Entering the Lighthouse

Wu Heng walked forward a few steps, gently took down the family portrait, and examined it closely.

On the left was a cheerful little girl with pigtails and slightly chubby cheeks, her delicate features looking clever and cute.

Her hands were wrapped around the arm of a middle-aged woman with long hair, a slender frame, and a smile crinkling the corners of her eyes.

Standing on the right, a head taller than the other two, was Wu Heng, grinning as he draped his right arm over the middle-aged woman's shoulder.

This photo had been taken three years ago.

After studying it for a moment, Wu Heng went to the bedroom from his memories and opened the door.

Against the wall stood an off-white wardrobe, a matching desk, a soft bed, and a nightstand; there was nothing else in the room.

If one ignored the pile of clothes in the corner and the crumpled tissues scattered on the floor, the room looked quite tidy.

Wu Heng tossed the pile of clothes into the trash can outside, locked the living room and bedroom doors, walked to the nightstand, and plugged his dead phone into the charger.

He put on his doctor's coat and a black face mask, then focused his mind to trigger the Lighthouse Mark on his arm:

[Enter the Lighthouse?]

"Yes."

Wu Heng's vision shifted, and in an instant, he arrived at a vast plaza.

Above, the sky was a deep, profound darkness; beneath his feet lay a smooth, black floor.

In the center of the plaza stood a towering lighthouse.

The tower radiated an aura of immense age, with blood-colored light flowing across its surface like ripples on water.

The top of the tower rotated incessantly, emitting a warm glow that bathed the plaza and dispelled the dense darkness surrounding it.

Wu Heng peered into the distance. At the edge of the light, the radiance seemed to be locked in a stalemate with the darkness, flickering and resisting just inches away.

Yet, thin beams of light pierced the gloom, revealing narrow, winding paths woven from warm light, with miniature lighthouses lining both sides.

Though called "miniature," they were still several stories high when gauged by distance and height.

These smaller towers also emitted a faint glow, like candles lit in the dark.

The entire cluster of lighthouses looked like a massive, burning beacon in the night, with rows of candles lit along its perimeter to push the boundaries of light even further.

From the endless darkness in the distance came soul-shaking roars, heavy footsteps, and various strange shrieks and cries.

Wu Heng could even feel that something in the darkness was circling the perimeter of the light.

But all of this was blocked by the lighthouse's radiance, which seemed to form a protective barrier.

Wu Heng withdrew his gaze and observed the people in the plaza.

There were not many people present; most wore various disguises and hurried along alone.

Others, wearing identical badges or uniforms, gathered in small groups of three or five, clearly belonging to different organizations, their voices kept to a low murmur.

There were even more bizarre figures: some with ghostly faces, some in funeral shrouds with no features, some floating in mid-air, some crawling with reversed joints, some as thin as lampposts, and others resembling zombies.

The ordinary people in masks gave these strange beings a wide berth.

Near the core area beneath the main lighthouse, a circle of tables was set up, with only a few "people" possessing strange features sitting behind them.

Each table had a sign on it.

"Crow Society recruiting. Join the Lifeless Tower. Those interested, wait here; the examiner will arrive at 22:00 Blue Star time daily."

Below was an introduction to the Crow Society: Founded in 2124 of the Blue Star Calendar by Crow, the master of the Lifeless Tower, with over 100 members.

"Occult Alliance recruiting. Specializing in ancient worlds. Only accepting those from the Bright Realm."

"Cangyue Alliance recruiting. Newcomers receive a free, full set of standard-issue Cangyue Star individual firepower equipment..."

Rows of recruitment signs were displayed on the tables.

As Wu Heng observed, a person dressed in Taoist robes, carrying a peach-wood sword and wearing a coin mask, suddenly appeared beside him.

The man had a handsome bearing and an air of steadfast fearlessness.

He looked less like a Taoist and more like a swordsman.

Seeming to sense something, he turned his head, saw Wu Heng staring at him, smiled slightly, and cupped his hands.

"Brother, I am Duanmu Ruixiong. I just finished a dungeon and this is my first time in the Lighthouse. A pleasure to meet you."

"Oh, a pleasure. I am also a newcomer to the Lighthouse."

Wu Heng looked at Duanmu Ruixiong's attire; this man was also someone with destiny, though it was unclear which Taoist ghost-horror world he had entered.

Their curious behavior, looking around at the environment, stood out far too much compared to the others who were hurrying by.

After noticing them, several people swarmed over.

"Are you two newcomers? Do you want the Lighthouse Encyclopedia? Compiled by the Ghost Shadow Tower Master, a must-have for rookies, plus a free intelligence booklet."

A woman in a black robe and a white mask held up a book and asked.

"Newcomer, 1000 Detailed Explanations of the Lighthouse can answer all your questions. Certified by the Puppet Tower Master, also comes with intelligence."

Another person, wearing a gorilla mask, held up a set of booklets and said.

Lighthouse Detailed Guide 100, Lighthouse Encyclopedia...

A group of people held the intelligence compiled by their respective Tower Masters, recommending them in a cacophony of voices.

"How are they being sold?" Wu Heng asked.

"100 Survival Points!"

"Same here."

They were all priced the same; there was no malicious price-cutting competition.

"You, you, and you, stay. The rest of you aren't needed." Duanmu Ruixiong waved his hand, pointing out all five people who claimed to have supplementary intelligence.

"Brother, in the Lighthouse space, intelligence is king. This is not the time to be stingy; only with investment can there be a return."

Duanmu Ruixiong held up the five booklets and intelligence notes he had purchased, waving them in his hand as he spoke to Wu Heng.

"Uh, Brother Duanmu makes a fair point, but I am currently strapped for cash and can only manage to buy two."

"A pity." Hearing this, Duanmu Ruixiong cast a regretful glance at Wu Heng and sighed in disappointment.

Wu Heng chose to purchase the "Lighthouse Detailed Guide 100" and the "Lighthouse Encyclopedia."

Because the two of them stood at the very front of the crowd, the others clearly didn't dare to push or shove them.

Wu Heng held the two booklets in his hands, flipping through them casually to compare:

"The area within the main lighthouse's illumination range is a safe zone."

"When teleporting into a plot world, you will randomly appear within a five-hundred-mile radius of the protagonist."

"The dark area outside the lighthouse is known as the 'Mystery Domain'; those who enter, die."

"Every 12 fixed dungeon months is the 'Lights-Out Day,' where all Tower Guardians enter a large-scale horror dungeon with a death quota. There are only three and a half dungeon months left until the next 'Lights-Out Day'."

After glancing through them, Wu Heng planned to go back and read them slowly. As he continued to stroll around, the people nearby who were still peddling their wares saw that Wu Heng had no intention of buying more and were about to disperse.

"Her gaze, her gaze."

"It's as if, as if the stars are shining;"

A Cantonese song accompaniment suddenly rang out from a hundred meters behind Wu Heng and the others.

Wu Heng immediately recognized it as the song "Ghost Bride," the soundtrack from Vampire Expert.

Are you willing to trade your collections, monthly tickets, and recommendation tickets for two of my water bottles?

*

If I were to become the person in charge of Qidian.

*

I would include all book friends' expenses for bathhouses, bars, KTVs, and foot massages under the company's medical insurance.

*

This is my campaign manifesto; I have finished speaking.

*

I am only one monthly ticket away from success, thank you everyone!