Darkness.

Deep, bottomless, without a sliver of light.

In this endless void, a painful sense of suffocation surged, accompanied by a constant feeling of falling, impossible to resist.

What a desperate, helpless, and dreadful sensation.

Just then, in the distant, pitch-black abyss, a faint light appeared.

The illusory light, starting as a hazy glow, gradually expanded and sharpened, painting the world in color.

The moment the colors settled, a pair of eyes snapped open.

Worn-out walls came into view, yet the intense feeling of suffocation and pain still flooded his mind.

He struggled to lift his head, his peripheral vision catching sight of a taut rope.

He could see a young man in a blue and white school uniform hanging from the rope, his face a deep, purplish-red.

“Ah!”

The young man’s eyes flew wide open. He thrashed wildly. He had no idea what was happening, but he had no intention of being hanged.

Creak~

The rope swayed violently with his frantic struggles.

But it all seemed futile. The rope bit deeper into the flesh of his neck, and the overwhelming lack of air made his eyes roll back.

Yet, just as he was about to lose consciousness...

The old steel frame of the ceiling suddenly gave way.

CRASH!

The young man fell heavily, landing on a pile of clutter on the floor.

The tremendous noise was deafening in the dead of night.

“Cough, cough~”

The young man lay paralyzed on the ground, gasping, greedily sucking in fresh air.

Thump, thump~

A flurry of urgent footsteps sounded from outside the door. The door was thrown open, and two figures rushed in. Seeing the young man on the floor, they cried out in excitement.

“We found Su Ming! He’s here!”

The young man struggled to lift his head toward the figures in the doorway. Before he could make sense of anything, more people arrived.

They crowded around him, speaking anxiously.

“Quick, get him to the infirmary.”

...

A short while later, in the clean infirmary.

Su Ming lay on the bed, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling, a look of utter confusion on his face.

Inside the infirmary, a group of students in blue and white uniforms chattered amongst themselves.

“What’s wrong with Su Ming? He hasn’t said a word. Did his mind snap?”

“It’s normal. If my love letter was posted for the whole school to see, I’d probably be the same.”

“The guy’s got it rough.”

...

“Quiet! No more gossip!”

A thin, middle-aged man with prominent cheekbones, sallow skin, and a gray teacher’s uniform suppressed his irritation and scolded the chattering students.

“Yes, Mr. Tang.”

The students exchanged glances and fell silent.

Suddenly, the infirmary door was thrust open violently. A middle-aged man, 1.5 meters tall with a beer belly, dressed in a black tuxedo, his oily hair slicked back immaculately, and a small mustache on his face, rushed in, pulling along a tall, elegantly dressed woman in a red dress and a jeweled necklace.

Seeing Su Ming on the bed, they rushed to his side, their voices fraught with concern.

“My son, are you alright?”

“Where does it hurt?”

“Who did this to you? Tell Dad, and I’ll sue them into the ground!”

...

Su Ming stared blankly at the middle-aged couple, showing no reaction.

Seeing his lack of response, their anxiety grew. They asked frantically.

“Son, what’s wrong with you? Say something!”

“Don’t scare us like this!”

...

“Sir, Madam, please calm down!”

Tang Yan and an elderly school doctor stepped forward to soothe them.

“Doctor, what’s wrong with my son?” Su Ming’s parents asked nervously.

“Su Ming was found hanging in the storage room. Although we rescued him in time, the lack of oxygen may have caused minor damage to his brain tissue, leading to his current state of consciousness. Let him rest quietly; he might recover on his own,” the school doctor explained with a sigh.

“That’s right. Please, don’t get too agitated. Su Ming needs to rest now,” Tang Yan added, then turned to the other students who had helped with the search. “Everyone, head back to your dorms. Get some rest; you have classes tomorrow.”

Though reluctant, the students eventually left.

After hearing the doctor and Tang Yan, Su Ming’s parents’ tense hearts eased slightly. They turned back to Su Ming.

“My dear, look at me. I’m your mother,” Su Ming’s mother said, her eyes red.

Su Ming glanced at the middle-aged woman but didn’t speak. His head was throbbing with increasing intensity, and he couldn’t understand what was happening.

“You really can’t remember?”

“Mother?”

Su Ming’s lips moved slightly as he mumbled the word.

At that moment, a fragmented memory flashed through his mind.

In the memory, he was standing on the sports field, surrounded by figures in blue and white uniforms, all pointing and laughing at him.

Then the memory shifted. He was leaning against a classroom window, gazing at a graceful figure on the field below.

As more memory fragments flooded his mind, Su Ming felt as if his head was being torn apart. The excruciating pain made him groan.

“Agh!”

“Son, what’s wrong?” his parents cried out, terrified.

“Ah, my head hurts so much!”

Su Ming clutched his head, writhing in pain on the bed as countless memories surged forth.

The school doctor rushed over with a tranquilizer. “Hold him down!”

Tang Yan and the others scrambled to restrain Su Ming.

Just as he was on the verge of remembering everything, a needle pierced his arm. A wave of intense drowsiness washed over him, and he fell into a deep sleep.

...

A day later.

Gentle sunlight streamed through the clear floor-to-ceiling windows, casting its glow upon the spacious bed.

Su Ming slowly opened his eyes and struggled to sit up.

He clutched his forehead, stumbling out of bed and into the bathroom in a daze.

Inside, Su Ming dazedly turned on the faucet.

Splash~

He cupped his hands, catching the flowing water to wash his face.

The cold water instantly cleared his muddled head. He then lifted his gaze to the mirror.

A round, fleshy face stared back at him.

“Ah!”

A jolt went through Su Ming, scaring him half to death.

His first thought was: Who am I? Where am I?

His mind went completely blank.

But he quickly calmed down, organizing his chaotic thoughts.

He took a deep breath and looked into the mirror again.

He studied the reflection, utterly stunned.

This was the first time he had truly looked in a mirror.

Five minutes later, Su Ming sighed in resignation, finally accepting his new identity.

“Sigh…”

“I can’t believe this body is so fat. It must be at least 180 pounds, right?”

Su Ming looked down, examining his new body from every angle, and then muttered to himself.

PS: For those interested, I have completed the novels "Star Ring Mission," "Night of the Apocalypse," "Chronicles of the Hibernian," "Azure Star Path," and "Please Call Me Curator." Feel free to check them out. Thank you! (^▽^)