Chapter 38: I Was Deceived

Shen Xing found it hard to describe the feeling of that moment. If he had to put a name to it, "doomsday" would be the word.

He stiffly turned his head and, as expected, found Ouyang Lin watching him in silence.

The killing intent wasn't the most important part; what mattered was her gaze.

It was that look of being completely consumed by pitch-black darkness—a sensation he had only ever seen in anime. Whenever a character began to succumb to their dark side, they would wear an expression just like that. But currently, Ouyang Lin looked far more terrifying than any two-dimensional girl. The palpable, near-physical weight of her killing intent made Shen Xing shiver uncontrollably.

He swallowed hard, desperate to speak before he was killed:

"Wait! It was wrong of me to mess with your things, but this isn't exactly some dark, scandalous crime, is it? There's no need to take a life over it! What I mean is, given the current social climate, you don't need to hide it at all; it's not illegal. Liking women is perfectly normal—I like them too. Pfft, no, I mean I can understand you."

Shen Xing spoke rapidly, unsure of the exact second Ouyang Lin might strike. In this state of total breakdown, he had no confidence in his ability to dodge any of her attacks.

But unfortunately, no matter what he said, Ouyang Lin offered no response. She simply continued to stare at him with those hollow, unfocused eyes, as if she hadn't heard a single word.

Shen Xing didn't dare move, terrified that any action might bring her back to her senses only to have her finish him off.

"Damn it, my life must be hanging by a thread right now. Why is Ouyang Lin reacting so violently to this? She hasn't actually snapped, has she?"

Shen Xing grumbled inwardly while offering up silent prayers. Time slowly ticked by, and ten minutes passed. The two remained in the same positions. Ouyang Lin was fine, standing silently, but Shen Xing’s neck was aching horribly; he desperately wanted to straighten up and stretch.

"Write your last words."

Just as Shen Xing was about to reach his breaking point, Ouyang Lin finally regained her focus. Her eyes cleared, and she looked at him coldly.

"What?"

"No last words? Fine, then I shall—"

"Wait, wait, wait! I have them! I'll write, I'll write."

Shen Xing hurriedly replied, then sat back in his chair and picked up a pen. However, after fiddling around for a long time, he had only managed to write the words "Last Will."

Ouyang Lin took a glance and reminded him, "Stalling won't help. I'm only giving you five minutes."

Shen Xing felt his scalp tingle. "Is death really necessary? You're being way too sensitive! I told you, having that preference is normal. What are you getting so worked up about!"

"Three minutes and fifty seconds."

"I'm a very important pharmacist, aren't I? If you kill me, how will you explain it to the higher-ups? I haven't even submitted a single formula yet!"

"Three minutes and ten seconds."

"I'll apologize, okay? You can punish me, any way you want."

"Two minutes and thirty seconds."

"Ouyang Lin, don't push me too far! Can't we talk about this like reasonable people?"

"One minute and twenty seconds."

"Ouyang Lin, actually, I have a very important secret. Don't you want to know it? I guarantee you, compared to this secret, those so-called potion formulas are nothing."

"Last fifteen seconds."

"…Whatever, I'm tired. Just destroy me. I'm so damn unlucky to have fallen into the hands of a lunatic!"

Shen Xing was completely speechless, leaning back in his chair, feeling utterly defeated. He had said everything he could think of, but nothing could sway this madwoman. Who could have imagined that simply discovering her preference for women would lead to him being silenced?

The next moment, a surge of intense killing intent washed over him. He saw Ouyang Lin raise a palm toward his forehead, and he closed his eyes with a sigh of resignation. He remembered hearing somewhere that if you stare at someone while you die, there's a high chance you'll meet again in the next life. Thinking of this, Shen Xing quickly averted his gaze.

However, the expected pain never came.

Shen Xing tentatively opened one eye and found that Ouyang Lin was no longer in front of him; she had sat down on the bed to the side.

"..."

Shen Xing cursed under his breath, as the performance Ouyang Lin had just put on was far too convincing.

*Hoo!*

Taking a long breath, Shen Xing was just about to say something, but Ouyang Lin spoke first:

"What is the secret?"

Shen Xing was startled. He had only leaked the existence of a secret because he had been desperate. Now that he was out of danger, he certainly wasn't going to tell her.

"What secret?"

"You're the one who brought it up—the secret that is supposedly more important than the potion formulas."

Their eyes met, and a thought suddenly struck Shen Xing: "You were just trying to bluff me?!"

He realized it instantly. Why would Ouyang Lin enter a "dark" state over something that wasn't actually a dirty secret? She had simply wanted to use this opportunity to squeeze him, to see if there would be any surprise revelations. Everything that happened before had been a calculated effort to create a tense atmosphere, forcing Shen Xing to act under pressure without the energy to think clearly.

"So what if I was? And you need to understand: you've learned my secret, so isn't it fair for you to trade one of yours?"

Ouyang Lin's expression was still far from pleasant; it seemed that having her preference exposed really did annoy her. But compared to learning Shen Xing's secret, she could tolerate it for now.

"I didn't even tell you the potion formulas, so why would I tell you this secret? You saw it yourself—even when I thought I was going to die, I didn't say it."

Shen Xing's attitude hardened. His posture said: I saw what I saw, and if you have the ability, go ahead and do your worst.

"Shen Xing, the relationship between us doesn't have to be this tense. Share your secret with me, and I won't hurt you. On the contrary, I'll help you and keep your secret for you. I know what it's like to have to carefully guard a secret all alone. Now that you know mine, if you share yours, we can forge an unbreakable bond—something no one else could compare to. Do you understand?"

Ouyang Lin thought for a moment and, for the first time ever, adopted a soft, persuasive approach. Shen Xing was taken aback; he had never seen Ouyang Lin speak so reasonably. But unfortunately, such abnormal behavior only signaled that danger was near.

"Do you think I'm a child? I won't believe these empty promises. At the very least, I'd need to hold a secret of yours that could destroy you. Being a lesbian, at most, would only surprise the people who know you."

Ouyang Lin fell into deep thought. She had actually known for a long time that Shen Xing possessed a significant secret. Yang Qing's frantic actions back then were precisely because of this. Although Ouyang Lin had been curious, she hadn't been desperate, and she knew that Shen Xing wouldn't open up easily.

However, the words Shen Xing had blurted out in his panic just now had suddenly made her interest in that secret skyrocket. If the potion formulas were considered trivial in comparison, then just what could this other secret be?

Ouyang Lin decided that she would stop at nothing to find out.