Sim paused before the enormous double doors. He had hesitated just long enough to check his stats—an unexpected gift: one skill point and five stat points. Memories of a manhua character who had invested everything in speed flooded his mind. Without a moment's hesitation, he allocated all his stat points to speed. The system then offered him a choice among three skills. His heart pounded as he chose Dash—a move that allowed him to surge forward in a straight line with unmatched velocity.
Beyond the door lay an open arena, where a chained dragon awaited. The creature's massive form was confined by glowing chains, and a countdown timer loomed overhead—one hour until the chains broke. Sim steeled himself; though he felt a flicker of shock at the sight of the beast, he took solace in the chains that temporarily held it back.
As the battle began, the dragon's eyes burned with fury. Its chained state allowed it sporadic bursts of fire, and despite his honed speed, Sim soon discovered that evasion alone would not suffice. The arena's fragile boundaries groaned under the force of the conflict. One moment, Sim dashed forward, weaving through obstacles and dodging blasts of flame. The next, the timer struck zero. With a deafening roar, the chains shattered.
The beast transformed before his eyes into a towering lava dragon—a creature of molten fury. In the ensuing chaos, Sim's efforts to dash away were met with brutal retaliation. A solid hit sent him crashing to the ground. Lying half-burnt, his arm gone, he cursed bitterly under his breath, "I've never been the brain type…" In that desperate moment, as his vision blurred and his last breath seemed imminent, a system message flashed urgently:
"Hidden Skill Unlocked: Substitute."
Without a word, the hidden power surged into him. In an instinctive reaction born from hours spent playing Wukong-themed games, Sim tapped into those long-dormant memories. Suddenly, his body pulsed with energy. His weapon—a simple stick moments ago—expanded in size as he summoned the legendary clone skill. Dozens of clones, echoing the ferocity of Wukong himself, materialized around him. Their combined assault overwhelmed the lava dragon, whose once indomitable form staggered and fell.
As the beast collapsed in a cascade of fire and molten rock, the system displayed one final, earth-shattering message:
"System Override: Player No Longer Contained."
In that breathtaking moment, Sim realized he was free—he had been removed from the system's strict control. No longer did he need to endure tutorial after tutorial; he was now in the main world, forever changed by his own defiance.