This Damned Thirst for Survival

The black and white keys dance like a nightingale’s cry, the romantic and intense sound of the piano goes from soft to high as the storm shatters the rose petals and drops of water fall into the mud, sending a splash of water everywhere.

The marbles bounced high on the keys and then flew down again, like dreamy bubbles of glass, rolling amidst the gradual intensification of the sound of the instrument, and then being rolled in another direction by another bouncing key.

The competition is not about skill, it is about stability, about holding the marbles steady while playing the instrument.

Jiang Luo, however, has done too well.

Exceeds all expectations well.

His fingers leap across the piano keys so quickly that they seem to be in shadow. The dark-haired young man in the slim black suit was straight, his hair swept back, elegant and mysteriously beautiful.

Those watching around were stunned.

In fact, only Jiang Luo knows that his fingers have never touched the keys.

The ghostly hands inserted into his five fingers played so fast and so skilfully that Jiang Luo was carried along with him, so fast that no one could see whether Jiang Luo’s fingers were touching the keys or not.

Jiang Luo would appear to be performing a fake-song, a fake-song that no one could tell apart.

His smile, however, faltered slightly.

Because Jiang Luo felt the more suspicious gaze from Qi’s father behind him.

By the end of the song, Jiang Luo’s hands are already stiff.

The fingers recede like a tide, resting for a moment on the back of Jiang Luo’s hand.

The evil spirit’s laughing voice rang softly in Jiang Luo’s ears, full of bad pleasure.

“How can I lose to someone else, my student.”

With that, the coldness behind them disappeared.

Jiang Luo’s eyes darkened as he slowly put away his hand and stood up, turning his face with a perfect smile. The dark-haired young man looked a little embarrassed as he said modestly, “I don’t play very well, I’m embarrassed.”

“That’s amazing,” Ge Zhu applauded vigorously, giving a thumbs up, “You’re the one, Jiang Luo .”

“Crikey …… is that awesome?”

“Li Cheng, is this still a comparison?”

Pockmarked face came back from his daze and stammered, “What a comparison, who can beat this? Fuck, I’m totally convinced.”

At the back of the crowd, Qi’s father looked at Jiang Luo with horror and fear.

He felt something familiar when the instrument first started to play. When the song was finished, Qi’s father looked at Jiang Luo and all he could think of was the word “Chi You”.

The Chi family and the Chi family have always had a good relationship, and when Qi’s father visited the Chi family more than ten years ago, he had seen a young Chi You being made to play the piano with such difficulty by the Chi family elders.

Qi’s father thought it would be impossible, but Chi You did it.

The young but already established Chi You was extremely relaxed and smiling as she let the marbles fly across the piano keys without dropping them, just as Jiang Luo was doing at the moment.

After that, word of the Chi family’s method slowly spread through the metaphysical community. But Qi’s father had never seen anyone as powerful as Chi You again.

Cold sweat floated up from his back.

Jiang Luo’s polite and humble face was twisted into a devilish horror in his eyes. Is Jiang Luo like Bai Yefeng …… who was possessed by Chi You?

Chi You wasn’t his soul torn apart, why did he come back, did he, did he come back to take revenge on them?!

*

Father Qi left in a hurry.

His face didn’t look too good, Jiang Luo noticed it keenly, and he looked at Qi’s father’s back, his eyes narrowing slightly as he excused himself, “I’m going to the bathroom.”

He smiled at the crowd and, after moving away from the group, followed them silently up to the first floor.

The corridor on the first floor is long and Jiang Luo walks gently as if he were a big cat on the hunt, the carpet sucking up the last of his footsteps.

As the corridor came around the corner, Jiang Luo heard a noise and instantly hid himself around the corner, standing close to the wall.

Kee’s father’s voice came in anxiously.

“He must be Chi You, it’s definitely Chi You!” Qi’s father’s voice was urgent as he fretted, “It must be Chi You who has returned.”

Qi’s father should be on the phone, after a few seconds he calmed down considerably and said, “You’re right, Jiang Luo is Feng Li’s disciple, if Jiang Luo is possessed, how could Feng Li not see that something is wrong with Jiang Luo. But even if Jiang Luo is not Chi You, his words about avenging Chi You are not a lie.”

“Yes, not dead,” Qifu sneered, “he’s even stronger than we thought …… Chi Zhongye , believe it or not, if we don’t get rid of him, we’ll fall sooner or later. ”

Jiang Luo listened with great interest.

Before he was unsure which of the three of them the Qi and Chi families were after, but now he knew that it was him that the Qi and Chi families wanted to deal with.

The way they behaved also proved that both the Chi and Qi families were involved in Chi You’s death, or were among the culprits.

Jiang Luo sneers twice.

Unfortunately, Jiang Luo is not Chi You, but he shares Chi You’s vindictiveness.

Careful and extraordinarily vindictive.

The Qi and Chi families had set him up for this revenge, and he took it to heart.

Not knowing what the person on the other end of the phone said, Qi’s father suddenly drew in a cold breath, “The Fatal Man?”

The Fatalist?

Jiang Luo frowned, what is this again?

Father Qi said, “I know, let’s talk about it afterwards. I’ll do everything I can to get rid of him first. It’s unsettling to have an uncertainty in my mind. What does he know about revenge for Chi You?”

“The Feng family? Don’t worry, you still don’t know what Feng Li’s nature is?”

Jiang Luo listened lazily for a while, sensing that Qi was about to finish his call, and took a step back, about to leave.

Behind them, however, stood a man who didn’t know when.

Someone in earshot chuckled, “You hear that? He’s planning to kill you.”

The evil spirit took Jiang Luo’s hand and laughed in a low voice, “Listen to the anger, the judgement, the contempt that comes out of his mouth towards you. He is jealous of your talent, he hates your lack of knowledge, and he hates your immediate death.”

The flesh on Jiang Luo’s finger bones was gently pinched, a little painfully, and the evil spirit’s voice lowered, as if he were weaving a beautiful, monstrous dream, “Look, there is no one here.”

“There’s no surveillance.”

“It’s just you and him here,” the warm sound nourished the viral bacteria soaring, twisted evil being pulled into shape as the evil spirit seductively said, “Don’t you want to kill him here?”

“Strike from behind and kill with a single blow,” the evil spirit whispered, “smash in through his skull or slash through his neck. Smash his skull and slash off his foul flesh, blood spurting from his wounds and spilling onto the red carpet, the walls …… vent your anger in such a way as to show him just what kind of demon he has messed with, and show him that you are not someone he can kill.”

The evil spirit does not leave any room for words to compel Jiang Luo to reveal his true nature – a bloody and cold nature – to the evil thoughts of the kind of people he sees so much in.

And then into hell with him.

“His blood will flow more and more, he will turn and look at you in fear, he will try to escape but he cannot escape you,” the evil spirit’s blood perked up and he laughed twice as he shoved a knife into Jiang Luo’s hand, “but you must be more careful lest his dirty blood, splashes on your body.”

“That way, you can easily return to the party and pretend you know nothing.”

Jiang Luo’s breathing is slightly heavy.

It was as if he had already seen the image of himself killing Qi’s father, blood staining his hands and the smell of blood about death covering the corridor.

He threw the knife away, wiped his hands clean and then returned to the centre of the group as if nothing had happened.

Qi’s father had finished his phone call and came around the corner. As if he had not seen Jiang Luo and Chi You, he turned his back on them and walked towards the ground floor.

The evil spirit’s voice behind Jiang Luo was as if it could invade his brain, “With me behind you, you just have to be yourself.”

His breath hit Jiang Luo’s ear coldly as he spoke, and the evil spirit said softly, ” Jiang Luo , go and kill him.”

The evil spirit let go of his hand.

The dark-haired youth, however, stood still, his throat rolling, the dry floating disappearing in an instant.

” Chi You ,” his voice was slightly muffled but extraordinarily nice, “who gave you the confidence to think you could talk your way out of me?”

“This is a society of laws,” he said, “and dealing with humans is not the same as dealing with ghosts and monsters.”

“Really,” Chi You asked with a low smile as her pale palm covered Jiang Luo’s heart, “why, then, is your heart beating faster?”

Jiang Luo grabbed the knife and swung it back, and in the next instant Chi You disappeared, and so did the knife in his hand.

The dark-haired young man’s expression was grim as he took a deep breath to calm down his restlessness.

Chi You wanted him to look like a ghost, but he didn’t want to look like that. If he gets emotional now, he’ll only fall for Chi You’s tricks.

Jiang Luo quickly calmed down and returned to the hall.

*

The group of people who had come to trouble Jiang Luo were completely convinced, and instead of talking about the race, they changed their tune and invited them to go racing with them.

The mountain ring road was treacherous and the elders wouldn’t let them go after all. They simply found a place to play poker on their own.

Since they had never seen Yuan Tianzhu before, they said cheekily, “You have to set a prize for a game of poker, don’t you? Jiang Luo, if we win, can you show us Yuan Tianzhu? I don’t mean anything else, but I’ve never seen it before and I’d like to see it.”

Jiang Luo spreads his hands: “Can you take something like that anywhere? I can’t take it out right now.”

The group whose curiosity was piqued was somewhat disappointed when Qi Ye casually said, ” Yuan Tianzhu? I have one at home.”

Jiang Luo paused as the others exclaimed, “You have one at home?”

“Yeah, I have one at home.” Qi Ye nodded flatly in reaction, “I can take you there now if you want to check it out.”

Jiang Luo seemed curious and asked, “If you have Yuan Tianzhu, why don’t you keep it for yourself?”

Qi Ye laughed, his flat tone containing full pride, “We have three generations of grandfathers and grandchildren with outstanding talent, Yuan Tianzhu is not of much use to us.”

This is a sour statement, but there is nothing one can do about it, because Qi Ye is telling the truth, not to mention the elders of the Qi family who have aged in the last two generations. Qi Ye’s talent alone is one of the best among the younger generation.

The pockmarked face muttered, “Might as well give it to me to use …… Qi Ye , why don’t you show us Yuan Tianzhu? We’re really scratching our ears and curious.”

Qi Ye simply put down the poker and took them to see Yuan Tianzhu.

Yuan Tianzhu was placed in Qi Ye’s study. Jiang Luo followed the group and looked straight at Yuan Tianzhu for a few seconds before averting his eyes as if nothing had happened the moment he was taken out of the safe by Qi Ye.

Jiang Luo came up with a bold idea.

He was upset by the Qi family, and before he could get them killed, Jiang Luo wanted to make them upset too.

He was going to steal Yuan Tianzhu.

Yuan Tianzhu was placed in a locked wooden box, and the group didn’t bother to look at it to avoid suspicion. Jiang Luo is half turned towards Qi Ye, but Yu Guang can see his every movement clearly without a trace.

There are no windows in this house, and the door is casually closed when you enter, making it an enclosed space.

Those here are the young talents of the younger generation, and although they are many, it is much easier to deceive the evil spirits and those old foxes than to deceive them.

The only thing to watch out for is to avoid their sight.

Jiang Luo is not a master thief and does not have the expertise. This would have been easier if Jiang Luo had a companion. One person would have attracted attention while the other stole Yuan Tianzhu, but unfortunately Jiang Luo did not have a companion.

But with the Yin-Yang Ring, he has another special kind of “companion”.

He stood at the back of the crowd, smiling together at Yuan Tianzhu. Yuan Tianzhu’s icy blue, which seems to come out of his soul, still holds an enigmatic attraction for him. Jiang Luo looks away from Yuan Tianzhu and walks absentmindedly to the bookshelf.

“Is this Yuan Tianzhu? Such a nail-cap sized bead can actually enhance the spiritual body?”

“I want to take a fucking picture, I’ve seen Yuan Tianzhu before.”

“Qi Ye, do you sell Yuan Tianzhu? You can sell it at auction, it will fetch a great price!”

“Only a fool would sell! Yuan Tianzhu is worth a lot more than money!”

When they had had enough, Qi Ye was ready to put Yuan Tianzhu away. He was about to close the wooden box when Jiang Luo, who was standing by the bookshelf, suddenly said “Huh?” He was about to close the wooden box when he heard Jiang Luo, who was standing by the bookshelf, give a sudden “hmm?

Qi Ye subconsciously looked towards him.

It turned out that Jiang Luo’s coat corner had been hooked by a hook on the shelf. He looked down at the hook and tugged at it; the hooked position should have been very inconvenient to break free, and he did not succeed.

Jiang Luo simply lifted his head and lazily unbuttoned his suit jacket, revealing his pure white shirt through his long fingers, his black hair falling on his chest like a hooked silk, each sway seeming to open up a lake in his heart.

It was only a matter of taking off his jacket, but the others’ faces flushed and their attention was drawn to it. The golden mouse climbed up the desk like the wind and stole Yuan Tianzhu from inside without anyone noticing.

Qi Ye looked at Jiang Luo and closed the box, somewhat disoriented, completely oblivious to the fact that the most important thing was already missing from its contents.

Jiang Luo shakes his suit jacket with his hand and rests it above his elbow. The golden mouse crawls upwards under the cover of the jacket and returns to Jiang Luo’s Yin Yang ring, Yuan Tianzhu arrives in Jiang Luo’s hand intact.

Jiang Luo clutched Yuan Tianzhu and gripped the edge of his suit, raising an eyebrow at the crowd strangely, “What are you looking at me for?”

At his question, the group awoke as if from a dream. They awkwardly averted their eyes and walked out of the study, but Yu Guang seemed to glance over Jiang Luo.

Ahem, I didn’t realise it before, but Jiang Luo is really good looking.

Jiang Luo also followed the crowd at a brisk pace.

Qi Ye put the wooden box in the safe in a trance and locked it away, and when she came out again to see Jiang Luo, she suddenly blushed.

Jiang Luo was talking and laughing with Wen Renlian and looked back at him, wondering why Qi Ye was blushing, ” Qi Ye , are you hot?”

He turned his head and tried to leave, but came back with his head in his hands, grabbed Jiang Luo and headed down the stairs, saying quickly, “You know it’s hot here, why are you standing here? You’re a nuisance, get down!”

Puzzled, Jiang Luo glanced back at Wen Renlian and asked with his eyes, “Is he sick?

Wen Renlian, however, does not say anything, while Ge Zhu sighs.

Qi Ye leads Jiang Luo in a rush of inexplicable chi to the dining table, which is decorated with delicate pastries that emanate a slightly sweet and inviting aroma.

“I ……” Qi Ye met Jiang Luo’s questioning gaze and recoiled, unsure of what to say. He looked around in annoyance, took a few cakes and put them on a tray and brought them to Jiang Luo, saying in a hard tone, “Eat or not.”

Jiang Luo glanced at the cake, “I don’t want to eat it.”

He had expected Qi Ye to be angry, but to his surprise Qi Ye put the cake back and whispered, “So what do you want to eat?”

Jiang Luo : “……”

He looked at Qi Ye oddly.

Not far away in the corner.

In the shadows stand two men.

One is Liao Si, who has been treated as a guest since her last visit to Qi’s house, and the other is Teng Bi, who has been left behind at school without an invitation.

Liao Si watched the scene of Jiang Luo and Qi Ye’s interaction with great interest, poking Teng Bi in the arm and saying, “I never thought I’d see this again.”

Teng Bi strictly adheres to his master’s command to “watch Jiang Luo”, his eyes not moving, “Which scene?”

“A scene in the meadow above my master’s head,” Liao Si smiled heatedly, his sickly face leaping to life, “I’d love to call my master and have him come and see it too.”

Teng Bi didn’t quite catch his words, but he didn’t know Liao Si very well, so he said blandly, “Don’t you forget that the master can hear your thoughts.”

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, a slow voice sounded in Liao Si’s head.

” Liao Si .”

The smile on Liao Si’s face was suddenly withdrawn and he said in a serious manner, “Master.”

The sound of flipping through a book came from the master’s side, and Chi You said slowly, “What do you mean, a meadow over my head?”

Liao Si’s skin tensed and for a moment his bones tingled as he smiled ingratiatingly, “I mean, Jiang Luo is now staying with the puppet reserve I once gave you.”

In fact, Liao Si doesn’t think Chi You will ever use a human body again once Chi You has one.

His comment only showed that he didn’t think the master lover was a good match for the stooge prepper at all.

He said it euphemistically, but there was a pause on Chi You’s side, “So what.”

Liao Si was stunned, this is not the right reaction, right?

Any man would be furious at being cuckolded, let alone no one else but the horrible Chi You.

Master this …… don’t mind?

Liao Si, unable to guess what Chi You was thinking, said tentatively, “Master, I wonder if the heroic rescue you spoke of earlier has been successful?”

“Ah,” Chi You’s voice was visibly tinged with pleasure, “it worked.”

In an isolated basement.

Chi You sits on the sofa with a ghostly pattern raging around his neck, and even he has to find something to distract himself with to keep his sanity while the ghostly pattern is reverberating.

For example, the use of the spirit body to entrap Jiang Luo, such as a book he is reading, “The Compass in Detail”.

But at this point, his mind was not on the Compass in Detail.

He was thinking about hospital escapes, about murderous doctors and patients.

“I did save him and help him with one of the monsters that was stalking him,” Chi You’s lips curled up, slightly pale lips less pale after that day of blood and lips and tongue, he was very pleased with what he had done, “but sadly, death did not force his nature out. ”

This did sound like a heroic rescue, and Liao Si asked curiously, “So, Master, what was Jiang Luo’s reaction to your heroic rescue?”

Chi You’s mind flashes back to Jiang Luo standing tall at the top of the stairs, smiling coldly and wiping the corners of his crimson, wet mouth.

His throat tickled once more for some reason.

Chi You’s voice trailed off, a little inattentively, as he said, “He? He made me break an arm.”

Liao Si : “???”