Drew an S-Rank Character Card - Bai Zuo

They stepped forward to observe the driver lying in the aisle.

The driver's body kept convulsing and struggling, his limbs flailing wildly, his hand reaching toward Shen Yu as if trying to drag him down.

It really did look like a sudden illness!

A few uncles quickly restrained the driver and carried him to the middle of the carriage.

An auntie forced a smile and tentatively struck up a conversation with Shen Yu: "Kids these days are really something, even knowing how to drive a bus."

Shen Yu didn't answer, his gaze focused ahead, paying attention to the traffic on the road.

His hands gripping the steering wheel were sweating.

This was his first time driving too!

Luckily, when he was bored before, he'd watched how the driver operated, or else he wouldn't have found another passenger who could drive at a time like this.

The auntie stood nervously beside him, her hand death-gripping the railing, staring at the flow of cars ahead, her heart in turmoil.

She was terrified! The lives of everyone on the bus were in the hands of this young student, and she didn't dare disturb him.

The commotion earlier had alarmed all the passengers, and now they gathered together, asking what had happened.

The auntie, who had seen the whole thing, recounted it there: "Oh, you didn't see it, it was really scary just now. The driver suddenly had an attack. If it weren't for this classmate, who knows what would've happened to all of us."

"Truly a hero emerges from youth!"

"Thank you, young man."

"This kid is really handsome. Got a girlfriend? Want auntie to introduce someone?"

"So cool! I lose in comparison."

"Being able to drive such a big vehicle at this age is really impressive!"

While they praised Shen Yu for his quick wit and versatility, they also broke out in a cold sweat. One slip, and their whole bus might have been destroyed with everyone dead.

They had truly scraped by with their lives!

Grateful to Shen Yu for saving them, they kept thanking him, and some even tried to stuff money into his hands, which he politely declined.

The driver was incredibly strong; it took several adults just to barely hold him down.

He kept trying to break free from the passengers' control, his face twisted as he bared his teeth and bit wildly. The others had to use a tie to bind the driver's mouth.

Seeing that they had the driver under control, Shen Yu told the auntie to call the police.

The call connected quickly.

"Comrade officer, we have an incident here. The bus driver suddenly fell ill and couldn't drive."

"A car accident? No car accident happened."

"Oh! A student is driving."

"We're about to enter District XX."

"Okay, okay."

The auntie immediately relayed the officer's words to Shen Yu: "Classmate, the comrade officer says to cooperate with the patrol and pull over."

Shen Yu: "Okay."

The patrol arrived as fast as possible, cleared the surrounding vehicles, and quickly signaled Shen Yu to stop.

Shen Yu stepped on the brake.

Only after the bus came to a steady halt and all the passengers stood on the ground did some people feel their legs go weak.

Patrol officer Zhang Lin was calming the passengers: "No collision happened. Just a simple statement and you can go."

Zhang Lin was about to ask about the incident.

Then something went wrong.

Perhaps because of the patrol's arrival, a few passengers let their guard down. The driver, who had been restrained, suddenly broke free, his immense force shoving those passengers off balance.

The driver lunged, tackling a passenger to the ground, and bit down on their shoulder.

"AAAAHHH!!!"

The passenger screamed in terror.

Seeing this, Zhang Lin rushed over and tried to pull the driver away.

The driver's strength was monstrous; Zhang Lin and several passengers together couldn't pry him off!

In the struggle, a chunk of flesh was torn from the passenger's shoulder by the driver's teeth!

Was human strength supposed to be this great?

Shen Yu wanted to help, but as soon as he got two steps closer, an indescribable sense of danger surged up, making his hair stand on end.

No! Can't get close!

But a strong premonition warned him that if he did nothing, the situation would spiral out of control!

Shen Yu suddenly remembered that when the crash happened, it seemed he had activated a system?

"System?"

"Greetings, Host."

The system's mechanical voice echoed once more in Shen Yu's mind.

"Is the driver's anomaly related to the Horror Game?"

"Host's authority is insufficient. System cannot answer. Would you like to activate Anomaly Detection to scan the surroundings for anomalies?"

The system gave a different reply.

Insufficient authority?

Shen Yu had no choice but to say, "Then activate the detection!"

"Beep! System scanning... Detected faint Weird aura. Targets: 7 individuals. Recommendation: Host draws a Character Card and uses its abilities to counter the Weird."

Weird? What was Weird? What connection did the appearance of Weird have with the Eerie Era mentioned in the Horror Game's announcement?

Shen Yu was utterly baffled, but with insufficient authority, the system couldn't answer his questions.

Instead, it transmitted the function of the Character Card into his mind.

The Character Card was a powerful aid to help the Host establish an organization, contain Weirds, and resist contamination. By roleplaying the card and increasing its completion rate, the card's abilities would gradually unlock.

The Horror Game's announcement lingered in Shen Yu's mind. He knew that situations like the driver's would only become more frequent in the future.

Whether to survive the perilous days ahead or to handle the current crisis, he had to obtain a Character Card.

"How do I draw a Character Card?"

"Each draw costs 1000 Construction Points. Construction Points are earned through building and improving the organization, completing containment tasks, or promoting the organization to the public, gaining their recognition and belief in its existence."

"The first draw is free. Draw now?"

"Draw now!"

"Drawing Character Card..."

"Ding! Congratulations! You have drawn an S-rank Character Card—Bai Zuo!"

Shen Yu opened the card.

In the center of the exquisitely ornate card, with a dark, gilded border, stood a handsome black-haired youth with a gloomy expression and a faint, morbid smile curling at his lips. He looked down at you from above.

Just by looking, the thick, viscous malice like quicksand stabbed straight into your eyes, as if a venomous snake had locked onto you, inspiring fear.

"Character: Bai Zuo"

"Rank: S (Upgradable; lowest E, highest 3S)"

"Identity: Contract Anomalist (Expandable)"

"Personality: Vicious and black-hearted, socially terroristic, adept at manipulating people, born villain."

"Abilities: Heart Control (Perfect), Hacking (Outstanding), Analysis (Perfect), Observation (Outstanding), Locked!"

"Special Ability: Mind Control (Perfect), Locked!"

"Anomaly Artifact: Locked!"

"Contract Weird: Heart Gu (S) — A pure white spider. It spins webs that ensnare hearts, absorb humanity, and control bodies. It must be fed malice, or it will devour the Host."

"Associated Characters: 2"

"Character Completion Rate: 0%"

"Use now?"

"Use now!"