Chapter 1: Crash Landing in Another World

The fluorescent lights of the 24-hour convenience store flickered as Ethan Park shoved a cup of instant ramen into the microwave. It was 2:47 a.m., and the nineteen-year-old was a walking cliché: a lanky college dropout with messy black hair, sunken eyes from too many late-night gaming sessions, and a wardrobe of wrinkled hoodies. His part-time job here barely paid for the rent on his dingy apartment, let alone anything resembling a future. He yawned, tapping his foot as the microwave hummed, the faint smell of sodium and artificial beef wafting up.

Then the ground shook. A low rumble vibrated through the linoleum floor, rattling the shelves of chips and energy drinks. “Earthquake?” Ethan muttered, glancing at the ceiling. The lights buzzed louder, flickering wildly, and before he could process it, a jagged tear of white light split the air in front of him—like reality itself had cracked open. His stomach lurched as the floor vanished, and he fell, arms flailing, into a swirling void. The ramen cup tumbled with him, the last shred of his normal life disappearing into the chaos.

He hit the ground with a bone-jarring thud, dirt grinding into his palms. Coughing, he pushed himself up, blinking against a crimson sky streaked with jagged, ink-black clouds. Towering peaks loomed in the distance, their tips shrouded in mist, while twisted trees with gnarled roots stretched across a rocky plain. No convenience store, no city lights—just an alien wilderness that smelled of earth and something faintly metallic. His phone, yanked from his pocket, was a dead brick, its screen cracked. The ramen cup lay crushed beside him, noodles spilling into the dirt.

“What the actual hell…?” Ethan rasped, his voice hoarse. His heart hammered as he staggered to his feet, brushing mud off his jeans. A sharp ding cut through the silence, and glowing blue text materialized before his eyes, floating like a hologram: [System Activated. Welcome, Host Ethan Park, to the Tianxu Realm. Objective: Survive and Grow.]

He yelped, swatting at the screen. It didn’t budge, hovering mockingly. “A system? Like in those manhua I binge-read? No way…” His mind raced—isekai stories were his escape, not his reality. But the ache in his bruised knees and the chill of the wind biting his skin said otherwise. He pinched his arm, wincing. Not a dream.

Footsteps crunched behind him, heavy and deliberate. Ethan spun, his breath catching as three figures emerged from the brush. They wore tattered robes stained with grime, their faces weathered and hard. The leader, a scarred brute with a patchy beard, gripped a rusty sword, its edge chipped but menacing. His two lackeys flanked him, one twirling a dagger, the other hefting a club studded with nails. Bandits, straight out of a fantasy novel.

“Well, well,” the brute sneered, his voice gravelly. “Fresh meat in fancy clothes. Hand over anything valuable, kid, or we’ll gut you and leave you for the crows.”

Ethan’s stomach dropped. He was no fighter—his arms were scrawny from years of slouching over a keyboard, and the closest he’d come to combat was button-mashing in a video game. His hoodie and sneakers marked him as an outsider, a target. The system chimed again: [Task: Survive Bandit Encounter. Reward: Basic Strength Boost.]

“Seriously?” he hissed under his breath. “I’m dead meat, and you’re giving me a quest?” His hands shook as he grabbed the crushed ramen cup, holding it up like a pitiful shield. The bandits laughed, a harsh, barking sound that echoed across the plain.

The brute lunged, sword slashing down. Ethan dove aside, tripping over a rock and landing hard on his elbow. The blade grazed his arm, a hot sting slicing through his sleeve. Blood welled up, staining the fabric, and panic flooded his chest. “System, do something!” he yelled, scrambling back.

[Activating Emergency Skill: Dodge Instinct. Duration: 10 seconds.] His body jerked, moving on its own—a clumsy roll that barely dodged a second swing. The bandit cursed, his sword sparking against the ground, while Ethan stumbled to his feet, adrenaline pumping. The skill guided him, weaving through clumsy but effective dodges as the lackeys joined in. The dagger grazed his thigh, the club whistled past his ear, but for ten frantic seconds, he stayed alive.

The skill faded, and Ethan’s legs gave out, dropping him to his knees. The brute loomed, grinning. “Squirm all you want, kid. You’re done.” He raised his sword, and Ethan, desperate, grabbed a jagged rock from the dirt. With a wild yell, he chucked it, smacking the bandit square in the nose. Blood sprayed, and the man staggered, roaring in pain.

Ethan didn’t wait—he bolted, legs burning as he crashed through thorny bushes. Branches clawed at his face, snagging his hoodie, but he kept running, the bandits’ shouts fading behind him. A ravine yawned ahead, its drop steep and shadowed. No time to think—he jumped, tumbling down the slope in a chaos of dirt and pain. He splashed into a shallow stream, the cold water shocking his system awake.

Silence settled, broken only by his gasping breaths. The bandits didn’t follow. [Task Complete. Reward: Basic Strength Boost Granted.] A warm pulse spread through his muscles, easing the ache in his limbs. He flexed his hand—still weak, but less shaky, like he’d done a week of push-ups in an instant. “Okay,” he panted, staring at the alien sky through the ravine’s jagged walls. “I’m stuck here. With a system. And I’m totally screwed.”

Night fell, the crimson sky deepening to a bruised purple. Ethan huddled under an overhanging rock, shivering in his soaked clothes. The system pinged again: [Status: Level 1. Strength: 3/100. Qi: 0/100. Skills: Dodge Instinct (Temporary). Main Quest: Find Shelter and Purpose.] He scowled at the screen. “Level 1? I’m a noob in a death world. Fantastic.”

His stomach growled, and he eyed the spilled ramen in the mud—unsalvageable. Every rustle in the dark made him flinch, visions of wolves or worse flashing through his mind. He clutched his bleeding arm, the sting grounding him. This wasn’t a game he could quit. “Survive and grow,” he muttered, the system’s words echoing. “Fine. But how?”

Exhaustion pulled him under, and he slept fitfully, dreaming of neon lights and ramen he’d never taste again.

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