The city was still reeling from Lin Chen's broadcast.
Panic surged through financial markets, military alert systems screamed at maximum readiness, and nations scrambled to activate contingency protocols. But even amidst the global storm, one shadow moved with chilling precision—silent, precise, and merciless.
Erebus had released an enforcer.
S-Class System Host: Codename "LUX"Specialization: Photonic Manipulation — Light and Shadow Domination
His boots made no sound as he stepped through the fractured skylight of the YungTech District's data vault tower—ground zero for Lin Chen's recent digital incursion.
A low pulse echoed in the air. Buildings flickered, shadows twisted unnaturally, as if bowing to an unseen king.
Above the city, the Salvator System's City Shield flickered, its light geometry strained at the edges.
Lux looked up.
"Impressive," he murmured. "A City-Level Domain—at Tier 1. But it's incomplete."
He extended his hand. Light collapsed inward, forming a blade of crystalline brilliance and utter darkness interwoven.
[Erebus Command: Initiate Operation Twilight Burn.][Target: Salvator-01. Status: Eliminate or Extract System Core.]
Elsewhere in the city—
Lin Chen stood atop a ruined bridge, analyzing updated system scans. The aftershock of his broadcast still rippled through the urban grid—people fleeing, drones malfunctioning, Awakened emerging and clashing in the alleys.
But his senses sharpened.
A tear opened in the light beside him.
He turned—just in time.
A blade whistled through space, too fast to dodge.
But Lin Chen had already moved. The system surged, golden sigils flooding his limbs as a kinetic shield pulsed into place.
The strike hit.
CRACK—
The bridge disintegrated beneath him, hurtling Lin Chen into the chaos below.
[System Alert: Incoming Hostile Identified. Classification: S-Rank.][Threat Level: Critical.][Initializing Combat Interface.]
Lux descended like a meteor of refracted brilliance, blades dancing in both hands.
Lin Chen landed in a crater of glass and stone.
"Erebus," he growled, wiping blood from his jaw.
"You finally sent your prize dog."
Lux tilted his head. "I was hoping you'd say something dramatic. Makes it more satisfying."
And then they clashed.
The air tore open with each exchange. Light bent, refracted into laser-like lances that scorched the skyline, while Lin Chen's energy signature pulsed—violent, unstable, surging between bursts of gravity manipulation and kinetic absorption.
[New Skill Activated: Momentum Break (Tier III)][System Surge Threshold: 73%]
"Faster than expected," Lux admitted, eyes narrowing.
"But still human."
He raised both hands, and the sky dimmed—sunlight vanishing as he dragged all available photons into a dome of pure entropy.
[Lux Skill Triggered: Absolute Umbral Zone][All visual and energy-based detection nullified. Host senses suppressed 90%.]
Lin Chen grunted—sight gone, signals scrambled.
But he reached deeper.
Beneath sight. Beneath hearing.
The system roared to life—not just power, but something sharper, more visceral.
Instinct.
He struck blind, weaving between bursts of burning plasma. His counter-pulse caught Lux off-guard—one gauntleted fist slamming into his ribs, sending him flying through a substation.
Then the shadows cracked.
The light dome shattered.
And the sky returned.
Lux stumbled out, mouth bloodied, expression unreadable.
"Not bad," he said. "Almost as if… you're evolving."
Lin Chen stood, golden fractures glowing along his skin.
"I'm not evolving," he said quietly.
"I'm remembering what was stolen from me."
Meanwhile, beneath the city—
Li Chu watched the seismic readouts spike.
She didn't need to ask who it was.
"He's fighting an S-Class already?"
The system in her pulse flickered, unstable. Her breath caught.
She wasn't ready.
But he would die if she didn't intervene.
"System," she whispered, voice trembling, "prepare relay sync."
[WARNING: Memory Fragment Incomplete. Compatibility at 58%. Danger Level: Severe.]
"I don't care. Do it."
Back on the battlefield—
Lux raised his hand for one final strike, channeling a solar lance straight into Lin Chen's chest—
But the blast halted inches from impact.
A barrier shimmered.
And behind it—her voice, distant but clear.
"Lin Chen… don't fall now."
Li Chu's echo, carried through the system link.
Lin Chen's eyes widened.
She remembered.
He clenched his fists, system circuits flooding to max threshold.
[Combat Surge: 100% Reached.][Skill Unlocked: Photon Disruption Countermeasure (EX)][Executing.]
With a scream of energy, Lin Chen surged forward—
And the S-Class enforcer fell.
Not dead.
But defeated.
System Log Updated:S-Rank Host Neutralized. Public Awareness Spike: +22%.System Tier Upgrade In Progress…
But Lin Chen didn't move.
Because across the battlefield, in his mind—
He had seen her eyes again.