"Am I dead?"
Adrian's voice echoed into nothing.
He spun around slowly. Nothing but endless white stretched in every direction. No walls, no ceiling, no ground that he could see. Just whiteness, stretching forever.
"So… is this the afterlife?"
His voice trembled slightly. Not because he was afraid — though maybe he should have been — but more because he was annoyed.
"This looks cheap," he muttered. "Not even a pearly gate? Not even a flaming pit? Just… a white loading screen?"
"Hello, Adrian."
The voice boomed from above. Deep, powerful, commanding. The kind of voice that shook mountains and bent mortals to their knees.
Adrian squinted upward. "…You sound like the narrator from a bad Hollywood trailer."
And then, before him, a figure appeared. A tall man in flowing robes of gold and silver, his face ageless, his eyes like glowing stars. Radiant. Godlike.
Definitely divine.
…And Adrian's first thought was: *Oh no. He's hot. I bet he's gonna be smug about it.*
The entity smiled faintly. "You have died, Adrian Cole. And now… you are getting reincarnated."
Adrian blinked. "…Wait. Reincarnated? Just like that?"
"Yes."
"Hold up." He raised a hand like he was in class. "So everyone gets a chance to reincarnate, then? Some kind of universal welfare program?"
The god hesitated. His eyes narrowed slightly, as if deciding how much to say.
"…No. Not everyone."
Adrian tilted his head. "Then why me? I'm not exactly… special."
The god folded his hands behind his back, pacing slowly across the whiteness. After a long silence, he finally spoke:
"Because of your father."
"My… father?" Adrian frowned. His chest tightened at the word. He had grown up without one. His mother had raised him alone. She never spoke of the man.
The god stopped pacing. His eyes glowed brighter.
"Yes. Your father was chosen by me long ago. I transmigrated him into another world. He was… special. Talented. He became powerful, completed the mission I gave him, and rose above all others. Eventually, he returned to Earth."
Adrian's heart raced. "Wait… you're saying my dad was… an isekai protagonist?"
"Yes."
Adrian's jaw dropped. "What the—! No way! My old man was some chosen hero in another world and came back here?!"
The god's gaze softened. "Indeed. When he returned… it was because of your mother. His first love. He could not forget her. He had been transmigrated while already married to her. By the time he came back… you were already born. But he… he felt little attachment to you."
Adrian froze. "…Huh?"
The god sighed. "He still loved your mother. So… he took her back with him. Back to the world he had conquered. But you? You were left behind."
The words stabbed at Adrian's chest. He had always wondered. Always asked. His mother had smiled, deflected, told him not to worry. But hearing it now, from the literal mouth of a god…
So his father didn't care about him.
Adrian laughed weakly. "So let me get this straight. My dad's an isekai cheat hero who came back, stole my mom away, and basically said, 'Eh, don't need the kid'? And I'm supposed to feel… what? Grateful?"
The god raised a brow. "He did not abandon you entirely. He asked me… to grant you the chance of reincarnation. To give you a world, an opportunity, and a system. A chance to… live a greater life."
Adrian stared blankly. Then he barked a laugh. "Wow. Thanks, Dad. Fantastic parenting. Abandon your son, but hey, at least outsource his future to God Incorporated™. Real heartwarming."
The god's lips twitched. "…Do not be ungrateful. Many would kill for this chance."
"Yeah, yeah." Adrian rubbed the back of his neck. "So basically, I got the 'absentee dad but at least he left a gift card' deal."
"Something like that," the god said dryly.
Adrian sighed. "…Fine. Let's get to it. Where's my reincarnation menu? Do I pick a class? A race? Do I get a spin-the-wheel-of-fate minigame?"
The god gave him a flat look. "You are far too casual about this."
"Well, what did you expect? I've read a thousand web novels. I know how this works. Okay, let me think…" Adrian crossed his arms, pacing. "I want… a xianxia world."
The god arched a brow. "Xianxia?"
"Yes!" Adrian's eyes lit up. "Born into a top cultivation clan. A clan with ancient treasures, endless resources, and super hot cousins who definitely aren't related enough for it to be weird."
The god pinched the bridge of his nose.
Adrian ignored him, getting more excited. "I also want—uh—innate god-tier talent for cultivation. Like… triple heavenly spiritual roots. No, quintuple! And then a ring. Yeah. A ring with a hidden master who will secretly guide me while calling me trash until I prove myself."
The god closed his eyes. "You… are insufferable."
Adrian grinned. "And maybe—just maybe—I'll get a dragon bloodline, a divine physique, and oh—don't forget the overpowered fiancée who betrays me in Chapter 2 so I can unlock my true rage power-up arc."
The god stared at him, deadpan. "…Are you finished?"
"For now." Adrian smiled innocently. "So? Can we do it?"
The god sighed deeply, the kind of sigh that carried centuries of regret. "Oh, child. Give a mortal a finger, and he takes the entire hand. You are truly shameless."
"Shameless? I call it… genre-savvy."
"You want everything handed to you. Do you not wish to earn your own strength?"
Adrian tilted his head. "Do I *look* like someone who wants to climb the long, painful road of cultivation from scratch? Have you seen my room? I lived off instant noodles and raid bosses. I don't exactly scream 'hardworking protagonist.'"
The god groaned. "Why did I agree to do this for his son…"
Still, after a moment, he straightened. His divine aura rippled outward, filling the white void with shimmering light. "Very well. You are fortunate. Because of your father's request, I will indulge you. You will reincarnate into a cultivation world. You will have great talent. You will even have… your precious ring."
Adrian pumped his fist. "Yes! Let's goooo! Finally, the protagonist treatment!"
The god's lips curled into a dangerous smile. "But know this, child… every gift has its price. And if you squander this life as pathetically as your last one… I will not be merciful."
Adrian froze. "…Wait. What do you mean by—"
The god snapped his fingers.
Light swallowed him whole.
Adrian's words were cut off as his body dissolved into motes of energy. His last thought before darkness claimed him was:
*Please don't let my ring spirit be some grumpy old man with a beard…*