Chapter 24: Possessiveness

Night had fallen.

In Lin Lei’s home.

Lin Lei sat atop the sofa, idly toying with a silver pistol, flipping it in his hand to extract a single Source Energy Bullet.

“Devour!”

At his command, the invisible maw stirred, and the Source Energy Bullet in his palm vanished instantaneously.

It was merely a test.

The energy from his Gluttony was sufficient to support such an experiment.

Afterward, he found that he had not acquired any new abilities, only a faint increase in the total amount of source energy within his body.

“The bullet itself isn’t particularly special; it merely carries a bit of source energy. Besides, it’s not a living creature, so it can’t help me heal, nor can I ‘devour’ any extra ability from it…”

A mere increase in source energy meant little to Lin Lei.

A rapid rise in source energy would only bring him unwanted side effects.

He took out another bullet, activated the invisible maw again, but this time did not execute “Devour.” Instead, he simply “ate” it, accumulating gluttonous energy.

It proved more useful than swallowing batteries, though it only provided about a tenth of the energy a single ghoul would yield.

He pondered quietly:

“In comparison, ‘Devour’ only slightly increases source energy, while ‘eating’ accumulates gluttonous energy at a better rate. Still, neither is very effective; I might as well save them for self-defense…”

“I can always ‘eat’ the bullet after it’s fired to accumulate gluttonous energy—it’s not too late then!”

Shaking his head, Lin Lei carefully put away his pistol and took out the pendant given to him by Zhou Wei.

The pendant depicted a woman with a pair of wings, holding a blue gemstone in her hands. The gem’s luster had faded considerably.

“A Source Artifact…”

He licked his lips, attempting to activate Gluttony, but found that devouring the pendant’s power would require over fifty units of gluttonous energy!

Lin Lei’s eyes gleamed.

“It only takes eight units to ‘devour’ a ghoul, but this pendant needs so much more?”

Despite the high consumption, his face was alight with excitement.

This meant his reward would not be insignificant.

“The pendant lacks flesh, so devouring it won’t help me heal. It’s not hard to guess that after ‘devouring’ it, I’ll gain two things: the source energy within, and its special ability to calm emotions…”

The Source Artifact was different from the potion Li Xueshu had gifted him.

A Source Artifact could activate its special power more than once, while the potion’s effect was single-use.

“I wonder, after ‘devouring’ it, will I be able to calm my emotions without limit, or will there still be restrictions on usage?”

Lin Lei’s eyes burned with desire, yet he forcibly suppressed the rising hunger within him, resisting the urge to swallow the pendant immediately.

“Dr. Zhou just gave me this pendant. I’d better not rush to devour it right away. If someone notices, that could spell trouble…”

Both Zhou Wei and Li Xueshu knew Lin Lei possessed such a Source Artifact. While they might not care about an item nearing the end of its usefulness, Lin Lei thought it best to remain cautious.

Besides, keeping it close meant he could devour it whenever necessary—there was no hurry.

After fiddling with the necklace for a while, Lin Lei’s stomach let out a “gurgle.”

“Hungry again!”

Hunger was the side effect of his Gluttony blessing.

Especially after activating Gluttony, he would feel ravenous even sooner.

It had only been less than an hour since his last meal.

He rose and opened the refrigerator; it was utterly empty.

His appetite was so great that in just a few days, he had devoured all the meat from the fridge.

He took out his phone, intending to order delivery, but even the fastest option would take half an hour.

“I recall there’s a snack street not far downstairs?”

Lin Lei tucked the pistol away and headed out.

He soon arrived at the snack street, enjoyed a hearty meal, and packed up plenty more to take home.

By then, the sky had grown dark, and a crimson moon was rising.

As Lin Lei walked beneath his apartment building, the roar of a car engine sounded—a black sedan passed by him and stopped not far ahead.

He paused.

Qi Fangyan stepped out from the front passenger seat, turned to the car with a gentle voice:

“Thank you for bringing me home, I can go up by myself.”

With that, she headed toward the nearby building.

The black sedan restarted, circled around, and drove directly toward Lin Lei.

Though it was nighttime, Lin Lei clearly glimpsed the driver—a young man with slicked-back hair and decent looks.

At that moment, Lin Lei was seized by a flood of fury and murderous intent.

“Kill him!”

His hand swiftly reached for the pistol at his waist, but as his fingers touched the cold weapon, his action abruptly halted.

“Am I mad?!”

He shook his head vigorously, staring as the car passed by him and sped away.

Taking a deep breath, Lin Lei reached for the Calm Pendant at his neck.

His fingers caressed its surface; a chill surged from the pendant, coursing through his body and into his mind.

The murderous impulse slowly faded.

He frowned deeply.

He did not know the man in the car.

The urge to kill was triggered by Qi Fangyan.

Because of the original body’s peculiar attachment to her, a special emotional knot lingered in his heart, causing instinctive aversion to her interactions with other men.

That aversion once again stirred the suppressed emotions within Lin Lei.

Even with the Calm Pendant’s power, he still felt irritable and stifled.

Residual memories from his former self, coupled with the intensified possessiveness in his own heart, made him unwilling to accept Qi Fangyan’s involvement with others.

He raised his brows, strode swiftly into the building, taking the stairs two at a time to catch up with Qi Fangyan.

It was an old apartment complex, no more than six stories, with no elevator installed.

Under the dim lights, Qi Fangyan heard the footsteps echoing below and occasionally glanced down, moving a bit faster herself.

The city’s security was poor, and in this run-down complex, the so-called security was virtually nonexistent. As a single woman, Qi Fangyan was naturally apprehensive.

Yet no matter how she tried to hurry, she could not outrun Lin Lei.

Lin Lei quickly caught up, slowing only slightly.

Sensing someone close behind, Qi Fangyan’s body tensed, her heart pounding, too nervous to turn and look.

She clutched her phone, anxious, inching upward.

Lin Lei reached out and tapped her shoulder. “Yan-jie.”

The touch made her tremble, a faint cry escaping her lips.

Lin Lei cleared his throat and hurriedly reassured her, “Don’t be afraid, Yan-jie, it’s me!”

Qi Fangyan turned, her moist eyes scanning him up and down, surprise slowly replacing her fear.

“You’re… Lei Lei?”

Lin Lei had changed his hairstyle and temperament, looking quite different from before.

Qi Fangyan didn’t recognize him at first; only his voice gave him away.

She bit her lip, relaxing as relief washed over her.

“You should have spoken up sooner, coming up so fast—you scared me.”

She sniffed, looking aggrieved.

“I heard there have been many attacks and disappearances nearby, mostly women. I thought I was being targeted…”

Lin Lei quickly apologized, then walked alongside her, saying,

“Yan-jie, it’s really unsafe around here lately… I don’t have many classes in the next few days. How about I pick you up after work?”

Qi Fangyan hesitated, her face showing uncertainty.

Lin Lei probed, “You haven’t started dating, have you? Someone picking you up?”

Under the dim light, Qi Fangyan blushed, pinching Lin Lei.

“Hmph, plenty of people try their luck with me, but I’m not that easy to win over.”

Lin Lei’s eyes flashed; hearing her words, he guessed that the man earlier was likely a colleague, perhaps even one of those admirers.