The Demon Lord is My Dark Moonlight [Transmigration Novel] - Chapter 5

A few seconds later, Gu Jinli was poked right in her ticklish spot, and her “corpse” act completely fell apart.

“Get off me!”

With a sudden carp leap, she sat bolt upright and shoved Shen Chigui, who was sprawling all over her, to the side.

“So annoying!”

Gu Jinli’s heart was racing with frustration. Looking at the culprit, she felt a surge of inexplicable rage.

“Big Sister?”

She’s certainly energetic. A flicker of surprise crossed Shen Chigui’s eyes. She had expected this person to play dead for at least a little while longer.

“Shut up! Don’t call me Big Sister!”

Gu Jinli’s face was ashen. She could already see her future life flash before her eyes, and it looked incredibly bleak. A girl as sharp as the female lead had definitely noticed something was off; otherwise, why would she have come down to play-act?

As expected…

“Big Sister, you’re okay~”

With wide, sparkling eyes, Shen Chigui ignored the fact that she had been shoved onto the ground and crawled back toward Gu Jinli.

“I was worried sick.”

Her rosy little mouth puckered into a pout, and her eyes rimmed with red once more.

“I really didn’t mean it just now,” she whimpered. “Big Sister will forgive me, right?”

Gu Jinli: “…”

Act. Go on, keep acting. How had she never noticed during the writing process that Shen Chigui was such a drama queen?

“Big Sister?”

Perhaps because Gu Jinli’s skeptical gaze was too direct, Shen Chigui’s expression faltered. She couldn’t quite keep the performance going.

“Big Sister, it’s not safe here. We should hide quickly!” Wiping away tears that didn’t exist, she said with utmost seriousness, “This time, you go up first!”

“No.”

Gu Jinli slowly lay back down. “I can’t climb trees. You go up.”

Since she already looked no different from a corpse, she might as well just ‘stay dead.’ There were still six days to go; she could theoretically just lie here until the end. The lead likely knew she was “special” now anyway, so instead of playing mind games with a nine-year-old psychopath, she decided to just embrace the “sloth” life.

Yes, Gu Jinli was officially checking out.

Shen Chigui: “?”

*****

By the third day of the hunt, there were very few living souls left in the courtyard.

Three exotic beasts had been released yesterday morning. They had devoured quite a few exhausted humans and demons. Interestingly, the arrival of these beasts had briefly united the remaining contestants. They chose to set aside their differences to slay the mindless monsters before turning back on their “allies.”

By this morning, all three beasts were dead. Gu Jinli estimated that more than half the original crowd had been eliminated.

But it wasn’t over. After a brief afternoon of rest, the survivors faced a new nightmare.

On the evening of the third day, the outer gates creaked open again. This time, three demonic wolves—far more agile and intelligent than the previous beasts—sprinted into the arena. The difficulty was ramping up.

Since her last “death,” Gu Jinli had remained on the ground, masquerading as a corpse. The lead up in the tree had also gone silent, as if she had vanished.

The two of them had coexisted in this eerie silence for three days. A few people had stumbled upon this corner, but seeing a “mangled corpse” on the ground, they didn’t bother to investigate further and left in a hurry.

However, with demonic wolves on the loose, things were changing. Those things were scavengers; they ate corpses. And since it was only day three, it would only get worse from here.

Gu Jinli contemplated moving her “dying spot.” Being stepped on repeatedly was one thing, but being eaten was another.

Just as she was thinking this…

“Big Sister,” a voice drifted down from the branches. “Maybe you should just come up?”

Gu Jinli: “Heh.”

Climbing up was out of the question. Ever since she was tricked, Gu Jinli’s guard against the lead was at 200%. She wouldn’t be getting close to that brat anytime soon.

But… lying out in the open really wasn’t safe. Setting aside the risk of being a wolf’s snack, the fact that her “corpse” wasn’t decomposing or showing signs of rigor mortis would eventually become obvious.

She needed a better way to lay low. The tree was a no-go, and the ground was too exposed. Was there another option? Something that hid her from human eyes and protected her from being eaten?

Wait.

“Got it.”

Her eyes lit up. Gu Jinli scrambled up from the ground.

“Big Sister?” The girl in the tree noticed the movement. “Are you coming up? I’ll come down and help you.”

“No need.”

Waving her off, Gu Jinli crept toward the edge of the shadows and peeked out. Good, no one was looking.

With a satisfied smirk, she pulled out the dagger she had hidden in her pocket, knelt down, and began to dig.

Yes, she was digging a hole. She planned to bury herself. It was the ultimate way to avoid being noticed or eaten.

“Big Sister… are you trying to hide underground?”

Shen Chigui slid nimbly down the tree. Having watched the entire process, she quickly caught on to Gu Jinli’s train of thought.

She had to admit… the idea was bizarre, but practically speaking, it had merit. Being buried was certainly more secure than being in a tree.

“…”

Gu Jinli didn’t bother answering. She just wanted to finish her grave before anyone spotted her. Her body couldn’t die anyway, so being buried alive wasn’t an issue.

“Big Sister.”

Shen Chigui squatted right next to her. She picked up a sturdy twig and poked at the loose dirt Gu Jinli had piled up. “Do you dislike me? You won’t even talk to me.”

Chirp, chirp, chirp. So annoying. Gu Jinli dug out a large clod of dirt and turned to glare at the lead with an exasperated expression.

“Are you that bored? If you’re so free, go out there and keep watch for me! You’re noisy as hell!”

Actually, no. Forget it.

Asking this brat to keep watch was no different from digging her own grave. Though, come to think of it, wasn’t that exactly what she was doing right now? Literally.

The irony wasn’t lost on her.

“Just stay here! Don’t do a single thing.”

Gu Jinli withdrew her gaze and buried her head back into her work, digging out two more handfuls of dirt. She muttered under her breath, “Can’t deal with her, definitely can’t deal with her…”

Shen Chigui: “…”

Is there something wrong with this person’s head?

After a fair amount of effort, Gu Jinli successfully excavated a long, rectangular trench.

She patted the dust off her clothes and stood up, satisfied, ready to lie down and test the “accommodations.” Unfortunately, before she could even get settled, the female lead—who had been eyeing the spot restlessly for a long time—beat her to it and laid herself down in the pit.

“Big Sister, this hole is quite comfortable! Why don’t you give it to me?”

Shen Chigui reached out, pinched a bit of loose soil from the side, and sprinkled it over herself. Under Gu Jinli’s incredulous gaze, she said with a cheeky grin, “Could you be a dear and bury me, Big Sister?”

Gu Jinli: “…”

This person… is utterly shameless! Simply atrocious.

“Get out!”

Gu Jinli’s face turned green with rage. She couldn’t resist giving the girl a light kick. “I dug this for myself! If you want one, go dig your own!”

She had been crouching there for ages to finish this! Her back was screaming and her muscles were aching.

“Don’t be so stingy, Big Sister~”

“Or… why don’t you just lie down here too?”

Shen Chigui wiggled her small frame and squeezed to one side, patting the bottom of the pit with a look of pure innocence. “Look, there’s still plenty of room!”

“Shameless,” Gu Jinli grumbled.

She cursed under her breath but lay down anyway to test the size. It seemed the pit truly was large enough for two people.

Thank goodness…

Thank goodness the hole she dug was wide enough. Thank goodness the lead was only nine years old. Thank goodness her own current body was so malnourished she was as thin as a bean sprout. Thank goodness…

Thank goodness my foot!

She refused to keep comforting herself like this. She needed to stand up for herself!

And so:

“Fine! Then you are responsible for covering us up!”

Tossing out that command, Gu Jinli closed her eyes with a sour expression.

Dammit! Out of sight, out of mind!

“Alright~”

This time, Shen Chigui’s laugh was genuine.

How very interesting… this Task-taker.

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