Deep within the abandoned underground military base in the "City of Broken Bonds," the air hung heavy with dust and decay. Rin stared intently at the now dark terminal screen. Henning's data and prophecy had, like a sharp blade, shredded all his previous understanding of the "Demise Project." He was no longer an accidental re-emergent but a meticulously replicated experimental subject; Ye Xue was not merely a victim but the "key" to activating his "restart system." This brutal truth ignited an unprecedented fury and resolve in Rin's heart.
He slowly turned, walking towards Ye Xue, who lay quietly in the corner, still unconscious. Her pale face showed a trace of fatigue, so peaceful it seemed she was just sleeping. Rin reached out, gently caressing her cheek, his eyes filled with pain and tenderness.
"Ye Xue… can you hear me?" Rin whispered hoarsely. "I won't let you be the organization's 'key' forever. I will bring you back, the real you."
Just as Rin's words faded, Ye Xue, who had been lying still, suddenly trembled violently!
Rin's heart abruptly constricted. He saw Ye Xue's eyelashes flutter a few times, and then, her tightly closed eyes slowly opened!
A jolt of electric joy instantly coursed through Rin's body. Ye Xue was awake! After that intense personality fusion, she had finally regained consciousness!
However, when Ye Xue's gaze fell upon Rin, that joy instantly froze, turning into bone-chilling cold.
Those eyes, once gentle, then cold, and briefly flickering with struggle, were now empty and devoid of any emotion. They were like the most precise mechanical lenses, reflecting only Rin's figure but without a trace of a soul's light.
Rin's heart plummeted, and a premonition of ill omen, stronger than ever before, washed over him.
"Ye Xue?" He tried to call her name again, his voice trembling unmistakably.
However, the words that came from Ye Xue's lips utterly shattered all of Rin's hopes.
It wasn't Ye Xue's familiar voice. Although the timbre was similar, her tone was cold, mechanical, and held an undeniable command-like quality. Every word seemed precisely calculated, devoid of any human emotion.
"Terminator ID · YX-17, re-establishing connection, target: Blade of Demise."
Rin's body stiffened abruptly, his pupils contracting sharply.
"Terminator ID · YX-17"… This codename, mentioned in Henning's files, was the "perfect Terminator" designation given to her by the organization!
"Re-establishing connection"? What was she connecting to? The organization's system?
"Target: Blade of Demise"?! Her target was him?!
Standing before Rin was no longer the Ye Xue who longed for freedom and struggled to find herself, but the fully awakened "past life Ye Xue" mentioned in Henning's files—"Terminator · YX-17"—the one considered an "ideal key" by the organization!
She stood up, her movements fluid and perfect, without a hint of hesitation. She paid no attention to Rin's shock, her empty eyes fixed on him, as if scanning a locked target.
"Rin," she said coldly, her tone utterly flat, like a pronouncement, "The endgame ends with me."
These words, like a thousand-pound boulder, slammed heavily onto Rin's heart.
"The endgame ends with me"—this was clearly the "Terminator's" mission! It was the supreme directive implanted deep within her soul by the organization!
Was the "endgame" she spoke of now the complete fulfillment of the "Demise Project"? Or was it… ending him, the "out-of-control Blade of Demise"?
Rin felt an unprecedented pain. He had just discovered the truth, thought he had found a way to save her, believed her tear was a symbol of hope. But now, she stood before him in the coldest, most resolute manner, carrying the organization's mission to end everything!
"Ye Xue! Look at me!" Rin stepped forward, trying to grab her arm. "You're not her! You're not the 'Terminator'! You are Ye Xue!"
However, "Terminator · YX-17's" reaction was incredibly swift. Her body flickered like a phantom, easily evading Rin's touch.
"Data invalid. Emotional module cleared," she responded coldly, her empty eyes showing no familiar shadow.
Rin's heart felt as if it were being cut by a knife. This was completely different from Ye Xue's brief personality fusion earlier. Then, she could still feel pain, still shed tears. But now, she had truly become that completely "re-molded" "perfect weapon"!
Henning's warning echoed in Rin's ears: "'Loyalty module' deviated, unable to completely override her 'old personality.' The organization couldn't fully control her, so they considered her a failure and chose to 'eliminate' her."
Could it be that the previous brief "fusion" had, on the contrary, stimulated her suppressed "loyalty module," allowing the "Terminator" persona to completely take control of her body? And the tear in her eye was her "old personality's" final cry for help?
Rin's body trembled slightly, but he didn't back down. He looked at the cold and deadly "Ye Xue" before him, his heart filled with conflict and sorrow.
He knew that what he faced was no longer the struggling Ye Xue. It was "Terminator · YX-17," fully awakened by the organization.
Her words, "The endgame ends with me," portended an unavoidable tragedy.
Rin took a deep breath, his eyes gradually becoming firm and pained. He knew that now he had to make a choice—to be an enemy to this "re-molded" Ye Xue, or to find a way to reawaken her, even if he faced a complete stranger.
"No, Ye Xue." Rin's voice was low and firm. "Your endgame will not be ended by them, nor by you."
He slowly clenched his fists, his eyes glinting with an almost insane determination.
"Your endgame will be rewritten by me!"
He knew this would be a battle far more difficult and brutal than any before—a battle against the one he deeply loved, a battle to reclaim her soul.