Am I a Kamen Rider or the real young master who was switched at birth?

Ye Yang lay on the bed, pulling the blanket up to his chest. He had one hand behind his head and held his phone in the other.

The light from the screen shone on his face, casting it in shifting shadows.

He was scrolling through a funny video where a cat was trying to jump from the sofa onto the coffee table, but it slipped and fell flat on its face.

Just as he smiled, a message notification popped up at the top of the screen.

The latest news about the scandal is an emoji.

A chubby orange cat, its two paws clenched into fists, frantically pounded into the air, tears streaming down its face like two little fountains, accompanied by the caption: "I'm so scared! Ahhhhh!"

Ye Yang turned off the video, then opened the chat box and quickly typed a few words on the screen.

Ye Yang: What's wrong?

The "typing is happening" message on the other end stayed lit for a long time.

Ye Yang waited and waited, and after watching two more short videos, he came back to find that the notification bar was still flashing.

He was just about to send another question mark when the message finally popped up.

Rumor: Ugh, my new little brother is so naughty. He just told me a scary story, something about eyes without pupils and teeth that are all sharp. Now I'm so scared I can't sleep. After I turned off the lights, I kept feeling like something was moving in the closet. It's so scary, so scary, so scary!

Ye Yang looked at the few lines of text on the screen, scratched the back of his head, and then began typing with an indignant air:

Your younger brother is really something else! How could he tell scary stories in the middle of the night?! Doesn't he realize how much psychological harm this causes to us teenagers who are still growing up?! This behavior must be strongly condemned! Make him buy you milk tea as an apology tomorrow morning!

The gossip column posted a crying emoji, showing a fat orange cat lying on a pillow, its tears soaking a large area of ​​the pillow.

Rumor: Yeah, yeah, he's so mean. Ugh, I can't sleep. The lights are still on in my room. I'm scared if I turn them off, but I can't sleep with them on. I have to get up early tomorrow, my eyes are definitely going to be swollen.

Ye Yang rolled over, held his phone directly above his face, thought for a moment, and then started typing.

Ye Yang: Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, I'll tell you another story. A story about dream agents.

The person in question posted a confused emoji: What is a dream agent?

Ye Yang: He's an omnipotent agent in his dreams. He can transform into the King of Calamity, a gigantic being who can blast away monsters in his dreams and smash through walls with a single punch. He also has a particularly cool set of black armor.

The person in question posted a surprised emoji: Really?

Ye Yang: Although he often bullies the pitiful monsters in dreams, and his transformed appearance is dark and edgy, he's definitely a good person. His dream is to protect everyone's dreams. No matter what scary things are in your dreams, he'll punch them away. So you can sleep soundly; he'll be watching over your dreams.

There was a long silence on the other end.

Then the gossip posted a cheering emoji, and this time the chubby orange cat was holding up a small flag that read "Go for it!"

Rumor: Is he really that amazing? Okay, I believe him. Thank you.

Rumor: I'm going to watch some funny videos to calm down after being scared. I just saw a video of a cat falling off the sofa, it's so funny, I'm going to watch it a few more times.

Ye Yang: Okay, go to sleep early.

He exited the chat and placed his phone on the bedside table.

He recalled the image of Lin Ying walking out of the room just now.

Lin Ying, who usually remains calm in front of the Silent Beast and stands firm in front of Shen Yunzhou, was so frightened by a zombie story that she could barely speak.

He scratched his head, turned over, and glanced at the bed next to him.

Long Aotian huddled under the covers, which bulged into a large bulge, and the muttering coming from inside the bulge grew fainter and fainter.

Ye Yang slowly sat up in bed, carefully pulled his legs out from under the covers, and then placed them on the floor.

He tiptoed toward the door, when suddenly a "whoosh" came from behind him.

Long Aotian sprang up from the bed, his long hair a mess, looking like a bird's nest.

He glanced around and saw Ye Yang standing at the door. He asked warily, "Senior brother—where are you going? Is something wrong?"

Ye Yang turned around and made a "shh" gesture with his finger to his lips.

"I'll go check on Lin Ying. I just told her that zombie story and it really scared her. I'm afraid she's hiding under the covers chanting sutras like you."

Long Aotian opened his mouth as if he wanted to refute something, but in the end he closed his mouth awkwardly and nodded vigorously.

"Alright, senior brother, hurry back. It's really not safe for a girl to be out alone in the middle of the night—even though she's also an Awakened One—never mind, never mind."

Ye Yang nodded, then gently opened the door.

The corridor was pitch black, with only a sliver of moonlight filtering in through the window at the far end.

He had just taken one step when Long Aotian's voice came from behind him again: "Senior brother—remember to turn on the lights when you leave. Please."

Ye Yang stood at the door and glanced back at him.

Long Aotian was sitting on the bed, his hands tightly gripping the corner of the blanket.

He silently pressed the light switch on the wall by the door, and the dim ceiling light in the room flickered twice before turning on.

Long Aotian visibly breathed a sigh of relief before lying back down in bed.

He clasped his hands together and waved them towards the door to express his gratitude.

Ye Yang gently closed the door, then walked through the corridor to Lin Ying's room.

He glanced down at the crack in the door, where a warm yellow light shone through, casting a thin line of light on the floor.

He raised his hand and knocked lightly twice on the door.

There was silence in the room for a while. Then, a series of hurried footsteps came from inside.

The door was opened a crack, and Lin Ying's face was partially visible through the gap.

Her hair was slightly disheveled and draped over her shoulders, and her light gray eyes shone faintly in the light.

After she saw that it was Ye Yang standing at the door, her shoulders visibly relaxed, and she opened the door a little bit.

Her hand rested on the door frame, her fingers unconsciously picking at a piece of old paint that had peeled off the edge of the frame.

"Wh...what's wrong?" she asked softly.

Ye Yang leaned against the doorframe, tilting his head to look at her, and said in a very soft voice, "I came to see you. You looked really scared just now; your legs were practically straight when you walked. Are you alright?"

Lin Ying shook her head quickly, her slightly messy hair swaying with her movements.

"No, no—I'm fine. It's just—it's that zombie from earlier—no—it's that Uncle Dong you mentioned earlier—what happened to him? No—you don't need to tell me—I don't want to know—I'm really fine."

She quickly lowered her head, and a few strands of silvery-white hair slipped down from behind her ears, covering half of her face.

"Really?"

She lowered her head and scratched at the door frame several times with her fingers.

Then she slightly raised her head, looking at Ye Yang from under her bangs, and said in a voice so soft it was like a mosquito's hum, "Okay—actually—I am a little scared. Just a little. Not much. I always feel like something is moving around in the corner of the closet."

Ye Yang tilted his head and thought for a moment, then pointed to the room and said gently:

"Actually, those are all fake. The zombies in the movie are played by actors who put flour and syrup on their faces. After filming, they have to remove their makeup and go home for dinner."

"When I first saw it as a child, I was terrified. Later, someone told me that it was all fake, and I'm not afraid anymore."

After he finished speaking, he suddenly realized that his reasoning seemed a bit flawed.

He himself had just fought a real zombie king this afternoon. Old Mo is a real person in this world, although he is very different from a zombie.

However, it's best not to add this detail.

He waved his hand, banishing the jarring thought from his mind.

"Anyway—everything will be fine. If you run into any trouble, just come next door to us. With two grown men like me and Long Aotian here, no demons or monsters can get near you. And if a ghost really dares to come—"

He gave Lin Ying a thumbs up, then a slight smile played on his lips. "I'll transform right now and kick it all the way to the other side of the Black Forest. You saw my Dawn Form today; one kick and I can blast through a mine. What's a mere brat compared to that?"

Lin Ying looked up at his confident expression, and the corners of her mouth finally turned up slightly.

She raised her hand to brush the stray hairs from her forehead, then said softly, "Okay, thank you. I believe you."

"Do you need me to keep you company? I can sit next to you and tell you some bedtime stories, although you probably don't need it."

Lin Ying gently shook her head and smiled softly. Her eyes sparkled as she said, "No need. I feel much better."

Ye Yang looked at her for a moment, then nodded without pressuring her.

He took a step back, then pointed towards his room, "I'm going back to sleep now, you should get some sleep too. If you need anything, just knock on the wall—our bed and your bed should only be separated by a wall."

Lin Ying raised her hand, tentatively waving her paw in the air like a kitten, and said, "Goodnight."

Ye Yang waved his hand, then turned and walked towards the end of the corridor. "Good night, sweet dreams."

Lin Ying nodded, then gently closed the door.

The warm yellow light shining through the crack in the door stayed on for a while before going out.

Meanwhile, in Qin Buwen's courtyard.

Lin Yumin was lying on the bed in the guest room, which was filled with a faint fragrance of herbs.

The acupuncture treatment Qin Buwen gave her was very effective. The silver needles on the back of her neck had been removed, and the activity of the Gu worms had been suppressed to the lowest point. She could feel her body slowly recovering.

Moonlight streamed through the bamboo blinds, casting a fine, shimmering silver glow on the floor.

Suddenly, a rapid knocking broke the silence in the courtyard.

Lin Xingran's somewhat flustered voice came from outside the door: "Big sister—big sister—are you asleep?"

Lin Yumin rubbed her eyes, then propped herself up on her elbows, her long hair sliding down her shoulders and landing on the pillow.

She glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table and said in a slightly soft voice, "Not yet—what's wrong?"

There was a moment of silence outside. Then the door was suddenly flung open, the entire wooden door slamming against the wall with a dull thud.

Lin Xingran rushed in wearing a dark gray short-sleeved pajama set and clutching her pillow.

She rushed to the bedside, threw her own pillow next to Lin Yumin's pillow, and then rolled onto the bed and snuggled into Lin Yumin's blankets.

Before Lin Yumin could react, a younger sister was already shivering in her bed.

Lin Xingran buried her face in her eldest sister's shoulder and said in a muffled voice:

"I was video chatting with Lin Ying just now, and I happened to hear Ye Yang telling ghost stories. Something about Uncle Dong the zombie, eyes without pupils, and teeth that were all sharp and could regenerate."

"I only listened to the beginning and then hung up the video, but the image kept replaying in my mind. It's so scary, so scary, so scary—big sister, I want to sleep with you."

Lin Yumin lowered her head and looked at her second sister, who was curled up in her arms. A slight smile appeared on her lips.

She reached out and gently patted Lin Xingran's shoulder, saying softly, "Okay, I'll sleep with you. The zombies won't dare come."