Sirius Arepi lay sprawled on the ground, his mind blown open, seemingly dead.
"Hoo, hoo."
Li Ran panted, lowering the revolver.
Only after the adrenaline of the fight subsided did he realize how exhausted he was, and the places where he had been hit earlier ached even more.
His mind was blank, and a strong sense of unreality suddenly washed over him.
Am I dreaming? Transmigration, hallucinations, murder—these were all things he had never encountered in his twenty-plus years of life. Could it all just be a dream?
Just as he was thinking this, Li Ran was shaken awake.
"Lu Ze, are you alright?!"
Cecilia's beautiful face appeared before him. She gripped Lu Ze's arm tightly, her worry evident.
It seems it wasn't a dream.
Li Ran came back to his senses and couldn't help but sigh.
"I'm fine," he said casually, standing up and looking around.
Cecilia looked at him with concern but said nothing more.
Among the scattered items that had fallen from the drawer was a mirror. Li Ran reached out, picked it up, and looked into its surface.
Reflected in the mirror was an extremely handsome young man with black hair and blue eyes, his features sharp and noble. He wore a thick, restrictive garment, adorned with sturdy black leather straps. If all these straps were fastened, it would be impossible to break free, no matter how much one struggled. His face was thin and pale, and deep within his azure eyes, a hint of an unshakeable madness and pain seemed to lurk.
Handsome, yet slightly sickly.
Is this Lu Ze?
Li Ran quickly matched the face to memories from the past.
No, now I should say, this is me.
He thought with a bitter smile, and the young man in the mirror also smiled wretchedly in response.
Li Ran, who had died in a car accident on a certain blue planet, was resurrected in the body of a mentally ill young man in another world, gaining all his memories. At this moment, Li Ran was surprised, confused, fearful, and regretful. But in the end, he still showed a helpless smile.
On the bright side, it's better than being truly dead. Since this is reality, then accept it calmly.
So, from now on, I am Lu Ze.
Li Ran, no, Lu Ze, he thought to himself.
Cecilia was still looking at him with concern from the side. Lu Ze smiled, about to say something comforting, when he heard a commotion outside.
He reached out and pulled back the curtain, and the crimson moonlight immediately poured in, giving him a stronger sense of being in another world.
Through the window, he could see the scene outside.
It was nighttime, a red moon embedded in the sky, and gas streetlights illuminated the road. A four-wheeled carriage clattered by. Several people stood outside, men and women, appearing to be local residents. They were looking at Lu Ze's house with surprise and uncertainty, discussing something among themselves; the commotion came from them.
Damn it, it's the gunshots!
Lu Ze's heart jolted, and he immediately realized. He had fired six shots in a row; the nearby residents must have heard it. If they came up following the sound and saw the body on the ground, what would happen?
But then, he calmed down.
Even if they saw the body, what of it? I acted in self-defense! It was that old Sirius who attacked us first! Besides, he's covered in tumors now, like a Monster. Any normal person can see he's not right. It's clear who the good guy is and who the bad guy is.
Thinking this, Lu Ze's mind settled slightly. After a moment of thought, he turned to Cecilia and said, "Cecilia, go downstairs and call the police."
"Call the police?"
Cecilia's eyes widened.
"Otherwise, what? Do you think we can run away or cover it up?"
Lu Ze said, glancing at his younger sister.
Cecilia, like Lu Ze, had black hair and blue eyes and striking looks, but compared to Lu Ze's sickly appearance, she had more youthful vitality.
"If we report it to the police immediately, we'll be in control. Hiding it would only make us suspicious. As long as we explain it was self-defense, they shouldn't trouble us."
"Oh, alright. Lu Ze, aren't you coming with me?"
"I'll stay here to preserve the scene."
Only then did Cecilia nod, turning and rushing out.
Through the window, Lu Ze watched his sister rush out of the house. The onlookers scattered in a hurry, startled by her, avoiding her. But after she left, they quickly regrouped, each face filled with curiosity, just like a flock of ignorant sheep.
She should know to find a patrol officer on the street, not run all the way to the police station, right?
Hmm, I hope so.
Lu Ze thought to himself, his breathing gradually calming.
The room quickly became quiet, so quiet that he could hear the dripping of blood on the altar. Sirius's body lay face up, the bullet having blown open his skull, and combined with his already torn mouth, made his face even more terrifying.
It's really creepy.
Lu Ze's mouth twitched. He rummaged through the clutter on the desk, found revolver bullets, and reloaded the revolver, only then feeling at ease.
When his gaze returned to Sirius's body, he suddenly noticed a striking patch of white on the black-robed corpse. Walking closer to examine it, he discovered it was several folded letters.
The pages were slightly ruffled by the wind, revealing a single word—
Lu Ze Londer.
Is this letter about me?
Staring at the letters, Lu Ze hesitated for a moment, then crouched down and picked them up with two fingers.
Logically, he should preserve the crime scene, but his intuition told him that the letter might contain crucial information about him.
Lu Ze unfolded the letter.
The letter was written in Loenese. Lu Ze quickly flipped through his memories and soon became proficient with the script. He slowly read on:
[Dear Lady M:
Following your instructions, I have successfully controlled Lu Ze Londer. You are right, he bears a strong aura of the Lord. However, Lady M, while I am pleased, I also despise him immensely!
He has the aura of the Lord; he can meet the Lord in visions and listen to the Lord's teachings. This is a blessing that all of us believers yearn for, yet he, this damnable Lu Ze Londer, actually says he hates his fate and dislikes those visions!
This blasphemer, this ignorant stubborn one! How dare he!
He is unworthy of such closeness to the Lord; he should become a sacrifice for the Lord's descent! I can feel it, the Lord is within his body, his defiled shell imprisons the Lord's will!
Lord! Lord!
I cannot wait another moment! I know! This must be a trial sent by the Lord for me, it must be! I will use his death to summon the Lord's descent!
Today is his eighteenth birthday, which, from an occult perspective, is the most suitable time! .]
This was a frantic and malevolent letter. The handwriting at the beginning was neat, but the further it went, the more chaotic it became. Coupled with Sirius's deranged words, it fully demonstrated the writer's excellent mental state.
"It seems Sirius was already abnormal when he wrote the letter," Lu Ze thought to himself. "No wonder he would commit murder for a blood sacrifice."
But even though the letter was chaotic, it still revealed some terrifying information.
Sirius's approach to Lu Ze Londer was indeed premeditated. He must have come from a secret organization, acting under orders to control Lu Ze, and was writing to report to his superior, "Lady M"—although he started to go insane halfway through.
Moreover, Lu Ze's body actually seems to have a problem, apparently related to the "Lord" Sirius mentioned. Combined with Sirius's sudden mutation, it seems that there might be occult elements in this world.
"What the hell? My body is being targeted by a cult?"
He couldn't help but frown.
Does this mean that he might be captured and blood-sacrificed by Lunatics like Sirius again in the future?
This is so damn ridiculous.
Lu Ze took a deep breath, feeling only irritation and unease.
Just then—
"Bang!"
Without warning, Lu Ze felt a tremendous force strike his chest, and the world before his eyes suddenly swept forward violently. The next instant, his back slammed hard against the cold, hard floor.
Only then did he realize he had been pushed onto his back!
The dark ceiling filled his vision, and a horrifying, shattered head slowly emerged from below.
It was the lingering spirit of Sirius!
His skull was blown open, and he could still move!
His heavy body pressed down on Lu Ze, rigidly and slowly crawling towards him.
"Bang! Bang!"
Lu Ze's hair stood on end, surprised and enraged. He raised the revolver and frantically pulled the trigger at Sirius's head. Bullets repeatedly pierced through, turning Sirius's head into a mangled watermelon, but even so, he still held Lu Ze down tightly.
This was simply a moving corpse!
Sirius extended his dry, aged hand towards Lu Ze. On the palm of that hand, a twisted black mark was etched. The mark, like a living thing, writhed and contracted until it broke through the skin, transforming into a small sphere mixed with blood and black patterns, floating silently in defiance of physical laws.
"Get away! Get away!"
Lu Ze sensed a dangerous aura from that small sphere. He roared, smashing Sirius's body with the butt of the revolver. He wanted to break free, but his body was tightly bound by the other party, making escape impossible!
He saw Sirius's bloody, mangled face move, as if he were smiling.
"Lord, please save us."
Sirius's tone was cold and hollow, his movements stiff, as he slowly forced the black and red sphere into Lu Ze's mouth.