Xu Fang was awakened by the person on the bunk above him.

The person on the bunk above was Xu Fang's roommate, named Liu Shuo. He lived up to his name, being large in size, weighing about one ton. Every time he turned over, it felt like an earthquake. Xu Fang was considering whether to move to Wang's place, since he was always out all night anyway.

He turned on his phone and checked the time. It was already 2:30 am, still the middle of the night.

Xu Fang went to the bathroom and then stood by the window at the end of the corridor for a while, listening to the sounds of the city at night.

It was strange, there was no sound at all.

Everything was quiet, and the silence made Xu Fang's heart race.

After returning to his bed, Xu Fang somehow couldn't fall asleep.

He took out his phone and opened the Horror Novel Web app, intending to read a novel. However...

All the books on Horror Novel Web were gone, except for one with a strange cover, titled "Horror Novel Web".

Did something go wrong with the website?

Xu Fang clicked on "Horror Novel Web" and the description was covered by a thick black block. The author's name was blacked out as well, and except for the large book title, all the other fonts were covered by black bars, giving it a strangely eerie appearance. The comment section was empty, as if he had entered another world.

Could it be an Easter egg made by the site owner? Specifically designed to scare readers with this page in the middle of the night?

Xu Fang clicked on the "Read" button, wanting to see what this novel with the same name as the website was all about.

"Mmm..."

Xu Fang was awakened by the person on the bunk above.

The person on the bunk above was Xu Fang's roommate, named Liu Shuo. He lived up to his name, being very large and weighing over 200 kilograms. Every time he turned over, it felt like an earthquake, making Xu Fang miserable. He envied the next bunk, Luo Xiao Ming.

...

Wait a minute, what is this?

Just by reading the beginning, Xu Fang was shocked to the point his phone almost fell.

Why did his name appear in the novel?

If it was just his name, one could call it a coincidence, but why did his roommate's name also appear in this book?

What is going on?

Xu Fang sighed, still unable to fall asleep.

The dormitory was very quiet, occasionally interrupted by the snoring of the fat guy. Obviously, his roommates were all sound asleep.

He looked out the window and saw pitch-black darkness. Glancing at his phone, it was 2:43, still the middle of the night.

Xu Fang subconsciously looked at his phone and found that the time was exactly 2:43.

A chill ran down his spine.

It felt like someone was observing him from an unseen place.

Who is it? Who wrote this passage? Was it his roommate?

Silently, Xu Fang turned to observe his roommate.

Wang Yusheng was spending the night with his girlfriend today, so his bed was empty.

Luo Xiaoming, the person on the top bunk of Wang's bed, was curled up in his blanket, sound asleep.

The fat guy on Xu Fang's bunk continued to snore.

Wang Yang and Zhou Wenjian, who were diagonally across from him, were sleeping like dead pigs. It seemed that even if someone loudly played "Chicken You Are So Beautiful", they wouldn't wake up.

All his roommates were sleeping.

Xu Fang exited the novel and carefully read the description and author once again.

The author and the description were covered in ominous black blocks.

With a sense of absurdity, Xu Fang reopened the book, furrowing his brows and reading the lines of text.

Xu Fang rarely imagined himself as the protagonist, but this time, he had no choice but to do so—the names of the characters and places in the book were all real, even the internet cafe near the school was completely accurate.

Volume One, Death-seeking Chapter. It mainly told the story of a teenager named "Xu Fang" becoming the author of "Horror Novel Web" and starting a journey of seeking death.

He didn't consider the consequences and used the settings recklessly. As a result, "Xu Fang" was found by a mysterious organization and obtained what he wanted, but almost paid a heavy price of freedom and life.

The setting bar is not a cheat but a trap with unknown consequences. "Xu Fang," struggling in the mud, bears immense psychological pressure. Finally, at a critical moment, he breaks free from the shackles of the setting bar and returns everything to its original state.

After finishing the first volume, Xu Fang couldn't help but wipe the sweat off his forehead. If he were the protagonist of the story, Xu Fang believed that he would not be able to escape the clutches of the setting bar. He is just an ordinary person, without the halo of a protagonist. How could he be as lucky as the protagonist?

Is this really a novel? Perhaps it is another parallel world being recorded?

The answers may be found in the later chapters of the novel.

...

As the sky gradually brightened, Xu Fang finished reading "Horror Novel Web" in one breath. It started with the "Death-Seeking Chapter" in the first volume and ended with the "Destructionist Association" in the sixth volume. However, this book is not finished, and there is still a lot of content yet to be developed.

The "Xu Fang" in the story went through many things.

From being ignorant before risking death, to contemplation after experiencing demonic bloodshed, to the cold and rational mindset during the exam, and then to the change in thinking after becoming a loli doll...

"Xu Fang" has transformed from a newbie to a big shot.

Xu Fang never imagined that he could be so powerful in the novel.

In reality, he is just an unsuccessful loser, with no remarkable qualities apart from being a shut-in and introvert. He looks like an inconspicuous side character in a gal, with no presence at all.

One thing he is concerned about is... why is Luo Xiao Ming the female lead! Is it the author's twisted taste? How could the real Luo Xiao Ming be as cute as depicted in the book? She is so difficult to get along with!

... Even after finishing it, Xu Fang still couldn't figure out who wrote this book.

According to the setting of the book, the person who wrote it is likely the creator, a god-like figure who can control Xu Fang's destiny.

However, Xu Fang believes that anyone seeking a sense of reality in a fictional story must have a problem.

Explaining reality using the setting of a novel seems very strange.

So, who really wrote this book?

Could it be someone he knows?

Despite the illogical existence of this book, Xu Fang can still differentiate between the virtual and real world:

He has complete memories since childhood, loving parents, and his high school classmate, Song Yu, really exists. "Horror Novel Web" is just an ordinary website, not like the unknown things in the novel. This world continues to be peaceful as usual, with no bizarre events, no mysterious organizations like the K organization, no Gussy, and no anomalies or superhumans. Bless this real world!

Well, the above paragraph is actually just Xu Fang comforting himself. In reality, he is panicking.

By now, it's already 5:30 in the morning. Although most students are still asleep, there are also some diligent and disciplined ones who wake up early to get ready.

After much deliberation, Xu Fang quietly leaves the dormitory and finds a quiet spot near the hallway to make a phone call home.

After a half-minute of dial tone, someone named Shan Shan finally answers the call.

"Xiao Fang? Why are you calling so early? Is there something urgent?" A sleepy female voice comes through the phone.

Hearing his mother's voice, Xu Fang feels much relieved. He gives a reason, asks about the family's health, and talks about school matters. Perhaps Xu Fang rarely calls home, so his mother is very happy and chats with him for a long time before hanging up the phone.

Afterward, Xu Fang returns to "Horror Novel Web" and finds that the page has returned to normal, and the novel he just read is nowhere to be found.

Back in the dormitory, Xu Fang feels a strong sense of exhaustion washing over him. Staying up all night reading novels really takes a toll on the body, but luckily, there are no classes today...

Tomorrow, he plans to find out more about this book...

He falls asleep until noon, awakened by the sounds of a game.

He rarely wakes up naturally. According to a search on Baidu, it could be due to neurosis and poor sleep quality, needing adjustments in diet and lifestyle to improve it.

Wen Jian and his group went to the internet cafe, but Lao Wang didn't come back. However, Luo Xiao Ming stayed and was playing games. The sound was coming from his side.

There were five people in the dorm playing games. Wen Jian and his group often played Playerunknown's Battlegrounds and various Tencent games, and always went to the internet cafe to play together. Luo Xiao Ming only played mobile games, the kind where you spend a lot of money on in-app purchases. Xu Fang, on the other hand, preferred real-time strategy games and single-player games.

After washing up, Xu Fang pondered how to contact the webmaster of the novel website while turning on his computer. He wanted to figure out what exactly was going on with that novel. He hoped that not too many people had seen that work, otherwise, it would feel like a public execution.

Perhaps he could find the contact information of the webmaster on the web version of the novel website.

While waiting for the computer to boot up, Xu Fang glanced at Luo Xiao Ming. The latter was lying on the bed, with his slender legs crossed and swinging his dainty feet in the air.

Luo Xiao Ming was engrossed in his phone, wearing a disgruntled expression on his face, clearly being beaten by someone. It was strange if he wasn't targeted when he bought so many limited edition skins for the game, which came with taunting buffs.

Thinking about the plot in the novel, Xu Fang couldn't bear to look at his roommate anymore.

What would Luo Xiao Ming's reaction be if he read that novel? It was hard to imagine.

In the end, was Luo Xiao Ming a male or female?

According to the "Observer Effect" in "Horror Novel Web", one can never define something in advance until the observation converges towards a result. In simpler terms, as the original text also mentioned, if you don't lift a girl's skirt, you can never be certain if she has an 18cm object.

A world without the "author" observing would always be chaotic and blurry.

But reality shouldn't be so absurd. There is no "Horror Novel Web" in reality, and there is no "author". The "Observer Effect" should only apply to physics experiments like the double-slit interference.

"Luo Xiao Ming, are you...?" Xu Fang started hesitantly.

"What's up?" Luo Xiao Ming's gaze shifted from his phone to Xu Fang, and there was a trend of transferring the anger from being beaten.

"Are you thinking of renting a room outside?" Xu Fang originally wanted to ask Luo Xiao Ming's gender, but the sense of urgency made him change his question.

In the novel, Luo Xiao Ming came to this school because of his conflict with his family. He actually wanted to move out of the dormitory a long time ago, but he was afraid of being alone, so he didn't move out by himself.

"Eh, are you planning to as well?" Luo Xiao Ming's tone softened, as if he had a sense of anticipation.

"I just asked casually."

"Whatever."

"By the way, Luo Xiao Ming, have you heard of 'Horror Novel Web'?"

"What's that? I've never heard of it."

"..."

Luo Xiao Ming didn't seem like the author either. Xu Fang contacted the other roommates one by one, inquiring about anything related to Horror Novel Web, but they all had no idea.

Xu Fang didn't mention the novel to anyone, firstly because it was like a public execution, and secondly, normal people wouldn't believe it.

It seemed that he had to start with the webmaster for leads.

Xu Fang opened Horror Novel Web on the computer's web browser. As soon as he entered the website, he froze.

【Notice: Official website ceases operations from today onwards. Thank you for your past attention and apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Message: Terror is always by your side. The closer you get to the truth, the closer you get to the abyss of despair. Wishing you sweet dreams.】

...