The buildings in this village were all very dilapidated, and the small house Yu Deng was in was no exception. The white paint on the walls had long peeled off, the iron frames of the windows were rusted, and half a pane of glass was stuck outside and couldn't be closed. There were no curtains, leaving the moonlight to spill freely inside.
A wind seemed to have risen outside, whistling through the village. In the dim light, Yu Deng widened his eyes and stared at the man in front of him.
"What do you want to eat?" Yu Deng's mind was fuzzy. His gaze fell on his own wet toes, and it took several seconds before he realized what the man was saying. "You don't mean…"
The tall, handsome man was still holding his ankles. "Mm, is that okay?"
Yu Deng's delicate little face flushed immediately, even the tips of his ears warming slightly. He tried to pull his feet back, but the man's grip was strong, holding him firmly.
All he could do was scold him angrily: "No, you bastard… wait, you're a pervert! Go away!"
Who just comes in the middle of the night to lick someone?!
Because he was afraid of waking other players or triggering dangerous creatures in the dungeon, Yu Deng's scolding was kept low, the final syllables drawn out habitually.
To Huo Yanzhou's ears, it didn't sound like scolding at all—it sounded like flirting.
Yu Deng, using his limited vocabulary, scolded the man repeatedly, both angry and annoyed, until he was tired of yelling.
The little beauty, just awake from sleep, had slightly messy hair, parted red lips, and misty black eyes. In the hazy moonlight, he was more enchanting than any legendary spirit that supposedly absorbed the essence of the sun and moon.
Huo Yanzhou stared unblinkingly at Yu Deng, not letting go, and even slowly moved closer.
As the distance between them closed, Yu Deng's calves were lifted and pressed against his lower abdomen by Huo Yanzhou.
Huo Yanzhou whispered, "Really not okay?"
Yu Deng nodded firmly. "No."
The bed had absorbed Yu Deng's rich, soft scent over the hours he had lain on it. The man's pupils were now an intense black, his agitated and violent pathological desire increasingly uncontrollable, his arm muscles tense.
"But I'm so hungry, I can't control myself… what should I do?"
As the man spoke, the wind outside howled louder, and the old bed creaked ominously.
[Beep… Dungeon data anomaly detected… Dungeon under maintenance, players please take caution! Severe energy fluctuations are forbidden!]
Eh? That was the main system's voice. Yu Deng got distracted for a few seconds.
He still couldn't understand why such a bug appeared in this dungeon. Was it because the dungeon's core power had been fused by a player, breaking the dungeon's balance and causing this anomaly?
But he had disassembled many dungeons before, and leaving them was always possible… Maybe because this time it was multiple high-level dungeons at once, the effect was greater?
Yu Deng struggled to guess the cause of the anomaly, also recalling his ongoing special missions, feeling he might have realized something important. But his analytical skills weren't strong, and his thoughts were muddled.
Never mind, this wasn't something he needed to think about right now… he'd deal with it later.
At the bedside, Huo Yanzhou, dissatisfied with Yu Deng's distraction, gently stroked Yu Deng's ankle with his rough fingertips.
"If not here, then somewhere else… okay?"
Yu Deng reacted a beat late. Before he could refuse, Huo Yanzhou bent down, rolled up his pant leg, and bit into his calf.
"…Mm."
The warm lips and tongue lingered on his pale skin, making Yu Deng want to move, but he was held firmly.
Among millions of players, a top-ranked elite player was now crouched before Yu Deng, licking him like a dog.
The scene was so unbelievable that no one would likely believe it if told.
Huo Yanzhou's posture seemed relaxed, even lazy, but in reality he was firmly restraining the little beauty in his arms.
After a short while, he soothed the person he held: "I won't take long."
Yu Deng furrowed his delicate brows. His sensitive skin tingled and itched from the biting, causing slight discomfort.
Stimulated this way, Yu Deng, curled in the blanket, began to feel hot, a light sweat forming on his back.
"Have… have you finished eating?" he asked, struggling to endure a moment longer.
"Hm? Not full yet." The man's voice carried a hint of laughter. "The people in this village are terrifying—they're greedy, cunning, and never satisfied. They'd devour every person who comes here, leaving nothing behind."
Huo Yanzhou's tone was calm, but his eyes were filled with obsessive, pathological darkness, and when he looked at Yu Deng, he resembled a famished, unrelenting wolf.
Yu Deng was startled by the description, stammering: "You can't eat me like that…"
"I won't eat you like that," the man assured. "I won't be like those monsters."
His sharp teeth grazed the soft, delicate flesh of Yu Deng's thigh, leaving no wounds or blood, but the unbearable sensation remained fully.
The bed creaked, and Yu Deng's scent became even richer and sweeter, as if raising the temperature of the room.
Yu Deng's eyes reddened as he glared at this unreasonable, terrifying elite player, muttering: "Bastard! Pervert! Do you… eat everyone you meet?!"
Tears welled in his eyes, dripping down his cheeks with each blink.
"You promised to protect me… and instead came to bully me in the middle of the night…"
The warm tears fell on Huo Yanzhou's hand, almost burning. He abruptly stopped, and the overwhelming desire instantly subsided.
He reached out with his other hand, brushing away Yu Deng's tears, and answered the question Yu Deng had asked earlier: "I'm not like this with everyone."
Yu Deng, his wet lashes drooping, said nothing, looking at him like a pitiful little kitten.
"Sorry."
For the first time, Huo Yanzhou humbly and gently apologized, coaxing him: "I was affected by the power of the dungeon. At night, I can't fully control myself… that's why I wanted to bite you."
"Really…" Yu Deng's eyes were red, still not fully trusting him.
"Really. I'm clearer-headed now."
Yu Deng studied him for a few seconds, then reluctantly believed him: "Alright… you… you can't bully me anymore."
Huo Yanzhou slowly rose, tucking the blanket over Yu Deng: "There might be danger tonight, I placed some items in this room."
Suppressing the desire that seemed ready to consume him, he quickly left the room—any longer and he might not have been able to resist.
Yu Deng quietly exhaled. This very perverted elite player had finally let him go.
"Why can he fuse dungeon powers… and in such a perverted way…"
[System database check: Currently only a few players can fuse dungeon power, and this player is one of them.] System 01 added, slightly annoyed, [As for perverted… that may just be his personality.]
Yu Deng thought, he wasn't wrong to call him that.
[Host, he also…] System 01 paused mid-sentence, [Never mind.]
Yu Deng asked, confused: "What were you going to say?"
System 01 paused a few seconds: [According to the detection, he is also your special mission target, but the host is not in a standard dungeon, so no need to consider the contract mission for now.]
"Oh…"
So this bad guy was also one of his mission targets… Why were all his mission targets such troublemakers?!
Yu Deng chatted with his system for a bit, then went back to sleep, though rest was uneasy.
At dawn, he heard a loud bang accompanied by a piercing screech.
Still groggy, he woke up abruptly.
What's happening?!
He hurriedly put on his mask and cloak, running to the room's door, only to find the other players already dressed and standing in the courtyard, showing no signs of sleep. The courtyard was messy; a stone table lay in ruins, and the house opposite had collapsed.
Yu Deng: "?" What's going on?
He felt guilty. Had he really been the only one asleep last night? He hadn't even noticed the battle just now…
Suddenly, large patches of water appeared on the courtyard floor, accompanied by faint, eerie cries, though nothing was visible.
Yu Deng, terrified of invisible ghosts, shivered.
A faint crack sounded by his ear, like something breaking. A cold, sticky unease instantly engulfed him.
With no skills or items, Yu Deng instinctively hugged his head.
Oh no, I'm done for.
Clang—
Huo Yanzhou appeared behind him, golden metallic gleam flashing. A transparent ghost hovering midair was struck down with one move, wailing as it dissipated.
Yu Deng hugged his head, dumbfounded at the elite player's combat ability.
Huo Yanzhou's expression didn't change. After dealing with one ghost, he softly reassured: "It's fine now."
Yu Deng hadn't fully processed it and nodded: "Okay…"
Seeing Yu Deng so timid and obedient, Huo Yanzhou couldn't help but reach out and massage the nape of his neck.
"N-no, don't move me." Yu Deng squirmed, ticklish, shrinking his neck.
Huo Yanzhou massaged twice more before letting go.
Meanwhile, the other players in the courtyard displayed terrifying combat power, eliminating the monsters in minutes. The massive revealed ghosts fell to the ground, giving off a foul stench.
Huo Yanzhou instructed the blonde woman: "Liya, check it out."
"These didn't appear in the past few hours, and there's no anomaly." The tall blonde quickly checked. "They were existing NPCs, appearing at fixed intervals."
Liya summarized: "The dungeon stopped operating after the boss… not sure if it can be repaired."
Their actions and conversation barely concealed from Yu Deng and Zhou Ji.
Yu Deng was still confused, but Zhou Ji seemed contemplative. He rubbed his chin: "So you were researching this too?"
"Of course." Shi Yi nodded meaningfully. "We're very curious."
Yu Deng got even more confused, tugging on Huo Yanzhou's sleeve: "What did you do?"
Huo Yanzhou replied after a few seconds: "Village massacre?"
Yu Deng was completely stunned: "???" Huh?
Though… burning down the castle and school before wasn't that different?
Nearby, Zhou Ji finished talking with Shi Yi, his expression gloomy: "If our president had been here, Feng Deng might have figured out more."
Shi Yi sighed, somewhat sympathetic: "Setting competition aside, I hope Yu-ge can return soon."
Yu Deng's ears perked up.
Yu-ge? Also surname Yu…? Or another character?
Yu Deng hesitated, unsure whether to ask Zhou Ji. Suddenly, the dungeon's ground shook violently, accompanied by piercing electronic beeps.
[Data error… Data error! Alert! Dungeon cannot be repaired!]
Yu Deng tensed, looking around.
Buildings in the village shook continuously; sharp, piercing screams echoed. All signs indicated the dungeon was collapsing entirely, yet no one was being teleported out.
The players of the Guild "Deathbird" remained calm, as if waiting for this moment.
"What do we do…" Yu Deng panicked.
Shi Yi waved at him: "Don't be afraid, we won't die."
Huo Yanzhou, having gathered the information he wanted, smiled: "Seems it can't be fixed. Let's go."
Yu Deng looked on in confusion, seeing Huo Yanzhou leap into the air, wielding a greatsword, effortlessly destroying the dilapidated village, splitting the ground with massive fissures.
Shi Yi threw an item, which glowed brilliantly upon landing. Yu Deng quickly heard the system indicate that teleportation was in progress.
In the last second before leaving, Huo Yanzhou ruffled Yu Deng's hair: "See you."
…
Yu Deng felt dizzy again. His vision went black for several dozen seconds before brightening.
He was no longer in the intermediate player's residence but in a luxuriously decorated large flat, roughly four to five hundred square meters.
"Huh? Tongtong, why has my place changed again?"
[Congratulations, host. You have upgraded to a high-level player.] System 01 said. [Your residence has been automatically upgraded.]
"Oh…"
Yu Deng marveled for a few seconds, recalling that he had won first place in the competitive dungeon, and straightened his back proudly.
Hmph, earning millions from one dungeon is easy-peasy.
He didn't yet know that many players were discussing him on forums, mostly those eliminated in the Evil God dungeon.
After his little pride, he replied to Qin Jun and Cheng Xiao, took a bath in the new bathroom, and headed straight to the bedroom.
"So tired… I need to rest properly for the next few days," he told his system. "Don't want to think anymore."
System 01, a bit reluctant, shattered Yu Deng's plan anyway: [Host, special dungeons don't count as normal dungeons; they overlap with rest periods.]
Yu Deng: "??!"
So these special multi-player competition dungeons actually cut into his normal dungeon rest period? He calculated and realized he'd lost four days' rest and would soon need to enter the next dungeon.
Yu Deng lay back, eyes closed, resigned like a salted fish.
[Do you want to settle the special dungeon now?]
"No, Tongtong. Let me rest a bit."
[Understood.]
…
Meanwhile, at the Deathbird Guild headquarters:
Those who had just left the top-tier competitive dungeon didn't rest but dove into guild affairs.
In Huo Yanzhou's office, Liya was giving him a report:
"Boss, Yue Luo, Zhu Huo, and Feng Deng all agreed to a meeting. Each guild will send three high-level members."
Huo Yanzhou looked at the analysis report in his hands: "Okay, arrange it."
"Is inviting only these few enough? Some skilled players aren't in guilds, but they might have a lot of information. Should we invite them too?"
"Not necessary for now." Huo Yanzhou replied.
"True, this is just the first info exchange. Better to test the big guilds' attitudes first. Lone wolf players can be considered later," Liya analyzed quickly. "I'll go coordinate with Old Shi."
Huo Yanzhou nodded, paused a few seconds, then said: "I'll personally invite one player, to make those people behave."
At this point, Huo Yanzhou's normally distant expression softened slightly, showing genuine concern.
He said: "Just worried he won't accept the invitation."
That delicate, adorable little brat… has quite a temper.
Liya looked as if she'd seen a ghost: "???"
Huh?? Wait a minute… is the Deathbird guild actually going to have a guild master's wife??
…
The feisty Yu Deng slept a full ten hours before waking. He didn't immediately get up, instead lying on the bed, unwilling to move.
He received a message from Huo Yanzhou:
［z］: There's a player meeting. Interested in attending?
Yu Deng read it, confused: "Player meeting?"
Trust in Huo Yanzhou was shaky; Yu Deng tried to gauge whether this meeting was some new scam.
［.］: You're not trying to trick me, right? [Little cat peeking /]
Maybe they knew he was a high-level upgraded player and wanted to lure him to a big guild base for research, possibly signing him into a binding contract.
Yu Deng shivered at the thought.
Huo Yanzhou sent a few more messages, trying to coax Yu Deng.
［z］: Not tricking you. Many major guilds will attend.
［z］: Deathbird has many items and intel.
Yu Deng thought for several seconds, growing even more wary.
This sounds more like a scam… What could he possibly do at such a high-level meeting?
Recalling what the elite player did in Yin Ghost Village, tricking him and licking him in the middle of the night, Yu Deng's anger flared, and his vigilance skyrocketed.
He replied sharply:
［TD!!］
T/N: "TD" = Chinese slang 他大爺 (tā dà yé), an exclamation like "Damn you!!" or "You bastard!!"
A/N — The original guild name 告死鳥 literally means "Death-Announcing Bird" or "Bird That Announces Death." In some translations, it is rendered as Death Crow or Deathbird. Also, We finally hit 100 chapters! 😜🥳