Chapter 49: The Never-Sleeping Imperial City 11

"Swish—"

Watching the arrow fly towards Xia Qi, Cha Gong’s expression flickered for a moment.

Although Mr. Lin had ordered him to kill Xia Qi to avenge his young master and sent Scarface to oversee the execution, the moment the arrow was released, he found that he couldn’t bear to do it.

Cha Gong stared intently at the flying arrow, wishing time would stop at that instant.

Just as the arrow was about to reach Xia Qi’s back, suddenly, a shadow as dark as ink rose rapidly from the ground, forming a tall wall-like barrier behind Xia Qi.

The shadow quickly coalesced into a human shape. The figure casually raised its right hand and instantly intercepted the flying arrow in mid-air!

After firmly grasping the arrow, the shadow revealed its features, transforming into the Night Emperor.

The Night Emperor looked up at him with particularly cold eyes.

For some reason, Cha Gong didn’t feel the fear one usually feels when facing a boss; instead, he felt a sense of guilt.

Why?

At that moment, the Night Emperor, holding the arrow, changed his expression, raised an eyebrow at him, and displayed a look of certainty.

Cha Gong was stunned. What did he mean by this?

Just as he was full of confusion, suddenly, the Night Emperor smiled, lifted the arrow, and directly thrust it into his own chest.

"Ugh."

After the arrow pierced his chest, the Night Emperor let out a muffled groan.

"How are you here?!" Hearing the voice behind him, Xia Qi immediately turned around.

He was shocked to see the Night Emperor appear behind him and block an arrow for him. He held the Night Emperor’s shoulder with one hand and pressed his back tightly with the other, his face filled with panic like a frightened bird.

"Are you okay?" Seeing the Night Emperor’s face turn pale, Xia Qi’s eyes were filled with concern.

The Night Emperor, following Xia Qi’s actions, buried his head in the crook of Xia Qi’s neck, not answering but weakly shaking his head, looking wronged yet trying to be strong.

Seeing this, Xia Qi’s face changed. He abruptly lifted his head and looked towards Cha Gong.

"Cha Gong!" Xia Qi gritted his teeth and shouted angrily.

Cha Gong: "..."

Standing on the eaves, seeing the burning flames in Xia Qi’s eyes, Cha Gong was stunned.

He had been tricked.

Cha Gong wished he could throw away the bow and arrow in his hands. He had never seen Xia Qi so angry before and didn’t know what to do.

Without hesitation, Xia Qi raised his True Love Wand and shouted at Cha Gong, "You are electricity, you are light, you are..."

Knowing that Xia Qi had an S-class item, Scarface didn’t wait for Xia Qi to finish casting and threw two golden balls onto the ground.

"Snap," "Snap." The two golden flying balls exploded on the ground, instantly transforming into small golden-winged orbs that swiftly pulled both him and Cha Gong away from the eaves.

"Boom!"

A blue lightning bolt struck from the sky, followed by a loud explosion. The eave where Cha Gong had been standing was completely destroyed, leaving a charred crater on the ground.

Fortunately, Scarface had thrown the life-saving flying balls. Cha Gong, watching the smoke rising from afar, wiped the flying ash from his face, feeling utterly shocked.

Xia Qi had truly intended to kill him!

Thinking about Xia Qi’s hatred towards him, Cha Gong felt as if his heart had been reduced to the same charred pit.

After flying for an unknown amount of time, Cha Gong and Scarface finally landed safely in a courtyard.

Scarface untied the now limp Cha Gong from the ball.

As soon as he touched the ground, Cha Gong held his head, looking utterly dejected, and slowly sat down against the wall.

"Why... why..." Cha Gong banged his head against the wall, shouting in despair, "It’s impossible! How could Xia Qi fall in love with someone else?"

In the previous Rose Earl instance, Cha Gong hadn’t faced the Earl’s provocation directly. He had always harbored doubts about the relationship between the Earl and Xia Qi. This time, the Night Emperor’s expression and behavior clearly mocked him.

Scarface stood aside, speechless, watching Cha Gong bang his head against the wall. He called out several times, "Stop it!" but Cha Gong ignored him, determined to continue banging his head.

Scarface kicked him angrily, "Are you in the terminal stages of love sickness? Running into a game to fall in love, have you lost your mind?"

Cha Gong: "..."

He wasn’t the one falling in love!

Feeling wronged, Cha Gong wiped away the tears from his eyes and said indignantly, "Xia Qi is like a robot, showing no emotions to anyone. I spent three years with him, and only through persistence did he agree... How could he possibly fall in love with someone?"

The reason Xia Qi agreed was largely due to his relentless pursuit.

Unexpectedly, someone was even more skilled at persistence, and Cha Gong was so frustrated that his mind was in chaos.

"Enough!" Scarface roared, punching the wall next to Cha Gong’s head, creating a hole.

He was a murderer, only knowing how to kill, and had no understanding of love. Seeing his partner Cha Gong go crazy over love made his head spin.

This game was truly toxic. Not only was the boss obsessed with love, but his teammate wanted to fall in love too!

"Snap out of it! If you keep going on like this tomorrow, I’ll twist your head off first!"

Scarface withdrew his arm and cursed as he walked out the door.

After Night Emperor blocked an arrow for Xia Qi, he collapsed directly into Xia Qi's arms.

"This, this is Night Emperor?" Sister Hong jumped up in fright.

She hadn't expected the BOSS to appear right behind them. Sister Hong watched Night Emperor warily, her Thunder Whip crackling with intense sparks.

Xia Qi shook his head at her and quickly said, "Don't attack! He just blocked an arrow for me!"

"Eh?" Sister Hong was completely stunned.

A BOSS blocking an arrow for a player?

Even after participating in over a dozen Sin Games, Sister Hong found it hard to believe that a BOSS could stand alongside a player.

But what was even more absurd was that the BOSS would block an arrow for a player.

Was she going crazy, or was this game instance going crazy?

Before Sister Hong could react, Night Emperor rubbed against Xia Qi's neck again, indicating he wasn't feeling well.

Xia Qi frowned, looking at him with concern.

Xia Qi patted Night Emperor's shoulder and softly said, "I'm here. Your guards are bringing the carriage; they'll be here soon."

Night Emperor nodded slightly. "Mm."

Watching the two of them in such a "harmonious" embrace, Sister Hong was left speechless, almost hearing her jaw drop.

The carriage arrived swiftly, pulled by the guards. In Sister Hong's shocked gaze, Xia Qi carried Night Emperor onto the carriage.

Worried about losing Sister Hong, Xia Qi said, "Sister Hong, come up too."

Being someone who had faced many challenges, Sister Hong didn't show too much surprise. Seeing that Xia Qi needed her company, she nodded and climbed silently onto the carriage.

She didn't dare enter the carriage but instead sat facing away from them on the front seat, even pulling the curtain closed to pretend she was a considerate driver.

After the curtain was drawn, Xia Qi leaned against the carriage wall and carefully held Night Emperor in his arms.

Xia Qi stared intently at the arrow in his chest and asked, "How are you?"

Unlike when an arrow hits a living person, this arrow, carrying a yellow talisman, did not cause Night Emperor to bleed when it struck his heart.

"I'm fine." Night Emperor shook his head, his voice sounding weak.

He still leaned against Xia Qi's neck, rubbing his forehead against Xia Qi's chin as their distance grew closer.

Seeing him struggling to hold on, Xia Qi grew increasingly anxious. "How do we handle this arrow? Is there any kind of physician in Nightless City...?"

Since Nightless City was a city of zombies and ghosts, Xia Qi wasn't sure if the rules were the same as in the mortal world.

"There are no physicians in the city," Night Emperor chuckled softly, then looked up at Xia Qi's face and said gently, "Moon God, help me pull it out."

Xia Qi drew a sharp breath. Just pull it out?

Seeming to sense Xia Qi's hesitation, Night Emperor looked down at the yellow talisman on the arrow tip. "This... This is a Heaven and Earth Unity Talisman..."

A Heaven and Earth Unity Talisman?

Xia Qi furrowed his brow and examined the yellow talisman on the arrowhead closely.

The talisman, attached to the arrow tip, was emitting a faint light, with vermilion ink flowing across its surface, seemingly taking effect.

Although Night Emperor's species was unknown, yellow talismans in Chinese folklore were always used to suppress evil spirits and should not be left in him.

Xia Qi helped Night Emperor sit up against the carriage wall to make it easier to remove the arrow. After settling him, Xia Qi raised his hand and gripped the arrow's tail end.

His voice sounded hoarse. "Are you really okay?"

Night Emperor lowered his eyes, looking at him with a gentle gaze. "When you pull the arrow out, I won't feel pain."

How could he not feel pain?

Xia Qi didn't believe it.

But he couldn't wait any longer and needed to get the talisman out quickly.

Xia Qi gritted his teeth and suddenly exerted force, pulling the talisman arrow out before Night Emperor could react.

"Ah..." Night Emperor frowned and let out a soft groan.

Xia Qi put the arrow aside and hurriedly checked the wound on his chest.

Unlike a human wound, it didn't bleed; instead, there was a faint glow inside.

Xia Qi didn't dare look at the light, fearing Night Emperor might feel pain. He lifted his hand to cover the wound and asked softly, "Does it hurt?"

Night Emperor was about to say it did, but seeing Xia Qi's worried expression, he couldn't bear it and shook his head.

"With you by my side, I don't feel any pain." Night Emperor reached out with his large hand and, while Xia Qi wasn't paying attention, placed it on top of Xia Qi's hand. [True Love Value +999]

[True Love Value +999]

[True Love Value +999]

...

Hearing these familiar notifications, Xia Qi froze, feeling an urge to pull his hand back.

However, considering Night Emperor had just blocked an arrow for him, Xia Qi forced himself to endure and didn't withdraw his hand.

Night Emperor saw that he did not refuse and slowly closed his hand, enveloping Xia Qi's hand entirely.

Just as the two were silent, the carriage door was heavily pounded twice, and Sister Hong anxiously shouted from outside, "Xia Qi! There's smoke from the Celestial Mechanists in the area where we live!"

Night Emperor: "..."

Hearing this, Night Emperor's expression twisted.

He had overlooked it—apart from the already escaped Cha Gong and Scarface, he had killed two of the Celestial Mechanists in the alley, and there was still one who fell into the water that he hadn't dealt with.

Upon hearing about the smoke near his home, Xia Qi instantly pulled his hand away. Because he was too eager to get up, his head collided with the top of the carriage with a "thud."

"Grandma!"

Xia Qi's eyes were bloodshot; he completely ignored the pain in his head and didn't care about Night Emperor, who had just removed an arrow and was still in an "injured" state, as he hastily jumped off the carriage.

If Grandma was taken by the Celestial Mechanists, he swore he would make Cha Gong experience what true transcendence felt like!

Author's note: Someone: Cha Gong is really shameless, always pestering my Qi.

Xia Qi: Oh, why do I feel someone is even more shameless than him?

Someone: ...