No matter who you ask or which paranormal ranking list you open, the name at the very top is always the same.
The foremost of the “Eight Sufferings,” Zhang Wenzai, whose suffering is the blazing intensity of the five skandhas.
The first time Zhang Wenzai appeared before the world, he declared war on every powerhouse on the rankings, challenging the entire paranormal world by himself.
No one could see what happened on the battlefield that day. All people knew was that every powerhouse had been beaten into submission, while those who refused were slaughtered to the last.
From then on, the world knew no more division. Zhang Wenzai unified it through sheer force.
The most terrifying evil spirits could be erased with a flick of his hand. When the dynasty fell into its final years and the people were plunged into misery, he could topple the regime with a wave of his hand.
He had countless followers. Wherever anyone was, if even the slightest voice of dissent arose, that person’s corpse would be hanging from the city gate the next day.
There was no voice in the world but Zhang Wenzai’s.
All living beings revered and feared him, worshipping him as a god and building golden statues to offer incense before each day.
“So you want me to play some forgettable passerby whose face people can’t remember even after looking right at me?”
“Yes, Host.”
One day, as Zhang Wenzai was eating, something calling itself the “Passerby Check-In System” suddenly dropped out of nowhere and asked him to play a passerby to complete missions.
Zhang Wenzai smiled. “Not bad. It sounds like a challenge. But what’s in it for me?”
The System said, “I can provide you with the best advancement resources and ensure your cultivation proceeds smoothly.”
Zhang Wenzai shook his head.
“Heavenly treasures.” “Secret manuals and divine weapons.”
Zhang Wenzai fiddled with the food in his bowl, not even bothering to lift his eyelids.
The System froze for a moment.
“Detecting a shortage of food in this plane. If you complete the missions, I can obtain food from another world for you.”
Zhang Wenzai finally raised his eyes.
“Oh?”
In the bowl before him, countless eyeballs were piled on top of one another, forming a sea of blood red.
The trees outside bore dead rats instead of fruit, and the white things in the crock were wriggling maggots, not rice.
No one but Zhang Wenzai knew that the world had long been sick. Blood flowed in the rivers, and even the blades of grass had human ears growing on them.
He’d been able to see all this since the age of five, and it had been so long since he’d tasted anything normal.
“Food from another world? …That sounds interesting.”
From then on, whenever some unsolvable paranormal incident occurred, people would always spot an unremarkable figure nearby.
Sometimes he’d be taking close-up photos with a corpse. Sometimes he’d politely ask an evil spirit for directions. Sometimes he’d even show up in forbidden places looking for something, claiming he’d lost eleven pinkies…
Ask who he is, and he’ll only say, “Just a passerby.”
Yet after he appeared, all the paranormal phenomena would mysteriously vanish without a trace, as if they had never existed.
People were terrified, and strange rumors began to spread.
Zhang Wenzai’s response was, “It wasn’t me. The System told me to do it.”
System: “…”
It was true that it told him to do it, but the deal was that he’d just check in. Why did he kill the evil spirits too?
Fine, he killed the evil spirits. But why did he share his vision with the locals? Now they’re all mad!
Even if we let the madness slide, they’re still prostrating themselves before you while they’re mad. Do you think that’s normal?!
Zhang Wenzai: No idea. It was no trouble.
Blurb revised on September 9, 2026, screenshot uploaded to Weibo
*The male lead is truly only somewhat familiar with human nature. He is not a morally perfect protagonist, but a down-to-earth tyrant with a slightly inhuman quality.
*Contains some fairly gross descriptions.
Theme: His name is already recorded in the register of ghosts
