I Got My Cheat Skill by Acting My Way into a Horror Protagonist Role Chapter 78

The System was somewhat similar to Xiao Gui'an in certain aspects - reliable when it needed to be with solid performance, but utterly useless when it wasn't.

Xiao Gui'an truly felt he was starving to the point of madness, and actually began considering the System's suggestion.

Maybe it really wouldn't hurt to try a little?

It might taste terrible, but it could potentially satisfy his hunger, right?

His gaze slowly changed as he looked at the endless expanse of yellow sand before him.

He had subconsciously forgotten that even the little 'Scavenger' had shown disgust toward this yellow sand.

Though he had often joked about "eating dirt" before, he never imagined it would one day become reality. Truly unpredictable.

[I really can't take it anymore. Since steamed lamb... no, the Chosen Ones of Fate absolutely cannot be eaten, then I'll try this...]

Xiao Gui'an gently crouched down, his eyes gleaming with the light of a starving wolf as he looked at the sand before him. [System, look at this sand. It appears so soft, the color is quite striking, doesn't it somewhat resemble mango shaved ice? The taste should be pretty good, right?—]

A pale, bony hand scooped up a handful of yellow sand. Xiao Gui'an gently tasted it.

[!—] The Little Light Sphere waited anxiously in the consciousness space for Xiao Gui'an's reaction, worried that if he couldn't handle it, he might thrash around like the little 'Scavenger' had.

But contrary to its expectations, Xiao Gui'an neither showed a pained expression nor retched in disgust.

Instead, he acted as if he had encountered something delicious, consuming handful after handful of yellow sand.

System: !!!

Even the 'Scavenger' had detested this stuff, so how could Xiao Gui'an eat it so happily?

Had their host truly starved to madness???

What should they do?

Did Xiao Gui'an still have his sanity? After finishing the sand, would he turn his attention to the Chosen Ones of Fate?—

[Host! Host! No! It's my fault! Waaaaah—I let you starve to madness, boohoo—]

[...Not at all] Only after a good while did Xiao Gui'an stop and respond.

He waved his hand, letting fine sand grains fall from his slender fingertips.

[It tastes just like how I imagined sand would taste, nothing special. Tasteless and odorless, and after eating it, I actually feel quite full—]

Since he was a corpse, he didn't have to worry about rough sand grains scratching his throat. This sand was nothing to him, neither painful nor itchy.

It just felt a bit dry and wasn't very easy to swallow.

Having temporarily resolved the 'Hunger Sensation' issue, Xiao Gui'an's mind returned to normal, and even his responses became calm and organized.

[This sand doesn't seem to have any negative effects on me for now, which is truly fortunate amidst misfortune. At least I don't have to worry about being unable to resist nibbling on the Chosen Ones of Fate...]

[If I had known, I would have tried this earlier and not starved for so long.]

The Little Light Sphere floated uncertainly in the consciousness space, seeming somewhat confused. [That shouldn't be right. You really don't feel anything special after eating it?]

Xiao Gui'an pondered slightly, recalling the details of his recent 'meal'.

[It seems the 'Jade Soul Ice Essence' played some role. While swallowing, I felt a very subtle force repulsion fluctuation, and afterwards the yellow sand seemed to have been purified...]

Could it be that some special property of the 'Jade Soul Ice Essence' happened to conflict with the yellow sand of this secret realm, thus eliminating any abnormalities that might have occurred from consuming the sand?

So this strange yellow sand reverted to ordinary sand, tasteless and odorless, naturally causing no effects on Xiao Gui'an.

This explanation seemed quite reasonable.

Just as he thought this, another extremely fine crack appeared on the Jade Soul Ice Essence in Xiao Gui'an's mouth.

System: [!!!]

No need for further speculation now—it was indeed the Jade Soul Ice Essence's effect.

Following this trend, the System estimated that the Jade Soul Ice Essence would likely shatter completely in the end.

However, the System still understood what was more important.

The Little Light Sphere just sadly retreated deep into the consciousness space to draw circles.

[...I'll try to eat less] Xiao Gui'an wasn't sure how to comfort the System. All he could do was endure as much as possible and reduce the frequency of his 'meals'.

Now that his own problem was solved, they still faced a very difficult situation.

Xiao Gui'an looked at his fingertips—the wounds there had healed due to the nurturing effect of the Jade Soul Ice Essence.

However, the healing speed was many times slower than before.

Over the past day and a half, Xiao Gui'an had used yin energy to extract the purest blood from his body to feed the Chosen One of Fate, barely keeping him alive until now.

But just as Xiao Gui'an had thought, the blood was too impure. The Chosen One of Fate's digestive system was too fragile to properly absorb it, and now he was even running a slight fever.

Even though Xiao Gui'an could walk and talk, and the Jade Soul Ice Essence could even regenerate flesh and blood, it couldn't change the fundamental nature of this body.

A corpse that had been dead for a long time, with stagnant, decaying blood.

Even if he wouldn't starve to the point of eating the Chosen One of Fate now, without normal food, the Chosen One of Fate probably wouldn't last more than two days.

Clearly, the System had also realized this problem. Both the human and the system were once again on high alert.

A cold, pale hand gently rested on the male infant's forehead, hoping this method might slightly reduce the other's body temperature.

The infant's cheeks were flushed from the low fever, his lips completely bloodless, his breathing somewhat heavy.

If this continued, there were only two outcomes—either starve to death or die from illness.

But neither of these should be his ultimate fate.

Just as Xiao Gui'an and the System were at their wits' end, everything changed half a day later.

————————————————

The scorching sun overhead remained merciless, illuminating every grain of yellow sand with dazzling brilliance. Wind-blown sand drifted everywhere, burying all traces.

[Ho-ho-host!!!] The System's jubilant voice suddenly echoed in Xiao Gui'an's ears. [Excellent!!! Host, I've located it! Although the fluctuations are a bit strange and moving irregularly, it's very likely the weak point of this secret realm!!—]

This was absolutely the best news Xiao Gui'an had heard in these two days. Were they finally leaving this damned place? [Well done, System! I knew I wasn't wrong about you!]

Xiao Gui'an immediately followed the System's directions.

Above the yellow sand, a tiny figure moved swiftly and continuously, the bright red wedding dress fluttering in the wind like a flame.

The area emitting the strange fluctuations gradually revealed itself before Xiao Gui'an.

Amidst this expanse of yellow sand, broken white bones littered the ground everywhere—some human skeletons, others demon remains.

White bones from various body parts were scattered all around, densely packed and terrifyingly horrifying. Some of the larger skeletons even reached hundreds of meters tall, all covered with gnawing marks, making their original forms unrecognizable.

In the center of these bones stood an altar engraved with ancient symbols. The altar emanated an ancient, eternal aura, vaguely giving off a soul-devouring feeling, filled with demonic and sinister sensations.

The surrounding space fluctuations were also somewhat strange, as if everything had been frozen in place.

It seemed a terrible slaughter had occurred here, otherwise there wouldn't be so many skeletal remains. The altar also bore dark, dried bloodstains everywhere, though it was unclear when they had been left.

As Xiao Gui'an walked over, he accidentally touched a broken bone.

These bones, having endured years of exposure, should have long since disintegrated. With just a light touch, the bone immediately turned into fine powder that drifted away with the wind, leaving no trace behind.

Beside the altar stood a stone tablet with some characters carved on it. Xiao Gui'an gently wiped away the dust and sand, revealing ancient script beneath.

Although the writing was ancient and twisted, Xiao Gui'an could somehow understand its meaning.

[Sacrifice flesh and blood, receive grains in return

The food of grains, the beginning of reincarnation

Eliminate famine, restore past life...]

In this secret realm, there was only yellow sand.

Even if beings entering here had the ability to regenerate limbs, trying to survive by consuming their own flesh and blood probably wouldn't work because the secret realm would suppress the speed of flesh regeneration.

That constantly intensifying 'Hunger Sensation' would make them want to keep 'eating,' until eventually their flesh regeneration speed couldn't keep up with their consumption rate.

Relying on eating yellow sand to suppress the 'Hunger Sensation'?

That wasn't a good option either.

What exactly was this yellow sand covering the ground?

Since this was the disaster of famine, then the only seemingly edible thing—the yellow sand—definitely couldn't be normal.

Xiao Gui'an couldn't investigate deeply, nor did he want to. If even the 'Scavenger' rejected this stuff, could other beings trapped in this secret realm accept it?

If not for the Jade Soul Ice Essence, he himself might have gone mad after eating the yellow sand.

According to what was written on the stone tablet, it seemed only by sacrificing flesh and blood could one obtain the only food capable of eliminating this place's famine curse.

Xiao Gui'an could roughly guess why there were so many skeletal remains here.

Everyone wanted to survive, but they absolutely couldn't sacrifice their own flesh and blood, so ultimately they could only engage in frenzied slaughter—

In this process of massive energy consumption, the desire for 'food' would only grow stronger. In the end, how much grain food could they actually obtain?

This was an obvious bloody trap, yet countless beings had stepped into it.

"I say—"

"This really is a great place..."

It was a trap, a curse, but for Xiao Gui'an, it was a multiple-choice question that required no hesitation at all—