Seize the Throne

Chapter 31: Really vicious 

Jiang Shi woke up in a hospital bed. His assistant was sitting beside him, and he could hear the voices of Jiang Jie and someone else talking outside the door, but he didn’t see the doctor who had been with them earlier.

Oh, right, Jiang Shi still didn’t know the man’s name.

The assistant noticed Jiang Shi waking up and asked him softly if he needed anything or if he was feeling uncomfortable. Jiang Shi shook his head and remained silent.

The assistant went to the side to pour some water for him. Soon after, Jiang Jie pushed open the door and came in. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Jiang Shi was awake and asked if he was okay.

Jiang Shi shook his head again.

He did have something to tell her, but it wasn’t something he could easily share with others.

The assistant handed him the water, and Jiang Shi sat up to take a few sips. When his throat felt better, he finally spoke up: “Jiang Jie, about that…”

He didn’t finish his sentence and seemed to be considering his words. Jiang Jie understood who he was referring to and answered, “You mean Dr. Jian? He drove us to the hospital, paid for the medical expenses, and seemed to have some urgent matters to attend to. He left us a contact information and then went away.”

“Oh,” Jiang Shi pondered for a moment and asked, “Why did he pay for the medical expenses?”

Jiang Jie also knew that after the examination, Jiang Shi’s body was fine, and his sudden fainting had nothing to do with helping catch the thief. It was enough for that person to send them to the hospital.

However, that person believed that he still had a certain responsibility for this sudden incident, so he insisted on paying for the medical expenses as if he could only be at ease after doing so.

Jiang Jie refused, but in her heart, she also had a little bit of resentment. Jiang Shi’s appearance at the time when he rushed out scared her. So she let him go.

Besides, that person obviously had no shortage of money, it was just a small matter.

But Jiang Shi did not think so.

He knew very well why he suddenly had a headache and there was no reason for someone else to pay for his medical expenses.

Jiang Shi asked for Jian Yi’s contact number and was ready to return the money. Jiang Jie could not resist, so she gave it to him.

Xiao Shitou was just like his name, in some ways like a stone.

After Jiang Jie gave it to him, she also reminded him that he was a stranger and not to communicate too much, and be careful of being deceived.

Jiang Shi obediently agreed.

Although he likes beautiful people, he still has a sense of caution, as long as the person is not standing in front of him.

If the person is standing in front of him, he has a certain chance of behaving unintelligently.

Jiang Shi did not stay in the hospital for a long time, after all, he had nothing to do.

He did not immediately contact Jian YI. Jiang Jie said that the other party had left for a reason, and it was not a good time to disturb them.

He missed today’s class, and there was no schedule in the afternoon. Jiang Jie was also scared by him today and thought that he had too much pressure, so she gave him a half-day off.

Jiang Shi returned home and locked himself in his room.

He muttered to himself in the room, “What exactly are you? “

There was no one else in the room to speak because that voice only sounded in Jiang Shi’s mind: “Are you asking me? I am the plot maintenance system. My main task is to bring the world back to the main line and maintain the world.”

Jiang Shi now doesn’t believe a word of this thing.

In fact, he has been doubting its existence from the very beginning.

Every time the text appears in Jiang Shi’s mind, it is too directional and purposeful.

If it’s just a simple “lucky charm,” would it have these things?

Would Superman’s flying skills lead him to where he must fly and how many times he must fly every day?

Moreover, even if it is a real lucky charm, there are pros and cons.

Purely fantasy, like watching movies, reading novels, and imagining oneself having the protagonist’s extraordinary abilities, is of course enjoyable, since it won’t come true, and people only imagine the convenience that those abilities bring.

Who would realistically consider the series of problems that need to be solved after obtaining those abilities?

Therefore, Jiang Shi’s perception of it was not very good from the beginning.

Then there were many bugs, and many places couldn’t be explained, as if it were a fake and shoddy product.

But Jiang Shi has been busy with training and various activities lately, and couldn’t find time to see a psychologist. Besides, seeing a psychologist is something that needs to be reported to his manager, Jiang Jie. If someone takes a picture of it, there will be a lot of gossip in the entertainment industry.

As a result, Jiang Shi has been procrastinating until now.

“See a psychologist? Let me tell you, I am a product of a higher-dimensional plane, and your world’s technology cannot detect me. Moreover, as long as you obediently complete the tasks, once you’re done, I will naturally leave,” the system said half-threateningly and half-coaxingly, “You wouldn’t want to be unable to sleep well in the future, would you?”

“Human beings are fragile things and can die easily.”

“Yes, maybe you’re not afraid. But think about your parents who raised you, your fans, and your manager.”

Jiang Shi is really angry.

The system has indeed found his weakness.

Why does such a thing exist? What can he do to get rid of it?

Can he call the police?

“Hehe,” the system sneered with a mechanical laugh, “What do you think? Will they treat you as a mental patient or take you seriously and bring you into the laboratory to open your brain for research?”

“Let me tell you the truth. My previous host had his brain opened, but they couldn’t find me no matter how hard they searched. Unless I volunteer, you can’t get rid of me.”

Jiang Shi bites his lips tightly, looking extremely pale.

No one would like the feeling of being controlled, of having their life and death manipulated, and their body turned into a puppet.

This feeling is really terrible.

The system continued, “Don’t be angry like this. In fact, we can both benefit from this.”

“You see, you can open the store and find all kinds of golden fingers. You can use them freely, as long as you complete tasks or guide others, you can earn points.”

“With these, you can easily become an international superstar.”

“You help me with tasks, and I help you achieve your dreams. This is a fair trade.”

“After the transaction is complete, I will leave. I promise!”

Jiang Shi looked at the various dazzling skills in the store in his mind.

[World-shattering Beauty]:

Increase charm by 1000 points;

Time limit of one month;

Every move and every smile will move people’s hearts. After wearing it, any creature within 100 meters of the host will have a 50-point increase in favorability!

[Sea Monster’s Singing Voice]:

Increase charm by 1000 points;

Time limit of one month;

No one can resist the singing voice of the sea monster. After wearing it, the first word the host says comes with the “charm” skill. The host wants someone to live, they live. The host wants someone to die, they die.

…

Jiang Shi browsed through them all, feeling no joy, only chills all over his body.

What terrible abilities.

Each skill is tempting and ultimately aims to completely control the person.

This is the temptation of the devil, and the outcome will be complete loss of oneself, ultimately becoming an empty shell.

As expected, Jiang Shi’s reaction was beyond the system’s expectations.

It really couldn’t figure out what was going on with this host.

In the past, every host it encountered, as long as it opened the store for them, they would breathe heavily and want to have all the skills immediately, experiencing what it’s like to be superior and omnipotent.

But Jiang Shi was clearly disgusted by those skills, with no desire for any of them.

The system patiently coaxed him, “Take a look again. There are legendary skills in there that are very…”

“No,” Jiang Shi interrupted it, his body trembling in fear but his voice resolute, “I don’t need these skills.”

The system didn’t think this was resolute, only that he was stubborn beyond belief.

What does he really want? Its store has everything, so what can’t he be satisfied with?

Jiang Shi really doesn’t need them.

Nine years of compulsory education taught him to be down-to-earth. Things that he learned through his own hard work will always belong to him, and there is no such thing as getting something for nothing. If there is, it must be a trap.

The knowledge he has learned also tells him that there is no free lunch in the world, and the more free something is, the more expensive it is.

Are these cheats really that good?

Jiang Shi thinks they are just rubbish.

What is the singing of the sea monster, and what is the halo of the superstar? These things directly erase all his efforts and sweat.

These things tell him that he can easily obtain them without any effort, making all his past efforts a joke.

Moreover, don’t forget that these things are all time-limited. When you have already gotten used to singing with the voice of a sea monster, and dancing with the halo of a superstar, you will have long forgotten what a training room looks like. When the time limit is over, you will become a waste that can no longer sing or dance.

And to cover up this cruel fact, you will be more actively earning points to exchange for skills, because you have long forgotten what hard work feels like, and what you think about is definitely not to learn it all over again. After all, there are easier ways, aren’t there?

And then, you will want to switch to the permanent version, and the high score will completely bind you to this system.

It’s no longer that it needs you, but that you can’t leave it. You will forever be its slave.

It’s really vicious.

Jiang Shi thought to himself.

He would never become a puppet for such a vicious thing.

Even if it meant his death.

The system fell silent.

It didn’t expect this person to be so stubborn.

It didn’t believe that it couldn’t get what it wanted.

Right!

The shopping interface was refreshed.

The homepage displayed two golden skill cards.

The skill names were labeled [Gateway to the World] and [God of Freedom].

Both were legendary-level skills.

[Gateway to the World] allows the soul to live forever, and the host can shuttle between one world and another with the system, never dying.

[God of Freedom] contains the skills of [Gateway to the World], but the host will have the authority to unbind and voluntarily choose to live a normal life in any small world.

The system “saw” that Jiang Shi’s attention lingered on the [God of Freedom] card for a while.

Then, as expected, it heard him ask, “What do you want me to do?”

The system smiled with pleasure; it finally won once.

It quickly gave out the task: “Contact Jian Yi, he will be your first target to conquer.”

Jiang Shi received Jian Yi’s name card from Jiang Jie and naturally knew who he was referring to.

He clenched his fists and asked the system, “Why? Didn’t you warn me not to get close to him before?”

The system’s mechanical voice rose, sounding very happy: “Now the situation is different.”

Jiang Shi’s nails left deep marks on his palms as he remained silent, trying his best to have no thoughts or ideas.

The system took his silence as acceptance.

At this moment, Jian Yi was at a golf course, accompanying Bian Yi to play.

To be exact, he was there to assist Bian Yi.

This was a new task assigned to him by Kou Li.

Of course, “assisting” was Jian Yi’s own definition. What Kou Li really wanted him to do was to treat Bian Yi.

Bian Yi knew this as well.

So although he really didn’t like this doctor who had once sent a wheelchair for Xiao Shu, he didn’t drive him away either.

Kou Li was busy in the laboratory and had no time, and Bian Yi had nothing else to do.

Jian Yi suggested that they go out and exercise, which was good for both physical and mental health, and the golf course had a wide view, which was very suitable for Bian Yi.

He felt that Kou Li should come too, but there was no rush. The fact that both of them were willing to be treated indicated that things were getting better.

Bian Yi was not very good at playing golf, after all, he hadn’t touched it for a long time, but Jian Yi, who looked lazy all over, played extremely well.

After finishing, he even taunted Bian Yi.

Bian Yi really thought this person was childish and immature and didn’t want to bother with him.

But he thought of Jiang Shi.

“Have you seen Jiang Shi?” Bian Yi adjusted his hat to block the sun in his eyes.

“I have seen him before, and he looks quite cute.” said Jian Yi, who didn’t really care, as he lazily swung his golf club.

Bian Yi frowned, not liking his frivolous tone. Last time he interacted with Jiang Shi, he felt that the child had a bit of a silly demeanor, and he didn’t really want Jiang Shi to become the new host of the system.

He knew better than anyone how cruel the system’s methods of torture could be.

Jian Yi didn’t really care about Bian Yi’s attitude, as Kou Li’s wife was his, not his own. He turned his wrist and continued, “But what we can confirm is that the thing is with that kid.”

“And it seems that they’re not getting along very well. Maybe it’s because they saw me,” he added.

Bian Yi had a bad feeling about this, “What do you mean?”

Jian Yi replied lazily, “The kid had a headache and fainted in front of me.”

Damn it.

Bian Yi gritted his teeth, regretting that he had approached Jiang Shi too early, making the system vigilant.

Jian Yi did not look at Bian Yi, but he was very aware of what Bian Yi was thinking. His tone was still indifferent, “Don’t be too quick to blame yourself, people are all susceptible to temptation.”

As soon as he finished speaking, his phone rang.

He took off his glove and answered the phone. Hearing the voice on the other end, he smiled.

Jian Yi made a mouth shape to Bianyi: “See, didn’t I say he would come?”