Chapter Seventy-Seven: Disappearance

When it comes to the night watchman, Ye Yan, most people's first impression is probably something like a monster, outrageous, powerful—a prodigy among the younger generation, already bearing the title of Third Hero at such a young age. Even formidable figures like Dingjima An have lost to him.

At this point, Old Y’s analysis likely prompts many readers to ask, “Isn’t this supposed to be an identity analysis thread about Ye Liangchen? Why is Old Y connecting two seemingly unrelated characters?”

But have you noticed something? Ye Yan and Ye Liangchen both share the surname Ye, and both employ spirit creatures as their monsters. These two coincidences, when placed together, seem rather telling.

The thread’s analysis ends abruptly here.

Ye Yan, clutching his phone, hurriedly scrolled down and was greeted by a torrent of hot comments.

First floor, “Twenty Packs of Tissues a Day”: “First floor, marking my spot, fresh and hot.”

Second floor, “I’m Your Boss”: “Ye Yan, Ye Liangchen, both use spirit creatures. Damn, I never noticed these before. Old Y is a genius.”

Third floor, “I’m Big, Bear With It”: “As expected from you, Old Y. Waiting up front for more updates.”

And so on—the comments continued in this vein until the tenth floor, where Old Y posted an addendum.

“If the previous points weren’t convincing, take a look at this.”

Besides text, Old Y uploaded two pictures: one of Ye Yan’s back during his duel with Dingjima An, and another of Ye Liangchen’s back at the Heavenly Gathering. Despite the differing angles, when placed side by side, the resemblance was uncanny.

Pictures don’t lie.

This comparison lent Old Y’s argument even more credibility.

“And here’s another thing: both have exactly seven spirit creatures. This detail matches remarkably well. If you observe carefully, you’ll notice similarities between the creatures themselves. For example, isn’t that giant, fat Psyduck quite similar to that big lump?”

[…]

Ye Yan was stunned. If not for this post, he wouldn’t have realized he had so many loopholes. It was utterly absurd.

At the end of the thread, this Sherlock Holmes—Old Y—even tagged Ye Yan’s account.

Ye Yan was speechless.

Right now, he really wanted to post and ask, “What do I do if my alternate identity is exposed? Urgent, waiting online!”

“Maybe I should log in and reply below to clarify things?”

His mind raced, and this idea sprang up, but he immediately dismissed it.

The thread was extremely popular; there were plenty who believed Ye Yan and Ye Liangchen were one and the same. If he jumped in now, it would only make things worse, and everyone would think he was guilty and trying to cover up.

Absolutely not.

He needed to stay calm. Even if he planned to respond, he’d have to wait until the thread’s heat died down.

As long as he didn’t admit anything, no one could say Ye Liangchen was Ye Yan.

For now, he’d have to hold out.

…

Ye Yan thought he could just play ostrich, pretend nothing happened, and everything would blow over.

But he was wrong.

He’d been too naïve.

Whenever he appeared on the street, people pointed at him, and some even ran over excitedly to ask if he was Ye Yan, begging for his autograph.

Leaving the arena, Ye Yan had intended to watch some other matches, but wherever he went, crowds inevitably gathered around him.

Even some shameless girls, in broad daylight, shouted about wanting to have his babies.

Ye Yan was thoroughly shocked.

He could accept being attractive, but these fans were truly overwhelming.

If Xia He heard these things, she’d kick up a fuss—might even start a fight.

That troublesome woman seemed generous on the surface, but her jealousy was needle-sharp. A classic vinegar jar.

Ye Yan, besieged by all this enthusiasm, felt utterly awkward, like a rat scurrying through the streets, forced to hide wherever he could.

Feeling mentally battered, Ye Yan wanted to find solace on the dance channels, watching the lithe, gentle girls to soothe his soul.

But no sooner had he picked up his phone than messages started pouring in.

Tang Wenlong: “Yezi, you’re too much. You come to the Heavenly Gathering and don’t even say hi, sneaking around like that.”

Tao Tao: “Front row, eating popcorn.”

Old Liao: “Are you Ye Liangchen?”

One Ball: “City playboy.”

Ye Yan: I…

Being harassed outside was bad enough; he just wanted to calm his fragile soul.

Couldn’t any of them leave him in peace?

Life was impossible.

Just as he was drowning in exasperation, one message suddenly caught his attention.

It was from a group chat.

Group name: Fourth Brother’s Harem.

Sender, Feng Baobao: “Guys, has anyone seen Dirty Zhang Chulan? He’s gone missing.”

Li Ziyuan: “Zhang Chulan? Wasn’t he just competing? How could he be missing?”

Xu San replied instantly, “Baobao, what’s going on?”

“I don’t know. I turned around and he was gone,” Feng Baobao answered truthfully.

As Ye Yan read the messages, he received a private one from Xu Si.

“Yezi, your Third Brother and I are tied up right now. Can you run over and help Baobao and the others look for Chulan?”

“Alright,” Ye Yan agreed immediately.

…

When Ye Yan and Li Ziyuan arrived at the site where Zhang Chulan had gone missing, they found Feng Baobao darting around like a panicked cockroach, asking everyone she met, “Have you seen Dirty Zhang Chulan?” She was scaring the passersby.

“Baobao, this isn’t the way to ask.”

Though unsure how many people she’d questioned, the fact that she was still asking meant she hadn’t found a clue.

Hearing Ye Yan’s voice, Feng Baobao turned quickly. “Oh, you’re here!”

Ye Yan nodded. “Baobao, step aside. Let me handle the questions.”

“Okay.”

Knowing her method was futile, Feng Baobao obediently stepped aside.

Once she moved, Ye Yan approached an ordinary-looking passerby and asked, “Brother, let me ask you something. Did you see Zhang Chulan around here earlier?”

“Who’s Zhang Chulan?”

“Not a Green Lotus.”

“Oh, now I get it. Yeah, I saw him just now.” The passerby suddenly understood and pointed, “I just saw him heading that way with two guys in black…”