Darkness.
Then silence.
When Su Zhan finally opened his eyes, he felt… heavy. His head throbbed. The world was still spinning when he realized there was someone lying next to him—someone naked.
Li Xiaolu.
For a few seconds, he simply stared, blankly. Then the memories came rushing back—the fight, the rage, the hunger… and then that uncontrollable surge that had drowned out every thought in his head.
"Damn it…" He rubbed his temple. "Looks like I went too far."
He glanced at Li Xiaolu's unconscious form, her face pale, her breathing shallow. Guilt twisted in his chest—an emotion he hadn't felt in a long time.
He hadn't meant to lose control. He hadn't meant for this.
"It must be the Dark Heart," he muttered. "That thing… it's changing me."
The craving, the anger, the raw thrill of domination—it wasn't just psychological anymore. It felt alive inside him.
When he looked out the window, the sky was already black. Night had fallen.
He checked his internal timer—less than an hour left before the instance ended.
"Tch. Time's almost up, and I haven't even found the main boss yet."
He needed more powers—telekinesis, mind control, anything—but now everything he'd stolen seemed to have vanished.
Frowning, Su Zhan focused, trying to activate his abilities one by one.
Nothing.
The sound waves—gone.
The precognition—silent.
Even the memory erasure—dead.
Only his original fire control answered his call.
"Perfect. Just perfect." He sighed. "Did all that work for nothing?"
Still, when his eyes drifted back to Li Xiaolu, lying motionless, he couldn't help but feel a pang of remorse. There were traces of blood on the sheets—proof of how violently he'd lost control.
He clenched his fists. "I really screwed up this time."
Maybe it was best to cut his losses. The mission was technically complete—he'd acquired more than three powers. The system would recognize that.
"Fine," he said quietly. "I'll leave this world as is. When the cycle resets in thirty days, I can come back… and do it right."
He stood, picked up a piece of paper from the desk, and scribbled a quick note before dressing Li Xiaolu, covering her with a blanket.
"Sorry, kid," he said softly. "You didn't deserve any of this."
A calm, synthetic voice echoed in his mind.
[Instance time ending. Returning to host world.]
The scene dissolved like smoke.
The next second, Su Zhan was back—in the passenger seat of Skye's car. She wasn't there.
He exhaled slowly. "Back again."
The relief didn't last. "System," he called. "What the hell happened back there? Why did I lose control? Was it because of the Dark Heart? I could feel the evil in me… like it wanted to take over."
The system responded in its usual, emotionless tone:
"Instance mission completed. Reward: System energy upgrade—value undetermined."
"Yeah, yeah. Skip the stats. Explain the rage."
"Loss of control was not due to the Dark Heart," the voice replied. "It was caused by the excessive number of abilities devoured in a short period. The host's body requires time to assimilate and neutralize conflicting energies. Rapid devouring exceeded stabilization capacity, resulting in temporary overload."
"So basically," Su Zhan said, leaning back, "I OD'd on power."
"Correct. Your physiology will adapt. The temporary loss of new abilities is part of the recalibration process. Once complete, all devoured powers will return."
Su Zhan smirked. "So I didn't lose them for good. That's something."
He paused. "System, with all that energy—can you upgrade now?"
"Insufficient energy for full upgrade."
"Figures." He chuckled dryly. "You're one hungry machine."
Just then, the car door opened. Skye climbed in, relief flooding her face when she saw him.
"You're back! Where did you go? I woke up and you were just gone—your phone didn't even ring!"
Su Zhan smiled, masking everything with easy charm. "Relax. I just went to check out a restaurant I read about online. Thought I'd surprise you. Turned out to be a dump. Guess I wasted the trip. And, uh… no signal out there, apparently."
Skye frowned, half irritated, half relieved. "You scared me, you know that? I thought something happened to you."
He reached over, brushing her hair back. "I promise, next time I'll leave a note. Okay?"
She softened immediately. "Fine. But don't disappear on me again. I don't care about restaurants—I care about you."
"Noted, ma'am." He grinned. "But since we're both here… how about dinner now? I'm starving."
Skye laughed, the tension melting away. "Of course, handsome. Let's go eat."
As the car pulled away, Su Zhan leaned back, eyes half-closed, the city lights flickering across his face.
He could still feel it—the darkness, sleeping deep in his veins, whispering promises of more power, more chaos.
And he smiled.
Because deep down…
he knew he'd listen.