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The appearance of this sentence sent a shiver of alarm through Luo Yesheng.
Is it Dad?
Isn’t it Grandpa?
He couldn’t help but glance at Bianbian. That’s right; the little girl never said her grandfather was the only one with her.
The other party appeared but didn’t speak, instead communicating by writing. Could it be that due to some special reason, they were unable to speak and could only communicate this way?
A new sentence appeared on the blackboard: “Do your job, and I’ll spare your life.”
The blunt words made Luo Yesheng’s eyes flash with cold light. Anger had already been simmering within him; he had merely restrained his temper out of consideration for the little girl, forcing himself to be patient. Now that the main culprit had finally shown up, only to threaten and insult him so rudely—even a clay figure possesses a shred of fighting spirit!
From the corner of his eye, he watched Bianbian while inwardly calculating the distance between them. If the other party truly intended to attack him, even if he couldn’t win in a fight, he could use the little girl to buy himself more opportunities.
“I like obedient people,” another sentence slowly appeared on the blackboard. “Usually, those who disobey me end up dead.”
Luo Yesheng’s pupils constricted—not because of the meaning behind those words, but because—
A terrifying killing intent enveloped him; it seemed that any sudden move on his part would result in his head being severed from his body.
Luo Yesheng had never felt such terror; in a daze, he seemed to be plunging into an abyss ten thousand meters deep, overwhelmed by crushing pressure and suffocation.
The terrifying killing intent suddenly vanished, as if it had never existed. The flames spewing from Luo Yesheng’s right hand flickered once before extinguishing.
Meanwhile, the clothes on his back were already soaked with cold sweat.
With the killing intent gone, he let out a soft sigh of relief.
Clenching his stiff fingers with force, strength returned to his limbs, and his sluggish thoughts began to churn. Luo Yesheng finally understood that the other party’s words, “I’ll spare your life,” were neither casual nor an insult; they were simply stating an obvious fact.
This was the gaze of the strong looking down upon the weak.
Grinding his back teeth, he spoke in a hoarse voice: “Sir, was it you that day?”
“Do you object?” Chalk—the Magician—responded to him.
Luo Yesheng’s tense body suddenly relaxed. The mysterious figure who had ambushed him and Feng Leijie that day was indeed this person.
“Why?” Luo Yesheng’s question stemmed from pure bewilderment.
He truly couldn’t comprehend it. If Bianbian’s father possessed such terrifying power, why resort to a covert ambush if he intended to act against them?
—Of course, he didn’t know that the man before and after that great battle were essentially two different people.
Xiu Jin lacked NR equipment and could only manipulate the screen to set small traps, which manifested as sneak attacks. The Magician entered the fray in the latter half and directly sent Feng Leijie to his demise.
Rarely patient, the Magician replied, “Because I felt like it.”
Luo Yesheng’s expression instantly turned exceedingly grim.
The Magician curled his lips in a cold smile, the sarcasm in his eyes unseen by anyone, as he held a piece of chalk between two pale fingers: “Don’t you understand the law of the jungle?”
Luo Yesheng said expressionlessly, “I stand corrected.”
He glanced at Bianbian, who was quietly staying silent after noticing the exchange between her uncle and the bad guy, then lowered his eyelashes, reactivated his ability, and continued roasting the undercooked pheasant without saying a word.
The classroom instantly fell silent.
Bianbian looked at Luo Yesheng’s displeased expression, then at the blackboard; unable to read, she could only hear Luo Yesheng’s words but completely failed to understand what he and her uncle had said.
The little girl gazed longingly at the blackboard, wishing she could read, so she would know what her uncle was saying even when she couldn’t see him.
Then she became happy about something else—it wasn’t that Uncle didn’t want to talk to her, but that he couldn’t speak. If he could have spoken, he wouldn’t have written those words for the bad man to see just now.
At that moment, a pair of silver bracelets materialized out of thin air; one landed in Bianbian’s arms, while the other was tossed toward Luo Yesheng. The Magician wrote with chalk: “Put it on, and tell her to put hers on too.”
Holding the bracelet whose material he couldn’t identify, Luo Yesheng couldn’t help but ask, “What is this?”
“Just do as you’re told.”
Luo Yeshen gritted his teeth and reluctantly slipped the bracelet onto his wrist. Whether it was just his eyes playing tricks on him, he thought he saw a flash of light the moment it settled on his left wrist.
He couldn’t understand why the Magician had made things so complicated, forcing him to relay a message to Bianbian… Yet, with his life no longer in his own hands, he had no choice but to comply.
Shifting his gaze toward Bianbian, who was curiously examining the bracelet, logic dictated he should feel nothing but disgust toward this little girl. However, adult affairs shouldn’t burden a child. With a complex expression, Luo Yeshen said, “Bianbian, your father says you should put on the bracelet.”
Bianbian froze for a moment.
Why would the bad guy say Uncle is her dad?
As she pondered this, she slipped the bracelet onto her wrist. Compared to her slender arm, it seemed far too large, yet the moment it touched her skin, it automatically shrank to fit snugly against her flesh, a silvery glint flashing briefly before vanishing.
A moment later, Bianbian understood the purpose of this bracelet. No voice told her, yet she simply knew what it was called.
[Samsara Bracelet: This bracelet consists of a master ring and a subordinate ring. The wearer of the master ring can command the wearer of the subordinate ring unconditionally; the subordinate cannot disobey orders nor do anything harmful to the master. The Samsara Bracelet is designed for masters and pets, hence also known as the Pet Collar. Its creator renamed it “Samsara Bracelet” merely to make the name sound more impressive.]
Perhaps having previously encountered a glowing mana orb that could serve as a lamp, Bianbian showed no surprise at the Samsara Bracelet, finding it merely amusing.
She shook the circle on her right hand and looked across at Luo Yesheng. So… did this big bad guy become her pet from now on?
Just like Bianbian, the moment she put on the main ring, Luo Yesheng understood its function. And at this very moment, as he looked at Bianbian again, the first thought that crossed his mind was: I must never harm her.
Luo Yesheng: “…”
Isn’t he just like a dog with a leash tied around its neck by its master?!
“What the hell is this thing!” He sprang up from the ground in an instant, nearly roaring the words out, while simultaneously using his hands to pry at the sub-ring, attempting to remove it from his wrist.
However, the bracelet was firmly locked onto his wrist; no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t budge it even a fraction.
“You’re not allowed to take it off.” Bianbian planted her tiny hands on her narrow waist.
Luo Yesheng moved his hand away from the ring, obeying without hesitation.
Luo Yesheng: “…”
Bianbian’s eyes lit up as she added, “Sit down.”
Luo Yesheng plopped himself onto the ground.
“…” No, he didn’t want to! But his body was beyond his control.
Bianbian, as if discovering a fun new toy, was about to try again when she noticed the bad guy’s expression looked especially terrible, his eyes red.
Had the bad guy been crying?
Bianbian blinked her eyes.
Luo Yesheng’s eyes were bloodshot with rage, appearing completely red; the little girl naturally mistook this for the big bad guy crying.
She belatedly realized that such behavior seemed inappropriate and instinctively canceled her “command.”
“You… please don’t cry,” Bianbian said, somewhat at a loss. “I won’t bully you anymore.”
Luo Yesheng nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
“I’m not crying!” he roared furiously. No adult would be happy to be at someone else’s mercy; it felt worse than death itself.
“Kill me or carve me up, as you wish.” Luo Yesheng turned toward the blackboard, raised his left hand, and said coldly, “I certainly understand the law of the jungle where the strong prey on the weak, but even the weak have dignity! Either take it off, or kill me.”
Bianbian nervously clenched her small hands. Hearing Luo Yesheng’s hoarse voice, she felt increasingly guilty. Pressing her petal-like lips together, she murmured softly, “I’m sor…”
However, before she could speak, the magician waved his hand casually, and the little girl opened her mouth only to find herself unable to utter a sound.
Bianbian looked utterly bewildered. Then she saw the big bad guy stand up, his body leaning slightly forward—not as if he rose by his own will, but as though someone were gripping his throat and dragging him forward.
Bianbian grew even more confused.
The magician held Luo Yesheng’s throat with one hand while clutching a piece of chalk in the other. The latter allowed every single character being written to be clearly seen stroke by stroke: “Once the Cycle Ring is worn, no one can remove it without my permission, unless you sever your own hand.”
“You want to break it off? Anytime.”
Luo Yesheng trembled all over. In fact, the hand gripping his throat wasn’t applying much force, yet it felt as though all strength had been drained from his body in that instant. He stared at the words on the blackboard, each one seeming to radiate contempt toward him.
Could this man truly be Bianbian’s father?
How could someone like him give birth to a daughter as pure as Bianbian?
Although Bianbian just issued several commands to him through the Samsara Ring, Luo Yesheng’s fury was directed at the Magician, not at Bianbian.
“With your hand severed and the Samsara Ring gone, I still have other ways to make you obey my daughter.” The chalk moved across the blackboard at a steady pace, each character written so beautifully it seemed almost eerie. “Want to try?”
“…”
“Would you rather live in a state worse than death, or become my daughter’s dog? I’m giving you the freedom to choose.”
Luo Yesheng was thrown back to his original spot. He remained silent for a few seconds, then finally offered a bleak smile and calmly said, “Bianbian, you have a good father.”
Luo Yesheng was not the type to dwell on things; having made his choice, he refused to overthink it. At least he had survived. If worst came to worst, he could simply think of himself as Bianbian’s nanny. With that thought, he felt much better.
Bianbian could finally speak again. Twisting her fingers, she said awkwardly, “I’m sorry… If you don’t like this ring, you can take it off.”
Although the Big Bad Guy was indeed bad, what she had just done was also very wrong. Her dislike for the bad guy did not diminish her guilt over what had just happened.
Hearing the little girl’s soft voice, Luo Yesheng smiled bitterly. “It can’t be taken off.”
“Then I’ll let Uncle pick it.” Since Uncle gave it, Uncle can definitely take it off.
Uncle?
Luo Yesheng frowned.
“Uncle, I don’t want this bad guy to become my pet; that’s not right…” Bianbian ran to the podium and reached out to pull the Magician, relying on the chalk floating mid-air.
If the Magician reached out his hand, she could grab it.
However, the Magician simply placed the chalk in his hand into Bianbian’s small palm and picked up another piece of chalk: “Tell her, I am her father.”
“?” Luo Yesheng’s gaze fell upon the characters written on the blackboard.
Unwilling to give up, Bianbian continued trying to pull him, but the Magician tossed the chalk into her hand once again.
“Bianbian, your dad says he’s your father,” Luo Ye said stiffly, nearly getting tangled in his own words.
Could it be that this dad just got appointed?
“…” Bianbian wanted to say she didn’t have a father, but thinking of how kind the uncle had been to her, the little girl naturally changed her words instead. Persistently returning to the previous topic, she asked, “Dad, can you take the ring off the bad guy’s hand?”
The magician, in a cheerful mood, crouched down to meet Bianbian at eye level. His pitch-black pupils resembled fragments of stars scattered across a cold night; still icy, yet now imbued with a faint glimmer of light.
“Dad?” Bianbian suddenly sensed something different. She raised her small hand and gently brushed it across the magician’s eyes.
The magician lightly curved his lips, stood up, and wrote with chalk: “Dissuade my daughter from the idea of making you remove the Samsara Ring.”
This message was naturally written for Luo Yesheng to see.
Luo Yesheng took a deep breath, calmed his emotions, and smiled gently: “Bianbian, I willingly wear the Samsara Ring. Whatever you wish to do in the future, you can let me help.”
The big bad guy’s behavior had completely changed from before. Bianbian, who hadn’t yet developed the ability to detect lies, simply believed him.
Another sentence appeared on the blackboard. Luo Yesheng frowned slightly and hesitantly repeated it: “I harmed your grandfather and uncle; I should atone for my sins.”
When did he ever harm her grandfather and uncle?
As soon as the words left his mouth, he saw Xiao Bianbian’s pale, chubby cheeks puff up. Then she shot him a glare, and that fleeting sense of embarrassment and guilt vanished completely.
Luo Yesheng: “…”
The furrow between his brows deepened. Certain details he had previously overlooked gradually surfaced in his mind, nearly ready to be pieced together.
The magician stepped out of the classroom door. Outside, two zombies lurked: one crouched beneath a bare tree, picking at the dirt and poking ants; the other, with clouded gray-white eyes, stared fixedly at the classroom entrance, frozen like a stone statue.
“A zombie’s brain is even more useless than worthless trash,” the magician remarked with near cruelty. It was unclear whether he referred to Lu Yu or Zhu Yuan, but fortunately, neither could hear him.
“You thought that by temporarily restraining Luo Yesheng’s freedom and letting Bianbian go in alone without you following, he would cooperate and obey just because Bianbian appears non-threatening?”
“You’re worried that your zombie identity would expose your relationship with Bianbian, making Luo Yesheng sense danger and flee at all costs. Once he escapes, you’ll lose your free chef.”
“Have you considered that if Luo Yesheng truly decides to act, there’s a ninety percent chance he’ll take your granddaughter down with him before you can kill him? Even if she doesn’t die, she’ll still suffer terribly.”
“Idiot.”
　　……
Just as the pheasant was nearly roasted, its rich aroma filling the air, Bianbian, who had been waiting eagerly, cheered with delight.
Heavy footsteps echoed from the doorway—
Luo Yesheng’s pupils instantly contracted to pinpoints. What he saw were those two high-level zombies!
“Get out of the way!” he roared at Bianbian, then immediately froze, thinking self-mockingly: With her father right here, what business does he have worrying?
The next second, he heard the little girl’s soft and jubilant voice:
“Grandpa.”
Luo Yesheng: “…???”
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First update is here; the second one will follow as soon as Da Wanzi finishes writing.