Dark Farm 1

After a bout of dizziness, Wen Xirou slowly opened her eyes. 

The first thing she saw was the driver's seat of the bus ahead—occupied by a terrifying female ghost, tilting her head as she drove. 

It seemed to have no neck, its head embedded directly into its shoulders. Its face was twisted at a 45-degree angle toward the bus door, unable to turn back. Amidst its messy hair, two pink butterfly hair clips were fastened—one on each side. 

Yet, despite its head being permanently twisted and unable to see the road, the bus continued moving forward, perfectly aligned with the lane. 

A shiver ran down Wen Xirou's spine. As expected of an ghost—it truly looked eerie. 

"Sister Xirou…" A voice came from beside her. It was her assistant, Xiao Lin. 

Xiao Lin clung tightly to Wen Xirou's arm, her thin shoulders trembling. Her face was pale, filled with terror. 

Wen Xirou glanced down at her. "How old are you?" 

"I just turned eighteen two months ago," Xiao Lin replied, her lips quivering. 

No wonder, Wen Xirou thought to herself. 

The thriller world only randomly selects adults to enter. The girl had just come of age, so this was likely her first time entering. 

Wen Xirou patted Xiao Lin's hand reassuringly. 

"Don't worry. You've read the government-issued Ghost and Monster Response Manual, right? As long as we follow the correct rules, we can escape safely. After we clear this, I'll give you a big red envelope and a 20% raise." 

Xiao Lin, truly the chosen office worker, was immediately moved by the words. "Got it, Sister Xirou! I'll be brave and careful, and I'll do my best to make sure both of us get out safely." 

Seeing Xiao Lin's newfound determination, Wen Xirou finally felt at ease. Promising rewards was a simple trick—who couldn't do it? The most important thing was to keep first-time the thriller world entrants calm, ensuring they didn't panic and make fatal mistakes. 

Besides—Wen Xirou's eyes darkened with concern—Dark Farm. What a fresh name. She had never seen any mention of it on the forums before. 

There were only two possibilities for this. Either this haunted realm was brand new and had yet to be explored by any investigators, making her among the first unfortunate ones to enter. 

Or, this haunted realm was extremely difficult—so much so that no previous investigators had ever escaped alive to deliver information to the outside world. 

Neither possibility boded well. The unknown always concealed countless dangers. 

"Creak—Dark Farm, arrived. Interns, please exit the bus in an orderly manner." 

Unknowingly, the bus had reached its destination. Wen Xirou slowly stood up and moved toward the exit. 

There were about twenty other passengers on board. Wen Xirou wasn't sure if they were all human, but the person in front of her was definitely human.

The young man ahead seemed utterly terrified—whether it was his first time entering the thriller world or due to some other reason, he was completely paralyzed with fear. 

He clung desperately to one of the bus's metal bars. "I'm not getting off! I'm not getting off!" 

The next moment, a perfectly normal seat on the bus suddenly morphed into a massive, fanged mouth, rising from the floor. 

Snap! In one bite, it severed the young man in half. Blood splattered everywhere. 

His severed limbs dropped to the ground, quickly melting like wax before being absorbed by the bus itself. All that remained was a pool of murky yellow grease, seeping into the floor. 

Wen Xirou wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but amid the crackling static of the bus's speaker system, she swore she heard a satisfied chewing sound. 

Wasting no time, she grabbed Xiao Lin's hand and hurried off the bus. 

In the office, the butler glanced at his watch and said to Wan Qian, "Ms. Wan, the interns have arrived. Should we arrange for them to stay in the staff dormitory?" 

Wan Qian was overjoyed and immediately stood up. The efficiency was incredible! Her first batch of employees had arrived so quickly.

"Yes, yes, get them settled in quickly," she said. 

"Understood." The butler turned and was about to handle it. 

"Wait—" Wan Qian hesitated for a moment and stopped him. 

She paced around the office, finally making a decision. 

"Since these are the first batch of interns and the talent that will lay the foundation for our farm's future, we must treat them with caution. So, I want to temporarily hide my identity, work alongside them as an intern, and observe whether their conduct is worthy of trust!"

... 

Wen Xirou, holding Xiao Lin's hand, followed the main group. The horror movie rule was clear: the loner who separates from the group dies the quickest. 

A "person" who claimed to be the butler—led them to an old dormitory that seemed to have been recently renovated. 

"You will be doing your internship here for the next two weeks. Please work hard. Those who perform well will have the opportunity to become permanent employees of the farm. This is the staff dormitory. You can rest here. Tomorrow morning, someone will come to assign your tasks." 

With that, the butler left without giving any more instructions. 

"Sister Xirou, are we supposed to stay in this dorm?" Xiao Lin timidly asked. 

Wen Xirou nodded. "Since he said so, this must be our only resting place. Resting anywhere else would break the rules." 

She made an effort to sound confident and convincing, hoping to keep Xiao Lin, the newbie, from panicking and losing composure. 

"Now, let's see if there are any dormitory rules. In an environment like this, no place is completely safe. We can only stay safe by following the proper rules." 

Just as Wen Xirou finished speaking, she saw a fair-skinned girl ahead, holding a piece of paper and using transparent tape to stick it on the wall in the corridor.