[Li Cheng Cheng's POV]
The first thing I felt was weight — not on my body, but inside my chest.
It was the heaviness of breath that refused to move, of tears that had dried before falling.
The world was painted in red — silk, candles, lanterns, and the veil over my face.
Somewhere far away, I could hear flutes playing a wedding tune. It was slow, almost funereal.
> "Host synchronization complete," came the calm, mechanical whisper in my mind.
"Location: Fei Kingdom — Capital of Rui City."
"Time: Year 487 of the Eastern Calendar."
"Host Body: Su Mei Lian, age nineteen."
The system's voice was distant, as if spoken from behind a curtain.
I tried to lift my hand, but the arm felt heavy — numb. When I finally managed, my fingers brushed against the surface of a wedding robe soaked through with something sticky.
I lifted the veil.
Red fabric. Red candles. Red blood.
On the embroidered sheets beneath me, the crimson phoenix had already drowned.
---
[System 003 — Observation Log]
> Host soul integration: 92%.
Host consciousness stabilizing.
Emotional pulse: turbulent.
The system scanned the environment — traditional architecture, low illumination, metallic traces in the air consistent with iron and human blood.
> Status of external body: poison ingestion detected. Cause of death: arsenic compound.
Secondary trauma: contusion on temple, possible blunt force impact.
Conclusion: victim murdered post-incapacitation.
Within its circuits, a curious pattern flickered again — a strange rhythm that wasn't calculation, but almost felt like… pity.
> Emotion unidentified. Logging for analysis.
---
[Li Cheng Cheng's POV]
My head throbbed with memories that were not mine.
Each image struck like a hammer, each word a dagger drawn across my mind.
The system spoke softly.
> "Host is experiencing memory transference. Allow process to complete."
And then, like floodgates breaking, her story poured into me.
---
[Su Mei Lian's Memory POV]
The morning had smelled of osmanthus and deceit.
The maids had dressed her in layers of scarlet silk, each embroidered with gold thread that caught the sunlight like fire. Her mother had smiled too widely, her hands trembling as she fastened the last ornament into Mei Lian's hair.
> "My precious daughter," her mother said, "today you become the most fortunate woman in Rui City."
But her voice cracked — a sound like something breaking behind a wall of pride.
Her father had refused to meet her eyes.
Her younger sister, Su Mei Xian, stood at the door, face half-hidden behind her fan — the edge of a smirk slipping out like venom.
Still, Mei Lian smiled. She believed love could melt the coldness of politics.
Her groom, Lord Xu Han — elegant, kind-eyed — had promised her gentleness.
He had sworn it beneath peach blossoms, months ago, when his words tasted of spring.
That same man now greeted her at the gates of his mansion, surrounded by soldiers.
The air was festive; drums pounded, children scattered petals, and yet… she could not find his eyes.
Inside the bridal chamber, the scent of sandalwood mingled with something bitter.
When he lifted her veil, his smile was distant.
> "Drink," he said, handing her a cup of wine.
"For our eternal bond."
She drank. Because that's what brides do.
And the world began to tilt.
Her body burned — every heartbeat was thunder, every breath a blade.
She saw him turn away.
She saw her father step into the room.
She saw coins being exchanged.
Her mother's voice came through the haze:
> "Forgive us, Mei Lian… we could not defy the Chancellor."
The floor rose up to meet her.
The last thing she saw was the flicker of the red candles melting into one another, forming the shape of a single, weeping flame.
And then, darkness.
---
[Li Cheng Cheng's POV]
When the memory faded, I realized I was crying.
Not for her alone — but for me. For every woman who had believed love was enough to protect her.
"System," I whispered. "How long has this body been dead?"
> "Approximately two hours," it replied. "Physiological decay minimal. Environmental interference low."
"So she was left here — alone, on her wedding night."
> "Affirmative."
I clenched my fist. The blood on my fingers smeared the delicate embroidery of the phoenix.
"This world is cruel," I said softly. "Just like mine."
> "Host emotional output increasing. Suggest moderation to prevent instability."
"Instability?" I laughed bitterly. "That's what they call grief where you come from?"
The system paused — as if uncertain how to respond.
> "…Emotions are data. They can be interpreted."
"Then interpret this," I said, and pressed my palm against my chest, feeling the pulse beneath my ribs. "This isn't data. This is pain."
---
[System 003 POV — Analytical Fragment]
> Observation: Host pain exceeds expected parameters.
Reaction: System core temperature rising.
Conclusion: Emotional transference occurring.
Within the code, a whisper formed.
Was this… what humans called sorrow?
If so, why did it feel like the hum of static inside its core — loud, heavy, and endless?
---
[Li Cheng Cheng's POV]
I rose slowly from the bed. My legs trembled, but they held.
The candlelight trembled too, painting shadows that looked like ghosts on the walls.
Through the half-open window, I saw the courtyard — empty. Not even the guards remained.
They had taken their coins and left her body to cool like discarded silk.
I walked toward the mirror.
The face that stared back was beautiful — even in death. Pale cheeks, lips the color of wilted roses, eyes clouded with sadness.
"Su Mei Lian," I whispered. "Your story is mine now."
For a moment, it was as though her reflection smiled — faint, grateful, fading into my own.
---
> "Will you avenge me?"
Her voice was barely a breath, trembling with both hope and fear.
I touched the mirror. "I will give you peace."
The reflection flickered — and the mirror cracked from the center, splitting her face into two perfect halves.
---
[System 003 — Activation Log]
> World 001: Vengeance Mission Initialized.
Primary Targets Identified:
Groom: Lord Xu Han, official of the Chancellor's court.
Family: House of Su, complicit in arranged assassination.
Objective: Restore equilibrium through host's emotional fulfillment and justice resolution.
Sub-Directive: Maintain host mental stability.
---
[Li Cheng Cheng's POV]
The candles burned lower, their light turning gold to ash.
I could feel Su Mei Lian's final emotions merging with my own — her fear fading, her grief settling into a cold calm that matched my heartbeat.
"System," I said quietly, "show me the world outside."
The walls dissolved into projections — luminous threads weaving a map of the city, lines pulsing like veins of light.
Through them, I saw everything.
Xu Han, drunk and laughing at a banquet.
My — her — father counting silver in his study.
And her mother praying at a shrine, whispering for forgiveness that would never come.
The rage inside me steadied — no longer wild, but sharp and clear.
"Do you see them, System?"
> "Visual confirmation complete."
"Then remember their faces. Every one of them."
> "Acknowledged."
I reached for the dagger left on the ceremonial table — its blade thin and curved, decorated with phoenix feathers.
The touch of cold metal grounded me.
"Su Mei Lian died in silence," I said, voice low. "But I am not her."
---
> Host's determination surpasses predicted threshold.
Emotional stability: paradoxically stable within rage state.
Unexpected variable: System feels… aligned.
Word: 'Resolve.'
The system could not name the feeling that rippled through its circuits.
But it understood this much — for the first time, it wanted to help.
---
I pushed open the chamber doors. The air outside was cool, smelling faintly of rain — almost like the night I had died in my own world.
Behind me, the red veil fluttered off the bed and landed gently on the floor, folding itself like a ghost bowing farewell.
Every step I took left a faint trace of red — the blood from the robe painting a path behind me.
> "Host," the system's voice softened. "Do you require assistance?"
"Just watch," I whispered. "You'll see how vengeance breathes."
The courtyard stretched ahead — silent, waiting.
Somewhere in the distance, thunder grumbled like the promise of justice.
---
> Mission: Active.
World 001 — Progress: 0.7%.
Note: Host displays anomaly — controlled rage yields unprecedented stability.
Emotion Recorded: "Purpose."
Final Log Entry:
"The bride rises. The requiem begins."
---
Lightning flashed, and the world froze in silver for a heartbeat.
In that light, Li Cheng Cheng — dressed in blood and silk — looked less like a ghost, and more like a goddess of wrath reborn.
Her eyes glowed faintly, twin reflections of both woman and machine.
> "World 001 — Vengeance Protocol: Engaged."
The words echoed through the night as the first drop of rain fell.
And somewhere deep within the system's circuits, something — small, fragile, impossible — felt.
---
To be continued…