Chapter 323: I Hate Being Responsible

Not Chen Mo.

Someone else.

New Fate Signature Detected

Shen Tian’s eyes narrowed.

Xu Ning stared.

[It’s connected to the overseas route.]

"Protagonist?"

[Not fully formed.]

The panel flickered.

Unknown Fate Carrier

Current Fate: 94,000

Narrative Status: Awakening

Location: North Africa

Shen Tian became silent.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

A new Fate carrier...

Inside the remnants of Lu Chen’s original route.

Xu Ning continued.

[Lu Chen’s death created a vacuum.]

[Destiny appears to be filling it.]

Shen Tian smiled.

"So another protagonist is forming."

[Possibly.]

"Good."

Xu Ning stared.

Then...

[I’m not saying it.]

"You were thinking it."

[Unfortunately.]

. . .

Meanwhile.

North Africa.

Unknown location.

Night.

Gunfire echoed across the desert.

A convoy burned.

Black smoke rose into the sky.

Men shouted.

Engines screamed.

Tracer rounds crossed darkness.

Inside an overturned armored vehicle...

A young man slowly opened his eyes.

Blood ran down his forehead.

His breathing was heavy.

His ears rang.

For several seconds...

He couldn’t remember anything.

Then...

Memories slammed into him.

A city.

A computer.

A hospital.

A novel.

Death.

Then...

Another life.

Mercenaries.

War.

Sand.

Blood.

A name.

Adrian Vale.

His eyes widened.

"No..."

He looked at his hands.

Scarred.

Strong.

Not his.

Then...

A voice sounded inside his mind.

Ding.

Adrian froze.

Villain Survival System activated.

Silence.

Outside...

Someone screamed.

Adrian stared.

Then...

His face slowly changed.

"Villain?"

Memories rushed back.

A novel he had read before dying.

The War God’s Return.

The protagonist...

A legendary mercenary commander who would eventually return to China.

War Wolf.

Lu Chen.

Adrian’s eyes widened.

He remembered his character.

Adrian Vale.

Young master of the Vale military contracting family.

Rich.

Arrogant.

Cruel.

A minor overseas villain.

He would steal credit from Lu Chen.

Attempt to force a female mercenary commander into an engagement.

Then...

Lu Chen would destroy his family’s operations.

Break both his legs.

And eventually kill him.

Adrian breathed heavily.

Then...

He remembered something else.

The timeline.

This scene.

The convoy attack.

This was supposed to happen...

Before Lu Chen returned to China.

Adrian looked outside.

Burning vehicles.

Dead mercenaries.

His heart hammered.

"I’m early."

The system responded.

Correction.

Adrian froze.

Timeline anomaly detected.

Original protagonist Lu Chen status: Deceased.

Silence.

Adrian stared.

"What?"

Lu Chen is dead.

His mouth slowly opened.

"How?"

Pause.

Killed by unknown high authority Fate entity.

Adrian stared into the darkness.

Then...

A second notification appeared.

Original narrative has collapsed.

Villain death route invalidated.

New narrative reconstruction underway.

Adrian slowly smiled.

Then...

He started laughing.

Quietly at first.

Then louder.

Lu Chen was dead.

The protagonist who was supposed to ruin him...

Was already dead.

He didn’t have to hide.

Didn’t have to avoid heroines.

Didn’t have to surrender opportunities.

Didn’t have to become some cowardly background character.

Adrian pulled himself from the wreckage.

Gunfire continued.

He grabbed a rifle from a dead mercenary.

Checked it.

Then...

His smile widened.

"I’m free."

The system responded.

New Main Mission Generated

Adrian looked.

Mission: Become the New War Sovereign

Take control of the protagonist’s abandoned destiny.

Claim Lu Chen’s former allies.

Claim Lu Chen’s opportunities.

Claim Lu Chen’s overseas authority.

Claim the heroines left behind by the collapsed narrative.

Reward: Villain Fate Conversion

Adrian’s eyes gleamed.

"Now that’s more like it."

Then...

Another notification appeared.

Warning.

His smile weakened.

"What?"

Entity responsible for Lu Chen’s death remains active.

Adrian stared.

Then...

A name appeared.

Shen Tian

Silence.

Adrian frowned.

"Shen Tian?"

He searched the original novel memories.

Nothing.

No major villain.

No protagonist.

No important supporting character.

At most...

A wealthy young master from another city.

Someone who shouldn’t matter.

Adrian’s expression became confused.

"Who the hell is Shen Tian?"

. . .

Back in China.

Shen Tian sneezed.

Silence.

Rose looked toward him.

"Bless you."

Shen Tian stared.

Then...

Xu Ning started laughing.

"What?"

[Nothing.]

"Xu Ning."

[Someone’s probably talking about you.]

Shen Tian’s eyebrow rose.

"Qin Hao?"

[Possible.]

Tang Meilin looked toward him.

"You okay?"

"Fine."

She nodded.

Then...

Without thinking...

Reached toward his collar.

Adjusted it.

Her fingers brushed his neck.

Tang Meilin froze.

Shen Tian looked down at her.

Silence.

Her face slowly turned crimson.

"I..."

She immediately pulled her hand back.

"Your collar."

Shen Tian smiled.

"What about it?"

"It was..."

She looked.

Perfectly straight.

Rose looked too.

Gu Qingya looked too.

Ghost looked away.

Bear started smiling.

Tang Meilin’s face became even redder.

"...Crooked."

Shen Tian raised an eyebrow.

"Was it?"

"Yes."

Rose smiled.

"No."

Tang Meilin stared at her.

Rose took one step backward.

"Sorry."

Tang Meilin covered her face.

Shen Tian laughed.

Then...

His phone vibrated.

Qin Hao.

Qin Hao: Are you sending robot birds to my house again?

Shen Tian typed.

Shen Tian: No.

Pause.

Qin Hao: That answer came too fast.

Shen Tian: I’m busy.

Qin Hao: Doing what?

Shen Tian looked around.

Security company.

Rose.

Gu Qingya.

Tang Meilin.

Bear.

Ghost.

Potential overseas Fate route.

New unknown protagonist.

He typed.

Shen Tian: Villain things.

Three dots.

Then...

Qin Hao: That’s not reassuring.

Shen Tian smiled.

Shen Tian: It shouldn’t be.

. . .

That evening.

Shen estate.

Chi Lingxi sat beside Shen Tian on the sofa.

Her legs curled beneath her.

A movie played.

Nobody was watching it.

Rose sat nearby reviewing North African maps.

Gu Qingya had gone home.

Tang Meilin too.

Lin Yue was at the hospital.

Bai Xue had disappeared somewhere inside the mansion.

Probably stealing food.

Chi Lingxi looked toward Rose.

Then...

At the maps.

Then...

At Shen Tian.

"You’re leaving."

Shen Tian glanced down.

"Eventually."

"For how long?"

"Not sure."

Chi Lingxi became quiet.

Shen Tian noticed.

He placed an arm around her.

Pulled her closer.

She immediately leaned into him.

"Want to come?"

Her eyes widened.

"Can I?"

"If you want."

Rose looked up.

Chi Lingxi hesitated.

Then...

She shook her head.

"I have classes."

Shen Tian nodded.

She sighed.

"I hate being responsible."

Rose smiled.

"Good habit."

Chi Lingxi looked toward her.

Then...

"Take care of him."

Rose froze.

Shen Tian’s eyebrow rose.

Rose slowly looked toward Chi Lingxi.

--------

(Author’s Note: IMPORTANT!)

SEND POWESTONES!!!

ALL SUPER GIFTS (Magic Castle, Space Ship, Golden Gachapon) = MORE ChapterS!