Lin Xiao yanked off his VR headset, tossing it onto the desk in frustration. "That's it? What the heck was that?" he muttered, running a hand through his hair. The game had ended so abruptly, leaving him with more questions than answers.
He glanced around his room, still disoriented from the intense experience. The lingering adrenaline from the game's final moments slowly ebbed away, replaced by a growing sense of irritation. "This game is incomplete," he grumbled, turning back to the screen. "It just kicked me out."
Lin Xiao tried to voice his complaint to the system, but there was no response. The screen remained blank, devoid of any menus or options to provide feedback.
Instead, the VR headset slowly began to dematerialize before his eyes, fading away into nothingness.
"Seriously?" Lin Xiao groaned, watching the headset vanish.
He slumped back in his chair, feeling a mix of disappointment and confusion.
The game had been one of the most immersive and intriguing experiences he'd ever had, yet it left him hanging in the most unsatisfying way.
He was used to games that wrapped up with a clear conclusion or at least an option to replay and explore different endings. But this one... it felt as though it had been pulled out from under him just as it was getting good.
Lin Xiao shook his head, trying to make sense of it all. "What kind of game ends like that? No credits, no explanation, nothing?"
But as much as he complained, a small part of him was intrigued. The mystery of the village, the cryptic nature of the loop, and the unsettling final choice—all of it left an impression on him. He couldn't shake the feeling that the game had intended for him to feel this way, to be left in a state of unresolved tension.
Lin Xiao sighed, staring at the empty space where the VR headset had been. "I guess that's it, then. No going back now."
He got up from his toilet seat, feeling a strange sense of loss. The game was over, but the questions it left behind still lingered in his mind.
The system started calculating his rewards.
....
....
Deep in space, the New Twin Red Moons loomed ominously, casting an eerie, blood-red glow over the vast expanse.
The moons were barren, with rugged craters and jagged cliffs that seemed to stretch endlessly, illuminated only by the dim light from distant stars.
The atmosphere was thick with a sense of foreboding, as if the moons themselves were alive with dark secrets.
Nestled in the shadows of a deep crater was a small, dilapidated shack. The shack was old and worn, with wooden planks that looked like they might fall apart at any moment.
The windows were cracked, and the door creaked with the slightest breeze, as if it hadn't been opened in centuries. Vines with thorny tendrils clung to the exterior, twisting around the shack like they were trying to squeeze the life out of it.
Inside the shack, the atmosphere was even more unsettling. A single flickering candle cast long, dancing shadows on the walls, and the air was thick with the smell of damp earth and decay.
In the corner of the room, a girl sat in an old wooden chair. If Lin Xiao were here, he would immediately recognize her as the same girl from the game, the one who had appeared at the very end.
Her expression was calm, almost serene, as she slowly removed the VR headset from her head.
She turned her gaze toward the man standing behind her. His silhouette was barely visible in the dim light, but his presence was unmistakably powerful.
The girl's voice was quiet, almost a whisper, but it carried a weight that seemed to hang in the air.
"Boss, why did you make that kid get a demon's blessing?"
The man remained silent for a moment, his back turned to her. He seemed to be contemplating something, his gaze fixed on something unseen in the distance.
When he finally spoke, his voice was deep and resonant, filled with an unsettling calm.
"Because, my dear, every story needs a twist."
The man slowly turned around, revealing a face that was eerily familiar yet distinctly different—if Lin Xiao were here, he would have been shocked to see that this man bore a striking resemblance to him, only older and more weathered, with lines of experience etched into his features.
His eyes held a deep, unsettling wisdom, and a faint, knowing smile played on his lips.
"We need to make sure that the kid doesn't have good relations with the gods," the man continued, his tone deliberate and calculated.
The woman, still seated, looked up at him with eyes full of reverence, as if she was in the presence of something far greater than herself. "Boss, why is that kid so important?" she asked, her voice tinged with curiosity and a hint of fear.
The man's smile widened slightly, but there was no warmth in it. "Because," he said slowly, each word carrying an ominous weight, "he's the key to everything. The gods, the curse, and the superpowers—they're all tied to him,"
His words hung in the air, a chilling declaration of intent. The woman nodded, understanding the gravity of what he was saying, though she didn't fully grasp the depths of the plan.
The woman nodded, her mind racing as she tried to comprehend the enormity of the situation.
This man before her wasn't just powerful—he was like a god, his abilities beyond anything she could fully understand. The sheer magnitude of his power was something she had witnessed firsthand.
She recalled the moment he had created another moon with just a wave of his hand, effortlessly altering the very fabric of the universe.
The world below had been thrown into chaos, with nations scrambling to make sense of the sudden celestial anomaly, and scientists struggling to explain the impossible.
The New Twin Red Moons now hung ominously in the sky, a testament to his might and a constant reminder of the fragile balance he could disrupt at will.
She couldn't even begin to fathom how important this kid must be if someone like him—someone who could reshape worlds—was so focused on ensuring the boy's failure.
The thought sent a shiver down her spine. What kind of destiny awaited someone who had drawn the attention of such a being?
The woman's reverent gaze never wavered as she awaited further instructions, fully aware that whatever came next would be a part of something far beyond her understanding.