My organs are too abstract.

The sunlight slanted in through the window, making my face feel slightly hot.

Xu Liang frowned, opened his eyes groggily, and was met with an unfamiliar ceiling.

No, it's not entirely unfamiliar either; this is Xu Yuan's bed in their dormitory.

He propped himself up on the edge of the bed and looked around. Xu Yuan's bed was neatly folded, but he was no longer there.

A sudden, aching, throbbing, and heavy feeling came from the back of my neck, like I had a stiff neck, and my whole head felt dizzy, as if I had been hit on the head with a club.

Xu Liang sat on the bed for a few seconds, his memories of last night coming back in fragments: having nightmares, running to find Xu Yuan, talking to him in a haphazard way... and then what?

Why can't I remember anything after that?

"woke up?"

Xu Yuan's voice came from the doorway.

Xu Liang looked up and saw Xu Yuan push open the door, still warm from the morning air, carrying a hot breakfast in his hand.

Xu Liang was taken aback: "Brother Yuan, you're up so early?"

"It's already past nine o'clock, is it still early?" Xu Yuan put breakfast on the table, gesturing for him to get up and eat. "How did you sleep?"

"It's alright. I vaguely remember having a nightmare, but I don't really remember it."

"That's good," Xu Yuan nodded. "Do you still feel that feeling of being watched?"

Xu Liang shook his head: "That's all. I slept quite soundly this time, but there's something strange about it."

Xu Yuan, thinking the shadowy figure might have left some lingering effects, immediately asked in a deep voice, "What's strange about it?"

"My neck hurts terribly, like I've been beaten up," Xu Liang said, rubbing the back of his neck and looking at Xu Yuan with a puzzled expression. "Brother Yuan, do you have any clue?"

"..."

Xu Yuan was silent for a moment, then said seriously, "You have a stiff neck."

"stiff neck?"

Before Xu Liang could say anything more, Xu Yuan changed the subject: "I've already handed that jewelry box over to the security guard. You don't need to worry about it anymore. This matter is over."

He got up early this morning to exercise, and since he had nothing better to do, he simply ran all the way to the police station and handed over the items.

However, the photo of the girl who fell from the building had disappeared. He didn't think much of it, assuming that when the shadow disappeared, everything related to it was also erased.

Xu Liang instantly forgot everything that had just happened, his face showing gratitude: "Thank you, Brother Yuan!"

"No need for thanks." Xu Yuan waved his hand and said casually, "Just don't say anything that will ruin my reputation in the future."

Xu Liang straightened his expression and patted his chest loudly: "How could that be? From now on, I'm Brother Yuan's die-hard supporter!"

Xu Yuan smiled noncommittally: "Hehe, you'd better be."

After saying that, he casually took off his coat, revealing his well-defined, toned upper body, and prepared to take a shower.

Xu Liang was eating breakfast at the table when he looked up and saw Xu Yuan's eight-pack abs. His eyes widened immediately: "Wow, Yuan-ge, your physique is amazing?"

Xu Yuan smiled faintly and said casually, "Basic stuff, don't be silly."

"Yuan-ge is so handsome!" Xu Liang, already grateful to Xu Yuan, praised him repeatedly, "If I were a girl, I would definitely fall in love with Yuan-ge..."

However, he suddenly stopped halfway through his sentence.

A strange unease settled over me, like something was stuck in my throat, unable to go up or down, and I just felt something was off.

Some vague images surfaced in his mind, making him feel uneasy and troubled.

"What happened?"

He frowned and tried desperately to recall, his expression changing several times like a Sichuan opera face-changing act, as a few blurry and eerie fragments flashed through his mind.

Seeing that he looked off, Xu Yuan asked, "What's wrong?"

"Brother Yuan, I think I... had a really strange dream..."

Xu Liang's brows furrowed, his expression shifting between fear and doubt, becoming terribly distorted.

"Did he remember what happened last night?"

Xu Yuan was startled, but his face remained calm: "What dream?"

"Yes, I dreamt about you... and me..."

He stammered for a long time, unable to get the words out.

Xu Yuan, who had been staring thoughtfully at the back of Xu Liang's neck, breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing his expression.

"What you think about during the day, you dream about at night. You must have been under too much pressure during the day," he patted Xu Liang on the shoulder and comforted him with a smile. "Don't think too much about it, it's just a dream."

"What you think about during the day, you dream about at night?" Xu Liang was stunned for a moment, and for some reason, his face became even more unpleasant.

He was silent for a few seconds, then looked at Xu Yuan with a complicated expression, his voice muffled: "Thanks, Brother Yuan..."

As soon as Xu Yuan entered the restroom, Xu Liang suddenly stood up, his face ashen.

"Holy crap... what's going on?!"

Fragmented images forcibly flooded my mind—

He vaguely saw that there was a noose around his neck, and the end of the noose was being held in Xu Yuan's hand. Xu Yuan was looking at him with a smile on his face, his laughter was both grotesque and unrestrained.

Surprisingly, he didn't resist at all. Instead, he feigned reluctance and showed an expression of enjoyment, seemingly taking it all in stride.

"Holy crap?!" Xu Liang's face turned green.

He himself found this outrageous scene offensive, so how could he possibly tell Xu Yuan about it?

"This shouldn't be..." Xu Liang shivered, his expression shifting rapidly. "Why would I have such a dream? Could it be that spending too much time with Brother Yuan has caused this suspension bridge effect?"

"Snapped!"

Xu Liang slapped himself hard across the face: "Pah! Pah! Pah! What nonsense am I thinking?"

Even so, he became increasingly panicked and hurriedly shouted towards the bathroom, "Brother Yuan, I'm going out for some fresh air!"

Without waiting for a response, he grabbed his clothes and rushed out of the dormitory, heading straight for the playground.

Only when a beautiful young woman came into view and his heart started beating normally again did Xu Liang smile, murmuring with lingering fear, "Thank goodness, thank goodness I'm alright."

"Look at that guy, grinning at us so lewdly, what a jerk!"

"This kind of person deserves to be featured on the confession wall!"

The sharp whispers around him abruptly pulled Xu Liang back to reality.

He panicked for a moment, belatedly realizing that his behavior could easily cause misunderstandings, and was about to apologize.

Looking up, she saw a chubby girl with a fleshy face, hands on her hips, shouting with an air of self-righteousness, "Sisters, this kind of pervert needs to be given a green badge so he'll be famous! Let's see if he dares to look at girls like that again!"

"Sisters, we need to protect ourselves! Remember, we wear makeup to please ourselves, not for men!"

Xu Liang's face darkened when he saw her face, which looked like it had been plastered with putty.

I initially thought I had accidentally offended a normal girl, but I never expected it to be this kind of person.

He wasn't going to tolerate it at all and immediately retorted, "Damn it, whose gas cylinder has come to life and is causing a ruckus in the street? Who can afford to pay for it if it really explodes?"

The chubby girl's smug expression froze instantly: "You..."

"What do you mean, 'what the hell'?" Xu Liang shouted passionately, his tone extremely aggressive. "Who knows where this flying wild boar came from, acting so arrogantly? I don't own an oil refinery, what normal person would even look at you?"

"Didn't you see the news? Everyone's talking about an energy crisis right now. Why aren't you, a strategic resource, staying home? What are you doing running around? If the government takes it into its reserves, you'll be crying your eyes out!"

The chubby girl trembled with anger, her face shaking: "You... what's your name? What's your major?!"

Xu Liang sneered, "What, looking for trouble?"

By this time, the conflict between the two sides had attracted a large crowd of onlookers.

A boy walked over and couldn't help but whisper, "Hey, you should leave quickly and ignore her. She's a notorious little fairy in our school, codenamed 'Spherical Tank.' One of my classmates is going crazy from being harassed by her and her girlfriends."

"I should avoid her?!"

Xu Liang shook his head, his voice righteous and awe-inspiring: "With this kind of person, if you take a step back, she'll take ten steps forward. If everyone tolerates it, when will the world ever be at peace?"

The boy was moved and said, "You..."

"Justice cannot be killed. Today, I will fight her to the bitter end!"

Xu Liang, head held high and chest puffed out, stepped forward: "I'm Yang Minghao from Class 2 of the Economics and Management Department, and that's me, your grandpa!"

"Bring on whatever tricks you have up your sleeve. If I, Yang Minghao, even flinch, I'm not your grandpa!"

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Xu Liang laughed heartily: "Today, I, Yang Minghao, will usher in an era of peace for all generations!"

Upon hearing this, a gasp of surprise immediately rippled through the crowd.

"Holy crap, this guy's got guts!"

"Daring to confront a spherical tank head-on, truly a warrior of steel!"

"Truly a role model for us all!"

"Yang Minghao, right?" The spherical tank trembled with rage, its chubby finger pointing directly at him. "I'll remember you! You just wait!"

As she spoke, she reached for her phone.

Xu Liang was about to stop him when he suddenly felt a daze. Out of the corner of his eye, he seemed to see the shadow at his feet sway slightly.

Before he could even look down and see clearly, the spherical tank suddenly cried out in pain, his phone slipping from his grasp and falling to the ground with a "thud".

"Trying to stage an accident?" Xu Liang frowned, looked around, and said, "Everyone saw it, I didn't touch her at all!"

As he spoke, he glanced at the spherical tank clutching its wrist in a gesture reminiscent of Xi Shi clutching her heart, and immediately felt a chill run down his spine. He muttered, "What a bizarre creature! What bad luck!"

After saying that, he turned and ran, stopping only when he reached another playground.

He hid under a quiet shady tree, watching the girls exercise on the playground, and his mood instantly improved: "These are the beautiful and youthful female college students! What was that thing just now?"

"Huh? What's going on?"

Just as he was engrossed in watching, a chill suddenly swept over him, and he instinctively shrank his neck.

He didn't pay much attention at first, but the longer he stayed, the colder it got. When the wind blew, the hairs on his body stood on end, and he couldn't help but shiver.

"Strange..." Xu Liang muttered to himself, hugging his arms. "Is it a cold, or am I just too weak lately?"

If it were the former, that would be fine, but the latter was a big deal. Thinking this, he stood up and prepared to go to the school hospital to have a check-up.

But as they walked, the chill inexplicably disappeared.

Xu Liang was completely bewildered, scratching his head: "Strange..."

In the warm sunshine, he looked down and rubbed his arm, completely unaware that—

The shadow behind him had, without him noticing, quietly changed its outline.

His slender figure was no longer on the ground; instead, a delicate and graceful silhouette was visible.

With long hair, her waist and shoulders exuded soft feminine curves, lying quietly on the ground, silently embedding herself in Xu Liang's shadow.

He walked, and she followed; he stopped, and she gently clung to him.

She followed him step by step, neither too fast nor too slow, just like a girl who stayed close to him every step of the way.