Chapter 20: Brother

Ji Chenling curled his lips into a smile. “You guessed right.”

“Sister doesn’t believe me?”

Lu Xi blinked and tiptoed closer to his ear, lowering her voice, “Do you have a skill that lets you change your appearance?”

Suddenly, the air fell into silence.

The young man stared at her for a long moment, motionless, before breaking into a faint smile.

“Sister, you really are clever.”

“When did you figure it out?”

Lu Xi shrugged. “Wasn’t it obvious? Come on, you’re so handsome, like some kind of demon. Unless everyone else is blind, there’s no way they wouldn’t notice.”

Yet, when Ji Chenling appeared before everyone, the players showed no surprise or shock.

It was as if the person standing before them was just an ordinary passerby.

In a world clearly obsessed with appearances, most people would at least spare a second glance at someone good-looking.

“Ji Chenling, be honest with me — how many skills do you actually have?” Lu Xi placed her hands on her hips. “I thought you were some poor little soul, but turns out I’m the joke, completely fooled by you.”

Ji Chenling kept smiling, clearly in a good mood.

“What are you doing?” Lu Xi feared being drawn into those enchanting peach blossom eyes and deliberately avoided looking at his face.

“Sister just complimented me on my looks, so I’m happy,” Ji Chenling said, a teasing note in his voice.

Those mischievous eyes sparkled with laughter as he slowly reached out to brush aside the stray strands of her hair, gently fixing them with a clip.

Every movement was captivating, like a bewitching charm.

“It’s just a skill to change appearances, really not that useful since it doesn’t attack or defend. But if you like, I can gift it to you.”

Lu Xi’s eyes widened. “You can even transfer skills?”

Ji Chenling casually twirled a strand of her black hair. “Maybe other players can’t do that, but I can.”

“Why?”

Lu Xi felt an endless stream of curious questions bubbling up whenever she was around him.

“Because, I happen to have a skill that lets me transfer skills,” he said, raising an eyebrow with a smile.

Lu Xi: “...”

Seriously, big brother, are you nesting dolls or what?!

“Do you want it, sister?”

“No, no, hurry up and find the clues instead.”

***

“I didn’t expect Xiao Xi to be so clever. She seems so ordinary, yet she always hits the mark with precision. Truly impressive,” Jiang Yanyan said with a faint smile, subtly glancing at Ji Yunxuan’s reaction.

Seeing him somewhat restless, she gently asked, “Yunxuan, what’s wrong? Have you been on edge these past few days without enough rest?”

Ji Yunxuan furrowed his brows tightly, murmuring, “He actually goes by Ji Chenling…”

“Is there something wrong with that name?” Jiang Yanyan stepped forward with concern.

“No, nothing wrong,” Ji Yunxuan looked toward the distant forest and sighed.

“It’s just too coincidental.”

After a pause, he spoke again, “I have an older brother named Ji Chenling.”

“Hm?”

Even Jiang Yanyan was surprised.

“He’s my half-brother, same name,” Ji Yunxuan lowered his gaze, a flash of disgust quickly crossing his eyes.

“When I was fifteen, he died — he jumped off a building to kill himself.”

When Ji Chenling died, he was only seventeen, just a month shy of adulthood.

As the sole heir of the Ji family, Ji Yunxuan enjoyed every privilege imaginable, envied by everyone.

But only he knew deep down that if it weren’t for that older brother’s suicide, he would never have become the heir.

After all, at seventeen, Ji Chenling had already held up more than half of the Ji family’s empire.

His excellence was evident to all, even described as radiant and dazzling.

But sadly, that golden child was a madman.

Literally insane.

He had mental issues.

Their father was unfaithful, their mother as well.

Ji Chenling’s mother had even tried multiple times to harm him for the sake of her lover.

His father resented and envied his brilliance, jealous of the son overshadowing him; his mother, eager to please her lover, despised him and wished for him to vanish completely from this world — a child rejected by his own mother.

How could a child raised in such an environment not be mentally unstable?

Seven years after Ji Chenling’s death, Ji Yunxuan was drawn into this terrifying world called the Escape Game.

Thus, the brother he was named after would never appear before him again.

“It’s just a coincidence of name and surname,” Ji Yunxuan muttered to himself.

And thankfully, it was only that.

Had it been the same person, Ji Yunxuan would be consumed by endless fear.

After all… he was partly an executioner, and owed this brother a debt.

Moreover, in the game world where no laws exist, human evil can be magnified countless times without any punishment.

Still, Ji Yunxuan was curious — if Ji Chenling hadn’t died seven years ago and had come into this world with him, what storms would he have stirred?

A madman on the verge of breaking down mentally, yet capable of lifting the Ji family from the third tier straight to the top echelon — making them a premier powerhouse.

Such a person’s strength was truly terrifying.

And when he accomplished all that, Ji Chenling was only seventeen, still a spirited youth.

Ji Yunxuan’s journey earned admiration for his abilities, mental resilience, and sharp mind.

If it had been Ji Chenling, what kind of scene would that have been?

Snowflakes began drifting down intermittently. Ji Yunxuan reached out and caught one, rubbing it between his fingertips.

Suddenly, his expression changed drastically.

“This isn’t snow!”

When the snowflake melted, ashes appeared inside.

Jiang Yanyan raised an eyebrow in surprise — had that woman’s words been right after all?

Lu Xi’s presence had always been subtle, often making foolish mistakes that dragged the group down.

But the more clumsy and thoughtless she seemed, the more she made Jiang Yanyan’s gentle intelligence stand out.

They were like a stark contrast within the team.

Thus, after several world trials, players who liked Jiang Yanyan naturally came to resent Lu Xi’s foolishness.

Like Chen Yiyi, for example.

By evening, everyone regrouped and shared their discoveries.

The more clues they found, the more they matched up with Lu Xi’s fabricated story.

“The people who set fire to burn down the village might have perished in that blaze too. Perhaps they are ghosts here. But there seem to be two opposing groups of ghosts. If we can find the spirits of the abducted women, that might be a crucial breakthrough,” Lu Xi said.