Volume Two, The Devil’s Game Chapter Eleven: There’s Actually an Affection Meter

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“Hey, what’s going on in this livestream?” a newly arrived viewer asked.

“Don’t bother asking. The Wind-Chasing Squad seemed to be the strongest, so I expected some impressive action from them. But after shaking off everyone else, they just found a high spot to secretly observe the Watcher. I advise you to switch rooms too. If you hadn’t spoken up, I wouldn’t even have checked in.”

“Any good livestreams you’d recommend?” the person continued.

“If you want something steady, watch the main stage. Slightly less exciting are the streams of Yi Lu and Feisong Liang. The others are barely worth watching.”

In Wen-dong Ge’s stream, the Wind-Chasing Squad was gathered on a rooftop. Their captain held a binoculars, watching in a certain direction, where a person was running for their life.

Weiwei Tan gasped for breath, but the humming behind her kept her from relaxing for even a moment. She reached for another Speed Talisman, but found only a Sealing Talisman left—no other talismans remained.

What should she do? Weiwei Tan was desperate. Without a Speed Talisman, the Watcher would surely catch her. Suddenly she remembered Xin Cui saying they’d meet under the clock tower and gather the seal stones there.

If someone really went to exchange seal stones, she might be saved! With no other options, Weiwei Tan sprinted toward the clock tower.

Soon, the clock tower appeared in her sight, but the clearing around it was empty—no seal stones, not a soul.

Despair flashed across Weiwei Tan’s face. At that moment, another flower dart struck her back, draining her further. She staggered forward a few steps and then collapsed to her knees, her muscles trembling and unable to support her.

The Watcher drew another flower from the basket and aimed it at Weiwei Tan.

“It’s over,” Weiwei Tan closed her eyes. Just then, she heard the faint clang of metal and a rush of wind.

The flower didn’t strike her; instead, the sound of shattering stone chips rang out beside her. At the same time, a man’s voice reached her ears, “Come here, quickly!”

Weiwei Tan opened her eyes to see someone pedaling a tricycle towards her. Hope surged within her. She crawled forward a few steps, then shakily rose to her feet, gritting her teeth to take a step.

At that moment, a sharp light flashed in her eyes, and her entire demeanor shifted.

Yi Lu, having heard Xu Anxuan’s account, knew she was about to awaken her innate ability. He instinctively slowed the tricycle, but upon looking again, he was startled.

The Watcher leisurely drew a flower from the basket, not throwing it but turning the blossom toward Weiwei Tan. She rotated the flower slightly, and a crack silently opened in the ground, quickly approaching Weiwei Tan.

That move! Yi Lu had nearly fallen victim to it before—if Weiwei Tan was caught by it, not only would her awakening be halted, but death on the spot was a real possibility. Yi Lu stomped the pedals hard, then leaped off, tackling Weiwei Tan to the ground.

The instant he knocked her down, two vine-wrapped spikes burst from the earth, stabbing right where Weiwei Tan had been.

Yi Lu pulled Weiwei Tan up. At that moment, the tricycle arrived as he had predicted. Yi Lu grabbed the handlebars and helped Weiwei Tan aboard. “Ride away, find somewhere to recover.”

“What about you?” Weiwei Tan hurriedly asked.

Yi Lu flashed a confident smile. “I came here specifically to find the Watcher.”

“You?” Weiwei Tan looked incredulous.

“Go on! If you don’t leave now, you’ll stay to admire the flowers,” Yi Lu’s expression suddenly changed as he shoved the tricycle forward and rolled backward.

With a loud crash, Yi Lu felt the ground tremble beneath him. He saw the Watcher clutching the flower basket, slowly rising from the spot where they had just stood.

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For safety, Yi Lu retreated a few steps, but noticed the Watcher seemed fixated on Weiwei Tan, never once glancing at him. Instead, she stared at the clattering tricycle, clearly intent on pursuing it.

“Uh... Hello there.” Yi Lu cleared his throat, trying to draw her attention.

The Watcher glanced at him, apparently startled, perhaps recalling their unpleasant past encounter. She quickly reached into the basket, pulling out three flowers.

Hey, hey, Yi Lu grumbled inwardly. You threw them one by one at her, but now you’re tossing three at me at once? Do I really inspire such animosity?

He waved his hands hastily, “Wait, wait.”

The Watcher looked puzzled but, since Yi Lu neither approached nor fled, lowered her hand, though she watched him warily. “What do you want?”

Yi Lu shrugged and smiled, “No need to be so tense. It’s not mere coincidence, nor fate. I’m not just passing by—I came specifically to find you.”

I’m That Husky: “Wow, the streamer actually said he’d find the Watcher, and now he’s here! Shocking, shocking.”

Sickly Fairy: “Yeah, I thought he’d find a place far away to hide from the Watcher. Looks like I misjudged him.”

After searching the house, Yi Lu worried he wouldn’t find the Watcher in time, so he made a secret agreement with his viewers: if the Watcher was in a certain direction, they’d send a cheap gift, helping him locate her quickly.

Handsome, You’re Naughty: “I misjudged him too.” She added a laughing emoji at the end.

Warmhearted Man: “Ha! He really dared to go find her, my gifts weren’t wasted. Watcher, go on, start the fight!”

A Fish: “Whoa, I heard him say on the main stage he came to find the Watcher, had to come see for myself. Is this streamer so cheeky? Not even the vine whip can break him?”

Black Phosphorus: “Of course! Didn’t you see the streamer hang the Watcher up before? Laughing.”

Yi Lu’s stream numbers skyrocketed, with many viewers from the main stage and other streams flocking in, making his channel the hottest after the main stage.

“Came specifically to find me?” The Watcher glanced at the tricycle disappearing around the corner, then looked at Yi Lu intently.

Seeing Yi Lu nod, the Watcher scrutinized him, furrowing her brow. “So, you’ve realized and want me to release you?”

“No, no. I came because I discovered something interesting and wanted to share it with you.” Yi Lu said, pulling a wooden box from his backpack.

When the box appeared before the Watcher, pain flickered across her face. She gently tapped her head. “I think I’ve seen this box before.”

“So, do you want to know what’s inside?” Yi Lu smiled.

“Would you really be so kind?” The Watcher, having been tricked by Yi Lu before, was particularly wary.

“Am I really that bad?” Yi Lu smiled wryly and shrugged. “Here, to show my sincerity, I’ll give you the box first.”

He tossed the box to the Watcher—not out of true openness, but because even after collecting the basic diary, he couldn’t decipher it himself.

The city’s prompt was simple: once collected, you could gain benefits from the corresponding Watcher.

If possible, he’d have used the contents to bait the Watcher, but the city clearly forbade that; only ‘give or don’t give’ were allowed.

While the Watcher’s attention was on the box, Yi Lu smiled, making her alert again. Before the box even landed, she waved her hand and a vine snatched it from the air, delivering it to her.

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The Watcher glanced at Yi Lu, who merely spread his hands. She looked at the box, then smiled at him.

Before Yi Lu could decipher her meaning, she waved her hand, and the ground around him split open. Several vines erupted, their tips entwining to form a domed cage, trapping him inside.

Only then did Yi Lu understand her smile. He tapped the cage, then looked at her. “Pretty sturdy. Is it because I stayed in one place too long?”

The Watcher chuckled and said, “Finally caught you! I’ll hang this cage dozens of meters high, let you sway in the wind, to avenge how you hung me up before.”

As she finished, a vine extended from the cage’s top, burrowing into the earth and becoming a tree, which straightened and slowly hoisted the cage upwards.

What?! Yi Lu was startled. This wasn’t the direction he expected—she’d seemed interested in the box, but now she was so eager to hang him up. “Aren’t you going to open the box?”

“Anything you give can’t be anything good.” The Watcher declared with conviction.

Yi Lu was dumbfounded. The city had said giving the box to the Watcher would bring benefits, and its contents were hidden from practitioners, so surely the Watcher would open it and grant him something.

But now, he realized he’d been played by the city—not because it lied, but because it depended on the Watcher’s willingness. It all came down to her impression of him.

Like someone who often pranks you giving you a gift—you’d hesitate to open it, or ask someone else to open it first. Yi Lu was facing this exact problem: the Watcher didn’t trust him and refused to open the box.

A Fish: “Whoa, what’s happening here? The streamer went the distance! I want to report this!”

Warmhearted Man: “Ha, courting disaster. Well done!”

Yi Lu’s expression grew serious as he reached for his waist. The cage was sturdy, but not unbreakable. Suddenly the cage stopped ascending.

The Watcher, smiling, walked over, the vine with the box following her, slicing the ground as it went. “You won’t escape soon, so I’ll open the box now.”

Yi Lu was surprised by her change in attitude, but quickly understood.

The vine holding the box moved in front of the cage, positioning the box directly before Yi Lu, with the Watcher standing behind it.

She circled the cage, her skirt fluttering, looking to Yi Lu like a flower in bloom.

When she reached the box, she tapped it gently. “Hey, what’s inside? Care to give me a hint? Since you’re about to experience it firsthand, if it’s too deadly, I’ll skip this and just hang you up.”

Yi Lu rolled his eyes. “There’s no danger inside.”

“I don’t believe you,” she said, guarding herself and stepping back, moving the box closer to the cage and tilting it so any trap would hit the cage.

“If you won’t say, I’ll just open it.” She looked smugly at Yi Lu.

Yi Lu closed his eyes and crossed his arms. “Go ahead, hurry up.”

The vine slowly opened the box.