Lin Wei woke up to the feeling of someone rifling through his brain.
Not literally, but close enough.
His eyes snapped open and immediately he knew something was different. There was a presence in his mind—foreign, intrusive and uncomfortably cheerful.
[Good morning, Host! ♪(´▽｀)]
Right. That hadn't been a dream.
Lin Wei hissed and sat up on his sleeping mat, early morning light filtered through the cracks in his shack's walls. His body still hurt from yesterday's disaster, but underneath the pain was something new—a faint beat in his meridians, not strong but there. Active.
The system was real.
[You slept for nine hours! Very responsible. Your Attraction Rating increased by 0.2 points due to adequate rest. Well done!]
"My what?"
[Attraction Rating! It's one of your core stats. You're currently sitting at a 4.2 out of 10. Room for improvement but we'll get there!]
Lin Wei pressed his palms against his eyes, It was too early for this.
"Can you... not read my thoughts?"
[Nope! We're bonded now. I have full access to your consciousness. Memories, feelings, that weird recurring dream about the fish market, all of it!]
"I don't have dreams about fish markets—"
[You did last month. Very strange dream, you were juggling eels.]
Lin Wei's face heated. "Stay OUT of my head!"
[Can't! It's part of the package, don't worry I'm not judging. Much. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]
He took a deep breath, then another. Getting angry at a voice in his head wasn't productive and if the system could actually help him cultivate, he'd tolerate the invasion of privacy.
"Sure..." he said aloud. "You mentioned a mission. 'Introduction content.' What exactly does that mean?"
[EXCELLENT question! Let me show you the full interface. Think really hard about the word 'Status.']
Lin Wei closed his eyes and concentrated. STATUS.
A translucent screen materialized in his vision, like a jade slip but floating, with text that shifted and reshaped as he focused on different sections.
[HOST PROFILE]
Name: Lin Wei
Age: 18
Title: Trash Wei (upgradeable!)
Cultivation: Qi Gathering (Crippled) → Lust Core (Dormant)
Sect Rank: Outer Disciple (Probation - 29 days remaining)
CORE STATS:
- Attraction Rating: 4.2/10 (Potential: 8/10 with proper grooming)
- Charisma: 3/10 (Currently negative due to shame spiral)
- Shamelessness: 2/10 (Room for significant growth!)
- Content Creation: 0/10 (Complete beginner)
- Lust Qi: 0/100 (Dormant - Awaiting first subscriber)
PHYSICAL STATS:
- Cultivation Talent (Traditional): 1/10 (Basically dead end)
- Cultivation Talent (Lust Path): ???/10 (UNTESTED - Exciting!)
- Meridian Integrity: 23% (Damaged but repairable with Lust Qi)
SPECIAL TRAITS:
- [Damaged Meridians] - Traditional cultivation is 50% less effective
- [Imposter Syndrome] - Confidence penalty in high-pressure situations
- [Father's Legacy] - Bonus to Lust Qi research, reputation penalty with orthodox cultivators
- [Rock Bottom Mentality] - Willingness to try insane plans increased by 30%
CURRENT MISSION:
- Introduction Content (23:12:45 remaining)
SUBSCRIBERS: 0
SYSTEM BOND: Stable (Host is skeptical but desperate)
Lin Wei stared at the screen for a while.
"Four point two," he muttered. "Out of ten."
[To be fair, you currently look like a disaster! Unwashed, unshaven, wearing the same robes you slept in. Clean yourself up and you'll jump to at least a six. Trust me!]
"And shamelessness is a stat?"
[One of the MOST important stats! The Lust Qi path requires confidence. You need to be comfortable being seen, being desired, being the center of attention. Right now, your shamelessness is critically low. We'll work on that.]
Lin Wei rubbed his face. This was insane, stats for attraction? Shamelessness as a measurable quality?
But his meridians were humming faintly. For the first time in a long time, cultivation felt possible.
"Okay," he said. "The mission, explain it properly."
[GLADLY!]
The screen shifted, displaying the mission details in full:
[MANDATORY MISSION: Introduction Content]
Objective: Create content that introduces YOU to potential subscribers. Show them who you are, what you offer, why they should pay attention.
Requirements:
- Minimum 30 seconds of recorded content
- Must be posted to public forum (Sect Jade Network recommended)
- Must receive at least 1 genuine engagement (view, comment, or like)
Rewards:
- Lust Core Activation (unlock proper Qi cultivation)
- Basic Qi Circulation restored
- +5 to Meridian Integrity
- +1 Subscriber (if content is compelling)
Failure Penalty:
- Permanent Humiliation Aura (Level 1)
- Everyone within 10 meters will instinctively find you mockable
- Your already terrible reputation will become WORSE
- Stacks with future failures
Time Remaining: 23:11:02
Lin Wei read it twice.
"Recorded content," he said slowly. "You want me to make... a video?"
[Correct! A jade recording. Show your face, introduce yourself, give people a reason to care about you. Think of it as a cultivation demonstration but more personal. More engaging.]
"And if no one watches it, I get a permanent humiliation aura."
[Yep! So make it interesting! No pressure. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]
"That's a lot of pressure!"
[Details! Now, let me walk you through the basics of content creation. First, we need recording equipment.]
Lin Wei glanced around his tiny shack. "I don't have recording equipment."
[Sure you do! Check your father's old storage chest. The one under your sleeping mat.]
He froze. "How do you know about that?"
[I'm bonded to your consciousness, remember? I can see all your memories. Including the ones where you hide your father's belongings and cry about them late at night.]
Lin Wei's jaw clenched. "That's private."
[Not anymore! Now open the chest. You'll need the spirit stones and formation chalk inside.]
He wanted to argue, wanted to tell the system to fuck off and respect his boundaries.
But he needed the system's help more than he needed privacy.
Reluctantly, Lin Wei pulled the small wooden chest from under his mat, It was carved with amateur formation work—his father's handiwork. Inside were three low-grade spirit stones, a bag of formation chalk, and a bundle of letters he couldn't bear to read.
[Perfect! Now, here's what you'll do...]
Over the next hour, the system walked him through setting up a basic recording array. It was simpler than he'd expected—just a cheap jade slip, a spirit stone for power and some chalk formations to capture and store the video.
[Good! Now you have the equipment. Next: What will you record?]
Lin Wei sat in front of the prepared array and stared at it.
"I have no idea."
[You have several options:]
The screen displayed a list:
[CONTENT OPTIONS:]
1. Cultivation Demonstration (Boring but safe)
2. Personal Story (Emotional connection, risky)
3. Thirst Trap (Effective but requires shamelessness)
4. Comedy/Self-Deprecation (Disarms audience)
5. Combination Approach (RECOMMENDED)
"What's a thirst trap?"
[Content designed to be visually appealing. Showing skin, striking attractive poses, generally looking like someone people want to watch. It's very effective for the Lust path!]
Lin Wei's face heated. "Absolutely not."
[Figured you'd say that. Your Shamelessness stat is too low anyway. Let's start with option five—combine personal story with cultivation demonstration. Show vulnerability, show determination. People connect with struggle.]
"You want me to talk about my failures?"
[YES! Vulnerability is magnetic. Right now, you're 'that guy who exploded out of his clothes.' But if you frame it right, you can become 'the underdog fighting impossible odds.' MUCH better brand.]
"Brand," Lin Wei repeated flatly.
[You're building an audience, Host! That means you need a BRAND. A persona. An angle. Trust me on this.]
Lin Wei wanted to argue but the mission timer was ticking. Twenty-two hours left.
"Fine," he said. "What do I say?"
[Be honest. Tell them who you are, what happened, why you're not giving up. Make them CARE.]
He took a deep breath and activated the recording array.
The jade slip glowed softly. Recording.
Lin Wei looked at it for a moment, then started talking.
"Uh. Hello. My name is Lin Wei, outer sect disciple of Azure Cloud Sect, you probably know me as... well, as Trash Wei."
He paused, feeling his face heat with embarrassment. This was harder than he'd expected.
"Yesterday I failed the Meditation Trial. Again. For the fourth year in a row, my Qi backlash was so bad I literally exploded out of my robes in front of two hundred people."
His hands clenched. "I'm the son of Lin Hao, the alchemist who was executed three years ago for researching lust Qi cultivation. Everyone thinks he was a pervert, everyone thinks I'm a pervert by association."
The words were coming faster now, fueled by frustration.
"My meridians are damaged, have been since I was twelve, I can barely circulate Qi without it hurting and yesterday... yesterday I couldn't even manage that."
He looked directly at the recording array.
"I should quit, everyone says so, even I think so most of the time. I should just become a farmer or a shopkeeper and forget about cultivation entirely."
A pause.
"But I'm not going to."
His voice hardened.
"Because my father believed there were other paths, alternative methods for people who can't follow the orthodox way. He died for that belief, so I'm going to prove he was right."
Lin Wei leaned forward slightly.
"I don't care if it's unconventional, I don't care if it's embarrassing but If there's a way to cultivate that doesn't require perfect meridians and flawless talent, I'm going to find it, and I'm going to document the whole thing."
He held the pose for another moment, then reached forward and deactivated the array.
Silence filled the shack.
[...]
[Okay. That was actually good.]
[You've got the 'tragic underdog' angle down, the determination at the end was a nice touch. Well done, Host!]
Lin Wei exhaled slowly, his hands were shaking. Being that honest, that vulnerable felt like peeling off his own skin.
"So," he said. "Do I post it?"
[ABSOLUTELY. Upload it to the Sect Jade Network Public forum, anonymous posting allowed. Use a memorable username.]
Lin Wei pulled out his communication jade—the standard one every disciple carried, and accessed the sect's network. The interface was simple: text posts, images and video uploads.
His finger hovered over the upload button.
"What if no one watches it?"
[Then you get the Humiliation Aura and your life gets worse. So let's hope your tragic backstory resonates with someone! ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]
"Not helping."
[I'm a system, not a therapist. Now POST IT before you lose your nerve!]
Lin Wei took a breath and pressed upload.
[PROCESSING...]
[Username required. Suggestion: @TrashPhoenix]
"TrashPhoenix?"
[You're trash trying to rise from the ashes! It's poetic! And memorable!]
"It's embarrassing."
[You literally exploded out of your pants yesterday, I think we're past embarrassment. Username confirmed: @TrashPhoenix]
[UPLOADING...]
[VIDEO POSTED TO: Sect Jade Network - Public Forum]
[Tags: #AlternativeCultivation #OuterSect #PersonalJourney]
[Current Views: 0]
[Current Engagement: 0]
The screen updated in real time, showing his video now live on the sect's network.
Lin Wei stared at it.
"Now what?"
[Now we wait, the mission requires at least ONE engagement— A view, a comment, a like. Anything that proves someone actually watched it.]
"And if no one does?"
[Then in twenty-two hours, you'll have a permanent aura that makes people want to mock you. Your Attraction Rating will drop to 2, your Charisma will go negative and your already slim chances of staying in the sect will become nonexistent.]
Lin Wei's stomach twisted.
"That's... not encouraging."
[Life rarely is, Host! But look on the bright side—you've taken the first step. That's more than most people do.]
[Now: Go wash up and eat something. You smell like sadness and your Attraction Rating is dropping just from poor hygiene. We need you presentable in case someone DOES watch the video.]
He looked down at himself, His robes were wrinkled, stained and he genuinely couldn't remember the last time he'd bathed properly.
"Ok... Ok," he muttered, grabbing a cleaner set of robes from his shelf. "But if this doesn't work—"
[It'll work! Probably! Maybe! 70% chance!]
"THAT'S NOT REASSURING."
[Look, I'm being honest with you! That's better than false confidence, right? Now GO. You have twenty two hours until mission failure, and I'd really prefer not to deal with the Humiliation Aura. It makes my job harder.]
Lin Wei shook his head and headed for the door.
As he stepped outside into the morning light, he felt the system's presence settle into a comfortable background hum. Still there, still watching but giving him space.
The sect was already awake, disciples moved through the pathways, heading to morning training or breakfast. A few glanced at him and whispered—yesterday's failure was still fresh in everyone's minds.
Lin Wei kept his head up and walked toward the communal washing area.
He had a video uploaded, a mission active, a system in his head promising power through attention.
It was insane, but it was the only chance he might have.
[That's the spirit, Host! Now hurry up. Time's ticking, and we have an audience to build! ♪(´▽｀)]
Lin Wei walked faster.
Twenty two hours.
He just needed one person to watch his video.
Just one.