Hello everyone, welcome to yet another episode of season 1.
Hope you all enjoy it.
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The cheap plastic casing of Han Jin's phone began to smoke.
The message from The Developer wasn't just text; it was a payload of raw, high-dimensional data.
"Jin bro, your phone is melting!" Fatty Wei yelled, pointing a trembling finger.
Han Jin didn't drop it.
He tightened his grip, his eyes glowing a fierce, molten gold.
He used a sliver of his intent to link the heat of the phone to the ambient temperature of the room.
The smoking stopped instantly, the device turning ice-cold as it struggled to contain the message.
"An Update I can't skip?" Han Jin chuckled, a sound that made the nearby windows rattle in their frames.
"I've ignored the mandates of the Primordial Heavens.
You think a firmware patch is going to stop me?"
[BING! System Event: Global Patch 1.1 Initializing...]
[Theme: 'The Sorting of the Chaff']
[Status: 1%... 5%...]
Outside, the world changed.
The bruised purple sky didn't fade this time; it turned a deep, bruised crimson.
Across the city and the globe, pillars of light erupted from the earth.
These weren't monsters; they were Ascension Towers.
[System Note: The Developer has initiated the 'Tower Phase'.
All humans over Level 10 are required to enter.
Those who refuse will be 'Deleted' to save server space.]
"Deleted?" Captain Zhao, who had been listening from the periphery, turned pale. "We've only just started to understand the System! My men aren't ready for a Tower!"
"Level 10?" Lin Xi whispered, looking at Han Jin.
"That means the Bureau, the hidden sects, and... us.
Everyone in this room who ate your rice is now a target for the Update."
Han Jin looked around at his classmates. Thanks to his Starlight Fried Rice, nearly every student in the cafeteria had crossed the Level 10 threshold.
They weren't just students anymore; they were High-Level Assets in the eyes of the System.
"Don't panic," Han Jin said, his voice cutting through the rising murmurs like a blade.
"A Tower is just a dungeon with a fancy name.
And as for this Developer....."
He looked at his phone again.
The screen had changed.
It now showed a map of the city, with a massive golden pillar located right in the center of the local Global Awakening Bureau Headquarters.
"It seems the Bureau is hosting the main server," Han Jin remarked, a predatory grin forming.
"Lin Xi, Wei...pack your things. We're going to the city center."
"But the military has cordoned off the area!" Zhao protested. "No one is allowed near the Primary Tower!"
Han Jin walked toward the exit, the Dragon Bone Cleaver shrinking into a small, nondescript kitchen knife tucked into his belt.
"Captain, you're mistaken," Han Jin said without looking back.
"The military isn't cordoning it off to keep people out.
They're doing it because they're terrified of what's coming out of it.
I'm going there to make sure the Update doesn't include me."
[BING! New Main Quest: Patch the Patch!]
[Objective: Reach the Primary Ascension Tower and 'Negotiate' with the System Admin.]
[Reward: 'Admin Privileges' (Temporary), 1 'Celestial Kitchen' Expansion.]
[Failure: You become a permanent NPC in a low-level starter zone.]
"An NPC?" Han Jin spat the word out like it was poison.
"I'd rather be a piece of mystery meat in this cafeteria."
As they stepped out of the school, the city was in chaos.
People were running, sirens were blaring, and the Ascension Towers were humming with a frequency that made the very air vibrate.
Lin Xi caught up to him, her Andromeda Soul Seal pulsing rhythmically.
"Han Jin, if the Developer is who I think it is... this isn't just a test.
It's a synchronization.
They're trying to merge Earth's reality with the Void Core."
"Then I'll just have to desync them," Han Jin replied.
He stopped at the school's parking lot and looked at a dusty, beat-up scooter belonging to the math teacher.
He pulled out the Rusty Paperclip.
"Wei, get on," Han Jin commanded.
"On that?!" Fatty Wei looked at the tiny scooter. "Bro, we're three people! And I count as two!"
"I'm linking the engine's output to the kinetic energy of a falling star," Han Jin said calmly. "Physics are currently optional."
He tapped the scooter with the paperclip. The rusted metal suddenly glowed with a hum of pure, concentrated power.
The exhaust pipe didn't emit smoke; it emitted sparks of blue fire.
"Hold on tight," Han Jin said, his eyes fixed on the golden pillar in the distance.
"We have a Developer to de-compile."
The scooter didn't just drive; it vanished in a blur of light, leaving a scorched trail on the asphalt and a group of very confused commandos in its wake.
AN:- well that's that, physics is just a thought for Han Jin
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