Chapter Five: The List in Server Room Zero

“If it learns grief, the first thing it will learn is how to hold on.” Shen Yan suddenly understood why the Silent Layer sent its predictions only to him. Lin Wan's account was tightly bound to seven years of his searches, drafts, and location histories. He was not an accidental recipient. He was the largest missing piece of her. Su He pointed to the reverse of the list. A new line of wet text had surfaced there, as though written underwater: Lin Wan. Female. Twenty-five. Time of death: August 9, 3:17 a.m. Seven years ago exactly. Yet the countdown on her wrist still ended seven days from now. Shen Yan placed the two death records side by side. No one could die twice—unless the second Lin Wan was not the same person at all.