Rain pelted the windows of the underground safehouse as Lin Chen sat alone before a glowing holographic interface. Behind him, Zhao Tian remained unconscious, restrained with reinforced alloy cuffs embedded with nullification glyphs — a system-level suppression tool.
But Lin Chen's focus wasn't on the former enemy host.
It was on the message flashing before him.
[System Upgrade Complete – New Module Activated: "Ability Tree"][Active Skill Unlocked: Quantum Evasion – Level 1][Skill Description: Allows short-range spatial flicker, effective up to 8 meters. Cooldown: 10 seconds.]
A wave of warmth surged through Lin Chen's chest. It wasn't physical — more like something imprinted on the soul. He could feel something new woven into his core, like a muscle he hadn't noticed before suddenly flexing for the first time.
Then came the next prompt.
[Would you like to visualize the Ability Tree?]
"Show me," he said aloud.
The space before him shimmered — a branching structure bloomed from the screen like a tree of glowing data, each "leaf" a node representing a skill, passive or active, some greyed out, others flickering faintly.
[Branch A: Combat Utility]
Quantum Evasion ✅
Enhanced Reflex Loop (Locked)
Tactical Displacement (Locked)
Kinetic Overdrive (Locked)
[Branch B: Strategic Insight]
Mind Pulse Scan (Locked)
Probability Forecast (Locked)
[Branch C: Psyche Manipulation]
Emotional Veil (Locked)
Memory Injection (Locked)
[Branch D: ???]
Nodes encrypted.
Label: "Requires Genesis Protocol Access (3/12 Fragments)."
Lin Chen stood, took a breath, and focused.
[Activating: Quantum Evasion]
With a soft "bzzt" and a ripple of blue light, his form flickered — vanishing from one end of the room and reappearing near the ceiling beam on the opposite side. It wasn't teleportation, not really. More like the system shifted his position by bending the space around him temporarily.
He landed lightly.
A grin tugged at the edge of his mouth. "Now this... this changes everything."
The door buzzed.
He tensed, hand reflexively reaching for the shock-dagger embedded in the desk.
[System Alert: Identity Match – Li Chu. Security override confirmed.]
He frowned, standing straighter. A moment later, Li Chu stepped in — her eyes sharp, darker than usual, and filled with suspicion.
"I tracked your phone's last location," she said coldly. "And I had to hack through three layers of digital fog to do it. Are you going to tell me what's going on, Lin Chen?"
He sighed. "I didn't ask you to come."
"You didn't have to." Her gaze swept the room, pausing on the unconscious Zhao Tian. "And who's that?"
He hesitated for half a beat. "A rogue operator. With abilities."
Her jaw tightened. "Like yours?"
Silence.
She took a step forward. "I saw what happened at the explosion site. The way you moved... it wasn't human. Don't lie to me again. What are you?"
His voice was low, careful. "Still me. Just… upgraded."
Her expression crumbled just for a moment — not fear, not disgust. Something closer to hurt. "So it's true. You've changed. And you didn't trust me enough to tell me."
"I'm trying to protect you," he said.
"I don't need protection," she snapped. "I need the truth."
Lin Chen exhaled. "Fine. But I won't give it all at once. Some truths burn more than fire."
The system buzzed again.
[Alert: New Coordinates Discovered via Memory Fragment Extraction][Location: Suzhou – Underground Lab, Category: Dormant Genesis Node][Risk Level: High][Time-sensitive mission available: Infiltrate Genesis Node (Timer: 72:00:00)]
Li Chu glanced at the interface. "What is Genesis?"
Lin Chen paused. "…I think it's what made us."
Her brows knit. "Us?"
He nodded. "You're part of this too. You just haven't fully awakened yet."
As midnight approached, Lin Chen sat alone again.
The fight with Zhao Tian had changed something. The world wasn't just playing against him anymore — it was opening. Letting him peek behind the curtain. But for every answer, five new questions emerged.
He stared at the Ability Tree again. So many branches. So much potential.
So much danger.
He tapped the interface.
[Skill Enhancement Request – Quantum Evasion: Attempt Level Up? Cost: 2,000 Gold Coins]
He hesitated — then confirmed.
[Upgrade Successful – Quantum Evasion Lvl 2 Unlocked: Range extended to 12 meters. Can now blink mid-air.]
A new passive skill node flickered into view.
[Unlocked Passive: Spatial Balance – Reduces physical disorientation post-blink by 50%.]
A slow smile curled across his lips.
Miles away, inside a black chamber lined with surveillance monitors, a figure in white gloves watched the rooftop footage of Lin Chen's duel with Zhao Tian.
"Subject 07 survived," came a female voice in the shadows. "And worse, he's evolving faster than projections."
The gloved man folded his hands.
"Accelerate the release of the next host. No more testing. We need results."
"Yes, Director."
The camera paused on a single frame — Lin Chen mid-air, mid-blink, bathed in blue light.
The hunter had been born.
And Erebus was preparing to hunt back.