Zane stopped, his expression dazed. "Where am I?"
He was surrounded by towering, futuristic buildings, and vehicles streaked through the sky. Confusion clouded his eyes. "Am I… Transmigrated?"
Could a person just transmigrate by walking down the street? And into a complete stranger's body? A voice echoed in his ear, a system perhaps, or some other strange phenomenon. Before he could make sense of his situation, he noticed several sleek, black vehicles parked in front of a nearby apartment building.
Conversations drifted from the crowd of onlookers.
"The markings on those cars... aren't they from the Rohan Group?"
"The Rohan Group is one of the top three conglomerates in our province. Why would they be in our small neighborhood?"
Listening to them, a look of bewilderment crossed Zane's face. Suddenly, a group of black-clad bodyguards appeared, escorting an arrogant young man who strode quickly toward him.
The young man stopped and spoke with a cold sneer. "Inferior person! Are you Zane? Elena's so-called boyfriend?"
"Do you think you can covet someone like Elena? You're asking for death!"
The young man, Kai Rohan, about nineteen years old and dressed in a stylish blue suit, glared at Zane with cold, violent eyes. The bodyguards beside him all cast icy stares as well.
Zane frowned. Elena? Who was that? As the thought formed, a strange memory surfaced in his mind. He clutched his head as he sorted through the new information, a look of realization dawning on him.
Elena was a well-known beauty at the high school academy. She had nothing to do with the original owner of his body, but while being harassed by Kai, she had seen the former Zane and, her eyes lighting up, had blurted out that he was her boyfriend, using him as a shield.
The memories even contained a faint trace of her tearful, helpless expression, as if it wasn't intentional. Recalling this, and looking at the arrogant Kai Rohan, a wave of disgust washed over Zane. It was for both of them. What did the conflict between those two despicable people have to do with him? Why had he been dragged into this?
"I have no relation to her," Zane said, his voice flat.
Kai froze for a second, then scoffed. "Do you think I'd believe that? You're trying to distance yourself now?"
"An inferior person without even a talent... I don't know what gave you the courage to make a move on my woman!" he sneered.
The dozen or so bodyguards chimed in with mockery.
"He thinks he can compete with Young Master Rohan for Miss Elena? How preposterous!"
"Young Master Rohan has awakened a superpower to control air and is even in the top nine of our province's talent ranking. How could an untalented inferior person dare to compete with him?"
Zane frowned. Talent? A new flood of memories quickly surfaced.
• Blue Star, 1.1 million years into the future...
• The Starry Sky Calendar, year 1,100,000...
• Humanity had left Blue Star and begun the interstellar era.
This new age was no longer about material possessions; various Extraordinary Evolution Paths had been developed. A "talent" was the ability to become an Extraordinary Evolver, either through a cultivation talent for a specific path or a suddenly awakened superpower. The so-called talent ranking was an unknown phenomenon; as soon as a person with a powerful talent appeared, they were automatically listed and ranked according to the strength and potential of their ability.
There were city rankings, province rankings, Blue Star rankings, and even Human General rankings. With a province having at least fifty to sixty million people, many of whom awakened powers, Kai Rohan's place in the top nine was a testament to the astonishing strength of his air-controlling superpower. As for the original Zane, he was just an ordinary person with no talent or awakened power, not even on the city ranking.
Kai's expression became calm, and he grinned. "I've investigated you," he said, his voice deceptively casual. "Zane, eighteen years old, Federal Level One Citizen. Under normal circumstances, we would never cross paths, but since you've offended me, don't expect an easy time."
He sneered. "Coincidentally, the Human Federation Border Star System hasn't been peaceful lately, and a conscription policy has been issued. Our family was drawn, and we must send one person. You will go in our family's stead!"
As he spoke, he pulled out a glowing mechanical ring from his pocket. The ring rapidly disintegrated and shot towards Zane with lightning speed. Zane's eyes widened. He tried to dodge, but the object was too fast. With a click, the glowing mechanical collar clasped onto his wrist.
"What is this?" Zane demanded, his breathing growing ragged. He looked at Kai, his eyes filled with rage.
Kai's eyes held a gleam of anticipation. "It's a Federal-developed tracking bomb device, specifically for people like you who refuse to cooperate and might try to become a deserter."
"You can't escape! Early tomorrow morning, the Federal people will arrive by spaceship to take you and others to the Border Star System."
"Don't even think about resisting. As a citizen without superpowers, you cannot resist the Federation's mandatory measures!"
Kai's eyes were filled with cold anticipation as he spoke. He could already see the scene of this "inferior person" being taken to the front lines and dying miserably not long after. What could a powerless person do to resist or escape?
The bodyguards around them showed looks of pity. Kai Rohan left with his people, a satisfied smile on his face.
Zane's breath hitched, and he clenched his fists, his eyes filled with killing intent. He had just transmigrated into this new interstellar era, and this was what he had to face? At that moment, if he had the power, he would have destroyed everything.
At the same time, information about the conscription quickly surfaced in his mind. For the past one hundred and ten thousand years, the Interstellar Human Federation had been fervently expanding its territory, occupying one star system after another. It was clear that the Federation had a use for people like him—cannon fodder.