The art museum's atmosphere was so intense that it clearly clashed with the students at Yan Chi's school. Since its opening, very few students had visited.
Yan Chi never imagined that while he could keep the students away, he couldn't keep these talkative paintings away.
Because no one had visited for so long, the figures in the paintings were incredibly bored. They realized that the director was just an ordinary human, and since Yan Chi intentionally concealed their special abilities, the sensible figures wouldn't expose him.
"Hey! Do you think my dress is pretty?"
The cute girl in the "Portrait of Miss Conda Venus" winked at Yan Chi. Her long golden hair cascaded over her shoulders, tied back with a light blue hair accessory. Her hands rested on her skirt, exuding a noble and reserved air.
Yan Chi didn't dare speak, but nodded and gave her a thumbs up. Very pretty.
Miss Canda Venus began shaking her head, her voice rising slightly, "I think it's beautiful too! It's the latest model; I begged my dad for ages before he finally bought it for me."
Yan Chi was terrified. "Little sister, could you please keep your voice down?"
"Okay, since you complimented me on my looks."
Yan Chi looked up and saw the headmistress walking ahead. He quickened his pace to follow, but dared not get too close; the talkative figures in the paintings always seemed to whisper to him.
The art museum had three floors. The headmistress, after wandering around the second floor for a while, became exhausted, so the two turned back. Lisa reminded him not to forget to move her seat; she was going to go chat with her best friend.
Yan Chi gave her an "OK" sign. Lisa was satisfied, her smile widening.
After taking the headmistress home, Yan Chi returned to the art museum, climbed the ladder, and moved the "Mona Lisa" to a new position, hanging it next to "Girl with a Pearl Earring".
The best friends, upon meeting, immediately began gossiping about how narcissistic the owner of the self-portrait next door was—so narcissistic he didn't even need a partner, able to love himself completely.
Yan Chi overheard the gossip, didn't linger, and trudged home through the snow, taking off his heavy coat and sprawling on the sofa in just a knitted sweater.
Like a dog that's sniffed out a bone, Shen Mingsu tiptoed down from the second floor to Yan Chi's side, squatted down beside him, and rubbed his high, straight nose against his cheek. "Xiao Chi."
"Hmm." Yan Chi lazily lifted his eyelids to glance at him, then sat up. "What's with those paintings in the art museum? I took the headmistress to see them today, and they almost scared me to death."
Shen Mingsu recalled where the art museum was. "You mean the one that was built last month? It's full of paintings by third-year students who went out to sketch. Their ability is to create a world within the paintings. I took a look, and they're horribly ugly."
Yan Chi disagreed: "...I think they're pretty good."
Some of the paintings were so realistic they were indistinguishable from the real thing. He had to admit that the third-year students' painting skills were indeed impressive.
Shen Mingsu went along with it. "Okay, maybe I just have no taste."
Those piled-up blocks of color weren't even as appealing to him as Yan Chi's, but since Yan Chi liked them, he wouldn't say he didn't.
Yan Chi leaned back in his chair, suddenly realizing the house was unusually quiet. He looked around. "Where are the children?"
"They went out to buy groceries," Shen Mingsu replied, showing no remorse for ordering the children around. "We don't keep freeloaders in our family."
Yan Chi: "Changyao went too?"
Shen Mingsu said matter-of-factly, "If they hadn't gone, would we have this time together?"
Yan Chi: "..."
Shen Mingsu clung to him again, his arms tightly wrapped around Yan Chi's waist, shamelessly pleading, "Give me a hug, come give me a hug."
He seemed to like physical touch, constantly wanting to be close to Yan Chi, or to hold him in his arms, resting his chin on his head—the closer the better, and the naked kind was his favorite.
Yan Chi felt a slight sucking sensation on his neck. He patted Shen Mingsu's head playfully, "What do you want to do in broad daylight?"
Shen Mingsu suddenly looked up, surprised, "Really? Can I do it?"
Yan Chi was speechless for a moment, "...Do you only listen to people by picking out the words you like?"
Shen Mingsu lowered his head in shame, still not giving up, looking up at him like a puppy wagging its tail, "So, can I or can't I?"
"No."
Shen Mingsu was dejected, but still obedient, "Okay."
...
On the commercial street, the snow had been pushed to the side of the road. The atmosphere of the upcoming New Year had also infected the shop owners, who hung lanterns and pasted couplets at their doors.
Several elderly people had casually set up stalls on the street, writing couplets with calligraphy brushes.
Without exception, they were all former players, and the natives from other worlds, seeing them so busy, had also started to learn.
Xie Tao was shopping on the street with his three children. He listlessly carried large bags of groceries, while Shen Chang Le held Shen Changyao and wiped away his drool.
Shen Changyao was holding a string of candied hawthorns, gnawing on the outer layer of syrup with his gums. While Shen Chang Le wasn't looking, a few tiny teeth popped out from his bare gums and bit off a layer of glistening sugar.
Xingluo, carrying his own bags, chattered incessantly the whole way. "We've already bought candy and cookies, let's go buy some fruit too. I remember there's a fruit shop up ahead with really fresh fruit, let's get some apples, tangerines, strawberries..."
He chattered on and on, like a noisy little bird.
Xie Tao initially responded occasionally, but by the end, his mouth was dry, and the child was still talking, so Xie Tao simply shut up and pretended to be mute.
It was Xingluo's first time going out to buy New Year's goods, and he was incredibly excited. He bought all his favorite things, and didn't forget to buy his father a new pair of socks.
"You... just bought Xing Zhinan a pair of socks?" Xie Tao glanced at the ugly, bright red socks and raised an eyebrow.
Xinglu stuffed the socks into the bag containing his New Year's coat. "Yeah, it's my dad's fault for being lazy and not going out. If he wants something else, he can buy it himself."
The original plan was for Yan Qingyuan and Xing Zhinan to take them out, but the two changed their minds halfway through and went off somewhere to play. The responsibility of taking care of the child fell to Xie Tao.
In contrast, Shen Chang Le was much more filial. He bought complete outfits for everyone in the family, and even bought pet clothes for the two chickens in the yard that hadn't eaten yet, and the two potted plants on the windowsill.
He was incredibly thoughtful.
But there were just too many things, and Shen Changyao needed to be carried, so the three of them couldn't carry everything.
Xie Tao pondered for a moment, then looked at Shen Changyao nestled in Shen Chang Le's arms. "Can you crawl back by yourself?"
Shen Changyao was silent, glancing at Xie Tao, his eyes saying clearly: Are you even speaking human language?
Clearly, Shen Changyao wouldn't agree, so Xie Tao had to find another way. He looked at Shen Chang Le and Xingluo, puzzled. "Aren't you two S-class bosses? What are your abilities?"
Xingluo shrugged. "Let me calculate the day you'll be confessed to when you go out."
Shen Chang Le: "I can turn back time."
"Your ability is useless," Xie Tao said. "I've already paid for all this stuff; I don't want to buy it again."
Shen Chang Le, feeling slighted, pursed his lips and hugged his younger brother tightly.
Shen Changyao patted his brother's shoulder reassuringly, while glaring at Xie Tao. Xie Tao's lips curled into a slight smile as he pinched his chubby cheeks and gave them a couple of firm squeezes.
What they couldn't handle was a piece of cake for everyone else.
Xingluo caught sight of Sethia and Tan Mo standing in front of the food stall waiting for the sizzling tofu. His eyes lit up, and he trotted up behind Sethia, patted him on the shoulder, and then pointed to Xie Tao and the others.
“Okay, okay, we’ll help you.” Sethia readily agreed to Xingluo’s request, then tugged at Tan Mo’s arm. “Is it alright?”
Tan Mo hummed in agreement, and with a gentle lift of his hand, sticky black shadows sprang from the ground, their limbs shifting at will, each reaching two meters in height, like terrifying walking giants.
They picked up bags from the ground, their faceless bodies revealing no emotion, and stood firmly behind Xie Tao and the others.
Xingluo shook Sethia's hand. "Thank you, thank you!"
As he reached to shake hands with Tan Mo, Tan Mo stepped back. "No need."
Fine, no handshake then. Xingluo happily ran back, looking at the tall, black giants, and suggested, "How about we go back and buy some more?"
Now that they had "people" to carry their things, they didn't need to worry about not being able to carry everything.
So, after a brief discussion, they turned back to the shopping street to continue shopping, with the black giants following behind, dutifully carrying their bags.
More than an hour later, Xie Tao, along with the children and the giants, leisurely walked home. Halfway there, Shen Changyao, who had been dozing off, suddenly opened his eyes and turned to look to the side.
Shen Changyao tugged at Xie Tao's arm. Xie Tao turned to look at him. Shen Changyao pointed to a tree and blinked.
A series of hurried footsteps approached. Zhu Ge Yun ran while glancing around. He nearly turned away in fright when he saw the five terrifying giants in the distance, but Ding Yang quickly grabbed his shoulder from behind.
Ding Yang, with her hair in a bun and wearing a red fluffy hair clip, succinctly explained her purpose, "We're chasing a termite player. Have you seen him?"
Xie Tao looked in surprise at the location Shen Changyao had pointed to. "It should be there."
Xingluo nodded. "Right there."
Ding Yang looked at the ordinary pine tree, her brows furrowing slightly. A sharp dagger slid from her sleeve, its hilt covered in poisonous vines.
She slowly walked to the tree. A cold wind blew, and the small pine tree swayed in the wind.
The blade sliced through the air, and before it touched the trunk, a woman with dry, yellow hair appeared, rushing straight into the grove. Ding Yang reacted quickly, grabbing her hair and dragging her back. The woman collapsed to the ground, her upper body upright, the area in contact with the ground turning a yellowish-brown, almost blending into it.
However, because her body wasn't fully in contact with the ground, her transformation was only halfway complete.
"How could you possibly have found me?! I'll be S-rank soon! No one can see through my disguise!" the woman roared hysterically, her skin turning a deep blue again, resembling a blue-ringed octopus.
The venom spread from her skin to Ding Yang's hand, causing a stinging pain, but Ding Yang merely glanced at it, ignoring it. The vines wrapped around her arm easily absorbed the venom from her body, and he slapped the woman across the face.
"You bitch! Go ahead and kill me if you dare!"
The woman's eyes were bloodshot with rage, she wanted nothing more than to devour Ding Yang alive.
At the same time, the woman also saw Shen Chang Le and Xingluo behind Ding Yang. In just one glance, she knew these two youths were of a higher level than herself, as well as the several black giants.
She couldn't escape.
Death was imminent, yet the woman grew increasingly crazed. She laughed maniacally, "You will be punished! You are all traitors to the players! Sooner or later, termites will take over this place and skin you all alive, you traitorous lackeys..."
“Oh.” Ding Yang reacted calmly, looking down at the crazed woman, too lazy to say anything more. “Want to kill me? Hmm… then I’ll kill you first.”
The sharp blade decisively sliced through the woman’s neck, severing her blood vessels. Ding Yang took a step back to prevent blood from splattering on her new clothes, coldly watching the woman struggle and die in a pool of blood.
Shen Chang Le covered Shen Changyao’s eyes, who was watching the spectacle with amusement. Shen Changyao pouted.
“The last one is done.” Ding Yang turned to Xie Tao and said, “Xin Xia and the others should be bringing a few more members of the Termites into Yunzhou in a few days, including an S-rank.”
A few days…
Xie Tao subtly reminded her, “It’s almost the New Year, aren’t you going to take a break? Spring Festival is a statutory holiday.”
Ding Yang put away her weapon, unconcerned. “No need, we don’t need to rest during the New Year.”
Zhu Ge Yun opened his mouth upon hearing this, but ultimately said nothing, lowering his head.
Xie Tao paused. "What I mean is, everyone at school will be celebrating the New Year then, so there might not be anyone to help you catch termites."
"Yeah, we don't need help. You guys go celebrate the New Year. We can kill them."
Xie Tao, on the other hand, felt uneasy. His eyes clearly showed confusion. How could someone not rest during holidays and still maintain so much energy to complete the task?
That's terrifying.
Luckily, none of his former colleagues were a workaholic like Ding Yang.
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