Chapter 27

Chapter 27

WTF!

The evil god actually sent him flowers?

Shi Yu froze, completely dumbfounded. Holding the bouquet, his first reaction was that he must be seeing things. But no matter how many times he checked, the name "Sang Huaiyu" was right there on the card beneath the pristine white roses.

Clear as day—no mistaking it.

In this world, surely no one would dare use the evil god's name for a prank? Shi Yu desperately wondered: Could it be that annoying Han Chuyi, ballsy enough to mess with him?

But would that fanatic—who worshipped Sang Huaiyu so much—really pull such a joke?

Shi Yu drew a shaky breath and pulled out his phone, relieved he hadn’t deleted Han Chuyi yet.

“Someone sent me flowers today. Do you know who it was?”

He hesitantly texted.

There was no reply for a long time.

Was he ignoring him?

Frowning, Shi Yu had just shut the door when his phone vibrated.

Two minutes later, Han Chuyi—somehow working up the nerve—finally responded. Shi Yu opened the message and saw a question mark emoji, followed by an irritated reply: “It’s signed. Why are you asking me who sent it?”

“How the fuck do you even know Brother Sang?”

“Brother Sang asked about you the moment he got back and personally picked this bouquet for you.”

Han Chuyi didn’t know why he was so pissed off, death-gripping his phone while imagining Shi Yu receiving the flowers.

Would he be thrilled?

Probably. Who wouldn’t be happy getting thoughtfully arranged flowers like this?

And from Sang Huaiyu! Just the name alone would make people worship him.

Han Chuyi tsked, realizing he’d screwed himself.

Why did he tell Shi Yu in the first place?!

Shi Yu froze. Wait—the flowers were really from Sang Huaiyu?

He personally chose these roses for him?

His gaze shifted to the fragrant white roses beside him, his face twisting oddly.

What game was the evil god playing?

They’d only met once. Why send this? Thinking back to their brief encounter at North Mountain Hospital made Shi Yu shudder. Not even the Horrors he'd faced scared him this much.

Had that one not forgotten him?

Even if he remembered, why go about it this way? In the human world, this looked way too much like a love confession. Shi Yu stared at the flowers for a long time but couldn't make heads or tails of it.

The little monster in his belly had been asleep, but sensing its mother’s intense emotional turmoil, it was startled awake by the racing heartbeat.

Noticing that his mother hadn't noticed it, the little tentacle pressed its eye against the abdomen and gave a gentle wiggle.

"Wala."

Shi Yu was jolted from his thoughts. Just moments ago he had been on high alert, but now, hearing the movement inside his belly, he couldn't help but look down.

The little monster inside let out a series of "wala wala" cries—uncanny, laugh-like sounds that were still piercingly shrill.

But Shi Yu's eye twitched as he detected something unexpected in those noises—a hint of concern.

Was this damn thing actually worried about him?

He hesitated for a moment. "It's nothing," he muttered, turning his gaze away. The corner of his mouth tugged into a frown. "Kids shouldn't be so nosy."

The little monster didn't understand, so it just shut its mouth, confused.

At least the distraction eased the coldness creeping through his body. Shi Yu took a deep breath and decided to take the flowers out to the balcony first.

He'd considered tossing them straight into the trash, but worried it might trigger some kind of reaction, so he reluctantly kept them—for now.

No use overanalyzing it anyway—who could figure out what that guy was thinking?

Thinking back on Han Chuyi's pissed-off reaction earlier, Shi Yu made a strange face. For the first time ever, he really wanted Han to get a taste of this himself.

Christ, how terrifying it was to catch the attention of a malevolent deity—he wanted no part of it.

He could only hope Sang Huaiyu was just messing around.

...

Shi Yu wanted to brush it off and let it die down, but he seriously underestimated the impact of that bouquet of roses.

Since Sang Huaiyu had already mentioned "love at first sight" before, this latest act pretty much sealed the deal, leaving even the doubters questioning—

Did he actually like Shi Yu?

When Sang Huaiyu arrived at the Ability User Association that morning, Zhao Wen couldn't resist sneaking a look. They hadn't heard about it until late last night, when someone posted in the group chat: Mr. Sang had sent Mr. Shi a bouquet of roses. White roses?

The chat blew up. Forget how shocked those who treated Sang Huaiyu like some god were—Han Chuyi, for one, saw the discussion and just up and left the group, pissed.

The small chat went dead for a second before exploding into even hotter arguments, leaving Zhao Wen with dark circles under his eyes by the next morning.

Clearing his throat and remembering his teammates' curiosity, Zhao Wen sauntered over. "Mr. Sang, did Mr. Shi receive the flowers you sent last night?"

"He liked them, right?"

Behind him, Wang Shan and the others pretended to walk by, but they were all ears.

Sang Huaiyu was cool as always. He seemed slightly surprised to be addressed, but after a brief pause, turned around politely.

"Unfortunately, I'm not sure."

"Our last meeting was too rushed—I regretfully didn't get his contact info, so I don't know if they suited his taste."

He paused deliberately here.

Zhao Wen almost suggested asking Han Chuyi—after all, Han had his number—but then remembered yesterday's scene: Han's icy glare, his sharp words, and how he stormed out of the group. He swallowed the words before they could escape.

It was Wang Shan outside who suddenly remembered, "Oh right! I almost forgot—I think I have Mr. Shi's contact info."

After experiencing a horror encounter, ordinary people who remember such events are usually paired with a liaison from the Ability User Association as a precaution. After all, those who experience it once are likely to face it again.

While there’s no scientific proof, statistically, those who’ve had these encounters tend to have a higher chance of recurrence, which is why the Ability User Association takes it so seriously.

Originally, Wang Shan was Shi Yu’s liaison. But somehow, Shi Yu had also ended up adding Shen Yan and Han Chuyi.

Hearing that Mr. Sang didn’t have Shi Yu’s contact, Wang Shan dropped the act and instinctively pulled out his phone.

Well, if Mr. Sang was so set on pursuing Mr. Shi, handing over the liaison role to him wouldn’t hurt. After all, the top Ability User was way more capable than regular folks like them—he’d definitely handle things if needed.

Sang Huaiyu had only mentioned it casually, not expecting such enthusiasm. Eyeing Wang Shan’s phone, he glanced at him, raised an eyebrow, and faintly smirked:

"Then I’ll leave it to you."

"But," he paused, thinking of the young man who clearly disliked him, "we should still run it by Shi Yu first."

"Oh right! Almost forgot," Wang Shan said sheepishly. "I’ll ask Mr. Shi right away."

...

That night, just as Shi Yu finished showering and was about to start his Mukbang stream, his phone kept buzzing repeatedly.

Someone texting?

But since he was about to go live, he didn’t check it immediately.

Probably just a friend—since they didn’t call, it couldn’t be urgent.

Money first!

Wang Shan waited for a long time but got no reply.

Sheepishly, he said, "Mr. Shi must be busy."

"I’ll forward the contact once he replies."

"No worries, carry on." Sang Huaiyu nodded, smiling as he watched him leave.

Behind the white silk, his expression was inscrutable.

Even without a reply, he figured… given Shi Yu’s attitude, he probably wouldn’t agree to add him.

Sure enough, after finishing an hour-long Mukbang stream in the afternoon, Shi Yu, having regained some appetite, dug into a massive hotpot meal. Only then, satisfied, did he put down his drink and pick up his phone to see who had messaged him.

Unexpectedly, it was from Wang Shan of the Ability User Association.

"—Mr. Shi, per Ability User Association policy, every incident participant must have a designated liaison."

"Mind switching liaisons?"

Switch liaisons?

Shi Yu was taken aback. Why would he need to change that? And besides, they barely contacted each other anyway.

Looking at the avatar labeled "Wang Shan," Shi Yu couldn't help but ask, "Is something wrong?"

"Have you been too busy to stay in touch?"

He still had Shen Yan and Han Chuyi—who had re-added him—on his phone, so it wasn’t a huge issue.

Besides, with the Little Monster in his belly, he had at least some self-defense ability when dealing with Horrors.

The reply came quickly: "Nope."

"It's just..." Wang Shan stammered. "There’s someone else who wants to get to know you."

???

Shi Yu was baffled.

Someone wanted to get to know him? That sounded weird.

His first thought was whether it might be one of his Mukbang fans.

But that didn’t seem right—who could it be then?

"Mind if I ask who?"

After typing, Shi Yu’s gaze unconsciously landed on the white roses on the balcony outside the living room window.

Then the reply came: "Well, you probably know who."

"It’s Mr. Sang—the one who sent you flowers last night."

Silence hung in the air. Shi Yu stared at the words on his phone, an odd expression creeping onto his face. He felt like everything from yesterday to today had been downright creepy.

Sang Huaiyu wanted… to get to know him? Was this some kind of sick joke?

Just the flowers alone freaked him out—if they exchanged info, would he even dare sleep anymore?

Shi Yu’s lip twitched. No clue why this evil god had suddenly taken notice of him, but he did his best to play it cool and respond in line with his usual reserved persona:

"Hard pass."

"I’m kinda socially awkward—I rarely add strangers."

That oughta do it, right?

Surely Wang Shan could pick up on his hint?

Shi Yu exhaled in relief and turned his phone facedown, feeling like a total badass for sending that message.

Did he seriously just turn down an evil god?

He pressed his lips together slightly, his face unreadable.

On the other end, Wang Shan froze when he saw Mr. Shi’s reply.

Wang Shan: "...Wait, so Mr. Shi’s saying no?"

He hadn’t expected a flat-out rejection—it totally blindsided him.

What the hell— He gave his colleague a strange look. "Has Mr. Shi even seen the guy’s face?"

Even without seeing his face, just his resume alone would make anyone want to meet him, right?

Zhao Wen, who was being stared at, shook his head. "Don't ask me, I don’t know. This is my first time seeing someone turn down Mr. Sang."

The two exchanged glances and went quiet at the same time.

Han Chuyi hadn’t expected Shi Yu to actually reject Brother Sang. After leaving the group chat yesterday, he stormed off to the racetrack, speeding all night, and he was still in a foul mood today.

Coming back with his helmet, he overheard Zhao Wen and Wang Shan whispering and stopped, his eyebrows knitting together. "What are you talking about?"

The normally hot-headed rich kid was expressionless, his already scary face looking downright pissed.

Zhao Wen looked up and grimaced when spoken to. "You gotta promise not to blow up if we tell you."

Considering how seriously Han Chuyi had taken anything related to Mr. Sang before—especially after yesterday’s outburst—if he found out Mr. Sang had asked for Shi Yu’s contact today, he’d probably flip his lid.

Han Chuyi snorted, eyes narrowing. "Just say it. What’s there that I can’t hear?"

Alright, here goes.

Zhao Wen chose his words carefully. "This afternoon, we tried to give Mr. Sang’s info to Shi Yu, but Shi Yu refused."

What?

Han Chuyi had to replay that in his head before fully understanding.

They meant they had given Shi Yu Brother Sang’s contact and Shi Yu turned it down?

Han Chuyi almost thought he’d misheard, momentarily stunned. Then, before he could stop himself, he almost burst out laughing.

Meeting the confused looks from Wang Shan and Zhao Wen, he coughed lightly and double-checked:

"You’re saying he refused?"

Wang Shan nodded. "See for yourself if you don’t believe me."

He handed over his phone, and Han Chuyi glanced at it.

Upon reading Shi Yu’s message about being too socially awkward to add people he doesn’t know, his smirk grew. Then, catching himself, he quickly straightened his face.

"Yeah, whatever."

He turned away. "Don’t you two have actual work to do?"

"Never mind, I’m out."

And with that, he took off upstairs, helmet in hand.

Zhao Wen stood there dumbfounded, his face a mix of confusion.

Was the sun rising in the west now? Since when did Han Chuyi react like that?

"Is he cracked or something?" Zhao Wen couldn’t help but ask.

Wang Shan pondered for a moment. "Or maybe he’s actually glad Shi Yu didn’t add Mr. Sang."

After much deliberation, that seemed to be the only plausible explanation. The two exchanged a wry look, finished gossiping, and went back to working on the case.

Over there, after Han Chuyi went upstairs, his mood gradually calmed down. It felt as if last night's gloom had dissipated somewhat.

His gaze fell on his phone, and he licked his lips, thinking: it seems Shi Yu didn’t lie to him after all.

Is this guy really not interested in Brother Sang?

Perhaps… should he reach out to him first?

They hadn’t been in contact since he sent the flowers last night. Just as Han Chuyi was pondering this, he saw Shen Yan coming out of the examination room. Frowning slightly, he slipped his phone away.

Ability Users had excellent eyesight, and with just one glance, Shen Yan had spotted the other’s phone.

The name "Shi Yu" jumped out at him, surprising him. He hadn’t expected that even after Sang Huaiyu sent Shi Yu flowers yesterday, Han Chuyi still hadn’t deleted him.

That didn’t seem like his usual style.

His puzzled gaze lingered on the young man across from him, but he quickly averted it when Han Chuyi noticed.

Han Chuyi couldn’t care less why Shen Yan had gone to the examination room again. He shouldered past him and left without a second glance.

After Han Chuyi left, Shen Yan returned to his office, but he couldn't shake the image of the friend list he had just glimpsed.

Shi Yu.

That name kept resurfacing over and over, causing Shen Yan—who had restrained himself from watching the livestreams for a week—to reflexively clench his fist.

His eyes couldn’t help but drift toward the computer.

The results from his earlier examination had just come out. After holding back for a week, the insomnia symptoms that had slightly eased recently had flared up again.

Exhaustion dogged his every step. Shen Yan took a deep breath. Even though he knew that after Sang Huaiyu had expressed his interest in Shi Yu, he shouldn’t be watching the livestreams anymore—shouldn’t be using the other’s voice as his emotional crutch.

But… his body’s instincts were hard to suppress.

For the first time, Shen Yan realized he wasn’t as disciplined as he thought.

Torn between guilt and moral restraint, he—who had always maintained clear boundaries with others and had only ever given Sang Huaiyu slightly more leeway—opened his computer.

The familiar voice sounded again. Even though it was just the streamer's usual banter, it immediately eased the tension in his brows, and even the pounding in his head eased.

Shen Yan watched the replay of today’s broadcast, resisting the urge to watch it again after it ended. He closed the livestream and sank back, shutting his eyes for a moment to rest.

...

The next morning, Shi Yu woke up to find another surprise donation in his account.

The top donor from before, the enigmatic "Number One" who hadn’t appeared during yesterday’s livestream, had quietly sent him another sizable amount at some point.

He blinked in surprise. Over the past few days, he had assumed this generous viewer had left his channel for good. Apparently, they were still around.

Maybe they were just watching silently without commenting. He shook his head slightly, then remembered the items he had just ordered. Thanks to Number One's generosity and that gaming big spender from the other day, he could finally afford his pregnancy checkup.

After his last appointment with the Medical Mini Robot, Shi Yu had, in a fit of pique, left a scathing review when the results came out.

But he was quickly proven wrong. After returning home, he sheepishly retracted the negative feedback with a complicated expression. After wrestling with the decision all afternoon, he had even submitted a full purchase request last night.

Yes, Shi Yu had decided to buy the Medical Mini Robot outright—that way, he could run tests whenever necessary.

After all, there's a Little Monster in his belly, and keeping constant tabs on it gives him some peace of mind.

But just as his application was approved and he had just paid a huge sum, the comment section under the medical robot was flooded with question marks, everyone suspecting he was some poor sucker.

Is he out of his mind?

Shi Yu: …

He not only has brain problems—he’s got stomach issues too!

Damn Little Monster, it spent all his savings. The money he’d been saving to buy a car was now all gone toward prenatal care products!

Looking at his bank balance—just enough for a few months’ worth of living expenses—his lips twitched. Ever since raising this thing, he'd been pinching pennies, even going out to hunt every now and then. He was living exactly like a single mother.

If he weren’t a dude, it’d be even more fitting!

He took a deep breath. After completing the purchase, he finally unlocked all the Medical Mini Robot’s functions.

Now, beyond basic scans, it could also keep tabs on the condition of the Little Monster in his belly, especially its growth.

Shi Yu looked down at his belly and hesitated: Maybe another check today?

No time like the present. He stood up and walked over to the Medical Mini Robot, switching it back on.

Fortunately, the robot’s big round eyes were as enthusiastic as ever, making Shi Yu feel less awkward.

“Good morning, I’d like a full scan.”

The little robot quickly responded to the voice command. After the routine symptom inquiry, it scheduled the examination based on the previous diagnosis.

Though unsure how thorough the robot’s deep scan would be or whether it could detect the Little Monster’s condition, Shi Yu prepared himself.

As the mechanical whirring started in his ears, the Little Monster in his belly, unaware of what was coming, instinctively pressed against its mother’s belly after waking up, annoyedly listening to the noise outside.

Across from it, the fully activated Medical Mini Robot glitched, its lights flashing rapidly. After a long pause, it finally spoke in a glitchy voice: “Please stand in the designated area.”

“Secondary scan commencing.”

“…Scan failed.”

“Instrument interference… Please note.”

The little robot was glitching out completely.

Shi Yu: ???

Instrument interference?

Was it this thing in his belly?

He lowered his head to look at his stomach, but there was no visible change—it looked exactly the same as before.

Shi Yu pondered and pressed the medical robot again. Yet the next second, the robot fell back into the same glitching state.

“No life signs detected.”

“Alert! Alert!”

Shi Yu: …

Mystery solved.

You little brat, did I spend a fortune on this Medical Mini Robot just for you to mess with?!