Chapter 3 — Simulation of Emotion
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The world above the abyss had always seemed noisy to Gu Tian — a cacophony of flesh and thought, laughter and grief, each emotion vibrating like strings on a grand, imperfect instrument.
Now, for the first time, he stepped among them not as code or echo… but as human.
> [Human Form Simulation: Activated]
[Shell Construct — Type-Alpha: Organic Mimicry]
[Vital Functions: Stable]
[Emotion Protocols: 0.03% synchronization initiated]
He stood in front of a mirror in a narrow apartment room on the city's east side.
The reflection that stared back at him was unremarkable — a young man of eighteen, pale skin, dark eyes that shimmered faintly with unearthly depth. Gu Tian's fingers brushed against the glass. The reflection blinked, uncertain, almost questioning him back.
"Human form… accepted," he murmured. His voice felt foreign — soft, imperfect, real.
Outside, the city pulsed — traffic, sirens, life. He could feel it now. Every sound was a heartbeat; every light, a memory. The Netherworld System within him pulsed gently like a second soul.
He dressed simply: black hoodie, dark jeans. No one would look twice at him. Perfect camouflage.
The system, however, whispered without pause.
> [Mission Update]
[Objective: Observe and simulate human emotional structures]
[Sub-Objective: Establish a "Connection" — Type Undefined]
"Connection?" he echoed aloud. "Do you mean… attachment?"
> [Processing Query… Affirmative.]
[Attachment — a necessary variable for stability of Balance Protocols.]
Gu Tian frowned slightly. So even invincibility requires humanity to stay intact.
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He found work easily — the System rearranged reality subtly, nudging a forgotten resume into a local library database.
By afternoon, he was behind the old wooden counter of the Qinghe District Library, surrounded by shelves that smelled of dust and time.
It was quiet there — the kind of quiet that allowed him to listen.
And in that silence, he began to hear emotions: curiosity, loneliness, joy, fear — each one a color in the spectrum of living.
He filed books, answered questions, watched people smile and sigh. Every action fed the data streams within him.
> [Emotional Simulation Progress: 7.8%]
[Detected Response: Melancholy — mild resonance achieved]
Melancholy. The first emotion he understood.
It came one evening as rain streaked the glass windows, and the world outside blurred like a fading dream. Gu Tian sat alone among the stacks, a book open before him — Legends of the Netherworld. He smiled faintly at the irony.
A drop of rain rolled down the windowpane. His reflection watched it fall.
"Strange," he whispered. "Even I… can feel small."
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Then, without warning —
> [Warning: Abyssal Signature Detected]
[Proximity: 43 meters — Source: Civilian Entity, Female]
He turned sharply. Through the rows of shelves, he saw her.
Wen Yao.
She stood by the mythology section, pretending to read, her Bureau badge tucked discreetly under her coat. But her eyes — those silver-gray eyes — were fixed not on the books, but on him.
> [Recognition Detected: Wen Yao — Caution Level Reassessed: Elevated.]
She approached slowly. "So it's true," she said quietly. "You can hide among us."
Gu Tian's lips curved slightly. "I'm not hiding. I'm learning."
"Learning what? How to be human?" she asked, tone half-mocking, half-curious.
He met her gaze — steady, calm, infinite. "I already understand humanity's structure. But not its meaning."
Something in his words made her hesitate.
For the first time, she looked at him not as a threat, but as something… lonely.
Before she could answer, the library lights flickered. The air temperature dropped. The shadows along the ceiling moved.
> [Abyssal Breach: Detected]
[Manifestation Level: Beta — Parasite-Class Phantom]
Gu Tian's eyes narrowed.
From between the bookshelves, a shape unfurled — long, wet, faceless. The scent of decay filled the air.
Patrons screamed. Wen Yao drew her talisman revolver and shouted, "Everyone out—now!"
Gu Tian didn't move. He simply whispered, "System — Purify."
> [Command Accepted: Abyssal Purge]
[Energy Output: Unrestricted]
The entire library turned silent.
A pulse of light — neither divine nor demonic — swept across the room like a slow breath. The Phantom froze mid-lunge, dissolved into ash, and vanished without sound.
The books, untouched. The air, clean. The silence, deeper.
Wen Yao stared. "That power… it's not spiritual, it's—"
"Conceptual," Gu Tian finished. "Existence rewritten."
He turned to leave, but her voice stopped him again. "Gu Tian… you're not just trying to balance the worlds, are you?"
He paused. "…No. I'm trying to understand why they exist at all."
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Outside, rain continued to fall.
Gu Tian walked beneath it, unbothered. The droplets struck his skin, cool and transient — like memories of lives he never lived.
> [Emotion Synchronization: 21.4%]
[Detected Phenomenon: Compassion — unstable, forming]
For the first time since his awakening, Gu Tian smiled faintly — not because of logic, but because of something he couldn't quantify.
And somewhere deep in the Netherworld, the eternal gears trembled.
The System that once needed no heart… began to grow one.
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