Xu Fang sat by the computer, refreshing Horror Novel Web over and over again, hoping that this was just a joke from the webmaster. But the words announcing the site's termination were constantly declaring the end of this website.

Every day, countless websites closed down. Horror Novel Web, perhaps, was just an insignificant loser that couldn't keep up with the trends of the times and couldn't shake the monopoly, but how could one explain the existence of that novel?

"Luo Xiao Ming, I have a few questions for you."

"Hmm?" Xiao Ming took off his headphones and looked over in surprise.

"You have a brother named Luo Bing, your father is Luo Qingyuan, the chairman of Ju Chuan Corp, and your mother is Bai Wenqiu, but she is not your birth mother. Your real mother has been missing—is that correct?"

"?!"

"Isn't that right?"

"How do you know? I've never told anyone!" Luo Xiao Ming exclaimed, not even noticing that his phone had fallen.

Does the setting in the book follow reality? How much overlap is there between reality and the novel?

Xu Fang suddenly made a decision.

He wanted to prove the reality of the world in the book.

Countless philosophers had hoped to see through this world but were limited by their own limitations and left behind unverifiable theories. Xu Fang certainly didn't have the arrogance to compare himself to those masters; he just wanted to prove that the contents of the book were not real.

But if "Horror Novel Web," "K organization," "God of Destruction," "bizarre event," or any of the other terrifying things appeared in this world, it could be disastrous for humanity.

It would be best to find a reasonable explanation for the existence of that book.

Xu Fang had read Horror Novel Web and could be said to have memories of two worlds. The first step he needed to take was to prove that Ye Huai was not the "creator."

He should meet the real Ye Huai in reality.

"Xu, I'm talking to you!" Xu Fang's arm was forcefully grabbed, and as he turned around, he saw that Luo Xiao Ming had jumped down from the upper bunk, his eyebrows furrowed as he nervously stared at Xu Fang. "Are you secretly investigating me?"

"No, this was told to me by your dad. He actually cares about you, but he didn't want to call you directly, so he could only contact someone close to you." Xu Fang lied, "I asked about your family situation when I was talking to your dad on the phone."

"Um, is that so?"

"Yeah, by the way, I have something to do, so I'll go first."

"Wait."

"Is there something else?" Xu Fang thought that Luo Xiao Ming was still bothered by his family issues.

[Are you doubting this world? Or are you doubting yourself?]

Xu Fang was stunned for a moment and asked, "What were you just saying?"

"It's nothing." Luo Xiao Ming turned his head and no longer looked at him.

...

Xu Fang left the school and walked along the shaded path, looking at the bustling streets. He fell into deep thought.

Where exactly was Ye Huai? The book didn't specify, only mentioning that he lived in the suburbs of the same city as Xu Fang. But who knew the exact location?

But it didn't matter because Ye Huai had always lived in City K. After becoming the author, he killed many people and left behind subtle clues that only the author could find.

Xu Fang opened his phone and searched for all the missing person cases that had occurred in City K seven years ago. Eventually, he narrowed it down to Fourth Middle School.

Seven years ago, the third-year class 2 of Fourth Middle School had a serious series of disappearances, with a total of twenty people missing, including the homeroom teacher. The school, under pressure, closed for several months, and the police have still not found any of the missing individuals. It was as if those people had vanished into thin air.

After undergoing renovations, Fourth Middle School had returned to normal, while the unsolved disappearances became a school ghost story. If Ye Huai truly existed, then Fourth Middle School was likely the school he had attended at that time.

Thinking about it, Xu Fang took a taxi to go to the Fourth Middle School and got off at the school gate.

At one o'clock in the afternoon, the students hadn't started class yet, and the electric retractable gate was wide open, with students passing by from time to time.

There were security guards at the school gate, so Xu Fang didn't enter impulsively.

He checked the weather on his phone. It was 35℃, scorching hot. The students must not be able to bear it.

Xu Fang bought a bucket of ice cubes from a nearby convenience store, wholesaled a box of ice cream, poured the ice cubes into the box to keep them cold. He also borrowed a big umbrella and a stool from the shopkeeper, then sat down near the school gate and shouted, "Free ice cream!"

Soon, Xu Fang was surrounded by a group of curious children.

All the students who attended received a portion, but each person had to answer Xu Fang's questions, such as "Who is the principal?", "What is the name of the class teacher?", "Which teacher has a good personality?", and other small questions.

In order to get the ice cream, the students answered without hesitation. After all the ice cream was given away, Xu Fang had a good understanding of the teachers, leaders, and the layout of the offices. A few clever students even provided additional information in order to get an extra ice cream.

After experiencing a series of missing persons cases seven years ago, the Fourth Middle School suffered from a significant loss of students and teaching resources, quickly becoming a third-rate school. The school leaders had made several reforms, such as adopting the teaching methods of Hengshui Middle School, but almost all of them failed. The education quality couldn't meet the requirements, and neither the students nor the parents were willing to pay. Ultimately, it was because of a lack of money. The students attending this low-ranked school all came from poor families; they just wanted to get a diploma in order to attend college or work in a factory. There was no profit to be gained from these students. There were rumors that this school would be closed in a few years.

Poor Fourth Middle School. Xu Fang sympathized with the principal for two seconds.

At half past one in the afternoon, the bell rang for class, and the electric retractable gate closed. Xu Fang returned the umbrella and stool to the shopkeeper.

As an outsider, Xu Fang couldn't enter the school and couldn't blend in with the children aged twelve or thirteen. But the students said that the security guard at the gate was addicted to smoking, and smoked a hundred cigarettes a day. Although it may be an exaggeration, the security guard was undoubtedly a chain smoker.

So Xu Fang quickly convinced the security guard to let him in, and his payment was a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes. The security guard rarely smoked such good cigarettes, so he appeared quite happy. He silently sighed, thinking that young people nowadays are truly well-mannered.

According to the descriptions given by the students, there were two buildings on the school campus, namely the dormitory building and the teaching building, and the office area was on the highest floor of the teaching building, the sixth floor.

Xu Fang went directly up to the sixth floor along the stairs and found the principal's office. He lightly knocked on the door and then pushed it open.

The office was not large, and a few middle-aged people were sitting inside, but Xu Fang found the principal by looking at the nameplates on the desks.

The principal was a woman in her fifties, dressed in a Zhongshan suit, holding a stack of newspapers in her hand. The teacup beside her was still steaming.

Drinking hot tea on such a hot day, does one's ability to withstand heat increase with age?

"Excuse me, are you the principal?"

"You are... an outsider?" The principal looked confused and raised her head to size up Xu Fang.

In the school, there were generally students under fifteen or teachers over twenty-five; there were no individuals like Xu Fang who seemed neither young nor old.

"Yes, I am an outsider. I have come to visit the principal for a certain matter." Xu Fang said.

The principal's expression eased slightly. From Xu Fang's tone, it seemed like he was trying to use money to request something. The school had been facing financial difficulties in recent years, so if someone was willing to pay for a spot in the school, she would definitely welcome it.

However, Xu Fang's next sentence frightened her.

"Seven years ago, there was a series of missing persons cases at your school, and my cousin was one of the victims. These past few years, I have been busy searching for the missing relatives. Recently, I heard that the police have found some of the missing people, but unfortunately, they still haven't found my cousin. That's why I came here…" Xu Fang explained.

"Wait a minute." The principal interrupted Xu Fang, quickly glanced at her colleagues, and didn't see any young teachers. The older ones were all looking down, pretending not to hear anything.

The principal then shifted her gaze back to Xu Fang, staring at him sternly. "That incident is long in the past. You should leave. We have nothing to tell you."

Xu Fang said, "Sure, but could you please show me the student information of Class 3, Grade 2, seven years ago? It's important for my family. If we can find the missing person, I will sponsor the school with funding as a thank-you for assisting in the investigation." Xu Fang took out a verbal check.

"What is your name?" the principal asked.

"My name is Zhang Guangyu. My cousin Zhang Guangdong, who went missing seven years ago, was from that class," Xu Fang said with a serious face, making up a story.

The principal's expression changed. She knew Zhang Guangdong. His father was a high-ranking official, and the reason the missing case caused such a disturbance seven years ago was largely due to his father's misuse of power in conducting a massive search. The decline of the school was also connected to that high-ranking official. The news did not mention Zhang Guangdong's real name, so the fact that Xu Fang could provide the name indicated that he was indeed an insider.

"Zhang Guangyu, I can show you the student records, but I hope you won't talk about this matter to anyone in the school, especially the young teachers. The school has worked hard to suppress the events of that year, and I don't want this matter to be repeatedly mentioned and affect the school's reputation. Also, student records are confidential information and should not be disclosed to outsiders. Please refrain from spreading it online after you see it."

Xu Fang smiled faintly, "Don't worry, I understand."

In this way, with deception and trickery, Xu Fang obtained Ye Huai's student records from back then, including his ID number, home address, and contact information.

Before leaving, the principal suddenly said something inexplicable to Xu Fang.

"Finding the truth comes at a cost... Moreover, what you're seeking is only a false truth."

...

Ye Huai had already changed his phone number. After his father passed away, he even changed his address. However, it was not impossible to find Ye Huai's current address.

The police information database had Ye Huai's record. Xu Fang was not a relative of Ye Huai, so he couldn't go to the police station in person, but he could entrust a lawyer.

In recent years, the legal profession had become corrupt, with lawyers' services and fees caught in a vicious circle. To attract business, many lawyers skipped the process of providing evidence and signing agreements, becoming mere tools for doing things in exchange for money.

Star Nebula Internet Cafe.

Xu Fang searched online and found an unknown law firm, provided Ye Huai's ID number and the district he was in, and entrusted the lawyer to find out his current location under the pretext of collecting a debt.

While waiting, Xu Fang turned on his computer and opened the game "Prehistoric Civilization" to relax and advance the storyline.

However, as soon as he entered the game, Xu Fang saw various gruesome scenes.

The sky and the earth were burning, the wreckage of warships floated in orbit, radiation plagued the earth's surface, turning it into a purgatory...

Five hundred years had passed since the collision between Solar Civilization and the Earth. Both civilizations disappeared without a trace, leaving only a desolate battlefield that bore witness to the fierce war that had once occurred.

After a while, a few lines of text appeared on the computer screen:

"Demons are born from the remains of the old civilization, and a new era begins."

Xu Fang stared at the screen for a long time, doubting if he had opened the game incorrectly. Wasn't this game supposed to have cloud saves? Shouldn't it pick up from where the collision with the Earth left off? Why did five hundred years pass as soon as he logged in?

Wait a minute, this game seems strangely familiar...

While Xu Fang was thinking, he received a message from the law firm.

Ye Huai lived in a secluded neighborhood in the suburbs of K City, a perfect match with the description in the novel - a house in the outskirts, an hour's drive from the city center.

Finding him turned out to be so easy.

Xu Fang hailed a taxi and immediately set off for Ye Huai's home.

At five o'clock in the afternoon, Xu Fang got off at the entrance of Ye Huai's neighborhood.

The sky was gloomy, and the dusk sunset was obscured by dark clouds, making Ye Huai's neighborhood look like the end of the world.

Following the corridor, Xu Fang climbed the stairs step by step, finally standing in front of an inconspicuous door. There was a yellowed flyer on the door and several bags of garbage piled up beside it. It was clear that the homeowner was a sloppy person. At the moment, the door was slightly ajar, and anyone could push it open and walk inside.

"Is this...Ye Huai's home?" Xu Fang slowly raised his hand and stared at the front door. He had a strange feeling that only by opening this door, the world would converge in an irreversible direction.

At this moment, Xu Fang's phone vibrated, it was a WeChat message from a lawyer:

"Sir, the Ye Huai you are looking for passed away seven years ago, maybe we have made a mistake."

"Thank you, but I have already arrived at Ye Huai's home. I plan to take a look, if I'm right, you don't need to keep searching," Xu Fang replied.

"Go back immediately, you still have a chance to change your mind!" Xu Fang was taken aback.

What's going on? Why do people always suddenly say inexplicable things to threaten him?

Change his mind? There is no need.

Xu Fang made up his mind. He must go into Ye Huai's home. He resolutely opened the door.

----------

"You have trespassed."

----------

The room was empty, with only four blood-red characters covering the walls.

An indescribable sense of fear struck Xu Fang, corroding every nerve in his body.

His head became heavy, his vision narrowed and turned black.

In the moment before losing consciousness, he vaguely heard a familiar, cold voice, as if he had heard it somewhere before.

"Test result: Strong resistance detected. Execute memory erasure program..."

...

...

...

Xu Fang suddenly woke up.

He heard the snoring of his roommate, and moonlight spilled in through the window. It turned out that he was sleeping in his dormitory.

He had a vague feeling that he had just had a nightmare and forgotten something important.

What did he forget? He couldn't remember. Oh well, he continued to live his peaceful life.

He closed his eyes again but didn't notice that someone's gaze was fixed on him.