God is Being Pampered by the Group - Chapter 5

Chapter 5: He Is Not Human

He is a Rat Spirit

“Qi Yue?”

“What are you dazing for? The director is waiting for you.”

The manager’s voice by his ear pulled Qi Yue’s thoughts back. In his line of sight, the figure standing under a tree not far away had already turned their head and was saying something to the man dressed as a background actor next to them; because they were wearing a mask, their face couldn’t be seen clearly.

However, a remnant of that pale gold glimpse seemed to linger before Qi Yue’s eyes. He narrowed his eyes slightly. He wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but he felt as though he had been seen through.

Taking one more look at that figure, Qi Yue turned back, the expression in his eyes hidden behind sunglasses. At his manager’s urging, he started walking again.

On the other side, Guan Zhou gave Bai Yan some instructions. Moments later, the director’s loud voice rang out, the leads were in position, and filming could begin.

Bai Yan then watched as Guan Zhou hurried over. He was playing only an ordinary guard, required only to stand in the courtyard like a wooden stake; he was an insignificant background character.

Bai Yan watched for a while. In his eyes, the “rat spirit” had taken on human form again, dressed in elegant ancient costumes. His acting seemed decent enough, as the director hadn’t called it “Cut.”

However, in the next second, Bai Yan suddenly met the other man’s gaze.

The filming, which had been proceeding smoothly, came to a halt with the director’s “Cut!” It seemed every director possessed a fiery temper, especially during a shoot.

This time, however, the director clearly thought highly of Qi Yue. Although the shoot paused because Qi Yue suddenly dazed out, the director suppressed his temper and asked in a normal voice what was wrong. Qi Yue waved his hand, and filming resumed.

The progress thereafter was basically without issue.

The director truly held Qi Yue in high regard. Initially, he hadn’t felt this way; when he first saw Qi Yue at the casting site for the male lead, he even felt that a newcomer wouldn’t have much of a performance to offer.

Having debuted for only half a year and appeared in only one youth idol drama even though that drama made him a sensation, a newcomer was still a newcomer. Competing against veteran actors seemed nothing short of overestimating oneself.

But very soon, after seeing the other’s outstanding acting, the director was stunned. With eyes shining, he immediately finalized the casting for the male lead: Qi Yue.

And facts proved that his eye for talent was as good as ever. Qi Yue was truly worry-free when it came to acting; his grasp of the character was very precise. This couldn’t help but remind the director of the previous Best Actor winner, Zuo Chengyi, who had also burst onto the scene out of nowhere and then shocked the entire acting world.

In the director’s eyes, Qi Yue had the potential of the previous Best Actor Zuo Chengyi; he only hoped he wouldn’t meet an early downfall.

The morning passed just like that. As the director announced the wrap-up, the quiet and tense atmosphere of the entire set instantly relaxed.

After the initial sense of novelty at the beginning wore off, Bai Yan didn’t pay much attention to the live performance over there. Instead, he sat in the chair Guan Zhou had brought, took out the phone Guan Zhou had paid for, swiped the screen, and clicked a certain icon.

Then, he started playing a game.

This was a new pleasure he had found.

Whether on the Earth of two lifetimes ago or in this world, along the path of lighting up the technology tree, the resulting endless small games were always so dazzling.

The difference from the original Earth was that the technological level of this world was clearly higher. They had already researched the holographic games that internet fans dreamed of, but the price was on the expensive side, not something the cash-strapped Guan Zhou could afford.

“Hey, don’t go this way, quick, go back!”

These words were said too late. On the phone screen, the little character Bai Yan was controlling was struck by an icicle falling from the sky. With a splat, it instantly bled out and died.

Guan Zhou looked regretful; it was he who had made the noise just now.

“The first level is very simple, and there are even two words saying ‘Danger’ as a prompt there. Why did you still run over there like a fool?”

In response, Bai Yan put away his phone and simply said, “Because it’s interesting.”

Speechless, Guan Zhou handed him one of the lunch boxes he was holding, rambling:

“This little game came out a long time ago. It’s considered a classic. There are tons of guides online; if you really can’t pass the level, you can go take a look.”

He treated Bai Yan as a complete noob at games.

Yes, this wasn’t the first time Guan Zhou had watched Bai Yan play a game, but every time it was so… indescribable. Yet Bai Yan still persisted in his own way, not listening to the “elder’s words” at all, leaving Guan Zhou quite helpless.

However, this time Bai Yan obediently nodded. But as for whether he would actually do it, that was another matter entirely.

Holding the lunch box, Bai Yan then took the mask off his face.

Immediately, he paused slightly, sensing a distinct gaze.

Guan Zhou, beside him, had already started eating. Seeing Bai Yan wasn’t moving, he just felt it was strange and wanted to ask when he saw a figure walking toward them—the male lead of this production, Qi Yue.

With his target quite obvious, he stood in front of the two. His gaze, however, ignored the Guan Zhou beside him and stared straight at Bai Yan, who had removed his mask.

After a long while, the corners of his mouth curled up, and he smiled: “What is your name?”

Guan Zhou had already furrowed his brows slightly. He didn’t think the newly arrived Bai Yan had any chance to know anyone else, let alone a popular star. Hearing him say this now, he immediately said:

“He is my cousin. Do you have some business?”

Qi Yue’s gaze finally shifted to him. He scrutinized him for a few moments, and the smile at the corner of his mouth seemed to become somewhat strange.

“Cousin?”

“Yeah, is there a problem?”

Guan Zhou spoke with righteous confidence, returning the gaze without yielding at all.

Qi Yue laughed twice more and looked at Bai Yan again. Bai Yan, however, had already lowered his head to attend to the lunch box in his hands, acting as if it were none of his business.

He shrugged and said, “Alright, I just thought he looked a bit familiar. Now it seems I’ve recognized the wrong person.”

These words sounded fake upon hearing them. Guan Zhou hadn’t forgotten that the man just wanted to ask for Bai Yan’s name; he definitely wasn’t up to any good. Moreover, Bai Yan’s identity was sensitive right now; even though he had the identification info Qiu Chiyi helped arrange, Guan Zhou didn’t dare be the least bit careless.

Thus, Guan Zhou also smiled: “I see. Then is there anything else? I think it looks like someone over there is looking for you.”

Qi Yue’s manager had already discovered he was missing and was walking toward them.

Not only that, as the male lead, he had inexplicably walked over to talk to an extra; consequently, many gazes around them were also faintly cast this way, and people were eager to move. After all, everyone wanted to stand out; even if they couldn’t strike up a relationship with Qi Yue, making an impression would be good.

But as everyone knew, Qi Yue’s temper wasn’t very good. Many “black materials” (scandals) used this point to make an issue, saying he was arrogant, and even more supercilious and acting like a big shot after becoming an overnight success. But these were all suppressed.

Regarding this, his fans also retorted one after another, saying: “This is Brother’s true personality! He’s not like other actors who wear a persona!”

Such talk was also common in the entertainment industry. As public figures, who doesn’t wear a skin? Some companies even specifically require actors to maintain the image of a certain character and so on.

Qi Yue took another look at Bai Yan, ignored Guan Zhou again, and stepped away toward the manager who was coming this way. Only, at the moment he turned around, his nose seemed to twitch vaguely.

Guan Zhou only withdrew his gaze after watching the man reunite with his manager. His brows were still furrowed; he didn’t understand why this person had taken an interest in Bai Yan.

That’s right with such obvious targeting, it’s not like Guan Zhou was blind.

Unable to figure out a reason, Guan Zhou could only crouch down and look at Bai Yan, who was eating. He asked uncertainly, “Do you know that person?”

He saw Bai Yan shake his head honestly.

“Then why did he—”

“He is not human,” Bai Yan said suddenly.

“—Eh, EH?!”