Scarecrow's Diary

The crimson black calamity flame slowly dissipated.

As the flames extinguished, that unreal wheat field vanished completely, revealing its true appearance.

A scorched barren plain, covered in interlacing cracks.

Guo Shuai stood amidst the ashes, staring blankly at his feet.

The person who had once fought back-to-back with him...

Yang Wei, who had been in the process of transforming into a scarecrow.

At this moment, along with the wheat field, he had turned into a pile of unrecognizable dust.

He bent down, trembling, and from that pile of warm ashes.

He picked up a compass.

It was the thing Yang Wei had cherished most in his previous life.

"Old Yang..."

Guo Shuai gripped the compass tightly, subconsciously looking at the direction of the pointer.

The pointer rotated tremblingly for a few turns, before finally pointing firmly ahead.

At the man standing in the center of the wasteland, back facing him.

Jiangnan.

At this moment, Jiangnan was stepping across the scorched earth, walking toward him.

Watching that demon god-like figure reflected in the firelight, Guo Shuai's heart tightened violently.

Is the weiren... coming to kill me?

Guo Shuai let out a bitter smile.

He did not resist, nor did he run.

In front of this terrifying existence capable of an instant kill on a boss, any struggle was futile.

"Come on... make it quick."

Guo Shuai closed his only remaining eye, quietly waiting for the arrival of death, or assimilation.

However.

The expected agony did not arrive.

Instead, there was a roar of an engine and an incredibly excited, hoarse voice.

"Big boss!! Awesome!!!"

Guo Shuai snapped his eyes open.

He saw a black rv speeding over, kicking up dust.

In the cockpit, Wang Meng was peeking his head out, waving madly in this direction.

However.

After that shout of "awesome" finished.

Wang Meng looked like a duck with its neck gripped; he had his mouth open but could not make a sound.

The sound of the car's engine also vanished instantly; one could only see the tires rotating.

Absolute silence domain.

Jiangnan walked in front of Guo Shuai, glanced at this survivor whose face was full of despair, and showed no expression.

He pulled a memo pad from his pocket, wrote a line with a swish swish, and displayed it to Wang Meng, who was still shouting at the air.

[Didn't I tell you not to come in?]

In the cockpit, Wang Meng was startled, then scratched his head, embarrassed.

No need to think; this silence was definitely the operation of his own big boss.

He quickly grabbed a notebook from the side and wrote wobbly on it:

[We saw the black fire soaring inside from outside, and we thought something happened to you, big boss!]

[I thought that although I'm not strong, at least I can block a bullet for big boss... so I drove in.]

Seeing these words, Jiangnan's heart slightly moved.

Although a bit stupid, these tools still had a bit of conscience.

He replied on the memo pad.

[It's okay. That's my move.]

[No need to worry next time. As long as I don't die, you won't die.]

After saying that, he pinched his fingers to turn off the silence.

Word spirits that last for a long time like this can be deactivated.

Just then, the car door opened.

Chen Tong, Liu Yuqing, and Yu Shishi, the three girls, also jumped out.

Seeing that Jiangnan was safe and sound, Chen Tong's eyes instantly turned red, and she rushed over without a second thought.

She gave Jiangnan a suffocating face wash hug.

"You scared me to death! So much fire... I thought I'd never see you again!"

Smothered in that softness, Jiangnan rolled his eyes but didn't push her away.

Off to the side, Liu Yuqing adjusted her glasses and began to observe the surrounding environment, her eyes filled with shock.

Yu Shishi was the most sycophantic. Seeing that Jiangnan was covered in dust, she quickly ran over.

She immediately activated her cleanliness supernatural ability to help clean the dust off Jiangnan's clothes.

"Big boss, you've worked hard! Big boss, have some water!"

Watching this scene, so full of the aura of everyday life, Guo Shuai, who was standing nearby, was completely bewildered.

"This... what is going on?"

"A face wash hug? Cleaning clothes? And that fatty driving the car..."

Guo Shuai rubbed his eyes hard, looking at the natural interactions between this group of people—the kind of emotional exchange that only living human beings possessed.

"Could it be... that Jiangnan isn't a weiren?!"

It was simple.

This group of people didn't look like monsters at all; on the contrary, they had more "humanity" than the group of students fleeing for their lives.

If there were police here right now, by comparison, he—the guy with half his face charred and only one eye—would look much more like the monster hiding among the crowd!

"Heh... hahahaha..."

Guo Shuai clutched his head and suddenly burst into self-deprecating laughter, laughing until tears streamed down his face.

"Old Yang, oh Old Yang... you idiot..."

"You'd better not make wild guesses in your next life... even I believed your words, mistaking a real big boss for a boss..."

"We are... begging for food while holding a golden bowl!"

At this moment, Wang Meng also noticed this survivor who looked neither human nor ghost.

He walked over with a notebook and wrote:

[Are you Guo Shuai? Where are Yang Wei and the others?]

Guo Shuai did not notice that Jiangnan had been unsealed.

Subconsciously, he took the pen and wrote a line on the paper.

[They are all dead. Everyone is dead. Only I survived. It was Jiangnan who saved me.]

After reading it, Wang Meng sighed, and pity flashed in his eyes.

Regardless of everything, they were classmates, and although Yang Wei could be reckless at times, he wasn't a bad person.

[What do you plan to do now?] Wang Meng continued to write.

Guo Shuai fell silent.

He touched the half of his face that had lost all sensation, then looked at the remains of Yang Wei in his hand.

His left eye was blind, his face was disfigured, and his best friend was dead.

To him, this world had already turned dim.

[I don't know.]

He wrote these three words, his eyes hollow.

Watching him in this state, Wang Meng felt a bitter taste in his heart.

Guo Shuai had always been a pushover in class.

The only reason someone with a prickly personality like Yang Wei could coexist with the student union for so long was because of Guo Shuai mediating in between.

Just as the two people were communicating silently with paper and pen.

Over there, Jiangnan finally broke free from Chen Tong's embrace.

He adjusted his collar and did not get into the vehicle immediately.

Instead, he walked straight toward a metal cover in the center of the wasteland.

That was the center of the former wheat field, and also the lair of the boss.

He kicked the cover open.

Revealing the entrance to a gloomy, dark cellar beneath.

Jiangnan did not hesitate for a moment and jumped straight down.

Chen Tong and the other two girls exchanged glances. Although they were terrified, they had no choice but to bite the bullet and follow.

The cellar was incredibly dark, the air thick with a nauseating stench of rot and blood.

Liu Yuqing turned on her flashlight, the beam sweeping across the surroundings.

The next second.

"Ugh!"

The three girls covered their mouths almost simultaneously, their faces turning deathly pale.

This wasn't a cellar at all; it was a torture chamber!

The walls were covered with all sorts of rusted torture devices.

Saws, boning knives, and even racks used for stretching limbs.

And in a large vat in the corner, piles of dark red, foul-smelling chunks of flesh were heaped together.

Jiangnan walked up to the vat with a calm expression.

For him, having frequented crime scenes in his past life—and having even witnessed far more depraved serial killings—this was merely child's play.

He reached into the vat and picked up a strip of flesh.

He examined it carefully.

"Human muscle tissue that has been stripped away?"

"Likely an adult man, in his twenties. The skin and bones are gone, the cuts are smooth, and the technique is very professional."

Jiangnan tossed the strip of flesh aside and walked over to the operating table nearby.

A complete human skin was spread out on it.

Even after the erosion of time, one could still tell that this had once been the skin of a man.

"Ugh!"

Seeing this skin, Liu Yuqing finally couldn't hold it back anymore; she turned around, leaned against the wall, and vomited violently.

Yu Shishi and Chen Tong also squeezed their eyes shut, not daring to take another look.

Jiangnan shook his head at the sight.

He took out his memo pad, wrote a line, and held it up in front of the three of them.

[This is something you must experience.]

[In this world, dead people are the most common thing. Vomit if you have to, but do not close your eyes!]

[Go call Wang Meng and that survivor down here as well.]

Ruthless and cold.

But the three of them knew this was for their own good.

If they didn't adapt to these things, they would be scared to death sooner or later.

Yu Shishi fought back her nausea and ran upstairs to call the others.

Soon, Wang Meng and Guo Shuai came down as well.

Seeing this scene, the two men didn't react much better than the female students; they vomited on the spot.

Once everyone had finished retching, Jiangnan pointed at the human skin on the operating table, looked at Liu Yuqing, and wrote:

[Appraise it.]

"Ah?" Liu Yuqing's face turned pale. "Appraise... a human skin?"

But under Jiangnan's unquestionable gaze, she could only tremble as she leaned in and activated her skill.

However.

The next second, her eyes actually lit up!

"This... this is a treasure?!"

[Item]: Demon skin of the watcher
[Level]: S-class
[Type]: Material
[Information]: This is the last human skin peeled off by the S-class anomaly "watcher scarecrow" during its previous life!
Although it no longer possesses the power of the main body, it still retains that suffocating pressure and fear aura.

Liu Yuqing wrote the information down for Jiangnan to see.

Jiangnan nodded in satisfaction.

He had been worried that he'd burned that big guy to ashes just now, leaving him unable to skin it for a car cover.

Now, it was perfect—a ready-made S-class material.

When the time came, he would hand it over to Wang Meng; applying a film to it shouldn't be a problem.

Following that, Jiangnan walked to a dilapidated table deep in the cellar.

On the table sat a parchment diary covered in dust, along with a jar draped in black cloth.

Jiangnan picked up the diary and flipped it open.

It was filled with ancient English, the handwriting shifting from neat at the beginning to increasingly frantic and illegible.

As a top student in his past life, such reading barriers were non-existent for him.

[Year 1156 AD, Diary of Fite Albert]

First day: My name is Fite, and I am an apprentice wizard.

Just a moment ago, our village, along with the entire stretch of land, suddenly arrived at this damned place.

The voice in the sky said we must survive.

At night, those crows came...

Oh, my God, the knights of the church were like paper in front of them!

Half of our village of five hundred people is dead.

Second day: That voice gave us fruit.

I awakened A-class [elemental resonance]!

I am the chosen one!

I used magic to save the villagers and knights who were about to be eaten.

Third day: The voice in the sky came again.

It said that individuals can receive rewards based on the rankings just by killing monsters every day!

I am fifth, hehe!

And I have been elected as the new leader, the guardian of the village.

I am very happy; this is the first time in my life I have led everyone, so I have begun to focus on studying magic.

Day 10: Village reconstruction successful, wheat field cultivation successful.

Our village has been designated as a shelter by that voice!

Because of this, we receive a certain amount of supplies every day. It's fantastic!

Everyone likes me and calls me god fite!

Everything is getting better, and I have begun to see myself as a god.

Day 20: The village is thriving.

My childhood friend cecilia, who once looked down on me, tried to curry favor with me, but I rejected her.

That gold-digger—she despised me for being poor before, and now that I have power, she wants to cling to me? Disgusting.

Day 27: As I expected, after being rejected by me, cecilia immediately hooked up with my subordinate tug.

The two of them even got married right under my nose!

Day 28: I was furious and didn't sleep all night!

It wasn't because I still liked that woman, but because tug knew full well that she was my shame!

What's even more hateful is that at their wedding, they actually told the story of me wetting my pants as a child as a joke to entertain the guests!

Unforgivable!

Day 38: After enduring it for ten days, I have made my decision.

I am going to kill them.

Even if they were my childhood playmates!

But the price for humiliating a god is death.

Day 51: I took action.

While the two of them were on night duty and engaging in illicit activities in the wheat field, I used magic to strangle the scum couple.

To avoid exposure, I hid the corpses in the cellar.

Day 52: The villagers are panicked, thinking a monster has snuck in.

I stepped forward and lied, saying that the two of them had eloped.

No one suspects me, because I am the strongest person here.

Killing... it turns out it only takes a nod.

Sixtieth day: The trial has arrived!

That voice said that passing the trial would allow me to return to Blue Star!

I was tempted, but I failed... by just one move!

Damn it! Why is there a penalty for failure?!

A massive horde of monsters besieged the village, and many people died.

The villagers started blaming me!

These foolish mortals, the heavens are deliberately trying to sow discord between us!

Sixty-first day: I smelled a stench at dawn and remembered that I was still hiding corpses in the cellar.

I went to the cellar to dispose of the bodies, but that scum couple had turned into wandering corpses!

I burned them to death, but it attracted the villagers.

They discovered my secret and started using moral kidnapping against me.

I was completely enraged! By what right should a god be accused by mortals?!

I killed every single one of those who opposed me!

Not one left! Only fifty obedient weak and infirm remained in the village.

Seventieth day: That voice appeared again! It announced that the second trial is about to begin!

This time, it gave ten days of preparation time.

I am tempted, perhaps even ecstatic!

The reason I failed last time was purely because of insufficient preparation; I was caught off guard by those damn rules.

This time, I will make full and thorough preparations!

The fact that that scum couple turned into wandering corpses gave me huge inspiration.

Corpses undergo mutations under specific environments.

So... what if I artificially intervene in this process?

For the sake of returning to Blue Star!

I must find a way out.

And so, I began to stop at nothing.

Taking advantage of the cover of night, I dug up those corpses buried outside the village.

All of the villagers I had killed were unearthed.

The experiments began.

Seventy-third day: Just as I thought.

Upon contact with the special magic array and the air, those corpses indeed rapidly transformed into wandering corpses.

However... the fusion experiment failed.

I tried to implant iron swords into their arms, tried to fuse stones into their skin.

The result was that they simply rotted into a pile of mush, unable to even remain as wandering corpses.

Why? Is it because the corpses have already lost their vitality and cannot withstand the rejection of foreign objects?

Could it be... that it only succeeds if implanted while the person is still alive?

No... that is too cruel.

Although I have killed people, I am not a demon. I cannot do it.

Seventy-fifth day: The day of the trial is drawing nearer.

My mind is on the verge of collapse.

Last night, I had a nightmare. I dreamed that my opponent in the trial was incomparably powerful.

Relying solely on my current elemental magic, I would be unable to break through their defenses.

I will lose... I will die here... No!

I cannot lose!

For the sake of the big picture, for the sake of being able to return with this honor...

What does sacrificing a few people matter?

As long as I can win, everything is worth it.

I need new power... the living power.

Seventy-sixth day: I have decided.

For the greater good, sacrifice is necessary.

I kidnapped an old man under the cover of night; when I was a child, he often threatened to turn me into a scarecrow.

Fine, then I would grant his wish!

Amidst his screams, I turned him into a scarecrow!

I succeeded!

In just three hours, he transformed into a powerful monster!

It had no vision, only hearing!

I was even nearly killed by him!

At this point, my inspiration grew even more abundant!

I wondered, if I fused individual limbs with objects, could they become weapons?

And so, a new experiment began...

Day 79: The experiment was a success!

Living people can be turned into even stronger weapons!

I began turning the remaining villagers into material one by one... legs, scythes, lanterns...

Day 80 (Morning): One hour until the trial.

I succeeded!

Using the last few dozen lives in the village, I refined a prosthetic eye comparable to an A-class supernatural ability: the eye of calamity!

It can see through an enemy's weakness and health bar!

The price was the loss of my own left eye.

But I don't care! I will definitely win!

Day 80 (Afternoon): Liars! Liars! F*ck!

Why?!

Why did they only tell me after the trial was successful that I could only stay on Blue Star for one day?!

What use is this one day to me?!

I killed everyone!

I have turned myself into a half-human, half-ghost monster!

Just to go back and take one last look?!

I hate this world! I hate that voice!

Since I cannot go back, I will turn everyone who comes here into my collection!

I will turn myself into the most terrifying monster of all!

The diary ended abruptly here. The following pages were filled with frantic scribbles and bloody handprints.

Jiangnan closed the diary and sighed softly.

This was the origin of the boss Scarecrow.

A pathetic wretch driven mad by power and obsession.

"The Eye of Calamity, huh..."

Jiangnan did not see the so-called prosthetic eye beside the diary.

His gaze fell upon the jar on the table, covered by a black cloth.

He reached out his hand and yanked the black cloth away...