Deep in the Living
Chapter 235 - 224: Tracking

Chapter 235: Chapter 224: Tracking

The incident at the abandoned apartment had ended,

Luo Di slept until the next afternoon, waking up a few hours earlier compared to the previous twilight awakening.

Today there was plenty of time. Since he had eaten something before going to bed last night, he wasn’t very hungry upon waking, so the first thing he did was to check out the "Moon Zone" forum.

Today there were no risky activities like the day before, not even one with a 100 horror bean reward.

The highest there was a 50 horror bean offline activity.

But Luo Di didn’t pick and choose because of the small amount, nor did he take this as a chance to rest; it seemed he had gotten used to this kind of life.

Browsing websites, replying to posts, and heading to the requested spot before dawn, then hurrying home to sleep before daylight.

The whole process seemed like a "routine." Maintaining the same life rhythm every day was really comfortable, similar to the schooldays, but even more to look forward to, as there were tangible gains every day, big or small.

[Offline activity]:

Please head to Joule Primary School after midnight and find the bleeding restroom within one hour. Enter and use the facility once.

The whole process requires video recording to confirm that the reply poster has completed the above requirement (no need to film organs), and the video must be uploaded before 06:00.

Success will be rewarded with horror beans: 60.

"Joule Primary School... eight kilometers away from here, a night run should do. Let’s do this tonight. It’s still early; time to grab some red-hot grub."

As soon as Luo Di pushed open the door of his rental, he found a stack of parcels of various sizes outside, all in black boxes made of excellent material, with the sender’s location clearly marked as "4hs".

The items he shopped for on the website had arrived.

Unboxing merchandise related to the Murderer, Luo Di felt a pleasure akin to childhood. First, he placed a limited-edition figurine on his bedroom desk, adjusting the angle back and forth more than a dozen times, still not quite satisfied.

Although he wasn’t very thirsty, he still drank a large cup of water from a Murderer-themed mug.

He meticulously stuck up the poster at the head of the bed,

then stripped off all his clothes and donned the sweatshirt printed with the classic image of the Murderer.

Luo Di felt an indescribable sense of gratification.

Just as he was about to shut down the computer and head downstairs for food, he accidentally noticed that the friend request list had hit 99+, mainly from that early popular video he posted in Mingwang City.

His replies in the Moon Zone were kept confidential, visible only to the website itself, to ensure personal privacy and that there was no interference during offline activities.

Luo Di habitually clicked on the application list, intending to clear them all, but accidentally found a rather special avatar with an address that was different from most of the friend requesters.

The avatar was a red smiley face that was jarringly out of place against a black curtain background, with the address showing as Moon City, named "Wendy".

Perhaps it was because of Moon City,

or perhaps it was the discordant smiley face,

Luo Di clicked on the person’s profile, which showed a 22-year-old female netizen.

Interest tags: [Murderer], [Psychological Fear].

Application reason: I really like your... video.

Luo Di’s popular videos were indeed posted in the Murderer section, and those applying to be friends were all Murderer series enthusiasts; there was nothing particularly special about it.

Furthermore, Luo Di had already had enough chats with others in the sisterhood, and now that he had just returned to a solitary life, finding this stable sense of routine, he did not want it disrupted nor did he wish to waste time on such bland online chats.

Decisively emptied it, without adding.

He also found the personal settings and directly turned off the friend request feature.

After sorting everything out, he went out for food. Since it was still early, Luo Di did not dine downstairs but roamed around Moon City as an ordinary person.

The whole city had an older stylistic feel than any domestic city, as if stepping back into thirty years ago, with many technologies not keeping up—or perhaps, deliberately so.

It’s intentionally maintained to have an 80s and 90s vibe, with certain restrictions and limits on technology, to encourage more focus on real-life interactions.

There are still many inhabitants—or rather, migrants banished here in Moon City, most of whom are busy trying to survive.

There aren’t many job opportunities provided in Moon City, and even if there are jobs, the salary isn’t much. To live here, most people need to run side businesses and try to make a buck from tourists.

Even though they may never be able to leave this city, they still want to live on.

Although Luo Di was wearing a Murderer-themed sweatshirt, walking on the street he just looked like a student who had just graduated from high school, exhibiting no Killing Intent at all, but rather appeared somewhat sunny,

A passive Disguise has already been ingrained in his brain, as if it had been transmitted by the class monitor; but this passive ability was indeed useful, helping Luo Di avoid unnecessary trouble.

After a stroll, he still went for a Chinese restaurant, but today he changed his tastes, ordering dishes without chili.

Sweet and sour pork, fried eggplant, scallion oil dry tofu, and a large serving of chive dumplings.

Luo Di’s bodily needs far exceeded those of an ordinary person; whenever he dined somewhere, he always shocked those around him, making people who didn’t know better think he was a competitive eater with a live-streaming channel.

Just as Luo Di was engrossed in his gourmet delights.

His tongue suddenly flicked without making a sound due to the food stuffing his mouth, but the action had indeed taken place.

The look in Luo Di’s eyes, originally typical of a normal person, instantly sharpened. After confirming there were no anomalies inside the restaurant, he bit into a piece of sweet and sour pork and bolted out, swiftly surveying the surrounding streets and alleys.

It was peak rush hour, and the dense crowds coming and going made it difficult to identify anyone suspicious.

Owing to Moon City’s unique management system, the proportion of Pseudo-People was high, so it was very possible that the tongue’s reaction was caused by a Mature Pseudo-Person passing by the entrance.

There was no need for Luo Di to care, nor did he need to.

If someone was indeed aiming to make a move on him in secret, his tongue would continue to flicker, and he would very much welcome the attention from the Pseudo-People.

Unfortunately, even after he had finished all his food, his tongue did not flicker a second time.

...

[01:40]

At Joule Primary School, in the girls’ bathroom on the top floor on the east side of the teaching building, a viscous substance resembling fresh blood was spread across the doorway.

The lights flickered.

There was nothing in the bathroom initially, but with just a glance in the mirror over the sink, one could discover a woman dressed as a teacher hanging dead at the very center.

However,

The current female teacher’s head had a hole opened on the side, her entire skull was shrunken, as if drained dry, and her face was filled with fear.

In front of the wash basin.

A young man was washing his hands.

The black leather coat he wore radiated a sense of oppression, as if it were always surveilling its surroundings.

Fear had spread; nutrition had been absorbed.

When he lifted his head, his right eye was covered with a lens-like crystal, which had recorded the entire action, and he could even perform related video editing directly in his mind.

It must be said,

The functionality of this Corner-esque prop was quite handy, tailor-made for online activities, highlighting his Murderer’s aura even more.

An hour earlier.

When Luo Di, wearing the coat, found the correct bathroom, the Spiritual Body Pseudo Person that was hanging in mid-air immediately attacked, attempting to strangle him but was instead frightened by the aura emitted by the clothing.

"That was easy peasy~ It really is just a 50 Fear Bean event. I can spare more time tonight to browse the online store; this kind of life seems not too bad, huh."

Maintaining a faint smile, Luo Di left the teaching building,

Though it was just a primary school’s teaching block, it reminded him of some past events, causing Luo Di’s attention to become slightly scattered.

Unwittingly, he had already walked out of the teaching building.

Thump!

His tongue snapped.

His thoughts were immediately dragged out from his memories, and his gaze sharply turned towards one side of the building behind him.

Even though the observed area was shrouded in darkness, the camera’s night vision combined with Luo Di’s excellent sight still allowed him to see something.

A dark silhouette was standing on one side of the building’s corridor, as if it were still watching him.

Someone was there!

Luo Di immediately lowered the brim of his hat and chased after the figure with utmost speed.

By the time he reached the position where he had seen the shadow, naturally, the other person was nowhere to be seen.

But Luo Di closed his eyes, allowing his thoughts to settle, and let his spine absorb the surrounding pheromones.

"Skilled at Disguise, concealment... but there’s still a scent, a smell of being frequently tainted by murder."

Guided by the pheromones absorbed by his spine, Luo Di immediately chased towards the staircase, all the way up to the rooftop of the teaching building.

The moment he stepped onto the rooftop, that strange scent had already dissipated on the edge, faintly as if something had just leapt down.

Luo Di hurried to the edge, below was the school’s perimeter wall, directly beside the city streets, the scent lost among the alleys and covered by the stench of rotten garbage, making it impossible to continue tracking.