The living room fell silent again.
Jian Hou rubbed his brown curls in frustration, while Jiang Yan sat expressionless, sipping his soda in small gulps.
Too much had happened today, all too suddenly, and Jiang Yan’s mind was already overloaded.
A mess of tangled thoughts, completely unclear. He could only act on instinct, handling whatever appeared before him.
Just like Yu Xiu’s earlier words, he accepted them, and that was it. He even forgot to ask why, despite supposedly being divorced, they still weren’t really separated.
The blue data chains quietly scrolled in Jiang Yan’s blue eyes as his mind chose to prioritize matters related to the game.
Post after post kept refreshing on the game forum.
As everyone had expected, when the dungeon opened in the real world, it indeed caused a series of irreversible effects on reality.
For now, it only seemed to affect people. As for those chaotic, apocalyptic natural disasters, there was still no concrete evidence proving they were connected to the game.
What eased Jiang Yan’s mind a little was that his parents and Jian Hou’s parents were abroad. They shouldn’t be dragged into his and Jian Hou’s dungeon mission.
For the first time, he thought it was a good thing that the two old couples didn’t like staying home. He also needed to make sure they didn’t return for the time being, though he wasn’t sure how long “for the time being” would last.
Yu Xiu’s black tentacles obediently massaged Jiang Yan’s shoulders and back.
He knew very well that, as a proper husband, when he couldn’t solve his wife’s problems, he had to play the role of a “virtuous helper,” especially when the problem was largely his fault.
And it turned out his helpfulness was indeed effective.
Even though, when Jiang Yan saw the things Yu Xiu had written on the tablet, he very much wanted to roll him into a ball and throw him out of the house, he ultimately didn’t do it.
Because of love.
The thought startled Jiang Yan the moment it appeared in his mind.
In twenty-five years, he had never thought about or cared about his own emotions.
For people around him, he only divided them into two kinds: “comfortable to be with” and “uncomfortable to be with.” But now, for some reason, he suddenly began to reflect on his feelings.
On family, on friendship, on love.
Perhaps the change had started back during the previous dungeon recovery, when that strange blue data chain appeared.
It was as if he had suddenly awakened to human nature.
Yet just now, he had confirmed that he wasn’t human. The irony made him laugh inwardly.
Jiang Yan began sorting through the information he had obtained so far. He felt like a program whose code had gone messy, needing to reorganize and debug what he now knew.
First, from the broader perspective.
He and Yu Xiu were not human.
Both came from the game, and their marriage had lasted far longer than he had realized.
As for what this “game wishes” thing was, Jiang Yan didn’t quite believe it, but since there was no other evidence, he could only accept it for now.
Some game functions had been affected because of him. Yet, judging by how Tao Shi and Cao Youfeng’s real-world ages hadn’t changed, it was clear that reality itself had been affected too.
All of it stemmed from him.
So, the veteran players wanted to change everything. Some wanted him dead, others wanted to protect him.
Yu Xiu was still a mystery, but Jiang Yan felt he was definitely connected to the changes in the game.
Currently, the game’s main system was malfunctioning, and no one knew how to fix it or how long it would take. The game’s changes were visibly influencing reality, and Jiang Yan didn’t know what role Yu Xiu truly played in all this.
Next, from the immediate dungeon issue.
【Dungeon: The Stained Murderer’s Lover.】
【Dungeon Level: S | Progress: 10%】
【Players: Several | Real-life NPCs: Several】
【System NPCs: Several】
【Location: C City】
【Mission: Capture the real culprit behind the serial murder case】
【Main System Notice: Due to maintenance downtime, this dungeon has been randomly activated in the real world. Everyone is both a player and a real NPC. Wish you all an enjoyable game!】
Jiang Yan looked at the dungeon panel as social media feeds about Yu Xiu’s alleged serial murder case kept popping up on his tablet.
Although it was a dungeon mission, it was clear that his husband had truly become the prime suspect in a serial murder case and he, the suspect’s wife.
“Ding!”
Jiang Yan’s phone vibrated. It was a message from his mother on WeChat:
【Yan Yan, are you home now?】
Jiang Yan knew she was worried after hearing the police on the phone earlier, so he replied:
【I’m here. Old Jian is with me. Everything’s fine.】
【That’s good. Don’t worry about Yu Xiu’s situation. Your father and I will handle it.】
【I’ll take care of things here. You and Jian Hou must not come back for now. I’ll handle everything.】
【No problem, Mom. Be careful too.】
【Alright. You’re twenty-five now.】
Twenty-five. Jiang Yan suddenly realized he had long been a grown man.
When his father was twenty-five, Jiang Yan had already been born, and his father had already become the family’s backbone. Yet all these years, Jiang Yan had stayed sheltered in the haven built by his parents, lover, and friends.
His gaze darkened slightly.
At that moment, Jian Hou said, “Your dad texted me too, asking how you are. He said they just got notified there’s a hurricane, flights are grounded, so they can’t come back for now.”
“Better that they can’t,” Jiang Yan said. “Even if they could, we’d have to find a way to stop them.”
“True enough,” Jian Hou sighed. “But you shouldn’t go online now. Those people are talking trash.”
Jiang Yan didn’t answer.
Then Jian Hou suddenly thought of something and turned toward Yu Xiu, whose tentacles were coiled around Jiang Yan. “Was it really you?”
Yu Xiu’s tentacle tip morphed into a slender hand and decisively waved no.
Jian Hou exhaled in relief, then sighed again. “Damn! If it really were you, Yan Yan and I could just hand you over to the Public Security Bureau and be done with it.”
He rubbed his curls again, muttering, “What a garbage dungeon! No player count, no NPC count, no key clues, nothing! How are we supposed to catch a killer? Catching killers is the police’s job! We’re just ordinary citizens!”
Jiang Yan’s face was blank.
Exactly.
No player list, no NPCs, no clues, not even a clear story or script.
And they expected him, the suspect’s wife, to catch the real murderer... ridiculous.
Jiang Yan continued scrolling through social media.
Seeing this, Jian Hou quickly tried to stop him. “Didn’t I tell you not to go online? What are you doing”
“Looking for clues,” Jiang Yan said expressionlessly.
“I’m the suspect’s wife, and you’re the friend of the suspect’s wife. We can’t even report this to the police; all we can do is wait for them to summon us.”
“Besides, even if we did report it, they wouldn’t tell us any case details or evidence.”
“So apart from searching public information online, is there any other way to find leads?”
Jian Hou cursed under his breath. “Damn it! Stupid system!”
The moment he said that, Yu Xiu’s tentacle slapped his back hard. Jian Hou jumped and shouted, “What the hell?! I wasn’t talking about you! You and the system that close or what?”
Before Jiang Yan could respond, the doorbell rang.
“Excuse me, is Mr. Jiang Yan home?”
It was the property manager.
“What is it?” Jiang Yan asked.
“Mr. and Mrs. Jiang sent a package that requires your signature. If you’re busy, I can hold it for you and deliver it when you’re available.”
The manager’s tone was polite and professional.
Jiang Yan’s parents lived in a secured villa area, where no strangers, couriers, or deliveries were allowed inside without going through property staff.
So Jiang Yan didn’t suspect anything. Pulling Yu Xiu’s tentacle off himself, he got up slowly and went to open the door.
The manager was a middle-aged man in a black tailcoat, gentlemanly and dignified. He had worked with Jiang Yan’s parents for years and naturally knew Yu Xiu was Jiang Yan’s husband.
Now that Yu Xiu’s scandal was all over the city, the manager asked with polite concern, “Have you been alright lately, sir?”
Jiang Yan accepted the package, looked it over but couldn’t tell what it was. “Oh... I’m fine.”
What could possibly be wrong?
He was just being cursed out online, not like he’d lost a limb.
Still, the manager’s concern puzzled him.
After all, Yu Xiu was only a suspect, not convicted. Even if Yu Xiu really was the killer, what did that have to do with him?
He hadn’t taken part in any murders.
Did being the suspect’s wife mean that, no matter whether he knew anything or not, he had to bear the blame for another man’s crimes?
Jiang Yan found the idea absurd. That was why he didn’t care about online outrage.
But before he could think further, the manager’s face suddenly twisted in fury.
In the next instant, he whipped out a knife from his jacket and lunged straight at Jiang Yan, shouting, “You’re fine?! Murder must be repaid with blood! How can you be fine?!”
Jiang Yan froze. The knife glinted coldly, thrust straight toward his throat.
“Yan Yan!!”
“Ding!”
【Item: Star Time】
At the critical moment, Jian Hou summoned an item. A delicate pocket watch appeared in his hand, expanded to the size of a millstone, and smashed down on the manager’s head.
Thud!
The man fell instantly, scarlet blood splattering across the marble steps of the villa’s entrance.
Jiang Yan blinked, then knelt to check the man’s breath.
“He’s dead.”
The huge pocket watch slipped from Jian Hou’s trembling hand, hitting the floor with a dull thud.
“I... I killed someone?” he murmured in shock.
Next