Tia Xu was already dead.
He knew it with absolute certainty.
The moment his foot slipped from the edge of the Rift, there had been no fear. No scream. No struggle.
Only acceptance.
Falling felt… endless.
*Wind roared past him, Biting against his skin as the world above grew smaller… distant… unreal.
Then—
A flicker.
VRRRT—
The air cracked.
A screen appeared mid-fall.
[SOUL DETECTED.]
Tia's eyes narrowed.
"…What?"
The air around him froze.
Even the fall stopped for a second.
[INITIATING SELECTION PROCESS...]
[ PROCESSING.....]
Tia's body trembled.
Not from fear.
From pressure.
Something was pressing against his existence, like he was being weighed by something unseen.
"…Selection?"
[FAILED CANDIDATE DETECTED.]
A pause.
Then—
[REPROCESSING SOUL STRUCTURE…]
A sharp crack echoed through his mind.
Tia finally screamed.
"AGH—!"
Pain tore through him—searching
Then silence again.
[ERROR.]
[ERROR.]
The screen flickered violently.
Red light spread through the space.
[CONNECTION UNSTABLE.]
Tia gasped, barely conscious.
"…What is happening to me…?"
Then the system stabilized.
Completely.
Cold.
Certain.
[TERMINATION FAILED.]
[SELECTION OVERRIDDEN.]
A longer pause.
Then—
[WELCOME, SECOND CHANCE CANDIDATE.]
Tia stared at the words.
Silent.
"...Second chance?"
The word felt distant.
Meaningless.
A bitter smile touched his lips.
Second chance?
For what?
Another life?
Another failure?
Another thirty years chasing legends that never existed?
The wind continued to howl around him.
The Rift waited below.
Endless.
Tia slowly closed his eyes.
"...I'm already dead."
Whatever this was—
A dream.
The final trick of a dying mind.
He no longer cared.
The system remained silent for a moment.
Then—
[REALITY BINDING INITIATED.]
Tia frowned slightly.
Darkness surged upward.
Swallowing the sky.
the Rift.
And him.
And just before
everything disappeared—
A strange feeling gripped his chest.
Not fear.
Not hope.
Something far more unsettling.
Then—
The world went dark.
**********
Isolation's Note:
The opening of this story is a little slower than usual.
It's full of mysteries, and a world that need time to unfold.
This isn't the story of a hero.
Nor is it the story of a protagonist chasing power for its own sake.
It's the story of someone who already reached the end of his life...
Only to be forced back to the beginning.
A man searching for answers.
For meaning.
For the reason he was given a second chance.
If you're looking for instant power from the very beginning, this may not be that story.
,
But.
If you're looking for struggle, survival, mysteries and a protagonist determined to uncover the truth—
then welcome aboard.
Ps:The author definitely has a brilliant plan.
Maybe.
Probably.
Hopefully.
Definitely.
Anyway, thank you for reading.
Now...
Turn the page.!!!!