The forest was too quiet.
Not the eerie, corrupted quiet from the Rift—
but the heavy, suffocating quiet of something *watching*.
Jason Wu leaned against a shattered tree trunk, chest rising and falling as he tried to steady his pulse. Sweat rolled down his temples despite the cold wind.
"Prime," he finally said, voice hoarse, "I need you to tell me the truth."
The Observer Prime stood a few steps away, silver eyes scanning the fading ripples in the air where the Administrator had vanished.
Jason swallowed hard.
"…Am I actually supposed to be dead right now?"
**"Yes."**
Jason threw his hands in the air.
"Great! Amazing! Wonderful! I'm a walking bug report!"
Longwu Sword clicked its metaphorical tongue.
*["Boy, you've BEEN a bug since chapter one."]*
Jason groaned. "You're supposed to comfort me."
*["I comfort you by being honest."]*
"THAT'S NOT HOW COMFORT WORKS!"
The Prime turned to face Jason with the same expressionless composure she always carried—but now, there was a faint trembling in the air around her, like her presence was… unstable.
**"Jason Wu,"** she began, **"the Administrator did not simply arrive to execute you. His presence here marks a shift in protocol. A dangerous one."**
Jason frowned. "What shift?"
The Prime paused.
**"He has moved you to a higher threat tier."**
Jason blinked.
"…There are TIERS?"
**"Yes."**
"How many?"
**"Seven."**
Jason rubbed his face.
"So what tier am I now? Three? Four?"
The Prime shook her head slowly.
**"…Tier Zero."**
Jason froze.
Then he screamed.
"WHY IS ZERO WORSE THAN SEVEN?! WHO NUMBERED THIS SYSTEM?!"
Longwu chimed in.
*["The same lunatics who send Sentinels to delete children, obviously."]*
Jason grabbed Longwu by the hilt, shaking it furiously.
"WHY ARE YOU MAKING IT SOUND LIKE A NORMAL TUESDAY—?!"
*["Because for your bloodline, it will be."]*
Jason dropped the sword, horrified.
"I'm gonna pass out again… I swear I'm gonna pass out again…"
The Prime continued calmly, ignoring Jason's meltdown.
**"Tier Zero is reserved for anomalies that cannot be allowed to evolve."**
Jason froze.
"…Evolve?"
**"Yes. Because anomalies of your type can one day destabilize entire realms."**
Jason stared in stunned silence.
Me?
Destabilize realms?
He wanted to laugh.
He wanted to cry.
Instead he said—
"Prime, I'm barely strong enough to fight forest monsters! How am I an existential threat?!"
Longwu hummed thoughtfully.
*["Your potential is terrifying, boy."]*
*["Your future self probably breaks rules these idiots have never seen before."]*
Jason yelled, "STOP CALLING ME TERRIFYING LIKE IT'S A COMPLIMENT!"
The Prime interjected:
**"The Administrator's next move will be to escalate his approach."**
Jason swallowed.
"In what way?"
**"He will send…"**
She hesitated.
Her eye-lights flickered.
Jason's stomach dropped.
"…he will send what?"
Instead of answering, she stepped closer and placed a hand on Jason's shoulder.
It was the first time she had ever touched him.
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
**"Jason Wu.
You must leave this realm. Immediately."**
Jason stiffened.
"…Leave? You mean run?"
**"Not run."**
The Prime looked upward—toward the sky, where faint cracks shimmered like thin threads of glass.
**"Flee."**
Jason's throat tightened.
"…To where?"
**"Anywhere the Administrator's influence is weaker."**
Jason laughed nervously.
"Yeah, okay. I'll just *hop* to another realm. Super easy. Totally doable. No problem at a—"
The Prime raised her hand.
A glyph opened under Jason's feet—
circular, ancient, humming with a force deeper than qi.
Jason panicked.
"WAIT—WAIT—WHAT DOES THIS DO?!"
**"Hides you."**
Jason took a step back.
"Prime… I can't just run away! Lan Yuren, Wei Qing—they're still in this realm!"
**"I will protect them."**
Jason stared at her.
"And you? What about YOU?"
The Prime held his gaze for a long moment.
**"I will delay the Administrator."**
Jason's stomach twisted painfully.
"You CAN'T fight him—"
**"Correct."**
"THEN—?!"
**"But I can slow him."**
Jason felt something inside him break.
He whispered, "Why… why are you doing this?"
For the first time ever—
The Prime smiled.
A tiny smile.
Barely visible.
But real.
**"Because you should live."**
Jason's breath caught.
Longwu was silent.
The Prime raised her hand again.
The glyph brightened.
Jason panicked and tried stepping out—but the Prime grabbed his wrist and held him in place with surprising strength.
**"Jason Wu."**
Her voice was soft.
**"Running is not cowardice."**
**"Running is a strategy."**
Jason clenched his jaw, fists trembling.
"…You better not die."
The Prime didn't answer.
Instead, she whispered:
**"Go."**
The glyph activated—
Light surged upward—
Reality around Jason folded like paper—
And the world swallowed him whole.
---
### **THE PRIME'S LAST STAND (Interlude)**
The moment Jason vanished, the forest bent inward—
as if inhaling.
The Prime's metallic eyes dimmed.
She turned toward the sky.
The Administrator appeared.
Not walking.
Not stepping.
He simply *was.*
**"Prime-03,"** he said, his voice devoid of emotion.
**"Locate the anomaly."**
She responded calmly.
**"No."**
A pause.
The air cracked around her.
The Administrator's mask tilted slightly.
**"Then you are obsolete."**
The Prime's body trembled.
But she held her ground.
**"So be it."**
The sky shattered.
The Administrator raised a hand—
And the world turned white.
---
### **JASON—SOMEWHERE ELSE**
Jason stumbled out of the distortion, collapsing on grass that shimmered like liquid silver.
He gasped for air, dizzy, disoriented, shaking.
His voice barely came out.
"Prime…?"
No answer.
Longwu spoke quietly.
*["…Boy."]*
*["This realm is not safe either."]*
Jason clenched his fists.
A cold, furious determination ignited in his chest.
"…Then I'll get stronger."
Longwu hummed approvingly.
*["Good."]*
Jason rose slowly.
Eyes sharp.
Anger burning under his skin.
"…I'll get strong enough to destroy every system that wants me dead."
The wind blew.
Something stirred in the strange silver trees.
Jason tightened his grip on Longwu.
"Come on then…"
He exhaled sharply.
"…show me the next hell."
---