Chapter 2: New Beginning
Lao Chen jolted awake, cold sweat soaking his body as his breath came in ragged gasps.
"Am... I really dead? Is this the afterlife?" he murmured, blinking rapidly as he took in his surroundings.
The first thought that came to his mind—
"Ah... So this is hell." He nodded in full acceptance.
Mountains of trash surrounded him—ramen cups, bottles, crumpled papers... and used condoms. The sheer volume of filth piled up so high it nearly touched the ceiling in some areas.
And worst of all, he had been sleeping on it.
Strangely enough, there was no smell.
"Must be because I'm used to it..." He shook his head.
But no, that didn't make sense. Lao Chen distinctly remembered dying—hit by a reckless driver, his body thrown like a ragdoll. The pain, the blood, the cold... it was real.
'Was it all just a dream?' he wondered, racking his brain.
Yet, this wasn't his room. No way in hell. Lao Chen was a clean man—so much so that he'd curse even a single wet napkin left on his kitchen counter. This place? A hoarder's apocalypse.