CH 2

Chapter 2 

The statistics seemed somewhat terrifying, but the process of beastification also varied depending on the situation. Partial beastification rendered individuals completely devoid of their senses, with bloodshot eyes and an inability to speak or communicate. They relied solely on instinct, hunting when hungry and consuming anything living. Once their bellies were full, they would find a place to sleep, only to wake up and search for food again, trapped in an endless cycle.

On the other hand, those who could fully beastify, transforming their bodies completely into animals, retained their consciousness. They could even utilize their fully beastified form for combat, greatly augmenting their strength, and revert back to their human appearance whenever desired.

These individuals were known as beastmen.

Beastmen were further categorized into two types. The majority were ordinary beastmen, whose transformed appearances, regardless of the animal form they took, seemed quite commonplace. For instance, even if they transformed into a sparrow, they would only be twice the size of an average sparrow at most. Their combat abilities might be slightly enhanced, but not significantly.

Individuals like these primarily served the purpose of gathering information, as they couldn’t be relied upon for combat or similar tasks.

The other type was the variant beastment. Once they transformed into an animal, it was immediately evident to others that they were variants. The reason was simple: the transformed appearance of variant beastment bore little resemblance to the animal they had become, just like Qin Jiulin himself.

After returning home, Qin Jiulin opened the electric fence surrounding his villa, carefully closed and locked all the doors and windows, and then descended into the basement, sealing the entrance behind him.

He sat there, somewhat absentminded in the empty basement, holding his phone and occasionally glancing at the time.

He knew that Xia Liansheng must have already secretly met with Qin Jiuzhen, that foolish person. There was truly no one in this world who liked him.

Having lived for twenty years, his own family didn’t care for him. They treated him like a burden, even going as far as to say, “When are you leaving? I’ll have someone help you pack your things,” when he expressed his desire to move out. They were afraid his slow departure would disrupt the household.

At school, neither his classmates nor teachers liked him. Instead, they favored his younger brother, two years his junior. His classmates’ animosity was particularly strong, but he managed to cope. As for the teachers… fortunately, his grades were good, and he never made any mistakes at school. While the teachers didn’t hold him in high regard, they didn’t criticize him either.

Having lived for over twenty years, he had no real family, no friends, and no one to confide in. The only person he had was Xia Liansheng, this so-called boyfriend of his.

Ha! Boyfriend, my foot!

As Qin Jiulin sat in the pitch-black basement, a sudden realization struck him. He seemed to have no real relationship with Xia Liansheng.

Although they appeared close and Xia Liansheng always showered him with gifts and took him on dates, he had never actually asked Qin Jiulin to be his boyfriend.

And Qin Jiulin had never initiated the topic either. He had always assumed their relationship without any confirmation. Had he been deluding himself all this time, from his past life until now?

With a self-torturing mindset, Qin Jiulin picked up his phone, opened the contacts, and found Xia Liansheng’s number. Glancing at the time, nearly half an hour had passed since their planned meeting.

After a brief contemplation, he decided to wait a little longer—just ten more minutes…

Qin Jiulin smiled faintly as he quietly endured the ten minutes, watching the time gradually approaching. When it was almost time, he dialed Xia Liansheng’s number. “Liansheng, it’s me.”

Xia Liansheng was still driving. When he dropped Qin Jiulin off at home, he drove slowly, but on his way back, he accelerated. Consequently, he was almost at Qin’s house now.

“Jiulin? Is that you? What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Should I come back and take you to the hospital?”

If he went back now, he would definitely not have enough time to meet Qin Jiuzhen today. However, Qin Jiulin’s well-being was a top priority, or else…

Qin Jiulin reassured him, “No, it’s nothing. I just wanted to call and check if you arrived home safely. It’s late already…”

Xia Liansheng chuckled, “Don’t worry, I’m driving carefully. You don’t need to be concerned.”

Qin Jiulin inquired, “So you haven’t arrived home yet?”

Xia Liansheng responded, “Yeah, not yet, but I’m almost there. I’m quite skilled at driving.”

Qin Jiulin acknowledged, “That’s good. By the way, send me a text when you get home, so I know you arrived safely. It will put my mind at ease.”

Xia Liansheng harbored no suspicions. Qin Jiulin was still the same caring person as before.

After ending the call, Xia Liansheng accelerated and reached his destination. As he parked the car and opened the door, he witnessed a figure gleefully running towards him from the gate.

He swiftly sent a casual text to Qin Jiulin, advising him to get some rest and confirming his safe arrival home. Then, he casually slipped the phone into his pocket.

Standing still, he opened his arms and tightly embraced the person who had leaped into his embrace. “Jizhen?”

Qin Jizhen buried his head in Xia Liansheng’s embrace, tightly holding onto his waist. “Liansheng ge, why did you only just arrive? I’ve been waiting for so long…”

Xia Liansheng quickly caressed his head. “I’m sorry, it’s my fault for keeping Jizhen waiting for so long…”

In fact, if Qin Jiulin hadn’t decided to come home early today instead of watching a movie, Xia Liansheng might have arrived even later, or perhaps not at all. Thankfully, Qin Jiulin had come home ahead of schedule.

He didn’t genuinely care if Qin Jiulin was feeling unwell or not. He just felt good about being able to see Qin Jizhen earlier today.

Qin Jizhen shook his head, standing in front of Xia Liansheng and looking at him. “It’s okay, I know you have a lot of things to attend to, and there’s also my brother…”

Xia Liansheng interrupted, “I’m sorry, Jizhen. Please give me a little more time…”

Qin Jizhen replied, “I understand, Liansheng ge. I’ll wait for you, but… don’t make me wait too long, okay? You know my brother’s personality, and I feel…”

Xia Liansheng reassured him, “I know, I apologize for inconveniencing you, Jizhen. I’ll do my best to be quick. You can trust me, there won’t be any issues…”

After comforting Qin Jizhen, Xia Liansheng planned to leave when suddenly they heard roaring and screaming from outside the main gate.

Since the villas in the Qin family’s area were private residences with large surrounding gardens, other houses were quite far away, and there was minimal activity on the nearby roads. Thus, the sound seemed faint, and it was uncertain if they had misheard.

Feeling a bit scared, Qin Jizhen lifted his head from Xia Liansheng’s embrace and looked outside. “What’s that sound, Liansheng ge?”

Xia Liansheng didn’t know what came to mind, but he immediately grabbed Qin Jizhen’s hand and ran towards the house. “Let’s not worry about the noise outside for now. We should go home first. It might be dangerous to go out.”

Qin Jizhen nodded earnestly, obediently following him into the house. At this time, the elders were already preparing to rest in their rooms, so there were only the two of them downstairs.

Even the housekeeper had already retired, leaving Qin Jizhen to sit on the sofa in the living room and rest with Xia Liansheng.

Meanwhile, in the basement, Qin Jiulin, who was alone, suddenly felt his consciousness fading away. He knew the time had come, and with a faint smile, he passed out.