Chapter 35: The Dreadful Reunion

Song Jinshi forced a weak smile, feeling like his expression had become frozen; moving even a little caused him pain.
Finally, amidst the noise, the groom arrived.
Song Jinshi hurriedly glanced at the groom’s appearance and let out a sigh of relief upon realizing it wasn’t Lin Yansheng.
But for some reason, he felt there was something particularly false about this groom, giving him a puppeteer’s sense of unease.
From beginning to end, Song Jinshi obediently went along with completing this wedding.
It was only when those people attempted to take him inside a room that he frantically looked at Wei Xun, softly calling out his name.
Song Jinshi did not want to be with this Lin Yansheng; the vibe he gave off felt far too strange.
At times, he felt he was not human but a mere imitation, while at other times, he felt he resembled the real Lin Yansheng.
He Zhou ultimately could not hold back any longer.
He had been enduring from the start, but now, with his wife marrying someone else and on the brink of consummation, this level of restraint was beyond reason!
He Zhou took a quick step forward and grabbed Song Jinshi, pulling him behind himself.
Upon seeing this, all the villagers turned their heads towards He Zhou, eyes filled with confusion.
“What are you doing? This is our fish queen! Those who snatch her away will die!”
The woman from the start looked at He Zhou with a twisted expression.
Her once normal body suddenly burst apart, revealing a sticky and grotesque form inside.
Song Jinshi gasped, eyes wide in shock as he stood behind He Zhou. At this moment, he was completely certain that they had indeed arrived at the first instance.
He recalled the terror of being surrounded by monsters, the scenes of voices coaxing him outside until their true forms were exposed.
Fear filled his mind.
He Zhou, seeing the monsters encircling them, pushed Song Jinshi aside towards Quan Shang.
“Take him and run; I’ll come find you.”
With that, he faced the monsters head-on, showing no sign of fear.
Quan Shang hesitated for a moment, then realized that Wei Xun must have some means, and after weighing her options, she took Song Jinshi and started to flee.
The others also followed suit, leaving the area, except for Yuan Wen, who stayed behind.

Chapter 29: Inheritance (12)
Song Jinshi followed Quan Shang and the others to a remote place to wait for Wei Xun.
On the way, they didn’t encounter anything strange.
But Song Jinshi felt that this village was too fake; apart from a few courtyards, other places resembled flat drawings—completely lifeless.
But clearly, it was not the time for such thoughts; how they were going to escape was of the utmost importance.
After an unknown amount of time, Song Jinshi noticed the surroundings beginning to fade. Before long, they were back in the villa’s bathroom.
“We’re back?”
A player posing as a cameraman looked around in delight.
The others also showed expressions of joy.
“We’ve really returned!”
Hearing their excited voices suddenly reminded Song Jinshi of Yuan Wen and that fake Wei Xun who were still inside.
“They haven’t come out yet.”
Quan Shang voiced Song Jinshi’s concern.
The people appearing back in the villa did not include Wei Xun or Yuan Wen; they were either in a different place or… they were already—
The rest of the thought was too dreadful for Quan Shang to continue.
What they didn’t know was that after Song Jinshi left, the fishmen had also vanished.
The venue that was supposed to hold a wedding had turned into ruins.
Only Yuan Wen remained in place, watching the fake Wei Xun with a smile that was not quite a smile.
He knew that this monster’s ability involved illusions. Initially, Yuan Wen aimed to use this to replace Wei Xun, but he found something much more entertaining.
“You are a player.”
Yuan Wen spoke to He Zhou with certainty.
“What method did you use to become Wei Xun?”
If it weren’t for this illusion, he might never have discovered that Wei Xun was actually a player.
“Did you kill the previous Wei Xun?”
Yuan Wen spoke these words directly to He Zhou.
He Zhou’s face darkened, his voice unfriendly as he replied, “What does it have to do with you?”
Yuan Wen chuckled playfully, “Of course it matters because I want to replace you and become the next Wei Xun.”
“Once you’re dead, that little beauty will be my wife. You can rest in peace underground, and I promise to take good care of her.”
“You’re asking for death!”
He Zhou shouted as he attempted to strike Yuan Wen, only to find that Yuan Wen was gradually disappearing from sight.
“Stay well in this illusion; your little wife is mine now.”
With that, Yuan Wen vanished from the illusion.
After Yuan Wen exited, he did not immediately search for Song Jinshi.
Instead, he used an item to disguise himself as Wei Xun, even adding some bloodstains to his attire.
Then, he feigned weakness and began searching for Song Jinshi and the others.
“Little treasure.”
Yuan Wen called out weakly to Song Jinshi, who had his back turned toward him.
Song Jinshi suddenly turned around and, upon seeing Yuan Wen covered in blood, asked anxiously, “Are you okay?”
Yuan Wen shook his head.
“I’m fine, little treasure.”
“As long as you’re safe—”
“I’m just feeling a terrible headache. It seems like some monster injured my stomach, but it’s just a lot of blood. Little treasure, don’t worry; your husband just isn’t dead yet.”
Yuan Wen feigned weakness, leaning against Song Jinshi.
He looked at Song Jinshi with an expression typical of a scumbag.
Song Jinshi had intended to ask Yuan Wen why he hadn’t returned, but hearing that, he felt a bit embarrassed to bring up others at that moment.
“I’ll take good care of you.”
Song Jinshi gently supported Yuan Wen, helping him sit down on the sofa as he hurried off to find water and a first aid kit.