都市魔法师

Lin Yao's life began to change, though she wasn't yet aware that this transformation would drag her into a vortex deeper than she could imagine. Her days still followed the same routine of commuting to work, but she had unknowingly stepped into a dangerous game.

That day, in the company's elevator, Qin Yao appeared before her once again. The atmosphere in the elevator froze, and everyone present could feel the oppressive energy emanating from him. Standing tall, Qin Yao's cold aura seemed to thicken the air itself. Lin Yao couldn't help but glance at him, her gaze drawn toward him like a magnet. But when their eyes met, her heart skipped a beat.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, Qin Yao turned to look at her. His sharp eyes pierced through her, and the corners of his mouth curved into a mysterious smile.

"Are you looking at me?" he asked, his voice low and deliberate.

Lin Yao's heart raced as she quickly lowered her gaze. Her voice trembled slightly. "No… I just… remembered something suddenly."

As the elevator doors opened, Qin Yao stepped out, leaving her with a silhouette as enigmatic as a riddle. Yet, Lin Yao couldn't shake the unsettling feeling that moment of eye contact had stirred. Something unfamiliar and intense lingered in her chest—he wasn't as simple as he seemed.

In the days that followed, Lin Yao started to sense an unusual tension in the air. Strange occurrences became more frequent, and the world around her began to feel distorted. Even familiar people in the office started to behave oddly, their movements filled with an unnatural stiffness.

One afternoon, Lin Yao walked into the pantry and saw her colleague Lin Ting swiping feverishly on her phone, muttering under her breath in an urgent tone.

"We have to find the Source…"

Lin Yao froze mid-step, her heart skipping a beat. Her intuition told her that this word, Source, was closely tied to the uncanny sensations she'd been experiencing.

The mysterious term seemed to echo from a distant place, carrying a strange and unexplainable power. Lin Yao tried to ignore the feeling, but her unease only grew. She recalled Qin Yao's cold and detached gaze in the elevator, and her thoughts returned to the intensity of that fleeting moment. He seemed to know something she couldn't comprehend.

That evening, Lin Yao worked late, leaving the office when the streets were already bathed in the dim glow of streetlights. As she prepared to hail a taxi, a stranger suddenly appeared before her. His face was etched with fear, his eyes glinting with a manic intensity.

"You… can see it too, can't you?" he said, grabbing her wrist urgently. "You're not an ordinary person. You carry the scent of the Source!"

Lin Yao yanked her arm away and stepped back cautiously, her eyes filled with alarm.

"What are you talking about? Who are you?"

"You don't understand!" The man's expression grew more frantic. "Leave now! They've already noticed you. The Source isn't something you can control, and under no circumstances should you trust him."

"Him?" Lin Yao frowned, her voice laced with confusion.

The man's terror deepened. "Qin Yao. He's not who he seems! He's known all along that you're part of the Source. If you stay near him, you'll die a horrible death!"

Lin Yao was struck speechless, her mind blank with shock. Yet despite her fear, she didn't turn and run. She realized she'd been unwittingly drawn into something unfathomable. When she turned back to look at the man, he had vanished.

Her pulse quickened as she scanned her surroundings. When she spun around, her breath caught—Qin Yao was standing a short distance away, cloaked in shadows. The darkness seemed to envelop him completely, and his piercing gaze was as sharp as a blade, silent yet oppressive.

"Did you hear him?" Qin Yao's deep voice cut through the night, chilling her to the bone.

Lin Yao's hands trembled slightly. "Who… who are you?"

"Who I am doesn't matter," Qin Yao said, stepping closer, his gaze intensifying. "What you need to know is that you were never meant to belong to this mundane world. Lin Yao, you hold the power to change everything."

Suddenly, a low, droning hum filled the air, and Lin Yao's surroundings seemed to ripple. She watched in astonishment as the ground began to tremble, and even the nearby buildings quivered faintly.

"What… what's happening?" she stammered, her voice shaking.

Qin Yao's eyes gleamed with an unfathomable light, and the corner of his mouth curved into a faint smile.

"This is just the beginning."