The birds chirped like nothing had just exploded.
Arin sat in the grass, staring up at the sky with the same expression he usually wore when someone said the word "duel" or "hard work" — complete spiritual nausea.
Yura jumped down from the tree branch, flipping in the air and landing with her tails casually fanned out like a smug parade float. She flicked a dumpling crumb off her lip and spoke like she was reviewing a low-rated restaurant.
"This isn't the forest we came through."
Yue Lan scanned the surroundings with her sword still out. "Spiritual qi feels... glitched. Like we're standing inside a bad formation with a god complex."
Jun Bai had already started walking toward a crooked path between the trees, not looking at anyone. Arin shouted after him.
"Hey! If something jumps out, let it eat him first!"
Jun Bai didn't even flinch. "That would only make it weaker."
Arin turned to Yura. "I think he's still mad that his illusion trial showed him hugging me."
Yura snorted. "You should've hugged back. Could've fixed centuries of internal trauma."
Arin pointed at her. "I am not a therapy dummy, I am a trash system victim!"
Yue Lan's voice cut through the noise like her blade. "The real question is—where's the girl?"
They all turned.
The winged girl with silver eyes and divine aura who had declared herself "the penalty" was gone.
Not missing—just not there.
No footprints. No aura. Not even an afterglow.
Arin kicked a rock, which hit a tree and bounced back into his own shin. He collapsed theatrically.
"So she nukes the ancient ruins, hijacks reality, drops lore bombs, and then ghosts us?"
Yura shrugged. "Honestly, queen behavior."
A soft chime echoed across the forest. Not from the sky. From the air itself. It sounded like bells made of data.
Words appeared in glowing text above the path Jun Bai was walking.
[Welcome to the Overflow Zone]
[This is not a tutorial.]
[Survival rating: Below Average.]
Jun Bai paused. "This feels like your system's fault."
Arin groaned. "Everything is its fault. Even my hairline probably."
More text appeared. The air buzzed as a holographic window hovered in front of Arin.
[System Compatibility Update: Failed.]
[Warning: You have entered a shared overflow sector of discarded system protocols.]
[Proceed with caution. Or don't. It's not like we care anymore.]
"See?" Arin snapped. "My system is literally giving up."
Yue Lan read the messages carefully. "This isn't your normal cultivation realm. This is a backend dimension."
Jun Bai nodded reluctantly. "Like a trash dump of old data and spiritual code."
Arin crossed his arms. "So now I'm the protagonist of a digital landfill."
Yura cracked her knuckles. "Good. Maybe we'll find some cool glitches to abuse."
As they walked, strange things began appearing.
A sword stabbed into a floating fish.
A merchant stall selling 'Cursed Upgrade Tokens: Buy 2, Get Possessed Free.'
A spiritual beast stuck in a loop, charging at a tree and bouncing back every five seconds.
The group moved cautiously. Every step felt like it could be a bug, a trap, or a god's unfinished fanfiction.
They found a gate made entirely of spiritual screens. A line of floating orbs blocked the path. One of them pulsed, and a robotic voice began speaking.
"Welcome to Trial 404: Hero Authorization Needed."
Arin stepped forward.
The orb scanned him, paused, then spoke again in a glitchy, insultingly polite tone.
"Heroic potential: Unconfirmed. Energy level: Questionable. Intelligence: Debatable. Trash status: Verified."
Arin kicked it. "TRASH STATUS CONFIRMED?! I AM THE TRASH KING!"
The orb immediately exploded.
Yura was crying from laughter.
Yue Lan wiped a hand down her face.
Jun Bai actually smirked.
The gate shimmered and opened.
Without warning, they were pulled inside.
The world folded again—but not violently like last time. It was clean. Quick. Like entering a simulation with perfect loading speed.
They landed in a white room.
Thousands of doors lined the walls.
Each door had a name glowing above it.
"Those are system IDs," Yue Lan said.
"Are we… in a system hub?" Yura asked, tails twitching.
Arin was staring at a door at the far end of the chamber. It flickered and sparked, as if trying to exist but failing.
And above it, a name appeared—then glitched out, replaced by red static.
Arin walked toward it.
Jun Bai grabbed his shoulder.
"Whatever's behind that door... it might be why your system was broken in the first place."
Arin smiled slightly.
"Good. Then maybe it'll finally give me some answers. Or a refund."
He reached for the handle.
And the door pulled him in.
Without asking.
Again.