Jiang Huamang stood at the end of the dead-end road, surrounded by the ominous rhythm of the Blackening Degree that surged and ebbed once more.
A shattered high wall had wiped out her last chance of escape.
But beneath the high wall, a monster that had once been abandoned by a woman slowly reached out a hand toward her.
Countless images flickered before Jiang Huacao’s eyes, memories she had long forgotten surging forth like fluttering, molting butterflies, only to vanish in the blink of an eye.
By the time she snapped back to herself, she had already fallen into the Butcher’s arms.
The Fly-Spider Monsters that had been chasing after her swarmed over in a semi-circular formation—there were ten of them in total.
Their footsteps and climbing abilities were astonishing, easily tearing apart their prey.
The eight spider limbs stretched open, reminiscent of face-huggers, making one’s scalp tingle.
The Shen held Jiang Huamang in one arm, with only one hand free to fight.
But that was enough for him.
The Fly-Spider Monster, with its body built specifically for combat, was easily split open by the double-bladed giant axe.
Severed limbs and a sliced-open spider abdomen fell to the ground with a clatter, twitching continuously.
Another Oxhorn Spider Monster leapt at the Butcher’s back.
The Shen, as if he had eyes on the back of his head, didn’t even turn around.
He simply grabbed the monster’s head with one hand.
His fingers tightened, and with a forceful twist—
The head of the Fly-Spider Monster shattered like cheap plastic, a burst of yellowish-green blood spraying everywhere.
Of the ten monsters, only two were left.
They stared at the Butcher with a mix of fear and unwillingness, letting out agitated, guttural “grrr, grr, grrk” sounds.
After hesitating for a few seconds, they turned and ran away.
After the thrilling chase, Jiang Huacao’s tightly wound mind finally relaxed a little.
She was saved…
After a few seconds of respite, she tensed up again.
She couldn’t believe it—she had actually dared to ask the Butcher for guidance while his Blackening Degree was rising!
Even more unbelievable, he had responded to her request immediately.
He opened his arms to her, easily absorbing the force of her fall, and caught her securely.
In this still-unknown game called “48,” the Butcher, the very source of terror, had given her an unbelievable sense of safety.
After the monsters fled, the Butcher showed no intention of pursuing them.
The Shen picked up his axe and stood still where he was.
He looked up at Jiang Huamang, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he maintained his usual silence.
Jiang Huacao had been watching him from the beginning.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t read any emotions from the pale, bony skull.
But she could sense that his mood wasn’t bad.
The Butcher showed no intention of putting her down.
The Shen supported her thigh with one hand, holding her in his arms like a child.
His strong arm muscles pressed into her soft, slender waist, exuding a silent sense of control.
Jiang Huamang’s clothes had long since been soaked through. The thin fabric clung to her skin, and the icy rainwater had sapped all her body heat, making her shiver uncontrollably.
But the Butcher, despite being in the same rain, was completely unaffected.
His body was like a scorching furnace, and vigorous warmth flowed steadily into her through their touching skin.
Very soon, Jiang Huacao felt like she was a block of ice slowly melting in the Butcher’s arms, her wet, limp body softening against his chest.
Her body was more honest than her mind—her slender waist sagged, settling into the most comfortable position, her relaxed wrists naturally drooping, and as the Butcher walked, her knees brushed lightly against the distinct muscles and waistline of his side.
The Butcher’s steps were steady and calm, making her feel very safe. Exhausted from running for her life, Jiang Huamang almost dozed off.
Reason told her she should do something at this moment, like lowering the Blackening Degree.
But she had no experience strategy for getting close to others. From childhood to adulthood, she’d always been the pampered, pretty girl, with people vying to please her no matter what she did.
The most troublesome thing she’d ever encountered was in kindergarten, when her classmates fought over who would get to give her a snack first.
In middle school, the top students competed to help her with homework.
In high school, there were so many volunteers to help her that she couldn’t even choose.
She was spoiled rotten.
Jiang Huamang tried to compose herself and state her position: “Yimeng, when I woke up this morning and saw you weren’t there, I tidied up the house a bit.
But I didn’t rummage through your things or go into the basement.”
She deliberately chose her words to sound better, and at the end, she emphasized her pronunciation, her tone unconsciously seeking praise, as if what she’d done had been difficult and exhausting.
The events that had just taken place had subtly changed the relationship between the two of them, allowing her to shed her cautious, reserved shell and tentatively reach out, testing the boundaries.
The Butcher was silent for a while before speaking. His rarely-used voice was rough and low, “You don’t need to do those things.”
“But you not only took me in, you even saved me. I want to do something to repay you.” Jiang Huamang tried her best to lower the Blackening Degree.
This time, the Butcher answered quickly: “I don’t need it.”
The dim electronic eyes gazed deeply at her, and the hand on her waist tightened imperceptibly, leaving no room for refusal.
Jiang Huamang’s little exploratory feelers shrank back, drooping listlessly.
The topic didn’t continue.
He arrived at the Airdrop Point.
It wasn’t harvest time yet, but whether locals or players, everyone instinctively avoided the Butcher.
No one could understand why the Butcher would appear at the Airdrop Point, but regardless of their confusion, no one dared to risk their lives to compete with him for supplies.
Jiang Huamang didn’t know what he wanted to take, and when she offered to help, she was rejected again.
The Butcher set her down on the Flower Terrace: “Don’t run around.”
Jiang Huamang glanced down: “…”
It was a height she could never descend on her own.
There were many items in the airdrop basket.
But whether it was rare weapons or precious food, none caught the Butcher’s eye. In the end, the Shen dug out a dark gray box from a corner.
The box was exquisitely packaged, with a prominent gold “MF” logo on the lid.
Jiang Huacao frowned instinctively at the sight of that logo.
The Butcher violently tore the box apart, the once luxurious and ornate retro logo instantly ripped into pieces and, like the other packaging, discarded onto the ground, worthless.
A pair of silver shoes with black soles rested in the Butcher’s palm.
The Shen compared them to Jiang Huamang’s feet—the size was just right.
The people on the Flower Terrace understood instantly.
So this was why he’d gone out early in the morning… to get her shoes?
Jiang Huacao blinked several times, lowering her gaze to the shoes.
So yesterday, he hadn’t disliked her slow walking. He’d noticed the wounds on her feet and realized the shoes didn’t fit.
So that spike in Blackening Degree at that time…
Jiang Huacao paused for two seconds, then looked up at the Butcher.
He was kneeling on one knee in front of her, his broad, warm palm supporting her foot as he removed the ill-fitting shoes.
The girl’s snow-white feet looked even smaller in his large hands. His movements were slow and a little clumsy, probably because he rarely did such things.
As he lifted her leg, her loose, baggy pant leg rolled halfway up.
Jiang Huamang could clearly feel the thick calluses on the Butcher’s palm rubbing against her skin, and the steady heat unique to an adult man radiating over.
It was as if she’d been scalded—she reflexively tried to pull her foot back.
But the Butcher was quicker. His forearm muscles tensed, and with a gentle but firm grip, he held her slender ankle and slipped the shoes onto her feet. “Done.”
Jiang Huacao flexed her feet. The new shoes were comfortable and springy, with no place that rubbed her skin.
Just as she thought it was over, the Butcher turned and walked away again.
Once again left behind on the Flower Terrace, Jiang Huamang: “…”
She had no idea what the Shen was going to fetch next.
Jiang Huamang looked down at her shoes again. Her rolled-up pant legs were bunched at her thighs, exposing her calves—so white it hurt the eyes, her knees dusted with a faint pink.
A strange scraping sound drew her attention away from the shoes, and she looked over curiously.
A bag of bread tumbled out, rolling and bouncing.
Immediately after, a black spider limb slowly emerged from a pile of debris in the corner.
Jiang Huacao instantly recognized what it was and shouted, “Yimeng!” She shrank back in fright, grabbing a stone at hand and hurling it.
The small stone, with no threat at all, struck the head of the Fly-Spider Monster.
The monster didn’t dodge, just had its head knocked askew.
It still wanted to move forward, its spider legs under its abdomen tapping the ground in place with a dry, rasping sound.
Then another Long-Tailed Spider Monster stepped out from the shadows, bumping into its companion as it came and squeezing it aside.
Behind them, two long tails—each capable of snapping a human neck in seconds—rose high, wagging left and right, sketching a giant “5” shape in the air.
Jiang Huacao nervously fumbled with a stone in her hand, the sharp edges pressing into her skin, but she couldn’t care about the pain—all she felt was unease.
The two Fly-Spider Monsters that had run away were back, and… were they desperately wagging their tails at her?
Jiang Huamang didn’t react, so the Long-Tailed Spider Monster in front carefully nudged the bread on the ground, gently pushing it toward her.
“Don’t come over!” Jiang Huacao, seeing the monster approach, hastily threw another stone.
When the stone hit, the monster shrank its neck.
Jiang Huamang found it unbelievable.
She had never seen such human-like behavior from a Mechanical Spider Monster.
The monster’s six brass-colored eyes blinked rapidly, but it obediently didn’t come any closer.
[Player nearby! Contract-eligible pet detected: Arachne Spider-X7]
[Do you wish to contract?]
Jiang Huamang’s expression grew even more bewildered as she stared dully at the two Arachne Spiders crouched on the ground, wagging their tails.
A few strands of platinum-blond hair clung to her delicate, pretty face, and her lake-green eyes were moist and glistening. Because of the recent fright, her cheeks were tinged with a touch of blush, making her look extremely easy to bully.
“Chirr… chirr… grrk…”
The Arachne Spider cautiously straightened up, its eight legs taking tiny steps forward, tentatively trying to nuzzle Jiang Huamang’s ankle.
“Go away, don’t touch me!” Jiang Huacao threw another stone.
The stone hit the metal body of the Arachne Spider with a crisp crack, splitting apart instantly.
Its attempts at approach were suppressed again, and the Arachne Spider fell obediently still.
Jiang Huamang felt her brain was a bit overloaded.
Clearly, it was Yimeng who had driven them away. If they were to submit, shouldn’t they be submitting to Yimeng?
So why did they look like they were determined to be her dogs?
[Do you wish to contract?]
The system prompted her again.
Jiang Huamang didn’t even have to think: “No.”
Spiders were one of the bugs she feared most, and these ones were too ugly—no sense of aesthetics at all.
She had just refused the system in her heart when the Butcher returned.
A slender silver rope was coiled around the Shen’s palm and wrist.
To call it a rope wasn’t quite right.
It was actually a chain made of liquid metal, its material unknown, with a smooth, delicate sheen—each link glimmered with a cold, silvery light.
To satisfy the tastes of the upper city dwellers, all airdrop supplies—whether weapons, food, medicine, or clothing—were always crafted in a luxurious, refined style.
In that case, it wasn’t strange at all for a silver chain like this to show up in an airdrop.
[Blackening Degree +10]
Jiang Huamang looked up and met the two pools of dark red light in his eyes.
Reason told her she should do something immediately, like chasing away the Arachne Spiders, or once again throwing herself into the Butcher’s arms.
But she didn’t want to.
She wanted to test just how far she could go with the Butcher’s bottom line in this place.