Screech—Crash!
With a burst of brakes and a deafening impact, a tour bus tipped onto the roadside. The massive inertia flung Zhao Xuan toward the ceiling, then the seatbelt yanked him back into place. The violent jolt knocked him unconscious.
[Detecting rapidly declining vital signs in carbon-based lifeform. Initiating fusion.]
[Repairing carbon-based lifeform…]
[Low energy detected. Switching to low-power mode.]
[Repair complete.]
"This patient is awake!"
"Don't move! We're taking you to the hospital!"
After an unknown stretch of blackness, Zhao Xuan heard a male voice. He tried opening his eyes but couldn't.
"So lucky… Out of all 45 people on the bus, he barely has a scratch." Another voice chimed in with amazement at his fortune.
He tried again. This time, blurry shapes came into view. Sunlight filtered through gaps in the curtains, landing on his face. He was lying head-first inside what looked like an ambulance; beside him sat someone in a white coat.
A doctor? So this is an ambulance. Guess I'm not dying. Zhao Xuan let out a silent sigh of relief and tilted his head slightly upward.
His vision sharpened gradually. The moment he made out the doctor clearly, his breath caught—words had appeared in front of his eyes:
*** , Male
Middle-aged
Healthy
Strength 11
Agility 11
Stamina 10
Energy 15
Focus 15
Friendliness 20
"What the hell is this?" Groggy moments ago, Zhao Xuan snapped fully alert. He struggled, but before boarding the ambulance, patients were strapped to stretchers—so he couldn't get up.
"Don't move. You might look fine, but we still need to run tests," the doctor said quickly, thinking Zhao Xuan was trying to sit up.
"Alright, but I don't feel nauseous or dizzy, and I remember exactly what happened during the crash. Should be no concussion." His father, Zhao Mingdong, was a doctor, so Zhao Xuan had picked up some basic medical knowledge just from growing up around him.
"You know more than most patients. Still, we have to be responsible. Hang in there," said the other doctor—the one who'd earlier marveled at Zhao Xuan's luck—from the far side of the ambulance.
When Zhao Xuan glanced at him, the same kind of panel appeared, though the numbers differed slightly:
*** , Male
Middle-aged
Healthy
Strength 12
Agility 12
Stamina 11
Energy 13
Focus 13
Friendliness 10
Zhao Xuan noticed the stretcher opposite was empty.
Looks like the character stats screen from an RPG.
[Hello, carbon-based lifeform. It's an honor to coexist with you.]
Zhao Xuan jumped, then forced calm. He tried talking to whatever had latched onto his mind. "Who are you?"
[I'm a silicon-based lifeform from another universe. Our civilization is long gone—I drifted here.]
By the time they reached the hospital, Zhao Xuan had basically figured out the deal. This "thing" was a remnant of a silicon-based civilization from a parallel universe. Their race died out due to reproductive failure. This unit was left behind—a powerful learning mechanism, but without full consciousness or true life traits.
Curiosity got the better of him. "I'll call you 'the System.' When did you come to Earth? Why me?"
[I arrived on Earth shortly before the Industrial Revolution. Our physical compatibility is extremely high. I need to attach to a living being to develop consciousness. Otherwise, I only operate on preset logic.]
"So you've been attached to others before?"
[If by 'people' you mean carbon-based lifeforms, no. Long ago, we were created as accessories to silicon-based lifeforms.]
Looking at the doctor beside him, Zhao Xuan suddenly worried about the upcoming examination.
"Can hospitals detect your presence?"
[Not unless we're actively communicating.]
Zhao Xuan breathed easier. At least he wouldn't end up as a lab specimen—no matter how ridiculous the idea of being sliced open was.
Just as he prepared to keep questioning the System, the doctor beside him changed tactics, trying to distract Zhao Xuan as he filled out the medical form.
"What's your name?"
"Zhao Xuan."
"Zhao Mingdong's son?" Both doctors froze. Zhao Xuan was surprised too—clearly these two were his dad's colleagues.
"Yeah, my dad's Zhao Mingdong. He works at Second People's Hospital."
Zhao Xuan noticed the other doctor dialing a number—probably calling his father with an update. He should've thought of that himself, but the System's sudden appearance had totally blown his mind.
"I'm Yang Yong. He's Li Zhisong. We started at the hospital together with your dad, but we ended up in surgery and emergency." Zhao Xuan's father was in dermatology, so it made sense he didn't recognize them.
When Zhao Xuan summoned their stat panels, the *** placeholders changed to their names.
Li Zhisong put his phone on speaker so Zhao Xuan could talk to his father. Turned out Zhao Mingdong had gotten word of the accident at work. Learning his son was on that bus sent him into a panic, but since his department couldn't leave, he asked a few acquaintances to keep him updated in real time.
Zhao Mingdong broke down crying with relief. Zhao Xuan told him to check in with his mom, Zhao Guyu, then Li Zhisong hung up.
While Yang Yong and Li Zhisong chatted about the crash, Zhao Xuan dove back into studying the System.
Zhao Xuan, Male
Age 18
Healthy
Strength 9
Agility 9
Stamina 10
Energy 18
Focus 20
Skills: Driving Lv1, English Lv2, Math Lv1
"Why are my stats so lopsided?" Zhao Xuan wasn't shocked—it made sense.
[Average human attributes are around 10. Your Energy and Focus are exceptional, but your body's a bit weak. I recommend exercise or physical enhancement. You can use attribute points to boost stats to 20 directly; further increases require extra conditions.]
He opened the System panel:
System Level: Lv0 (low energy, dormant)
Attribute Points: 5
Fortune Value: 100
System Funds: ¥6,007,277.00 (+¥0.1/sec)
At this point, Zhao Xuan couldn't stay calm.
"Where's all this money coming from? And what's Fortune Value?"
[Over eons, the System amassed near-infinite resources, including money, which can be transferred directly to your account via overseas channels. Right now, energy consumption is too high, functions are incomplete, and funds must be activated gradually. Fortune Value can be exchanged for various things—you can browse those options yourself.]
Zhao Xuan's hands trembled. Even if the income rate stayed the same, he'd instantly surpass 99.99% of people nationwide—¥8,640 per day, nearly ¥260,000 a month. Fortune Value worked like in-game currency, exchangeable at 1:10,000 for RMB. Unlike game coins, Fortune Value could buy money… but money couldn't buy Fortune Value.
"How do I level up and unlock more features?" he asked, noting the System was still Lv0.
[The System monitors your emotions and inner desires to issue tasks. When your emotions are released, you gain money and Fortune Value. If extreme emotional spikes occur, or the System judges a major timeline node, a level-up task will appear.]
All the way into the hospital, Zhao Xuan felt dizzy—not from a concussion, but from sheer shock at the windfall. He even pinched himself a few times; each pinch hurt.
By the time all the tests finished, it was already the evening of the next day. The hospital director kept exclaiming it was a medical miracle that Zhao Xuan walked away unscathed. His parents had calmed down, and the three of them prepared to go home.
Staying another couple days wouldn't have been a problem, but tonight would be one of the most important moments of Zhao Xuan's life—the release of the gaokao scores.