Little Pink Starfish

After Yuan Yuanyuan’s little stunt on the forum that night, she was surprised by how much fun it turned out to be. She ended up pulling similar tricks several more times in succession. Though more than half never made it into Demon Chronicle, at least nothing had blown up yet.

If anything, she was fully immersed in her role now—completely method acting. These days, she could switch into full-on “scene queen” mode at any time, anywhere.

Emotionally, Yuan Yuanyuan had been unusually calm lately. Despite the overwhelming curses from the outside world, basically branding her as the devil himself, she stayed unfazed. After all, when you’re in performance mode, you stay focused—the whole play’s already in your head, and there’s no room for anyone else’s noise.

Now, after playing her “villain” out in the wild, she’d check back in on the forum to see how people were interpreting things. Everyone’s wild theories amazed her. What’s more incredible was that they actually managed to make their takes make sense, no matter how far-fetched.

She had always thought the site was full of regular fangirls. What she’d never considered was whether the atmosphere of the site was a little too harmonious.

Usually, in a space like that, not everyone gets so into it. But since she knew the truth, it never really struck her as odd.

Meanwhile, Gao Ling was browsing the forum, deleting off-topic posts while skimming over various comments. The girl sitting next to her pointed at the screen seriously, “Look at these two user IDs. Are there really demons in our forum who know the truth?”

“Seems so,” Gao Ling said gravely. “And they’re not just any old ‘in the know’ types either. I’m thinking about offering them moderator roles… what do you think?”

Neither of them said it out loud, but their eyes gleamed with the same wicked light—

No matter what, those two clueless idiots must be tricked into staying.

By the way, those two “idiots” had the usernames Lord Cat and CircleCircleCircle.

This forum wasn’t your average fan site. It looked like a fanfiction site—named that way on purpose to blend in—but of the few hundred members, at least half were what you’d call “insiders.”

That part wasn’t Gao Ling’s doing—it was the girl next to her who’d made it happen. Her idea was to gather more people who knew the truth. So the members of the forum were split into two camps, which you could easily tell apart by tone alone.

For example, take a single scene. The replies would split like this:

• “If Yuan really is like this, that’d be amazing! So tsundere, so gentle, so reliable!”
• “I feel so bad for Yuan! So tsundere, so gentle, so reliable…”

At a glance they sounded the same, but on closer reading—you’d sense something… subtly different.

Of course, the two morons Yuan Yuanyuan and Fat Cat? Completely oblivious.

So many—cough—“recruits”… ahem, members… had been brought in by the girl next to Gao Ling. Gao Ling didn’t know what methods she used, but the girl had surprising charisma. In just a short time, she’d rallied hundreds of people. That was no small feat.

To outsiders, a few hundred might seem like a small group. But Gao Ling, who knew the truth, felt a sense of achievement every time she saw that number tick up. It was hard to describe.

“What’s going on with the latest update?” Gao Ling asked. “Is Yuan being threatened again?”

The girl calmly pulled out her notebook, flipped through it, and said, “Based on the clues in the comic, Yuan seems to be targeting two organizations. One is a human underground group. The other is a non-pureblood demon faction. The third… is still unknown. But yeah, Yuan hasn’t appeared for a while.”

Gao Ling sighed, “Exactly. He’s nowhere to be seen. Serious final boss energy…”

Every time a new faction showed up for Yuan to go after, she and the other girl got nervous—convinced the next issue would drop a death notice. But even a month later, there was still no word. Everything was… strangely peaceful.

So peaceful that the reports of groups hunting Yuan down in Demon Chronicle felt like total bull—.

Of course, this part wasn’t shown in the comic itself. It came from readers cross-referencing forum sleuthing and narrative hints—giving it all a surprisingly flavorful twist. Just as Gao Ling was mulling this over, the girl beside her leaned over and said, “I think we’ve figured out Yuan’s new appearance location. Want to know?”

“Yes!” Gao Ling raised her hand high.

This clue was subtle—so subtle that only a born-and-raised C City local would even recognize it. Outsiders would totally miss it.

It was a small plaza. “Plaza” was generous—it was maybe the size of two basketball courts. Even finding it was hard.

Gao Ling only stumbled upon it by accident. The place sat far above the surrounding area, built on leftover space during construction. The original plan was to build high-rises around it, but the project had stalled and left the area half-developed.

Someone probably got kicked in the head by a donkey, because that spot ended up with nearly no foot traffic. There were more pigeons than people.

Apparently, the place looked a lot like the setting where Yuan last appeared in the comic. Since he’d been there once, there was a chance he’d return. So, Gao Ling and her group packed their gear and went scouting.

But when they got there, they found it was already swarming with people. Flashlights, cameras—enough to scatter every pigeon in the area.

“Damn, this many people? Isn’t Yuan going to get spooked?” Gao Ling asked.

“No idea… all I did was casually post about it in the group chat,” the other girl said, a little stunned herself. “Should we just hide in one of the nearby shops?”

Even though the developer who built the place had apparently been dropped on the head, some shops had still moved in—an internet café, a few clothing stores, a juice bar, even a mini supermarket…

The owners had signed year-long leases and couldn’t back out, so they just soldiered on. Normally, they’d close by 5 PM because of low business. But today, when they saw the crowd gathering on the plaza, the shopkeepers were ecstatic—some were practically crying with joy. Every shop flung its doors open, ready to welcome the flood.

“What now?” Gao Ling stared blankly at the sea of people, then looked at her friend. “Are all these people you recruited… actually reliable?”

She stopped short of saying the rest—but something told her these people were not exactly the reliable type.

“Relax. Our group’s not like the rest. We’re high-quality, well-mannered, and strictly avoid interfering with canon characters. Our mission is healing, not harassment!” the girl said proudly. “And everyone’s been recruited offline. They all know each other. So if something goes wrong, I’ll know exactly which link broke.”

Gao Ling smiled stiffly, the corner of her mouth twitching.

Yep… totally not a cult. Definitely not a shady underground operation…

Still, she had to admit—the members followed orders well. Within ten minutes, the plaza was almost empty, with fewer than ten people left. Meanwhile, the internet café was packed, the clothing shops full of beautifully dressed girls, and even the clerks were lining up to offer fitting services.

Time ticked by.

Gao Ling thought to herself, Whether Yuan shows up is really a matter of luck. Would he even come now, seeing this crowd? What if he doesn’t? Wouldn’t all these people have come for nothing?

But… the plaza really was beautiful. She’d never been here before. It felt a little like Prague. Okay, maybe not that grand—but close.

The marble underfoot was pristine, the central fountain shimmered with neon lights, and the buildings around it, while half-abandoned, were still stylishly designed and spacious—intended to be part of a luxury residential area.

In the fading sunset, pigeons still wandered across the square. If this place weren’t so empty, it could’ve been truly popular.

But if it were crowded… it wouldn’t feel quite the same.

Gao Ling sighed and was just about to change positions when suddenly—she spotted someone under a streetlamp.

He wore black—jeans and sneakers—and the first thing that stood out was how tall and thin he was. His legs were long and straight. He walked toward them without speaking to anyone, moving like he knew the place well. He went straight to a bench under the lamp and sat down.

He blended into the shadows—so much so that at first, he looked like just another part of the darkness.

But Gao Ling suddenly felt like she’d been struck by lightning.

She froze.

As he walked deeper into the square, more people began to notice him. It was like he radiated an invisible field—wherever he passed, the atmosphere shifted.

---

Meanwhile, Yuan Yuanyuan had finished dinner, fed Fat Cat, and—as usual—headed out for a little stroll to see what was going on.

She’d planned to stop by this plaza to mess with some pigeons and then do her usual loop. But the moment she set foot on the stairs, she froze.

What the hell?! Is there a singles mixer happening here?! Why are there so many people?! And what’s with all these open shops? Weren’t they supposed to be closed?!

She was already halfway up. Too late to turn back now. This was another flaw in the plaza—it was built ridiculously high. You had to climb a whole flight of stairs, and you couldn’t see anything until you were already at the top.

The entrance was in plain sight. Anyone coming up would be seen immediately. If she turned and left now, it’d be too conspicuous.

It’d be like…

A stranger walking into someone else’s dinner party, glancing around silently, and walking out…

Or two people on a date, and someone randomly comes over to circle them and leaves…

Or two guys in the shower, and someone just strolls by and—

Okay. That got awkward fast.

So… what now?

Yuan Yuanyuan thought for a few seconds, then quietly walked over to a bench, sat down, and stayed there.

She brooded a moment… then cautiously glanced around.

Well, since this is a mixer, better not interrupt. I’ll just mess with the pigeons for a bit and leave. Pretend to be a local just out for a walk.

There were a few old guys doing exactly that.

She exhaled deeply… bent over…

And started playing with pigeons.

After a moment, a confident little smile crept onto her face.

See? Totally blending in with the environment.