Zhao Liang

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Zhao Liang (赵亮)
Species/Race	Human; later a human with Demon Blood
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital; Human Race
Occupation/Role	Abyss OL game shill; Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital researcher
First Appearance	440

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Abyss OL trial-taker	441	Entered the Abyss World through a black game helmet. He received 109 initial Abyss Points and spent 9 on making his game character somewhat more handsome.
Point-Adding Cheat	453	Received a stat-point cheat from Feng Buzhi; his first allocation, [League of Legends Operation Enhancement], granted extensive esports-training memories and dramatically improved his gameplay.
[Pain Sensation Spatialization]	458	Invested two points to improve tactile perception and pain-based spatial awareness; the gained memories included long-term qigong practice.
Brain and internal nervous-system shackles broken	460	Passed Wallace's life-draining test and broke the shackles of his brain and internal nervous system, though he still required control training.
Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital researcher	461	Completed the advancement test with 87 input characters and was admitted as an official researcher.
Mutation Stage / anomalous heart	476	Integrated a green-flame anomaly under Feng Buzhi's control. The power settled in his heart, producing flame within his blood.
Cheater title	476	Earned the title after participating in a Deep Abyss Trial through settlement space.
Human with Demon Blood	476	Overcame Jenorik during a fusion of consciousness and integrated the demon into himself; he still needed time to complete demon transformation.

Background

Zhao Liang was a junior university student majoring in electronic information engineering and mechanical automation. Before entering Abyss OL, he lived alone near his university and had recently attended the funeral of his older cousin, Zhao Gang, an outdoor-survival instructor and video creator. Zhao Liang had been close to Zhao Gang since childhood; the two often played online games together. 440 442 452

After receiving a black Abyss OL helmet following an identity verification and personality test, Zhao Liang entered the Abyss World believing he might have stumbled onto a protagonist-like “golden finger.” Instead, he found an extremely realistic world where players could suffer injuries, die, and resurrect. 440 441

He was selected as a game shill, a player intended to make others more invested in Abyss OL rather than encourage spending. Wang Yi transferred him 50,000 Abyss Points for this purpose. Zhao Liang used his familiarity with online games to publish guides covering the game's realism, the Human Race's circumstances, and early objectives. 443 446 451

Personality

Initially, Zhao Liang is sentimental, curious, and prone to anxious overthinking. Zhao Gang's death makes him reflect on life's fragility, while the bizarre realism of Abyss OL repeatedly overwhelms him. 440 443 444

He is also opportunistic and practical. After researching Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital, he decides that its apparent danger matters less than the opportunities it may offer: “In an adult's world, there was only profit.” 444

Zhao Liang possesses a strong desire to live and a notable capacity to endure pain. His experience with Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital's tests gradually changes him; after passing, he becomes unusually calm about bodily harm, hair loss, and even the prospect of rudimentary immortality. 460 461

Despite his growing ruthlessness and detachment, he remains protective of people close to him. He warns Wang Youcai not to reveal dangerous information and seeks to help him enter Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital. 479 480

Appearance

Zhao Liang is initially described as a young man of average build and ordinary appearance. 440

• His Abyss OL character initially wears ordinary leather armor. 441
• He spent 9 initial Abyss Points to make his game avatar somewhat more handsome. 441
• His severe stress initially causes hair loss; after breaking his shackles, thick new hair begins growing from his bald scalp. 443 461
• Hellfire later costs him both arms, leaving him to consider cloned or mechanical replacements. 472 473

Abilities & Skills

Point-Adding Cheat

A cheat ability that converts Zhao Liang's potential into selectable improvements and implants corresponding memories and insights.

• His first known allocation, [League of Legends Operation Enhancement], gave him the equivalent of extensive competitive-game training and enabled him to dominate Silver-ranked matches. 453
• After breaking brain shackles, the cheat displayed more than a dozen new options related to the brain and nervous system. 463
• The cheat's available options depend on Zhao Liang's knowledge and personal state; its earlier functions appeared focused on academics and esports because those were the fields he could recognize at the time. 463
• He later considers using it to reduce rejection or enhance compatibility for a Mechanical Brain implant. 463

Pain Sensation Spatialization

An enhanced sensory ability obtained through cheat-point allocation.

• Improves tactile awareness, allowing Zhao Liang to distinguish the number of fingers pressed against his back. 458
• Provides pain-based spatial awareness. 458
• Granted memories of sustained qigong practice, making his breathing steadier and body feel lighter. 458
• Unlocking it revealed [Natural Affinity] as a future, ten-point option. 458

Shackle Breaking

Zhao Liang develops superhuman cognition and nervous-system control through Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital's extreme testing.

• Broke the shackles of his brain and internal nervous system. 460
• Can recall, organize, and process large amounts of previously learned information, including biology knowledge. 462
• Can perform fine hand control techniques with little practice after breaking his brain and nervous-system shackles. 461
• Extended use of his broken brain shackles can cause fatigue, disorientation, and nutritional strain. 462

Hellfire and Anomalous Heart

Zhao Liang integrates a green-flame anomaly, which settles in his heart and circulates through his blood.

• The anomaly gives him a vigorous heart and latent flame power in his blood. 476
• Hellfire previously infected both his arms, forcing him to amputate them to prevent its spread. 472
• His body remains unstable; limbs can convulse and explode into green flames without deliberate transformation. 494
• He can reclaim escaped Hellfire by absorbing it through his mouth. 494

Demon Blood and Demon Nesting Doll

After devouring Jenorik, Zhao Liang becomes a human with Demon Blood and begins pursuing a demon-based multi-body existence.

• He defeated Jenorik in a fusion of consciousness and absorbed the demon's experiences and nature. 476
• Feng Buzhi intends for him to develop [Demon Spirit Transformation], traverse space, and merge his demon body with his Abyss OL body. 476
• Zhao Liang repeatedly uses the “Demon Nesting Doll” process to create and merge bodies across Earth Star and the Abyss World. 494 576
• His two bodies initially cannot safely see one another; when brought together, his clone liquefies and merges into his original body. 576

Story Role

Arrival in *Abyss OL*

Following Zhao Gang's funeral, Zhao Liang reserves a closed-beta slot for Abyss OL and receives a mysterious black helmet. He enters the Abyss World, meets Robin and Mark, and learns that the game's apparent virtuality does not prevent real pain, death, or consequences. 440 441

Game Shill and Hidden Quest

Zhao Liang becomes a game shill, publishes early-player guides, and attempts to exploit the game's hidden systems. His enthusiasm leads him to accept Jenorik's demon contract without carefully reading it; when he tries to report the demon's plans, his character self-destructs. 446 451

He later preserves the contract unintentionally by saving his state through the Town Crystal before resurrection, permanently binding Jenorik to him. 457

Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital

After Feng Buzhi reveals that Abyss OL is a real world, Zhao Liang travels to Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital despite fearing its methods. He endures electric-shock memory training and Wallace's life-draining tests, breaks his brain and nervous-system shackles, and becomes an official researcher. 452 459 460 461

Dual Life and Demon Transformation

Zhao Liang joins the Dual Life Plan, using login devices and clone bodies to connect his Earth Star and Abyss World existences. Hellfire's attack destroys both of his arms, but his survival and anomalous compatibility make him Feng Buzhi's candidate for green-flame integration. 473 474 475

Under Feng Buzhi's guidance, he integrates the anomaly and devours Jenorik, becoming a human with Demon Blood. 476

Reunion with Zhao Gang

Zhao Liang encounters his cousin Zhao Gang again in Abyss OL, where Zhao Gang has become an NPC after dying in the real world. Zhao Liang conceals many details about Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital and his own transformation, but the cousins leave the starting town together with Wang Youcai. 477 479

Relationships

• Zhao Gang — Older cousin and childhood gaming companion. Zhao Liang mourned Zhao Gang's death, then later reunited with him after Zhao Gang became an Abyss OL NPC. 440 479
• Feng Buzhi / Cult Leader Feng — Benefactor, supervisor, and nominal master. Feng reveals the truth of Abyss OL, grants Zhao Liang the Point-Adding Cheat, guides his anomaly integration, and counts him among his nominal disciples. 452 453 476 488
• Jenorik — Demon contractor turned integrated demon. Jenorik tricks Zhao Liang into a binding agreement, but Zhao Liang later defeats and absorbs him during a fusion of consciousness. 451 476
• Robin — Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital researcher and colleague. Robin helps Zhao Liang survive Hellfire contamination by assisting with his right-arm amputation and advises him on mechanical replacements. 472 473
• Mark — Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital researcher who recruits Zhao Liang, explains cheat abilities, and guides him toward [Pain Sensation Spatialization]. 442 458
• Wallace — Robot researcher who conducts Zhao Liang's shackle-breaking and life-draining tests. 459 460
• Wang Youcai — Middle-school friend and fellow Abyss OL player. Zhao Liang warns him not to publicize dangerous secrets and tries to help him gain admission to Lorenz Psychiatric Hospital. 477 479 480

Trivia

• Zhao Liang initially believed Abyss OL might be a protagonist-style opportunity that would let him bring virtual items into reality. 441
• He was a League of Legends player before receiving his cheat, and later realized his enhanced skill could potentially let him become a professional player. 453 457
• He repeatedly worries about losing his hair during the early Abyss OL incidents. 443 444
• Zhao Liang calls his repeated cross-world body-merging process “Russian dolls” or “Demon Nesting Doll.” 476 494