Chapter 93 Unique game (11)
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“Help me!” Xiao Xiu cried out in despair, completely enveloped by a swirling black mist, with only his face exposed. He contorted in constant agony.
Lin Zhaohe desperately wanted to save him but was rendered helpless. He couldn’t even make physical contact with Xiao Xu’s body, only able to witness his futile struggle within the clutches of the dark mist.
Lin Zhaohe anxiously called out his name, believing that they were trapped in Xiao Xu’s dream, which would explain the uncanny series of events. He had initially planned to turn off the flashlight and startle Xiao Xu awake, but unforeseen consequences had befallen them.
Xiao Xu didn’t wake up but instead found himself engulfed by a sinister black mist. No matter what Lin Zhaohe tried, he couldn’t free him from the suffocating haze.
After exerting himself for a while, Lin Zhaohe suddenly realized something. He refrained from reaching out to Xiao Xu and instead observed the boy’s condition with a strange expression. He noticed that, despite being shrouded in the dark mist, Xiao Xu didn’t exhibit any noticeable changes. After contemplating for a moment, he yelled, “Xiao Xu, are you experiencing intense pain?”
Xiao Xu cried like a weaned baby. “It hurt so much.”
“You aren’t going to die, are you?”
“Brother Lin!” Xiao Xu was shocked. He suffered here, while Lin Zhaohe made unsympathetic remarks. The people his mom had brought turned out to be unreliable.
Lin Zhaohe said, “Xiao Xu, please stop crying.” As he spoke, he observed the black mist surrounding Xiao Xu’s body. He watched as the mist moved, sometimes getting bigger, sometimes smaller, occasionally resembling monsters, and other times emitting cries like that of a child. It seemed like a mist made of someone’s emotions, constantly changing.
The owner of the black mist was clearly Xiao Xu himself, who was still crying.
Lin Zhaohe let go of his worries completely and said, “Xiao Xu, if you died here, your mom would definitely delete your game account.”
After saying that, the black mist instantly expanded, and Xiao Xu cried out, “No, please don’t!”
Seeing an opportunity, Lin Zhaohe continued with added emphasis, “She might even check your computer. Did you delete your browsing history?”
If the previous threat was just a small taste, this sentence clearly hit Xiao Xu’s weak spot. Images flashed through his mind of his mom discovering his chat records, evoking intense fear and shame.
Lin Zhaohe stood by, completely unguarded, watching as the black mist surrounding Xiao Xu grew immensely, instantly swallowing him too.
In the black mist, the flashlight lost its function. Lin Zhaohe struggled to breathe as the space around him turned into an empty void, where Xiao Xu and everything else disappeared.
“Xiao Xu!” Lin Zhaohe stood amidst the boundless darkness and continued to agitate Xiao Xu’s fragile nerves. “Your mom is about to return!”
The black mist swayed and churned, resembling a soul on the verge of collapsing.
Lin Zhaohe shouted, “Xiao Xu—”
“Shut up!” A voice of anger echoed from deep within the black mist, it belonged to Xiao Xu, yet it didn’t sound like him. This rebuke lacked the timidity of a teenager and sounded more like an infuriated grown man.
Lin Zhaohe wasn’t entirely sure and skeptically asked, “Xiao Xu?”
Emerging from the black mist was a tall figure, bearing an identical appearance to Xiao Xu but exuding a completely different aura. More accurately, he resembled a man in his twenties. His body melded with the black mist, standing calmly and composed before Lin Zhaohe, devoid of the initial panic and timidity.
Perhaps perceiving the confusion in Lin Zhaohe’s gaze, Xiao Xu spoke coldly, “What do you want from me?”
Lin Zhaohe asked in curiosity, “What happened to you?”
Xiao Xu said, “Do you even know what you’re doing?”
Lin Zhaohe was puzzled, thinking, “What can I do? I only wanted to scare you, to awaken you from this weird dream. Why does it sound so heinous?”
Shaking his head, Xiao Xu said, “You have no idea how terrifying it is for a seventeen-year-old to have their bowsing history threatened to be exposed.”
Lin Zhaohe said, “Threat? Isn’t it just watching those videos that boys watch? Don’t you like girls?”
Xiao Xu’s expression became rigid.
Lin Zhaohe continued, “It’s alright to like boys. I happen to like boys too. It’s not like you’re into non-human creatures…” He halted halfway as he pleasantly discovered a slight change in Xiao Xu’s expression, like a mix of being hit on a sore spot and becoming embarrassed.
Lin Zhaohe: “……”
A heavy silence filled the air as the two of them exchanged wordless glances.
Lin Zhaohe made an effort to lift his spirits and offered a forced reassurance, “It’s okay. People have the freedom to have their own sexual preferences.”
Xiao Xu: “Is that true?”
Lin Zhaohe: “Of course, but it’s best not to let your mom find out about it.”
Xiao Xu seemed to recall something, and his entire face contorted. Lin Zhaohe wanted to say something, but then he heard Mrs. Li’s indistinct voice from outside the mist, “Where is this child? Making a mess at home? The computer is still on. What is he playing all day long?”
Before Lin Zhaohe could speak, he witnessed Xiao Xu’s previously regained composure twisting once again. “Stop—”
The entire space became chaotic as it resonated with Xiao Xu’s roar. A colossal mouth materialized out of thin air, engulfing Lin Zhaohe in an instant.
Lin Zhaohe had no time to react and was swallowed whole. His body trembled violently a few times before he was abruptly pulled out from the bizarre realm. He woke up.
It was still his familiar bedroom, the computer still running. Lin Zhaohe remained seated on the chair, but he turned his head and was startled by the person beside him.
To his surprise, it was Xiao Xu’s actual mother, Mrs. Li, standing by the sleeping Xiao Xu’s side, gazing at him with a gentle expression.
Lin Zhaohe had no idea when she arrived and scratched his head, feeling embarrassed. “Mrs. Li, you’re back?” he said, unable to resist muttering, “This couldn’t be a dream as well, could it?”
Mrs. Li smiled and replied, “No dream, you’re awake.”
As she finished speaking, Xiao Xu, who appeared to be sound asleep on the bed, mumbled a few words and slowly opened his eyes. He sat up on the bed with a bewildered expression. When he noticed his mother standing beside him, his eyes widened slightly, but his reaction wasn’t as dramatic as in the dream.
“Mom,” Xiao Xu called out.
Lin Zhaohe was taken aback upon hearing his voice. Xiao Xu’s voice had undergone a significant change since he fell asleep. It no longer possessed the crispness of a young boy. Instead, it had a magnetic quality with a hint of hoarseness. Upon closer inspection, Lin Zhaohe noticed a substantial difference in Xiao Xu’s appearance compared to before he fell asleep.
It felt as if years had passed during that sleep, completely transforming the Xiao Xu before and after slumber.
“Xiao Xu has woken up.” Mrs. Li smiled warmly. When facing Xiao Xu, she had toned down her intimidating aura. “Today is your birthday. Happy birthday.”
Xiao Xu looked perplexed. “Mom?” He suddenly remembered that today was indeed his birthday, but they didn’t have a tradition of celebrating it, so he had almost completely forgotten.
“Mom thought you would wake up a few days later,” Mrs. Li said. “How did you wake up so quickly this time?”
Xiao Xu replied, “I dreamt of something terrible…” As he spoke, he glanced at the computer that was still on, and his body involuntarily trembled, probably at the thought of his browsing history being seen by his mother.
“Hmm…” Mrs. Li pondered. “It seems you have already overcome your greatest fear.”
Xiao Xu forced a laugh. He hadn’t really conquered his fear, but the thought of his browsing history being exposed if he didn’t wake up served as a compelling reason to awaken.
Mrs. Li said, “You’re eighteen now, an adult. There are some things that shouldn’t be kept from you any longer.”
Xiao Xu: “Huh?”
Mrs. Li: “Actually… you’re not human.”
Normally, upon hearing such words, a person would feel sad for a few seconds. However, Xiao Xu, being the character that he was, smiled brightly on his face instantly. “Mom, really?”
Then Mrs. Li said, “We reproduce asexually, so it’s advised not to engage with strange creatures.” She glanced at her son with a rather complex expression in her eyes.
Xiao Xu: “……”
Lin Zhaohe: “……” Did you find out something, Sis?
“I bought a cake. Let’s eat and talk,” Mrs. Li suggested, feeling that the atmosphere was too awkward. She decided to change the setting.
So, a few minutes later, Xiao Xu, who had grown to a height of 1.8 meters, wore a melancholic expression as he put on his 18th birthday hat. Mrs. Li and Lin Zhaohe sang him a birthday song while the candles were lit. He sadly blew out the candles in front of him, then clasped his hands together and made a wish. It was unclear what wish the boy made, as the candles took several attempts to extinguish. In the end, he stubbornly used his fingers to forcefully pinch out the candle flame.
Lin Zhaohe, who had been observing the whole time, remained silent. He felt that anything he said would be somewhat redundant for a teenage boy.
“Mom, what am I if not human?” Xiao Xu asked.
“Just a kind of consciousness entity,” Mrs. Li explained. “We feed on human dreams, but before reaching adulthood, we experience several nightmares that must be faced within the dreamscape. What did you dream about?”
Xiao Xu couldn’t possibly say, “Mom, I dreamt that you were snooping on my computer,” so he casually came up with an excuse to brush it off.
Fortunately, Mrs. Li didn’t insist on probing further and quickly moved on from the topic. She briefly described the characteristics of their race, such as asexual reproduction and regenerating from the core. “Your mother is your father, and your grandmother is your grandfather,” she explained.
Xiao Xu’s consciousness became hazy as he listened. Finally, unable to hold back, he said, “Mom, so you’ve been playing two roles all along, right?”
Mrs. Li: “Yes.”
Xiao Xu: “Can I seek out other species then?”
Mrs. Li hesitated for a moment, sighed, and said, “My son, it’s not that your mother doesn’t want you to explore other species, but after reaching adulthood, our race rarely develops an interest in other species. Most of us only engage in self-reproduction. Have you developed feelings for someone?”
Xiao Xu: “Not really.”
Mrs. Li: “Perhaps it’s some other type of creature?”
Xiao Xu touched his nose and fell silent.
Mrs. Li seemed on the verge of saying something but eventually remained quiet. She patted her son’s shoulder and said, “You’re a grown-up now and have the right to make your own choices. However, even so, you should consider what is right and what is not, or at least what you shouldn’t do.”
Xiao Xu blurted out, “But I’m not human!”
Mrs. Li: “……” True.
Lin Zhaohe, quietly enjoying his cake nearby, observed the entire conversation between mother and son. He witnessed Xiao Xu’s emotional journey from sadness and astonishment to acceptance and joy upon learning he wasn’t human. Although he couldn’t grasp exactly what Xiao Xu was thinking, he felt he didn’t really want to know…
According to Mrs. Li, once they reach the age of eighteen, their race awakens their predatory instincts to capture dreams and replenish their energy. Xiao Xu now possessed this ability and no longer needed to fear the night.
Lin Zhaohe curiously asked, “Then what are those dark shadows that follow Xiao Xu?”
Mrs. Li explained that they were their natural enemies, and if Xiao Xu couldn’t wake up from the dream, they would prey upon his body.
Lin Zhaohe said, “Oh, I see… That’s fortunate.” He glanced at Xiao Xu, unsure of what expression to make. He thought to himself that it was a good thing Xiao Xu still had things that mattered to him in the world.
Xiao Xu and Lin Zhaohe locked eyes and understood each other’s thoughts. With a grateful look, Xiao Xu whispered, “Brother Lin, thank you for scaring me.”
Lin Zhaohe replied, “It’s what a brother should do.”
“As a token of appreciation,” Xiao Xu said, “let me tell you how to level up quickly in that game.”
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