Lin Xi did not know how long she had been sitting in the dark. The chair beneath her was cold and solid, like a block of stone carved into the shape of a seat. The air around her felt thick, as if it had weight, and her body began to feel numb from the stillness. The darkness was not empty—it had texture. It pressed against her skin like a wet cloth, and the faintest whisper of movement brushed past her ears.
Her phone was still on.
The screen glowed faintly in the dark, illuminating her hands. The live stream was still running, and the viewer count was still at seven.
She tried to move.
Her muscles responded, but her body felt heavy, as if gravity had doubled. She shifted her weight slightly, and the chair creaked. The sound echoed in the darkness, too loud, too clear. It was as if the chair itself wanted her to notice it.
The chat began to scroll again.
"Still there?"
"Don't move too much."
"Sit still. It likes stillness."
"Is she okay?"
"Streamer, you should be afraid."
Lin Xi swallowed. Her mouth felt dry, and she realized she was trembling.
"Okay," she whispered, trying to keep her voice steady. "I'm… okay. Just… a little tired."
The chat responded quickly, and the tone shifted.
"Don't lie."
"Lying makes it hungry."
"Tell the truth."
"Say your name."
Lin Xi's heart thudded.
Her throat tightened.
She looked at the screen, and the words on the chat seemed to be written in a different font now—sharper, more rigid. Like a handwriting that wasn't human.
"Say your name," the chat repeated, and the message appeared again immediately, as if the world itself was impatient.
Lin Xi swallowed hard.
"My name is Lin Xi," she said, and the words came out like a confession.
The darkness around her seemed to breathe.
For a moment, she thought she heard something moving in the distance, like footsteps.
She tried to look around, but the darkness was too thick. Her eyes could only see the faint glow of her phone.
The viewer count changed.
Lin Xi froze.
"Eight?" she whispered. "Why eight? There were seven."
The chat was silent.
The system message appeared on the screen:
[DAY 2: ACTIVE]
[ZONE: THE OBSERVATION ROOM]
[OBJECTIVE: CONFESS]
[WARNING: THE WATCHERS ARE HUNGRY]
Lin Xi's stomach twisted.
Confess.
The word felt like a knife.
She had never confessed anything to anyone in her life. She had always been the one who spoke, who performed, who pretended. Confession was something she associated with guilt, with weakness, with shame.
But the Live World was telling her that confession was the objective.
She looked down at her hands again. They were shaking.
The chat began to fill again.
"Confess something."
"Confess your biggest secret."
"Confess your biggest regret."
"Confess what you did to get here."
Lin Xi felt her breath catch.
She wanted to stop the stream.
She wanted to turn off the phone.
She wanted to close her eyes and pretend she was back in her room, safe, with her ring light and her chat full of jokes.
But she could not.
The Live World would not let her.
The darkness felt like it was watching her through her own eyes.
Lin Xi closed her eyes for a moment and tried to breathe.
She thought of the envelope.
The seven-pointed star.
The letter that said, IF YOU ARE READING THIS, IT'S TOO LATE.
She thought of the classroom.
The door.
The corridor.
The reflection.
The shadow.
The watchers.
She thought of the moment she realized she had become addicted to being watched.
She thought of the first time she had streamed.
She thought of the night she lost her voice.
She thought of the lie she had told herself to keep going.
She opened her eyes.
The chat had changed again.
The messages were no longer just comments. They were instructions.
"Say it."
"Say it now."
"Say it or we stop watching."
"Say it or we stop giving you gifts."
Lin Xi's throat tightened.
She felt sick.
She realized what the Live World was doing.
It was using the same weapon she had used on herself.
Attention.
The system had learned her weakness.
It had learned that she needed to be seen.
It had learned that she would do anything to keep the audience.
It had learned that she would confess anything to keep the viewers.
Lin Xi stared at the screen.
She thought about the viewer count.
Eight.
Who was the eighth viewer?
She felt a cold sensation crawl up her spine.
She whispered, "Who are you?"
The chat did not answer.
The system message appeared again:
[THE WATCHERS DO NOT REVEAL THEMSELVES]
[THE WATCHERS ONLY FEED]
[CONFESSION IS THE PAYMENT]
Lin Xi's mouth went dry.
She realized something else.
The Live World was not just a game.
It was a business.
It was a contract.
She had been selected.
She had been chosen.
She had been made to stream.
And the watchers were the ones paying.
She felt a sudden anger rise inside her.
She wanted to scream.
She wanted to break the phone.
She wanted to destroy the chair.
She wanted to run.
But the darkness was too heavy.
She could only sit.
The chat continued to push.
"Confess the thing you're most ashamed of."
"Confess the thing you never told anyone."
"Confess the thing you did for fame."
"Confess the thing you would do again."
Lin Xi's mind raced.
She thought of her past.
She thought of the time she had posted a fake charity stream to gain followers.
She thought of the time she had lied about her life to seem more interesting.
She thought of the time she had made fun of a viewer who confessed they were lonely.
She thought of the time she had used her own pain as content.
She thought of the time she had stayed online for hours when she was sick, just to keep the viewers.
She thought of the time she had been cruel to someone just to make them laugh.
She thought of the time she had laughed at her own tears.
She thought of the moment she realized she didn't know how to be alone.
Her mind felt like it was splitting.
The chat's messages became louder, more aggressive.
"Say it."
"Say it now."
"Say it or we leave."
"Say it or you die."
Lin Xi's heart pounded.
She felt tears welling up.
She did not want to confess.
But she knew she had to.
The Live World had made confession the objective.
If she refused, what would happen?
The system message appeared:
[FAILURE TO CONFESS WILL RESULT IN LOSS OF VIEWERS]
[LOSS OF VIEWERS WILL RESULT IN THE WATCHERS' ANGER]
[ANGER WILL RESULT IN YOUR END]
Lin Xi's throat tightened.
She looked at the phone.
She looked at the chat.
She looked at the darkness.
She took a deep breath.
And she began to speak.
"I… I used to be a good person," she said, voice shaking. "I used to think I was good. I used to think I was kind. I used to think I cared."
The chat was quiet.
She continued.
"But I… I became someone else."
She swallowed.
"I became someone who only cared about numbers. Likes. Views. Followers. Gifts. I became someone who would do anything for attention. I became someone who… used other people's pain as entertainment."
The chat began to move again.
"Keep going."
"Tell us more."
"Say the worst thing you did."
Lin Xi closed her eyes.
She felt the chair beneath her like a weight.
She forced herself to continue.
"I once made a viewer cry on stream," she said. "They told me they were lonely, and I… I joked about it. I made fun of them. I laughed. The chat laughed. I got more viewers that night. I got more gifts. I got more likes."
She swallowed hard.
"I didn't care that they were hurt. I only cared that I was popular."
The chat was silent.
Lin Xi opened her eyes.
The darkness felt darker.
The viewer count changed.
Nine viewers.
Her heart froze.
"Why nine?" she whispered.
The system message appeared:
[NEW VIEWER ADDED]
[CONFESSION INCREASES ENGAGEMENT]
[ENGAGEMENT INCREASES THE WATCHERS' HUNGER]
Lin Xi's stomach twisted.
She realized the truth.
The Live World was not satisfied with her confession.
It wanted more.
It wanted deeper.
It wanted her to confess something that would hurt her the most.
The chat began to push again, harder.
"Confess the thing you did to your friend."
"Confess the thing you regret."
"Confess the thing you never told your parents."
"Confess the thing you wish you could undo."
Lin Xi's breath caught.
She thought of her friend.
Her best friend from school.
The one she had ignored.
The one she had betrayed.
The one who had been there when she was lonely.
The one who had helped her when she first started streaming.
The one who had begged her to stop.
The one she had blocked.
She thought of the message she had never replied to.
The message that said, "I miss you."
Lin Xi's eyes filled with tears.
She whispered, "I hurt someone."
The chat responded instantly.
"Who?"
"Tell us."
"Say their name."
"Say what you did."
Lin Xi's voice broke.
"I… I used my friend's story," she said, "to get views. I posted about their family problems without permission. I made it sound dramatic. I made it sound like a tragedy. I made people feel sorry for me. I made people watch. I made people donate."
She swallowed hard.
"I didn't care if it hurt them. I didn't care if they were embarrassed. I didn't care if they were humiliated. I only cared about the numbers."
The chat went silent again.
The darkness around her felt like it was holding its breath.
The viewer count changed again.
Ten viewers.
Lin Xi's stomach dropped.
The system message appeared:
[CONFESSION COMPLETE]
[ENGAGEMENT LEVEL: MAXIMUM]
[REWARD UNLOCKED]
Lin Xi's heart pounded.
Reward?
She waited.
The darkness remained still.
The chair creaked softly.
Then the system message changed:
[REWARD: A DOOR]
[YOU MAY STAND]
[YOU MAY LEAVE THE CHAIR]
Lin Xi stared at the message.
Her hands shook.
She had expected punishment.
She had expected death.
She had expected something worse.
But a door?
A door meant escape.
A door meant progress.
A door meant the next stage.
She looked up.
The darkness began to shift.
A faint outline appeared in front of her, like a doorway forming out of the void. The edges were blurred, but she could see it.
A door.
A real door.
Not like the ones in the corridor.
This one had a handle.
This one had a keyhole.
This one looked like it belonged in a normal world.
The chat began to scroll again, but the tone had changed.
"Go."
"Don't trust it."
"Go now."
"Don't look back."
"Don't let it see you stand."
Lin Xi's heart pounded.
She stood up slowly.
Her legs felt weak.
She looked at the chair one last time.
The chair had been a prison.
But it had also been a place of truth.
She had confessed.
She had paid.
She had earned the right to move.
She reached for the handle.
Her hand closed around it.
The door was cold.
She turned the handle.
The door opened.
A bright light poured through.
Not blinding, but warm.
For the first time since she entered the Live World, Lin Xi felt something like hope.
She stepped forward.
And the darkness behind her closed, like a mouth shutting.
The chat exploded.
"YOU DID IT!"
"YOU'RE FREE!"
"YOU'RE ALIVE!"
"STREAMER, YOU'RE A LEGEND!"
Lin Xi walked through the door.
The light swallowed her.
And for a moment, she thought she was back in her room.
But she wasn't.
She was in a new place.
A place that felt like a stage.
A place that felt like a theater.
A place where the audience was waiting.
And the next world was already beginning.