Within a Hollow Heart - Chapter 10: Volume 1, : "The Fragment’s Pulse"

Ms Shen goes about her usual days while Mr Bo flirts with her relentlessly.

“Some connections are written long before two hearts ever meet.”Arjun never believed in fate, just another lost soul buried in the noise of textbooks and deadlines.Ayesha was a quiet storm, hiding a fragile heart behind glowing smiles and disappearing messages.They were just two strangers, separated by borders, bound by pixels on a screen.But what starts as casual texts in the dead of night slowly turns into something neither of them can explain.A bond stitched through unseen heartbeats.A love whispered through endless silences.But every heartbeat carries secrets... and some secrets are too heavy to cross the distance.When time begins slipping through Ayesha's fingers, Arjun finds himself caught between holding on or letting go.Will their hearts find each other in the silence or will destiny write their last message before they ever meet?

Ten years after her parents’ divorce, the grandmother who raised Chu Tingwu passed away, leaving her to be shuttled back and forth between relatives.At this moment, an entity claiming to be a “Cub Rearing System” suddenly appeared, wanting to bind itself to her and cultivate her into an outstanding graduate of its program.Just as Chu Tingwu was about to refuse, she saw her personal attributes on the system interface—[Name: Chu Tingwu][Species: Cat]Chu Tingwu: Something’s not right here…Due to a bug, the system had identified her as a kitten.Her stats were those of a cat, but her appearance remained human.How should an exemplary human-cat be raised? Sleeping, causing mischief, eating until she became as round as a pig?However, the reality turned out to be quite different: extreme sports, expert bird-catcher, master mouse-hunter, catching invasive fish barehanded with dynamic vision, using camouflage and tracking skills to film documentaries of rare birds, nearly making the social news as a suspected retired special police officer.For the first lesson in cultivation, the system said gravely:“A cub cannot live alone. We need to find you a cat mother… I’ve already detected a suitable candidate nearby. Go to the target location quickly, little one, and let the cat mother adopt you.”Chu Tingwu looked up as an advertisement fluttered into her hand:[Sunshine Pet Hospital: Limited-time half-price pet neutering, one month of free food with every pet adoption]Chu Tingwu: Who exactly is adopting whom here?

The Great Human Civilization has crumbled apart, falling into the Abyss. A hell with no escape. To survive there, some rules must be followed blindly.1: Be wary of the dead for they don't rest even in death.2: Always be on the lookout. Danger lurks everywhere in the Abyss. Nowhere is truly safe.Lastly, if you hear something unusual like a voice that shouldn't be there, do not investigate. Just run. At least then you might get to keep your life.***Kev's adult life was suddenly upended when he was pulled into a nightmarish world along with countless other humans. To survive he had no choice but to perform a ritual he chanced upon through a series of inexplicable events. The ritual promised great power. He gave in to the temptation, performed the ritual and stepped into the realm of mysticism. At the same time, he unknowingly put himself at great risk. Since the moment he performed the ritual, He faced the risk of losing his humanity or himself entirely.He didn't know then that performing the ritual demanding a great price. By the time he realized it, it was already too late to turn back.You have performed a Great RitualGained class:- Corpse Collector in the DarkTrait unlocked: esoteric mutation of the soulGained skill: shadow manipulationAssimilation rate: 0%Collect corpses to growIncrease in assimilation rate unlocks new skillThe power comes with a great pricePay it obediently like a law abiding Abyss Dwellers or risk losing yourself to the evil brewing within...