Chapter 58 The Duke

Chapter 58: The Duke

66 entered the central administration hall once again.

Just moments ago, it had calculated Lin You's score, and the result was "63 points."

66 was distressed.

To be fair, compared to Xie Yu, who cut corners and constantly pulled off bizarre stunts, Lin You was quite well-behaved. He didn't miss a single line of dialogue and faithfully followed the storyline. However... his performance was lacking.

Xie Yu naturally had a sour expression, exuding a misanthropic and neurotic vibe that perfectly matched the original novel's protagonist. When it came to following the plot, at the very least, his intimidation factor was on point—Shen Ci was genuinely scared of him at first.

But Lin You was inherently gentle, and no matter how hard he tried to act fierce, he couldn't pull off that violent demeanor. It didn't take long for Lanen to see through him.

Not to mention, he had a habit of improvising, which only further ruined the already shaky atmosphere. The logic was a complete mess, and there was no way to give him extra points.

...In short, both hosts had their own unique quirks, and in the end, both ended up with scores just over 60—a "stellar" achievement.

In the center of the hall, the mainframe looked at 66 and sighed deeply.

It displayed 66's two scores on the screen, its tone filled with concern: "66, this is the second time you've scored in the 60s."

66: "QAQ."

Two streams of tears, like wide noodles, flowed down the screen as 66 cried out: "Oh, great mainframe, I didn't mean for this to happen!"

It protested: "When I chose Lin You, I was drawn to his numerous lovers and his reputation as a heartbreaker. But I only knew he had many wives—I didn't know he was a streamer!"

Mainframe: "..."

Looking at the tearful little system before it, the mainframe remained silent for a long while before asking: "So, 66, do you have any ideas for the next world's host?"

At the mention of serious business, 66 stopped crying and clenched its fist: "Yes!"

It declared firmly: "I've learned from my past mistakes. The root cause of failure was my poor judgment in choosing the wrong host. Lin You's reputation as a heartbreaker wasn't genuine—it was superficial, rooted in the internet, and lacked a solid foundation. This kind of shallow, baseless promiscuity is like a castle in the air."

As it spoke, 66 grew more confident.

Mainframe: "."

It said: "Go on, I'm listening."

66: "I've thought about it for a long time. To judge someone's true nature, you can't just listen to what they say—you have to look at what they do. For example, with Lin You, to determine if he was truly a heartbreaker, you couldn't just look at how many people he called 'wife.' You had to see how many beds he hopped into, how many people he kissed, and how many hearts he broke, leaving people crying in the dead of night. That's the real measure."

Mainframe: "..."

66 had clearly grown more articulate after two worlds.

The mainframe paused for a moment before responding: "I see. You want to use actions as the basis for judgment."

66 nodded: "Exactly."

It was brimming with determination: "Let's dive into the next novel. I'll do my best to pick a suitable host this time!"

The mainframe flickered for a moment, and the text of the novel appeared on the screen. 66 held its breath and began reading intently.

But as soon as it saw the first line, its brow furrowed.

The screen was filled with garbled text.

It's common for novels to have garbled text, particularly in torture-themed stories, which often include 'censored', '**', and mosaics. However, it's strange that the main system can't see the original text of the novel.

The main system made a sound of surprise and also noticed the issue: "Wait a moment, let me check."

It manipulated the data stream to scan, and after 2 seconds, the scan was completed. The main system said, "I understand now, this is a banned novel."

Due to their special nature, torture-themed stories often involve issues like bloodshed, violence, or ethics, and are frequently banned. The main system is no stranger to this, and for such long-banned novels, it also cannot access them casually.

It told System 66: "I can't fully unblock it either, I can only provide you with key plot points, and you and the host will act according to these points."

System 66: "Okay, please display the points."

The main brain's screen changed quietly, and the garbled text rearranged into readable words.

The title was—"How to Torture a Cat."

Unlike the previous two texts that were clearly novels, this one, just by looking at the title, seemed like an instructional article.

System 66: "?"

It was puzzled: "Is the protagonist we're supposed to torment a cat?"

Main brain: "Yes... at least in the early parts that I can read. Due to the ban, I can't see all the content, but this world contains fantasy elements, and subsequent plot changes are not ruled out. Further points will be gradually unlocked as you progress with your tasks."

Torture-themed stories are a broad category; as long as the protagonist suffers, it can be considered a torture-themed story. If the protagonist is a cat, then torturing a cat can certainly be a torture-themed story.

The main system pondered for a moment: "I will match you with a host, according to your requirements, not considering verbal descriptions but actual behaviors."

The main brain's screen went dark, focusing on querying the database.

Five minutes later, the screen lit up again.

Main brain: "Found one—Bai Yu, male, residing in Building 3, Unit 1607, Garden Community, Jin City. According to system records, he is experienced, hard-hearted, and based on incomplete judgment, he has personally removed the organs of over 2000 cats, plucked their fur, and left them comatose."

"..."

According to the novel's requirements, this is indeed a perfectly suitable host.

But System 66's small screen flickered, showing some hesitation.

It really wanted to complete the task, but no matter how excessive the previous two novels were, the original text only involved whipping, humiliation, and torment. But removing internal organs?

Since its inception, System 66 has had two hosts: the first was Xie Yu, and the second was Lin You. Based on the way these two handled things, System 66 couldn't even imagine such actions.

The main brain had completed all data queries, its cold electronic voice echoing above the central hall: "System detection, this is the one among all matched hosts whose behavior pattern is the closest. He just died from overwork, now is the best time to bind. Go, System 66."

Energy surged around, and System 66 was propelled forward by an invisible force. The door of the Central Management Hall closed behind it, and seconds later, it appeared above the Garden Community in Jin City.

*

Five hours ago, Bai Yu cut open the abdomen of a cat.

The surgical lamp was turned on, and the cold scalpel steadily advanced. Blood stained the rubber gloves, but Bai Yu's hand remained steady. His way of making the incision was fast and precise, like a heartless machine.

The tissue was precisely cut and separated, and soon, a hard mass of tissue was removed and discarded onto the surgical tray.

Then, Bai Yu picked up the needle.

He calmly aligned and sutured, precisely repositioning the layers of muscle. By the time the last stitch was in place, he was already sweating.

This was a tabby cat suffering from a subcutaneous tumor in its abdominal wall. The biopsy results indicated that the tumor cells were malignant, with a diameter of 3.7cm by 5cm. The tumor was pressing against the abdominal cavity, making it highly dangerous and necessitating surgery.

This was Bai Yu's last major surgery scheduled for the afternoon.

The surgery went relatively well. The intern went to inform the tabby cat's owner, while Bai Yu removed his gloves, took off his surgical gown, disinfected himself, and returned to his office.

It was nearing dusk, and he hadn't had dinner yet.

Bai Yu's assistant was waiting by the door. Seeing Bai Yu come out, the assistant approached him and said, "Here's the surgery schedule for tonight. Please review it."

There aren't many doctors in China who can perform abdominal surgeries on pet cats, and Bai Yu is one of the best. Owners often queue up to have their cats operated on by him, and his schedule is always packed.

Bai Yu took the schedule casually. These surgeries had been arranged long ago, so he confirmed everything was correct and handed it back to the assistant. He then sat down in the office chair.

It was a modestly decorated office, with white walls on all sides, a desk with two pots of pothos and an old desktop computer—a machine that could barely handle simple document recording and lagged even when playing Minesweeper. Apart from that, there was nothing else.

Only one wall was decorated with colorful banners.

The left banner read, "A kind-hearted doctor saved my dog's life," while the right one said, "A skilled and sincere doctor brought my cat back to health." In the middle hung a large banner with flowing tassels, boldly inscribed in elegant calligraphy: "The Egg Removal Expert."

Undoubtedly, these were all tokens of gratitude from pet owners.

The assistant briefed Bai Yu on the day's clinic matters and discussed the details of upcoming surgeries. Once everything was settled, Bai Yu pinched the bridge of his nose and took off his glasses.

He suffered from severe myopia.

After dinner, he dozed off briefly in the chair, flipping through a popular magazine—a rare moment of relaxation in his busy day. When the scheduled time arrived, he walked back into the operating room.

But this time, inexplicably, he felt slightly dizzy.

Uncharacteristically, Bai Yu felt tired.

After the surgery, it took him 20 minutes to get home and 10 minutes to shower, and then he again felt his heart struggling to pump blood, his head spinning.

Two minutes before losing consciousness, he called the hospital for an ambulance. Then, during the 30 minutes he was unconscious, he listened as a system named 66 explained the novel and the tasks.

66 hovered timidly before him. Facing a deranged doctor who had performed over 2,000 organ removals, 66 was still scared: "...In short, you just died suddenly. You need to complete system tasks, play the corresponding roles to finish the plot, and earn a certain score to exchange for a chance to be reborn."

As a staunch materialist, Bai Yu was skeptical, but when he fainted at home one moment and found himself in a shabby clinic the next, he had no choice but to accept the reality.

The clinic was grimy and run-down, lacking separate wards. Only a few tattered curtains hung from the ceiling, partitioning the clinic into several sections.

The curtains were so filthy their original color was unrecognizable, covered in large stains. The examination beds were corroded and blotchy, and the scalpels and hemostats were soaked in alcohol that had turned cloudy, with large flocculent precipitates inside.

66 explained, "We're now in Illyria, Duke Yimur's domain, a city infamous for its violence and savagery."

Bai Yu mused, "Illyria, Duke Yimur?"

"Duke Yimur is a young duke. It's said that his appearance is strikingly beautiful, more perfect than the blooming roses of Illyria. Unfortunately, his personality is gloomy and tyrannical. He once suppressed his uncle's rebellion with absolute ruthlessness, showcasing his formidable skills."

"But now, he has been missing for several days. Rumor has it that he was stabbed in the organs by his uncle and fell into the water, his whereabouts unknown. Currently, Illyria is leaderless, with various factions vying for power, plunging the territory into absolute chaos."

This was the novel's background parsed by the main system. 66 mentioned it briefly without elaborating.

Bai Yu was now just a small doctor in the city, running a black clinic without even a business license. He was too far removed from Illyria's upper-class nobility, and 66 thought he didn't need to know too much about Duke Yimur.

"Anyway, let's proceed with the first plot."

66 checked the plot node: "First, we need to pick up a little kitten. It's lying unconscious on the shallow bank of the Horton River, with an infected wound on its abdomen."