When Yan Huang stepped out of the inn, he realized just how grand this so-called “ceremony” truly was.
A blinding white light seemed to illuminate the night itself, washing half the sky in a rosy glow.
Yan Huang knew—that was the direction of the Genius Stone.
The Genius Stone, dull and lifeless during the day, now seemed like a deity awakening in the town at night, delivering its so-called gospel to its followers.
But what made him uneasy wasn’t the distant light—it was what was right before his eyes.
All across the town—north, south, east, west, in every direction.
Countless people stepped out of their rooms.
Like puppets, they moved in perfect unison, step by step, toward the white light.
Even with Night Vision, at this distance—
Yan Huang still couldn’t make out their facial features clearly. He could only see their silhouettes and the stiff, wooden quality of their movements.
As if directed by some unseen conductor, whenever they crossed paths, they would seamlessly merge into a single file, maintaining identical spacing, identical strides—like pre-programmed machines.
They walked toward the village center. Toward the giant egg.
Yan Huang pressed his lips together, glancing left, then right.
Finally, he took a deep breath, straightened his expression, and mimicked their mannerisms.
Step by step, he walked out of his room.
His heart was racing wildly. Perhaps it was because he’d spent so much time lying in a hospital bed, staring at the ECG monitor that tracked his vitals—
He could roughly estimate his current heart rate… over one hundred twenty beats per minute.
He was terrified. And exhilarated.
Fear of the unknown. Excitement for answers.
Likewise—
He feared being discovered.
He thrilled at the prospect of confrontation.
[Damn… that’s bold. He just walked out like that? He’s not scared at all.]
[The newbie protection mechanism warned him not to walk into the darkness at night, and he’s just… completely unfazed.]
[Shit… copying the others and walking over there—would that actually work? If it does, then me charging out recklessly back then was a huge loss!]
…
Yan Huang himself doubted whether this method would let him slip through unnoticed.
Until—
He saw, directly ahead of him.
A face suddenly appeared.
It was undeniably handsome.
But… wooden, expressionless, staring straight at him.
The man stood a full head taller than Yan Huang, needing only to lower his eyes to look at him.
That emotionless downward gaze, combined with the shock of the sudden appearance—
Yan Huang felt his heart rate spike past one hundred forty!
Thump-thump—
Thump-thump—
He could hear his own heartbeat, so rapid it felt like it might burst.
His mind raced at full speed.
Would he be recognized?
If he was recognized, what would happen?
Here, there were many Perfected Geniuses—their physical abilities three times that of a normal person. If he were exposed, even with the Loving Father’s Cleaver in hand, his survival odds would be abysmally low.
Would he bet his life on it?
He wouldn’t dare.
He entered the Instance precisely to survive.
Yan Huang didn’t dare make a single rash move.
Even though his expression remained utterly unchanged—calm, as if the person wrestling with inner turmoil wasn’t him at all.
Wooden. Vacant. Holding his breath, staring back at the man.
The longer this standoff lasted, the harder it became to maintain his composure.
Just decide whether you recognize me or not—hurry up!
Finally, the man turned away.
As if Yan Huang didn’t exist at all.
This allowed Yan Huang to finally let out the breath he had been holding, the one he’d been suppressing all along.
But the moment he exhaled—
He realized something was wrong.
He looked up.
The other person’s head was turned backward, facing him directly while their body faced forward!!
That gaze—puzzled, with a hint of murderous intent drifting within it.
Yan Huang held his breath again, maintaining his previous state.
The other person’s lips moved, but before they could speak—
Yan Huang struck first, cursing in a low, furious tone: “Idiot, stop wasting time! Or it’ll all be over soon!”
The other person paused in thought for a moment.
“Since you’ve Hatched, you’d better behave… be a quiet child.”
“Otherwise… your parents won’t be as lenient as I am.”
Yan Huang narrowed his eyes and ultimately chose to remain silent.
The other person didn’t press further.
Instead, they turned around and, like everyone else, walked toward the front.
Good.
Seems it wasn’t that easy to be discovered.
His judgment had been correct.
Though it was bizarre… it wasn’t impossible to pass as a normal person.
But then again, he couldn’t be too normal either…
If he was too normal, that would itself be abnormal.
They were about to merge into the crowd.
Yan Huang had chosen to disguise himself as a Hatched One—from the moment of that confrontation, there was no turning back.
He stepped into the crowd.
They were silent.
No footsteps. No laughter.
Nothing at all.
The only sound in the air was the wind rustling against things, a chill that sent unease creeping into one’s heart.
People all around—front and back, left and right—men and women, youths and children, all lined up in formation.
Identical strides. Identical expressions. Like toys mass-produced in a factory.
Yan Huang was wedged in the middle of the crowd.
How uniform was it?
So uniform that he could only see eight positions ahead.
He couldn’t count how many people flanked him,
nor did he know if any of them might be quietly curling the corners of their lips.
And he certainly couldn’t know if someone might turn their head to stare in his direction.
Perhaps no one was looking at him.
Perhaps… aside from those blocked by the people around him, everyone was watching him.
All the unknowns coalesced into a sense of déjà vu.
A feeling of being watched by countless eyes.
He started with panic, then slowly melted in.
He, calm and composed, became a “Hatched One.”
Indistinguishable from anyone else in the crowd.
Everyone in the livestream was stunned speechless.
[Holy shit… this is insane. No skills at all, yet he perfectly mimicked their footsteps and expressions, blending in without a single hint of dissonance. Just watching gives me goosebumps—how dare he play it like this!]
[A lamb walking into the tiger’s den—that’s exactly what this is. If even the slightest thing goes wrong, he’s done for. Fuck… this is genuinely insane.]
[So this is how he solved it? That’s amazing!]
[Are we about to see the ceremony site again? It’s a bit creepy… but it’s also genuinely beautiful. When I saw the Hatching Ceremony back in the City of Incubation, I was truly awestruck. Too bad I didn’t take a screenshot back then—today I’m definitely saving a picture.]
…
[Current livestream viewers: 10,001]
[Congratulations, Player, on completing the achievement “Ten Thousand Concurrent Viewers.” Reward: 1,000 points.]
[Congratulations, Player, on completing the achievement “Walking with the Egg.” Reward: Duplicate one consumable item from your inventory.]
[Duplication successful.]
[Congratulations! Your livestream data has remained stable and excellent. You have now been recommended to the Tier-1 Newcomer Recommendation — Newcomer Main Feature.]
[The Newcomer Main Feature brings massive traffic. We hope you continue to maintain your performance!]
Notification after notification flashed across the screen.
Yan Huang’s heart remained utterly unmoved.
But… when he walked alongside the Hatched Ones to the Genius Stone and finally witnessed the true nature of the ritual—
His heart was shaken to its core.
—Author’s Note—
Thank you all so much for enjoying this book!
Feel free to point out any detailed errors. I may not always be prompt in responding to paragraph comments, so after leaving a paragraph comment, you can also post a chapter comment here to flag the issue, and I’ll see it right away and fix it!
As a new writer, there’s still much I don’t know, and I hope you’ll all be understanding.