Chapter 1: Reborn with a Wish to Die, Yet the System Begs Me to Stay
If being reborn didn’t come with a golden finger, but left you as a cripple on the verge of death from ALS, what would you choose—suicide, or suicide again?
Zhang Chu was facing this very dilemma.
Aside from his head, only his right hand could move. His rented room was barely better than a woodshed, the wheelchair beneath him was brand new, and on the table lay a freshly printed proof of withdrawal from university.
There was also a photo of him and his homeroom teacher, Li Feng. Li Feng wore a cheerful grin, and in front of them was the school’s care package: a brand new wheelchair.
“I don’t mind that you’re a simp—who hasn’t chased after a goddess or two? But damn, you’ve got ALS! How am I supposed to do anything in this new life?”
At this moment, Zhang Chu couldn’t even feel the urge to urinate. He relied entirely on adult diapers.
The Nine Provinces Continent was a world where spiritual energy had reawakened. Everyone could awaken their blood energy value and become a warrior. Powerful warriors could settle mountains with a single breath, their status far surpassing that of civil servants—they were the new “iron rice bowl.”
Where there were warriors, there were also exotic beasts. Put simply, on Blue Star, Zhang Chu used to kill chickens for their eggs; here, he might well be the chicken, killed for his eggs.
The rules of this world were simple: become a warrior, and you’ll have wealth, status, and lovers—male or female. Fail, and you’ll languish at the bottom of society, with no hope of rising ever again.
The body Zhang Chu’s soul had entered bore the same name. He was a senior at Binzhou University.
Originally, Zhang Chu had ranked in the top three for blood energy at Binzhou University and was the most promising candidate for the Martial Arts Research Institute.
But a year ago, during a field exercise, Zhang Chu teamed up with his goddess, Su Mingyue. They encountered a Grade 1 exotic beast, the Ice Soul Beast. For Su Mingyue’s sake, Zhang Chu was struck by the beast, his nervous system was severely damaged, his blood energy plummeted, and he was afflicted with ALS.
Su Mingyue seized the opportunity to slay the beast, traded its core for a blood energy pill, and then soared ahead, now becoming the most likely student to be recommended for the Martial Arts Research Institute.
Since then, Su Mingyue not only became the university's goddess but also its most renowned student. When Zhang Chu pursued her relentlessly, Su Mingyue declared in front of the whole class, “You insisted on saving me back then. Did I ask you to?”
And so, Zhang Chu’s reputation as a hopeless simp was sealed.
As the martial arts exams approached, homeroom teacher Li Feng, for the sake of the class’s graduation rate and honor, had Su Mingyue personally persuade Zhang Chu to withdraw.
As an orphan, Zhang Chu, touched by Su Mingyue’s concern, agreed without a second thought.
Yesterday afternoon, Li Feng brought several classmates to deliver care packages and the withdrawal proof.
That evening, Su Mingyue blocked Zhang Chu’s number, telling him they belonged to different worlds.
Zhang Chu’s world collapsed.
He bought beer and antibiotics.
The antibiotics couldn’t heal the heartbreak, but they did end the life of this hopeless simp.
“Damn!”
“This kind of rebirth—might as well be dead!”
Death from ALS is far more agonizing than sudden death.
With great effort, Zhang Chu picked up half a bottle of beer and two antibiotic capsules from the floor.
Having died once, he felt no hesitation.
He swallowed the antibiotics with the beer.
Then, he lit a cigarette, waiting for death.
“Ding! Detected that the host has taken two antibiotic capsules, blood energy +0.02!”
Zhang Chu, eyes closed and awaiting death, was stunned.
He snapped his eyes open, and a blue panel appeared before him:
Name: Zhang Chu
Age: 21
Realm: None
New blood energy: 0.02
Total blood energy: 5.02
Disease: Late-stage ALS
Treatment: Blood energy breakthrough to 150 points (Level 1 Warrior)
Staring at the panel, Zhang Chu was dazed for a long time. He picked up another capsule from the floor and swallowed it.
“Ding! Detected that the host has taken one antibiotic capsule, blood energy +0.01!”
Watching the numbers climb, Zhang Chu’s eyes lit up.
This wasn’t a dream—it was a cheat!
He tried suicide upon rebirth, and even the system couldn’t stand it...
Without hesitation, Zhang Chu grabbed the bottle of antibiotics and gulped them down.
“Ding! Detected that the host has taken one antibiotic capsule, blood energy +0.01!”
“Ding! Host has taken two antibiotic capsules, blood energy +0.02!”
Listening to the system’s voice, Zhang Chu grew even more excited.
He didn’t care if overdosing might send him to meet his great-grandmother—what could be worse than dying from ALS?
But alas, the pills soon ran out!
Last night, the host was used and abandoned by the goddess, and overdosed, consuming two-thirds of the bottle.
Ten capsules increased his blood energy by 0.1.
Total blood energy: 5.1
Yet, Zhang Chu could clearly feel his right hand was more nimble than before, and his cold, atrophied body was faintly touched by warmth.
Luckily, Zhang Chu had fully merged the host’s memories.
He maneuvered his electric wheelchair with one hand to the table, pulling out the care package Li Feng brought yesterday. One of the items was vitamins.
Zhang Chu wasn’t sure if vitamins counted as medicine.
Staring at the large bottle of a hundred, he made a decision: at noon today, he’d binge on vitamins!
“Ding-dong! Detected that the host has taken one vitamin, blood energy +0.01!”
It worked!
Even a mosquito is meat!
Zhang Chu was thrilled.
A hundred vitamins wouldn’t cure ALS, but if they could help his lower body regain sensation, allow him to feel the urge to urinate, it would be worth every bit!
These hundred vitamins were filling enough.
After fifty, Zhang Chu felt nauseous, so he washed them down with beer.
But his right hand was definitely more flexible.
“Damn, I’m feeling dizzy...”
“Did I overdose?”
Just as Zhang Chu swallowed the last vitamin and prepared to check his blood energy value on the panel, a wave of dizziness crashed over him.
His vision went black, and his head hit the floor.
He didn’t know how long had passed.
Zhang Chu was sure he was still alive—he’d slept from day to night, and his diaper was soaked.
Disgusted, he changed it, then tried to summon the panel with a thought.
Sure enough, the blue panel appeared again:
Name: Zhang Chu
Age: 21
Realm: None
New blood energy: 1
Total blood energy: 6.1
Disease: Late-stage ALS
Treatment: Blood energy breakthrough to 150 points (Level 1 Warrior)
“As expected, taking medicine increases blood energy, though it’s slow...”
Zhang Chu quickly calmed down.
Ordinary drugs could increase blood energy, but to reach 150 points in a short time, he’d need 15,000 pills.
Never mind whether his body could handle it, or if it would kill him.
Most importantly, he didn’t have a penny to his name.
As Zhang Chu burned his CPU, racking his brain for solutions, the secondhand phone on his table rang.
“Homeroom teacher Li Feng: @all students, with the martial arts exam approaching, don’t trust dubious sources or buy unregulated blood energy drugs. The neighboring school has already had fatalities. Reply if you’ve received this.”
“Class president Wang Xiaochuan: Received.”
“Su Mingyue: Don’t worry, Teacher Li, I don’t need them.”
Seeing the class group messages, Zhang Chu was glad the host hadn’t impulsively quit the group last night.
Drugs that could increase blood energy must be far more effective than simple antibiotics or vitamins.
Quickly, Zhang Chu opened the 69 City app, compared options, and found a high-priced blood energy pharmaceutical center, then sent in his resume...