Prologue

　　In 3 BC, during the reign of Emperor Ai of Han, there was a great drought across the land. A mysterious event occurred east of Hangu Pass. The common people collectively fell into panic, abandoned their fields and threw away their hoes, all holding stalks of grain, calling them the tokens of the Queen Mother of the West, which had to be delivered to the imperial palace. Some had disheveled hair, some were bare-armed and barefoot, traveling day and night, rushing through roads and fields, passing the stalks from one to another. Local officials tried to arrest, suppress, or beat them in an attempt to stop the phenomenon, but to no avail. In the end, thousands of stalks and hemp rods passed through twenty-six commanderies and states, and were finally delivered to the capital, placed before Emperor Ai of Han.

　　Afterwards, the people sang, danced, and chanted scriptures in the alleys and fields, worshipping the Queen Mother of the West, and only awoke from this great dream in the autumn of that year.

　　——"Zizhi Tongjian", Volume 34.

　　In 1518 AD, the "Dancing Plague" broke out in Strasbourg, France. It began with a woman suddenly dancing wildly in the street, attracting onlookers. Gradually, more people joined in, dancing without rest through the night. After one day, the number of dancers reached 34; after three days, there were more than 400. Local officials summoned doctors for advice, but they had no solution. Even several doctors and soldiers joined the dance, dancing for days until they collapsed from exhaustion. After a month, nearly half the city had died from the frenzied dancing.

　　In 1960, the Scarecrow Incident in Massachusetts, USA. A scarecrow appeared in a wheat field in the New England Highlands, its maker unknown. Anyone who looked into the scarecrow's eyes would freeze on the spot, their expression blank, their body rigid. Those who saw the affected people would develop similar symptoms, spreading to those around them. Within a day, it spread throughout the city and county. The military and state police were dispatched, but the outcome is unknown.

　　In 2005, during lunch break at a middle school in Shibuya, Tokyo, students collectively dreamed of a red-eyed spider, causing panic. Afterwards, students began to show symptoms such as twisted limbs, crooked eyes and brows, and entangled hands and feet. Experts later described this as muscle spasms caused by mass hysteria. The next day, a gas explosion occurred at the school, destroying many buildings. The number of casualties is unknown, and the fate of survivors is unclear!

　　In 2030, the Red Moon Incident occurred!

Chapter One: Going Home

　　A dark red moon hung low above the city’s densely packed high-rises, almost filling half the sky.

　　A dark-colored ring-city train, its body covered in patches of rust, sped through the city under the gaze of the red moon. Inside the train, passengers in various clothes were either reading newspapers or dozing under the dim lights.

　　"Ding, Moon Station has arrived!"

　　Brian Carter was startled awake from his nap, picked up his bag, and flowed out of the carriage with the surging crowd.

　　He carried his bag, walked up the dirty and dilapidated steps, across the platform littered with newspapers, and reached the city’s surface. Looking up, the glow of neon lights gave the city’s streets and the people on them a bizarre, multicolored look. But no matter how colorful the streets were, the red moon above the city still defined the world’s underlying tone.

　　Ever since the Red Moon Incident thirty years ago, the whole world had been like this.

　　Of course, Brian Carter didn’t know what was different—he was born after the Red Moon Incident, and the world had always been this way.

　　He carried his bag through a rain-soaked alley, climbed up an old, shabby building—the elevator was broken again, so he had to take the stairs—and slowly arrived at Room 401 on the fourth floor. He took out his key and opened the heavy door.

　　The hallway was quiet and chilly, but inside, it was warm and gentle.

　　In the kitchen, Dad was stewing meat. The pressure cooker was bubbling with steam, filling the air with a tempting aroma.

　　His little sister was lying on the sofa, hugging snacks, watching a very old cartoon—SpongeBob SquarePants.

　　Mom was elegant and poised, wearing a white wool cardigan, standing by the window talking on the phone.

　　"Brother Jiu, you’re back!"

　　Seeing Brian Carter come in and put down his backpack, his sister looked up and greeted him with a sweet smile.

　　"Have you been good at home today, Little Seventeen? I bought you the teddy bear you wanted."

　　Brian Carter patted her head and handed her a brown teddy bear.

　　"Ah, thank you, brother! I love it!"

　　His sister jumped up happily and hugged the teddy bear tightly.

　　"Back already?"

　　Mom glanced at Brian Carter and smiled, nodding. "Sit down and rest for a bit. Dinner will be ready soon."

　　Brian Carter nodded and sat down at the dining table.

　　……

　　……

　　There were already four sets of bowls and chopsticks on the table, along with a few plates of green vegetables. The rice in the bowls was already a bit cold.

　　But no one in the family seemed ready to sit down and eat.

　　Mom continued speaking gently on the phone: "Sister Zhang, actually, today’s matter was indeed my fault. Please don’t be angry. Of course, this gray wool sweater of mine is a bit outdated, but how can you say it’s not pretty?... Yes, I’m calling you about this... Of course you didn’t say it out loud, but I know you were thinking it..."

　　"No, no, please don’t misunderstand... I just wanted to apologize to you... You’re not the type to scold people, that’s so uncivilized..."