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Chapter 2 - Chapter Two: The System That Whispers

I thought I'd hallucinated the system. Maybe a side effect of the trauma. But as the sky outside cracked into the soft orange of false dusk and the bitter cold seeped in through the stone floor, the red text still hovered quietly at the edge of my vision.

[Time Remaining: 68:47:13]

[Survive 72 hours. Kill count: 0. Current threats: 3.]

I curled my fingers around the rusted blade. It was heavier than it looked and poorly balanced, but it would do—for now.

The girl from earlier returned, clutching a chipped clay bowl full of water and a thin square of something resembling bread. Her fingers trembled as she set it down before me and knelt, forehead touching the floor.

"I swear, my lady—I didn't tell anyone."

"Your name?" I asked, voice hoarse from disuse.

"Qin'er," she whispered.

"Did you know the original Shen Li before I woke up?"

She nodded.

"What kind of woman was she?"

Qin'er hesitated. "…Cold. But clever. No one trusted her. She spoke to herself. Said the stars whispered to her. Said the Emperor feared her mind."

That... wasn't helpful. But it did confirm something.

[Host Memory Sync: 13%]

Partial Access: Original Host's Knowledge in Star Alchemy, Forbidden Arrays, and Minor Court Protocols unlocked.]

I sat up straighter. "Tell me about the court. Who benefits most from Shen Li's death?"

Qin'er paled, shaking her head. "Please, my lady. They say the palace walls have ears—even here."

"I don't need names. I need factions."

"There's only one faction left. The Empress Dowager's."

"And the Emperor?"

Qin'er's voice dropped to a whisper. "They say he hasn't spoken since… since the poisoning."

A part of me stiffened. "He's alive?"

She nodded. "Alive. But cursed. He doesn't eat. Doesn't leave the temple. Some say he calls out your name in his sleep."

That made no sense. The Emperor supposedly sentenced this body to death—why would he dream of her?

Unless he knew something.

[New Objective Added: Reach Capital. Confront the Emperor.]

Difficulty: Extreme

Reward: System Core Upgrade / Origin Path Unlock]

My thoughts were cut off by a distant thud—metal on stone. I shot up. Qin'er gasped, clutching my sleeve.

"Guards. They come every night… to check if you're dead."

A lovely routine.

[Warning: Host's current Vitality too low for sustained combat.]

Option: Activate Passive Spirit Sense? Y/N]

"Yes," I whispered.

Everything slowed.

For a brief second, the air pulsed. I felt… motion. A breath in the dust. The vibration of approaching footsteps through worn stone. Three men—one in front, two flanking—descending the hallway.

The system didn't just show me numbers. It translated movement into instinct.

I reached for the blade.

[Unlocking Host Technique: Gravitational Redirection - Level 0. Application: Improvised force transfer.]

My physics background surfaced. I had no spiritual energy, no core. But I understood momentum. I could redirect a charge. Twist a fall. Accelerate a knife.

The door cracked open.

The first guard entered slowly, armor scraped and dented, one hand on the hilt of his baton-like stunblade.

He froze when he saw me standing. "She's—"

I moved.

He raised the blade too slowly. I caught his arm with both hands, twisted, and shoved him sideways using his own weight. He crashed into the stone wall, and the blade clattered to the ground.

The second lunged in.

I ducked under his swing and jammed the rusted knife into the back of his leg, right behind the knee plate. He screamed and fell.

The third guard hesitated. I met his eyes—cold, imperial blue like half the court wore—and tilted my head.

"I suggest you run."

He turned and did exactly that.

I exhaled. The silence returned.

[Quest Updated: First Blood - Complete.]

+1 Combat Instinct

+0.5% Core Sync

+Basic Spirit Threads Unlocked]

My arms ached. My pulse thundered in my ears. But I was alive. And for the first time, I felt the spark of something ancient flicker at the center of my chest.

Spirit energy. Weak, but mine.

Qin'er stared at me like I'd grown wings. "You—what did you just do?!"

I wiped the rusted blade clean. "Physics."

"…Is that a cultivation method?"

"Now it is."

An hour later, the bodies were buried beneath the frozen soil outside the compound. Qin'er cleaned up the blood and locked the door. I sat by the window, staring at the twin moons that hovered just above the horizon.

They called this place the Dead Moon. A place for traitors to vanish quietly.

But I wasn't going to vanish.

I was going to ascend—and tear the stars from their thrones.

[Day 1 Complete. Survival Progress: 33%.]

[Reward: Host gains access to System Inventory.]

A soft chime rang out, and in my mind's eye, a list appeared—several faded items, most unusable.

But one caught my attention:

[Encrypted Data Cube: Shen Li - Pre-exile Memories]

[Decrypt? Warning: May overwrite existing identity fragments.]

I hesitated only a second. Then: "Do it."

The pain came fast. A flood of memories not mine—but now permanently mine. Flames. Screams. An alchemical lab deep within the palace. A silver vial. A whispered command. A betrayal sealed in gold ink.

When the visions faded, I sat still, breath ragged.

She hadn't poisoned the Emperor.

She had tried to save him.

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