Chapter 66: Forced Correction Protocol

Chapter 66: Forced Rectification Protocol

Xiao Jing walked over to Xiao Yan, and the two stood on the open-air terrace of the second floor of the inn.

The terrace was built by the lake, open on three sides, enclosed only by low wooden railings, offering a very wide view.

The sky had brightened somewhat compared to earlier, with lead-gray clouds hanging low.

Outside the terrace lay the vast, misty Luoyan Lake, which was not a stagnant body of water; a stream flowed into it from afar, so in the bitter cold of deep winter, the lake surface was not frozen.

Xiao Jing and Xiao Yan stood at the edge of the terrace, one step apart.

Behind them was the warm outline of the inn’s building, and in front, the deep, unfathomably cold lake.

"Qingyun Tower is ten li outside the city. What brings Seventh Brother here?" Xiao Jing asked, his tone unreadable.

Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow.

So Xiao Jing, the protagonist, wasn't all-powerful either.

He knew Xiao Yan had come to Qingyun Tower, but he didn't know what he was doing there.

Xiao Yan gave a smirk. "My affairs, don't meddle in them."

"You misunderstand, Seventh Brother. I see you don't have anyone attending you. I'm just worried for your safety," Xiao Jing said with a gentle smile.

Xiao Yan absolutely hated dealing with this kind of two-faced snake; it reminded him of unpleasant memories.

He also had to wear a mask and play a part with others.

"Oh? Does Sixth Brother think someone wants to harm me?"

Xiao Jing smiled. "Better safe than sorry."

Xiao Yan inexplicably felt that Xiao Jing's smile was sinister, sending a chill down his spine.

When he had left the inn that morning, he felt the inn was much emptier than usual.

It seemed to have a lot fewer people than yesterday.

Coupled with Xiao Jing's appearance, a ridiculous suspicion crossed Xiao Yan's mind.

He keenly sensed danger.

Sure enough, Xiao Jing's expression changed abruptly.

The corners of his mouth, which had been faintly smiling, compressed into a cold, hard line.

Without the slightest warning, he stepped forward and reached out toward Xiao Yan!

Damn it! Xiao Jing, that bastard!

Was he going to take the opportunity to push him into the lake and drown him?!

Though this tactic was risky, the odds of success were high!

All the people in Qingyun Tower were in league with Xiao Jing, and they could testify to clear him of any blame afterwards.

And Xiao Yan would just be someone who had inexplicably come to this remote wilderness and accidentally fallen into the lake!

But Xiao Jing's movements were not very agile.

Xiao Jing was a scholar, not much practiced in martial arts.

In fact, he was even worse than Xiao Yan, who was a modern person.

He had studied a few years of boxing and free fighting,

which gave him decent body coordination and instinctive danger awareness.

If the original Prince Yu, drained by debauchery, had been there, Xiao Jing might have actually succeeded.

Maybe that was why Xiao Jing was so confident—he believed he could push the original Prince Yu over the edge.

But unfortunately for him, Xiao Yan was the one here today.

The moment Xiao Jing moved, he sensed the move.

A second before Xiao Jing touched him, Xiao Yan's body instinctively wanted to dodge away.

But the next moment, he was completely frozen.

Not just his face... his whole body was frozen!

It wasn't an external force binding him, but something from within—as if countless invisible threads had entangled every muscle and joint.

His feet were nailed to the ground, utterly immobile!

A word exploded in Xiao Yan's mind like a thunderbolt:

"Forced Rectification Protocol"!

What the hell? It activates like this?!

Xiao Yan could only watch in shock as Xiao Jing's hand pressed against his chest.

Then, with a hard shove!

Xiao Yan felt a tremendous push, and his body, like a kite with a snapped string, fell backwards uncontrollably.

A feeling of weightlessness hit him.

Cold air mixed with water vapor rushed towards him, and his vision flipped instantly.

His consciousness was flooded with the grating voice of Xiao K:

"I didn't know it would be like this!"

"Host, don't worry! Neither the plot nor I will let you die!"

"I'll activate the body defense system right now!"

"I really didn't know! The main system didn't tell me, I'm really sorry o(╥﹏╥)o "

Amid these electronic noises that pounded in his head,

In the moment before the last light before his eyes disappeared,

"Xiao Yan——!!!"

A heart-wrenching cry, muffled by the thick water.

Yet it reached his ears, muffled yet unmistakably clear.

In that final instant before he sank beneath the surface.

This was the first time Liu Qingci has ever called his name...

Xiao Yan thought.

On the shore, by the railing.

Liu Qingci stumbled, nearly falling, and without a second thought, rushed toward the lake.

But Xiao Jing grabbed his wrist in an instant.

Liu Qingci had originally left his room to go next door and see Xiao Yan, but through a corridor window, he spotted the two of them talking.

As he approached, he saw the moment Xiao Jing pushed Xiao Yan into the lake.

He abandoned all reason, shoved aside Xiao Jing, who tried to stop him, and was about to jump into the lake.

Xiao Jing was startled by his sudden appearance and extreme reaction.

"Are you insane?" Xiao Jing snapped back to reality, grabbing Liu Qingci's arm in a death grip, squeezing so hard it felt like it would crush his bones. "You actually want to save him?!"

"Let go of me!"

Liu Qingci's eyes were bloodshot as he struggled desperately, his gaze locked onto the lake's surface—calming yet still eerily deep and unsettling.

"His death is a blessing for you!" Xiao Jing lowered his voice, urgent and stern. "Liu Qingci, snap out of it! If Xiao Yan dies, you'll be free! I can help you—help you investigate your father's case, help you reclaim everything that's rightfully yours! Isn't that what you've always wanted?!"

Liu Qingci couldn't hear a word of it, and he couldn't break free either.

Freedom?

What he wanted?

All he wanted now was for Xiao Yan to live!!

Xiao Jing went on, "Xiao Yan can't swim. Soon, he'll be just a cold corpse. Leave with me now, and no one will ever know."

When Liu Qingci heard those words—"Xiao Yan can't swim"—he finally panicked completely.

Summoning a strength he didn’t know he had, perhaps unleashed by pure rage, he actually managed to break free from Xiao Jing's grip.

Liu Qingci raised his hand and, with all his might,

*Slap!*

A sharp, crisp slap landed squarely on Xiao Jing's face.

Xiao Jing turned his head, a vivid red handprint forming on his cheek.

When he turned back, all he saw was Liu Qingci's figure as he jumped.

"Liu Qingci! Get back here!!!"

Xiao Jing's pupils constricted, and without a moment's thought, he bellowed in fury.

At the same time, he lunged toward the broken railing, his arm straining forward, trying to grab the falling figure.

But his fingertips only brushed the edge of Liu Qingci's fluttering robe, grasping at empty air.

*Splash!*

Water splashed up again, and a few drops of icy lake water struck Xiao Jing's face, bringing a bone-chilling chill.

...

(My dear readers, I saw your gifts and comments—thank you! This story has a happy ending, and the romance isn't angsty, I promise. Both of them are always moving toward each other. Please don't let this story sit unread! orz)