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Anchor Hall
Chapter 199: Have you never had any fun?
Perhaps due to the alcohol, the young man’s reactions were a beat slower than usual.
He stared blankly for a moment, blinking sluggishly before his gaze fell on the man who had just spoken. He seemed somewhat uncertain, his voice rising at the end, blending into a murky mumble that seeped into the darkness.
“Are you alright?”
The other person did not respond.
In just a few fleeting moments, the rapidly expanding shadow silently filled the room.
The atmosphere became stagnant, like a fragile string on the verge of snapping.
Wu Zhu stood in the depths of the shadow, his figure almost entirely hidden in the darkness. His skin was as cold and pale as a statue, and his irises had a metallic quality that felt inhuman, exuding an eerie sense of otherness.
Even though he had a human appearance, one glance was enough to realize he was something primitive, entirely different from a human being.
In stark contrast to him was Wen Jianyan, standing not far away in the light and shadow.
His collar was disheveled, his cheeks and neckline wet, and his cheekbones flushed red from the residual heat of the alcohol. His posture was relaxed, and the lingering scent of the alcohol, warmed by his body heat and hot water, turning into a warm, steamy vapor that enveloped him.
“……”
The gaze cast from the darkness fell upon him, like a cruel kind of savoring.
Wen Jianyan knew he was in the wrong.
After all, back when the Peace Asylum instance was about to end, he had made a pact with Wu Zhu, forbidding him from imposing control, forcibly intruding, or dragging him into bizarre environments as he had done before. Wu Zhu was supposed to communicate like a human being—albeit only in theory.
After all, humans don’t need to brand each other to communicate.
In the end, it wasn’t Wu Zhu who broke the pact first, but Wen Jianyan himself…and he had completely ignored it due to excessive indulgence in fun.
This was certainly detrimental to their nascent “cooperation.”
The temperature in his lower abdomen was scalding, and the deeply etched markings on his skin were burning, as if conveying a message of displeasure.
He laughed dryly twice:
“Haha, if you really had something urgent and I didn’t respond in time, you could’ve just sent me a dream…”
Wu Zhu lowered his eyes, gazing at the young man not far away.
His face showed no joy or anger, no visible emotional fluctuation, only the pitch-black shadow swirling around him, like silent, invisible waves.
“You didn’t sleep.”
He said.
Wen Jianyan choked: “……”
He thought back carefully…it seemed to be true.
His schedule for the past few days had been back-to-back engagements, leaving almost no time for rest. In fact, before entering the nightmare realm, he was already accustomed to such extreme chaos in his routine. Since entering the nightmare and starting these erratic, bizarre instances, his habit of working nonstop has only worsened.
As long as he remained awake, his energy stayed high.
He hadn’t even taken a nap.
He laughed dryly twice again, forcibly changing the topic:
“This is what happens when humans take vacations…”
Wen Jianyan raised his hands in surrender, blinking obediently and acting innocent.
“It won’t happen again, I promise.”
Wu Zhu’s fingers twitched slightly at his side.
He had seen this human with a mocking, confrontational demeanor, eyes burning with fierce light, as if he wanted to tear a piece of flesh from his enemy. He had also seen him feign compliance, honey-tongued, using a soft, submissive guise to hide his unruliness and wild nature.
But he had never seen him like this.
Familiar and relaxed, affectionately ingratiating.
Under the long eyelashes, his eyes held a moist glow, and the drowsy laziness seemed to seep into his bones, exuding a languid air.
This usually disrespectful and arrogant fellow was now suddenly approaching intimately, like a small animal rubbing its soft fur against his ankle.
“……”
In that moment, the deeply suppressed memories of the fragments stirred, silently clamoring. An unknown, unrelievable itch spread from the chest and abdomen to the fingertips.
“Ah, so… does this mean we’re actually in my dream now?”
Recalling their recent conversation about sleep, Wen Jianyan seemed to realize something. He thoughtfully touched his chin and asked.
Considering the current power balance between Wu Zhu and the nightmare, even if Wu Zhu’s strength had increased, it would still be very difficult for him to openly invade the system space. Combined with Wu Zhu’s ability to intrude into dreams and…
He had indeed drunk quite a lot this time, and this was the only time in several days he had returned to his room to rest, so it was very likely he had fallen asleep in the bathroom.
As he spoke, Wen Jianyan turned his head to look at the bathroom behind him and asked curiously, “Did I just fall asleep?”
Wu Zhu: “Mm.”
He confirmed Wen Jianyan’s guess with a brief monosyllable.
“So, you’re not really here?”
The young man shrugged, a slight smile appearing on his lips.
“Ah, what a pity.”
“If you ever come into the nightmare in person or return to the real world, I can show you how humans have fun.”
He blinked flippantly.
Wen Jianyan had a certain charm, as if he could easily close the distance with anyone, making them feel at ease and giving them the illusion that they were valued by him.
“Speaking of which,” Wen Jianyan suddenly thought of something and blinked:
“Haven’t you ever experienced pleasure?”
Wu Zhu stared at the bold human who was testing his limits.
“Not any kind?”
Wen Jianyan leaned forward slightly, lifting his eyelids to look at Wu Zhu. The fine, sharp lines of his eyes were tinged with a hazy red, and his lips held a faint, ambiguous smile.
Wu Zhu suddenly raised his eyes.
The pale fingers in the shadow clenched abruptly, as if trying to grasp something, to knead something, to alleviate the sudden, intense itch.
In fact, after being summoned by this human last time, Wu Zhu realized that the memories within that soul fragment might have some inexplicable, incomprehensible influence.
He did not like this feeling of being out of control.
So, although the power of the soul fragment had fully integrated into his being, the memories of those fragments were not absorbed as seamlessly as before but were discarded and forgotten, even somewhat suppressed by him.
But now, some chaotic, deep-seated images were surfacing.
A restless, chaotic emotion was churning.
Mixed with an unexpressed hunger, it surged back and forth, clamoring to destroy or seize something.
However, the human who evoked this strange feeling seemed completely unaware.
“Alright, alright, let’s get down to business.”
He nonchalantly straightened up, lightly steering the conversation away.
“In short, what do you need me to do this time?” He bowed gracefully, his demeanor soft and submissive, impeccable in his courtesy. “I’m happy to be of service.”
***
Wu Zhu left.
Wen Jianyan’s eyelids twitched; he mumbled something, frowned, and raised his hand to press against his forehead.
His head ached.
He struggled to open his eyes and, feeling drowsy, looked around.
Sure enough, he was lying on the bathroom floor, the faucet still running, with steam filling the entire bathroom, making it difficult for him to breathe.
It seemed he had indeed fallen asleep while washing up.
Wen Jianyan propped himself up and turned off the faucet.
The sound of running water stopped.
Wen Jianyan raised his hand to wipe his face, summoned his assistant, and exchanged some points for a hangover cure. In the system’s marketplace, props couldn’t be exchanged or used, but these ordinary daily items had no such restrictions and were even more effective than in the real world.
After taking the hangover cure and taking a quick shower, Wen Jianyan felt revitalized.
He carefully recalled his recent, brief encounter with Wu Zhu.
Good, everything was still under control.
The deal remained intact and hadn’t been nullified due to his previous neglect and breach of agreement.
And he had been given his next task.
As for the other side…
Wen Jianyan raised his eyes and glanced at the void.
This time, he had deliberately prolonged the time Wu Zhu stayed after appearing. After all, the intrusion was highly beneficial to him. The more noise Wu Zhu made, the higher the level of permissions he revealed, the more uncontrollable his power became, and the more seriously the nightmare had to consider his suggestions and cooperation.
This was a silent and invisible tug-of-war and game of strategy. If the nightmare had more ways to control and influence the current Wu Zhu, it would never let Wen Jianyan exploit the situation and take advantage.
The stronger and more uncontrollable Wu Zhu became…
The fewer options the nightmare had left.
It should be soon.
Wen Jianyan patiently waited.
Before that, he had more things to do.
Wen Jianyan picked up his phone, glanced at the unread messages, and a slight smile tugged at his lips.
On the other hand, it was almost time to close the net.
He changed clothes, opened the door, and walked out.
Outside, Su Cheng and Ji Guan were still resting. Their doors were tightly shut. Despite not having slept for days, Wen Jianyan seemed unaffected, moving continuously toward the door, as if he had endless energy.
Until his goals were achieved, he was like a wound-up clock, tireless.
***
Soon, Wen Jianyan arrived at the address mentioned in the message.
Luce, who had been waiting there, stood up and greeted him warmly, “Ah, you’re here. We’ve been waiting for you.”
As he spoke, he turned and introduced another person sitting not far away.
That person was tall, with a slightly sinister look in his eyes.
Luce said, “Let me introduce you; this is…”
Wen Jianyan squinted his eyes, smiled, and took the lead, saying:
“Qi Qian, Vice President of the Dark Fire Guild, right?”
He stepped forward and extended his hand to the other person, seemingly unaware that he had previously scammed Dark Fire’s anchors multiple times and deliberately tarnished the guild’s reputation.
His fair, slender hand hung in the air, waiting to shake hands with the other person.
“Nice to finally meet you.”
Qi Qian, one of the Vice Presidents of Dark Fire Guild, A+ ranked anchor.
“No, the pleasure is mine.”
The other person smiled and shook Wen Jianyan’s hand.
His subordinates, three anchors: Kong Shixing, Kong Laoliu, and Li Zongze, had all had “brief encounters” with him.
To be precise, they had all been tricked, deceived, and sold out by him…
The grudges they held against him were countless.
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