Chapter 5

Perhaps it was the loss of their target, or perhaps they had their own dark rules; the Yakuza didn’t seem to intend to make things difficult for Wu Chen, who was acting as the transporter. The intimidating BMW convoy never reappeared.

However, Wu Chen didn’t dare to let his guard down throughout the journey. Only when the familiar Fuji Tofu Shop came into view did he secretly heave a sigh of relief.

The electric roller shutter door slowly opened as it sensed its owner’s return. He shifted into reverse, turned off the engine, and pulled the handbrake. His father seemed to be out. Staring at the dashboard, which was gradually dimming, Wu Chen’s mind wandered.

The radio, which should have been powered off, suddenly came to life in a very strange way.

"Key item obtained, mission activated. Time node stored, individual evaluation completed, granting player innate attributes..." Before the voice could finish, Wu Chen’s left hand, which was gripping the steering wheel, was suddenly stung by a sharp pain!

His hair stood on end as flames spurted out from the pores on the back of his hand, instantly engulfing his entire palm!

"Ah!" His fingers were stuck to the steering wheel, and no matter how he struggled, he couldn’t break free!

The flames turned from red to crimson, then quickly to a bright golden yellow. At the peak of the burning, they exploded in mid-air with a bang! The flying embers turned into wisps of ash, leaving only a cold, blue flame enveloping Wu Chen’s left hand.

The pain disappeared in the instant the flames exploded.

Wu Chen, drenched in sweat, gritted his teeth and looked at his left hand. The skin had been completely burned away, but instead of being a bloody mess, his hand now gleamed with a metallic luster!

The fingers, which were tightly gripping the steering wheel, had five silver metal skulls protruding from the knuckles. It was as if he was wearing five exaggerated platinum rings!

The five skulls, each with a different design—some ancient, some modern, some mysterious, some punk—were vivid and lifelike! Most astonishingly, these so-called rings were actually part of his hand, growing out of his bones!

"What’s happening..." The psychological trauma from the intense pain still lingered, and Wu Chen was at a loss to understand what was happening.

The radio, which had been powered off, strangely came to life again: "Innate attributes awakened and solidified. Player 20150326-Y, successfully joined the profession of 'Bone Collector'! Newbie package has been issued. Please return to the 'Sanctuary' as soon as possible to claim your reward."

"Are you kidding me, a Bone Collector?!" Wu Chen, finally recovering from the pain, groaned with a bitter face: "I only did it once, and I failed! And what’s this 'Sanctuary'?"

The radio replied: "The Sanctuary is the residence of all adventurers and major players. There’s little information in the database about the profession of Bone Collector, so I know very little about it."

"Who are you?"

"I am the architect of the Sanctuary world. You can call me 'Zero.'"

"Alright, Zero. I just wanted to find a girl to cosplay Chun-Li, take a photo, and post it to my social circle to shut up those jerks in my dorm! I swear to the radio, I had no other intentions!" Wu Chen was in tears.

"I didn’t say you had other intentions."

"But why did you have to make me a Bone Collector to torment me?"

"You’ll understand when you enter the Sanctuary. Things aren’t as you think..." Zero explained.

"Really?" Wu Chen was skeptical, "Then, how do I enter this so-called Sanctuary?"

"Call me. However, there will be a fee. Of course, this time it’s free."

"Anything else?"

Wu Chen, feeling he had chosen the wrong profession, didn’t want to make any more mistakes with his skill points!

"Some key items can also achieve this." Zero answered truthfully.

The Q&A session clearly didn’t satisfy him. Wu Chen thought for a moment and said, "I need more information."

"You can ask your mentor."

"Alright." Wu Chen finally thought of the leather-clad woman and asked, "How do I get back?"

"Call me."

"Free?"

"Free."

His vision and consciousness twisted, being sucked into the radio. When he was spat out, Wu Chen found himself back in the familiar milk tea shop.

Looking at his left hand, it was completely normal.

"Back?" A voice came from the back seat. Wu Chen turned around sharply to see the leather-clad woman stretching and sitting up.

"Um... Master." Looking at the interior of the car, which was clearly not a Pu Sang, Wu Chen swallowed and said, "I have a lot of questions."

"Conveniently, I have some free time."

"What is the Sanctuary?"

"The gathering place for all players. You can think of it as the newbie village in a game."

"What does a Bone Collector do?"

"Is your innate ability a Bone Collector?" The woman’s eyes lit up: "It sounds pretty cool."

"Specifically?"

"I don’t know that." The woman blinked, evading the question: "Everyone’s innate ability is different, and it’s their final trump card. So, there’s very limited information. However... it’s clear that your innate ability matches you well." Seeing that Wu Chen was unsatisfied with this answer, she asked, "By the way, which movie did you intervene in?"

"Initial D and The Wolverine 2." Wu Chen blurted out.

"Near-future, sci-fi setting." The woman had a look of confirmation: "Your profession fits well with sci-fi. In that sense, being a Bone Collector doesn’t necessarily mean dealing with ghosts or monsters."

"The profession must fit the world background of the movie."

"Of course. Otherwise, how would Sun Wukong and Optimus Prime fight? They belong to completely different systems."

"In other words, similar movie plots can overlap?"

"Not overlap, but merge." The woman held up a finger, correcting him seriously.

"How do I enter these movie worlds?"

"Key characters, key items, key points."

"Is there a way to travel without spending money?"

"Find Doraemon, Doc Brown, Dr. Hadjin, Dr. Yarowei, the Cheshire Cat, or the Moonlight Box from the movie 'A Chinese Odyssey,' or the Three Flowers Gathering from 'East Meets West'... there are many options. Of course, they have to be willing." The woman smiled slyly.

"One last question, what’s your name? How can I contact you?"

"My name is Butterfly Dance. Of course, that’s my ID in the Sanctuary. As for how to contact me..." The woman sighed: "You haven’t claimed your newbie package yet?"

"No."

"Alright, I’ll take you to the Sanctuary once. Just this once."

The teleportation fee must be very expensive? Wu Chen frowned and nodded: "Alright."

This was far from the newbie village Wu Chen remembered!

In the boundless dark space, countless stars twinkled, forming a beautiful spiral. Unlike the tilted spiral of the Milky Way, the Sanctuary’s spiral stood upright. At the center of the spiral was not a bright, dazzling light, but a massive, terrifying black hole that could swallow everything.

The man, standing among the stars, was already petrified.

"Don’t just stand there, go get your newbie package." The voice came from behind, but when Wu Chen turned around, he saw a long-tailed mist!

"It’s me, Butterfly Dance." The featureless mist twisted its waist, and Wu Chen finally confirmed its identity.

"Why are you a mist?"

"Ha, aren’t you the same?"

Only then did Wu Chen realize he was also a mist. He looked down at himself.

Sure enough, he had turned into mist.

"How did this happen..." This form was completely beyond Wu Chen’s life experience.

"Welcome, Player 20150326-Y." The voice belonged to Zero, and it seemed to come from the central black hole.