Subverting The World [Cyber] - Chapter 12

Shi Xu returned to the prison, heading straight to Cell 78.

This time, she ordered the bionic guards to tear the entire cell apart. Every corner was overturned — yet nothing suspicious turned up, except the blatantly obvious fake heads.

Thinking deeper, Shi Xu directed her attention to an area the bionic guards hadn’t searched. A thought struck her. She lifted No. 78’s mattress.

Then, peeling back the outer fabric, she flipped the mattress over.

There were two small indentations in the foam — each one carved out in an irregular semicircle.

She took the two dummy heads, split them in half, and slotted the halves into the indentations.

They fit perfectly.

She reassembled the bedding. From the outside, nothing looked out of place.

Pausing for a moment, Shi Xu wondered — could she see this information directly?

She let herself “descend.”

Though she saw nothing with her eyes, her body felt like it was submerged — breathless, as if she were underwater. A phantom fishing line dropped from above, coiling around her wrist.

Somewhere deeper, something shimmered faintly.

That was her name — her anchor.

It floated near the edge of her ability to descend.

• Depth -10: Outdated mattress

• Depth -15: Slightly worn mattress, manufacturer identified

• Depth -20: Previous owners noted

• Depth -35: Suspicious mattress, might hide secrets

• Depth -40: Mattress concealing a fake head

Shi Xu pushed all the way down to Depth 40 before she could uncover the truth.

And in doing so — her name burned away.

She looked at her “name bar,” now barely holding at 20 points.

She had captured four escapees this time, boosting her fame. But the gains and losses evened out. Every day, she used up almost as much “name” as she earned. A little more, and she’d start running a deficit.

She had come to understand the mechanics of fame in this world.

As long as she kept doing impressive things, her name would grow louder and stronger — carved deeper into the metaphorical ocean. But the deeper that carving, the more it would cost her each day.

Fame starts off cheap. But the longer you try to sustain it, the more it bleeds you dry.

There was no limit to this erosion.

That explained the warning she had seen long ago:

Unless you give up chasing fame, you will die on that path — either forgotten, or consumed by your own reputation.

There was no middle road.

Either die unknown… or die known.

Shi Xu clenched her teeth.

And just like that — she chose.

Chasing fame? Not such a bad path, after all.

She crushed the two dummy heads. Next, she examined the disassembled bricks and the adhesive used on them.

Ingredients: sugar, toothpaste, clay.

Sugar? That raised questions.

No sugar was provided in the prison. It had to come from the outside — through care packages from family.

Shi Xu pulled No. 78’s delivery records. Sure enough, he regularly received large shipments of candy — all matching the same earthy tones as the prison bricks.

She couldn’t outright ban outside mail; it was a basic prisoner right, protected by regulation.

But she could classify certain colors of sugar — the kind that could blend in with the environment — as contraband.

Message sent: this escape route had been discovered. Time to find another.

After finishing the investigation, Shi Xu turned her attention to the incoming batch of prisoners.

Only eight this time. But they were far from ordinary.

Several had specialized skill sets — and one of them had broken out of prison three times.

He’d even escaped en route to the prison once.

His crime? Armed robbery.

Except — the “gun” was a plastic toy.

Shi Xu immediately suspected he had a name of some kind.

But the files didn’t show it. Unsurprising. After all, this wasn’t just a prison. It was a stage. A show.

There had to be drama. Tension. Conflict.

Even anticipation was part of the entertainment.

Shi Xu boarded the prison transport train.

This was her first time leaving the prison. It was built in complete isolation — the train was the only way in or out.

Prisoners were transferred from escort vehicles to the train, and from there, dropped off for processing.

The train moved at incredible speed. Scenery blurred past the windows, and Shi Xu took the opportunity to inspect the compartments — the ventilation shafts, overhead luggage racks, and windows reinforced with barbed mesh.

Everything checked out.

She was accompanied by three bionic guards and one human officer — a team of four.

This was a modular train — more cars could be added as needed. Today, there were just four: a command car, a warden’s luxury suite, a dining car, and a utility car.

When the train arrived at its scheduled stop, a line of personnel was already waiting.

Four heavily armed guards, company insignias on their uniforms, surrounded eight prisoners in electronic restraints. Escort drivers stood nearby.

Shi Xu personally locked each prisoner’s restraints. None resisted — in this environment, any move could earn a bullet.

Once secured, she activated the sleep mist. The prisoners would be unconscious for the ride.

And then, facial recognition pinged someone familiar.

That salesman.

The one who sent her to prison.

Shi Xu’s senses sharpened.

His listed reason for incarceration? Gambling debts — sent in by a casino.

Something about it felt… off. But she couldn’t put her finger on it.

Among the rest were four names on the list.

A hitman. A strategist. Two escape artists.

Clearly sent as retaliation — for her killing Siba.

Shi Xu stayed alert the entire ride. The moment anyone stirred, she’d reapply the sleep mist.

After arriving, she ensured each inmate received the surgery and collar implant.

Not a single one woke during the process.

Still concerned, she had the medical team inject stimulants afterward, waking them gradually and safely.

One by one, the prisoners stirred.

Time to assign cells.

The first week of incarceration was usually the calmest. New inmates hadn’t yet grasped the prison’s inner workings and were unlikely to attempt escape.

The second week? That’s when the true challenges began.

Shi Xu’s internal clock ticked ahead.

She needed to make sure the list’s influence didn’t gain traction in her facility. Otherwise, by the third week, things could spiral dangerously out of control.

Then, a warning flashed across her vision:

[Alert: Please maintain balance between the name value on both sides of the threshold. If one side remains negative too long, it may be erased.]

At last, her [Exit Game] option lit up.

Shi Xu hesitated for only a moment.

She picked up her gun.

She needed to go back and check the situation on the outside — the White Tower, the earthworm-like creature.

Was time frozen out there? Or did it continue to move?

If she delayed too long, she feared she’d never get another chance.

Once the prisoners were secured, she hit [Exit Game].

Her consciousness spiraled into a hazy descent — like slipping through the ocean’s depths, tangled in dreams and fragments of thought.

Duang. A soft sound.

Shi Xu opened her eyes.

She was back on the roadside. Traffic whirred by like nothing had changed. Her adoptive mother’s car — still there, unchanged.

It was as if she’d never left.

Shi Xu glanced at her phone.

Barely a minute had passed.

Or maybe more — maybe time had continued while she was returning.

The world around her felt hollow, dim. Shadows loomed. Something was rising.

No — not rising. She was sinking.

Here, in the real world — she had no name.

She was falling twice as fast as in the prison.

Heart pounding, Shi Xu knew she had to act.

First, she needed to find Wang Chengyu. Then, retrieve her game access.

Without action, this world would consume her.

She hopped on a shared bicycle and raced toward the construction site she’d seen earlier.

She could have ignored all of this. Pretended nothing was wrong. But fear had never suited her.

That creature — the “earthworm” — was a looming threat. But leaving it alone was an even greater danger.

Twisting through alleys and side roads, she noticed something strange:

No one could see her.

It was like she existed on a different plane — below sea level, cut off from reality.

She realized something chilling.

If she sank beyond her name’s limits and couldn’t claw her way back up… she would vanish completely.

Reaching her destination, Shi Xu ditched the bike and checked her body for weapons.

She had strapped a gun to herself earlier.

But it was gone.

At the end of the alley, the creature’s grotesque head appeared — layered with folds, lined with concentric rows of teeth.

It casually bit through a steel rod like it was a biscuit.

Plans shattered.

Shi Xu took a breath and braced herself.

This would have to be handled — one step at a time.