The pretty little follower gets targeted by the crazy guys at the elite academy

"Mr. Fu is right."

Li Ruo's voice was very soft, as soft as a feather falling on the water, yet as steady as a nail driven into wood.

"But I didn't change myself to please you."

Fu Chenzhou's gray eyes narrowed slightly.

The curve of that squinting eye was very shallow.

So shallow that it's almost invisible.

But Li Ruo saw it.

"Oh?"

"I just wanted to know,"

Li Ruo looked directly into his eyes and spoke each word clearly:

"What am I left after all the decorations are removed?"

"If I don't even know who I am, how can I expect others to see the real me?"

The fire in the fireplace crackled.

After that sound, the study fell into complete silence.

Fu Chenzhou looked at her.

I watched it for a very long time.

So long that time seemed to stand still.

So long that Li Ruo felt her breath was freezing in her chest.

[...This silence can drive a person crazy!!]

[Holy crap, my breath almost caught in my throat! But Li Ruo was still staring at me. Is this woman made of iron??]

What is Fu Chenzhou looking at? Is he reassessing her?

After a long silence, Fu Chenzhou smiled.

The smile was very faint.

So faint as to be almost invisible.

It was so faint that anyone else would have thought it was an illusion.

But Li Ruo did not miss it.

That wasn't a laugh.

That's something more dangerous.

A collector suddenly discovers something truly worth his attention among a pile of ordinary fakes.

Li Ruochai:

Unsurprisingly, she has now leveled up in Fu Chenzhou's eyes.

really:

"interesting."

Fu Chenzhou turned around and sat back down on the sofa.

The movements were as graceful as a large feline, languid yet deadly:

"A little more interesting than the previous ones..."

Li Ruo quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

But he hadn't quite let out a sigh of relief yet.

"but……"

Fu Chenzhou said.

Just those two words.

Let Li Ruo's heart sink into the ice water once again.

"It's not enough to just have interesting words."

Fu Chenzhou raised his eyes. Those grey eyes flickered in the firelight, like phosphorescence burning in an abyss.

"I need to confirm whether you are worthy of being collected."

He withdrew his hand, sat back down on the sofa, and sat lazily like a satiated wild beast.

Then he pressed an inconspicuous button on the sofa armrest.

No sound.

But one wall of the study slowly opened.

Thousands of books, along with the bookshelves, slowly slid to the sides.

A staircase leading downwards is revealed.

The stairs are narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time.

The walls on both sides are bare rock, cold and damp, covered with dark green moss.

The staircase is very long, spiraling downwards as if leading to the earth's core, as if it has no end.

Wall lamps are embedded in the walls on both sides, emitting a dim yellow light that shines on the damp stone steps, giving off a faint, cold glow.

The light didn't reach very far, leaving only an ambiguous halo at the stairwell.

Beyond the aperture lies a darkness that devours everything.

At the end of the stairs, a faint, dark red light could be seen.

That red wasn't the warm orange-red of a fireplace.

It's the color of blood.

Li Ruo smelled it.

The stench of blood rose up from under the stairs.

It's ten times more concentrated.

It's so strong it's pungent.

It was so thick it made me want to vomit.

"Come with me."

Fu Chenzhou stood up.

He didn't look back at her, nor did he check if she would follow.

He simply walked straight up the stairs, and his black figure was quickly swallowed by the darkness.

Then he disappeared.

Engulfed by darkness.

Li Ruo stood still.

She looked at the staircase.

Looking at the flashing red light.

The smell of blood grew stronger and stronger.

one second.

two seconds.

three seconds.

She can turn around.

It can run.

You could rush out, push open the door, cross the garden, and escape into the thick fog...

Her reason was screaming: Don't go down.

It's not too late to run now.

Run before the door closes and before he turns his back to you!

But she knew it was too late.

It was too late from the moment she stepped into the manor.

[A hidden door! I knew this kind of manor would have a hidden door!!]

The staircase leading to the Earth's core has no end; it's utterly hopeless.

The blood was a deep red, and the smell of blood was ten times stronger. I dared not imagine what lay below.

[A darkness that devours everything? Isn't that Fu Chenzhou's own eye?]

[My rational mind is screaming, "Don't go!" The immersion is too strong, my legs are already weak!]

[Li Ruo hesitated; was she weighing her options or despairing?]

It was too late the moment I stepped into the manor. This is so hopeless…

Li Ruo took a deep breath and followed.

The staircase is very long.

Spiraling downwards, round and round, as if there were no end in sight.

The rock walls on both sides became increasingly damp, with fine water droplets seeping out and flowing down the rock face. The moss grew thicker and thicker, and the air grew colder and colder.

The smell of blood grew stronger and stronger.

It's so thick it's pungent, so thick it's viscous, so thick it makes you nauseous, so thick that every breath feels like swallowing blood.

Li Ruo counted the steps.

Level 137.

Level 138.

Level 139...

Suddenly, the stairs came to an end.

Suddenly, everything became clear.

Li Ruo stood at the entrance to a huge underground space.

The space was as large as a football field, and at least ten meters high.

Countless dark red lights were embedded in the dome, shrouding the entire space in a dark, blood-red hue.

And within that crimson hue, countless glass cabinets were arranged.

The cabinets come in various sizes and shapes.

Some are two meters high and one meter wide, resembling a small transparent coffin.

Some were only the size of a palm, with something inside that was hard to see.

The glass was frosted, so you couldn't see what was inside; you could only make out a blurry outline.

The lights shone down from above, casting a pale and cold light on them.

Those outlines instantly became clear... It wasn't a sculpture! It wasn't a wax figure!

They're real people!!

Alive? Or dead? Li Ruo couldn't tell.

Their eyes were closed, their faces were pale, some were standing, some were sitting, some were lying down, some were curled up, all looked like they were asleep.

Some were young, some were older, some were handsome, and some were ordinary.

But each one is carefully displayed in a glass case, like the most precious collection in a museum.

Li Ruo's breathing stopped.

Welcome to my collection room!

Fu Chenzhou's voice came from ahead.

He stood in the center of that crimson light, sideways to her, facing the glass cases.

The black figure was outlined with a cold, austere silhouette by the red light, like a king in this blood-red hell.

His profile was outlined with a sharp contour by the stark white light.

For the first time, warmth appeared in those gray eyes.

It wasn't warmth, it was fervor.

A kind of insane, morbid, and devout fanaticism.

"Here are my most precious collections."

He turned his head and looked at Li Ruo.

A smile curved at the corner of his mouth.

Under the stark white light, that curve resembled a glint of cold light on a blade:

"Me and them, welcome to the group."

Li Ruo stood frozen in place.

She could feel her blood getting colder and colder.

She looked at the human figures in the glass cases;

Looking at this huge and magnificent underground tomb;

Looking at the tomb owner who spoke the most cruel words with the most elegant demeanor.

He's insane.

Completely insane.

Exquisitely crazy.

His madness sent chills down your spine.

[An underground collection room! The legends are true! My God... Could the missing violin prodigy mentioned before also be kept here?!]

[And that one! A pillar of the international ballet company! She disappeared after retiring three years ago!]

[Fu Chenzhou really turned living people into specimens?! Ugh—I threw up! This is like a scene from a horror movie!]

The blood is cooling down inch by inch; this gradual process is more terrifying than freezing to death all at once! Fu Chenzhou is truly insane! These are all specimens made from living people!

[It was a good thing the female lead didn't end up in Rose Manor in her past life! Seeing this place would give her nightmares for the rest of her life!]

Even if Li Ruo is incredibly beautiful, she probably wouldn't survive more than three episodes in a place like this...

[Speaking of which, even standing in this hellish environment, the way Li Ruo tilted her head back was still so beautiful. This woman is truly stunning!!]

Indeed, anyone else would have collapsed by now, but she can still stand and maintain her beauty; her looks and demeanor are top-notch!

That's why Fu Chenzhou said it was a bit more interesting than the previous ones. A beauty of this caliber, coupled with this kind of mental fortitude, is indeed a rare find.

For Fu Chenzhou, praise and a death sentence might be the same thing.

[Li Ruo is definitely doomed this time! Fu Chenzhou just said she was special, probably because he wanted to upgrade her preservation status from excellent to super excellent!]