I can rewind time to prevent death

Wan Shouguang, who had been preparing to go upstairs, had just arrived at the back of the staircase without turning to the front when footsteps sounded from the second floor.

The footsteps were heavy, as if accompanied by the sound of dragging.

Startled, Wan Shouguang immediately bent down to squat, gripping the launcher of the Magnetic Knife Shrapnel tightly in his hand, lifting his head and watching from behind the staircase towards the direction of the stairwell on the second floor.

Seconds later, Wan Cong's figure appeared, holding someone's ankle in his hand. The person was motionless, it was unclear whether they were dead or unconscious.

Wan Cong did not linger, directly descending the stairs with steady, unhurried steps, one by one. The person being dragged followed, tumbling down each step, their head knocking on the stairs with a "thud—thud—thud" sound, which was especially harsh and unnerving on this silent and eerie night.

Wan Shouguang watched from behind the staircase without making a sound, until Wan Cong dragging the person reached the middle of the stairs. Only then did he see clearly that the person was his wife, Liu Jialan.

A rush of blood surged through him, nearly causing Wan Shouguang to lash out, but then he looked at his "son," descending the stairs so calmly, and a wave of reluctance and sadness welled up inside him.

Thud!

The sound of the head knocking against the stairs seemed to stimulate Wan Shouguang's heart, like steel needles, pricking him with each thud.

He bit his lower lip tightly, plotting in his mind, and forcibly held himself back.

Squatting down, he moved quietly to the side of the staircase underneath, his eyes near splitting with rage, his lips almost biting through with blood, waiting for his "son" to drag his wife down the stairs.

During this process, at the basement door not far behind the corner, the wooden box that was propped against the door with empty beer bottles, was now making a creaking friction noise. Clearly, something inside was pushing hard against the basement door.

The wooden box was not light, filled with empty bottles Wan Shouguang had left over from drinking, and even he could not lift it, only drag it.

The friction sound of the wooden box against the ground indicated that despite its weight, it was moving outwards, which was also stimulating Wan Shouguang, reminding him that the beggar strangeness behind him was about to push open the basement door and crawl out.

Wan Shouguang crouched on the ground, not daring to move. The plight before him and behind him tensed his nerves to the extreme, his body so taut it seemed as if even his blood could no longer flow, like a bowstring at full moon, about to snap at any moment.

Thud!

After the last step, the back of Liu Jialan's head hit the ground floor.

At that moment, Wan Shouguang suddenly stood up, rushed to his wife lying on the ground, and with the Strangeness Interferer he had readied in his hand, he flicked the switch open and tossed it onto the stomach of Liu Jialan as she lay face up.

The moment the Strangeness Interferer took effect, Wan Cong felt a sudden emptiness in his hand, although he was still holding the ankle, he could no longer see anything.

In his eyes, Liu Jialan had vanished instantly.

However, though Liu Jialan had disappeared, another person appeared in front of him—Wan Shouguang.

His eyes blood red, Wan Shouguang seemed to have aged a decade in that moment, standing rigidly in front of Wan Cong without any attempt to evade.

Actually, when he tossed the Strangeness Interferer to his wife, he was also unable to dodge any longer, holding the launcher for the Magnetic Knife Shrapnel tightly in his hand, his tears finally breaking free and rolling down his cheeks.

"Cong...Cong!" His lips trembled, emitting a voice so faint he could hardly hear it himself, "Why? She's your...mother..."

"Ah!"

Wan Cong released the ankle he had been holding, tilted his head to stare at Wan Shouguang, his mouth gaping wide, revealing sharp canine teeth, and made a bizarre cry.

Wan Shouguang involuntarily stepped back, his entire body shaking again out of extreme shock, fear, and sadness.

He looked at his "son" through tear-blurred eyes, then at his wife lying on the ground, uncertain if she was dead or alive, his inner turmoil reaching its peak.

With a slight movement of his right hand, he raised the Magnetic Knife Shrapnel launcher, his arm shaking like a sieve. Although his left hand tried to stabilize it, the trembling was uncontrollable.

As if in that moment, he summoned all the courage he had in his life, let go of all his persistence and obsession, abandoned all illusions, and finally aimed the Magnetic Knife Shrapnel painfully and arduously at Wan Cong.

"Congcong? I'm...so...sorry!"

Looking at his familiar son, who now appeared completely alien and terrifying, Wan Shouguang's tears poured down like rain, pushing him to the verge of collapse.

Wan Cong, however, seemed to hear nothing and just opened his mouth, taking a step towards Wan Shouguang, wanting to get closer.

The next second, Wan Shouguang closed his eyes and simultaneously pressed the shrapnel launcher at Wan Cong's neck.

Thump!

The magnetic knife flew out.

But just before it flew, a cold hand suddenly grabbed Wan Shouguang's leg from behind, throwing off his aim. The Magnetic Knife Shrapnel, which would have been a near-certain kill at close range, now soared upwards, missing Wan Cong's head by at least a fist's width.

Wan Shouguang fell to the ground and glanced sideways; through his tearful eyes, a surge of terror hit him once again. It was the beggar-strangeness from the basement who had reached behind him, causing him to fall and miss the opportunity to kill Wan Cong.

At that moment, Wan Cong furiously pounced down.

Yet, before Wan Cong's teeth could reach Wan Shouguang's neck, something suddenly startled him, as though he sensed some fearful thing. He tried to get up, but it was too late.

With a thud, his head was struck by a black club right on the forehead, sending him flying against the wall on the other side of the stairs, where he hit it and then fell back down.

On the other side, the beggar-strangeness that had tripped Wan Shouguang was being viciously beaten with the club, rolling on the ground without making a sound.

Wan Shouguang looked up in utter astonishment and saw the silhouette swinging the club seemed somewhat familiar.

He wiped away his tears with one hand while he picked up a flashlight with the other and shone it, exclaiming, "Yan...Yan Junze!?"