I felt as though I was drowning, the sensation both suffocating and paralyzing, as though an unseen force was dragging me into an abyss I could not escape. The world around me was cold, dark, and oppressive, an endless expanse of nothingness that threatened to consume every fragment of my being. My chest tightened, the air around me thick and unyielding, refusing to let me breathe. I clawed at the void, desperate for something solid, something real to hold onto, but there was nothing. Just emptiness. My arms flailed, reaching, searching, but it was all in vain.
Then, like a beacon piercing through the shroud of despair, I saw her. A figure standing amidst the darkness, her presence cutting through the icy grip that held me captive. It was her—Lian Xue. The sight of her stirred something deep within me, a spark of hope that I clung to with all my strength. Her silhouette was unmistakable, bathed in a faint, ethereal glow that contrasted sharply with the darkness around us. Her face was calm, almost serene, and yet there was an inscrutable expression in her eyes that made my chest ache. It was a look I couldn't fully understand—one that seemed to carry the weight of a thousand unspoken truths.
Her lips moved, but no sound reached me. I tried to step closer, to bridge the void between us, but my legs felt as if they were encased in cement. The harder I tried to move, the more the darkness seemed to push back, wrapping around me like chains, dragging me deeper into the suffocating abyss. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat a desperate plea for freedom. Why is this happening? I thought, panic clawing at my mind.
And then it hit me—a memory, sharp and vivid, cutting through the haze. Her voice, soft yet firm, echoing in my mind: "Trust me." Those words had once been my anchor, a promise I had believed in with every fiber of my being. But now, they felt like a cruel joke, a lie that had been whispered in the dark. The memory of her smile, warm and genuine, was now a bitter reminder of what I had lost. Betrayal. The word burned in my mind like a brand, filling me with a pain that was both physical and emotional.
"HOW COULD YOU DO THIS?!" I screamed, my voice raw and desperate, the sound reverberating through the void. The words tore from my throat, carrying with them all the anguish and fury that had been building within me. Her name erupted from my lips like a cry for salvation, though I wasn't sure if it was meant to summon her or curse her. "Lian Xue!" The name echoed in the darkness, each repetition growing fainter, as if the void itself was swallowing my voice.
But she didn't respond. She didn't move. She just stood there, watching me with that inscrutable gaze, her expression unchanging. The weight of her silence was unbearable, crushing me beneath its enormity. It felt as though she was judging me, her eyes piercing through my soul, laying bare all my fears and regrets. My heart wrenched in my chest, torn between the love I had once felt for her and the unbearable pain of her betrayal.
The darkness around me began to shift, growing colder, more suffocating. The faint light that surrounded her began to dim, flickering like a dying flame. No, I thought, panic rising within me. Don't leave. I reached out once more, my fingers straining toward her, but the distance between us only seemed to grow. The harder I tried to reach her, the farther away she seemed to drift, as if the void itself was conspiring to keep us apart.
"Lian Xue!" I screamed again, my voice cracking under the weight of my despair. "Why? Why did you do this?" My words were a plea, a demand, a cry for answers that I wasn't sure I wanted to hear. But she remained silent, her figure growing fainter with each passing moment. The darkness began to close in around me, swallowing her light, until all that remained was the memory of her face and the ache in my heart.
And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, it all vanished. The void, the cold, the darkness—gone in an instant, leaving me gasping for air as I awoke with a start.
A nurse immediately comes up to me and tells me, " You're finally awake."
I ask her what is the year and she says, " It's 2090, magic and science have merged together to created a beautiful but dangerous world. "
My shock only deepened, a cold weight settling in the pit of my stomach, as I forced the words out, my voice trembling with both fear and hope. "Do you… do you know someone named Lian Xue?" Each syllable felt heavy, as if speaking her name alone could summon memories I wasn't prepared to face.
The nurse paused, her expression unreadable, before she nodded. "Lian Xue?" she repeated, as though confirming the name. "Yes, she is currently the head of the Xue family, the largest conglomerate in all of China."
Her words hit me like a hammer, each one striking with unbearable force. I blinked, trying to process what she had just said, but the world seemed to tilt on its axis. Lian Xue, the head of a conglomerate? It felt impossible, surreal even, like a disjointed plot twist in a story too absurd to believe. My mind raced, pulling at fragmented memories and piecing together the image of the Lian Xue I once knew. The woman who had been a part of my life—warm, kind, and deceptively simple—was now being described as the most powerful figure in China?
How much time had passed? How much had I missed? My chest tightened, my breath catching as an overwhelming sense of disorientation swept over me. It wasn't just the confusion of hearing her name in such a context—it was the sheer impossibility of reconciling who she had been with who she apparently was now. My heart thudded painfully in my chest as questions flooded my mind. What had happened to her? What had happened to me?
Before I could muster the courage to ask more, the nurse was called away. She left quickly, sparing me only a brief glance over her shoulder, her expression one of faint concern. I wanted to call her back, to demand more answers, but the words wouldn't come. I was left alone with my thoughts, which spiraled out of control.
The silence in the room felt oppressive, the steady beep of the monitors a constant reminder of my fragility. I gripped the edges of the thin hospital blanket, my knuckles white, as I tried to steady myself. The image of Lian Xue lingered in my mind, haunting and vivid. Her face, so familiar and yet now so distant, danced in the forefront of my thoughts. The nurse's words played over and over again: head of the Xue family, the largest conglomerate in all of China.
A thought began to form, faint at first but growing louder and more insistent with every passing second. I had spent countless hours lost in novels, diving headfirst into worlds of fantasy, science fiction, and intricate systems that governed lives. It had always been a form of escape for me, a way to lose myself in something larger, something extraordinary. Those stories had carried me through darker times, offering solace and distraction. But now, those memories surfaced not as a comfort, but as a peculiar, tantalizing possibility.
My heart began to race, a strange mixture of fear and anticipation coursing through me. What if… what if there was something greater here? What if this wasn't just reality as I knew it, but something far more complex? The thought was absurd, irrational, and yet it latched onto me with unrelenting force. It wasn't just the idea of Lian Xue's impossible transformation or the mind-bending leap in time that I had apparently endured—it was the feeling deep within me that something was waiting to be discovered, something extraordinary.
With trembling hands, I sat up as much as my weakened body would allow. My gaze darted around the room, as if expecting to find some hidden clue, some sign that I wasn't alone in this. Taking a deep, unsteady breath, I allowed the idea to take full form.
"System Open," I said aloud, the words strange and unfamiliar on my tongue. My voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper, but the intent behind the command was clear. My heart pounded against my ribs, each beat reverberating in my ears as I waited, half-expecting nothing to happen and yet hoping beyond hope for something—anything.
For a moment, there was only silence. Then, the air before me shimmered faintly, like heat waves rising from asphalt on a scorching summer day. My breath hitched, my eyes widening as a translucent screen materialized before me, hovering in the air with an otherworldly glow. Lines of text began to appear, crisp and precise, as though responding directly to my thoughts.
A surge of exhilaration and disbelief coursed through me. I reached out tentatively, my fingers brushing against the screen, and though it was intangible, I could feel its presence—a faint hum of energy that made my skin tingle. This wasn't a dream. It couldn't be. This was real, and it was happening to me.
I stared at the interface, a mix of awe and trepidation flooding my senses. "System Open," I whispered again, this time with conviction, the possibilities unfurling before me like an endless horizon.