Anchor Hall
Chapter 529: “He’s different.”
As soon as he got his hands on the magazine, Wen Jianyan expressionlessly tried to tear it—
But it wouldn’t rip.
“?”
Wen Jianyan looked down at the magazine suspiciously.
What?
Refusing to believe it, he grabbed both sides of it with his hands, took a deep breath, and pulled with all his might—the magazine remained perfectly intact.
Wu Zhu: “…”
Wen Jianyan: “…Shut up!”
Wu Zhu: “I didn’t…”
Wen Jianyan shot his head up, his eyes spitting fire.
Wu Zhu shut his mouth.
With a grim expression, Wen Jianyan stuffed the Nightmare-published periodical under his pillow—the thing didn’t seem to be made of paper and thus couldn’t be destroyed by external force. Since he couldn’t tear it, he could only confiscate it.
“Alright, now let’s talk—”
Noticing the other’s overly obvious gaze, Wen Jianyan’s brow twitched. He reached up, pulled his loosely hanging pajama top back onto his shoulders, and tugged it closed, gritting his teeth, “…about serious business.”
As if he had never known the meaning of restraint, Wu Zhu’s gaze still lingered on the skin of Wen Jianyan’s neck and wrists.
“Mm, you talk.”
“…”
Wen Jianyan pinched the bridge of his nose, took a deep, forceful breath, and asked with strained patience:
“First, does Nightmare know you’re here?”
Wu Zhu: “No.”
He propped his head on his hand and answered casually.
“But, it has been trying very hard to find me recently.”
Wen Jianyan: “When did it find out you were still alive?”
“Not long ago.” Wu Zhu thought for a moment. “Probably after your last instance ended.”
Wen Jianyan fell into deep thought.
It seemed his previous guess was correct.
First, Wu Zhu had indeed found a way to disappear under Nightmare’s search.
But similarly, since Nightmare was “very intent on finding” Wu Zhu, it meant it must have already known that Wu Zhu hadn’t died in Changsheng Building, which is why it was trying so hard to search for him.
As for whether Nightmare would connect this to him…
Wen Jianyan wasn’t too concerned.
After all, the daggers were already drawn between them.
Ever since Nightmare had tried to set a trap for him in the Yuying Comprehensive University instance, trying to make him the so-called “new god” and failed, its mask of hypocrisy had been completely torn off—even before he entered Yuying Comprehensive University, Wu Zhu’s survival was still a secret.
In other words, while he was making deals with Wu Zhu behind Nightmare’s back, Nightmare was already digging his grave.
“…”
Thinking of this, Wen Jianyan couldn’t help but look grim.
If he had really done as Nightmare had hoped, killed Wu Zhu with the brass knife after the Changsheng Building instance, and obediently helped clean up Wu Zhu’s fragments in the subsequent instances… then what would have awaited him wouldn’t have been the generous conditions Nightmare promised, but ruthless exploitation and being cast aside once he’d served his purpose.
Even though he had a full understanding of Nightmare’s way of doing things, after personally experiencing its depravity and shamelessness, Wen Jianyan couldn’t help but feel his teeth itch with anger.
…He had been played after all.
However—
Wen Jianyan seemed to think of something. He looked up, casting a thoughtful glance at Wu Zhu.
“You…”
Wu Zhu: “Hm?”
“Do you have memories from before you awakened?”
Wen Jianyan hesitated for a moment before asking.
He had asked a similar question before.
At that time, Wu Zhu’s answer was “I don’t remember,” and something about… “memory begins with meeting your eyes.”
Wen Jianyan was not one to ask the same question twice, but…
This time was an exception.
The ‘Yuying Comprehensive University’ instance was a perfect trap tailored for him by Nightmare. From beginning to end, it cleverly set ambushes step by step, subtly inducing him to gradually merge with the instance by acquiring one identity after another—the position of “Principal” was not only the highest point of identity within the instance, but also the deepest level of integration with it.
And once he acquired that identity, he would be “completely assimilated.”
However, this assimilation was different from being left in the instance due to a zeroed-out SAN value. His so-called “assimilation” was actually just the first step.
Because he had experienced the Fukang General Hospital instance before, Wen Jianyan had obtained a unique “title.”
‘Mother of the World’.
And the director of Fukang General Hospital and the principal of Yuying Comprehensive University were the same person. His goal from beginning to end was only one thing: to awaken… or rather, “create” an aberrant god.
That is, the Mother of the World.
Wen Jianyan, who had once obtained the title and been recognized by hundreds of ghost infants, was the perfect embryo for this plan.
Unique, one of a kind.
In other words, once Wen Jianyan alienated in this specific instance, he wouldn’t really be left in the university forever as the “Principal”—he would become a new god.
A god created by Nightmare’s own hands.
Even thinking back on it now, Wen Jianyan still felt his heart pound with fear.
From any angle… the Yuying Comprehensive University instance was far too dangerous.
Whether it was its difficulty as an SS-rank instance, or the vicious plan Nightmare had created based on it, it was all incredibly chilling. It was a terrifying death trap with absolutely no possibility of escape once you were in it.
But precisely because the Yuying Comprehensive University instance was too perfect as a trap, it was also the instance where Nightmare exposed the most information.
Wen Jianyan had a premonition…
He seemed to have caught a glimpse of a tiny piece of Nightmare’s core.
If his guess was correct, once the trap succeeded, he would have replaced Wu Zhu and become the new fuel.
If that was the case, then Wu Zhu, who had also been used as an instance’s furnace core and was called “Father God” by his worshipers… could he also…?
Wen Jianyan couldn’t help but grow tense. He held his breath slightly, staring intently at Wu Zhu, waiting for his answer.
“…A little.”
Wu Zhu propped his chin up and said thoughtfully.
“!!”
Hearing this, Wen Jianyan’s heart skipped a beat.
This was a different answer from last time.
“What, what is it?”
He composed himself and forced his voice to remain calm as he asked.
Wu Zhu: “I remember being in a corridor.”
Wen Jianyan was startled.
Wait, a corridor? Could it be…
Wu Zhu: “You were there too.”
“You wanted to save a man.”
Wen Jianyan: “…………”
The expectant look on his face slowly faded, replaced by a blank expression.
Oh.
That happened in the diorama of the Xingwang Hotel. Of course, strictly speaking from a timeline perspective, this event did indeed happen before Wu Zhu awakened in Decai High School, but this was not the information Wen Jianyan had hoped for.
After all, as someone who had personally experienced it, he knew all too well what had happened during that time.
Wu Zhu continued, “You said you were my wife…”
Wen Jianyan: “…”
Memories from the instance before last began to resurface. Some images that really shouldn’t be remembered started to flood his mind. His brow twitched violently, and he cut in, “Alright, I know—”
“…You also said a lot of things I don’t understand.”
Something about different styles.
Wu Zhu’s gaze shifted down to the corner of the magazine peeking out from under the pillow. He said thoughtfully, “It only has one or two of them. I haven’t found the rest yet—”
“Enough, enough, enough!!!”
Wen Jianyan shot up, raising his voice, speaking so fast it was like a string of firecrackers, abruptly cutting off Wu Zhu’s unfinished sentence. “I get it!! You don’t need to say any more!”
Wu Zhu closed his mouth.
Wen Jianyan pressed his temples, which were starting to ache.
Damn it…
He didn’t know if it was intentional, but this guy always seemed to know exactly how to give him a headache.
However… this also meant that Wu Zhu probably didn’t have any memories from before he became a furnace core. The reason he remembered what happened in the Xingwang Hotel was likely because he himself was there.
Because he was the “anchor point.”
Wen Jianyan sighed.
It seemed he would have to uncover the answer to this matter himself. And Wu Zhu, as the core figure, couldn’t be of much help.
“Sigh…”
Although the conversation hadn’t been very long, Wen Jianyan felt an unprecedented exhaustion. He fell straight back onto the pillow. “I’m tired; I’m going to sleep.”
Wu Zhu: “Okay—”
Wen Jianyan’s eyelid twitched.
“Okay my ass, I’m not planning on sleeping with you.”
Wu Zhu: “…?”
He looked genuinely surprised.
Wen Jianyan gritted his teeth: “I just said it. Last time’s proposal was limited to last time. If you try anything funny again, you’ll be tasting some pain—I’m absolutely not kidding.”
He pulled the blanket up to his neck, heartlessly shooing him away:
“You should go. Get lost.”
Wu Zhu looked at Wen Jianyan for a couple of seconds. Seeing that his heart was as hard as stone and he had no intention of changing his mind, he slowly got up.
“…Wait.”
Wu Zhu snapped his head around.
“I forgot to say something,” Wen Jianyan pinched the bridge of his nose. “Nightmare started a reality show recently. Although I’m not sure what its purpose is, I don’t think it has good intentions.”
After the last few instances, Wen Jianyan’s vigilance towards Nightmare had reached its peak.
Not long after he decided not to enter any more instances, Nightmare started a “reality show” with the camera pointed directly at the anchor hall… He didn’t think it was a coincidence.
“Although Nightmare knows you’re still alive now, you’d better not be too conspicuous.”
“…Are you worried about me?”
Wu Zhu let out a soft laugh, his golden eyes shining in the darkness.
“Don’t flatter yourself.”
Wen Jianyan pulled the blanket over his head and turned his back to him. “Do whatever you want.”
With the reality show starting the next day, Wen Jianyan thought he wouldn’t sleep very soundly.
But…
Maybe it was because he had been forced to release once the night before, but he slept surprisingly well.
When Wen Jianyan woke up, the sky was already bright.
Outside the balcony was the sparkling sea. The cruise ship sailed smoothly, the sea breeze moist with vapor—if there wasn’t work to do, it would have been the perfect time for a vacation.
Wen Jianyan sighed, slowly got up, and went to the washroom.
He took off his pajamas and began to wash up.
After showering, Wen Jianyan came to the mirror. When he saw his upper body, his eyelids couldn’t help but twitch.
One side was completely swollen, the tip engorged with blood, round and plump. Even after a whole night, there was no sign of it going down, presenting a vivid, rosy color.
Damn it…
Wen Jianyan gritted his teeth.
Unfortunately, the main culprit was not around, so his anger had nowhere to go. He had to swallow his anger and use 5 points to heal the marks on his body.
After getting all ready, Wen Jianyan left the washroom and immediately started his live stream.
As soon as the stream started, a huge number of viewers flooded in. They seemed to have been waiting for a long time, and their reaction to Wen Jianyan’s broadcast was very enthusiastic.
[Ahhhhh!!]
[Ahhhhhhh he’s live!!!]
[Ahhhhhhh wuwuwuwu anchor, I’ve been waiting for you for so long!!!!]
“Ah… good morning.”
Wen Jianyan stretched languidly and greeted the audience, his attitude lazy and very casual.
[Good morning, good morning ahhhh!!]
[Wuwuwuwu still so handsome after not seeing you for so long!!]
[How are you feeling today, anchor? Is your body better?]
[Ahhhhhh anchor, when are you going into an instance? After watching your instances, I can’t watch anyone else’s…]
“Mm-hm, much better—don’t worry, just a cold.”
Wen Jianyan nodded, lying with a straight face.
“As for instances… I probably won’t be doing any for a while.”
As he spoke, he opened the door and walked out onto the balcony, squinting his eyes:
“Ah, what nice weather.”
The sea breeze blew towards him, blowing open his shirt—he had changed to a different floral pattern, and although the color was different, it was just as gaudy.
Wen Jianyan grinned and pointed at the sea in front of him:
“As you can see, I’m on vacation on a cruise ship right now.”
After briefly answering a few viewers’ questions, Wen Jianyan hid the live stream interface. After sending a message to the other members of his guild, he turned and left the cabin.
VIP dining area.
The area here was ten times the size of the regular cabin dining area, but there were very few people dining.
Behind the huge floor-to-ceiling windows at the edge, Wen Jianyan sat at one of the tables. A butler was placing a simple breakfast in front of him—eggs, milk, bread, and some fruit.
The others arrived one after another.
Wen Ya glanced at the contents of Wen Jianyan’s plate: “I’ll have the same as him.”
Ji Guan stretched lazily: “Same here.”
Ma Qi tilted her head: “Do you have crepes?”
Kong Wei, the tallest and most muscular, ordered three steaks and two plates of pasta—an astonishing amount.
The others also ordered what they wanted one after another and sat down at the same table.
Chen Mo shook his head and politely refused:
“No thanks, I’ve already eaten.”
Chang Feiyu nodded with a grin: “Me too.”
Bai Xue: “A glass of milk.”
Wen Jianyan: “…Why are you still here?”
And he hadn’t sent him a message just now, either.
As if he hadn’t heard his question, Bai Xue sat expressionlessly in his seat, silently drinking his glass of milk.
Wen Jianyan: “…”
His head was starting to hurt again!!!
“Guild Leader,” it was Chen Mo who spoke first. He tapped the table with a bent finger, his attitude as calm as ever. “Have you started your stream?”
Wen Jianyan shot a hateful glare at Bai Xue before looking away.
“Of course,” he sighed, lifting his chin. “It’s on right now.”
Chen Mo nodded.
“I’ve pretty much figured out the rules too,” Wen Jianyan stuffed the runny-yolk fried egg into his mouth and said indistinctly. “But it’s a bit different from what I learned last night.”
He briefly explained the tiered system of the live stream to everyone.
After hearing what he said, everyone at the table fell into thoughtful silence.
It seemed that not everyone knew these overall rules, and only Nightmare’s top ten like Wen Jianyan were qualified to know.
“By the way,” Chang Feiyu seemed to think of something and looked at Wen Jianyan. “Guild Leader, have you started accepting private tasks yet?”
Wen Jianyan: “Not yet.”
Based on the other’s attitude, he keenly sensed that something was wrong. “What’s up?”
“The Guild Leader is truly a divine strategist,” Ma Qi said with her mouth stuffed full, shaking her head in her chair. “The ship is already in chaos.”
In fact, ever since the reality show began at midnight, signs of chaos had already begun to appear.
However, at that time, most people were still observing cautiously, so no major trouble had occurred… But as time passed and the sky brightened, the situation gradually began to go wrong.
At first, it was just a few physical altercations, which soon evolved into bloody incidents.
Like a drop of cold water falling into hot oil, with the appearance of a trigger, the situation began to spiral out of control.
Indeed, Nightmare prohibited mutual killing in the anchor hall.
But… conflicts didn’t necessarily have to end in death.
What’s more, this was the anchor hall. All injuries sustained could be healed with points.
The private tasks issued by the audience were bizarre and varied. Some were just strange, harmless little things, while others were bloody, violent, or sexual. They casually issued tasks, provoking one dispute after another, or simply ordered anchors to self-harm… while they themselves sat high up in the stands, laughing.
“However,” Chen Mo added, “these disturbances are basically concentrated in the third and fourth-class cabin areas and the public decks. The second-class cabins are just a little unsettled, but the first-class cabins and the independent areas above are still very calm.”
After all, the anchors who could afford the more expensive tickets were not people who would be driven by such petty profits.
“The more viewers an anchor has,”
Wen Ya had already finished her breakfast and was elegantly dabbing her lips with a napkin. She said calmly, “the less difficult it is to complete private tasks.”
Although there was a lower limit to the number of private tasks one could accept, anchors could still freely choose which tasks they wanted to take—more viewers meant more fans.
As long as not all the viewers in the live room were malicious, there was room for the anchor to pick and choose tasks.
Wen Jianyan nodded: “Is that so?”
He was not surprised by this result.
In fact, after seeing the specific rules of the reality show last night, Wen Jianyan had already guessed what might happen.
“Then,” Blond asked hesitantly, “Guild Leader, what should we do next?”
“What to do? Nothing.”
Wen Jianyan finished his breakfast cleanly and stretched his muscles. “Since the third and fourth-class cabins and the public decks are in chaos, then let’s just not go there.”
“…” The others were stunned.
“Have you forgotten what we came here for?”
Wen Jianyan produced a pair of sunglasses from somewhere, perched them on his nose, and said lazily, “A vacation.”
He stood up, signaling to the butler in the distance that he could come and clear the table.
“Isn’t fighting to the death in instances tiring enough?—Don’t worry about what other people are doing, just have fun.”
After saying that, Wen Jianyan swayed away, leaving the others staring at each other.
…What he said did make sense.
Perhaps it was because Wen Jianyan seemed so nonchalant, but under his influence, the nerves that had been tense due to the appearance of the reality show inexplicably relaxed.
Chang Feiyu was the first to laugh: “That’s true.”
“Vacation, vacation!” Ma Qi cheered.
Ji Guan: “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go sunbathe!”
Chen Mo sighed, shook his head, and followed them.
Everyone left the table one after another.
Behind them, at the table where only one person remained, Kong Wei was still silently stuffing steak into his mouth.
First-class exclusive deck.
As far as the eye could see, besides the attendants and butlers, there were very few anchors.
Wen Jianyan lay on one of the deck chairs, large sunglasses covering half his face, sunbathing very comfortably. His floral shirt was open, his fair chest and abdomen exposed, seemingly glowing in the sunlight.
“Just a simple vacation like this?” Chen Mo sat at the bar not far away, his brow furrowed.
Wen Ya shook her head and sighed helplessly: “Don’t be such a workaholic. Rest a little; otherwise it would be a waste of such an expensive ticket.”
Blond drank his soda and nodded in agreement: “Workaholic, destined for a life of hard work!”
“…”
Chen Mo shot him a blank look.
Blond’s shoulders shrank, and he turned away, pretending he didn’t know anything.
“But, it is a bit troublesome that there are so few people around,” Ji Guan sat to the side, swiping through the live stream panel in front of him, shaking his head repeatedly. “I can’t do any of these posted tasks.”
“Yeah, yeah!”
Ma Qi licked a huge ice cream cone and nodded vigorously.
“The last task I completed was 100 burpees—and then there was nothing else I could do.”
The others who hadn’t spoken also nodded, clearly in deep agreement.
Although there were no disputes on the first-class deck, it was perhaps a little too peaceful… They rarely even saw anyone other than themselves. In this situation, it was very difficult to accept and complete private tasks.
Because their live rooms were too boring, the number of online viewers also began to drop.
“Let’s go check out the other areas this afternoon,” Chang Feiyu suggested. “I still have four tasks to meet the quota.”
“Yeah… We can’t fail to meet the quota on the first day of streaming, can we?”
Blond lamented with a worried expression.
While the group was discussing how to complete the remaining private tasks, Wen Jianyan, who had been sunbathing not far away, sat up and swayed over to the bar.
He pushed his sunglasses up onto his head and casually approached the bar, pulling out a chair and sitting down.
“Sigh, I’m thirsty…”
Wen Jianyan rested his chin on one hand, leaning against the bar. His eyelids were slightly lowered, his dense lashes drooping, and a misty smile was hidden in his light-colored eyes.
“What do you guys think I should drink?”
“Ah, the bidding has already started?”
The young man’s eyes curved, and he laughed lazily.
It was just a casual smile, but it made one’s heart jump for no reason, making one want to do something right then and there, just to make him smile at them a little more.
“Oh oh, this one is very good.”
“Ah, this one is not bad either.”
“Mm… let’s go with this one then.”
Wen Jianyan made up his mind. He raised his hand and called the bartender over:
“Here, I’ll have that one—a Sunset Champagne.”
He suddenly thought of something and called out to the bartender who was about to walk away, adding:
“Ah ah, right, don’t forget to put a small umbrella in it for me.”
As if he had glimpsed a question in the comments, Wen Jianyan smiled again, the end of his voice rising cheerfully:
“Of course I want a small umbrella, I’m on vacation after all!”
The group watching all this from not far away: “………………”
Huh?
No???
Is it that simple for you to get a bounty???
Comparisons are odious!!!!
“Alright.” Chen Mo cleared his throat, waking everyone from their daze. “He’s different.”
The group: “Sigh!”
Ma Qi slumped onto the table and whined, “It’s so nice, I want to get into the top ten too—!”
Chen Mo couldn’t help but look at Wen Jianyan in the distance.
…That wasn’t the reason.
Or rather, that wasn’t the only reason.
Even before he became one of the top ten, this guy was already like this.
He seemed to have a natural talent for bewitching people—a point Chen Mo had long since experienced firsthand.
The An Tai Community instance seemed like it happened a century ago… Recalling that instance now, Chen Mo couldn’t help but feel a sense of daze.
When he first met Wen Jianyan, no matter how vivid Chen Mo’s imagination was, he could never have imagined that he would end up handing over his own guild to him, and even become his vice-guild leader and hard laborer.
He never would have imagined that he would end up climbing to his current position, surviving such high-difficulty instances, and meeting his current companions.
Whether it was what happened in that instance, or the choices that followed, looking back now seemed very incredible, like a bizarre and illogical, grotesque dream.
But, Wen Jianyan seemed to have that ability.
He wove dreams for people, and then made them unable to resist sinking into them.
Wen Jianyan took the Sunset Champagne with its small umbrella from the bartender and suddenly looked over.
As if he could see through what was troubling everyone, he let out a soft laugh and said unhurriedly:
“Don’t worry.”
“An opportunity will come soon.”
Almost as soon as his voice fell, a familiar system announcement sounded in their ears.
【Public Task: Please proceed to any nearby casino within three hours and complete a game at any table】
【Reward Points: 2000】
【Failure Penalty: 12-hour broadcast privilege revoked】
Wen Jianyan lifted the small umbrella from the champagne flute, took a leisurely sip, and raised an eyebrow at the group:
“See.”
I really love Wen Jianyan’s way of operating so much. Thank you for translating! ❤