Chapter 8: Feed

Ming Ci woke up to find that it was already bright outside.

These past few days had been exhausting. Despite the presence of the monster, he still slept soundly, completely unaware of what had happened during the night.

In the small, cramped bedroom with closed doors and windows, there still lingered a faintly strange smell.

Ming Ci’s sense of smell was very sensitive. His nose twitched slightly, faintly catching that fleeting scent.

It was so faint that it was almost indistinguishable, but he instinctively sensed something unusual, associating it with certain unpleasant images.

The monster feasted on his flesh and blood, sparing not even his sweat. It was hard to say if it had absorbed something… unspeakable while he was asleep.

Ming Ci covered his face with one hand, his pupils trembling slightly.

He hoped he was just imagining things, because otherwise, it would be a scene more horrifying than any nightmare.

At that moment, his other hand, resting on the edge of the bed, suddenly touched something furry, like a soft plush ball actively nudging into his palm.

Ming Ci lowered his hand from his face and turned slightly.

A blood-red furry creature, resembling a cat, crouched at the edge of the bed, its round red eyes staring at him unblinkingly.

“!!”

Ming Ci was startled, his hand trembling, and his body recoiling.

Then, it opened its mouth and let out a sound that eerily resembled a cat’s meow: “Meow—”

It was the most sinister and terrifying meow Ming Ci had ever heard in his life, sending shivers down his spine.

“Meow, meow… Meow-w…”

It elongated its tone, each meow more eerie than the last, while simultaneously moving its soft, limp limbs towards the center of the bed.

It was clearly not a cat; it was the monster clumsily imitating the appearance of a cat.

Every pore on Ming Ci’s body felt like it was exploding, a strong sense of discomfort rising in his heart. Unable to bear it, he grabbed a pillow and hurled it at the creature.

“Meow?” It confusedly meowed, then switched to human speech, “Ming Ci, raise, Xiao Mi, like, I am, Xiao Mi.”

Ming Ci hastily got out of bed, standing barefoot on the floor, gritting his teeth angrily, “You are not Xiao Mi, monster! You are not allowed to turn into this strange appearance!”

“Umm…”

The monster pondered for a moment, then softened into a pool of crimson slime in front of him, quickly flowing towards the edge of the bed and splattering onto the ground.

Ming Ci tensed up all over, almost wanting to flee, but he knew running away would be futile, only adding to his embarrassment.

In the next moment, the pool of crimson rose up, like rubber clay being manipulated by invisible hands, changing shape grotesquely. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a familiar petite figure.

A little girl with high ponytails and a fluffy knee-length skirt stood by his legs, tilting her head up, “Gege.”

“…”

Ming Ci’s pupils contracted instantly, taking a step back in shock, thoroughly frightened.

The little girl that the monster transformed into was more terrifying than the usual horror characters in movies.

Her facial features were distinct, her figure realistically perfect, but from head to toe, she seemed coated in solidified blood plasma. Moreover, her intentionally mimicked childish voice sounded even more eerie than usual.

She was like a terrifying monster from a horror movie.

“Gege,” she said, tilting her face up, reaching out her bloody little hand to tug at Ming Ci’s clothes, “Gege, I am Lan Lan.”

Lan Lan was Chen Xiu’s daughter.

About a week ago, Ming Ci had casually given her a few pieces of candy.

At that time, the monster silently observed this gesture, interpreting it as a “raising” behavior.

“Don’t touch me!” Ming Ci forcefully pushed away her hand, taking another step back, his back against the wardrobe.

He stared at the monster with intolerable disdain, his voice unusually dry, “What do you want? What benefit do you get from scaring me?”

The monster took a step forward, its boneless hands clumsily wrapping around his thighs, awkwardly explaining, “Ming Ci, raise, Lan Lan, I am, Lan Lan.”

When it opened its mouth, Ming Ci could clearly see that there were no teeth or tongue inside, just wriggling fine and soft red feelers.

“Like, me, Ming Ci, raise, me.”

Accompanied by the sharp and eerie childish voice, the soft and dense red filaments protruded from its mouth, tentatively licking his flesh.

In that moment, Ming Ci’s breath seemed to stop, every cell in his body screaming silently.

Don’t touch me… Get away, get away, get away!

“Change… back…,” Ming Ci struggled to squeeze out a voice from his throat, weak and almost inaudible, “You’re not allowed to imitate human appearance, not allowed to touch me like this.”

Mid-sentence, he took a breath, nails pressing hard into his palm, suppressing the emotions of fear and resistance, “Now, go back into my body. Only like this, only then will I raise you.”

In truth, there wasn’t much of a choice at all.

Whether the monster touched him and licked him with its terrifying form or retracted into what seemed like harmless red mole nestled in his skin, the essence was the same, intolerable and nerve-wracking.

But if he had to choose, he chose the latter, at least the psychological impact wasn’t as severe.

“Ming Ci, raise, like.”

It kept muttering, transforming back into a warm and slippery blob of mucus, slipping into Ming Ci’s pants leg, flowing up his ice-cold trembling skin, returning to his chest, shrinking into a conspicuous little red mole.

Ming Ci slumped to the floor in exhaustion, hands covering his face, teeth biting his lip.

After a long silence, he slowly got up, his expression forced into an extremely suppressed calm.

No matter what, he couldn’t fall apart, couldn’t let himself become a mess.

Life’s gears continued to turn as usual, and he still had things to do today. The screen of his laptop was broken, and he needed to take it out for repairs.

At noon, Ming Ci folded the receipt neatly and put it into his backpack, walking out of the electronic repair shop’s door.

The original screen of the computer couldn’t be repaired, so Ming Ci had to directly replace it with a new screen. The shop owner took the money and asked him to come back in two days to pick it up.

On the way home, the subway stopped at the Convention Center Station halfway, and many people surged in when the doors opened. Ming Ci was squeezed into a corner of the carriage, almost unable to move.

Although the air conditioning was on, this section of the carriage lacked sufficient cooling, and as more people crowded in, the temperature gradually rose.

A passenger standing next to Ming Ci sprayed strong perfume, filling the stuffy air, making him feel suffocated.

Ming Ci’s mind slowed down, his vision becoming increasingly blurry. After what seemed like seconds or minutes, his sight plunged into darkness, and his whole body involuntarily went limp.

“Hey! Hey hey! What’s wrong with you?”

“Someone fainted over here… Call the conductor!”

“What’s going on? Is it low blood sugar? Give him a candy first…”

The chaotic voices from the outside seemed to come through deep water, indistinct and unclear. In a daze, Ming Ci only felt his lips being pried open, something soft and squishy squeezing into his mouth.

“Mine, feed, Ming Ci… Eat, mine…”

Only its voice was incredibly clear, as if piercing straight into the depths of his brain.

Ming Ci felt a inexplicable panic, struggling weakly, his pale hand reaching out into the air.

What are you trying to feed me?

No, I don’t want it…

In his blurred vision, a heavy redness enveloped him, and his outstretched hand suddenly drooped like a broken branch.

At the same time, the soft thing melted in his mouth, and the fragrant and unique taste spread on his tongue.

He widened his eyes, lips trembling slightly, “No…”

“What did you say? How do you feel now?”

The surrounding noisy voices gradually became clearer, and Ming Ci heard someone loudly asking by his ear.

Then his vision refocused, he lifted his head and saw several people around him, one of them wearing a crimson dress.

The woman in the red dress bent down slightly, took out two candies from her bag, and handed them to him, concerned, “Are you okay? Is it low blood sugar? Have a candy first.”

Ming Ci regained consciousness and shook his head, “I’m fine, thank you, I’m much better now.”

He looked up at the station screen at the end of the carriage and realized that his dizziness had lasted for a very short time, and the subway hadn’t arrived at the next station yet.

“You should still eat the candy.” The woman passenger placed the candy on his thigh, “Your complexion doesn’t look too good, be careful not to faint again.”

Ming Ci grabbed the candy to give it back to her, “Thank you, but I already had a soft candy just now and I’ve recovered.”

Halfway through his sentence, he abruptly stopped, his fingers forcefully pinching the intact candy wrapper — it was hard candy.

“I didn’t see you eating candy?” The female passenger raised her eyebrows. “It’s just two candies, you take them.”

Before she finished speaking, the subway had reached the station. She stepped off the train, her figure disappearing into the crowd.

Stiffened in his seat, Ming Ci suddenly remembered when he fainted, his head seemed to hang down all the time, and no one touched his cheeks or lips.

So, what was the thing that melted in his mouth…?

A peculiar fragrance faintly emanated from the depths of his throat.

Ming Ci finally realized.

For a moment, he wanted to scream, to stick his fingers down his throat and scoop out whatever it was.

“Ugh…”

He gagged uncontrollably, then tightly covered his mouth.

At that moment, the subway decelerated and stopped. The announcement sounded: “Next station, Global Mall. Please exit the train…”

As the doors opened, Ming Ci rushed out.

He sprinted all the way to the restroom at the end of the platform, entered the innermost stall, and kept retching over the toilet.

“Cough, cough…”

Tears streamed down his face as he coughed, yet nothing came out.

That thing had already entered his body through the esophagus.

“I, feed, Ming Ci,” the creature said contentedly. “Ming Ci, feed, me.”

Ming Ci’s breath was heavy, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. For a moment, he even thought of ending it all with the creature.

But that impulse faded in an instant. He stared at the grayish door panel, quietly counting his heartbeats until they returned to their regular rhythm.

When he was completely calm, Ming Ci stepped out of the stall and stood by the sink.

He looked at his reddened cheeks from coughing, turned on the tap, and splashed his face with the rushing water.

“Hey? Ming Ci?”

A familiar male voice came from the doorway. Ming Ci looked up to see Officer Liang standing there in casual attire.

He tugged at the corner of his lips. “Officer Liang.”

“Out for fun today?”

Officer Liang walked into the restroom, raised his chin toward the stall area, and smiled. “I’m off duty today, taking my son to watch a movie at Global Mall. That movie, ‘Invasion of the Alien Species,’ the 2 o’clock showing.”

Ming Ci paused his motion of drying his face. He looked up at Officer Liang. “I’ve seen the previous one. It’s about alien creatures infiltrating human society and massacring at will. They start as embryos, implanted into the protagonist’s body by villains, then absorb nutrients to grow until they burst out.”

Officer Liang sighed. “Mmh, I don’t understand why you young folks like watching such bloody horror films.”

“Officer Liang, if you were to find someone parasitized by an alien species in real life,” Ming Ci stared straight into his eyes, slowly asking, “what would you do?”