1
00:00:10
The HUD winks out—like yanking headphones from the world.
Chen Yanxi stands in the abandoned gas station; the only sound is her own pulse.
044's blue light dies. No countdown, no arrows, no numbers.
Only rain, engine heat, and three sets of breathing.
2
00:01
Fei Ye kills the bike, tosses his helmet onto a rusted drum.
Metal clanks, echoing.
"No more GPS?"
She crouches, fingers tracing oil slicks—wind direction, exit angles.
Qi Si darkens his phone screen; the moment it blacks, he's half a step closer.
"Ten minutes and company comes."
Shen Yan's Maybach idles fifty meters away—no headlights, just a low growl.
He leans against the door, knuckles tapping the frame like a metronome.
3
00:02
Rain slams open—someone turned a faucet.
She drags a hand across her face; fingertips come back black with oil, taste of metal.
Fei Ye flicks open a folding knife—handle still warm from his grip.
"For protection—or for me?"
She tests the edge; blood beads, bright and real.
No [-5 HP] banner, only salt.
Qi Si whispers from the left: "Back gate, follow me."
Shen Yan calls through the rain: "My car—or we all get photographed."
Three offers, no system prompts.
4
00:03
Headlights rake the lot—white, blinding.
Campus patrol.
Qi Si's fingers lock her wrist; Fei Ye steps between her and the beams;
Shen Yan opens the rear door like an invitation from Death.
She shakes them all off and runs into the downpour.
Mud splashes her calves—cold warnings.
5
00:04
Half-collapsed chain-link fence behind the station.
She vaults; barbed wire slices her palm—pain sharp and clean.
No interface, only blood threading between fingers.
Footsteps—three pairs, two-second intervals—behind her.
She dives into wet underbrush. Leaves slap like open palms.
6
00:05
An abandoned warehouse, rain drumming rusty iron.
She crouches behind a barrel, teeth chattering.
A lighter flares—orange dot outlining Fei Ye's jaw.
"Scared of the dark?"
She snatches the flame, kills it.
"Scared of the light."
Qi Si's voice drifts from the left: "Patrol's gone."
Shen Yan's boots stop on the right: "Driver's two minutes out."
She stays silent, rain hammering the roof like a timer.
7
00:06
Her fingers find a shard of glass—cuts again, pain focuses the mind.
No dashboard, only raw calculus:
Enemies 3, stamina 70 %, exits 2.
She chooses the third—vanish alone.
Slips the shard into her boot—improvised blade.
8
00:07
Warehouse rear door opens onto storm drains.
She drops; knee hits concrete with a dull thud.
Sewage up to ankles—slippery, foul.
Bites back a grunt, hugs the wall like a lizard.
Three flashlight beams sweep overhead, cross then fade.
9
00:08
Beams gone, rain softer.
She climbs the far ledge, soaked, phone battery at one bar.
No signal, no map, no countdown.
Lightning splits the sky—
For the first time she laughs—
the world without cheats is blinding.
10
00:09
Flash reveals a road sign:
"South Bay Marina 2 km"
She wipes sewage from her face, grips the glass shard tighter.
First step into murky water.
Second step into unknown.
Third—
A faint blue pulse flickers in her pupil:
[System reboot 90 %]
She doesn't look back.
She keeps walking.