After a nerve-wracking day, Ye Zhizhou rolled into his blankets, exhaling a long breath. He was utterly exhausted, and it was all for the sake of staying alive...
"You did well." A message popped up on the screen. Without even bothering to respond, Ye Zhizhou flicked the screen away with a careless motion.
He almost choked as he tried to breathe properly after not exhaling completely. He coughed and couldn't help but roll his eyes in frustration.
"Please continue to work hard."
He really didn't want to work hard.
"Failure to complete the mission will result in death."
Well, everything was for the sake of survival.
"After each mission, I will level up, and you will receive rewards."
Ye Zhizhou flopped back into bed like a fish out of water. He couldn't even lift himself up properly due to his exhaustion. He sat up and stared at the screen in amazement. His voice rose with surprise, "Each time? Are there many of these world-saving missions?"
"Many," the screen displayed, crushing his hopes. Then, it presented a progress bar that was even more despair-inducing. "Once the progress bar is completed, you can return home."
The progress bar was exceptionally long, divided into nearly a hundred small squares, with only the first two squares currently illuminated.
"...By the time that progress bar is complete, I'll have rotted away to just bones," Ye Zhizhou remarked.
"Don't worry, one thousand years in the mission world is equivalent to one second in your world."
No, he wasn't reassured.
"The system can boost your mental power to level 3s for free."
Ye Zhizhou's face, which had been filled with despair, suddenly lit up. He eagerly asked, "Really? Are you that powerful? The gap between 3s and double s is enormous. In the entire empire, there are only a handful of 3s-level geniuses. If what the system says is true..."
"It's true, I'm not lying to you. As long as there's enough energy, anything is possible."
His eyes widened, and his heart raced. He urgently said, "Then upgrade me now! Level 3s mental power can detach from the body, making it an essential tool for daily life!"
"Wait until the progress bar is complete."
"Can't you upgrade me first..."
"No shortcuts to success."
"But..."
"Plenty of rest is the basic guarantee for the host to complete missions. It's late, host."
"This system is so annoying."
Ye Zhizhou fell asleep in irritation. In his dream, it seemed like countless screens were popping up in his mind, making it difficult to breathe, and his mood was heavy. He was finally awakened by torment at 5:30 a.m.
"System."
"What is it?" The screen quickly appeared in front of him, impressively fast.
"I feel like I have trouble breathing and can't sleep well. Is it because of the change in environment?" He opened his eyes, his gaze dull, recalling how he used to sleep little but had excellent sleep quality. It left him speechless.
The screen blinked and cast a light over him, scanning his body before displaying a line of text slowly, "Soul placement is fine, and body compatibility is 100%. You're not sleeping well because you're too fat."
Too fat... it wasn't because of a heavy heart, but a heavy body.
He sat up in bed, grasping his chubby hand seriously, and said, "I need to lose weight." Who knew when the tasks in this world would be completed? For the sake of his quality of life, he'd better lose some weight.
The screen blinked and the makeup mirror on the bedside table automatically opened, revealing a small brown pill inside.
"Take this."
"What is it?"
"Low-grade marrow-cleansing pill."
The situation suddenly took a strange turn. Going from a high-tech society to a cultivation world felt absurd. Ye Zhizhou hesitated to take it.
"Trust me."
"..."
"Besides trusting me, you have no other choice."
Fine... He was now completely dependent on this system, so it seemed like he had no choice but to trust it.
The pill melted in his mouth, not bitter at all, but rather had a faint sweetness. After it melted, it turned into a warm stream that slowly circulated through his body, making him feel extremely comfortable. It was a strange sensation, and Ye Zhizhou closed his eyes and savored it.
Two minutes later, he suddenly opened his eyes and rushed to the bathroom.
From 5:30 to 6:00, Ye Zhizhou almost collapsed.
"The marrow-cleansing pill comes in three grades: low-grade strengthens the body, middle-grade enhances beauty, and high-grade cleanses the meridians. This is a necessary process for repairing the body, eliminating toxins, and improving the body's vitality. Please don't panic, host."
No, he wasn't panicking; he just wanted to die.
On the second day, Yun Ke slept in, a rare occurrence. The butler, Mr. Fu, was overjoyed, acting as if it were New Year's Day. After sternly ordering everyone not to disturb Master Ye on the second floor, he went to pay his respects to the late master and mistress with a smile as wide as a chrysanthemum.
Deep inside, Ye Zhizhou felt a sense of triumph. He cast a fleeting glance at the female lead, whose smile appeared somewhat forced, and sat contentedly in the car taking him to school.
High school life was dull and boring, and Ye Zhizhou's good mood quickly faded. He spent the morning flipping through Du Yang's sophomore textbooks and browsed through the textbooks for freshman and senior years at the bookstore during lunch break. Then, he used the afternoon to complete two sets of mock college entrance exam papers. After scoring full marks in every subject, he pushed the papers away, gazing at the sky with a melancholic expression. He wondered if Yun Ke and the female lead were taking advantage of his absence to engage in some inappropriate relationship at home.
"System, what if I skip a grade and take the college entrance exam next year? That way, I'll have more time to focus on the female lead. High school life is so restrictive; it's painful."
The makeup mirror clicked open automatically, revealing a green pill inside.
"What's this?"
"Grade-skipping reward, Vigorating Jade Dew Pill. It refreshes the mind and keeps you at your most alert."
It seemed like the system agreed with the suggestion to skip a grade. However...
"System, are you actually selling snake oil?"
The system pretended to be dead and didn't respond.
Ye Zhizhou casually put away the pill and waited for school to end.
During the break, he knocked on the door of the class teacher's office, entered with permission, and flashed a toothy smile at the teacher sitting behind the desk. "Teacher, my parents want me to skip a grade. How do I go about it?"
The teacher's hand, which had been grading papers, slipped.
Yunyuan Group, Top Floor Office.
Yun Ke solemnly opened his web browser, typed in keywords like "sudden change in personality," "suddenly irritable introverted child," "seventeen-year-old boy," and hit Enter.
Search results quickly appeared. He scrolled past a bunch of medical advertisements and landed on an answer in a Q&A format.
Xuanyuan Longaotian: Oh dear, dear asker, don't worry. Your son is going through adolescence, not a big deal. When children misbehave, it's usually because they're itching for some discipline. A few spankings should do the trick.
A few spankings... Yun Ke furrowed his brow deeply and closed the page.
Ye Zhizhou happily returned home after smoothly acing several mock exam papers and visited the teacher. He smiled at Fu Bo, who greeted him, and asked, "Where's Yun Ge? I have some good news to share with him."
Fu Bo, infected by his cheerful demeanor, also smiled as he took Ye Zhizhou's school bag. He replied, "Assistant Manager called and said there's a last-minute meeting at the company. Master will be back a bit late today."
"Why does he always have something to do around dinnertime?" Ye Zhizhou furrowed his brow. Seeing Bai Li come out of the dining room carrying a large thermal lunchbox, his task radar instantly went off. He asked, "Lily, why are you carrying a lunchbox?"
As if forgetting their unpleasantness from yesterday, Bai Li replied in a soft voice, "I was worried that Brother Yun would be too busy to have lunch, so I thought I'd bring him some. Dinner is already prepared at home, Xiao Yang, you can go ahead and eat without waiting for Brother Yun."
Truly a "gentle and considerate" female lead, planning everything meticulously. However, her attitude as the hostess was somewhat strange.
Ye Zhizhou raised an eyebrow in his mind but approached with a smile. He asked, "Lily, you've just been discharged from the hospital not long ago. It's a time for you to rest quietly. How can you tire yourself out by delivering lunch to Brother Yun? Let me do it; I happen to have something to discuss with him." He didn't wait for the female lead's response and simply took the lunchbox from her, then turned and headed for the door. As he ran out, he shouted, "Uncle Li, bring the car around. Let's go deliver lunch to Brother Yun."
"Hey, Xiao Yang, it's not necessary. I..." Bai Li watched him roll out of the house like a ball, leaving behind a trail of dust.
"Young Master has grown up and cares about Master now; that's wonderful," Fu Bo exclaimed with a contented expression, his eyes filled with gratitude. "And thanks to Miss Lily's guidance a few days ago, Young Master seems much more cheerful and energetic now."
"It's... It's nothing, Fu Bo," Bai Li replied stiffly, forcing a smile. She clasped her hands together, squeezing them so tightly that her nails almost dug into her palms. "Xiao Yang does seem more cheerful now... and he talks more..."