bite Jian Yuanbai hard.

H let out three cold chuckles. “Good, good, very good. Since that’s the case, you can die with him.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you die before he does.”

A dark aura spread around H, an ominous and sinister presence oozing from his entire being. Shen Tingyue was a little afraid—right now, he was just a weak blood clan member who could barely use a bit of illusion magic.

The little vampire dashed over to Jian Yuanbai’s side, poking his head out cautiously and warily watching the man on the screen.

Jian Yuanbai’s gaze sharpened, his entire body tensed. He thought to himself: It’s finally happening, isn’t it?

The mastermind behind all this.

In Jian Yuanbai’s estimation, the person responsible for this could only be either a deranged lunatic or a wealthy man who enjoyed watching bloodshed—just like how people used to enjoy cockfights or cricket fights. Only here, the creatures fighting to the death were living humans.

But the reality was far worse than that.

The entire ancient castle had been turned into a massive formation designed to collect malicious energy. The more negativity people released within it, the stronger that energy became.

And the core of the formation was located beneath the dry, circular fountain.

After H dropped those words, the screen suddenly went black. The foul energy gathered at the fountainhead was enough to form a temporary body for him—enough for him to effortlessly kill the two who had dared to provoke him.

Thick, black, thread-like tendrils of gooey material continuously oozed from the fountainhead, emitting a putrid stench. The viscous liquid flowed like tar, pooling and rising until it took the shape of a humanoid figure.

No one witnessed this eerie scene—only the withered, decayed branches of dead flowers observed in silence.

The black humanoid figure took a step forward, and with each step, the ground beneath it corroded, leaving shallow pits that sizzled with thick smoke. Yet, it became more and more human-like, and by the time it reached the castle gates, it had fully taken the form of H, now wearing a mask.

As H stepped inside, all eyes turned toward him.

Jian Yuanbai was startled. How had this person arrived so quickly? Or had he been hiding in the castle all along?

He wasn’t sure whether H had a gun or not. His eyes darted to a nearby couch that could serve as cover, and for now, he remained still.

H walked up to him, the black streaks in his eyes rapidly spreading until they consumed his irises completely. “Now, kneel before me and confess your sins. I may grant you a whole corpse.”

His voice was strange, like an echo from the abyss. The bound captives stared blankly at him. Their knees buckled, and they struggled desperately against their restraints, even as the ropes cut deep into their wrists, just to kneel.

Only Jian Yuanbai and Shen Tingyue remained standing. Shen Tingyue frowned—there was a repulsive aura about this H that made him feel sick.

The little vampire, who had been hiding behind Jian Yuanbai just moments ago, didn’t hesitate—he immediately stepped forward, trying to shield Jian Yuanbai with his body.

His fist clenched tightly, veins bulging against his pale skin. When he swung his fist, the force of it stirred the air, making Shen Tingyue’s bangs flutter slightly. A dull thud echoed through the hall.

H’s nose broke. He collapsed with a loud crash.

Jian Yuanbai withdrew his fist, looking annoyed. “What are you pretending for?”

He had assumed the guy either had a gun or some other trick up his sleeve, but all he did was stand there, not moving, striking a pose.

H looked at him in utter disbelief. “You… you weren’t affected?”

“How could I be?”

Jian Yuanbai frowned. “What do you mean, ‘affected’? Did you poison me?”

H struggled to his feet, sneering, “Poison? As if such a crude method could compare!”

A strange light flickered in the depths of his pupils as he locked eyes with Jian Yuanbai. “I want you to cut open your own stomach with your own hands and eat your own entrails.”

“Idiot.”

Jian Yuanbai responded by punching him again and efficiently tying him up.

H was furious. “The great Lord of Desire will not forgive your sins!”

Boom! Another punch. This time, before H could say a word, Jian Yuanbai smashed another fist down. The mask shattered instantly, revealing a face covered in blood and flesh.

Punch after punch landed. The black threads also caused the surrounding people to wake up, even making the onlookers snap back to their senses.

Fear began to spread in H’s heart. Who exactly was this person? Why was he completely unaffected by hypnosis and control? H even tried to detach from this temporary body he had constructed, yet it felt like something was tightly grabbing onto his feet, preventing his escape.

Jian Yuanbai sneered at him. “Why don’t you first ask if the law will forgive the crimes of a cultist like you?”

As soon as he said this, he directly stuffed something into H’s mouth.

Everyone tied up in the hall had been moved there by Jian Yuanbai. Now, including H, there were seven people in total, each one shrinking into themselves like quails.

The others, who had initially harbored various thoughts, saw how ruthless Jian Yuanbai was and immediately tried to minimize their presence.

Only one vampire walked over, cupping Jian Yuanbai’s injured right hand. He stared at the bleeding wound, then stuck out his tongue, about to lick it.

Jian Yuanbai scowled and pushed away the approaching head. “Don’t lick it.”

Shen Tingyue said seriously, “I can make your wound heal faster. I’m not trying to drink your blood.”

He simply felt uncomfortable seeing the wound on Jian Yuanbai’s hand.

Jian Yuanbai pulled his hand away from the soft tongue. “Wait a second.”

Just the thought of Shen Tingyue licking his hand—along with H’s blood—made Jian Yuanbai extremely uncomfortable.

He quickly strode toward the nearest water source in the hall, washed the blood off his hand, then walked back and stretched out his hand toward Shen Tingyue. “Now you can.”

Jian Yuanbai had smashed the mask with his bare hands, and though he had washed the wound, blood still seeped from it—just enough for Shen Tingyue to suck a little.

In the grand, opulent castle hall, a “young lady” dressed in a clean Lolita-style dress lowered her head, reverently licking and kissing the hand of a tall, handsome man.

Her tongue was soft and delicate, carefully licking the wound over and over, not even missing the slightest scrape.

The seven people in the hall had varying expressions, their facial features contorting in odd ways. H was furious. Li Lijie, his mouth stuffed shut, could only scream in his heart.

The setting! The occasion!

Can you two at least be a little mindful of the occasion when being affectionate?!

I’m begging you!

One thought echoed among the seven bystanders:

—Does licking really make it heal faster?

After tying the people up, Jian Yuanbai took Shen Tingyue to check the iron gate at the castle’s perimeter. It was still tightly locked. Through the gaps in the iron bars, they could see a bald man lying outside the gate, barely breathing.

On top of the bus, a small wooden cabinet had been stacked up—clearly the method the man had used to get over the gate.

Since the gate hadn’t been opened, it meant that H hadn’t entered from outside the castle.

Jian Yuanbai returned to the hall, took out some paper and a pen, and began sketching out a way to build a simple ladder without touching the electric grid.

Shen Tingyue squatted beside him, tilting his head as he watched.

When the Special Operations Investigation Unit broke open the castle gates and entered, this was the scene they saw:

A tall, broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted man with an extraordinary presence holding a pen, writing and sketching. Beside him, a short-haired “young lady” in a dress was squatting. Around them were people tightly bound with ropes.

The scene looked eerie yet strangely comical.

Jian Yuanbai raised his head and asked, “Who are you people?”

The leader of the group spoke. “We are the Special Operations Investigation Unit. We are investigating a criminal case involving a brutal massacre disguised as a game.”

“Now, we are going to—”

Before he could finish, Jian Yuanbai cut him off. “Your ID. Let me see your ID.”

One of the members hesitated for a moment before speaking up. “Are you… Jian Yuanbai?”

Jian Yuanbai nodded. “That’s me.”

As soon as he confirmed it, the leader immediately handed over his ID. Jian Yuanbai examined it and then pointed at the six tied-up people. “These are the survivors of the game.”

He then gestured toward a young man with blood-stained bandages on his hands, an older man named Lao Zhao, and a short-haired woman. “These three were deeply involved.”

“The rest of the bodies are inside the castle. Oh, and there’s one buried under a tree outside.”

With a swift kick, his suit-clad leg struck H. “This one is likely one of the game’s organizers.”

Jian Yuanbai slightly regretted not acting sooner. If he had known H didn’t have a gun or any backup, he would have made his move earlier.

Perhaps then, fewer people would have died.

In reality, what Jian Yuanbai had already accomplished was enough to leave the Special Operations Investigation Unit in awe.

Since the start of their investigations into similar cases, they had always arrived too late—only finding a field full of corpses.

This was the first time there were so many survivors, and even a ringleader had been handed over to them.

The ominous aura radiating from H made the investigators certain that Jian Yuanbai was telling the truth.

It was unbelievable, yet somehow, knowing that Jian Yuanbai was involved made it feel oddly plausible.

Even though Jian Yuanbai was not officially part of the Special Operations Investigation Unit, his name was well known among them.

A “normal human”—yet any supernatural force or ghostly entity would become powerless in his presence.

For example, a regular person would be haunted by a ghost, unable to touch it. But in Jian Yuanbai’s case, if a ghost faced him, he could grab it and beat it to a pulp. Possessions, curses, hauntings—all were nullified in his presence.

What made him special was that no matter the entity—ghosts, demons, or any other malevolent force—they were all forcibly reduced to “ordinary beings” in front of him.

The team leader nodded. “You’ve done well. We’ll take over from here.”

Jian Yuanbai asked, “Can you send a car to take us back?”

“No problem.”

“It’s just that you… and this one beside you, uh, the boy, need to be available for questioning at any time.”

The vampire’s abilities were too weak. That little illusion had no effect in the eyes of the Special Operations Investigation Division. What they saw was simply a delicate and beautiful short-haired young man.

Jian Yuanbai had no objections. “Alright.”

The one who first called Jian Yuanbai’s name turned out to be the driver. The mountain road was rugged and long. They had already swayed in the car for a long time when they came, and now, on the way back, the journey seemed even farther. After two whole hours, they still saw no sign of human habitation.

The Special Operations Investigation Division worked quickly. In those two hours, they had more or less figured out the entire situation. They had even found that coffin and learned from others that, in their eyes, this young man was “Lu Yongye.”

One of the team members driving the car received a call and started glancing at Jian Yuanbai from time to time.

He coughed twice and tentatively asked, “Captain Jian, did you notice anything unusual in the castle these past few days?”

Jian Yuanbai: “No.”

Those two simple words instantly shut the team member down. He changed his approach and asked, “What about the person beside you? Did you notice anything unusual about him?”

The team member’s question made Jian Yuanbai glance coldly at him through the rearview mirror. “No.”

“Not even a little? According to our knowledge, in other people’s eyes, he is Lu Yongye.” The team member refused to give up and pressed on.

The young man in the car was most likely a bloodkin, but the Special Operations Investigation Division didn’t handle everything. This young man had no scent of blood on him, clearly indicating he had never killed anyone. As long as he registered with them, it was fine.

The reason they brought this up with Jian Yuanbai was…

Because Jian Yuanbai was someone in whose presence all supernatural tricks failed!

In the eyes of the Special Operations Investigation Division, he was a prized asset!

Especially since his combat ability was absurdly high—making him even more valuable!

But the Division had a rule: they couldn’t forcibly recruit an ordinary person who was completely unaware of the supernatural unless that person had already been involved in an anomalous event and realized something was amiss—that there was a strange force in the world.

The problem was, because everything failed in front of Jian Yuanbai’s eyes, even though he had beaten up countless evil spirits and ghosts, he never noticed anything was off.

This drove the members of the Special Operations Investigation Division absolutely insane.

Now, seeing how Jian Yuanbai could take down so many people single-handedly, they wanted him to join the Division even more.

But according to the rules, even if Jian Yuanbai had a vampire by his side, as long as he himself remained unaware, they still couldn’t outright tell this not-at-all-ordinary “ordinary person” the truth.

However, this round of hints took on a completely different meaning in Jian Yuanbai’s mind.

No matter what Shen Tingyue was—who he was, what his identity was, or even if he wasn’t human—

Jian Yuanbai would not allow anyone to set their sights on him.

He leaned back slightly, his long legs crossed, looking completely at ease. “Yueliang just knows a little illusion magic. Is there a problem?”

The team member was dumbfounded. A problem? Isn’t this a huge problem?!

Jian Yuanbai spoke so righteously that the team member lost confidence. He weakly protested, “But he didn’t use any props at all. Does this kind of illusion really exist?”

“A truly skilled magician never lets the audience see any flaws.” Jian Yuanbai answered matter-of-factly.

Team member: …

The “magician” Shen Tingyue sat up straight with his hands on his knees. When the Special Operations Investigation Division member driving the car looked over, he even gave him a standard smile and politely nodded.

The meaning was clear: Yes, I am a magician.

It didn’t matter if the Division member believed it or not—Jian Yuanbai and Shen Tingyue certainly did.

After a long silence, the team member suddenly remembered the repeated warnings from the phone call just now. Relentlessly, he pressed on again: “But, according to our knowledge, he frequently bites your fingers.”

“It seems to be related to blood?”

At this point, the hints were practically being shoved in Jian Yuanbai’s face. Yet, he remained completely unfazed. “Yes, Yueliang does have porphyria and also happens to be a magician.”

The team member couldn’t take it anymore and blurted out, “He’s not even human!”

Jian Yuanbai frowned. “What? You discriminate against the sick?”

“Since when is a patient not human?”

Caught off guard by being questioned in return, the team member’s eyes widened in disbelief. He was utterly speechless, cursing internally.

What the hell.

The hell kind of patient is that?!

His hands tightened around the steering wheel, and for a brief moment, a dangerous thought flashed through his mind—maybe he should just drive straight into a tree and knock some sense into Jian Yuanbai.

Only his remaining sense of professional ethics kept his dangerously fraying rationality intact.

How did Jian Yuanbai’s brain even work? How could someone be this dense?

He was going to lose his mind!