The "Extreme Storm" internet café reeked of defeat. Stale instant noodles. Sweat. Synthetic cherry "freshener" failing to mask the stench of lost dreams. Chu Xuan jerked upright, neck screaming. His cheek peeled off a grease-smeared keyboard.
Before him: the shimmering login screen of Worlds Beyond. The game's theme music – all orchestral bombast and false heroism – froze his blood. This was it. The exact scene before Earth died. Before the Chaos God's breath shattered humanity's last refuge into cosmic dust.
"F*cking AFKer! Wiped!" A yellow-haired thug smashed his keyboard nearby. Onscreen, his avatar disintegrated under a monster's pixelated paw.
Chu Xuan ignored him. His eyes locked onto the screen's date: August 16, 2025. His heart stopped. Then hammered against his ribs like a trapped beast. Hope. Dread. Fury. They collided in his veins.
"Ten months… I'm really back." His whisper was sandpaper rough. Tears pricked his eyes as his fingers traced the grimy mouse – solid, real. Memories flooded him: the global digitization, cities falling, the scream of metal as the last Ark collapsed…
Agony exploded in his skull. White-hot. Cleaving.
"Guh!" His forehead slammed the desk. White noise. Static. Cold, alien symbols flooded his mind. A broken, metallic voice echoed from a cosmic distance:
[ A N C H O R I N G... C O N S C I O U S N E S S... ]
[ D A O C O N T E N D E R - S Y S T E M... C O R E D A M A G E: 97.3% ]
[ W A R N I N G: H O N G M U N G A U T H O R I T Y... L O C K E D ]
The pain receded. Chu Xuan gasped. Sweat-drenched hair clung to his skin. The café's chaos returned – yelling gamers, gunfire from cheap headphones – but now, flickering in his vision's corner: a glitchy, translucent blue UI. It looked seconds from crashing.
Only two icons pulsed weakly:
[ SCAN (LV 0) ] - Analyze targets. Find weaknesses. (Cost: Minimal)
[ DEVOUR (LOCKED) ] - ?????????
[ ESSENCE: 0.01% ] - CRITICAL
"Hongmung Authority Locked…" Chu Xuan's jaw tightened. A mystery unsolved even at humanity's end. Why him? Why this broken system?
"Hey! Dickhead!" Spittle hit Chu Xuan's face. The yellow-haired thug loomed, fist bunching Chu Xuan's collar. "You owe me! Pay up!" Two grimy friends flanked him. Patrons watched, smirking.
The thug's grip faltered.
Chu Xuan didn't fully turn. Just a glance. His eyes – Arctic ice, bottomless and lethal – froze the trio. This wasn't a student's gaze. This was a veteran of genocides.
"Scram." A single word, edged in steel.
The thug flinched. Rage replaced fear. "Tough guy?!" His fist lashed out – a heavy, street-brawler's punch.
Chu Xuan's UI flared:
[ T A R G E T: Zhang Qiang ]
[ STATUS: Drunk. Adrenaline High ]
[ W E A K N E S S: Unstable Stance (Old Left Knee Injury) ]
[ S T R I K E P O I N T: Left Knee Ligament. Neural Cluster @ Ribs 3-4 ]
The world slowed. Chu Xuan saw every flaw: the off-center weight shift, the knee's subtle tremor. Effortless, he leaned back. The punch grazed air.
Before the thug's weight settled, Chu Xuan struck. Not a fist. A blade-hand. Lightning-fast. Aimed precisely where the system flashed.
CRACK. Ligament tearing. Not bone.
"AGHHH!" Zhang Qiang collapsed, leg buckling.
No pause. Chu Xuan's elbow hammered the marked ribs.
THUD. Air exploded from Zhang Qiang's lungs. His face purpled. Gurgled, choking silence. He crumpled. A twitching heap.
The café froze. Keyboards silent. Screens ignored. All eyes locked on the frail student and the broken thug.
Chu Xuan ignored them. He felt it – a sliver of cold, serpentine energy flowing from the thug into him. Into the system.
[ Devoured: F i m b r i a l L I F E F O R C E ]
[ E S S E N C E: 0.011% ]
Power requires sacrifice. Grim understanding settled. Thugs today. Aliens tomorrow.
Then, an icy jolt. Feedback. He stared at Zhang Qiang's body. His Scan revealed it: ghostly wisps of greasy, hateful energy clinging to the wounds. Rotting. Hungry.
[ R E S I D U A L E N E R G Y D E T E C T E D ]
[ M A T C H: N E T H E R R E A L M - C O R R U P T I O N ]
[ T H R E A T E S T I M A T E: N I N E P R I S M S ]
Netherrealm! Nine Prisms! Chu Xuan's blood ran cold. Their poison was here already? Ten months early? Panic threatened. Then hardened into resolve.
"Murder!" A woman shrieked.
"Cops!"
Chu Xuan moved. He rifled Zhang Qiang's pockets. Found a cracked phone. Forced the thug's thumbprint. Scrolled. Found treasure: photos. Video. Mayor Wang, flushed, in a VIP room, surrounded by cash and scantily clad aides. A voice: "The East New District land… no problem…"
Perfect. Leverage.
He wiped the phone. Dropped it. Stood. The dying greasy energy dissipated. Irrelevant now. Sirens wailed outside.
He strode out. Sunlight hit him. Brutal. Fake. Ahead, a skyscraper-sized billboard blared:
"WORLDS BEYOND - NEW EXPANSION! JOIN THE LEGEND!"
Glittering warriors struck heroic poses.
Chu Xuan saw through the lie. He knew what came next. His Scan flickered over the sky, revealing the hidden truth: faint, grid-like energy patterns shimmering like celestial circuitry.
[ P A S S I V E S C A N: P L A N E T A R Y S U P P R E S S I O N F I E L D (F A I L I N G)]
[ P A S S I V E S C A N: S P A T I A L A N O M A L Y - B E I J I N G C O R E ]
Beijing? Ground zero already?
He found a payphone. Dialed. Not 911. A number only Earth's doomed rulers knew.
Click. Silence. Heavy. Threatening.
Chu Xuan spoke, cold and clear:
"Priority: Project Great Wall. Subject: Mayor Wang Zhenhai. Evidence: Bribery. Embezzlement. Illicit recordings secured. Secondary Priority: Operation Worldfall."
A pause. He let Worldfall hang. The name tasted like ash and extinction.
"Threat Level: Planetary Annihilation. Repeat. Planetary Annihilation. Transmit secure channel protocols for intel transfer. My location: Extreme Storm Net Café. Coordinates follow."
He dropped the receiver. Coins clattered out. Exhaustion hit – mental, physical. Essence dwindled: 0.010%.
Every bit costs. Every second counts.
He stepped into the sunlight. Behind him, the café's drama faded. Ahead, billboard heroes grinned. But Chu Xuan saw only fire, falling cities, and alien shadows stretching toward Earth. His UI flickered stubbornly: [ H O N G M U N G A U T H O R I T Y... L O C K E D ]. A shackle? Or a key to survival?
He merged with the crowd. One thin figure against the coming storm.
"Ten months." His whisper was swallowed by city noise. "Humanity won't bleed this time. Even if I have to butcher gods to unlock this
damn System."