Chapter 55: Hunted by Reality

The air felt frozen in place.

DONG—

A deep chime echoed across the skies of Genting, making Lin Han's heartbeat skip.

The shadowless pedestrians, those strange figures that filled the streets, all stopped moving.

Their heads slowly twisted at unnatural angles, their expressions eerily vacant, but their lips curled into identical, stiff smiles.

All of them… were looking directly at Lin Han, Noya, and Ah Rong.

"Walau eh…" Ah Rong's voice cracked as he instinctively took a step back. "Are they even human?"

"They're not."

P01's voice was calm, emotionless. "They are merely projections of the system."

Lin Han's throat tightened. "System?"

P01 tilted his head slightly, as if amused. "You don't belong here. And the system's job… is to 'correct' all anomalies."

"In other words—"

"They are here to erase you."

"Initiating correction."

A cold, mechanical voice boomed across the sky.

The very next second—

The 'people' lunged at them!

"Run!" Lin Han didn't hesitate. He grabbed Noya's wrist and bolted toward a narrow alleyway.

Ah Rong, momentarily frozen, jolted into action. "Tiu leh! What kind of horror movie is this?!"

Behind them, the shadowless creatures surged forward, moving at unnatural speeds. Their limbs twisted as they ran, their smiles stretching wider than humanly possible, as if their faces were peeling apart.

Lin Han's pulse thundered in his ears. The air around them seemed to warp, as if reality itself was rejecting them.

This wasn't a normal chase—this was reality trying to purge them.

P01 followed casually behind them, watching with mild amusement. "It's fascinating. You're now fully classified as 'foreign entities'."

Noya, panting as she ran, shot him a glare. "You're still smiling?! Do something!"

P01 shrugged. "Do what? This is the 'True Genting.' Here, no one fights the rules."

Lin Han's stomach churned. "Then why aren't they attacking you?"

P01's expression darkened slightly before he smirked. "Because I am one of the rules."

Up ahead, an enormous structure loomed into view—

Genting Casino.

But this wasn't the casino they knew.

Its walls were not made of steel and glass but of shifting golden runes, symbols constantly twisting, as if rewriting themselves.

And at the very top—

A colossal golden serpent uncoiled its body, opening its eyes.

Ah Rong almost tripped. "Walau eh! Are we seriously going in there?!"

P01 smirked, gesturing towards the entrance.

"This is the only place where you won't be 'corrected'."

Lin Han didn't have time to argue. He rushed towards the entrance, dragging Noya along. Ah Rong cursed but followed.

The moment they stepped past the threshold, the creatures outside halted.

As if they had hit an invisible barrier, they simply stood there—watching.

But Lin Han didn't feel relief.

Because inside the casino—

there was no one.

The vast hall was filled with empty gambling tables, blinking slot machines, and roulette wheels that spun by themselves.

And in the very center of the casino—

One lone table waited for them.

P01 casually walked forward, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

"Welcome to the Game of Fate."

Lin Han exhaled slowly, steadying himself. "What is this?"

P01 tapped his fingers lightly against the table. "This is the 'Real Casino.' Here, you don't bet with money. You bet… with reality itself."

Noya's stomach twisted. "You mean… we have to gamble something in order to leave?"

P01 smirked. "Otherwise, how do you think you got here?"

Lin Han's chest tightened.

Their arrival hadn't been an accident.

They had unknowingly 'bet' their very existence.

Ah Rong's face drained of color. "Tiu... So what? We already lost?"

P01's gaze gleamed. "No. Your game has only just begun."

"But I'll tell you one thing—if you don't play, you'll remain here forever… until reality erases you."

"That is the true rule of Genting."

Lin Han inhaled sharply, pushing down his unease. "Fine. What do we have to bet?"

P01 snapped his fingers, and a deck of ancient-looking cards appeared in his hand.

The cards glowed faintly, their backs inscribed with intricate, moving runes.

"You may bet anything."

"Your memories. Your abilities. Your future."

"Even your very existence."

Noya's breath caught. "Bet our own existence?"

P01's eyes gleamed. "Some win and become Masters of Reality."

"Some lose… and are erased, as if they never existed."

"And now…"

His fingers flicked the deck. "Shall we play?"

Lin Han's fists clenched. There was no way back.

This was the gamble they had unknowingly stepped into.