"Ugh~~"
A chill ran through me, making me shiver. Slowly, I opened my eyes. What appeared before me was a vast, oppressive, overcast sky. The fine rain drifting down from the boundless dark clouds landed on me, which explained the chill. I shivered again. My Leather Armor was already soaked, clinging tightly to my body and sending waves of bone-chilling cold straight to my core.
Wait, Leather Armor? I remember wearing Sportswear. Also, I was clearly at home just now, how did I end up in this godforsaken place?
Breaking out in a cold sweat, I sat up and carefully surveyed my surroundings.
A thin layer of mist hung in the air, limiting visibility to only about a hundred meters. I was sitting on slightly damp grass. From the environment, it seemed I was in the **Wilderness**, possibly a **Prairie**. The landscape before me was composed of flat ground, and on this flat ground were only two things: tenacious Wild Grass and exposed hard mud. If viewed from above, one would likely only see two colors: green and brown.
It must be a dream.
I muttered to myself, my mind still hazy. I rubbed my eyes and lay back down heavily.
Wake up quickly, I still need to play my Diablo...
A long time passed...
The fine rain in the dream seemed to grow heavier, and the biting cold on my body intensified, making it impossible for me to continue deceiving myself that I was dreaming.
What in the world is this place? I was clearly at home playing on my computer, how did I inexplicably end up here?
I suddenly sat up, frantically tearing at my hair, my heart filled with terror and panic. With uneasy and fearful eyes, I scanned the **Wilderness** where only the sound of rain could be heard. In the last moment at home, it seemed a strange option appeared on my computer. After clicking confirm, I had fainted, only to wake up here.
Recalling the countless Transmigration Novels I had read online, a wave of fear washed over me. Could it be that I had also answered the call of the trend and inexplicably become a member of the Transmigration Army?
No way!
With sorrowful eyes, I begged the heavens. In this **Wilderness** with no house, no food, not even a place to shelter from the rain, how was I supposed to live?
Feeling the bone-chilling cold on my body, the unknown Leather Armor clung to me like ice. Every gust of wind made me shiver violently. My stomach also began to protest. Only then did I realize that so-called transmigration was not as wonderful as imagined. The warmth of home, the food in the refrigerator – these things I had grown accustomed to – I only knew how much I missed them now that they were gone.
Unbidden tears mixed with the rain slowly fell. I knew neither martial arts nor possessed great wisdom. How could I possibly survive in this godforsaken place? No way, I'm not some savior, nor do I aspire to be king or overlord. Heaven, please, let me go back!
Several dazzling flashes of lightning streaked across the dark sky, as if mocking my weakness and ignorance.
After a long while, I finally stood up from the ground, utterly dejected. My whole being felt lifeless, like a puppet. The rumbling in my stomach reminded me of the harsh reality. If I stayed in this godforsaken place any longer, I would only die.
I numbly looked around. The heavy rain had dispersed the thin mist, but visibility was even lower. In this deserted **Prairie**, where could I go?
A strong will to survive finally made me take the first step. Slowly, I began to walk forward. I didn't know what awaited me ahead. Perhaps a city, perhaps a man-eating beast, or perhaps nothing but empty space until I died. But I had to keep walking, as long as there was a sliver of hope.
I don't know how long passed. My legs became increasingly numb, and my eyes grew blurrier. I knew my body was nearing its limit. If there was no turning point soon, perhaps my destination was not far ahead.
I looked around. The heavy rain still revealed an endless expanse of white in the distance. The only sound beneath my feet was the squelching of stepping on mud and grass. I looked at the ground, hesitated for a moment, but finally couldn't resist the invasion of hunger. I dropped to my knees, numbly stayed there for a moment, then with trembling hands, slowly grabbed a handful of green grass from the ground. I shook off the mud from the roots, and without caring about the remaining dirt, quickly stuffed a handful into my mouth, washing it down with the rain from the sky...
Bitter, astringent, and fishy tastes gradually numbed my taste buds. Even the feeling of chewing on mud was not as unbearable as it was at first. I continued to pull up handfuls of grass from the ground and stuff them into my mouth, bitter tears soaking my mud-covered face.
How many times had I casually thrown away a McDonald's meal after eating only a third of it...
How many times had I poured milk that hadn't expired yet down the drain...
"Ugh..."
Finally unable to bear the taste of mud and fishiness in my mouth, I dry-heaved violently. But thankfully, at least my stomach no longer felt empty. My legs seemed to have regained a trace of strength.
It was a glimmer of hope in despair. But I knew that if I didn't find shelter from the rain soon, I would freeze to death. So, I used the trace of strength I had managed to gather in my legs, taking heavy steps and continuing to walk forward.
Again, I don't know how long passed. Just when I thought I couldn't go on anymore, a blurry figure in the heavy rain finally appeared in my sight.
"Hey..."
Overjoyed, I shouted loudly, waving my hands vigorously. I didn't care if it was a hallucination or if the other person could hear me. The joy of finding hope in a desperate situation gave me renewed strength, and my steps seemed to become lighter.
Waving and running quickly towards the dark figure, it was hard to imagine the joy in my heart at that moment. When a person endures loneliness, hunger, and the constant threat of death, the despair is immense, and the relief upon finding liberation is terrifyingly powerful. I was filled with strength, striding towards him. Closer, getting closer. The dark figure in the rain seemed to have noticed me too. In the blur, he turned around and looked towards me.
Here, I'm here! I waved my hands vigorously, not caring if the other person was hostile, if there was a language barrier, or if they would accept me.
The dark figure seemed to have spotted me and slowly walked towards me step by step. His slightly stooped posture made me judge that he should be an elderly person.
I wasn't surprised why an old person would linger in this rainy **Wilderness**. Joy had clouded my mind.
Finally, I saw the figure clearly. I wiped the sweat from my eyes. Just then, the old person slowly raised his head, allowing me to see a scene I would never forget in my life.
That was no old person at all. The face that was raised was utterly horrifying – the bald head had been sliced in half, and yellow-green brain matter continuously oozed out with the rain, flowing into his eyes and mouth. Of his eyes, the left one was milky white, while the right one had fallen out, still connected by a thread of flesh and blood, leaving the protruding eyeball dangling on his face. From the empty eye socket, one could even see the flesh inside. The lips of the lower jaw had begun to rot, revealing half of his stark white teeth, constantly grinding. The slightly parted mouth seemed to be trying to form a smile. His dry, shriveled body looked dehydrated, appearing particularly cracked even in such heavy rain, as if the flesh on it was stuck on in pieces and could fall off at any moment. There was a large hole in his stomach and another on his right thigh. The rotting internal organs and muscles were covered in disgusting Maggots.
"Ugh..."
I vomited again, even spitting out the green grass and mud I had just eaten.
This was clearly a living Rotting Corpse!
The Rotting Corpse grinned, as if smiling at me, and slowly raised its dry, bony hands towards me.
"Ah..."
Filled with terror, my only hope turned into despair. I stumbled back a few steps in a daze, falling onto the ground. Then, like a madman, I scrambled up from the ground, staggering, and ran desperately without direction, just running...
I don't know how long I ran. The intense exertion drained my last bit of strength. With a thud, my legs gave out, and I fell into a small mud puddle. The splashing mud gradually submerged my last sensation.
...
(end of chapter)