Chapter 01 The Enthusiastic Hospitality of the Cannibal

Xu Yi felt his eyelids were incredibly heavy, as if they were filled with lead. It took all his effort just to crack his eyes open a sliver.

The light was piercing; it took him a good while to get used to it.

He looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings, his mind reeling.

Wasn't he in the hotel having a heartfelt philosophical discussion with a young lady all night? How had he ended up here?

Cooking utensils gleamed with a metallic sheen, flames roared on the stovetop, and green broccoli floated in the washbasin—without a doubt, this was a kitchen.

Mens' voices conversed from outside, using a landline, their speech altered by electromagnetic conversion and interspersed with a distinct static hiss.

What year was it? Who still used landlines? He was somewhat puzzled.

The phone conversation was in English, and Xu Yi was shocked to realize that he could actually understand it!

After he started working, the little English he knew had long been "returned" to the school, both borrowed and paid back.

Since when had his English ability become so strong? Could he be dreaming?

But even if it was a dream, what he didn't understand should still be unintelligible, right?

His brain suddenly throbbed with pain; unfamiliar memories surged like a tide. After an indeterminate amount of time, Xu Yi slowly opened his eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling.

He had actually transmigrated to the United States of the 1980s. However, from the inherited memories, it seemed that this America was a bit off, teeming with many "bizarre" elements.

A chill ran down his spine, and only then did Xu Yi realize he was lying on an iron slab bed.

Why would there be an iron slab bed in the kitchen?

It seemed that this kind of bed would only be used for dismembering large animals, right?

His mind was groggy, a chunk of his memory missing; he couldn't recall at the moment.

He sat up from the bed, but due to his weak and feeble body, he failed to control his movements and accidentally kicked over an iron pot at the foot of the bed.

The iron pot clattered on the ground with a "ping-ling-pong-lang" sound.

The conversation outside stopped abruptly.

Footsteps approached rapidly, and a figure stepped into the kitchen—a refined man in a black suit and white shirt, with the distinctive high nasal bridge of a Western male, and eyes that flickered with an unusual gleam.

"Excuse me, where is this..." Xu Yi began to ask.

But before he could finish, the man quickly advanced, and a needle punctured his carotid artery; a swift injection from the syringe followed.

"You..."

Xu Yi tried to struggle, but a powerful sense of weakness washed over him. His body went limp, and he slowly collapsed.

Images flickered in his mind... a torrential rainy night, a van appeared silently, and a man in a raincoat approached him from behind, with a syringe piercing into his neck...

As the missing memory pieced itself back together, he finally realized he had been abducted.

But the realization came too late; he was lifted back onto the iron slab bed by the man.

"Losing effect so quickly, do you have a resistance to anesthetics? How rare!" the man murmured softly.

Xu Yi forced his body to move, but like a robot drained of power, all his effort only made his fingers tremble slightly.

"I've never tasted Asian flesh before; I wonder what it tastes like?" the man mused to himself.

Was this person insane? What was he talking about? Xu Yi suspected he had misheard.

Fear exploded in his heart as Xu Yi saw the man pick up the dissecting scalpel and slowly walk towards him.

Before he could react, the sharp scalpel stabbed into his chest. Due to the anesthetics, he couldn't feel any pain.

But the sight was too horrific, almost scaring him to death.

Memories tumbled through his mind—newly inherited and not yet assimilated—...missing persons across New York, a brutal serial killer suspected to be the resurrection of the Cannibal...

Xu Yi wanted to cry but had no tears.

He had just transmigrated and hadn't lived even five minutes before he was about to die? Could there be a more tragic transmigrator?

Xu Yi wanted to struggle, but the excessive anesthetics took effect, and he could not move. He could only watch with his eyes wide open as the Cannibal dissected him, and finally, cut out his heart and threw it into a porcelain dish.

His eyelids grew heavier, and his consciousness gradually dissipated, eventually plummeting into the dark abyss.

Just then, a "ding dong" sounded in his ear, followed by a mechanical, synthesized voice.

[You have died! System activated!]

[Monthly auto-sign-in complete, success! You've obtained "Resurrection Coin x1"!]

[You are located in "Hannibal's follower's kitchen," sign-in successful, you've obtained "Resurrection Coin x3"!]

Hannibal's follower?

Xu Yi was stunned. He had actually encountered a Cannibal!

This world was indeed abnormal, with even Cannibals having followers. But Hannibal rarely hunted innocent people. What sort of thing is this follower? It's sheer false advertising!

Xu Yi quickly figured out how to use the system. There was a sign-in once a month, and you could only get the chance to sign in if you were in the "Land of Fear."

The only prize for signing in was the Resurrection Coin.

Four coins floated in the void, golden all over, with the Arabic numeral "10" embossed on the front and holy wings on the back.

Xu Yi stared at the Resurrection Coin, and its function automatically appeared in his mind

"Spend one Resurrection Coin to resurrect to 10 minutes before!"

"Resurrection Coins can also be stacked. Using two together allows you to go back 20 minutes!"

His eyes lit up. The Resurrection Coin was akin to a "rewind" function, which gave him hope of escape!

[You have died, would you like to use a Resurrection Coin?]

There was nothing to hesitate about, Xu Yi decisively chose "Use."

A coin fell, bursting forth with dazzling golden light, engulfing him.

Xu Yi slowly opened his eyes, dazed. The familiar kitchen, the familiar iron bed, the familiar sound of telephone conversation coming from outside the door.

He had actually "resurrected!"

He quickly found a "blind spot." From the time he awoke to being disemboweled, it was far from 10 minutes.

It seems that the time he was unconscious counted as well. Xu Yi quickly figured it out.

They say it's back to ten minutes before, but because of the anesthetics, he actually only had a few short minutes.

"I need to hurry!"

Xu Yi carefully got up, avoiding the pot at his feet, not making a sound.

As soon as he landed, he staggered, almost falling, clearly the effects of the anesthetics in his body hadn't completely worn off yet.

Glancing around, his gaze landed on the knife rack; from there, he took a kitchen knife for defense.

The kitchen had only one exit and no windows. Xu Yi had no choice but to quietly head towards the door.

After just two steps, the conversation outside ceased, followed by the click of the receiver being placed back on the phone.

The footsteps drew closer again, but not as hurried as before, obviously not noticing Xu Yi had awoken, just hanging up the phone normally.

The telephone happened to be installed in the corridor. If Xu Yi was to escape from here, he must pass through the corridor, so he couldn't avoid the Cannibal no matter what.

Listening to the footsteps getting closer, Xu Yi steeled his heart, hid behind the door, and gripped the kitchen knife in his hand.

His opponent was the Cannibal; there was absolutely no need for chivalry!