Chapter 21

The air suddenly went silent.

For a moment, everyone thought they had misheard.

Shen Yan frowned slightly, wondering if he was just too tired lately—maybe he was hearing things?

But it turned out he hadn’t misheard at all.

Not only was it real, Sang Huaiyu had actually said it himself—he liked Shi Yu.

No, it was even more shocking… He said it was love at first sight.

With a loud “clatter,” someone accidentally hit the table with their chair.

Han Chuyi, who had just casually asked the question, was stunned for a second before realizing—wait, what joke is Sang-ge playing?

He likes Shi Yu?

How is that possible?!

Han Chuyi’s emotions were all over the place. But the person across from him didn’t seem to care. After saying those words and glancing at the time, Sang Huaiyu simply walked away, leaving behind a strange, silent group in the meeting room.

The others who had just been listening for gossip were all shocked. Wen Jingjing bit her lip, confused about what was happening, but quickly pulled a colleague up, and the group quietly escaped the room and went upstairs.

Once they were safely out, they finally let out the breath they were holding.

Too scary!

Wen Jingjing had no idea what just happened—Sang Huaiyu suddenly dropped such a huge bomb.

So now he has someone he likes?

Wen Jingjing quietly looked at her coworker. The two of them were full of gossip.

And the name Shi Yu… sounded really familiar?

She thought for a bit and finally remembered—Sang Huaiyu saw that young man at the Ability Users Association a few days ago, the one who came for a supernatural check-up.

Wait a minute… if she remembered correctly, that young man was called Shi Yu, right?

Back in the meeting room, most people had left, not wanting to get involved. Shen Yan calmly packed up his things.

He and Han Chuyi made eye contact for a moment, but Han Chuyi didn’t say anything to the “pretend saint.” He grabbed his coat with a cold face and walked out silently, deep in thought.

Now, only two people remained in the meeting room. Shen Yan looked at Fu Nanyao, wanting to see his reaction. But the man sitting at the head of the table looked calm, as if he didn’t care at all.

In the Ability Users Association, Shen Yan always thought Fu Nanyao had the deepest feelings for Sang Huaiyu. So now, hearing his close friend might like someone else, and Fu Nanyao had no reaction?

Or maybe his mutated state still made it hard for him to show emotions like a normal person?

Shen Yan quietly thought about this, lost in his thoughts.

Only when everyone else had left did he lean against the wall, thinking back to what had just happened.

After a while, he glanced at his phone.

Sang Huaiyu likes Shi Yu.

But… does Shi Yu know?

Shi Yu had no idea that while he was clueless, the mysterious and dangerous Sang Huaiyu had dropped a huge bomb—publicly declaring in front of the main group that he liked Shi Yu, even adding insult to injury with a teasing tone.

After finishing dry heaving, Shi Yu leaned against the wall and came out of the bathroom. He didn’t believe it, so he took the fried chicken bag again and inspected it carefully.

Yup, still within the expiration date.

Then what was going on?

He thought for a while—some fast food looks fine but isn’t healthy. Pressing his lips together, Shi Yu waited until his stomach felt a bit better, then opened his food delivery app.

He had already buy rain for the Mimosa, so why not treat himself too?

Shi Yu scrolled through the nearby food options. When he saw the super expensive cake shop, he was tempted again.

He had been craving this cake shop for a long time. It was in a mall near his place, with beautiful displays and an amazing smell. Even passing by on the bus, he could smell it.

He could almost taste the sweetness already. Staring at the high prices, Shi Yu gritted his teeth and clicked on the shop—he was ready to spend big and treat himself. So what if the fried chicken was bad? He’d order the super rich dark chocolate crispy cake and feel better!

As soon as he clicked in, the picture of the chocolate cake popped up. It looked just as fancy as always—dark chocolate crust with blueberry filling.

But the next moment, something unexpected happened: that wave of nausea hit him again. His face changed, and he turned to dry heave, even though he hadn’t eaten anything.

Wait, what?

He had only looked at the picture! And this was his favorite cake, something he’d planned to buy as a birthday gift for himself!

Why was this happening?

When the nausea finally passed, Shi Yu realized—it wasn’t the food. It was him.

Holding his stomach, he lowered his eyes, starting to worry that maybe he had some serious illness.

Too bad his last hospital visit didn’t even get to the blood test stage, or else he’d at least have some clue by now.

Shi Yu sighed, ordered some stomach medicine online, and walked to his computer, wondering if he could book a small medical robot for a home check-up.

In this world, there are not only nutrient solutions but also robots. When going to the hospital isn’t possible, medical robots can sometimes help. The problem is—they’re expensive, and only about 50% accurate. Many people online jokingly call them “little dumb bots” because they often give wrong diagnoses.

Shi Yu didn’t have much choice—there was no way he could visit a hospital in the next few days.

The “Men’s High Heels” didn’t get destroyed last time—it just left. So it could come back anytime.

And… Shi Yu paused at that thought. He wasn’t sure if it had marked him. After all, that afternoon on the third floor, he’d faced that SSS-level anomaly head-on.

Shi Yu shook his head and stopped thinking about it. A little while later, the doorbell rang—he remembered he had just ordered something.

He was alone in the living room. The shy mimosa plant had obediently returned to the bedroom while Shi Yu was resting and didn’t cause any trouble.

Shi Yu took a breath, then got up and walked to the shoe cabinet. Out of long habit, he peeked out through the peephole.

But this time… there was nothing outside?

The peephole stared quietly at the empty hallway. Everything outside was silent.

Shi Yu frowned and didn’t open the door.

“Delivery?” he called out to test.

Still no sound from the other side. Only the doorbell continued ringing—one eerie ring after another, as if an invisible hand was pressing it.

Shi Yu turned around. If he hadn’t just seen the mimosa in the bedroom, he would’ve thought it was playing a prank. But no—the little anomaly had just been watered and was quietly resting. It wouldn’t scare people like this.

So, what was on the other side…

Shi Yu stepped back and instinctively grabbed his phone. Just then, he heard a sound—one he had heard just a few days ago.

Tap… tap… tap…

That sharp, chilling sound.

Wait a minute—was that the “Men’s High Heels”?

It’s back?

Shi Yu’s heart sank. He didn’t expect it to return so soon. And this time, it had followed him to his home.

Is it trying to kill everyone who saw it?

The “Men’s High Heels” didn’t even know why it had come here. Some kind of deep urge pulled it back. Even after losing last time, it lingered nearby—as if something was attracting it.

Now, it had finally found the exact location.

And once it reached the door, the feeling got even stronger—an intense craving from its very soul.

Of course…

Sensing the rich smell of flesh inside, the “Men’s High Heels” realized something.

So it wasn’t a mistake that day—before it met that psychic, it had been tracking this flesh. It had been hidden, but now… now it had found it again.

He’s real.

He’s right here.

It had found him.

It must eat him.

The urge screamed inside its mind, uncontrollable and wild.

It had to… eat him… devour him…

It didn’t care anymore if it would be caught by the Ability Users Association. It only wanted to tear Shi Yu apart and eat him whole.

Its instincts told it that if it ate this human’s flesh, it could achieve a breakthrough—its monstrous form would evolve.

A dark, invisible nightmare began spreading through the entire 19th floor.

The “Men’s High Heels” was desperate now.

It pressed up against the door, ready to break in at any moment, feeling like its transformation was just within reach.

Shi Yu: “…”

He was nearly speechless. This thing… it was targeting only him now, wasn’t it?

After the first wave of natural fear passed, Shi Yu actually calmed down. Anyone would, after dealing with these things back-to-back.

His phone clearly wasn’t working—everything was being jammed. He had already entered the supernatural domain again. But this time, no SSS-level psychic was going to break in and save him.

Shi Yu thought quickly.

Then he suddenly remembered how Fu Nanyao had reacted back at the hospital.

His smell or voice seemed to have some effect on Fu Nanyao when he was partially mutated.

Then… what about this monster?

Whatever—desperate times call for desperate measures.

Shi Yu gritted his teeth. As the “Men’s High Heels” was already halfway through the door, one foot in his apartment, Shi Yu shouted, “Stop!”

No way—!

The “Men’s High Heels” recognized the command, but found it laughable. But just as its hunger and madness flared…

Its body froze.

—The sharp high heels that had crushed so many victims… got stuck in the doorframe. It looked ridiculous.

The ordinary wooden doorframe was now like a massive barrier—it couldn’t cross.

Shi Yu didn’t dare look at the terrifying scene. After shouting, he just wished with all his heart for the monster to disappear.

Maybe his desire was too strong—Shi Yu felt so tense his stomach started to hurt.

Waves of pain made his fingers break into a cold sweat.

Time passed—there was no sound anymore. Even the creepy doorbell, like a cat playing with its prey, had gone quiet.

Shi Yu took a deep breath and got ready to open his eyes. He didn’t know if the monster had truly stopped—or if opening his eyes would mean instant death.

But as he looked up, he instinctively sniffed the air.

The smell of blood hit him.

But it wasn’t his.

It was… the monster’s.

The twisted figure outside was bound by invisible threads, pinned firmly in place.

And at the moment Shi Yu opened his eyes, those threads suddenly tightened—

Like brittle, dried leather, the monster shattered.