Chapter 1

Yin Changsheng was picking at his bowl of white rice, with a small dish of boiled pork and blanched cabbage placed on the old wooden table. He gazed out the window at the pitch-black night and the black iron coffin in the center of the room.

As a穿越者 (穿越者, time traveler), he had been a complete failure, achieving nothing, merely living an ordinary life.

In this world, where the population was refreshed rather than born, he had no special skills, except for his tough constitution and good luck.

Those with weak constitutions and bad luck couldn't survive in this world with such a high mortality rate; they would have been consumed by the anomalies within them long ago.

From birth, everyone had an anomaly that accompanied them inside their body. Each year on their birthday, the anomaly would awaken. If they survived, they would live another year; if not, the anomaly would take over, and they would cease to exist.

Thus, in this world, birthdays were also called "birth sacrifices." If you survived, it was a birth; if you died, there was no one to mourn.

At first, Yin Changsheng was full of confidence, thinking that as a time traveler, he could analyze the anomalies and find a way to a better life. However, this illusion quickly dissipated. The anomalies were something beyond comprehension.

Sometimes, Yin Changsheng wondered if the people in this world were just clothes for the anomalies to wear.

Conscious clothes, some more durable, some less.

He believed he was one of the more durable ones, which was why he had survived this long.

"Another fifteen minutes, huh." Despite having gone through this eighteen times, he still felt a deep sense of fear. No one knew if he could survive this year's birth sacrifice. He didn't want to die, even in this world filled with anomalies.

After death, the anomaly would crawl out of the body and wander the world.

He even wondered if the anomalies didn't kill them because of the anomalies within them.

He finished his rice, then stuffed the boiled pork and blanched cabbage into his mouth. To be honest, neither the pork nor the cabbage had any flavor. In his previous life, he would have stopped after a few bites, but in this world, these were the only good things he could eat during his annual birth sacrifice.

He couldn't afford these dishes; they were given to him by the village, both as a last meal and a celebration if he survived.

Otherwise, he couldn't even afford white rice and had to eat beans and other fillers.

With anomalies wandering everywhere, the survival rate for other living things and plants was extremely low. Only a few could survive, providing the basic food for humans.

After finishing his last meal, Yin Changsheng didn't bother to wash the dishes, leaving them on the table. If he survived the next day, he could wash them later; if not, it wouldn't matter.

He pushed open the black iron coffin lid and lay down inside, padding it with blankets and a pillow to make it more comfortable.

"A sliding lid coffin, still in good condition after eighteen years, but I wonder who the previous owner was." Yin Changsheng closed the lid, plunging himself into darkness. This coffin wasn't his; it was inherited from a neighbor who died during an anomaly's awakening eighteen years ago.

Normally, he should have entered a life review, but Yin Changsheng didn't. His life after crossing over was very routine, working in the fields from morning till night, just to earn a meal, with no interaction with his neighbors.

It wasn't that he was antisocial, but in this environment, his neighbors had no time for idle chatter. Plus, he had lived longer than most, and his neighbors had changed many times. He gradually stopped interacting with them.

"Everyone will die eventually, so why think about these things?"

As for his previous life, he smiled. Many memories had faded with time, whether of family, friends, entertainment, or work. Only a vague outline remained in his mind.

"This broken world, I hope my constitution is tough enough and my luck is good enough to survive this year's birth sacrifice."

In the darkness, Yin Changsheng kept his eyes open. He wanted to close them, but he was afraid that if he did, he wouldn't be able to open them again.

In a world without hope, living was his goal, no matter what.

In his mind, a black figure with hollow eyes stared back at him.

At this moment, Yin Changsheng knew it was past the hour of the Pig, and it was the hour of the Rat on the 15th day of the first month.

Black mud began to gush from the figure's feet, spreading from his mind to his body.

Instantly, black mud seeped from his pores, covering his entire body, making him look like a mud man.

"Cough, it must be the Lantern Festival in my previous world now."

Yin Changsheng coughed up a mouthful of black mud, feeling his eyes and nose clogged with it. Instinctively, he tried to wipe it away, but his hands were immobilized by the mud.

"It seems my constitution isn't tough enough this time, no saving me."

This was the first time in eighteen years that Yin Changsheng had encountered such a situation. Previously, he had only exchanged glances with the anomaly, and the worst he had experienced was vomiting black mud. Now, the anomaly was clearly awakening inside him.

As he neared death, Yin Changsheng remained unusually calm. He knew there was nothing he could do.

The black mud continued to pour out of his body, filling the black iron coffin and even seeping through the cracks, dripping onto the floor, moving like a living thing.

Finally, the black mud burst the coffin, and a black figure stood in the room filled with mud.

The anomaly had awakened.

Yin Changsheng's consciousness fell into the darkness until the world came to a standstill.

【Detected eligible candidate, initiating transfer...】

【Transfer complete, converting to预备使徒 (预备使徒,预备 apostle)】

【Detected abnormality in the eligible candidate's body, conversion failed, initiating assessment】

【Assessment complete, executing repair plan, plan approved】

【Repair complete, eligible candidate has completed the预备使徒 (预备使徒,预备 apostle) conversion process】

【预备使徒 (预备使徒,预备 apostle) has received a special mission: Massive Debt】

【Massive Debt: The预备使徒 (预备使徒,预备 apostle) must achieve an S-grade evaluation in the first 10 regular missions. Reward: Unknown, Failure: Erasure】

Yin Changsheng opened his eyes in the darkness, seeing the text floating in front of him, impossible to ignore.

【Welcome to the Dimensional Paradise,预备使徒 (预备使徒,预备 apostle)】

"Didn't die, and there's a Dimensional Paradise?" Yin Changsheng stared at the last line, somewhat dazed.