My lord, spare his life!

Shen Zhi: "Knowing all this, you still want to keep him?"

Xie Shu quietly watched Zhang Yang wait for her reply.

Why not?

Zhang Yang looked completely bewildered.

Shen Zhi was exasperated. He was worried about her, but she remained unmoved: "Didn't you understand what I was saying?"

"My comprehension skills have always been excellent, and what you're saying isn't complicated, so how could I not understand?" Shen Zhi underestimated her. If she didn't have such excellent comprehension skills, how could she possibly decipher the increasingly complex and difficult-to-understand dungeon boss skills designed by the game developers?

"You understand, yet you still—"

"But it's very interesting."

Shen Zhi didn't understand what aspect of "interesting" she meant.

"Interesting? He'll drag you down with him, and you call that interesting?"

"The observation samples have said that humans have two greatest and most peculiar interests: one is to force good women into prostitution, and the other is to rescue prostitutes. He happens to be somewhere in between." Zhang Yang held up two fingers, a rare smile on his face. "Don't you think gaining the absolute loyalty of such a person is a very interesting and challenging thing? I find it very interesting."

Shen Zhi stared in disbelief.

A crack appeared for a moment in Xie Shu's calm expression.

Zhang Yang ignored what the two were imagining. His gaze swept over the mysterious blood-red man whose aura was slightly different from before, and he turned to Xie Shu to ask for good medicine. Such an interesting NPC, it would be a pity if he died of illness. Even if he refreshed the page, he might not be in the same state.

As dusk settled, Xie Shu went to the government office for his night duty.

Just as I finished dealing with the letters at hand, a familiar male voice came from outside, followed by deliberately heavy footsteps: "Did that young friend from earlier accept the gift I gave her as a token of gratitude? Did she say anything?"

Xie Shu's expression turned cold.

"Did she offend you?"

How could she not know what Shen Zhineng realized immediately? She knew better than anyone else, because she had personally witnessed how a celestial being, due to the descent of evil stars, gradually fell from nobility to depravity, becoming hopelessly addicted and unable to extricate himself.

Until one day, when desire was briefly satisfied, the other person, in their satiation, regained a moment of clarity. Looking back at the chaotic room filled with debauchery, the group of men and women lost in their passion, intertwined like snakes in a den, they were struck dumb.

His mental world collapsed completely in an instant.

He drew his sword and committed suicide, cutting off his own path to survival.

Whether one insists on maintaining a clear and restrained mind to control desires, or succumbs to desires and tries to control them, all will die!

The only difference is how they die.

Her lord sent such a prisoner to a boy he had never met before. Was this a gift or a way to lead him astray?

Furthermore, this prisoner also has a somewhat unusual background.

Her inherent arrogance was no less than that of the people she knew back then. Xie Shu, out of consideration for a past connection, tacitly allowed the prisoner to commit suicide.

The lord insisted on pulling him back to the mortal realm, then sent him away instead.

I'm not willing to delve into the details.

The lord bent down to add oil to the lamp: "I haven't offended her, and we've never met before. I just have a feeling that she might not be simple."

"Then why are you still keeping her?"

"My gut feeling tells me that keeping her around is useful."

Shen Zhi also suspected that Zhang Yang was keeping the mysterious blood-soaked person for his own use.

After all, those who suffer this kind of celestial punishment, regardless of whether they are male or female at the beginning, will eventually change, becoming either male or female, or neither male nor female. Some powerful men and women like to keep them because they are very obedient when controlled by desire.

It can satisfy almost any requirement that can be met.

At the same time, it will not pose a threat to itself.

but--

Shen Zhi couldn't imagine Zhang Yang's face being tainted with worldly desires. Although he hadn't known Zhang Yang for long, his impression of him was that Zhang Yang was "naive" and "clueless".

How could someone like that have such filthy thoughts?

Shen Zhi's mind was in turmoil, and he didn't even know when the mysterious blood man woke up until the man took the initiative to ask for water.

"You're awake?" Shen Zhi grabbed the armrest and let the mysterious blood-soaked man, who was trying to get up, lean against it. "Wait, let me get you some water."

"Where am I?"

The mysterious blood-soaked man's voice was frighteningly hoarse.

"A private residence within the Tenben Commandery Castle."

The mysterious blood-soaked man's face turned deathly pale: "I'm not dead?"

"If you want to die now, I can find a way to buy you some time." Shen Zhi knew his limits and couldn't personally feed the other person water to quench their thirst. He could only let the mysterious blood man gently hold the ceramic bowl to his lips with his tightly wrapped hands.

The mysterious blood-red figure greedily drank the slightly bitter water.

Why am I here?

"Someone sent you as a gift, of course, not to me—" Before she could finish speaking, Shen Zhi heard the door creak open and pointed, "To her."

The mysterious blood-soaked man looked up and met a pair of unfamiliar, almond-shaped eyes.

Zhang Yang looked at the mysterious blood-covered man's health bar, which was recovering at a visible speed, and couldn't help but marvel at the NPC's good physique.

Although NPCs are not as good as players—the latter can be shredded into mincemeat by a BOSS's skill and revive on the spot in fifteen seconds, drink a red potion and have their health bar fully replenished in the blink of an eye, the former can sit up after taking a nap even after suffering such serious injuries.

"What's your name?"

Fan You, courtesy name Shuyan.

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Yang saw the recruitment description change simultaneously, with the original "mysterious blood man" replaced by "Fan You, courtesy name Shuyan". Zhang Yang took a few steps closer, until he was only two steps away from the bed, when Fan You's expression suddenly changed, and his cheeks flushed red.

His pupils constricted sharply, and he shouted, "Stop!"

His breathing suddenly became heavy.

He gasped for breath, trying to suppress the rising heat in his lungs with the cold air, but to little avail. Ignoring his lingering injuries, Fan You curled up in agony like a boiled shrimp. He forced out through gritted teeth, "All of you, get out!"

After a while, no footsteps were heard.

But he felt a shadow fall over his head.

Zhang Yang tilted her head, leaned closer, and looked curiously at his contorted, sweating face, saying, "Is this the curse taking effect?"

Fan You was still rational.

When he saw that the two unfamiliar teenagers hadn't left, a bad feeling crept into his heart. He gathered all his strength and rolled towards the bed, trying to reach the sharp blade Shen Zhi had placed nearby. But before he could reach it, a pair of shoes came into his view. The owner of the shoes crouched down slightly, extending two fingers to clamp his chin, forcing him to straighten his neck and look up to meet the peach blossom eyes: "Want to be free?"

"Kill...kill me..." The breath on Zhang Yang's hand was scalding hot. Fan You was in so much pain that he was drenched in sweat, his eyes bloodshot as he pleaded with the stranger before him, "Now, kill me!"

Zhang Yang looked at his disheveled appearance expressionlessly, without disdain or mockery, as if he were looking at an ordinary object: "Shude just said that as your lord, I might have to share your burdens. What should I do?"

Such a blatant statement shocked Shen Zhi.

Is this something I can say to his face?

Fan You closed his eyes briefly, panting, and said, "Don't even think about it!"

Zhang Yang tilted her head in confusion, looking at Shen Zhi with eyes that seemed to accuse him of being unreliable: "Are you mistaken again?"

Shen Zhi wished he could jump back a step.

"What does this have to do with me?"

His gaze swept over Zhang Yang and Fan You, and he raised an eyebrow, asking them, "Would you like me to make some room for you two?"

Zhang Yang said coldly, "Your tone is improper."

They resembled some of the observed subjects who, while talking, would reveal a meaningful chuckle, their eyes and brows radiating a strange excitement.

Shen Zhi wasn't excited, but Zhang Yang sensed the same emotion from him, which could be described as "unscrupulous".

Shen Zhi: "..."

He belatedly realized that he might have misunderstood.

Upon realizing his mistake, he felt it would have been better to have misunderstood.

"Don't go crazy..."

Zhang Yang just watched Shen Zhi quietly.

Shen Zhi had seen people courting death before, but never anyone as suicidal as Zhang Yang. He snapped at Fan You, "Stop trying to kill yourself. She doesn't just want your body; she wants you to formally acknowledge her as her star lord. You're incredibly lucky..."

That's certainly true.

If Fan You can remain rational and not cross the line to let his body become accustomed to lust, even if the influence of Lie Xing Jiang Li cannot be completely eliminated, he can still live a normal life for a few years, which is much better than the current situation. However, upholding integrity is extremely difficult.

Fan You was stunned for a moment: "You—"

He felt the burning sensation that had spread from his soul to his internal organs subside considerably, and his somewhat muddled mind was regained under the control of reason. Focusing his gaze, he finally saw Zhang Yang's appearance clearly and noticed the coldness hidden in her once-romantic peach blossom eyes.

He shook his head, forcing himself to calm down.

With difficulty, he looked away: "I have no intention of harming anyone."

Zhang Yang: "Why is it considered harming people?"

Fan You struggled to his feet, letting his wounds reopen and blood seep in: "The 'Starry Night' curse on my body has now reached two levels. One level can minimize its effects... but with two levels, at your age, you're likely to be easily affected..."

Zhang Yang: "What I want is influence."

Shen Zhi and Fan You both thought they had misheard.

Zhang Yang repeated it again.

Yes, she didn't cheat either of them.

One of her purposes in taking Fan You in was to experience "desire," something she had never experienced before and could never have.

From the moment she awakened to self-awareness, from the moment the scavenging old woman's 30 million adopted grandchildren flooded into her small base at the start of the game, she knew she was merely game data. Her body was composed of cold code, unlike the flesh and blood bodies of the observation samples in reality.

The observers said that game designers lower the sensory data when making holographic games, and because this game is aimed at all ages and promotes a green and harmonious gaming experience, content that is usually only available in adult channels for those over 30 is completely prohibited in this game. Zhang Yang didn't understand. She didn't feel that anything was prohibited. The BOSS's skills could grind players into mincemeat. Such gore was shown, so what was there to censor?

The observer covered their face in pain: "I can't be lewd."

There are certain body parts that players are prohibited from touching each other. Furthermore, without game technology support, no matter how much the player imagines, the in-game character's body will not provide any feedback.

Zhang Yang wants to disguise herself as a human, so naturally she needs to understand all aspects of humanity. However, she is an NPC made of data, and she is also constrained by the green game atmosphere. She has no lewd abilities, cannot feel emotions in that area, and has no desires.

Therefore, she was curious, and the empathetic experience brought by Fan You's "Starry Night" ability could perfectly bypass the game's mechanics.

"Let me feel your desire."

After speaking, Fan You and Shen Zhi's faces contorted simultaneously for a moment.

Knowing full well that Zhang Yang's words differed from their understanding, Fan You still found them awkward no matter how they listened. Fan You remained motionless, and Zhang Yang's already dwindling patience was rapidly wearing thin. Just as he was about to pull out a gold brick as a warning, Fan You, enduring the pain, forced out a drop of his heart's blood.

He was trembling all over from the pain.

He forced a smile and said, "Don't regret it."

Just as Zhang Yang was about to ask himself what to do, the system logs had already taken action, asking Zhang Yang whether he wanted to accept the drop of blood.

She naturally chose to accept it.

Fresh blood drifted towards her brow.

It is completely absorbed the moment it comes into contact with the skin.

At the same time, Zhang Yang felt a strange, faint, trembling aura emanating from her spiritual center. Perhaps influenced by this aura, she found Fan You much more agreeable and put the gold brick she had half-taken out back into her hand.

Shen Zhi couldn't stop him no matter what.

He asked defiantly, "How does it feel?"

Zhang Yang blurted out, "What? It's already started?"

Shen Zhi: "..."

He noticed that Fan You's flushed cheeks returned to normal color in just a few breaths, and his mind was clear, showing no signs of the near-collapse caused by the calamity of the descending stars...

Shen Zhi asked uncertainly, "Is...it over?"

Fan You: "..."

Meeting the two pairs of shocked eyes of the boys, he was speechless for a moment. Finally, in despair, he closed his eyes and said, "Don't speak, and don't ask me anything."

He felt the effects of the celestial wrath most deeply.

That kind of thought, which can drive the soul mad and yearn for depravity and ruin, can drive anyone insane. When he was only at the first level of the Starfall Descendant, he could still suppress this impulse with reason. But when he reached the second level, he was defeated and became a prisoner. Even though he smashed his legs and broke his hands with prison stones, the intense physical pain could only suppress it temporarily.

With each attack occurring more and more frequently, and each attack lasting longer and longer, he knew that he was probably going to die.

If you want to survive, you must submit and yield.

If you don't want to live a miserable life, then commit suicide.

There is no third way.

This time, the attack ended too quickly.

It happened so fast he didn't even have time to react.

Seeing this, Shen Zhi understood that Fan You had survived, and the reason was beyond doubt. He stared at Zhang Yang with the eyes of someone looking at a monster and blurted out, "Are you a spirit of the Heart-Cleansing Mantra?"

Fan You: "..."

To be frank, the Heart-Cleansing Mantra isn't that effective yet.

He was about to thank Zhang Yang when he noticed that she was staring at him with a deep, unsettling gaze, as if she were looking at a con artist who had tricked her.

"What happened to the promised desire?"

"Is that all your desires?"

"You're making a huge fuss over this? You're hopeless."

Fan You: "..."

I don't know why it's called "vegetables," but it definitely doesn't refer to vegetables.

Zhang Yang bombarded him with another question.

"When will it be next time?"

The product doesn't match the description! You're a scammer!

Fan You: "..."

Shen Zhi didn't care about being stunned anymore; he just felt ashamed.

Fan You did not answer, so Zhang Yang pressed him for an answer.

He could only say, "This is beyond human control..."

Strands of black hair clung to his face, and his handsome features were damp with sweat. As the flush of desire faded, his previously sickly and pale face was revealed, making him look utterly pitiful. At this moment, he was as desperate as a good young man with nowhere to turn, while Zhang Yang was a tyrant.