Volume One: The Spiral Engraving Chapter Two: The Boiling Beast's Blood

After entering the living room, the couple warmly welcomed Chen Fan, setting out a large table filled with dishes.

Chen Fan found their hospitality excessively enthusiastic—so much so that it felt overwhelming. He had never encountered such overly hospitable people before.

All the various doubts swirling in his mind made him uneasy about trusting this family of three. So he sat down at the dining table but didn’t pick up his chopsticks. Instead, he asked them directly:

“Where exactly is this place? Is it within the borders of China? Or rather, is it even on Earth?”

Li Zongzheng took a big mouthful of rice and said, “Where is this China? And what’s Earth? All I know is this place is called the Eastern District, and it’s always been called that since ancient times.”

“The Eastern District?” Chen Fan’s confusion deepened. He pressed on, “Have you seen those bizarre trees on the plains? Or the monsters with human heads? Why do they look like that?”

“Brother, have you never been here before? They’ve always looked like that since forever. Even elementary school kids know that. You don’t? You’re not an alien, are you?” Li Zhenxuan looked at Chen Fan with puzzled eyes. His delicate features and chubby round face made him appear quite adorable.

“Yeah, you’re not an alien, right? Why else would you ask such strange questions?” Wang Chan also glanced at him. She was a typical beautiful young woman, her figure curvaceous and alluring.

“Just curious,” Chen Fan quickly waved his hand, not wanting them to see through him.

An hour later, while the four of them were engrossed in watching TV, a knock came at the door.

Li Zhenxuan hurried to open it, and four elderly people entered one after another.

Li Zongzheng reached out to greet them, standing up quickly to introduce them.

They were his parents and his in-laws.

They looked to be in their fifties, dressed in blue or white tracksuits, seemingly just back from exercising.

Each held a damp white embroidered towel in hand, and even from a distance, the smell of their sweat was noticeable.

“Guests at last! Haha, rare guests indeed,” the four elders approached, speaking to Chen Fan with heartfelt warmth, like family elders, giving a sense of closeness.

Li Zongzheng’s father-in-law’s face was flushed. After twisting his neck, he said, “Son, let’s go to the karaoke room and sing. No use just sitting around.” Then he looked at Chen Fan. “Xiao Fan, want to give it a try? You look strong—your singing must have great energy. Dare to compete with your uncle?”

“No need. You go ahead,” Chen Fan bowed apologetically. “Uncle, auntie, I’ll just rest in my room first.”

“Alright, alright, maybe another day,” Li Zongzheng’s father-in-law waved regretfully, his face full of disappointment.

Li Zongzheng assigned him a room on the third floor. After closing and locking the door, Chen Fan switched on the white light bulb.

The dim incandescent light illuminated the room.

The room was warmly decorated, equipped with everything necessary. The bed had a down comforter and beige pillows, all faintly scented with perfume, revealing the family’s attention to detail.

His brows knitted tightly. From outside the villa, this room’s window appeared to be a full-length glass window.

But now, what intruded into his sight was a huge iron window, tightly fitted into the wall.

The iron window’s grid was small—only about the size of a baby’s head. He stepped forward, trying to open it, but found it was cast in one piece, feeling as sturdy as diamond.

Under the cold light, the smooth surface of the iron window reflected glimmers.

From his perspective, this was less a luxurious villa room and more a prison cell.

This was utterly abnormal; he had never seen any villa decorated like this.

A knock sounded at the door again. Chen Fan opened it to see Wang Chan standing there.

She held a crystal tray with a glass of milky white milk.

Whether or not it contained milk essence, the fragrance was unnaturally strong, almost cloying.

“Hey, you haven’t eaten a bite tonight. That won’t do. When you’re away from home, you must take good care of yourself, understand? Otherwise, your parents will worry. Come, drink this glass of milk before bed.”

She smiled gently, extending her delicate right hand to offer the milk, her eyes full of concern, urging him to drink quickly.

Suddenly, Chen Fan clutched his stomach and said, “Thank you, but I upset my stomach during the day and can’t eat anything now. How about this: I’ll put the milk on the bedside table first and drink it later if I feel like it, okay?”

Wang Chan’s eyes were like water. She nodded and handed the milk to him.

Taking the milk, Chen Fan asked his lingering question: “Why would you install such iron windows in the villa rooms? Which designer came up with this? Or did you design it yourselves?”

She sighed, her eyes moist, then glanced stealthily downstairs before entering the room quickly, closing the door behind her and leaning her back against it.

She looked at Chen Fan, her gaze suddenly sultry. She even pulled down her collar, exposing her fair cleavage to his view.

“Don’t want this, don’t want that, then what do you want? They won’t find out. Want to try?” She licked her lips, her eyes burning with feverish abandon, seeming to lose all reason.

Chen Fan gritted his teeth, a rare sting of displeasure rising within. He drew his combat knife, pointing it at her head. “Show some respect. If you don’t put your clothes back on, I’ll call someone.”

“No fun at all. Then drink your milk quickly. Goodbye.” She snorted coldly, opened the door, and hurried out.

After she left, Chen Fan closed and locked the door, sitting down on a nearby chair.

This family seemed harmonious on the surface but always gave him an indescribably eerie feeling.

Especially Wang Chan’s earlier behavior—it was extremely abnormal!

No normal person would act like that. Anyone who does must be far from normal!

The golden-red glow of the Divine Script system appeared on his retina, showing the loading progress had reached 88%. The system activation was imminent.

This system might be extraordinary, but he didn’t care at all. In 35 years, he had never entrusted his life or future to any external force.

The only person he trusted was himself; he firmly believed no one would harm him like he could.

As for the system, it might even have been implanted in him by someone with ulterior motives!

He was always suspicious, even to paranoia, and his comrades and captain often said he was too harsh.

But it was precisely because of his extreme caution and suspicion that he had survived the battlefield.

“Where exactly is the problem?”

After surveying the surroundings and finding nothing unusual, he took out all his spoils.

He first opened the blue-covered notebook. One page of notes came into view:

“My name is Luo Ling. This is my fifteenth day in this strange world, living each day in fear…”

The rest were mostly venting anger and resentment, so Chen Fan skipped ahead, flipping through pages in search of valuable information.

After two hours, he paused. Though four or five pages remained unread, he had a general understanding of the items he’d obtained.

The black stone was called the Demon Stone. Absorbing a special energy called “异能” (translated as “special ability” or “superpower”) from it into the body could raise one’s mutation level.

Mutation levels were divided into nine grades.

As for the gray stone shard, it was related to an object called the “Primordial Stone Inscription.”

The notebook recorded this about the Primordial Stone Inscription: “Only by raising the mutation level to Grade One and acquiring the Primordial Stone Inscription can one leave the Eastern District. I must work hard!”

“Where exactly is that Primordial Stone Inscription? What role does this gray stone shard play?”

Chen Fan’s doubts deepened, and he continued reading the remaining pages.

Upon reaching the last page, his expression changed drastically. He sprang up from the chair, eyes filled with unshakable horror!

The last page read:

“This is my forty-fifth day in this strange world. I was bitten by a Bone-Eroding Black Snake and don’t have long to live. But the Bone-Eroding Black Snake is just an ordinary venomous snake. As long as I can advance to Grade One mutant, I can survive this.”

“This morning, I passed a villa. The family of three inside invited me in as guests, but I didn’t go. My intuition told me this family was not normal. I am one hundred percent certain—they are monsters disguised in human skin!”

“They are monsters…” The overwhelming terror gripped his heart like a ghostly hand squeezing his chest, threatening to crush it.

The unshakable fear engulfed him instantly, drenching his back with cold sweat as if he had taken a plunge into icy water, chilling him from head to toe.

His body stiffened; even his thick fingers twitched slightly.

After being dazed for over ten seconds, he snapped to attention and adjusted himself to peak condition.

Opening the door, he heard the family’s singing still echoing from the karaoke room.

Li Zongzheng’s voice was clear and loud, rivaling some professional singers. His father and father-in-law occasionally joined in, their voices robust, evoking the feel of seasoned performers.

A warm atmosphere emanated from the karaoke room, soothing restless hearts.

But now, for him, these sounds were so eerie they made his blood run cold.

“That woman said the rooms on the second and third floors have iron windows…”

He was on edge, gripping the hilt of his combat knife tightly as he headed toward the nearby rooms.

All the third-floor room doors were locked, impossible to open.

He gritted his teeth and proceeded to the second floor.

There were seven rooms, all locked without exception.

A bone-chilling cold surged through him, and an impulse to flee exploded within. Every inch of his flesh seemed to scream, urging him to escape this cursed place.

Yet, glancing outside at the thick black darkness, his mood only darkened further.

Clearly, night here was far more perilous than day. If he left this villa now, death awaited him.

This world was unbearably dangerous; even the air seemed to steal life.

His heart tightened again because the once noisy villa suddenly fell deathly silent; he could hear every breath and heartbeat. The family had inexplicably stopped singing.

Normally, if they stopped singing, they would leave the karaoke room, but the door remained firmly shut without a hint of opening.

A great terror rose within him. His eyes narrowed, brows furrowed, and he returned to his room.

After locking the door, he turned to the massive iron window. Now it was clear: the window’s main purpose wasn’t to prevent Li Zhenxuan from falling, but to stop anyone from escaping!

He shifted his gaze and began searching the room for useful tools.

But perhaps the family had anticipated this, as all four cabinets were empty.

He no longer trusted them. He tore the mattress off the soft bed and threw it to the floor.

His pupils contracted to pinpoints, as if someone had struck his chest with an iron hammer, almost suffocating him.

Beneath the mattress lay a bloodstained… human skeleton!

The gaping, snarling skull would terrify anyone who saw it, even in daylight.

The bones had been specially treated—there was no stench—but sticky fluids and bite marks coated the surface!

A suffocating sensation enveloped him!

He stumbled back two steps, hitting the wall, forcing himself to calm down.

He was now absolutely certain: just as Luo Ling had said, this family were indeed monsters wearing human skins.

He did not blame himself for not reading the notebook sooner; time had been too short. Only about half an hour remained before nightfall. Without a safe place by then, death was certain.

He had no night vision; at night, he was as helpless as a newborn, with almost no means of self-defense.

The priority was to find a solution—not to remain trapped in fear!

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