A searing pain exploded from the depths of his soul. The icy air made his lungs prickle.
Opening his eyes, what greeted him wasn't the sterile white of a hospital ceiling, nor the chaotic crowd after a car accident. It was an endless, deathly expanse of dull grey-brown.
A murky sky. A cracked, parched earth.
A few scattered, withered black weeds pointed towards the sky in twisted postures. A mournful wind howled across the wasteland, whipping up clouds of dry dust. The air was thick with a wilderness scent, a mixture of death and rust.
"This... where is this?"
Chen Fan stared at the unfamiliar scene before him, struggling to sit up from the ground. He instinctively reached into his trouser pocket for a cigarette, only to find his own clothes were gone. In their place was a coarse, scratchy grey cloth robe. And the pockets held no cigarettes.
Transmigration?
The possibility slowly occurred to him.
He could feel his current body was extremely weak, with lingering, piercing pain. But before he lost consciousness, he'd been run over by a runaway heavy truck that blew through a red light. His injuries couldn't possibly be this light.
Right then—
A trembling voice, laced with sobs, came from beside him, "Young master... you're finally awake!"
Hearing the sound, he instinctively turned to look over. Only then did he realize that in this vast, boundless wasteland, besides him, there was also a similarly cloth-robed, emaciated servant, a crude wooden hut, and a roaring bonfire.
The next moment!
A violent, piercing pain erupted. Countless memory fragments were forced into his mind like a torrent, causing him to black out once more.
...
When he regained consciousness, he had been moved by the servant to a plank bed inside the simple hut. And he now understood the situation.
He had transmigrated.
The original owner of this body was also named Chen Fan. Even their appearance and physique were identical, as if it were another him in a parallel world.
In this world, after nightfall, countless bizarre, eerie monsters would appear to take lives. This phenomenon, which had persisted for centuries, was named "The Perpetual Night" by the world.
Only by staying near "Eerie Fire" could one ensure their safety.
Eerie Fire was a specially constructed bonfire.
To ensure safety while traveling across the wastelands, one had to find a "Station" before nightfall. Only in Stations were there Eerie Fires.
Creating an Eerie Fire was not a simple matter. The base of an Eerie Fire was extremely heavy and cumbersome, impossible to carry. Moreover, once the fire went out, the base would automatically be ruined. To keep the Eerie Fire burning constantly, one must never stop feeding it "Eerie Stones".
Therefore—
Out there in the wastelands, many clans had established numerous "Stations" to ensure the safety of traveling merchant caravans and travelers, charging corresponding fees.
The place he was at now was a Station under the "Chen Clan."
Only...
He had been sent here, a victim of persecution. Despite being a young master of the Chen Clan, he had been assigned this dangerous job of guarding a Station in the wastelands. And before leaving, he wasn't given a single "Eerie Stone."
This also meant that when this Eerie Fire burned out, that would be his doomed day.
Unable to bear the pressure, the previous owner of this body, in a fit of rage and despair, died on the spot, giving Chen Fan a chance to live a second life.
And the servant by his side was his follower.
"Young master."
The emaciated servant knelt before the bed, his tear-streaked face raised as he spoke hoarsely, "You've been through so much, young master, you must be exhausted. I'll keep watch. You rest easy."
"..."
Chen Fan struggled to get up from the bed, pushed open the wooden door, and looked outside at the bonfire. According to the memories in his mind, there were currently three Eerie Stones buried beneath this Eerie Fire. That meant it could burn for, at most, three more days.
In three days, this Eerie Fire would go out.
And that was the countdown to his death. In such a situation, how could he possibly sleep?
In the wilderness, the only way to obtain Eerie Stones was to kill Eerie Creatures and extract the stones from their bodies.
Only...
He was physically weak and unarmed. How could he possibly kill an Eerie Creature?
After a dazed moment, he spoke softly, "You didn't have to come with me."
Before those despicable people forced him to come here, they had offered his follower a hefty reward to leave his side. The purpose was to make him feel the despair of dying alone in the wilderness, in the Perpetual Night, filled with fear and loneliness.
But this guy came anyway.
Without a moment's hesitation.
"Wherever the young master goes, I go."
"Wherever the young master dies, I die."
The emaciated man behind him, though clearly fearful, gritted his teeth and spoke with determination, "If not for the young master, I would have died long ago."
"..."
Chen Fan was silent for a moment. "I've forgotten to ask your name all this time."
He had no memory of this guy's name in his mind.
When all the core members of the Chen Clan were choosing their subordinates, the others had picked all the strong, able-bodied ones. Only this emaciated guy was left behind. The original owner of the body had always viewed him as a mark of shame.
He never wanted to speak much with him, let alone ask his name.
Though treating him this way, the original Chen Fan still had such loyalty from him... the original Chen Fan's luck was truly something.
"Crippled Monkey."
"Young master, I am Crippled Monkey."
Crippled Monkey lowered his head, his voice as faint as a mosquito's, filled with feelings of inferiority, "I'm an orphan, I have no name. Butler Zhou said I was a cripple, and thin as a monkey, so he named me Crippled Monkey."
Chen Fan glanced at Crippled Monkey's right leg. It did indeed seem a bit lame.
"Alright."
He nodded, sweeping his gaze around the hut. "Since we're already here, our main task is to survive. Go outside and see if any travelers are passing by. It's almost night. Those travelers got to stay in a Station. If you see any, call out loudly for them to come over."
"This Eerie Fire can last at most three days."
"We need to earn some Eerie Stones."
"And—"
He walked up to Crippled Monkey, patted his shoulder, and spoke softly yet calmly, "If, in the future, I am fortunate enough to make a comeback, I will not forget you. But if I die, then that is our fate. We must accept it."
Crippled Monkey was slightly stunned. A strange glint flashed in his eyes, and much of the fear that came with arriving at the Station dissipated. He straightened his back as much as possible and shouted hoarsely, "Yes!"
Then he hurried out of the wooden hut to look for any passing travelers.
...
Outside the wooden hut.
Crippled Monkey looked around. The wasteland stretched endlessly; no travelers were in sight. Not far away, there was a small earthen mound. Its crest was a vantage point. Only...
He hesitated slightly.
It was almost night. If he didn't return before dark, he would be risking his life.
But soon.
He didn't hesitate any longer. He immediately ran as fast as he could towards the small earthen mound not far away.
Though he was disabled and of lowly origin, he could keenly sense that the current young master was completely different from back in the household, cutting a stark contrast.
He had a bold guess.
That was, the young master knew he was being targeted everywhere in the household, unable to spread his wings. So, he deliberately allowed himself to be assigned to a remote, inconvenient location. Here, in this open world, he could unleash himself to the fullest. Until one day, he would return to the family and take back everything that rightfully belonged to him!
The young master's deep foresight made Crippled Monkey feel as if he had drunk a revitalizing elixir, instantly invigorated.
And he, Crippled Monkey,
what he had to do was assist the young master in returning to the Chen Clan as much as possible!
Make those people stop looking down on the young master!
How fast can a cripple run?
But at this moment, a fire seemed to be gradually igniting in his heart, making him run faster and faster. He even ignored the growing pain in his right leg, wanting only to reach the earthen mound up ahead as quickly as possible!