The night air was thick with static.
Neon lights from the nearby city painted the cracked window of Li Cheng's dorm room in streaks of red and blue. His shirt was torn open, blood trickling from his nose and mouth as he collapsed onto the cold tiles. Every nerve in his body screamed.
Then came the sound.
Ding!
[System Notice: Host's Vital Signs Critical. Initiating Emergency Protocol.]
His heart pounded like a drum.
The pain—unbearable, unrelenting—spread through his veins like molten lead. He could feel something alive crawling inside him, whispering through the darkness of his dying mind.
"Wh-what's… happening to me?" he gasped, clutching his chest.
[Integration Process Beginning.]
[Compatibility: 12%... 18%... 29%...]
His body convulsed.
The room blurred.
And then — flashes. Memories stabbed through his skull: the girl he loved laughing in another man's arms, the mocking voices of his classmates, the faces that turned away from him as he struggled to survive.
He had spent years humbling himself, giving his all — and for what? Betrayal. Humiliation. Loneliness.
His blood hit the floor with a soft drip.
And then — something inside him snapped.
"NO MORE!" His roar cracked through the silence. The lights shattered, sparks flying across the walls as the air pressure shifted.
[Warning: Host's emotional state exceeding safe threshold.]
[Forced evolution triggered.]
A pulse of black-red light burst from his chest. It spread like wildfire, wrapping his body in a chaotic aura of darkness and gold, swirling together in a violent storm.
[System Override: Emergency Fusion Protocol Online.]
[Warning: Fusion with the System Core is not recommended.]
[Proceeding... 45%... 62%... 80%...]
The pain reached beyond pain.
It was as if his soul was being peeled apart, molecule by molecule, reshaped by a divine hand that neither cared nor hesitated.
Li Cheng's vision turned white.
For a split second, he saw her face — his ex-girlfriend, smiling cruelly as she handed her heart to another man.
And beneath that image, he saw himself — not as a victim, not as the boy who begged for affection… but as something else.
Something that had survived.
His voice broke the silence again, softer this time, trembling between agony and realization.
"…If the world wants a monster," he whispered, "then I'll become one."
[Fusion Reaching Completion: 97%...]
[Warning: Unknown interference detected.]
A sudden tremor shook the ground. Every light in the city outside flickered simultaneously.
[Error. Data corruption in progress.]
[Fusion Process—UNSTABLE.]
[Entity detected within Host consciousness.]
His eyes widened.
"What… what entity?"
[Unknown presence attempting to overwrite core functions.]
[Attempting suppression… failed.]
The mechanical voice cracked — static bleeding into its words. For the first time, it didn't sound cold. It sounded… afraid.
The temperature dropped. Frost formed across the floor tiles as Li Cheng's breath came out in pale mist. The light around him shifted from red to a deep, ancient purple.
And then, another voice echoed inside his head.
It wasn't the System.
It was deeper — older — human yet not human.
"At last… you awaken."
Li Cheng's mind went blank. His entire being was yanked into a black void.
Floating, weightless, he saw a silhouette—a man-shaped figure made entirely of swirling runes and gold chains.
"Who… are you?" he managed to say.
The figure chuckled softly.
"The System you rely on… is but a fragment of what I am. You, Li Cheng, were never chosen by chance. You are my vessel."
The words stabbed into his consciousness. His pulse quickened.
"What do you mean? Vessel for what?"
"For the revenge the gods themselves abandoned."
And then — his eyes snapped open.
He was back in the real world, gasping for breath. The light was gone, the frost melted, but a faint pattern of golden circuits now pulsed across his arms and neck. His reflection in the cracked mirror didn't look human anymore.
The System's voice returned, distorted and weak.
[System rebooting...]
[Core fusion incomplete.]
[Warning: Unknown entity embedded within Host soul.]
He tried to move, but his body didn't feel like his own. Every step was heavy, but power hummed under his skin, wild and untamed.
He looked at his hands — trembling, shining faintly with red and gold.
"I'm not the same anymore," he whispered. "And soon… they'll all know it."
Outside, thunder rolled across the city.
[Quest Updated: Fusion Failed – Unknown Entity Detected.]
[Temporary Skill Unlocked: Rage Protocol – Lv.1]
[Condition: Activated by emotional triggers related to betrayal or injustice.]
Li Cheng exhaled slowly, his lips curling into a faint, dangerous smile.
"Perfect," he muttered. "I've got plenty of both."
The System flickered one last time, whispering through static:
[New Objective: Locate Origin of Interference.]
[Warning: Host stability compromised.]
And then it went silent.
The air was still again, but the fire in his chest was far from calm. Something ancient had woken inside him — something neither man nor god could easily control.
As lightning split the sky outside, Li Cheng stood before the mirror one last time.
His reflection grinned back — eyes glowing faint crimson.
"The weak are meant to crawl," he murmured. "But I'll make the world kneel."