One Night

A fine drizzle was falling outside, leaving the air faintly damp. Dim yellow streetlights spilled over the pavement, illuminating puddle after puddle. Above the street, old electrical wires twisted together in a dense tangle, like enormous black snakes coiled overhead, devouring what little light remained.

Chaotic, disorderly, dark, silent.

A strange man appeared at the mouth of the alley. There was no telling how long he had been standing in the rainy night. He looked as if he had just been hauled out of the water, his pale, bony right hand hanging at his side, a half-smoked cigarette between his fingers. Its ember flickered fitfully in the dark.

The hood of his black sweatshirt hid his face completely, revealing only a sharply defined jaw.

He smoked in silence, the gloom around him deepening with every breath.

He looked very much like a psychotic killer.

In fact, this place was indeed about to become a murder scene.

Lu Yan watched from the window for a moment, then quietly drew the curtains. Turning around, he looked at the black heart floating inside the rented apartment. "Who is he?"

[Someone who wants to kill you.]

The black heart could actually speak. Its voice sounded mechanically synthesized, cold and devoid of emotion. Fine blue-violet currents of electricity curled around it, and with every flash, the heart gave a beat.

As if only a second ago, it had still been steaming inside someone's chest.

Lu Yan sat down on the sofa and rested his chin on his right hand, thinking. The truth was, he still had not figured out what was happening. Half an hour ago, he had been a penniless cancer patient with no money for treatment, left to await death in a hospital. Then, on the verge of dying, he had inexplicably become bound to something calling itself a System. What had it said again?

Oh. He remembered now.

[Let's play a game.]

[I'll take you into different novel worlds. As long as you survive for thirty days in each one and accumulate enough life points, your cancer will be completely cured.]

Lu Yan found it hard to believe that anything so absurd could happen to him. But after watching a black heart that looked as if it had smoked one cigarette too many flit back and forth before his eyes, he did not seem to have much choice but to believe it.

His interest piqued, Lu Yan asked, "Why does he want to kill me?"

The black heart flew in a circle around him. A blue holographic screen suddenly popped into existence in midair, displaying a photograph of a young man.

Like white jade, cold even when set aflame.

The words surfaced unbidden in Lu Yan's mind. The man in the photograph had a composed bearing and an aloof gaze. At a glance, he was unmistakably the privileged young heir of a prominent family. His amber eyes were dark and unfathomable, warning that he was not easily approached.

The black heart drifted behind Lu Yan and began recounting the story in an eerie tone. [His name is Yu Zechuan. He is the heir to Yinchuan Group, City A's leading real estate company. Five years ago, he was imprisoned for financial crimes and entrusted all his assets to his business partner, Jiang Boyun. He was released three months ago.]

Lu Yan had yet to recover from his regret that such a handsome man had somehow ended up in prison when the last part caught his attention. One eyebrow rose. "Business partner? It wasn't that simple, was it?"

Sure enough, the black heart replied, [They were partners in life as well.]

[Jiang Boyun came from a poor family, but he had good grades. In college, he met Yu Zechuan, who was the student council president at the time. They started a business together and eventually became a couple...]

Lu Yan supplied the missing word. "But?"

The black heart laughed. The emotion sounded strange coming from a machine governed by a program. [But Jiang Boyun had already taken a kept lover on the side. He was only with Yu Zechuan for his status and wealth. He wanted to seize his fortune.]

It concluded with a single sentence. [Jiang Boyun was the real mastermind behind the embezzlement case. He framed Yu Zechuan.]

Lu Yan lounged lazily on the sofa. "How tragic. He suffered in prison for five years, only to come out and discover that the man he loved was a fraud who stole his fortune and kept a lover on the side."

The black heart's voice sounded in the air, inexplicably chilling. [Yu Zechuan is downstairs. According to what happens next in the story, he will kill you inside this apartment.]

Lu Yan lowered his eyes to his hands. This body somehow felt like his own, down to the tiny red mole on his little finger. "Am I Jiang Boyun now?"

The black heart said, [No.]

Lu Yan asked, "Then why does he want to kill me?"

The black heart replied, [You're Jiang Boyun's kept lover.]

Lu Yan fell silent.

He had thought he had transmigrated into some melodramatic novel about a wealthy family. Apparently, it was a horror thriller instead.

The black heart gave Lu Yan little time to think. A five-second countdown suddenly appeared on the screen, its bright red numerals looking as though they might drip blood.

[Mission 1: Host must successfully survive Yu Zechuan's pursuit for thirty days. Task Complete: 500 points awarded. Task Failed: erasure by the System.]

[New players receive three rebirth chances for their first game. Use them with caution.]

[Game restriction: Calling the police is prohibited.]

Lu Yan asked, "I can't call the police?"

[No.]

"All right."

Lu Yan spread his hands slightly. "He's suffered so much, I'd feel bad calling the police on him anyway."

The black heart gave a single beat.

Three, two, one.

The countdown ended.

The black heart gradually faded from the air, leaving behind only a low, distant voice. [Game Start. We hope you enjoy the experience.]

As the System's final note vanished, the frozen clock on the wall began ticking again. Its hour hand pointed precisely to nine.

Only a few minutes later, the phone Lu Yan had left on the coffee table buzzed twice. Several voice messages popped up, all from a contact named Jiang Boyun.

Lu Yan tapped the first message.

[Yan, I'm almost at your building. How are you feeling? Does your stomach still hurt?]

[It looks as if this whole area is slated for demolition. It's too noisy. I have an apartment near the office. You can move in there in a couple of days.]

The original owner of this body had also been named Lu Yan. He had started sleeping with Jiang Boyun several years ago. To help Jiang Boyun seize Yu Zechuan's assets, he had even applied for a position in Yinchuan Group's finance department under false pretenses. Working together from inside and out, the two of them had sent Yu Zechuan straight to prison.

Hmm. How to describe them?

A pair of cheating bastards?

Lu Yan scrolled through the chat history and learned that Jiang Boyun's net worth had soared after he took control of Yinchuan Group. The number of admirers flocking around him had grown as well. He and Lu Yan had quarreled about it once and were currently giving each other the cold shoulder.

The original host was a gambler, deep in debt. Unwilling to let go of his "golden phoenix," Jiang Boyun, he had decided to swallow his pride and apologize. He had lied that his stomach hurt and asked Jiang Boyun to come take care of him.

As it happened, Jiang Boyun had been lonely lately and wanted someone obliging who knew how to please him. The moment he saw Lu Yan's conciliatory message, he drove straight over.

Lu Yan's fingers moved, typing out a line: [Thanks, but my stomach doesn't hurt anymore. You should go home. We can talk tomorrow.]

Yu Zechuan was lying in wait downstairs. Wouldn't seeing the cheating bastards sneaking around together only add fuel to the fire?

On second thought, if Jiang Boyun came over, there would be two of them, greatly improving Lu Yan's chances of survival. No matter how formidable Yu Zechuan was, he could not possibly fight them both at once, could he?

After a moment's thought, Lu Yan deleted the message he had drafted and typed a new one: [Hurry. I'm waiting for you.]

He tapped Send.

Jiang Boyun replied almost immediately. [Okay. Ten more minutes. I'll be right there.]

The seconds dragged by. The room was so quiet that it was unsettling. Lu Yan had no idea how long he had been waiting when a measured knock finally sounded at the door.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Lu Yan rose warily and went to the door. He peered through the peephole, only to find it so coated in dust from years without cleaning that he could not see a thing. "Who is it?"

Jiang Boyun's voice came from outside. "Yan, it's me."

Lu Yan opened the door a crack. A man in a tailored suit stood outside. He was handsome and debonair, so he certainly had the looks to draw people in. Unfortunately, beneath the fine clothes, he was nothing but a beast.

Lu Yan glanced behind him. "Come in."

Beast.

Jiang Boyun stepped inside and shut the door. When he turned, he found Lu Yan sprawled across the sofa playing with his phone, a pair of long legs draped brazenly over the armrest and taking up most of the space. Left with no other choice, Jiang Boyun sat across from him. "How are you feeling? Does your stomach still hurt?"

Lu Yan had not actually decided what to do next. His only plan was to survive the night and worry about the rest later. Distracted, he replied, "It's much better."

Jiang Boyun assumed he was still angry. He stood, walked over, and coaxed, "Yan, don't be jealous. We've been through so much together. Those people outside don't mean anything. I'm only putting on an act with them."

"The Yu family is finished, and Yinchuan Group is as good as mine. We can finally be together in the open."

Lu Yan abruptly asked, "Wasn't Yu Zechuan released recently?"

Jiang Boyun frowned at the question, clearly displeased by the subject. His tone was contemptuous. "Him? What can he do now that he's out? He's a ruined young master. He can't cause any trouble."

Lu Yan smiled. "Aren't you afraid he'll come after you?"

Jiang Boyun stared into Lu Yan's mesmerizing eyes beneath the light and felt a surge of desire. Unable to resist, he took Lu Yan's hand. "Don't worry. Yu Zechuan has nothing now. What could he possibly do? If you hadn't helped me falsify the books back then, I could never have sent him to prison so quickly. I've forgotten all about him."

Lu Yan said nothing.

It was the first time Lu Yan had met someone even better at putting on an act than he was. As Jiang Boyun leaned closer and closer, Lu Yan calmly slipped his hand free.

Jiang Boyun paused. Only then did he notice the muddy rain spatters all over his clothes, and he looked a little embarrassed. "I didn't bring an umbrella and got caught in the rain on the way here. Wait for me. I'll take a shower first."

Without waiting for Lu Yan to respond, he pulled a change of clothes from the wardrobe and went straight into the bathroom. The steady rush of water cut him off from everything outside.

Lu Yan, meanwhile, considered what to do next. He could hardly stay with Jiang Boyun around the clock. Once he survived tonight, he would have to find a way to hire a few bodyguards.

The original host never cooked, and there was not so much as a knife in the apartment. Lu Yan searched for anything he could use as a weapon while keeping watch on the door, completely ignoring the bathroom. It was only when the faint scent of blood drifted out with the steam that he finally realized something was wrong.

Water continued to pour, as if Jiang Boyun were still showering inside.

But when Lu Yan checked the time, he saw that Jiang Boyun had been in there for a full half hour. He rose from the sofa and walked toward the bathroom one step at a time. The smell of blood grew stronger, mingling with the hot steam until it turned his stomach.

Lu Yan stopped outside the bathroom door. His instincts told him that something had definitely happened inside.

What should he do?

Run, or stay?

At some point, the rain had intensified. A treacherous night like this was never a good time to flee. The System would not let him call the police, either, so escaping outside would do him little good.

If a man had to die, he might as well die in a warm room.

Besides, a new player had three restart opportunities. That was more than enough.

With that thought, Lu Yan's eyes darkened. His long fingers closed around the door handle and turned it gently. With a soft click, the scene inside the bathroom was fully revealed.

All he saw was scarlet.

Jiang Boyun lay in the bathtub with his eyes closed. A fresh, fatal slash gaped across his throat, and blood gushed from the wound, dyeing the hot bathwater scarlet. He was still wearing his pants, making it obvious that he had been murdered moments after entering the bathroom.

The bathroom window beside him stood wide open onto an endless night. Driving rain blew in through it and quickly dispersed the steam. A chill crept upward from the soles of Lu Yan's feet.

Before Lu Yan could react, an arm locked viciously around his throat and the edge of a sharp dagger pressed against it. A damp, powerfully built body was flush against his back, bringing with it the heavy reek of blood.

"Do you remember me?"

The voice that sounded beside his ear was cold and taunting, at once strange and familiar.

Lu Yan thought for a moment, then calmly spoke three syllables. "Yu Zechuan."

Lu Yan was, in fact, anything but calm. This was the eighth floor. How had the man climbed up here?