"Junior Sister!"
You Su shouted, interrupting his junior sister's feeding action.
"Senior Brother, you're awake!" The junior sister removed the hand holding the rotten meat, her fish-like eyes widening in surprise.
It stood by You Su's bedside, like a mountain of decaying flesh.
Am I awake... or am I still dreaming? But wasn't I already killed by my master?
Thinking this, You Su suddenly felt a strange sensation on his neck, as if something was crawling... many things... it was itchy, but also painful...
You Su reached out to touch it, only to feel something slippery on his hand. He quickly raised his hand to find a fat maggot sticking to it!
You Su panicked, his heart skipping a beat. He wanted to cry but had no tears. He desperately wanted to shake it off, to tear all those worms off his neck! To curse at the monster of a junior sister!
But he couldn't do that. He could only pretend not to notice as he scraped the worm-covered hand against the side of the bed.
"Junior Sister, what's on my neck? It feels so strange." You Su asked with a sickly pale face, worried.
"Senior Brother, these are Golden Silk Worms specially found by our master to mend your wounds. There was a misunderstanding between you and her earlier... but it's all good now. Be careful not to dislodge them."
As she spoke, she picked up the worm You Su had secretly scraped onto the floor and carefully placed it back on the wound crawling with worms. The sensation made You Su wish for death.
"Oh, Senior Brother! You haven't taken the Solid Spirit Elixir yet! Although your wound is fine, you've lost a lot of blood. This elixir will help you recover." Saying this, the junior sister brought the piece of rotting meat to You Su's mouth.
You Su felt a shiver down his spine, quickly saying, "Wait, Junior Sister! I'll take the medicine myself. Ahem, I'm a bit thirsty, could you boil me some hot water?"
Upon hearing this, the junior sister narrowed her six symmetrical fish eyes slightly, staring intently at You Su. He blurred his vision to avoid direct eye contact with her.
After a while, she withdrew her gaze, placing the rotting meat on the bedside plate, "I'll go boil the water. Don't try anything, Senior Brother." Then she reluctantly wormed out of the room.
You Su painfully sat up, leaned against the headboard, and anxiously contemplated what to do with the rotten meat.
Should he throw it away or hide it? Would the junior sister find out? Did he really have to eat it? No! Absolutely not! It wasn't something meant for humans to consume!
You Su made up his mind and was about to hide it under the bed's padding when he sensed something amiss!
A large shadow suddenly blocked a huge portion of the light entering the room!
You Su, feeling a guilty conscience, slowly turned his head.
Only to see eight enormous tentacles surrounding him menacingly. They were a dull red, dripping with bronze-green sticky liquid, and covered with exaggerated, trumpet-shaped suckers. Each of them writhed carefully, like eight venomous snakes poised to strike, glowing with a dark, dangerous green phosphorescence.
Following the tentacles to their end, a figure in a mist-like white fairy dress appeared. But the owner of the dress wasn't a pure fairy; it was a mass of dirty, deformed scarlet flesh.
Its body seemed to swirl like an anomalous vortex. Only at its head remained two stable, light-like globes that could be called "eyes." With just one glance at these light globes, You Su found himself unable to look away.
Through those eyes, he seemed to witness people setting themselves on fire, people frantically consuming things, and others weeping blood tears as they plunged a dagger into a loved one's heart.
It seemed to be the source of all confusion.
"Did you see?"
The voice of the master was hollow and ethereal, not coming from the front but resonating directly in You Su's mind.
You Su snapped back, turned his gaze aside, and quivered out:
"Master, don't be afraid. I'm blind. What could I have seen..."
"Do you want to see?"
"Of course."
"Then swallow the Solid Spirit Elixir."
There was no doubt in the master's tone, and You Su felt that if he hesitated even slightly, his newly-attached neck would snap again.
Amidst You Su's dilemma, the eight terrifying tentacles retracted, coiling beneath the master.
"Master, why are you here?"
It turned out the junior sister was back.
She carried a kettle of hot water, sensing the bizarre atmosphere in the room. She hurriedly wormed to her brother's side and asked with concern, "Brother, did the master do anything to you?"
You Su silently smoothed the disturbed bedding, "No, she just came to check on my injuries."
"That's good. The master didn't mean to harm you earlier. It was a misunderstanding. You don't blame her, right?"
"Hehe... Why would I blame the master?" You Su forced a laugh.
The junior sister was relieved and poured You Su a bowl of hot water. Despite it being summer, faint steam rose, indicating it was just boiled. The junior sister considerately tried to cool it for him, but underestimated her breath's power. The foul, cold air mixed with saliva spewed into the bowl, spilling some hot water onto You Su's hand, scalding him.
"Ah! Sorry, Brother!" The junior sister hurriedly put down the bowl, wanting to check his hand but hesitated as if fearful.
This monstrous junior sister dares not touch me, afraid I'll be exposed?
"It's nothing." You Su soothed the scalded area.
"Here, Brother, take the medicine first, then drink the water. Ah..."
The junior sister held the quivering rotten meat in one hand and the bowl of murky water in the other. You Su watched despairingly as it approached, his mind nearly blank, yet instinctively clenching his teeth.
Suddenly, an undeniable voice echoed in You Su's mind, the master's voice!
"Swallow it."
In the virtual scene behind the junior sister, those eight tentacles hung once again in the air, dancing with menace! Ready to strike!
You Su gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and leaned forward with determination.
Without even chewing, You Su swallowed the rotten meat whole. Anger and grievance surged, and a vengeful thought unexpectedly arose! He suddenly grabbed the junior sister's plump hand!
Enjoy acting, do you? Let's see how you continue this act!
"Ow! What are you doing?"
You say, what am I doing!
Wait! This sensation... skin like creamy fat, bonelessly flexible, comfortably grasped... You Su opened his eyes, greeted by that familiar chaos!
The girl freed her wrist from You Su's grip, blushing and annoyed, "You were sleeping soundly, and I just pinched your face. Was that reaction necessary?"
Then Ji Lingruo hastily ran away, muttering before leaving: Some grudge.
Before You Su could try to call her back, he was overwhelmed by a strong feeling of nausea. He began dry retching, coughing until faint blood streaks appeared, relieving him slightly. Supporting himself, he struggled to reach into his clothes and pulled out the Exorcism Order.
At this moment, it was not only jet black but hot like a piece of burning coal.
Gasping for breath, You Su ignored the scorching pain in his palm, clinging tightly to the Exorcism Order as if to embed it into his flesh.