Chapter 1

The moment he opened his eyes, all he saw was an impenetrable darkness.

"Where am I? How did I end up here?"

Su Ji was taken aback, feeling somewhat bewildered by his situation.

He was a recent graduate, a corporate drone who had been unemployed for some time and had been staying at home ever since.

He enjoyed the freedom of not having to work, but at the same time, he felt the pressure of his dwindling finances.

Just a moment ago, he was still hiding under the covers, watching some high-definition, uncensored educational materials to relieve his anxiety. How did he end up in this place all of a sudden?

"Did I travel through time?" Su Ji wondered.

And everything in front of him seemed pitch black, with nothing visible.

The chill on his skin was very noticeable; he felt as if he were lying on a hard, cold stone floor.

【The damp, cold sensation in your crotch woke you up. You looked around in panic and confusion, but found no source of light.】

"What is this?"

Su Ji sat up, staring at the strange text that appeared before him, and instinctively touched below... damn, it really was wet?

At that moment, he heard a dripping sound, as if small droplets of water were continuously falling from above.

No wonder... Su Ji supported himself on the ground and slowly stood up, his gaze shifting to the deep, dark void before him.

"So, what should I do next?"

"Where should I go?"

Su Ji was momentarily at a loss.

This place was incredibly dark, like being trapped in a giant black box where nothing could be seen, let alone considered where to go.

"Alright, let's try taking a few steps forward..."

Su Ji randomly chose a direction based on his mood and took a step forward. Then, with a thud, his forehead hit something hard.

"Ouch..."

Su Ji held his forehead, his features contorting in the darkness as he involuntarily drew in a sharp breath.

It hurt, it really hurt.

【Oh my God, this is amazing! You are the first player to hit a wall right at the start. Let's give a round of applause for your natural luck!】

Su Ji felt a bit frustrated. Why did this damn system seem to be asking for a beating... and its only function was to gloat and make sarcastic remarks? Wasn't it a bit useless?

After standing in place for a while to recover, Su Ji, who had become slightly more clear-headed, began to observe the dim surroundings again.

【The pain in your forehead gradually made you calm down.】

【This is a pitch-black prison.】

【Spiders and insects lurk in the dark corners, silently watching your back.】

...

Strange text appeared before his eyes again, like a group of elves holding hands and tap-dancing.

Just as he was puzzled, Su Ji noticed that in addition to the text, a small, flashing cursor that could be controlled by his thoughts seemed to appear where his gaze focused.

After thinking for a moment, Su Ji realized, "Is this supposed to mean I should edit the text?"

A bold idea immediately sprang to mind.

He extended a finger, pointed at a certain part of the text in front of him, and drew a slash.

—He crossed out the character "不" (not).

【Backspace successful!】

The sudden system prompt startled Su Ji.

A new sentence reformed and glowed, indicating its completion.

The "不" that Su Ji had deleted quickly became blurry and faded, disappearing rapidly.

The remaining text rearranged itself and soon formed a new sentence.

【New: This is a prison where you can see your hand in front of your face.】

As the sentence formed, a bright light appeared in front of Su Ji.

On a table about three to four meters away, a delicate silver candlestick was placed.

The single red candle on it, which had been lit at some point, emitted a flickering orange glow, quickly dispelling the surrounding darkness.

Now he could really see his hand in front of his face.

"So this is how it works," Su Ji murmured.

Great, I'm gradually understanding everything...

Su Ji slowly approached and closely examined the candlestick.

It seemed no different from an ordinary candlestick, except that above the flame, a small Arabic numeral—3—could be seen.

"Number 3? What does this mean?"

Su Ji had a new question.

But with no immediate answers, he shifted his gaze to other areas.

He then discovered a key on the table.

【A yellowed, old brass key, though small, seems capable of opening a heavy door.】

"A good find!"

Su Ji's heart skipped a beat as he immediately picked it up and instinctively scanned the surroundings.

Soon, he vaguely saw the only square door in the prison in the light of the candlestick.

With that, there was no need to think much more.

Su Ji walked over, his gaze sweeping over the rusted door, and directly inserted the brass key into the lock, turning it.

Click.

The crisp mechanical sound from the lock told Su Ji that he had succeeded.

【You opened the door, and the air outside smelled so fresh and sweet... like love.】

"Nice!"

Su Ji couldn't contain his excitement. He pulled the iron door open with both hands, and in the creaking sound of the door, he eagerly looked at the scene behind it...

But everything was different from what he had imagined.

Behind the door was not a path to freedom, but a small, closet-like space.

And the only thing inside was a huge black sphere.

After Su Ji opened the iron door, it rolled into the prison with a rumble.

It looked quite cute, with a fuse on top that was still sparking and sizzling.

【A bomb filled with powerful black powder, already ignited.】

【But rather than a bomb, it is a grand and beautiful work of art—after all, art is explosion, don't you think?】

Su Ji: "…?"

Boom!

A deafening explosion echoed throughout the prison, and a massive, violent shockwave shook the surroundings.

In the next moment, the narrow prison walls crumbled, and everything around him was instantly buried in tons of dust and ash.

The scene in his field of vision instantly turned into endless darkness.

Amid a long ringing in his ears, Su Ji vaguely saw mysterious text appear before his eyes.

【The intense explosion tore your internal organs, the high temperature instantly boiled your blood, your limbs were disintegrated, and your bones were shattered.】

【The collapsing earth and rocks poured down like a heavy rain, burying your fragile, eggshell-like body, reducing it to dust.】

【You are dead.】

...