chapter 68 - The Third World (4)
Heartfelt Connection is an item installed by the system for Yu Tong in the first world.
Similar to the Dreaming Prop, a tool that allows one to enter Chen Ge's dreams and communicate with him through dream connections, this is a permanent item that requires 100 days of use to transform into a permanent bond, such as a married couple’s connection.
With the Heartfelt Connection tool, Yu Tong is able to sense Chen Ge’s emotions. He can also communicate his intentions through vocal sounds and body language, allowing Chen Ge to understand him better.
In the first world, Yun Mingchen could vaguely understand Yu Tong’s intentions just from the soft "meow" sounds made by his kitten form.
In the second world, due to his unique race, Yu Tong could speak human language from birth.
Moreover, Xiao Chenxi mistakenly believed that he and the Sun God shared a spiritual connection, much like the one between gods and followers. As a result, the Heartfelt Connection tool didn’t feel as significant in this world.
Now that Yu Tong has turned into a little rabbit, he cannot speak, and his calls are not as expressive.
All that is left for him is body language.
Chen Yanli didn’t understand why he was able to read "old attack" from a little rabbit's eyes.
When he was browsing the internet, he had seen some unique fetishes. But no matter how perverse a person might be, it shouldn’t be possible for him to have inappropriate thoughts about a tiny male rabbit.
Chen Yanli was shocked and couldn’t snap back to reality for a moment.
Seeing that he hadn’t spoken for a while, the little rabbit lifted its fluffy paw and lightly tapped his cheek.
Chen Yanli, in a daze, took out his phone and typed a line in his memo: "You saw something in my senior brother's dormitory, and you want to share the information you collected with me."
The little rabbit nodded.
"You’re worried about me, afraid that I can’t handle the trouble coming tomorrow by myself, and you want to help me."
The little rabbit kicked its legs happily, looking very pleased.
Chen Yanli smiled faintly, a subtle grin forming on his lips.
He rubbed the little rabbit’s head and pushed it into the blankets.
"I don’t need help; this is the punishment I deserve."
"You don’t need to rush. After all, I’ve lived this long, and maybe this time, I won’t die."
After showing the rabbit these few sentences, he put away his phone, turned over, and ignored the little rabbit.
No matter how much Yu Tong kicked his back, Chen Yanli didn’t respond, staying as still as if dead asleep.
This ambiguous, riddle-like conversation left Yu Tong in a bad mood.
Chen Yanli might have become mute, but his mind was not muddled.
He deliberately made his words vague, not only to worry that the little rabbit was sent by someone else as a spy, but also to hope that the rabbit would help him.
The problem was, Yu Tong still couldn’t understand his hints.
He lay in the blankets, thinking for a while, but couldn’t piece together much information. His frustration grew.
Damn man, it’s bad enough that he doesn’t recognize him in this new world, but now he’s speaking in riddles.
He understood Chen Ge’s concerns. In such a hostile environment, Chen Ge couldn’t trust anyone easily.
Yu Tong understood the logic, but he was still angry.
It was like how he knew the Quick Transmigration Company likely arranged for them to enter these small worlds to change their personalities, turning him and Chen Ge into upright and kind-hearted people.
As his deviation value went from 0 to 45, Yu Tong realized that some of his past thoughts had indeed been problematic.
The psychological issues between him and Chen Ge were quite severe and needed special methods to resolve.
But did anyone from the system ask his opinion before doing this? Did they check with Chen Ge?
The worlds they were put in were practically hellish.
Damn it.
With Chen Ge facing death the day after tomorrow, the person involved was lying in bed, acting as if everything was fine. Yu Tong vaguely felt that something was off but couldn’t pinpoint the issue.
Right now, he was angry, feeling like everyone around him was either a jerk or a bastard.
Except for the system, which was busy buying him props, Ba Ge was a little fool, so he wasn’t in his line of fire.
He stared at the person in front of him, watching their chest rise and fall, narrowing his red eyes.
Damn man, no sleep.
In his hazy drowsiness, Chen Yanli vaguely felt something furry climbing up his back, from his abdomen to his chest.
He suddenly opened his eyes, alarmed, pulling off the blankets, only to see a small bump beneath his shirt.
Under his gaze, the bump slowly wriggled, inching toward his neck.
Then, a snow-white rabbit's head popped out from the collar, its little paws gently holding his cheek.
Remembering how the fake monks had treated him before, Chen Yanli’s body immediately tensed.
He wanted to ask the little rabbit, "Are you the one sent to kill me this time?"
But his lips moved, and no sound came out.
Just as he tightened his fist, hesitating whether to fight back, the little rabbit suddenly raised its paw to press against his lips.
Although the rabbit couldn’t speak human language and didn’t make a sound, Chen Yanli suddenly heard a voice in his mind.
"I’m not happy. I want to kiss you."
Chen Yanli was stunned by the voice, unable to respond.
At the same time, the little white rabbit lowered its head and seriously touched its lips to his.
The soft, slightly moist sensation made Chen Yanli blink in confusion.
What just happened?
After the little rabbit kissed his face a few more times, Chen Yanli finally understood.
He wiped away the fur on his lips, grabbed the rabbit who was still trying to kiss him, and sat up, staring at it suspiciously.
The little snowball, obediently lying in his hand, had round red eyes filled with attachment.
Chen Yanli was silent for a moment, then took out his phone and typed.
"Did you just kiss me?"
The little snowball nodded.
"Do you know what kissing means to humans?"
"Eeek!"
Seeing the rabbit’s reaction, Chen Yanli instantly formed a plan in his mind.
A mocking smile flashed in his eyes, his lips curving up slightly, and his gloomy aura dissipated. His already exquisite face became even more captivating.
The little rabbit, who had been scratching its ears, stopped and stared at him, seemingly entranced.
Chen Yanli thought for a moment before leaning down to the rabbit.
"Do you like me? Like a male rabbit likes a female rabbit?"
After reading the words on the screen, the little furball raised its paw to cover its ears, seemingly shy.
"You think I’m good-looking and want me to be your female rabbit. This is why you don’t want my senior brother to take care of you and insist on staying by my side, even offering to help me?"
The little white rabbit nodded, pawing its ears to cover its eyes.
The sarcastic smile on Chen Yanli’s face grew more pronounced.
For the first time, he realized his face could be used like this.
He rubbed the little rabbit’s head and handed the phone back to it.
"How come you’re looking for a partner when you’re this small?"
The rabbit seemed to dislike being called small. It lifted its head, standing up and gesturing with its front paws.
Chen Yanli barely understood its meaning.
"You’re a dwarf rabbit, born small?"
The rabbit waved its paws.
"You’re a mixed-breed rabbit with dwarf rabbit blood. Though you can grow, it’s slow. You’re actually already an adult?"
The rabbit nodded.
Chen Yanli looked at the proud little white rabbit and asked one last question.
"Why can I understand your body language?"
This was a hard question to answer. The little rabbit gestured for a while, and Chen Yanli barely understood its meaning.
"Your mother told you that people in love can sense each other's emotions, understand each other’s likes, and guess what the other person is thinking. Your mother said this is called Heartfelt Connection."
"You think I can understand you because we share this connection. Plus, you fell in love with me at first sight and believe we’re a match made in heaven."
"So, I’m supposed to be your female rabbit."
Chen Yanli held the phone screen in front of the rabbit, observing its expression carefully.
In just two seconds, he saw a mix of agreement, shyness, and affection in the rabbit’s fluffy face.
What’s this "match made in heaven" and "Heartfelt Connection" nonsense? Chen Yanli didn’t believe a word of it.
There were only two possible explanations for this situation.
First, this seemingly weak rabbit spirit might actually have some charm techniques, like a fox spirit. Its level wasn’t high enough to control others’ minds directly, but it could give harmless suggestions.
The rabbit spirit’s deliberate closeness might be a test or surveillance sent by someone. It might also be like other small spirits, trying to absorb yang energy from men through such low-level tactics.
The second possibility was that the rabbit spirit truly didn’t know any magic and genuinely believed in the "Heartfelt Connection" nonsense.
It had approached Chen Yanli, glued itself to him, and truly considered him its future male rabbit.
Chen Yanli slightly pursed his lips, unconsciously tapping the rabbit’s head.
Whether it was a rabbit or a demon, he had seen many.
But this was the first time he had encountered a situation where he could understand body language and guess the other’s thoughts.
Things were fishy, and no matter how pure the rabbit appeared, he couldn’t let his guard down.
Chen Yanli was still contemplating when he suddenly felt his fingertips being licked.
Looking down, the little rabbit, sitting in his hand, stared at him with bright eyes.
Although the rabbit spirit hadn’t done anything, Chen Yanli vaguely understood what it meant.
The little rabbit wanted to kiss him again, just like before.
Chen Yanli held back the urge to frown, casually stuffing the little furball back into the blankets.
People with such perverted fetishes must like rabbits.
But this little spirit didn’t seem very smart and liked his face.
After observing it for a while, he might be able to use it.
Seeing the smile on Chen Yanli’s lips, Yu Tong, lying in the blanket, also smiled lightly, feeling the emotional connection brought by the Heartfelt Connection tool.
With a deviation value of -20, what kind of good person was Chen Ge? With such a useful tool as a rabbit spirit in front of him, he couldn’t just let it go.
Because of their different environments, each version of Chen Ge in different worlds appeared similar, but there were slight differences in their personalities.
Yun Mingchen had been controlled by his parents for a long time, and all his friends who tried to approach him were killed by them.
His self-esteem had been trampled on, and his personality was not very strong.
For Yun Mingchen, what he needed was a loyal and strong partner who could help him alleviate his loneliness.
If he wanted to build a good relationship with him, he had to show his reliable side.
Chen Xiyan was young and weak, unable to protect himself. He lived in constant fear, always in danger of losing his life.
The quickest way to gain his trust was to provide him with enough security.
The stronger Yu Tong acted and the more he resembled an adult, the more Chen Xiyan would trust and rely on him.
Although Yu Tong hadn’t spent much time with the monk version of Chen Ge, he had already figured out his personality.
Before the accident three years ago, Chen Yanli had a high status in the temple, admired by his fellow disciples and valued by his master.
He grew up in an environment where he was praised and lived peacefully. He had never been abused or insulted.
Chen Yanli was proud and confident, strong-willed but suspicious, yet not overly sensitive.
In front of such a person, Yu Tong had to pretend to be innocent and weak, voluntarily putting himself in a vulnerable position.
Only by making Chen Yanli believe that everything about the little rabbit was under his control could their relationship move to the next level.
Judging from Chen Ge’s reaction, Yu Tong suspected that he was already thinking about how to use the little rabbit spirit in the future.
Yu Tong wasn’t very worried.
No matter how much the villain’s character changed, his soul was still Chen Ge’s. His core personality remained the same.
Chen Yanli appeared cold and harsh, but in reality, he was most likely to soften his heart toward those close to him.
Based on Yu Tong’s understanding of Chen Ge, it wouldn’t be long before Chen Yanli couldn’t bear to torment the little rabbit anymore.
Next morning, at 6 AM, the system returned home on its little electric scooter.
It gloomily placed the shopping bag on the table. "Little Fishy, that commercial street specializing in infinite-flow props has been shut down by the government."
Yu Tong, who was having breakfast, froze. "Shut down?"
"Yes, because it was already a gray area, conducting illegal business. Now it’s fully under the infinite-flow category, and we’re not allowed to buy anything from there."
"Tch."
The system opened the shopping bag and took out three small items.
"This item is called 'I can't xxx this thing, because I’m just a little white rabbit.'"
"When someone asks you a question and you don’t want to answer, or when someone asks you to do something you don’t want to do, you can use this item."
"After the item takes effect, if you refuse to answer or do something, the other person will automatically come up with a reasonable excuse in their mind."
As the system explained, it shoved the item into Yu Tong’s soul.
"This is a good item, essential for people with social anxiety."
Yu Tong wasn’t socially anxious, but he thought this item was useful and could be used to mess with Chen Ge.
"What are the other two items?"
"This one is called 'Rabbit Kicks Eagle.'"
"Does this increase the strength of my back legs a little?"
"No, it’s a passive item. When you're at a disadvantage, you have a 5% chance to gain good luck and turn the tide."
Yu Tong regretted a bit. He kept forgetting to tell the system not to buy probability-based items because his luck was always bad.
"The last item is 'Why x Rabbit when Rabbit is so cute?'"
"...?"
"If someone wants to eat you, beat you, kill you, or do some perverted things to you, just say this sentence."
"As long as the person thinks the rabbit is cute, they will automatically abandon their previous thoughts."
"What if they don’t think the rabbit is cute?"
"Then you’re on your own."
Seeing that the system had stopped pulling out things, Yu Tong stayed silent for a while, then hesitantly asked, "Is that it?"
"Yes, there are only three. Items that fit the world’s setting are hard to buy."
"You see me, I’m such a smart, human-like rabbit who will turn into a person after a hundred days. Doesn't that seem like a rabbit spirit?"
The system stared blankly at him.
Yu Tong sighed. "I’ve already adopted the rabbit spirit persona. This is the supernatural world, and Chen Ge’s persona is still that of a fake monk."
"With all these buffs stacking up, it’s a pity not to use a dual cultivation technique."
"Ugh... you're really something else."
"Not only can you clap for love, but you can also enhance your strength. Just thinking about it makes me happy."
"Well, stop thinking. We can’t buy such impure items in our commercial street. By the way, Little Fishy, how’s it going on your side?"
Yu Tong glanced at Chen Yanli, who was meditating, and slightly raised the corners of his mouth.
"This Chen Ge has too much control and is suspicious. So, I’m pretending to be a foolish little male rabbit who’s captivated by his beauty and deeply in love with him."
"Now, no matter if I approach him or help him, I have a legitimate reason."
The system processed the information. "So, you’ve gained his trust already? Did he tell you everything he knows? What’s going on with this Big Light Temple?"
"He hasn’t said anything. He hasn’t trusted me yet. My probation period hasn’t passed."
"Then why are you so relaxed?"
Watching the indifferent monk, Yu Tong thought to himself.
"Logically, Chen Ge must have already come up with a plan and figured out how to get out of this mess."
"But the more I look at it, the more it feels like he’s just giving up."
Later, when Yu Tong was kissed by the little rabbit, Chen Yanli didn’t think much of it.
The rabbit was just spiritually aware, not capable of speaking human language, so it wasn’t really a demon.
Kissing him was no different from kissing the temple’s cats or dogs.
At 8 AM, Chen Yanli carried the little rabbit into the dining hall.
Breakfast consisted of vegetable buns, pickled vegetables, and millet porridge.
The little monk serving food gave a few vegetable leaves to the rabbit for breakfast.
As he served porridge to Chen Yanli, he smiled and said, "Master Chen, it’s °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° not good to always feed the rabbit vegetable leaves. You should buy some special rabbit food for him. It’s better for his health."
Chen Yanli continued to pretend not to hear.
As he walked to his seat, the fat monk called out to him again.
Chen Yanli ignored him.
The monks in the dining hall were either purposefully or unintentionally talking to the villain.
The system was worried that Chen Yanli’s pretense of deafness might be exposed, and it started to sweat nervously.
Yu Tong wasn’t as deeply immersed in the situation.
He was thinking about why Chen Yanli pretended to be deaf and what those fake monks were really afraid of him hearing.
After breakfast, the fat monk invited Chen Yanli to the disciple dormitory.
Yu Tong was carried in the villain's arms and smoothly entered.
The so-called disciple dormitory was a five-story dark building without windows or balconies, with barely noticeable connections between floors.
Yu Tong stared at it for a long time before barely making out that it was five stories tall.
The Great Light Temple’s construction style was unique, and the dormitory looked more like an upright coffin.
Even though Yu Tong wasn’t superstitious, the dormitory still gave off an ominous vibe.
On the first floor, there was a large iron door, the only entrance to the building.
Two monks stood guard by the door, and when they saw the fat monk, they respectfully greeted him.
One of them told the fat monk that two new disciples were staying on the rightmost room on the fourth floor.
As the fat monk opened the iron door, the situation inside the dormitory unfolded before Yu Tong’s eyes.
He was stunned, not knowing how to describe what he saw.
The first floor hall was filled with hundreds of coffins, hung in the air with hemp ropes, each with a basin of water placed under it.
On the wall opposite the door was a "Please Keep Quiet" sign.
Several monks in gray robes hurried past them, nodding silently to acknowledge them.
The dormitory
had no windows, and the lighting relied entirely on lamps.
There were no lights on the first floor, just safety exit signs on the walls.
The eerie green light coming from them made it uncomfortable to look at.
Chen Yanli, who grew up in the Great Light Temple, was familiar with everything here. What seemed strange to outsiders was just another part of his upbringing.
The fat monk walking in front and the younger monks who passed by seemed uncomfortable, quickening their pace.
They were new to the temple and still weren’t used to the environment.
The dormitory didn’t have elevators, so the two climbed up the narrow stairs.
As they reached the second floor, Chen Yanli suddenly felt something in his arms shivering.
He reached down, pulling out a small, trembling white ball, the rabbit spirit huddled close to his palm, burrowing into it.
Chen Yanli covered its head with his hand, and the rabbit spirit seemed to feel safe, slowly relaxing.
Chen Yanli raised an eyebrow.
Because of its "Heartfelt Connection" and falling in love at first sight, the rabbit spirit trusted him completely.
It was a little foolish, but had quite the temper.
He wasn’t sure how much use this little demon would have, but for now, he couldn’t let his guard down.
When the system heard that it was locked up, it was shocked, unsure of what was happening.