Infinite: Dawn Game

"..."

Yu Shijiu felt pain in his palm, and a familiar, cold sense of fear slowly crept up his spine.

For a moment, he felt his eyes being blurred again by a bloodshot redness that made his eye sockets feel hot—

No...that's not right.

Yu Shijiu's heart was pounding. He tried to suppress his inexplicable fear as he sat up and turned to look at the window with the curtains open.

Outside the window was the night sky simulated by the game Dawn. It was very dark, and the stars looked somewhat like distorted white eyes against the thick black curtain.

Yu Shijiu stared at the night sky for a long time, until his eyes began to ache and tears rolled down his stiff eyelids, one drop at a time, onto the collar of his pajamas.

【what's on your mind? 】

Xiao Li's voice suddenly appeared in his mind: "The night sky is so beautiful tonight, are you moved to tears by its beauty?"

Yu Shijiu: "..."

He lowered his eyelids and casually placed his deformed left arm at his side.

My eyes are tired from not blinking for so long.

He responded silently deep within his mind, a subtle, almost eerie smile curving his lips.

Xiao Li was silent for a few seconds, and for the first time, she didn't argue with Yu Shijiu. Instead, she said:

[Really? Then you need to get some rest. Don't forget you have a match tomorrow.]

Yu Shijiu gave a soft "hmm," looked away, wiped her face, and lay down.

He pulled the blanket he had just taken off back up and said with a smile, "Goodnight."

In her mind, Xiao Li quickly replied: 【Goodnight.】

"..."

Yu Shijiu didn't speak. He closed his eyes and leaned closer to Feifei.

Beside the pillow, Fatty, already asleep, let out a soft "meow" in its sleep, its fluffy tail unconsciously brushing against Yu Shijiu's cheek, as if responding or comforting.

Yu Shijiu closed her eyes and hugged it, letting out a trembling breath.

It won't hurt anyone else... won't it?

The long night, in silence and the churning undercurrent of memories, slowly passed by, second by second.

There were less than fifteen hours left before the start of the second round of the guild competition.

--------

It's half past seven in the morning.

As the first rays of artificial sunlight shone through the windows of the rest area, Yu Shijiu and his group of five were already up.

Yu Shijiu stood in front of the mirror, giving a final check of the bandage wrapped around her left arm—

After three days of intensive training, the strips of cloth wrapped around his arms were now more neatly and tightly bound than before, covering most of the outline of the beast's claws, leaving only a faint, unusual bulge.

Only Yu Shijiu could feel the hair under the strip of cloth moving slightly.

"Are you all ready?"

Anjie's voice came from the living room. She had changed into a dark-colored tracksuit that was easy to move in, and her short blue hair was neatly tied back. She looked capable and efficient.

"We can set off anytime."

Chen Yi's chubby face wore a gentle yet firm smile.

He prepared a lot of defensive items and emergency supplies overnight and put them into his system backpack in case of emergency.

Xu Han yawned, his eyes showing dark circles, clearly indicating he hadn't slept well last night.

"Hey Brother Chen, is there anything to eat? I hate going hungry..."

As he spoke, his stomach rumbled a few times, perfectly fitting the occasion.

"Who told you to wake up so late?"

He Lingling walked out of the bedroom. Her complexion was much better than it had been three days ago, and her dark eyes had regained their usual sharpness and sarcasm.

Xu Han protested, "What?! I got up really early! He Lingling, what are you pretending to be?! You just woke up too!"

He Lingling selectively ignored what Xu Han said—even though she had just woken up herself.

But will she admit it?

Of course not.

Chen Yi watched the two bickering with a smile. "Alright, alright, stop it. I went back to the villa this morning to get some dumplings and side dishes that I made before. They're cooking in the kitchen. You can eat them after you wash up."

Before Xu Han could express his gratitude, the sound of a door opening immediately reached their ears.

"Brother Chen!"

Yu Shijiu excitedly opened the door and shouted, "What kind of dumplings are you having?"

Chen Yi smiled and said, "Cabbage and pork, your favorite filling. Last time we made too many and couldn't finish them, so I put them in the villa's refrigerator to freeze..."

Amidst his incessant chatter, Yu Shijiu's eyes sparkled as she strode quickly toward the kitchen, followed by Fatty, who was yawning.

"Meow?"

Fatty lazily strode forward, its thick, fluffy tail wagging vigorously at the group's legs, and followed Yu Shijiu toward the kitchen.

Chen Yi was taken aback and quickly chased after him: "Hey Shi Jiu! It's not cooked yet! You can't eat it now, wait, you can only eat it after a while..."

The two figures quickly disappeared into the lounge, and the remaining three looked at each other for a few seconds before smiling.

Xu Han muttered, "Why does Shi Jiu like dumplings so much, especially cabbage and pork dumplings..."

"It's a matter of personal taste," Anjie said, cracking her wrists. "Personally, I prefer dumplings with chives and eggs."

"Huh?!" Xu Han was taken aback upon hearing this, and subconsciously said, "Sister An, you actually have something you like to eat? I always thought you liked to eat everything?"

“That’s a side effect,” Anjie glanced at Xu Han and said calmly, “But I’m not a picky eater; I can eat anything I can.”

For Anjie, having something to eat is a good thing, and who would refuse a good thing?

Besides... she's eaten things that were far worse than food...

He Lingling suddenly clicked her tongue, "Xu Han, you don't even have any favorite foods yourself, yet you're quite good at criticizing others—"

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Xu Han interrupted He Lingling, raising his hand as if to prove himself:

"I like to compare so many things, like braised pork belly, braised spare ribs, sweet and sour fish, salt and pepper shrimp, beef, lamb hot pot..."

Are you going to give me the menu?

He Lingling's lips twitched, and she couldn't help but say.

"Hehe, how did you know?" Xu Han laughed. "I like anything Brother Chen makes!"

He Lingling and An Jie: "..."

Anjie popped a piece of candy into her mouth and crunched it. "Alright, the dumplings should be ready soon, so hurry up and eat them while they're hot."

"Dumplings, dumplings, dumplings!" Xu Han quickly ran towards the kitchen after hearing this. "I have to hurry and help Brother Chen. He's exhausted from early this morning..."

—Of course, it wasn't because he was afraid that Shi Jiu and the others would eat all the dumplings.

He Lingling couldn't bear to look at Xu Han's expression and speechlessly complained to An Jie:

“Sister An, look at him, he doesn’t look like an adult at all.”

Anjie: "..."

Anjie raised an eyebrow and looked He Lingling up and down.

He Lingling felt a chill run down her spine after being looked at from head to toe, and took a step back.

"What are you looking at, Sister An?"