Chapter 23: The Widow in the Mansion

Since they first met in the instance, Cheng Xiao had heard Yu Deng’s soft, coaxing whispers, heard his fierce and clumsy threats, and, of course, heard him scolding him after being kissed too roughly.

However, Yu Deng’s vocabulary for insults was quite limited. He would repeat the same few words over and over, his voice always laced with tears, soft and raspy, only serving to make one more excited.

Therefore, just now… that must have been the first time Yu Deng had explicitly offered a compliment.

Cheng Xiao curled the corners of his lips, feeling almost lightheaded.

Fortunately, he still had a bit of charm to be able to earn Yu Deng’s affirmation.

"I didn't hear you clearly just now," Cheng Xiao coaxed, his heart itching. "Say it again, won't you?"

Before Yu Deng could respond, the ball of black mist flew into a rage, emitting an ineffable hiss.

Fine, fine! One compliment wasn't enough, and now he wanted the baby to praise him twice!

The black mist twisted in fury, looking as if it desperately wanted to beat Cheng Xiao to a pulp right then and there.

"Eh? Are you going to fight again?" Yu Deng quickly pressed down on the black mist, soothing it in a low voice: "Don't get so worked up."

The black mist instantly changed its tune, shifting from incandescent rage to a wilted state. Even though it was just a dark lump, it managed to convey a remarkably vivid sense of grievance.

Yu Deng gave a small "ah": "You're not bad either."

The black mist finally calmed down.

Cheng Xiao, who had witnessed the whole thing: "..." Tsk.

This wretched black mist was truly the product of that good-for-nothing father of his; it was just as annoying as the man himself.

[I was so angry! Someone was being so shameless, actually using moral blackmail on our baby! But after watching the baby handle the jealous bad dog, I suddenly feel calm...]

[I feel you... Dengdeng baby and his bad dogs always manage to turn the instance into a completely different genre.]

[Wuwu, I want to be praised by the baby, too.]

Zhang Ziyun, watching from the sidelines, found it absolutely delightful. She took a deep, satisfying gulp of the drama, finding a sliver of joy in the exhausting Infinite World.

Please, a younger puppy chasing a beautiful young widow—it’s just too delicious... Oh my, it seems there is another man involved with the little widow as well.

How wonderful. If this isn't an alternative paradise for a fan-fiction lover, what is? Zhang Ziyun closed her eyes in serene contentment.

As for the balding man, he watched helplessly as Yu Deng, an "NPC," completely ignored him, while the other players refused to help.

Feeling humiliated, he began to curse loudly, using very uncivilized language.

Yu Deng looked at this rude person with displeasure. Cheng Xiao, knowing his little widow wasn't good with words, helpfully spoke up for him: "If you still have the energy to curse, you'd be better off thinking about how to solve the problem."

"Indeed. Since you dared to peek, these eyes shall be the price," the woman who had been hunting him said with a smile.

The balding man turned his head sharply, only to be grabbed by the back of his neck. The woman dragged him forward, as easily as if she were pulling a piece of plastic.

Not long after, Yu Deng could vaguely hear the man’s screams.

Cheng Xiao kept his attention on Yu Deng, comforting him: "He won’t remember your kindness; he would only try every way possible to squeeze value out of you. This is just him reaping what he sowed."

The two other players nodded in agreement.

Ha, capitalists are the same everywhere; they are just as disgusting in the Infinite World.

Yu Deng hummed in response.

He understood. Excessive soft-heartedness and misplaced politeness would only lead to one’s own demise—his family had taught him that since he was young.

...

After this episode, the few gathered players exchanged information and took the opportunity to analyze the instance’s intentions.

"To kill us off, obviously," Ke Qi said, looking at life with indifference. "I’ve already figured it out. The instance is full of traps. I suspect this second phase was only created because the instance felt not enough people were dying."

Yu Deng thought that was very likely.

They could no longer determine how much time had passed. Perhaps the remaining two days were almost over, or perhaps only a few hours had gone by.

After a short rest, they decided to split up to increase their efficiency.

...

Yu Deng returned to the schoolhouse from earlier.

On the way, taking advantage of the fact that the troublesome Cheng Chaolin was absent, Cheng Xiao tentatively asked: "Baby, are you willing to come with me?"

Yu Deng was puzzled: "Aren't I already with you right now?"

Cheng Xiao was left between laughter and tears by the dense little widow, and he didn't ask again.

He would find a way eventually.

Inside the schoolhouse.

When they arrived, it seemed as if several days had passed here. The school was bustling; several important figures in formal attire were touring the grounds, led by the deceased Master Cheng.

Yu Deng watched as Master Cheng specifically chose Lin Zhiyue when asking the students for their thoughts: "So you are the girl who has been dallying with my grandson?"

Lin Zhiyue’s face turned pale: "Please, sir, you must see the truth—it was he who forcibly entangled himself with me."

The old man looked at her with somewhat clouded eyes: "Is that so? His taste this time is actually quite good."

Lin Zhiyue froze.

Master Cheng said meaningfully, "Girl, the Lin family hasn't cared about you or your sister for a long time, have they? If you don't want your sister..." His hand rested on Lin Zhiyue’s thigh. "Come with me later."

A fierce wind suddenly whipped across the open space, signaling imminent danger. Before Yu Deng could even act, Cheng Xiao had already swiftly disrupted the predetermined sequence of events, and the scene before them dissolved like a bubble.

At this point, without going into details, the truth about Miss Lin’s past was largely clear.

She had been coerced by both the grandfather and grandson of the Cheng family. The two men were cut from the same cloth; they threatened her family and friends, and even intended to force her into marriage just to make it easier to toy with her.

Yu Deng finished piecing the plot together, feeling thoroughly disgusted: "They deserved a worse death."

"Mm," Cheng Xiao smoothed Yu Deng’s brow. "Think of it this way—at least she got her revenge."

Yu Deng nodded gloomily.

Wait, that wasn't right. Yu Deng thought slowly. If Miss Lin killed those who had wronged her, that counted as revenge—but then who was the "ta" mentioned in the side quest who also needed revenge?

...

Outside the illusion.

With Yu Deng gone, all traces of softness vanished from Cheng Chaolin. He stared coldly into the void.

"Mr. Cheng, I don't know what happened." Lin Zhiyue was beside him. She felt carefully and spoke respectfully, "My consciousness felt hazy, as if I had returned to a nightmare, but it seemed like someone was... helping me?"

She tried to sense it and eventually realized that it was Yu Deng who had been helping her dispel the nightmares. Lin Zhiyue lowered her head, her shoulders trembling slightly.

Cheng Chaolin nodded: "I understand."

He already had a rough idea of what was happening. After sensing the tracks of the black mist for a moment, he raised his hand and tore through the invisible barrier before him.

"Found you."

Breaking through the barrier by force and connecting to the other space, Cheng Chaolin immediately received everything the black mist had seen and heard.

At the same time, Cheng Chaolin could feel his own emotions becoming difficult to control, drifting closer to his true nature as a malevolent spirit.

Hmm, this was a bit tricky.

In that case, his wretched foster son had better pray that he hadn't done anything to provoke Him.

Cheng Chaolin’s figure merged into the void.

...

The players in the illusion had scattered. The two college students went to search for any overlooked details.

Yu Deng and Cheng Xiao had finished watching the main plot and were resting on a flower bed by the street, with Cheng Xiao holding him.

Because Yu Deng found the flower bed cold and dirty, he was sitting on Cheng Xiao’s lap instead.

When Cheng Chaolin arrived at the familiar long street, this was exactly what he saw: his little wife sitting on that wretch’s lap.

The wretch even had his arm wrapped around Yu Deng’s waist, his mouth restlessly brushing against Yu Deng’s fair, slender neck.

Very well.

Cheng Chaolin walked toward them step by step.

"You’re really late," Cheng Xiao said, not bothering to be polite.

"It doesn't matter; I won't need you anymore."

As those words fell, the surrounding space began to fluctuate.

Cheng Chaolin glanced at his foster son, picked up Yu Deng with a look full of provocation, struck Cheng Xiao a few times with the black mist, and vanished into the darkness behind him.

Yu Deng and Cheng Chaolin disappeared before Cheng Xiao’s eyes.

Cheng Xiao clenched his fists.

Damn it!

Meanwhile, Yu Deng was completely bewildered: "???" What was going on!

The sensation of weightlessness, which had lasted for a full ten seconds, finally ended. Yu Deng opened his eyes dizzily and found himself in an office, sitting on a leather sofa, with the familiar long street visible outside the window.

Yu Deng muttered to his late husband: "Why did you suddenly bring me here? You didn't even give me a heads-up."

Cheng Chaolin looked down at Yu Deng.

They had only been apart for a short while, and Yu Deng had already ended up in someone else's arms.

He wanted to leave his own mark all over Yu Deng, inside and out.

Cold black mist swirled and enveloped them, restrained enough not to hurt Yu Deng, but its potent power continuously corroded and sliced, leaving the clothes below Yu Deng’s knees tattered, turning them into fragments that fell away with a slight movement.

Yu Deng: "???"

"My wife praised that brat just now..." Cheng Chaolin stared intently at his wife, answering a question that hadn't been asked. "I have never been praised."

His deep voice was pitched low, revealing clear disappointment. Cheng Chaolin leaned down, bringing himself extremely close to Yu Deng.

"Does my appearance not please you, my wife?"

Yu Deng’s field of vision was filled by Cheng Chaolin, and he couldn't avoid observing the man at close range.

It had to be said that his late husband was strikingly handsome; his phoenix eyes were narrow and sharp, with malice and ambition hidden behind gold-rimmed glasses.

In the illusion, Cheng Chaolin wasn't wearing a long gown, but a solid-colored suit paired with a black trench coat, looking elegant and gentle, possessing a mature charm that suggested he held everything in his grasp.

Yu Deng followed his own aesthetic judgment and replied: "Um, you look quite good."

Having finally heard Yu Deng praise him, the suppressed irritability and annoyance Cheng Chaolin had been feeling finally lessened.

But at the same time, those restless emotions transformed into surging desire.

An even more uncontrollable nature began to dictate his actions. Cheng Chaolin lowered his head and kissed him with growing proficiency.

Yu Deng let out a short, muffled groan.

Compared to the previous times, Cheng Chaolin was much more fierce now, kissing him with a hunger that was both greedy and violent.

His lips were continuously sucked and nibbled, and the interior of his mouth was not spared either, the sound of their contact sticky and wet as he conquered every inch of territory.

Plundering, possessing, marking him over and over.

In just a few dozen seconds, Yu Deng’s eyes were brimming with warm tears that rolled down his cheeks, his small, beautiful face flushing a deep, ripe pink. Fragmented sobs spilled from the gaps of their touching lips, only to be swallowed up again.

The black mist faithfully reflected the feelings of its master, waving restlessly, winding around Yu Deng without rhyme or reason, and slithering over his delicate, sensitive skin.

Yu Deng could feel the cold black mist touching him, and that chilly sensation quickly turned into a subtle heat.

Yu Deng moved a few times in Cheng Chaolin’s arms, trying hard to turn his face away.

"No more, stop kissing me... my mouth hasn't stopped being swollen for a moment... you clearly said you wouldn't kiss me so hard!"