Chapter 19: Dead

Cw: depiction of gory death

'Damn this shortie!'

Nian gritted his teeth and cursed inwardly when he could not slap the plate out of Jin Jiuchi's hand in time. Previously, this small body had been nothing but convenient to him and that's why he had always preferred to enter the Cycle under this guise. But who could have guessed that he would finally run into a wall after meeting Jin Jiuchi?

"Are you crazy?!" He seethed. "How dare you put that repulsive thing into your mouth!"

Jin Jiuchi gasped in such terror as if the jade doll had murdered his entire family. "'Repulsive thing'? Bad Nian'er! How could you…" a sputter of disbelieving laugh escaped his lips and in that split second, Nian caught a glimpse of the red bloody meat inside his mouth. Ew. "How could you say it like that? This is food… precious and delicious food! The audacity you have to badmouth about it in front of the owner itself!"

Jin Jiuchi shot him a disapproving glare before turning to the landlady with an apologetic smile. "Please don't take it to heart, Madam Liu. He's only a child! Your meat sauce is very delicious!"

Now it was Nian's turn to bark out a disbelieving laugh. What the hell was he doing trying to help someone who could not even appreciate it? Moreover, he was not even certain yet whether this man was really a human! Jin Jiuchi could be a ghost in disguise, a crazy pervert or real weirdo for all he cared! The man's life and death was none of his business!

Taking a deep breath, Nian curbed the hot anger in his chest and sat down on the chair. Out of sight, out of mind.

Madam Liu looked really delighted when she heard Jin Jiuchi's praise. Her stare bore into his face – or to be exact, on the bread with meat sauce topping that entered his mouth one after another, so intense that it sent shivers down everyone's spine. "I'm so glad to hear that!" She offered a wider smile to Jin Jiuchi, which meant that her lips curled up a millimeter higher. It made her look like she had a muscle spasm instead.

"How about the others? Won't you give it a try too?" She swept his gaze over the people who were still frozen in their seats after the insane feat Jin Jiuchi had attempted, before landing on Old Guan in the end.

Last night, Old Guan had been terrified to death just by the mere sight of her, but now, he actually offered her a smile and reached for the ladle to pour the meat sauce over his bread. He brought the bread to his mouth and bit down on it with a crunchy sound.

"Delicious," he commented, the crimson soup trickling out of his black colored lips.

Everyone gaped at him in various degrees of shock and disgust. At least, Jin Jiuchi's manner of eating was neat and clean – well, it was actually him being too ravenous and unwilling to waste even a single drop – but Old Guan was… messy. In a flash, the soup had drenched half of his face and the collar of his shirt like an endless stream of blood, painting a grotesque and bizarre image.

Yet he still had a calm smile on his face as if he was fine-dining in an expensive restaurant and what he was eating was his favorite steak.

"I–I'm sorry…!" Unable to endure it anymore, Xinxin stumbled out of her seat and rushed out of the dining hall, presumably to the bathroom where she could empty the contents of her stomach.

Madam Liu acted as if she noticed none of the ruckus. "I'm so happy that the guests this time show such high appreciation for the signature dish. Previously, all of them wasted it…" she trailed off, her countenance turning grim as though recalling some unpleasant memories. With her dead eyes and black lips, she looked like some kind of ultra realistic gothic doll that would make children cry as soon as they saw her. Then she blinked and glanced at the time. "Oh my, look at me. I will leave you on your own volition. After you're done with the breakfast, please go to the sixth floor where we will start to decorate the wedding venue."

After saying that, she really turned away and left, causing everyone to breathe out a sigh of relief.

"B–Brother Yang!" Tang Ye jumped to his feet and demanded in utter shock and trepidation. "You… are you okay?!"

"Hmm?" Jin Jiuchi asked, his cheeks stuffed full like a hamster. In such a short span of time, he had already wolfed down four out of six slices of bread on his plate. He chewed quickly and swallowed it down, already reaching for the fifth slice. "What's wrong?"

Tang Ye was utterly stupefied. "What's wrong, you ask…"

Jin Jiuchi saw how they did not move to grab their fill and asked in confusion. "Why aren't you guys eating? It's so creamy and flavorful. Look, even Old Guan is enjoying it. You heard Madam Liu. This is a signature dish you can only find in this apartment! Everyone, please give it a try!"

Sister Hong's face abruptly turned ugly when she heard that. Alas, just as she was opening her mouth and was ready to curse the living shit out of Jin Jiuchi—

"Huekk—!" Old Guan covered his mouth and retched, more crimson soup slipping out through his fingers to drip to his trousers.

Almost immediately, Sister Hong and the man surnamed Zhi – who sat closest to him – pushed the chair back and stood up, eyeing Old Guan warily. Nian followed suit to keep a considerable distance where he could still observe the man.

Tang Ye's eyes flew wide in horror, his voice shaky as he asked, "O–Old Guan…?"

Old Guan's eyes bulged out almost terrifyingly, bloody red veins palpable in them. A flash of fear appeared in the depth of his pupils and in that moment, it was as if the previous Old Guan had returned – the man who was overwhelmed by dread and panic.

"H–Help…" he rasped. "H–Help me… my throat… something is— hueek!" He retched again.

With a sudden lurch, he hurled out a flood of thick crimson liquid, splashing all over himself and the table. He kept vomiting and vomiting until his stomach caved in and his skin turned dry and rough like a tree bark. "H–Help…" with that one last plea, his eyes rolled backward and he slammed face-first down to the table, before going completely motionless.

Everyone watched in horror as his skin started to crack like a fragile glass, yellow pus and blood oozing out of the cracks as if he was breaking apart from within. Soon afterward, his body began to melt, like wax heated under high temperature, like a piece of candy liquified under the scorching sun, leaving not even a resemblance to the human he had been just moments ago.

By this point, everyone had already moved to the corner of the room, staring speechlessly at the puddle of blood and melted substance that was Old Guan. Amid the blood and pus splashed all over the floor, they could even see a few small pieces of twitching flesh and small clumps of long hair.

It looked horribly similar to… the meat sauce in the pot.

"Urgh—!" Tang Ye braced his hand against the wall and dry-heaved. Even Sister Hong, Zhi and Nian's faces were slightly pale.

Then simultaneously, they snapped their eyes toward Jin Jiuchi who was still cradling the pot of meat sauce – which he had hastily taken away before it could be spoiled by Old Guan's vomit – in his arms.

Jin Jiuchi opened his mouth and let out a satisfied burp. "...What?" he asked once he noticed four pairs of expectant eyes on him.

Everyone: "..." Waiting for the next victim to fall.

Mini theater

Jin Jiuchi: 0.0 why is everyone staring at me? They can't be eyeing my food, right…