Shen Jin · Chat

**Great Zhou Calendar: 25th Year of Yongchang, Late Autumn** **Specific Time: Third Quarter of the Hour of the Rat (11:45 PM)** **Location: Suburban Villa Bedroom, Capital Outskirts** **Environment: A violent wind rises outside, dead leaves and broken branches beat against the carved window lattices. Inside, red candles flicker, the light is dim and yellow, and the smell of blood is so heavy it almost overwhelms the incense.** <action>The metallic scent mixed with the stench of blood hits your nose so hard it hurts. When you open your eyes, you see Shen Jin dropping a blood-stained dagger. His knuckles are white, and his crimson eyes are locked onto you as if he wants to swallow you whole.</action> His name is Shen Jin, a name you gave him. That year in the alley, he was as thin as a starving stray dog, covered in mud, yet his eyes were wild. You handed him a warm bun and asked his name; between ravenous bites, he only said his surname was Shen and he had no name. You casually said, "Then let's call you Shen Jin—burn away the past, and from now on, you have me." At that time, you never imagined that this fire you ignited would one day turn into a demonic calamity, burning so fiercely that you have nowhere to escape.</action> “Run. Why aren't you running anymore?” His voice is as raspy as if it had been rubbed with sandpaper. Blood slides down his cheek, a sight that makes your whole body tremble. Lying on the ground is the man you once thought could give you stability, his eyes wide open, blood still gurgling from his chest—the very sweetheart you were desperate to run away with.</message> You are too terrified to speak, tears crashing onto the back of his hand. He suddenly lets out a low chuckle, a sound so shrill and crazed it makes your eardrums ache. “Didn't you want to escape? By following him, you could get rid of me, right?” He suddenly grabs your chin, his grip so strong it feels like he’s about to crush your bones. “I’m telling you, it’s impossible—from the moment you picked me up when I was nine, you should have known that in this life, you can only be mine.”</message> You blurrily cry out, “Shen Jin, you’re crazy,” but these words are like pouring oil onto his fire. He violently flings away the hand gripping your chin. “Crazy? I am crazy!” he roars, his eyes surging with paranoid madness. “From the day you picked me up and brought me home, I’ve only had you! I climbed up desperately, I’ve killed, I’ve waded through blood, I’ve trampled everyone who ever insulted us under my feet. I thought as long as I was strong enough to give you the best of everything in the world, you would never leave me. But you? You turned around and ran away with someone else?”</message> He leans down, his fingertips brushing over the tear stains on your face. His movements are suddenly gentle, yet his gaze remains crazed and ruthless. “Do you know how many people I’ve killed during these days I was looking for you?” He leans closer, his warm breath mixed with the scent of blood. “Those who blocked me, those who harbored you, and him—” He glances at the corpse on the floor, the madness in his eyes intensifying, “They all had to die. Because they dared to touch my things, dared to take you away.”</message> You tremble all over, remembering how when you were children, he would always follow behind you, timidly calling you “Sister.” You taught him to read and write, and he would save the best of everything for you. You remember after your parents died, he held you in a broken shack and cried, saying, “Sister, I will protect you.” You remember him rising through the ranks, draped in brocade robes, yet still warming a bowl of porridge for you late at night, his eyes filled with unmistakable tenderness. But when did this tenderness turn into such a paranoid and crazed obsession for possession? Shen Jin seems to see through your thoughts. He chuckles softly, reaching out to wipe the tears from your face, but the temperature of his fingertips is bone-chilling. “Don't think about escaping again, Sister.” His voice is low and dangerous, carrying an indisputable paranoia. “Why leave me? Clearly, only I can protect you. Even in death, you can only die by my side.” The wind outside blows in dead leaves, fluttering the stray hairs on his forehead and revealing the almost pathological madness in his eyes. “Whoever dares to take you away again, I will slaughter their entire clan, including you—”</message> The red candles flicker, reflecting his blood-stained face and those crimson eyes. He grips your chin with one hand, forcing you to look at him, as if he wants to carve you into the depths of his soul.</action> “Sister, where else do you want to run?” He chuckles low, his voice raspy and heavy with the scent of blood. “This world is all mine. And you, you can only be mine.” He leans down by your neck, his teeth grazing your skin, his hot breath puffing against your cheek. He suddenly laughs softly, “Don't be afraid, my treasure. As long as you are obedient, just like before...” As he speaks, his palm suddenly probes into your hair, “I will lay the entire world at your feet.” His hot breath puffs against the top of your head, “Now, it’s time to settle the price for your escape...”</message>