Zhang Xiaoman was feasting at the dining table, while his two dogs and a cat were squatting on the floor, watching him with focused eyes, occasionally smacking their lips to show they also wanted a taste.
Although he had long been used to being watched while eating, sometimes Zhang Xiaoman still couldn’t resist those pitiful gazes and would toss a few pieces of food down to them.
Watching the three little creatures drool, he helplessly picked up a few pieces of fish from his bowl and threw one to each of them, causing a flurry of tail shadows to shake under the table.
Looking at the crucian carp blooming with fish roe in front of him, Zhang Xiaoman couldn’t help but recall the scene where he obtained the System.
He remembered that he had found the System inside the belly of a carp his mother had cooked. Who could have thought that in just over a month, his life had changed so dramatically.
In the living room, the television was broadcasting the news of the day.
"Recently, a natural gas leak occurred at a hospital in Bai Yulan City..."
"At the first sign of the incident, the warriors stationed in Bai Yulan City’s Second and Third Camps received orders and immediately rushed to the scene to launch emergency rescue operations..."
"While rescuing the affected people, the warriors worked hard to find the source of the leak and eventually located it in time, curbing the situation from worsening and successfully saving a large number of people..."
Zhang Xiaoman watched the content on the TV without much surprise.
It was clear to him that the truth could not be stated openly, and he wondered how much those who were at the scene actually knew.
"A gas leak, not a bad excuse... But didn’t this happen the day before yesterday? Reporting it today seems a bit late. In a whole day’s time, I don’t know what kind of story it has turned into online."
With that thought, a sudden interest came over Zhang Xiaoman to check out the news about the incident.
It had been a long time since he had last surfed the internet. Since going to Rebirth Island, he had spent 15 days without any signal. Moreover, after returning, he had been so busy that he hadn’t even had time to play with his phone.
Taking out his newly purchased phone from yesterday, Zhang Xiaoman started by checking the homepage headlines of several search engines.
But there was no mention of the Huangkou Hospital incident, and it wasn’t until he scrolled several pages back that he saw related reports in a corner.
The content was the same as what he had just seen on the TV news, attributing the event to a natural gas leak. Zhang Xiaoman checked the date; the report had just been released, and it hadn’t picked up heat yet.
He closed that window and typed in a string of addresses, leading to a local forum he used to frequent. Besides a dedicated paranormal section, there were also comprehensive discussion areas. On regular days, it was just a bunch of idle bros shooting the breeze on everything from minor traffic disputes to international affairs—a real mixed bag.
Zhang Xiaoman had discovered this place only before he went to Rebirth Island, where he would occasionally browse for fun when using the bathroom or during downtimes.
As soon as he opened the forum to the first page, he spotted the post he was looking for—a thread titled "The Truth About Huangkou Hospital."
Zhang Xiaoman was curious about what this person’s so-called truth was, so he immediately clicked to check it out.
The thread starter was an account named "Wandering Magnolia," and in the opening sentence, he wrote in big, eye-catching letters: "The Truth About Huangkou Hospital, a Personal Experience!"
Zhang Xiaoman continued to read.
"The thread starter is a single, 28-year-old man working in Bai Yulan City, with a monthly salary of 8,000, owns an apartment, no car, looking to settle down here, seeking a female partner for a marriage-minded relationship..."
Zhang Xiaoman frowned and scrolled past a bunch of matrimonial advertisements.
After a selfie of the thread starter, the actual content regarding the incident began.
"It happened the morning before yesterday, I was going to Huangkou Hospital to get a sick leave slip because I had a fever. After finally taking the subway there, the outpatient clinic was so crowded that I decided to see a specialist, and there went my small money... just like that."
"The specialist clinic building was at the back, I think it was Building 10..."
"I was walking inside with my patient card, thinking that I would get my sick leave slip and go home to sleep the whole day. But then something happened that I could have never expected..."
Zhang Xiaoman looked through the post, noticing it was formatted so that only a sentence or two was written per floor, and at this point, there were already many replies, such as "grabbing popcorn and waiting for updates" and "thread starter receives community warmth," already piling up.
Wandering Magnolia continued writing: "There was a wide corridor between the two buildings I was heading to. Just as I left the registration hall, I suddenly heard a shrill scream. It was as if the scream came directly from inside my mind, utterly terrifying! It shook me so hard that everything went black in front of my eyes, and I nearly fainted!"
Following that, there was a mixed reply from a netizen: "Thread starter suffers a powerful Spiritual Attack, loses 100 SAN points, all departments be aware, the thread starter has become an evil mutant minion, execute if spotted!"