1: The King of Scrolls died suddenly, his soul traveled to the forbidden zone.

[Brain Storage Area.]

[Alternative world. Any resemblance to reality is purely coincidental. Just enjoy the ride.]

[If it's not written well, I accept criticism from the reader lords. Feel free to flame me.]

Earth, 2026 AD, 3:00 AM.

Gu Fan's eyelids were as heavy as lead weights.

Before him, the computer screen still displayed the presentation marked "Version 108."

The boss had sent a message two minutes ago: "Xiao Fan, I think the font on the first page should go back to the first version to keep the 'original intention.' Change it again; we need it for the 9:00 AM meeting tomorrow."

Original intention.

What a fine 'remaining true to one's original intention.'

The corner of Gu Fan's mouth twitched as he tried to force a smile.

He failed.

A violent, stabbing pain shot through his heart, making it impossible to breathe in an instant.

He wanted to reach out for the fast-acting heart relief pills on the desk—his new companions since last month's physical exam.

But his fingers wouldn't obey.

His vision began to blur, and the words on the computer screen twisted into a messy smudge of colors.

The boss's grandiloquent speech in the conference room earlier that day seemed to echo in his ears.

"Young people, don't always think about resting; you must strive! What the company gives you isn't just work—it's a platform, an opportunity! As long as you're willing to work hard, I guarantee you'll all be able to buy your own house in the capital within three years!"

That was quite a pie he was painting.

Too bad I probably won't get to eat it.

Gu Fan's final thought flashed: "My life is determined by my boss, not by me."

Then, he lost consciousness completely.

After an unknown amount of time, a thick stench of blood mixed with rotting leaves rudely invaded his nostrils.

It stinks.

Which colleague is eating river snail rice noodles at their desk?

Gu Fan struggled to open his eyes.

What met his gaze wasn't the familiar ceiling and fluorescent lights, but a strange, dark-red sky.

Several giant, nameless plants reached toward the sky in twisted postures, their branches hung with black spores resembling barnacles.

The air was hot and humid, sticking clammily to his skin.

Where am I?

He tried to sit up, but a tearing, agonizing pain surged through his entire body.

Gu Fan looked down and saw a sight he would never forget for the rest of his life.

His body—or rather, the body he was now inhabiting—was dressed in tattered but luxurious clothing.

His limbs were twisted at unnatural angles, and there was a scabbed-over bloody hole in his chest, clearly caused by some kind of Sharp Weapon.

What made him even more desperate was that he could clearly "perceive" that certain energy channels within this body—the so-called Meridians—had snapped inch by inch.

Just then, a flood of fragmented memories rushed into his mind.

Blue Star, 2688 AD.

A world where Spiritual Qi recovery coexisted with martial arts, Superpowers, and Genetic Technology.

A youth also named Gu Fan.

The true young master of the Gu Family in Tianqiong City, who had been swapped at birth by a malicious nurse in the hospital.

Twenty years later, the truth came out, and he was brought back to the Gu Family from the slums.

However, what awaited him wasn't Family affection or warmth.

Instead, it was the collective loathing and ostracization from his parents, his three older sisters, and the fake young master, Gu Yu, who had occupied his place for twenty years.

They found him uncouth, looked down on his low cultivation, and considered him an embarrassment—a stain on the Family.

Gu Yu, the fake young master pampered by everyone, was gentle and close to him on the surface, but used every means possible to torture him behind his back.

Three days ago, Gu Yu teamed up with the whole Family to cripple the original host's already weak cultivation under the guise of "cleaning up the house."

Then, like a piece of trash, they threw him into this perilous place known as the "No. 0 Forbidden Zone."

This place was a paradise for Vicious Beasts and a Hell for humans.

They were certain that within a day, he would be torn to shreds and become Vicious Beast excrement.

The last of the memories were the cold gazes of the Gu Family.

His father, Gu Zhan, said, "Trash should stay where trash belongs."

His mother, Madam Li, waved her hand in disgust: "Don't let him die at home; it's bad luck."

His eldest sister, Gu Qingluan, always known for her coldness, coldly spat out two words: "Disgraceful."

His third sister, Gu Linger, made a face at him and said with a giggle, "Now no one will fight me for my brother."

And surrounded by them in the center, the fake young master Gu Yu gave him a victor's smile.

The information overload was too much; Gu Fan's brain was in a state of chaos.

It took him several minutes to digest it all.

From a Corporate Slave who died of overwork to a true young master persecuted by his whole Family, his cultivation destroyed, and left to die in the wilderness.

This start couldn't just be called Hell difficulty; it was like being reincarnated directly into the Hungry Ghost Realm.

In his past life, he worked for a boss until he died of exhaustion.

In this life, he was a punching bag for his Family until he was tortured to death.

So, was I just born to make up the numbers? To be the "other" option?

Gu Fan lay on the cold ground, feeling the sharp pain and powerlessness of his body as he stared at the dark-red sky.

He actually felt like laughing.

He finally understood that fairy tales were all lies.

Hard work doesn't necessarily lead to success, but overtime really can kill you.

Family isn't necessarily warm, but a backstab really does hurt.

He tried to move his body, even if it was just a finger.

The pain made him hiss; the injuries to this body were even more severe than he had imagined.

Forget fighting a Vicious Beast; he couldn't even beat a passing ant right now.

This was a complete collapse, in every physical sense.

*Rustle...*

A slight friction sound came from behind the bushes not far away.

Gu Fan's heart tightened suddenly.

It's coming.

He knew what it was.

In his memories, this sound often belonged to the most common predators in the forbidden zone.

He stiffly turned his neck, looking toward the source of the sound with all his might.

A giant wolf, comparable in size to an adult bull, slowly stepped out from the bushes.

Its body was covered in grayish-black fur, its muscles bulging and full of power.

Most bizarrely, in the center of its forehead, there was a vertical, blood-red eye.

A Three-Eyed Blood Wolf.

A D-rank Vicious Beast, famous for its brutality and bloodlust.

Its pair of eerie green wolf eyes were locked onto the motionless Gu Fan on the ground.

That gaze wasn't looking at a human.

It was looking at a piece of meat that had already been sliced and was about to be devoured.

Saliva dripped from its sharp fangs, sizzling as it corroded the ground.

The Three-Eyed Blood Wolf was in no hurry to pounce.

It seemed very patient, approaching step by step with steady strides.

It was enjoying the fear of its prey before death.

The pressure of impending death almost felt physical, closing in from all sides.

Gu Fan's breathing became rapid.

He wanted to struggle, to run, to curse at the top of his lungs.

But he could do nothing.

This broken body didn't even have the strength left to convey fear.

Powerlessness—an unprecedented sense of powerlessness seized him.

He thought of the boss from his previous life who constantly pressured him, and the various injustices this body had suffered.

A surge of resentment and indignation erupted from the depths of his heart.

You damn heavens!

Are you playing with me!

It was bad enough dying of exhaustion in my last life, but in this life, I'm losing my life right at the start?

At least give me a chance to finish the tutorial!

The Three-Eyed Blood Wolf had already walked up to him.

The stench of its saliva was almost dripping onto his face.

It raised its sharp right claw high.

The claw glinted with a metallic luster, enough to easily tear through the steel plates of an armored vehicle.

It was aimed straight at Gu Fan's throat.

It's over.

This time, I'm really going offline.

Gu Fan closed his eyes in despair.