It started like any other day.
Shen Hao was in school, sitting in math class. Like always, he wasn't paying attention — his eyes were fixed on the window, lost in thought.
That's when the shaking began.
At first, he thought nothing of it. Maybe he was just tired. Maybe his head was spinning from too much studying. But then... he heard screaming.
He snapped out of his daze and looked around. What he saw made his blood run cold.
The entire classroom was shaking.
The floor trembled. Desks rattled. The lights flickered.
It wasn't just in his head — the whole school was shaking.
The tremors were weak at first... but quickly grew stronger. Students began to panic. Girls screamed. Boys rushed around, trying to help others evacuate. Teachers stayed calm and guided everyone out of the building.
Shen Hao sat frozen for a moment, too shocked to move. Then he took a deep breath and told himself:
> "It's just an earthquake. Everything's going to be fine. Just evacuate... it'll be over in a few minutes."
But just as he stood up, ceiling fans began falling one after another, slamming into the floor. Panic turned to chaos.
Shen Hao rushed to the door.
But the moment he stepped out of the classroom, a sharp, unbearable pain hit his head.
It was like his skull was cracking open.
He collapsed to the ground, vision blurry, ears ringing. For a few seconds, he couldn't move.
And then... he saw something.
In the dark corner at the end of the hallway... a faint blue figure.
He squinted, trying to make out what it was. But everything was blurry. His head was spinning. And before he could even blink again, the figure vanished.
> "What... was that?"
He didn't have time to think.
He pushed himself up and stumbled out of the building with the others, fighting through the pain.
Outside the school, fresh air hit his face. But just as he thought it was over — the headache came back.
Harder.
Worse.
He clutched his head, screaming. The pain was too much.
Students and teachers nearby turned to him, concerned — but Shen Hao couldn't hear them anymore. The pain drowned out every sound.
And then...
A voice echoed inside his mind.
Deep, ancient... and calling out his name with terrifying power:
> "SHEN HAO!!"
"SHEN HAO!!!"
"SHEN HAAAAO!!!!"
Over and over, louder each time.
The voice thundered in his skull like a storm. His body trembled. His knees gave out. His vision turned dark.
And then...
Everything went silent.
Shen Hao collapsed to the ground — unconscious.
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