Chapter 1: I Opened a Cheat in Another World |
This is a mysterious otherworld.
Vampires, werewolves, technology, potions, ghosts, bio-engineered beings, divination, puppets—any terrifying element you can imagine exists in this world.
You must carry a light when going outside.
You cannot venture far.
Beyond ten meters from the main door, the darkness outside will swallow you whole.
Whether those seeking medical help are humans, ghosts, or stitched monsters, you must remain calm.
If you lose your composure, it will turn hostile toward you.
In front of a shabby desk, Lynn held a quill pen by the flickering lamp light.
He was writing down the rules he had learned in the two years since he had transmigrated to this world.
A hoarse voice that sounded like someone chewing on bones rang out.
Lynn shook his head. That voice belonged to the owner of their potion shop, the man who had saved him two years ago and now served as his teacher. Lynn himself was the shop assistant in this potion store that operated in this strange world.
“Coming!” Lynn shouted.
But at that moment, a cold synthetic voice suddenly sounded in his mind.
[Ding! Your teacher, Bloodsaw Maniac, has assigned you a task: Open for business, hang the soul lamp at the door. Completion rewards: Skeleton Coins x10, Basic Experience x5, Pure Human Blood 100 ml.]
Lynn was stunned.
That voice was... a system?
Could it be that after two years in this world, he had finally awakened a cheat?
However, he did not immediately investigate further because he knew that if he did not follow his teacher’s orders at once, he would die.
Lynn quickly stepped out of the dim attic.
He immediately saw his teacher dragging the corpse of an unknown creature cut in half toward the nearby operating room.
Crimson blood trailed a long streak across the moldy floor.
Sputter—sputter—
Soon, the shrill sound of an electric saw came from the operating room.
That hoarse, chewing voice spoke again.
“After opening, sort out all the expired potions from yesterday and feed them to the little treasure in the backyard. Hurry up.”
[Ding! Your teacher, Bloodsaw Maniac, has assigned you a task: Sort expired potions and feed them to the backyard’s Little Treasure. Completion rewards: Skeleton Coins x10, Little Treasure Favorability -10, Household Chores Skill +1.]
Lynn was shocked.
He was right.
This must be his system. Could it be capable of turning everything he encountered into system tasks?
Listening to the chewing sound behind him, Lynn calmed his expression.
Creak—creak—
The wooden floor beneath him emitted the piercing sound of age and neglect.
Lynn came to the front hall, grabbed an oil lamp from the corner, and twisted the wick adjustment. One drop after another of crimson blood dripped inside onto the wick.
Whoosh—
A crimson flame flickered to life.
If you listened carefully, you could even hear faint, chilling screams from inside the oil lamp.
Lynn remained calm and carefully opened the door.
Outside was utter darkness, faintly shrouded in mist. Occasionally, eerie laughter echoed from the dark.
He kept calm, hung the oil lamp on the doorpost, illuminating the nearby dilapidated sign.
Bloodsaw Potion Shop
[Ding! You have received: Skeleton Coins x10, Basic Experience x5, Pure Human Blood 100 ml.]
Lynn immediately planned to turn around and return inside the potion shop.
But at that moment, a low, sinister laugh came from the darkness.
“Hey, young man... Good morning. Do you have any useless junk to spare for this old lady? I’ll reward you properly, hehehe.”
From the darkness, dim flickering lights approached. A hunched old lady wearing tattered hemp cloth pulled a cart.
Her face carried a kindly smile.
But Lynn clearly saw that what she carried in her hand was a human skin lantern, and the rusty cart she pulled was grown from her own hand.
[Ding! Human Skin Scavenger has issued you an optional task: Give the [Useless Junk] to the scavenger. Optional task completion rewards: Scavenger Favorability +10, Skeleton Coins +20, Scavenger’s Reward x1.]
Lynn stayed composed.
“Alright, just wait a moment.”
Lynn quickly turned and returned to the potion shop, grabbing two black bags at the door.
He vaguely smelled a heavy stench of blood and decay emanating from the bags. Something inside seemed to be struggling, emitting low, hoarse moans.
Lynn calmly placed the [Useless Junk] onto the old lady’s cart.
“Thank you, young man, you’re a kind soul.”
The smile on the old lady’s face did not waver.
She slowly stretched out her withered hand and gouged two bloody eyeballs from her eye sockets.
“Young man, this is your reward from the old lady.”
[Ding! You have received task rewards: Scavenger Favorability +10, Skeleton Coins +20!]
[Ding! You may choose to accept or reject the scavenger’s reward. Rejecting will decrease Scavenger Favorability by 50.]
Lynn stared at the two steaming eyeballs, calmly reached out and took them.
“I accept, thank you.”
The old lady’s smile was extraordinarily bright, but the two hollow eye sockets were especially creepy.
“Good, good!”
Then, under Lynn’s watchful eyes, the old lady pulled her cart and slowly disappeared into the darkness.
[Ding! You have received the scavenger’s reward: Tailor Shop Owner’s Eyeball x1, Butcher Shop Owner’s Eyeball x1, Scavenger Favorability +20.]
Lynn remained calm but secretly exhaled in relief and immediately returned to the potion shop.
He had learned from his teacher that the tailor’s shop sewed human skin, the butcher’s shop sold human meat, and they were located right across the street from their potion shop.
The scavenger held the eyeballs of those two shop owners.
This was the other rule Lynn had summarized about this world:
Never attempt to offend the walkers in the darkness.
Lynn turned, his expression forcibly calm.
He sorted out the bottles of expired dark red potions from the counter, placed them into his portable potion box, and turned toward the backyard.
Passing the operating room, the sputtering cutting sounds inside still continued.
Lynn knew that now was not the time to disturb his teacher.
If he interfered, the one lying on the operating table next might not be who he expected.
Lynn arrived at the backyard.
He opened the cellar door, and a strong stench instantly hit his face, like the pungent smell of rotting flesh and excrement that had been decaying for a long time.
Hiss—hiss—
Strange noises came from within the cellar.
Lynn knew that the cellar housed what his teacher called the Little Treasure, but no one besides his teacher knew exactly what it was.
He emptied all the potions from his suitcase into the cellar.
[Ding! You have received: Skeleton Coins x10, Little Treasure Favorability -10, Household Chores Skill +1.]
Roar—
Roar—
Soon, sharp and furious howls echoed from the cellar, accompanied by waves of bloody stench.
Lynn immediately closed the cellar door.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
This was the daily morning routine since he became the assistant of this potion shop.
The most important reason he survived was that he listened well to his teacher’s orders and only acted without asking questions.
The assistants who did not obey had long ago been dismembered by his teacher and fed to the Little Treasure.
Lynn calmed himself and cautiously asked,
“System?”
At that moment, a panel suddenly appeared before Lynn’s eyes.
