LostInPages: I remember now—someone mentioned they were headed to Willowmere City to check out that abandoned building. The one with rumors about weird sightings.
Silvia: …Got it. Thanks for the heads-up.
Shadow18: Hey, wait. Are you really going?
Silvia: Yeah. If she still hasn't come back by tomorrow, I'll go.
Shadow18: Count me in then! Let's head there together. PM me later so we can plan.
GhostTide: You guys are actually doing this?
RainVane: Damn, I'd go too but I'm swamped tomorrow. Keep us updated?
PixelStatic: Yeah, livestream it. That way if you miss something, we'll catch it for you.
CrimsonLens: Like hell. You just want to see something messed up happen.
PixelStatic: Who doesn't? That's why we're here.
LostInPages: Same here. I'm curious.
Silvia: …Fine. Since you gave me a lead, I'll go live when I get there.
GhostTide: Let's gooo.
CrimsonLens: Wait, someone just dropped this news article—
Shadow18: What the hell is that?
---
Jiang Dao left the chat without saying anything. The moment he exited, he opened Google and started searching for anything that looked remotely similar to the black bead sitting on his table.
"How to identify different animal eggs."
Nope. Swipe.
"Snake egg guide."
Still wrong. Swipe.
"Rare black crystal worth millions!"
Not even close. Swipe.
After scrolling through countless pages, he found nothing. No animal had such an egg, and with no knowledge of what this thing actually was or its purpose, he felt utterly lost.
Then, how should I handle this?
Looking at the bead on the table, Jiang Dao stood up and picked it up. The surface felt warm against his palm, almost alive.
Should I follow my instinct and eat this?
Or should I destroy this before something bad happens?
Jiang Dao hesitated but finally didn't do anything. He couldn't swallow this casually—what if he died or mutated into a monster? Or even worse, what if the suspected egg hatched midway and turned his body into its first meal?
As for destroying it... this didn't seem like a good idea either, as his instincts were screaming that he needed this. If he destroyed it, who knows what would happen?
"Su Yuan! Food is ready!"
His mother Tang Shiyan's voice rang out from below, calling him to eat.
"Okay, Mom, in a minute!"
Jiang Dao replied and put the bead back, wrapping it carefully in the cloth.
Opening the door, he headed downstairs.
---
The dining room was filled with the rich aroma of home-cooked food. Steam rose from dishes arranged across the table—a balance of meat and vegetables that made Jiang Dao's mouth water despite his troubled thoughts.
"Su Yuan, what took you so long? Didn't you say you'd be back by 12:30 PM at the latest?" Tang Shiyan questioned, her maternal instincts picking up on something unusual. Her son was always punctual, so this situation was surprising.
"He must be sleeping with his 'girlfriends' without telling us!" His brother Bai Yuan joked from the side. He was a young man half a head shorter than Jiang Dao with a neat haircut, looking like the typical smart and reliable youth.
"When we ended our exploration, it was already too late and there were no buses on the road, so we stayed at a hotel. That's why I was late."
Jiang Dao kept his explanation brief—the more he explained, the more holes would appear in his story.
"I see. But you've eaten breakfast and lunch, right?" Tang Shiyan didn't press further, instead asking about his meals. For outdoor activities, it was normal for schedules to change constantly depending on the situation.
"Yeah... I did."
"That's good."
*Ding!* The doorbell rang. "Oh, your father and sister are here." Tang Shiyan stood up and opened the door.
*Creak!*
Jiang Dao looked up to see a middle-aged man in uniform entering along with a high school girl wearing a neat school uniform.
It was his father Su Yang and his sister Tang Yue.
"Su Yuan, why are you late today?" Su Yang asked, his voice calm and firm.
Jiang Dao gave the same explanation while his sister settled down to eat.
"Brother, how was your adventure?" Tang Yue asked curiously, her eyes bright with interest.
"Nothing special, it was..." Jiang Dao told partial truths about what happened before they entered the building, then fabricated the rest.
"I told you ghosts aren't real—it's better to spend all that time studying," Tang Yue shook her head, lecturing him with the wisdom of a younger sibling.
"Hey, look at the news! Haha, no classes tomorrow! Yes! Yes!" Bai Yuan was staring at the TV, his face lighting up with joy.
Jiang Dao looked at the screen. Due to an approaching storm, classes were suspended tomorrow.
A weather warning flashed ominously across the screen:
> **Storm Alert. Classes suspended. All citizens advised to stay indoors. Stock up on necessities.**
"Heavy rain tomorrow?" Su Yang asked, his brow furrowing.
"The first major storm this month," he murmured, scratching his chin thoughtfully.
Jiang Dao didn't know if he was just being paranoid, but he couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to this story. If he hadn't experienced what happened earlier, he might have dismissed this as normal weather... though there was still a chance it really was just a coincidence.
Tang Shiyan knocked Bai Yuan's head with a dark expression. This kid was far too happy about missing school.
"Ow!"
"Are the rain and wind going to be severe tomorrow?" Su Yang wondered aloud, then looked at both boys. "Who wants to come with me to buy groceries at the supermarket after dinner?"
"I'll go, Dad," Jiang Dao raised his hand while Bai Yuan declined, claiming he had an assignment to work on.
"Alright, we'll head out after we finish eating."
Su Yang nodded approvingly.
...
Back in his room, Jiang Dao turned off the computer and picked up the bead. He couldn't leave it here—who knew what would happen in his absence? Of course, whether he could actually do anything if something did happen remained to be seen.
The bead felt heavier in his hands, as if it had absorbed weight from the darkening sky outside. Rain had already begun pattering against his window, and distant thunder rumbled like a warning.
Slipping on his jacket, he carefully placed the bead in his inner pocket. The fabric felt inadequate protection against whatever power this thing might contain, but it was all he had.
"Let's go, son!" Su Yang called from downstairs.
"Be careful, okay?" Tang Shiyan appeared at the door with an umbrella, her maternal worry evident in her voice.
"Okay, Mom."
*Whoosh!*
*Woooo!*
The wind howled as they stepped outside. Rain lashed against them with increasing intensity, and Jiang Dao had to grip the umbrella tightly to keep it from being torn away. They ran toward the car, their footsteps splashing through puddles that had formed in mere minutes.
Inside the vehicle, they were finally isolated from the storm's fury, though its rhythmic pounding against the roof and windows created an almost hypnotic atmosphere.
"Put on your seatbelt. We'll go to Shanghai Mall—Ayala Mall will be packed with people because of the storm," Su Yang said, starting the engine.
"Got it, Dad."
The windshield wipers worked frantically against the torrential downpour, their rhythmic sweeping barely keeping up with the deluge. Through the blurred glass, the world outside looked distorted and menacing.
*Vroom!*
They pulled out onto the road, joining a stream of other vehicles whose drivers shared the same urgent mission. The storm had transformed the familiar city into something alien and threatening.
"This weather came out of nowhere," Su Yang muttered, gripping the steering wheel as another gust rocked the car. "The forecast said light rain."
Jiang Dao felt the bead's weight in his pocket, its presence a constant reminder of the morning's events. The timing felt too convenient, too connected to be mere coincidence.
*Bzzt!*
His phone vibrated with messages from the group chat:
**Shadow18:** *Yo Silvia, you seeing this storm? Maybe we should postpone the Willowmere trip.*
**Silvia:** *Storm or no storm, I'm going. My cousin is still missing.*
**PixelStatic:** *Dude, this weather is insane. My windows are literally shaking.*
**CrimsonLens:** *Just saw the news—three people have gone missing in the Willowmere area this week. All near that abandoned building.*
**GhostTide:** *THREE? What the hell?*
**LostInPages:** *Maybe we should contact the police instead of going ourselves...*
**Shadow18:** *Silvia? You still there?*
The messages made Jiang Dao's blood run cold. Three missing people. All connected to that cursed building where he'd found the bead. His grip tightened on the phone until his knuckles turned white.
"Everything alright, son?" Su Yang glanced at him through the rearview mirror.
"Yeah, just... checking weather updates."
Shanghai Mall's parking lot was surprisingly crowded despite the storm. People hurried between cars with shopping carts, their heads down against the driving rain.
"We'll grab the essentials and head straight back," Su Yang said, turning off the engine. "No point staying out longer than necessary in this weather."
As they prepared to make another dash through the storm, Jiang Dao's phone buzzed with a private message:
**Silvia:** *Hey, you were in that exploration group with my cousin yesterday, right? Did you guys find anything weird at the building?*
Terror coursed through him. She was asking about the building—the same building where he'd encountered that nightmare and found the bead now burning like a coal in his pocket.
His fingers hovered over the keyboard, trembling slightly. What should he tell her?
Wait, why should I worry?
She didn't know his real identity, and he'd used a different account for the group. There was no way to trace him.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Jiang Dao hesitated but ultimately didn't reply. The terrible entity he'd encountered probably wasn't new, and it couldn't be the only one given his experience on the bus. Yet somehow, the world remained peaceful, with no news reports or warnings... Someone was keeping these incidents secret, or perhaps anyone who witnessed such things was either dead or convinced they'd been hallucinating.
If he shared his experience, she might think he was joking, or worse—he might expose himself to unknown dangers.
Turning off his phone, he followed his father as they counted down to their sprint across the parking lot.
"One... two... three!"
They burst from the car into the storm. Rain hammered down like bullets, and the wind tried to tear them apart. The mall's automatic doors felt like the gates of sanctuary as they stumbled inside, soaked despite their brief exposure.
"Phew!" Su Yang shook water from his hair, his uniform darkened with moisture. "This is getting worse by the minute."
The Shanghai Mall buzzed with frantic energy despite the weather. Families pushed overflowing carts while staff struggled to keep shelves stocked. The atmosphere felt charged with nervous tension, as if everyone sensed something more than just bad weather approaching.
"I'll handle the rice and canned goods," Su Yang said, consulting a hastily written shopping list. "You grab bottled water and snacks. Twenty minutes, then we meet at checkout."
"Got it, Dad."
As his father disappeared into the crowd, Jiang Dao made his way toward the beverage section. With each step, the bead seemed to pulse with increasing intensity, as if responding to some unseen stimulus. The sensation was so strong that he had to pause near the restrooms, suddenly overwhelmed by an urgent need for privacy.
The men's restroom was eerily empty despite the mall's chaos. Jiang Dao chose a stall near the back, but as he closed the door behind him, a sound made his blood freeze in his veins.
*Skitter... skitter...*
The noise came from the corner where wall met floor. Slowly, hardly daring to breathe, Jiang Dao turned his head toward the source.
What he saw defied every natural law he'd ever known.
A creature no larger than a house cat crouched in the shadows, but everything about it was fundamentally wrong. Its body was pitch black and glistening, covered in what looked like wet scales that reflected the fluorescent lights with an oil-slick sheen. Multiple eyes—too many eyes—dotted its elongated skull, each one focused on him with predatory intelligence. Needle-sharp teeth protruded from its mouth like broken glass, and its claws scraped against the tile with each subtle movement.
For a heartbeat that felt like an eternity, neither moved. Then the creature's eyes began to emit a strange, hypnotic light that made the air shimmer like heat waves.
An overwhelming dizziness crashed over him. His vision blurred, his muscles went slack, and his voice died in his throat. He couldn't move, couldn't scream, couldn't even think clearly.
*No... No!!!*
The thing began its approach with deliberate, silent steps. Its claws extended like switchblades, and saliva dripped from its gaping maw. There was intelligence in those alien eyes—the cold calculation of a predator that had done this many times before.
*Bite!*
Pain exploded across his chest as those needle teeth found flesh. The creature's claws tore through his jacket like paper, and he felt his own blood running hot down his ribs.
"It's... eating me?!" Tears streamed down his face as he watched the thing tear away pieces of his flesh with savage efficiency.
*Am I going to die?!*
Thoughts of his dreams, his plans, his family flashed through his mind. He'd wanted to travel, to fall in love, to make something of himself. But now those dreams felt like they would remain forever unfulfilled.
*Damn it! DAMN IT!*
Filled with primal desperation and the terror of imminent death, Jiang Dao summoned every ounce of will he had left. His hand shot to his pocket, fingers closing around the black bead.
*Save me!*
Without hesitation, he shoved the bead into his mouth, clenching his teeth so hard that it scraped against his tongue and drew blood. The pain was nothing compared to being devoured alive.
"I don't care anymore! AHHH!"
The moment the bead touched his throat, it began to dissolve. Warmth spread through his body like liquid fire, racing through his bloodstream and igniting something deep within his cells.
*THUD!*
The creature had been savoring its meal when suddenly the flesh beneath its claws began to change. Muscles swelled and rippled, wounds sealed themselves with impossible speed, and steam rose from the healing skin like morning mist.
*CRACK!*
A massive hand—easily twice the size it had been moments before—closed around the creature's midsection. The thing found itself lifted effortlessly into the air, its legs kicking futilely.
Through the rising steam, it saw what its prey had become.
Where once stood a helpless teenager now loomed a figure of raw power. Jiang Dao's frame had expanded dramatically, his head nearly touching the ceiling, his arms thick as tree trunks. His muscles strained against his clothes, and his skin radiated heat like a furnace. Most terrifying of all, his eyes now held the same predatory hunger the creature had possessed moments before.
"That's it?" Jiang Dao's voice had deepened to a rumbling growl. His grip tightened around the writhing creature, and he could feel its bones beginning to crack under the pressure. "You picked the wrong person."
Power coursed through every fiber of his being. His vision had sharpened to supernatural clarity, his reflexes had become lightning-fast, and his strength felt limitless. The creature that had been overwhelming him moments before now seemed pathetically weak.
With a single, savage motion, he slammed the thing against the tiled wall. The impact produced a wet, crunching sound that echoed through the restroom. The creature let out one final, inhuman shriek before going completely limp.
He'd originally wanted to make it suffer as he had suffered, but time was running short and this wasn't the right place for prolonged revenge.
"Consider yourself lucky," he growled, staring at the lifeless form in his hands.
Footsteps echoed in the corridor outside. Someone was approaching.
"Back to normal," he whispered, the command coming to him as naturally as breathing.
His body contracted with the same fluid grace it had expanded, returning to its original proportions. The incredible strength remained, but contained now within his normal frame like a coiled spring.
Quickly, he disposed of the creature's body, flushing away the evidence of the supernatural encounter. He splashed cold water on his face, straightened his torn jacket, and emerged from the stall just as another man entered.
"Rough weather, huh?" the stranger commented, completely oblivious to what had just transpired.
"Yeah," Jiang Dao replied, his voice carrying new undertones of steel. "Really rough."
As he rejoined the crowd, he caught his reflection in a store window. Externally, he looked the same—no change in eye color, no obvious physical alterations. But something fundamental had shifted. His eyes now carried a faint edge of controlled violence, a predator's awareness that hadn't been there before.
He blinked, and his expression returned to that of an ordinary high school student. But the power remained, dormant but ready.
Now he needed a new jacket. The torn fabric would raise too many questions, and he couldn't afford suspicion—not when he was only beginning to understand what he'd become.
The sporting goods store on the second floor would have what he needed. As he made his way through the crowd, Jiang Dao couldn't shake the feeling that his encounter with the creature was just the beginning.
The storm outside seemed to pulse with the same dark energy he'd felt in that abandoned building. And somewhere in the city, Silvia cousin was preparing to walk into the same nightmare he'd barely escaped.
But now, at least, he had the power to fight back.