"Dr. Yan... Dr. Yan?"
Carefully, with a tinge of reverence in his voice, Nie Jia emerged from the haze. He opened his eyes to find a suited man bending over him, reminding him upon waking, "Dr. Yan, Madam is awake. The Mayor and Madam invite you to dine at the mansion. I'm here to escort you." Pausing, he added, "Please listen to the phone first."
Nie Jia felt a sense of foggy consciousness; it was only after the others finished speaking that he noticed the phone ringing in his pocket.
His brows furrowed in impatience, as if restraining a surge of rising aggression. Retrieving the phone, he glanced at the screen displaying a name: Jiang Yang.
With an unchanged expression, Nie Jia promptly threw the phone away.
The forceful motion resembled drawing a knife, instantly filling the room with an aura of hostility.
The Mayor's secretary was startled, unsure of what had unsettled the typically mild-mannered Dr. Yan.
Rising from the reclined chair where he feigned sleep, Nie Jia took a deep breath. Slowly regaining clarity, he realized the odd silence in his mind. Normally, whenever he entered a new world, the system promptly fed him with information about the world and the original host. Yet now, it seemed as if the system was absent altogether.
Ignoring the Mayor's secretary, Nie Jia walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, swiftly drawing the curtains.
Outside lay a bright expanse of sunlight and towering skyscrapers, absent of flying vehicles or aerial tracks. For a fleeting moment, disappointment gripped Nie Jia; evidently, he hadn't returned to his own world.
From the perspective of this current world, Nie Jia belonged to the future interstellar era, a minority possessing potent healing abilities among the empire's few. Renowned as a stellar military physician across the galaxies, he found himself imprisoned due to familial entanglements and manipulation by the Public Prosecution Department. Cast into alternate worlds repeatedly, his task was to collect evidence of his criminal persona, with the personality assessment system altered to compel him to commit crimes, aiming for a death sentence.
Despite being a battlefield medic, forced by the system to kill and wreak havoc, compelled to commit all manner of despicable acts, after multiple cycles, Nie Jia had transitioned from initial anger and resistance to numbness.
"Dr. Yan?" The Mayor's secretary couldn't help but interject.
Coming back to his senses, Nie Jia's eyes clouded over. "You should go back. I'll come by later."
Observing him, the young doctor with jet-black hair and a fair neck displayed the same gentle countenance as the day before. Yet, at that moment, he exuded an air of authority that brooked no interference. Without many words, the secretary nodded and left the hotel.
Standing by the window for a while longer, Nie Jia's mind remained unusually silent. He proceeded to the restroom and was startled upon catching sight of himself in the mirror.
A young man with black hair stared back, strikingly handsome with oriental features, adorned with a pair of retro-styled gold-rimmed glasses. Nie Jia stood bewildered for half a minute before reaching out to remove the glasses, silently gazing at the uncommon light brown eyes.
This Dr. Yan looked exactly like him.
"Hello, Mr. Nie. I'm your new program assistant, KK. From now on, I'll be at your service," a lively voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
Calmly, Nie Jia replaced the glasses and furrowed his brows. "A new program assistant? What's the Public Prosecution Department up to this time?"
"You've misunderstood, Mr. Nie. My owner discovered the Public Prosecution Department tampered with your personality assessment system, so they shut it down. Now, I'm here to assist you in clearing the previous negative records," the system explained.
"Who is your owner?" Nie Jia inquired.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Nie, that's beyond my authorization. Just understand that your owner is making every effort to rescue you. Your current body's original owner is Yan Su. By fulfilling Yan Su's wishes, you can offset a certain amount of the accumulated 'criminal persona.' The more wishes you fulfill, the more you neutralize. This way, upon returning to the real world, you can be acquitted."
"So, I'm supposed to shake off my antagonist identity and become the protagonist?" Nie Jia scoffed.
Unaware of his shift in demeanor, the system continued cheerfully, "No, to avoid attracting the Public Prosecution Department's attention, I'll still arrange antagonist characters for you. You need to approach the original host's wishes from the right perspective. If the original wish is to destroy the world, then you must make the act of destroying the world appear correct; otherwise, the 'criminal persona' value will continue to increase."
"Your owner is trying to help me? It seems more like they're putting me in a bind," Nie Jia remarked.
"I'm just giving you an example, hehehe," the system replied.
Before Nie Jia could process this sudden change, the new system flooded his consciousness with information about this world.
At the center of this world was Jiang Yang, the one Nie Jia had ignored the call from earlier – the eldest son of the Moon City's prestigious Jiang family, the protagonist in the world's consciousness. And now, Nie Jia's current identity was Yan Su, the stepson of the Jiangs, ostensibly Jiang Yang's younger brother.
At the age of four, Yan Su's mother married into the Jiang family. Growing up, he was bright and lively, earning the favor of his stepfather, Jiang Zhaolin.
During his adolescent infatuation, Yan Su fell for Jiang Yang. His fervent pursuit, however, was met with no response from Jiang Yang. In a moment of confusion and desperation to gain his attention, Yan Su ended up mingling in a bar. At that time, Jiang Yang, a senior high school student, intervened in a brawl at the bar to rescue Yan Su, resulting in a fractured left hand.
Enraging Jiang Zhaolin, Yan Su's actions provoked disappointment in his stepfather for his sexual orientation. Without consulting An Na, Jiang Zhaolin promptly sent Yan Su abroad.
Yan Su remained abroad for a decade. Upon returning, he was an internationally renowned neurology specialist, while Jiang Yang, after several thrilling business battles, had become the head of the Jiang family. It wasn't until two years ago, when Jiang Yang married Qin Yi Ran, the heiress of the Qin family, that Yan Su was permitted to come back.
Upon his return, Yan Su didn't have a heartwarming reunion with Jiang Yang. Instead, he targeted the Jiang family because upon his departure, he realized that everything was a sham orchestrated by Jiang Yang in collusion with his elder cousin to force him out.
Filled with resentment, Yan Su wielded extensive political connections. In several fiery clashes, he nearly ousted Jiang Yang from the prestigious family ranks.
He was the biggest antagonist in this story, a brilliant medical genius at the age of 28, globally recognized in neurology. His background and social status outshone the entire Jiang family. Yet, despite this, Jiang Yang's protagonist halo still
shone brightly, causing Yan Su's ultimate defeat.
Yan Su's biological father, Yan Yu, was left destitute after a divorce from An Na due to infidelity, spiraling into the lowest echelons of society, entangled in gambling and drugs. After Yan Su's return to the country, Yan Yu, drowning in enormous gambling debts, sought Yan Su's help. Relenting momentarily, Yan Su unwittingly became entangled.
Every time Yan Yu gambled away the money and drugs, he returned to Yan Su for more, which served as compelling evidence for Jiang Yang to accuse Yan Su of harboring a drug addict. Yan Su was prosecuted for harboring a drug addict and sentenced to three years. To prevent any future trouble, Jiang Yang personally injured Yan Su in prison, abruptly ending the medical genius's career.
Finally eliminating the primary antagonist, Jiang Yang's career soared while his romantic life remained smooth sailing. Within five years, he became the leading figure in Moon City's elite circle.
As Nie Jia finished reading the data, a tumultuous feeling of agitation surged within him. Though this alternate world was a construct of the personality assessment system, the pain and anger Nie Jia felt were staggeringly real. Especially the deep-rooted hatred towards the Public Prosecution Department that had been lurking within him from the start. Whenever the system forced him to commit crimes in this alternate world, that pitch-black hatred intensified.
He had thought that if he returned to the real world, he would tear his accusers to shreds! Yet, he also pondered that maybe he'd never get the chance to clear his name. Once the 'criminal persona' reached the sentencing threshold, he'd be condemned to death right there.
Never had Nie Jia imagined that someone in the real world would attempt to save him.
Now that he was free, he had to strive for an innocent verdict in the courtroom. He intended to reclaim everything owed to him by the Public Prosecution Department, one by one!
However, to return to the real world, he first needed to erase the recorded 'criminal persona.'
Taking a deep breath, Nie Jia suppressed the turmoil within and asked, "So, what is Yan Su's wish?"
"He wants Jiang Yang to regret," the system hurriedly responded.
Nie Jia returned to the window, basking in the sunlight as he contemplated. After a moment, he glanced at his shattered phone and, with one hand propping his forehead, instructed, "Inform Mayor Guo that I won't be going tonight. Then, book a flight back to Moon City."
The system complied. Nie Jia then remembered a crucial point and inquired, "Since you've intruded here, can I access my powers in this parallel world?"
The system responded, "Yes, I will do my utmost to fulfill your every request. However, the extent of transferring your abilities depends on the original host's physical capacity to endure. Considering Yan Su's constitution, handling ten percent of the maximum load of your abilities would be commendable."
Nie Jia immediately grasped the situation. It seemed the amount of power he could access depended on the world's level. If Yan Su was a magician or possessed post-apocalyptic abilities, the circumstances might be more favorable.
That afternoon, Nie Jia departed Yunnan and returned to Moon City.
After a period of introspection that afternoon, Nie Jia truly felt liberated. The new system, KK, though a bit talkative, would never compel him to do things he didn't want to. It wouldn't pry into his thoughts and even assisted in gathering information, truly living up to its promise of helping him to the fullest.
As he stepped inside, Jiang Yang, visibly agitated, pacing in the hall while incessantly dialing Yan Su's number, erupted in fury upon seeing Nie Jia. He grabbed Nie Jia's collar, veins bulging on his forehead as he roared, "Where were you?!"
"Yan Su, if anything happens to my grandfather, I won't let you off the hook!" A handsome young man stood up from the sofa, his eyes red with a layer of crimson hatred directed at Nie Jia.
He was Meng Qian, a renowned painter in this world and a crucial figure that led to Yan Su's downfall.
Jiang Yang had bought one of Meng Qian's paintings for three million, catapulting him to fame. Their acquaintance blossomed, leading Jiang Yang to divorce Qin Yi Ran for his alliance with Meng Qian. Now, Meng Qian had moved into Jiang's mansion, and their engagement banquet was just a few days away.
Yan Su had minimal direct contact with Meng Qian. However, recently, when Meng Qian's grandfather was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor, which proved challenging given the old man's age and the risky nature of treatment, Jiang Yang, without hesitation, offered 10% of Jiang Corporation's shares to enlist Yan Su for the surgery.
Yan Su wasn't in need of money. He valued the fact that Jiang Yang losing 10% of the company's shares would destabilize his position as the major shareholder of Jiang Corporation, making it easier for Yan Su to strike. This also highlighted Jiang Yang's profound love for Meng Qian, deeply moving him.
The original Yan Su was confident in the surgery, but due to his status as the designated antagonist, Meng Qian's grandfather passed away during the postoperative care, and Jiang Yang concluded it was Yan Su's surgical failure, initiating a frenzy of revenge.
Nie Jia arrived a bit later in this scenario, a week post-surgery. Three days ago, he'd quietly left Yunnan after performing a minor operation for a mayor's mother, unbeknownst to anyone. Meng Qian and Jiang Yang assumed Yan Su had fled in fear after the alleged failed surgery, with no signs of the old man waking up.
In reality, Yan Su's surgery was flawless. Meng Qian's grandfather passed away due to natural life exhaustion. Given his advanced age, his limited vitality struggled to recover from the damages inflicted by the major surgery, leading to his demise and unjustly placing blame on Yan Su.
"Where I go isn't something I need to report to you." Nie Jia found Jiang Yang's furious demeanor amusing and swiftly gripped Jiang Yang's inner wrist, causing him to wince in pain and release his hold.
With reddened eyes, Meng Qian approached Nie Jia, demanding, "Grandfather hasn't awakened yet, and his condition is worsening! Are you hiding something?!"
Nie Jia cast a chilling gaze at Meng Qian. "Mr. Meng, your grandfather is seventy-five, not thirty-five. Ignoring the risks of his advanced age and opting to deplete his vitality by removing the tumor instead of conservative treatment—do you expect him to wake up and perform a fitness routine after the anesthesia wears off?"
Meng Qian blushed crimson at his words, instinctively stepping back.
"Yan Su, I warn you not to joke about an old man's life." Jiang Yang's inner wrist throbbed in pain as he struggled to contain his anger while addressing Nie Jia.