CHAPTER 85 – A New Antagonist Appears
White light, the pure, raw energy of the World Rewrite power, exploded from Xiao Xi's body.
A massive protective barrier blasted outward, instantly disintegrating the charging composite entities in one catastrophic sweep.
The digital void around them cracked like shattered glass under the pressure of the raw power.
Gu collapsed into her arms, flickering weakly but still present, still holding on.
Shen and Ling stood back, shielding themselves from the chaotic shockwave of creation and destruction.
When the light dimmed—
They were no longer in the void.
They stood in a vast, empty, stylized plaza of the newly written world… but the reality was terrifyingly twisted.
Buildings were half-rendered in the wrong colors.
Streetlights floated sideways.
The few nearby people were frozen mid-motion, their faces blurred.
Reality was actively glitching.
Xiao Xi's System chimed a new, chilling warning:
[Warning! Root Corruption Detected.]
[New Presence Overriding Rewrite Protocols.]
Xiao Xi's breath hitched, realizing the danger wasn't the ghosts of the past, but something entirely new.
"New… presence? What is it?"
Shen drew in a sharp breath, his golden energy spiking.
"I feel it too.
Someone strong.
Someone with immense control."
Ling whispered, her voice laced with dread. "Someone not from the original story. Someone created after the collapse."
Gu lifted his head weakly, his eyes scanning the broken reality.
"I know this presence…"
A cold, emotionless voice echoed across the broken city, resonant and perfect:
"Impressive, Xiao Xi.
You have a delightful capacity for destruction and creation."
A man stepped out from the shadows—tall, impeccably dressed, elegant, with eyes like polished silver.
He carried the aura of someone who existed outside all rules, all instability.
A being created by the rewrite itself.
The System whispered in genuine fear:
[Host… this is impossible. He is a PURE VARIABLE.]
[Born from your rewritten world's attempt at stability.]
[He is… the NEW ROOT.]
The man smiled gently, perfectly—and reality instantly smoothed and solidified around him, proving his complete control.
"Allow me to introduce myself," he said, his voice carrying the calm authority of a programmer.
"I am the Perfect Protagonist your new world created... to replace all of you who brought instability."
Xiao Xi's blood ran cold.
Gu forced himself up, pure, instinctual anger blazing in his flickering eyes.
Shen's aura flared, and Ling's light sharpened.
And the new antagonist bowed slightly, a gesture of elegant finality.
"Xiao Xi… Your messy, emotional world doesn't need you anymore."