Chapter 45: OP!

Amid the singing, the boy sprinted faster along the steam pipes, finally gathering all his strength for a leap.

His silhouette was cast sharply against the blazing sunlight.

Then.

Several familiar figures sprang forth one after another from behind him.

They were the comrades who had stood shoulder to shoulder with Lin Zhen in the first episode.

The group fell from the sky, and the moment their feet touched the ground, the camera seamlessly cut.

Acid rain pattered down, the sky iron-gray, and in the distance, the Garbage Ejectors tilted endlessly, pouring out massive heaps of waste like towering waterfalls.

Flocks of Star Bandits encircled the boys and girls, a killing intent thick in the air.

The battle was about to erupt; the song gradually swelled with passion.

But before it could reach its emotional peak, everything plummeted with Lin Zhen’s capture.

The scene darkened, then brightened again, now inside a huge silver chamber filled with countless Collars and sleep pods.

Lin Zhen emerged from his sleep pod, crawling forward on the ground like a chrysalis, the camera firmly locking onto the unyielding fire in his eyes as fragments of past happiness flickered all around.

Empty.

The song rose again with his advance.

Until…… faint sobbing quietly echoed.

The camera, like Lin Zhen’s eyes, followed the sound and suddenly snapped back to look.

In the boundless darkness, only a spotlight shone down on a blue-haired girl in an elegant long dress, bowed and crying.

At that moment, Lin Zhen’s singing was gently but firmly taken over by a soft female voice:

“We are lost vessels adrift in the star sea, exiled by fate on a barren shore……”

The camera shifted with the singing.

Lin Zhen and Yun Ruoxi appeared on opposite sides of the screen, the center a path lit by countless spotlights.

Around them, the cries and footsteps of other trainees gradually faded away.

Lin Zhen stepped toward the girl, reaching out his hand.

The camera circled the two, and at this moment, the song quietly paused.

In the two seconds of black silence, even the audience instinctively held their breath, forgetting to send comments.

Until the girl trembled, slowly extending her right hand, which Lin Zhen grasped firmly.

The song resumed, reaching its climax! It was a duet between Lin Zhen and Yun Ruoxi:

“The night swallows all echoes, the palm clenches shattered stars.”

The boy led the girl through Darkness toward the light.

Their skirts and sleeves fluttered together, like a grand escape welcoming the dawn.

All the pent-up emotions burst free, comments flooding like a dam breaking.

“Sweet sweet sweet!”

“This scene is too beautiful! Anyone good with editing want to photoshop the lyrics on top? I want it as my wallpaper.”

“Such a sweet voice! Does anyone know who voices Yun Ruoxi? QAQ”

“OP had this big a budget? Netflix really is filthy rich!”

Yet, escape and “grandeur” inevitably diverged.

At the end of the sunlight, it was not light but countless Collars shimmering with cold gleams.

The camera shifted from Lin Zhen and Yun Ruoxi to the Collars.

The first trainee appeared in the darkness—0001, who climbed Collar Mountain without hesitation.

“Damn, a dog!”

“The dog’s here!”

“First one to volunteer as the dog (thumbs up)!”

Then the screen changed, leaving only the silver-white Collar marked 0001 in the dark.

In the stirring yet somber interlude, a crisp “click” sound echoed—the sound of a Collar closing.

Then.

Click, click…… countless Collars shut one after another!

Lin Zhen’s voice rose again:

“Awakened in an iron cage, the gloom of numbers etched on the neck.”

The scene shifted to a station, a drone-like overhead view sweeping past nearly ten thousand trainees.

Zi Jiu, Yun Che, Kaios, Tie Anvil, and 0001 all received about a second of close-up each.

Finally, the camera settled on Instructor Behemoth’s face, who slowly pulled a cold smile.

The OP’s pace suddenly quickened.

Check-ins, dormitory assignments, being beaten in the bath, eating raw meat, virtual space lessons, and physical training were all shown in rapid succession, each lasting only a second or two.

Of course, Yun Ruoxi crying while eating raw meat—her classic battle—was included.

As the scenes flashed by, comments ran wild:

“Tastes so bad I cried!”

“The school’s food is just like this!”

“Must be the West Lake Vinegar Fish they served!”

After the scene where the main cast met Lin Zhen, the OP reached its latter half, focusing on highlights from the third episode’s monthly assessment.

“Numbers replaced our names, battle is our only fate.”

Amidst the passionate singing, trainees appeared one after another, launching fierce duels.

Lin Zhen cut through five challenges, eventually encountering Yun Ruoxi.

They fought fiercely.

But the camera occasionally caught subtle moments missed in the main story—Yun Ruoxi holding back at crucial points.

The audience caught the meaning with a smile.

Until 0001 appeared, all laughter and joy abruptly stopped.

Whether in the main story or OP, the oppressive aura brought by 0001 was suffocating.

Even the BGM fell silent at his appearance, as if swallowed by his presence.

On screen, his deep purple eyes shifted slightly, as though replacing the entire background and encompassing the whole frame.

Under his icy gaze, scenes flickered rapidly:

0003 was punched away by Yun Ruoxi, then 0002 and Yun Ruoxi stood before him in turn.

What followed closely mirrored episode three.

Yun Ruoxi lost her left eye, suddenly erupted, but as she neared a comeback, her body collapsed, subjected to 0001’s cruel torment.

But this time, as Yun Ruoxi suffered, the OP’s perspective quietly shifted to her own eyes.

0001’s grimace twisted on screen, slowly morphing into another ferocious figure.

The arena instantly turned into a roaring sea of flames.

This figure had never appeared in the first three episodes, leaving many viewers puzzled.

“Who’s this guy? Anyone got a solid explanation?”

“Don’t know, maybe a character coming up later.”

“Nope, I think he’s connected to Xiao Xi—maybe part of her memories.”

“New villain, right?”

“Who cares? Just wait for the big reveal from the experts.”

The exquisite classical architecture crumbled in the blazing fire, the figure’s face growing ever more hideous.

Suddenly, the scene cut back to Yun Ruoxi.

This time.

Though still wearing the elegant long dress from her debut, her hands were raised high, bound tightly by thick Iron Chains.

Her entire body hung suspended in midair, barely touching the ground with her toes.

Her slender form, restrained, revealed a breathtaking, heart-wrenching beauty.

“This composition is just sighs.”

“Such a pale image—not about amazing legs, no, the composition is what’s incredible!”

“Feels like the classic scene of Saber imprisoned in FSN.”

“Hey, earlier, if you want to say someone has small chest just say it (doge).”

In the desolate interlude, a sudden beam of intense light shone down; the bound girl slowly opened her eyes, two trails of blood tears streaming down.

All darkness was instantly swallowed by the light.

The camera shifted.

Yun Ruoxi awoke from bed wearing training clothes; outside the window, the sky was bright blue with white clouds.

“Come on!”

“Time for training!”

“Sis, we’re going to be late!”

Familiar voices called out as the song began anew:

“If becoming stronger means losing everything, if victory demands trampling gentleness, I would rather stay forever, where you said to me ‘Let’s go together’—”

The girl looked out the window in confusion.

Lin Zhen, Zi Jiu, Yun Che, Kaios, Tie Anvil, and 9993 all stood outside on the grass, waving to her.

Every face beamed with bright smiles.

She smiled again and ran with them across the meadow; the starry sky twinkled above.

But gradually.

She slowed as if drawn by something, turning to look back at the distant place left behind.

A breeze stirred, and her training clothes transformed into a pure white long dress, the hem lightly billowing.

Her hands were clasped behind her back; she turned her head slightly, wearing a sweet smile as she gazed at her companions who had stopped and looked back.

They silently exchanged glances across the whole meadow.

The theme song’s final line softly fell here:

“If we are destined to part, then let me remember you—the last smiling face.”