Chapter 11: A Dime

[March 27, 101st year.

I haven't really slept these past few days, constantly scared and anxious, always feeling like any second now, the police could break down the door. I've become delirious, feeling like I'm about to go crazy.

Maybe I should turn myself in, but then my life would be completely over.

Just wait a bit longer, just a bit longer... Wang Jian Wei isn't a local, his parents died early, he doesn't have a wife, and he just lost his job. He also borrowed a lot of money from friends recently. His disappearance looks more like he's on the run; I guess it won't draw much attention from the police.

I hope heaven will protect me...]

[April 25, 101st year.

A month has passed, and the police haven't shown up. A few days ago, I went to the house Wang Jian Wei rented, pretending to look for him. The door was opened by a stranger who said he's the new tenant.

It seems the landlord thought Wang Jian Wei ran away because he couldn't pay the rent, so he just rented the place out to someone else.

I also contacted a few friends who lent Wang Jian Wei money; they all said that guy definitely took the money and ran. Some have called the police, but given the low amount involved and Wang Jian Wei being from out of town, it's likely to fade into insignificance in the end.

Xinhu has a large number of missing persons every year, and Wang Jian Wei being an outsider won't stir up much trouble.

Maybe... this case is closed?]

[May 1, 101st year.

Last night, I finally had a good night's sleep. I should have escaped this ordeal.]

[June 13, 101st year.

Last night I dreamed about the murder scene again. I can't forget that feeling of my heart racing...

Why is this happening? Could it be that I was born a killer?]

[June 20, 101st year.

That feeling has turned into a desire, spreading endlessly within me. I'm tortured by it, unable to sleep; I just can't stand it. It's a desire a hundred, a thousand times stronger than sexual desire; it's as if ants are crawling inside my blood vessels, muscles and even my soul, bringing waves of unbearable itching and pain.

I tossed and turned, trying to find a way to ease this torture, but such efforts were in vain, for those ants had taken deep root in my heart.

I'm wavering...

I want to do it again.]

[July 16, 101st year.

After a long search, I captured a vagrant. This time I decided not to be so brutal but to be as delicate as cooking a meal.

I must be insane, to even think of killing another person. I may not be so lucky this time; the police might discover me, but I just can't bear it any longer, I'm going crazy.

This will be the last time; I'll quit after this hit.]

[July 18, 101st year.

I really turned him into a dish.

I can feel every single cell in my body trembling, it's a feeling, unlike anything I've felt before—I don't know how to describe it... Pleasure? Thrill? A sense of control? Guilt?

This sensation is delightful, airy, like flying in heaven, an endless aftertaste.

I don't plan to stop anymore, I want to keep chasing this feeling until I die!]

From then on, Li Xu Tian would commit another crime every couple of months and meticulously recorded the timing, methods, victims' appearances and reactions, cooking processes, and ultimately, a critique of the experience.

Rather than calling it a diary, it's more appropriate to call it a personal cookbook.

When only a third of the diary's content remained, Zhou Yuan finally stumbled upon records related to that ceremonial array.

[March 13, 106th year.

The pig I caught this time is a bit different; he seems to already know his impending fate, so he's surprisingly talkative and told me some secrets... Turns out he's a murderer just like me.

No wonder I felt a sense of familiarity the instant I saw him, perhaps some common trait between our kind—madness? Cruelty? Apathy? Or something else... But he's lesser than me, only knows how to crudely stab people to death, without any sense of ritual or aesthetic, trash.]

He also said that there was a document on his phone, which recorded a ritual that could strengthen the body, giving people immense strength, and that he had been killing people in preparation for the ritual.

I found that document, and within it was a mention of an organization called "Flesh Workshop," whose members believed in the supremacy of the flesh, advocated indulgence, and engaged in various ancient and bloody primal rituals.

This is clearly a scam, I suspect that this guy has some screws loose to believe these tricks without a doubt, eating him won't make me stupid, right?

"Flesh Workshop... Would any organization really give themselves a name that sounds so much like a cult?" Zhou Yuan couldn't help but sneer, thinking that such a name would hardly scam any money, right?

He continued reading:

[Year 106, March 16th.

These past few days, I've been so bored that I decided to delve deeper into the only ritual recorded in the document, a strength-enhancing ceremony, which could transfer the strength of others' flesh and blood to oneself, thereby enhancing one's physical strength.

What nonsense...

However, there are still some stocks left in the cellar. If I capture a few more people, I can meet the conditions for the ritual. Since I'm idle anyway, I might as well give it a try.]

[Year 106, May 2nd.

I performed the strength-enhancing ceremony, waited for half an hour, and there was no reaction.

After eating that guy, I really did become an idiot, to be so deluded as to believe in such things. I even spent over 10,000 for the materials for the ritual. What a fuck up.]

"So it seems that the Flesh Workshop might be a scam group, but could it be that Li Xu Tian made some mistake in the steps, leading to the failure of the ritual?"

Zhou Yuan continued to look for more useful information, but unfortunately, Li Xu Tian did not try again, and his journal soon came to an end.

[The mission "Good Chef Teaches You How to Be a Person" has been completed.]

[Mission Evaluation: A (Experience Points and Star Coins rewards increased to 130%).]

[Remarks: Your caution was sufficient, leaving few traces. Exposure in the real world would inevitably lead to a very tragic outcome—you are well aware of this and thus sought a swift resolution.

However, caution has its downsides, as you believed that you had uncovered all the truths of the mission. But in reality, that was not the case. What you explored was merely the tip of the iceberg.]

[Mission Reward 1: Experience Points*130]

[Mission Reward 2: Star Coins*1300]

[LV5→LV6!]

[Experience: 40/350]

[Star Coins: 5400]

[Available Attribute Points: 4]

"Just the tip of the iceberg... It seems there's still something I haven't uncovered. Could it be the Flesh Workshop?

If I hadn't killed Li Xu Tian, but instead tied him up and tortured him for information, maybe I could have discovered the truth and achieved an S rating... I'm still too naive."

Zhou Yuan scratched his head, starting to understand the grading mechanism.

"So, to score an S rating, not only do I need to perform well during the mission, but I also need to unearth the underlying truth of the incident.

Indeed, high rewards come with high risks."

The mission ended, and it was also four o'clock in the morning.

Zhou Yuan put the journal into his backpack, yawned, turned off the lights, and went to bed.

Outside the window.

As the room's lights went out, the crows with red eyes sitting on the branches also closed their eyes.

The wind started to blow gently, the leaves rustling, as the color of the night sky deepened and became more profound. Dark clouds, like a vast curtain, gathered from all directions, covering the moon and stars, spreading an indescribable sense of oppression without a sound.

This was the prelude to a storm.