The evening wind whispered low, and heavy clouds loomed in the sky, as if a storm was about to break loose.
Yang Tian and Shen Xue sped toward Liu Ruyan's house. The car was fast, yet steady as a hawk in flight.
Yang Tian's face was grim, and he remained silent. Shen Xue stared nervously out the window, anxiety thickening the air inside the car.
"Do you think… he'll really hurt Ruyan?" Shen Xue finally broke the silence.
"He's not human anymore," Yang Tian said in a low voice. "The current Ji Xiaolan only sees system objectives—no emotions."
Shen Xue bit her lip. "If something happens to Ruyan, I'll never forgive myself."
—
Meanwhile.
At the Liu residence.
Liu Ruyan sat alone at her desk, gripping a slightly wilted bouquet—the flowers Ji Xiaolan had given her on the rooftop. She hadn't thrown them away, but hadn't touched them since.
The confession that day had begun to feel more like an assertion of control than a genuine expression of affection.
These past few days, she had felt an invisible pressure around her. Sometimes, while reading at home, she'd hear whispered voices; walking outside, she felt eyes watching her.
She began dreaming of being trapped in a gray void, strings of data falling from the sky, a cold mechanical voice repeating:
"Intimacy level dropping… Warning… Sync failure…"
Each time she woke up, her heart pounded, soaked in cold sweat.
Deep down, she knew—this had something to do with Ji Xiaolan.
Her phone buzzed.
[Ji Xiaolan]: Ruyan, can we meet tonight? There are things I need to tell you.
She hesitated for a long time, finger hovering over the screen, and finally replied:
[Tomorrow, 7 PM, behind the old library.]
She had to know the truth.
—
At 10 PM, Yang Tian finally arrived at the Liu residence.
Mrs. Liu was surprised to see the sharp-eyed young man at her door. "Young Master Yang?"
"Auntie, is Ruyan home? It's urgent—I must see her."
Shen Xue stepped up as well. "Please, it's about her safety!"
Mrs. Liu hesitated, but seeing the seriousness in their eyes, let them in without another word.
Yang Tian rushed upstairs and knocked on Liu Ruyan's door.
She opened it in her white loungewear, a puzzled look in her eyes. "Why are you here?"
"Ruyan," Yang Tian said directly, "have you been having strange thoughts lately? Or dreams that don't feel like yours?"
She paused, then nodded slightly. "How do you know… you've seen them too?"
Yang Tian's pupils contracted. He looked at Shen Xue.
Shen Xue covered her mouth. "It's true… the system is starting to fight back."
"Ruyan, you have to believe me," Yang Tian said calmly. "You're at the edge of the system's access point. Ji Xiaolan is trying to rebind you, but your subconscious resistance is causing a backlash."
"If this continues, your mind will lose emotional independence."
Ruyan's eyes widened. "What… are you talking about?"
"I'll explain everything," Yang Tian said, clenching his fists. "But right now, the most important thing is—don't meet him tomorrow."
"You—how did you know…" She stopped. "I just agreed to meet him…"
Shen Xue quickly stepped in. "You can't! He'll try to initiate a 'final sync.' If he opens the main frequency channel through you, he'll complete full personality binding. After that, you—won't be you anymore."
Ruyan's face turned pale.
Trembling, she asked, "Then what should I do?"
"Leave your phone. Cut off all contact with him," Yang Tian ordered. "From tonight on, I'll protect you myself."
Shen Xue added, "Bai Ningbing gave us the system backup. We're launching a countermeasure."
Ruyan collapsed into her chair, drained, before whispering:
"I believe you."
—
Late at night.
Ji Xiaolan sat in his dimly lit study, staring at a flickering system panel.
[Intimacy Level: Dropping to Critical – 37%][Warning: Target's psychological defense increasing][Emotional channel closed]
"Why?" he muttered, eyes bloodshot with rage.
"You're not supposed to resist me… She's mine!"
He jumped up and shattered a glass, blood dripping from his palm.
[Host psychological volatility exceeds safe threshold]
"Activate Gray Domain Sync Mode. 7 PM tomorrow—I will make her submit."
"This game you designed—now I'll be the one to end it."
—
The next afternoon.The air was unbearably heavy, clouds blocking the sun. The city felt like it was on pause.
Liu Ruyan sat in the Yang family villa's living room, staring at the gray sky beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows. Her heart was even heavier than the weather.
She hadn't slept all night. The dreams had grown more chaotic. Even when awake, the cold mechanical voice lingered in her mind:
"Emotional bond failed… Reconnecting… Scanning for emotional entry point…"
It wasn't a hallucination—she knew it.
Shen Xue sat across from her, gently reminding, "You must stay calm. The system seeks cracks in your subconscious. The more emotional you are, the easier it invades."
Ruyan nodded, lips trembling. "But I'm scared… I'm scared he'll really come tonight."
Yang Tian came down from upstairs, holding a document.
"We've intercepted his sync frequency," he said. "Bai Ningbing's tech team captured the system's latest transmission. We're launching a counter-attack."
Shen Xue's eyes lit up. "You mean—we can implant fake signals?"
Yang Tian nodded. "Exactly. We'll make him believe the sync succeeded… but we'll be syncing him instead."
Ruyan looked at him in shock. "You'd risk using me… as bait?"
"No," Yang Tian said gently. "You're the guide, not the bait. We won't let you be in danger."
He looked into her eyes, voice uncharacteristically soft. "Together, we'll end this."
—
7 PM, behind the old library.
The wind howled. Gray clouds churned.
Ruyan arrived early, a hidden earpiece in her ear, Bai Ningbing monitoring signal flow in real-time.
She wore a plain white dress, standing quietly in the shadow of a streetlamp.
Moments later, Ji Xiaolan arrived.
He wore a dark gray coat, his gaze soft—but unnervingly so.
"You really came," he said.
"You said you had something to tell me."
"I've always loved you," he stepped closer. "I know you're confused lately. It's because our connection is incomplete."
Ruyan's heartbeat quickened. In her earpiece, Bai Ningbing's voice came steady:
"System entering Gray Domain sync prep… Do not respond to emotional triggers…"
"Ruyan, all I need is for you to say: 'I want to be with you.' Then we can fully connect."
He reached out—his palm glowing faint blue. The system beginning to manifest.
"You… are you even human anymore?" she asked, voice shaking.
"I understand love more than any human," Ji Xiaolan's eyes twisted. "I can give you eternal, unchanging, betrayal-proof love—if you'll link with me."
[Sync Initiated: Countdown 60 seconds]
Bai Ningbing typed rapidly. Yang Tian and Shen Xue sat in the basement monitoring room, eyes locked on the signal feed.
"Did it work?" Shen Xue asked, tense.
"Almost. Once he pushes an emotional response, we can implant the fake frequency."
—
Seeing Ruyan's silence, Ji Xiaolan's expression darkened.
"You're afraid of me?" His voice lost its softness. "You think Yang Tian can protect you? He's nothing!"
Ruyan deliberately provoked him. "He's more human than you'll ever be."
[Sync acceleration – core signal exposed]
Bai Ningbing shouted: "Now! Yang Tian, initiate implant!"
Without hesitation, Yang Tian hit the sync button.
—
At the same moment.
Ji Xiaolan's pupils shrank. His consciousness was forcibly pulled into the Gray Domain.
He saw himself—countless versions of himself, swarming in darkness. The system began to turn on him.
[System conflict][Personality stripping in progress][Control rights destabilized]
"No—You tricked me!!!"
Ji Xiaolan screamed, stumbling back. Ruyan quickly stepped away.
Suddenly, Yang Tian appeared behind him, landing a heavy punch on the back of his head.
"Game over," Yang Tian said quietly.
—
Dawn the next day.
Bai Ningbing's team declared:
"System core isolated. Ji Xiaolan trapped in false consciousness. Project M's control has been neutralized."
Ruyan awoke from the nightmare. Shen Xue breathed a sigh of relief. Yang Tian smiled—truly—for the first time.
But they all knew…
Ji Xiaolan was just one executor of Project M.
The real mastermind—was only just beginning to reveal itself.