Chapter One: The Unknown

Xu Fan awoke from the darkness, his eyes opening to a world ravaged and scarred, the city reduced to ruins. The streets were dilapidated and ugly, the underground sewage system had long since collapsed, and not far away, an ancient public restroom emitted a stench so foul it was suffocating.

The air was thick with a pungent scent of decay, causing Xu Fan to gag uncontrollably.

“Am I dreaming?” he murmured.

He remembered surfing a website late at night, when suddenly an unknown link popped up. He had meant to close it but accidentally clicked it instead, and then everything went black.

Lifting his gaze, he studied this strange world. A gray-black haze shrouded the sky, pressing down with an almost unbearable sense of oppression. Towering buildings lined the street, but they too had fallen into utter disrepair. The entire world was wrapped in deathly silence, as if he stood in a city of the dead.

The eeriness gnawed at Xu Fan’s nerves, making him desperate to find something living, anything to prove he wasn’t the last soul left—not even a stray dog.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted his phone lying beside him. It was his phone, the screen flickering blue like a computer caught in a crash, the touchscreen unresponsive. Xu Fan tried to turn it off, but nothing happened.

“I’m dreaming. I must be dreaming.” His voice trembled.

With a sharp smack, he slapped his own cheek, the fiery sting instantly telling him this was all too real.

Just as Xu Fan floundered in helplessness, a metallic scraping pierced the silence of the world—a sound like someone raking a nail over a rusty sheet of iron, over and over. The strange noise crept closer, Xu Fan’s nerves stretched to breaking, until he noticed that his blue-screened phone had started displaying text.

[D254 Psychic Contaminant, Danger Level: Two Stars]

[Recommendation: Evacuate Immediately]

Only a handful of words appeared on the screen.

Xu Fan had no idea what any of it meant. The disquieting sound drew nearer, and his instincts screamed that he could not remain in this place. With great effort, he struggled to his feet and ran into the depths of the ruined street. But after only a few steps, the blue glow of his phone intensified.

“Is it the wrong direction?” Xu Fan pondered for a moment, then turned and ran the other way. Sure enough, the blue light dimmed considerably.

He jogged for over ten minutes, the metallic screeching slowly fading into the distance. Surveying his surroundings, he saw more rows of crumbling buildings, the ground pockmarked and uneven, as if the area had withstood the onslaught of countless wars.

“No, something’s off…” Xu Fan stopped before one building and placed his hand on the wall—startled by the feel of it. He glanced at the other houses, his expression growing grave. Cracks, fine and jagged, marred the walls and pavement, as though some immense force had once pressed down upon this place.

“What happened here?” Xu Fan’s mind spun with confusion as he continued down the street, desperate for answers.

Soon, an intersection came into view. As he gazed at the branching roads, a sense of familiarity crept over him—until his eyes landed on a rusted street sign. He froze, a wave of despair washing over him.

“Why?” he muttered, lost.

The ruined road before him was the very one he walked every day to and from work.

Now Xu Fan was certain he hadn’t been transported to another world; this was still Earth, still the city he once called home.

But what of the other cities?

Or had the entire world become like this?

Gritting his teeth, Xu Fan strode toward his home. The further he went, the more familiar shops and buildings appeared amidst the devastation.

Entering a convenience store, he found shelves toppled, moldy food and goods scattered across the floor. At the checkout counter, everything was covered in a thick layer of dust—far more than a few days’ worth.

“Did I travel to the future? Was the world destroyed in a nuclear war?” The idea flashed through his mind, but he quickly dismissed it. If there had been a nuclear strike, these buildings wouldn’t have remained standing.

Rummaging through the debris, he managed to find a few usable lighters, a rusty hammer, and a fruit knife—just in case.

As he was about to leave, something on the table by the counter caught his eye: a wedding ring and a thermos. The diamond set in the ring spoke of its value.

Suddenly, a scene played out in Xu Fan’s mind. The cashier was a young woman, perhaps in love, her boyfriend had gifted her the ring. There was still a third of a thermos of water left, with red dates and goji berries floating inside.

On a leisurely afternoon, the girl sipped her goji berry tea, turning her beloved ring and dreaming of future happiness.

But then, disaster struck so suddenly she didn’t even have time to take the ring with her.

Xu Fan mulled over these thoughts, but with no more clues, he left the shop.

Outside, the streets remained deathly silent, the sky heavy with clouds that seemed ready to collapse.

He set off again toward his old apartment, only to hear a creaking sound behind him. The noise drew closer, and he couldn’t tell where it was coming from; the atmosphere was so thick with dread it was suffocating.

“Blue light…” His gaze dropped to his phone, which flickered, its blue screen blinking erratically. Suddenly, lines of tiny text appeared.

Before Xu Fan could read it, a searing pain exploded in his head and he crumpled to the ground. In the final instant before consciousness slipped away, the creaking sound was right in front of him.

…

He had no idea how long he’d been out when he finally woke, groggy and disoriented. The moment he opened his eyes, he was stunned.

A bustling street thronged with cars, a lively shopping avenue with crowds of people, street vendors hawking their snacks at every corner.

“I… I’m back?” Xu Fan sat in a daze for a long moment, staring up at the blazing sun high overhead. It was just past midday, and he was sitting on a bench at a bus stop, surrounded by chatting people of all ages, waiting for their rides.

He rubbed his eyes in disbelief, even slapped himself hard, wanting to make sure everything was real.

The burn on his cheek made him laugh with relief.

He didn’t know how he’d returned, but that no longer mattered.

He never wanted to spend another moment in that oppressive, haunting world.

Brimming with excitement, he ran north along the sidewalk, soon reaching an old residential complex and climbing to the third floor.

The familiar faces of the elderly folks downstairs greeted him warmly, confirming that he was truly home.

As he entered the stairwell, he noticed every door was tightly shut. He paused. During the day, many doors were usually open, with people lounging inside watching TV, or children playing in the halls.

But today, every door was closed. He felt a flicker of unease, but continued to his own apartment, 306, and opened the door.

Inside, everything was as it had always been—so comforting that all his recent terror faded away.

“Why are you so late today? Hurry and wash up, it’s time to eat.” His mother’s voice called from the kitchen as she cooked.

Xu Fan was momentarily speechless. He could only smile and reply, “I ran into a friend on the way home and lost track of time. What’s for lunch today?”

The aroma from the kitchen made his mouth water.

“Pork ribs stewed with corn, and braised pork—your favorites,” his mother replied gently.

At the mention of braised pork, Xu Fan rushed to the table and sat down eagerly. But as he looked at the two sets of bowls and chopsticks, he frowned. “Mom, isn’t my sister coming home for lunch?”

Xu Fan had a younger sister in her last year of middle school, who always came home for lunch. Their father, on the other hand, was often away on business trips.

“She’s not coming.” At that moment, his mother emerged from the kitchen with a steaming plate of braised pork.

Xu Fan acknowledged this—sometimes his sister did eat at her friends’ homes—but just as he reached for a piece of pork, the smile faded from his face.

“Mom, is this really pork? It looks… strange.”

He’d eaten braised pork countless times, and his mother always prepared it with just the right balance of fat and lean. But this dish was all lean—there wasn’t a trace of fat.

And to his shock, there was a long, thin hair among the meat, even though his mother wore her hair short.

…

(A new story begins—one recommendation earns you another chapter.)