In the ballad, Wednesday was "marriage." Marriage represented another form of one-to-one matching.
One by one, the enthusiastic investors submerged the trembling children into the water before hauling them back out. Then someone would step forward to draw the children's blood into transfusion bags. The investors accepted the filled blood bags with satisfied smiles.
Soon, it was Miao Feichi and Miao Gaojiang's turn.
Little Miao Feichi had been crying nonstop. Impatient, Miao Feichi shoved him into the water and ordered his blood drawn. The child's face was deathly pale, his entire body trembling, yet he remained obedient. He seemed to realize resistance was useless. With despair and sadness in his eyes, he stretched out a shaking hand to allow his blood to be taken.
After stepping down, Miao Feichi casually weighed the blood bag in his hand. "Almost 100 milliliters. If it didn't need to be taken back to the hospital for testing, I'd drink it myself."
Miao Gaojiang glanced around before concluding, "Each child corresponds one-to-one with an investor. If we target other investors' children, those sick investors will lose their supply and soon turn into bloodless monsters in the ICU ward. Their hate value will likely lock onto us."
Miao Feichi frowned. "Then we'd better not touch the NPC investors' children. Being hunted by monsters is troublesome. They could easily ambush us later."
"We'll target the player's child instead." Miao Feichi tossed the blood bag between his hands, staring at the dark liquid sloshing inside. "I want little Bai Liu (6). You take the blind one. Let Mu Ke's child go."
He turned casually and glanced at Bai Liu, who was sitting silently behind them. Smiling, he said, "Mu Ke, in return for telling us about the life-recovery medicine, we won't touch your child. But if clearing the level requires more than one child's blood, you'll have to figure that out yourself. Little Bai Liu (6) and the blind child belong to us."
"There's another option." Miao Gaojiang patted Bai Liu's shoulder in mock comfort. "You could try letting Mu Ke's child escape from the welfare home alone. As long as he isn't caught by any monsters, he'll complete the main quest. If he succeeds, you'll pass as well."
Though framed as reassurance, it was obvious neither of them believed such a plan would work.
They had placed no hope on the children's side at all. The chances were far too slim. This was a Level 2 game. How could a group of ignorant children escape from a pack of A+ monsters? Even A-rank players struggled to flee, let alone children.
The probability of success was nearly zero.
Bai Liu lowered his head, pretending his shoulders were trembling. "Yes. I'll try."
Miao Feichi sneered at the sight and turned back to continue playing with the blood bag.
The moment both men looked away, Bai Liu's expression returned to calm. Relying on the child as the primary hope for clearing the level was indeed risky—but it was also the most cost-effective, lowest-investment strategy he could devise.
—Even if the risk remained extremely high.
"Mu Ke's investor, please come forward to baptize your child."
Bai Liu looked up at little Bai Liu (6), whose face remained expressionless. Their eyes met briefly through the candlelight before little Bai Liu (6) turned away, unused to being stared at so directly. Bai Liu's lips curved faintly, a trace of nostalgia in his smile.
At fourteen, one of the things he had been best at was escaping from a welfare home.
He stepped forward. In this round, he was Mu Ke's investor and had to baptize Mu Ke. Under the dean's guidance, he stood before the trembling child.
Little Mu Ke swallowed nervously. He handed his candle to the dean and opened his arms toward Bai Liu, his body shaking uncontrollably.
He was truly terrified—so frightened that he couldn't tell this investor wasn't his. After all, they all looked the same.
Following the dean's instructions, Bai Liu slid one hand beneath Mu Ke's knees and lifted him.
Little Mu Ke clung to Bai Liu's neck, fear evident in his rigid body. His dangling feet trembled violently, his face drained of color. Bai Liu remained expressionless. Without offering comfort, he leaned forward calmly and lowered Mu Ke into the clear water.
Mu Ke was slowly submerged. He squeezed his eyes shut, fists clenched tight. Bubbles rose around his face as warm tears dissolved into the cold water. It felt as though the warmth was draining from his body, leaving him frozen.
Am I going to die…? he thought hazily. My heart… it feels like it's stopping.
After several long seconds, Bai Liu lifted him out.
The drenched Mu Ke gasped for air, lips tinged blue and purple. Instinctively, he clutched Bai Liu's neck, coughing and choking. The person assigned to draw blood stepped forward, tearing open the plastic sleeve of a syringe and revealing the sharp needle.
Mu Ke shook his head frantically and recoiled in horror. In his panic, he nearly climbed over Bai Liu's shoulder. Bai Liu caught his ankle, preventing him from falling.
He looked at the tear-streaked child. "Be quiet."
Then he raised his head and addressed the person holding the syringe. "Don't draw his blood."
Both the medical worker and the struggling Mu Ke froze.
The dean frowned. "Investor, are you certain you do not wish to test this child's blood? If you take him away and he carries a disease that harms you, we will not be responsible."
"It doesn't matter what his blood contains." Bai Liu met her gaze coolly. "There's no need for screening. I'm certain he is the child I want. I will bear the consequences."
The soaked Mu Ke curled up in Bai Liu's arms, staring up at him, water dripping from his hair.
Bai Liu lowered his gaze to the child. Setting him down gently, he leaned close and whispered, "Leave here with Bai Liu (6). I don't need your blood."
He gave Mu Ke a light pat on the shoulder before returning to his seat.
Still dazed, Mu Ke retrieved his candle from the dean and rejoined the line beside little Bai Liu (6).
After a moment, realization dawned on him. Leaning closer, he whispered excitedly, "Xiao Liu, he's your investor, right? Just like you said—he really doesn't want my blood!"
"I told you," little Bai Liu (6) replied calmly. "He's a strange investor who wants to save us."
Suddenly Mu Ke's expression changed to horror. "But he's your investor. Why did he baptize me? What about you?"
"The next child: Bai Liu (6). Bai Liu (6)'s investor, please step forward."
Little Bai Liu (6) lowered his head obediently and stepped out of line.
The dean called several times, but no one responded.
A contemptuous laugh broke the silence. "Dean, Bai Liu (6)'s investor has unfortunately passed away. Why don't I baptize him instead?" It was Miao Feichi.
"No, sir," the dean replied, shaking her head. "You have already baptized a child."
Miao Feichi licked his lips as he glanced at little Bai Liu (6), then sat back down with visible regret.
The dean walked up to little Bai Liu (6), eyeing him like unsold merchandise, though her words dripped with false compassion.
"What a pitiful investor. What a pitiful child. You've been abandoned. Of course, coming to this welfare home already means your parents abandoned you. And now, even the investor who valued your life has forsaken you on the eve of your baptism."
Little Bai Liu (6) stood silently, head lowered. His dark eyes stared at the candle in his hands, its flame reflecting against his expressionless face.
"You are a child abandoned by God," the dean sighed theatrically. "Your sins are too great. That is why everyone has left you. Do you know where you have gone wrong, Bai Liu (6)?"
"I don't think I do, Dean," he answered evenly.
Her gaze turned cold and stern. "My child, your fault is that no one wishes to help cleanse your sins. You must complete the baptism alone. You must be punished. You will remain in this pool for a long time—until your sins are washed away."
She dragged him toward the water.
Before he could react, she snatched away his candle and forced him to sit on the rim of the container. Expressionless, she gripped his hair with one hand while holding the candle in the other.
"You must be cleansed, my child." She shoved him into the pool.
Little Bai Liu (6) was completely submerged. His body instinctively struggled, choking as he reached for the edges of the tub. But after a brief moment, he forced himself to release his grip. And let himself sink to the bottom.
The dean held his head beneath the water and smiled gently. Raising the candle, she looked down at Bai Liu (6) struggling below the surface.
"Before this candle burns out, you are not allowed to leave the baptismal pool."
The candle flame flickered twice. Hot wax dripped onto the hands of little Bai Liu (6), which were gripping the edge of the pool. The sharp sting caused him to instinctively loosen his hold on the already slippery stone.
The clear water rippled before his eyes. Above him, the dean's gentle smile blurred and twisted, becoming grotesque and terrifying.
The droplets of white wax hardened the moment they touched the surface, floating like fragments of peeled fingernails. His head was still being forced down. Little Bai Liu (6) struggled upward, chest heaving from lack of oxygen. Though small and defenseless, his eyes remained calm—as if he were not the one being baptized beneath the water.
It was as though he had anticipated all of this.
Whenever his oxygen ran low, he seized a moment to surge upward through the wax-flecked surface and gasp for air—only to have his head forced down again. He breathed desperately, again and again, as if he would die in that baptismal pool. He choked and struggled with all his strength to break free from the water.
Little Mu covered his mouth, eyes reddened with tears. Miao Feichi watched the suffering child with open pleasure, stretching his neck to get a better look at Bai Liu (6)'s distorted face beneath the water.
Miao Gaojiang, however, frowned slightly. He disliked watching children being tortured; it reminded him of the time he had kidnapped one. His expression darkened.
Meanwhile, Bai Liu simply looked down quietly. His gaze was distant—too calm.
It was as if the person drowning before him was not his fourteen-year-old self, nor the key to clearing this game.
Memories surfaced like Bai Liu (6) breaking through the water, emerging from beneath a seal of wax.
Bai Liu hated water. He had once been punished the same way.
He thought he had been fourteen at the time. The details were blurred; people instinctively forgot memories that made them uncomfortable. He had done something wrong—taken money from an adult and promised to do something in return, much like little Bai Liu (6).
The other children in the welfare home reported him.
The director had looked at him with horror and fear, as though he had committed something unforgivable. Even then, Bai Liu—still called Bai Liu (6)—was already regarded with unease by the dean and teachers because of his bloody hobbies.
They looked at him with disgust and dread, as if saying, Ah, I knew it. You finally did something like this.
To be honest, Bai Liu had enjoyed that look in their eyes.
Soon after, he was punished.
His memory blurred: his head being forced into a container of water. Teachers are shouting at him not to do it again. He choked and agreed hoarsely beneath the surface.
But their panic seemed to turn into zeal. They did not release him quickly. They held him under longer than necessary, as if disciplining a monster who had strayed from the right path.
Nearby, Lu Yizhan had been drowned for nearly an entire afternoon as well. He lay on the ground, panting. Beside him was Bai Liu—still Bai Liu (6) at the time—barely breathing.
Lu Yizhan was a rare fool in this world.
When the teacher demanded to know who had committed the wrongdoing, Lu Yizhan stepped forward and claimed responsibility. He confessed voluntarily and asked to be punished. He didn't even know Bai Liu had actually done it. He simply chose to take the blame.
Unfortunately, such foolish devotion did not earn him a happy ending. The reporting child insisted it was Bai Liu. The matter could not be brushed aside.
In the end, Lu Yizhan—who had done nothing—was labeled an accomplice and punished severely.
Even so, Lu Yizhan was known as a good child. The teachers liked him and would not have punished him harshly. But he refused to leave. No matter how long Bai Liu was punished, he insisted on staying.
He crouched beside Bai Liu with red eyes like a stubborn calf that could not be dragged away. He did not protest or curse the teachers. He simply remained there, watching Bai Liu struggle under the water.
As Bai Liu was forced under again, Lu Yizhan plunged his own head into the water beside him. Through the blur, he looked at Bai Liu and shouted:
"Hang on, Bai Liu! It'll be over soon!"
"I'm here, Bai Liu!" Lu Yizhan yelled through rising bubbles. "I believe you didn't do anything bad!"
Bai Liu watched the bubbles escape from Lu Yizhan's mouth. He saw the anxiety and panic on his face—and suddenly wanted to laugh.
He did laugh.
He couldn't hear clearly what this fool was saying, nor did he understand why someone would believe in him without reason.
If he'd had the strength, he would have told Lu Yizhan: Idiot. I did do something bad. Something very bad.
But he had no strength. He was drowning.
Eventually, they were both released. Lu Yizhan staggered up, still coughing, and hurried to Bai Liu, who lay soaked and gasping.
Then, as if struck by sudden inspiration, Lu Yizhan crouched down and asked, "Do you want to change your name?"
He proposed that Bai Liu change his name and never again use "Bai Liu (6)" to meet people or do bad things.
"Maybe they won't punish you like this anymore," Lu Yizhan said earnestly.
To Bai Liu, it sounded absurd and naïve. This wasn't the first time Lu Yizhan had come up with such baseless ideas. He often had them—like insisting on being Bai Liu's friend.
Lying on the ground, Bai Liu's eyes rolled lazily. Supported by Lu Yizhan, he turned to look at him. Wet hair clung to his face.
Suddenly, Bai Liu clutched his stomach and burst into laughter. No one knew what he was laughing at—not even himself. He curled up on the wet floor, laughing strangely while spitting out water. When he finally finished coughing it out, his expression grew calm.
Looking at the stunned Lu Yizhan, he replied lightly: "Fine. If you want me to change it, I'll change my name."
_________________________________________________
The present baptism finally ended. The dean released little Bai Liu (6).
Children could not be killed inside the church, so Bai Liu had never worried that she would truly drown him. This was merely punishment for a child no investor wanted. The baptism itself was a task. Failing it naturally led to discipline.
Little Bai Liu (6) broke the surface and collapsed against the edge of the pool, coughing violently. After spitting out several mouthfuls of water, he wiped his lips and staggered out of the basin.
Within moments, he steadied his breathing. He did not look like a child who had nearly drowned in front of an audience.
Expressionless, he accepted the burned-out candle from the dean, bowed politely, and returned to his place in line.
The prolonged lack of oxygen had left his cheeks flushed and his eyes wet with tears. His soaked hair clung to his face, dripping steadily. The once-loose white robe now stuck tightly to his thin frame, making him appear small and fragile.
Little Bai Liu (6) lowered his head and coughed quietly into his hand, eyes reddened.
He looked… almost pitiful.
Behind him, the statue on the inverted cross—once peacefully asleep—seemed to have changed. At some point, its brows had drawn together. The fingers that had been slightly spread now curled inward. As if disturbed by the sound of little Bai Liu (6)'s coughing, the thorns wrapped more tightly around its body.