I'm Not A Drama God

Chapter 3: Disaster · Chen Ling’s pupils contracted violently! · However, when he blinked, the blood-red characters on the floor vanished instantly, as if they had never existed. · A hallucination? · Chen Ling stood frozen in place. Those few words seemed to have burrowed into his mind, impossible to forget. · 【WE ARE WATCHING YOU】 · Chen Ling whipped his head around! · In the empty living room, it felt as though pairs of invisible, crimson pupils were observing him. This sensation of being watched was identical to the one in his nightmares. · He remained stiff as a statue for a long time before forcing himself to take a deep breath. · "Maybe I'm just too exhausted from staying up late preparing for the Law Enforcer Examination... my nerves are shot." · "But that was something the original soul of this body did; it shouldn't have anything to do with me... Could something have gone wrong during the soul fusion, damaging my psyche?" · "I've heard that severe schizophrenia can cause indistinguishable hallucinations..." · Chen Ling temporarily suppressed his internal terror, attempting to explain everything through a scientific lens. A wave of intense hunger surged through him. · He grabbed a grilled sausage from the cutting board and devoured it in a few bites, finally regaining some of his composure. · "Maybe I need a psychiatrist." · Spooked and losing all interest in even washing his face, Chen Ling hurriedly threw on a heavy black cotton coat and pushed his way out the door. · Even so, the rush of frigid air from behind the door made him shiver. · This was Chen Ling’s first formal contact with this world since regaining consciousness. He took a deep breath, bracing himself to face any unknown hardships. · However, when he inadvertently looked up at the sky, a "Holy shit" escaped his lips. · The early morning light scattered from the east, and dreamlike blue ribbons floated above the small city. They looked close enough to touch, yet remained infinitely far away. · Aurora Light. · Aurora Light during the day. · Chen Ling stood at his doorstep, staring blankly at the sky for a long time, murmuring to himself: · "This world... what the hell is it?" · "Damn it, why is this road so hard to walk?" · "The weather is too cold, and after that heavy rain last night, the mountain paths are frozen. Be careful." · "We've been dawdling all the way; it's already light out." The man wiped the sweat from his brow. "How much further?" · "The Mass Grave is just ahead... we should be almost there." · Two staggering figures crested the mountain peak and finally saw the clusters of earthen mounds nearby. Some were new, some old; most lacked inscriptions, marked only by a random wooden plank or the personal effects of the deceased. · But after last night’s torrential rain, many of the mounds had been washed away. Wooden stakes and other items lay scattered in a chaotic mess. · To their surprise, the Mass Grave was already cordoned off with yellow caution tape. Over a dozen figures were moving within the restricted area, their expressions grim. · "Law Enforcers?" · Seeing the striking black and red uniforms, the man’s eyes widened. "What are they doing here!" · "Have they already found out?" The woman’s face turned deathly pale. "Is it... is it A-Ling? Did he go to the Law Enforcers? Is he really not dead?" · They thought they had killed Chen Ling, only for him to return the next day. Combined with the sudden appearance of Law Enforcers at the burial site... there was almost no other explanation. · "No..." The man stared fixedly at the figures. "The Law Enforcers of District Three, even when handling criminal cases, would only deploy three people at most! For them to mobilize over a dozen at once, it can only be..." · "A Calamity... has appeared?" · As the thought struck her, cold sweat instantly drenched the woman's back! · "Could the monster in the bedroom be..." · "Run!!" The man grabbed the woman’s wrist, turning to flee the area. · Just then, a cold voice drifted from nearby. · "Halt." · The two figures froze instantly. · A Law Enforcer ducked under the caution tape and walked slowly toward them, his eyes narrowing slightly. · "Who are you? What are you doing here?" · "I... I..." The woman stammered, unable to speak. · "We came to see our son," the man said, trying his best to remain calm. "He’s buried here. Today is the anniversary of his death." · "Then why were you running?" · "...Because we were afraid." · "Afraid?" · "With so many Law Enforcers deployed, a Gray Realm Convergence happened here, didn't it?" The man swallowed hard. "Maybe a Calamity even crawled out... we were afraid of getting caught in the crossfire." · "Oh? You certainly know a lot." The Law Enforcer raised an eyebrow in surprise. · The man forced a pale smile. · "Officer," the woman asked cautiously, "did a Calamity really escape from the Gray Realm?" · "That’s classified." · The Law Enforcer replied flatly, "You won't be visiting your son today. Go back... and whatever you saw here, you aren't allowed to spread it. You know the rules?" · "We know, we know." · "Go on, then." · Hearing those words, the man finally felt a sense of relief and immediately turned to leave. · "Wait." · Their hearts skipped a beat. · "Leave your names and address." The Law Enforcer pulled out a pen and paper. "Standard procedure for the non-disclosure agreement. Please understand." · "Chen Tan, Li Xiuchun. 128 Frost Street, District Three." · Once the details were recorded, the Law Enforcer let them go. He crossed back under the yellow tape and approached a man in a black trench coat, handing over the document. · "Meng-ge, I checked. They were just here to see their son." · Han Meng had a thick, hand-rolled cigarette in his mouth. He took a deep drag, the pungent smoke mixing with his breath as it drifted into the cold wind. · He glanced casually at the document and spoke calmly: · "Send a few men to follow them secretly. Something’s wrong." · "...Huh?" · "Frost Street is at least ten kilometers from here. For them to arrive at this hour, they would have had to leave by 4:00 AM at the latest... the rain hadn't even stopped then. Who would brave a rainstorm in the dark to visit a grave on a mountain?" · "Furthermore, this is a Mass Grave—a place for those with no family or those who died far from home. As his parents, why would they bury their child here?" · The Law Enforcer was stunned, slapping his forehead. "Right! Why didn't I think of that?" · "...Jiang Qin, how exactly did you pass the Law Enforcer Examination?" · The Law Enforcer called Jiang Qin gave a dry laugh and quickly changed the subject. "Anyway, Meng-ge, did a Calamity actually crawl out of the Gray Realm last night?" · Han Meng didn't answer. Instead, he pulled a palm-sized instrument from his inner coat pocket. At its center was a compass-like needle device, with different colored zones marking various scales. · "Is that a Calamity Pointer?" Jiang Qin looked at the device curiously, reaching out to touch it, only to have the back of his hand sharply slapped away. · "This thing is incredibly precious. Once you're promoted to an Enforcement Officer, you'll get your chance to touch one." · Jiang Qin rubbed the back of his hand bitterly. "How does it work, exactly?" · "This is a device for detecting the danger level of a 'Calamity.' Once it's turned on, whichever zone the needle points to indicates the magnitude of the 'Calamity' fluctuations that occurred nearby. If it was just a simple Gray Realm Convergence with no 'Calamity' entering the physical realm, it won't react. The higher the level of the Calamity, the more violently the needle will shake." · Jiang Qin nodded, looking somewhat worried. · "Meng-ge... a 'Calamity' probably didn't crawl out, right?" · "Most likely not. After all, if a 'Calamity' had truly descended through here yesterday, District Two and District Three would already be in total chaos." · "That's a relief." · "To be safe, we still have to complete the scan." · As Han Meng spoke, he switched on the Calamity Pointer. Seeing this, the other Law Enforcers looked over curiously. · One second, two seconds, three seconds... · The Calamity Pointer showed no reaction. · Just as Han Meng let out a sigh of relief, the needle on the compass suddenly jerked! · The needle swept frantically across the different colored zones, and a piercing screeching sound emitted from inside the device. Han Meng’s pupils shrank, and he instinctively let go of the Calamity Pointer! · BANG—!! · Countless parts shattered in mid-air. The sharp, broken end of the needle grazed Han Meng’s cheek, instantly leaving a streak of crimson blood! · The Calamity Pointer... · Had exploded. · [END]