Seized by the System

[The System has encountered a fugitive: Wang Hongde.]

[The System has deployed ‘Skip Punch’ ¹ . Wang Hongde did not channel his vital energy as defense. Critical hit! Defenses breached!]

[Wang Hongde suffered 225 Damage (DMG)!]

[Wang Hongde is dead!]

[The System gained 100 Experience Points (EXP). The System is 4 points away from the next level.]

Okay. He had actually killed someone now. Fang Ning was oddly serene when he saw the notification. Nothing seemed to be out of the norm, and he was quite curious when he found himself totally free from the typical ‘first blood syndrome’. He did not feel nauseous, and was nowhere close to vomiting.

After some pondering, he blamed the detachment on the System. He was no more than an observer when all of this happened, just like how a pedestrian would witness an accident. The latter case was bloodier than this one, and most of the bystanders did not even flinch when they were gossiping. That would explain why the crowd usually flocked to car accident scenes.

Furthermore, Fang Ning felt that this sense of detachment might be good for the current situation. Presently, he would have never been able to kill someone even if he was asked to, and his movements would never be as clean and crisp as this. He would probably be able to use 30% of the ability the System had. He would probably be in a lot of danger if he were actually facing a crisis.

He was unaffected by the death of Wang Hongde, and he soon rationalized that that was entirely normal. However, he was very surprised when he saw that the housemate the System has saved, the only victim of this incident, seemed to be even more unfazed than he when the fat man collapsed before her.

The girl now had her phone aimed at the fat man, the flashes going off. Then, her camera moved to aim at Fang Ning.

Fang Ning realized that she was taking photos when the camera flashed in his face. The girl then proceeded to swipe away on her phone, her head bowed and her eyes fixated on the screen. She paid little to no attention to the scene around her.

With his impeccable eyesight and above-average height, Fang Ning could peek at the girl’s screen. He was shocked beyond measure when he read that this woman was posting a Weibo status right beside a dead body.

Then, another mind-blowing event occurred before him.

The System controlled his body and walked towards the fat man’s body, as if no one else were present at the scene. Then, his hands ran all over the dead body.

“Put on gloves, don’t leave any prints behind.” Fang Ning managed to remind the System in short notice.

Once again, the System listened to his input. Fang Ning only managed to register a blur in his vision before two plastic bags were wrapped around his hands. These were probably the ones that he stuffed into his pocket when he was cleaning his room. After that, he witnessed the System once again controlling his body to run his hands over the fat man’s body.

When he finally saw the system notifications, Fang Ning suddenly cried, very much touched by the System’s actions.

He understood the System’s intention now.

If the prime directive for the System’s operation was ‘Survival’, why did it not sleep and rest after the tiring cleaning routine, instead choosing to go out to such a far place to ‘fight for justice’?

[The System has utilized Dragon’s Cloud-Searching Claw to search the body of the fugitive, Wang Hongde. The System has found RMB 4250, one iPhone 7, two debit cards, one gold necklace, one gold ring…]

‘Oh, System, you must have known from my memory that I only have RMB 850 left in my debit card. You somehow also knew that my rent was due the day after tomorrow, but my salary will only be out the day after!’

Fang Ning was lost for words. This whole thing about being seized by the System was not without its perks. At least, this was the first time since he was born that someone actually cared if he had enough money to get by, and the first time that someone wanted to give him money to spend!

Due to a certain very important reason, he did not have much savings, even though he had started working early as an adult and had a decent salary. He would always have a few days in the month when he would struggle financially.

After the System ran its hands all over the body, Fang Ning found himself to be presented with another set of options from the System.

[The System has saved a weak woman from the fugitive Wang Hongde. The woman seems to be traumatized into shock. You approach her to offer some comfort…]

‘Come on, System, I know what you’re thinking. You are not there to offer her comfort, but to get some compensation for your services. But you’re wrong, she’s not in shock. She’s just neck deep in the Internet.’

Fang Ning could almost see what options would appear. He saw his body move closer to the woman, and finally, three system options appeared in his mind.

[Option 1: You gently comfort her, “Everything’s fine now miss, do you want me to send you home? Where do you live?”]

[Option 2: You pat the numb fellow and chuckle, “Saving a person’s life is worth a fortune. How much do you think you’re worth?”]

[Option 3: You walk to her, give her a once over, and feel very disappointed when you realized that she was still playing with her phone and ignoring her savior. Then, you turn to leave the scene.]

Alright, Fang Ning’s theory was proven. 2 out of the 3 options provided were asking for compensation. Even if Fang Ning did not want the System to work for free, safety should still be the first priority. After all, they had just killed a person. Instead of fleeing the scene after looting, the idiotic System still wanted to ask for money! Hm, the System was still lacking in the intelligence department.

After Fang Ning finished muttering to himself, he chose Option 3.

While all of that happened, Zhao Ying, the chronic smartphone and Weibo addict, hadn’t even noticed what Fang Ning was doing. The only thing she realized was that this might be a chance for her to leap to the trending tag on Weibo.

“Real-time snaps, pictures included as proof. An online friend wanted to molest me during our first meeting, but a passerby gorgeous man punched him unconscious. He’s now lying on the ground.”

A post with pictures as proof that included a handsome man, the post would probably attract many people even if the trope was cheap. After all, it was cheap tropes like this that could easily amass the most traffic, since it was really difficult to witness a similar story in real life.

This Weibo post of hers managed to accumulate hundreds of comments seconds after it went online, and its likes were approaching a thousand. This was entirely new to her, and it gave her an unexplainable excitement.

“He’s a gorgeous man indeed! It’s rare for a title like this to not be click bait. @xxx @xxxx @xxxxx… Quick, join in the fun and let’s swoon over this handsome man.”

“Oh, he’s really handsome! Would he secretly be some artist? He’s too skinny though…”

“That’s the type of skinny where he looks slim with his clothes on, but when he strips them off, he’ll look muscular and strong.”

Fang Ning used his sharp eyes to scan the women’s screen and read the Weibo contents when he was close enough to her. He finally realized what she was doing.

Ah, so that’s why she was unaffected. She thought the fat man was just unconscious. Well, she could mot be blamed, really. She was neither a doctor nor a cop, and an ordinary layman would not be able to easily identify a dead body from an unconscious person, especially if said person was still very much alive a minute ago.

However, Fang Ning knew that not everyone were laymen. Soon, the truth would be revealed, and the process would only be quicker due to the immense talent pool hiding in the different corners of the internet.

Fortunately, the System was already turning away in disappointment after it gave the women and her phone a once over. It was following its chosen option to the tee. Moments after Fang Ning’s departure, Zhao Ying noticed an eerie twist of events on her Weibo post.

” OP ² , you’d better start running now! Don’t look back!”

“Don’t you think that the fatty on the ground seemed… off? @CoronerLinZhong”

“Yes, something is definitely off. I don’t think he’s experiencing shock. OP, leave the place now, we’ve called the police for you. The person is not unconscious; he’s dead. In the photos, the man’s eyes were open, but his irises were already blown wide. This is the typical eyes for a person that died with their eyes open. @XXPolice”

A shudder went through Zhao Ying’s body as she read these comments. She snapped herself back into reality, no longer deep in the trenches of her Weibo Mobile app. She lowered her eyes to look at the fat man in disbelief, his body still collapsed just meters away from her. The man’s face was still sinister, but he looked much scarier with his eyes wide open, his entire being unmoving as if frozen in place. He did not look alive.

Fear flooded her senses, and when she scanned her surroundings, her ‘hero’ was nowhere to be found. She was alone with a corpse, and when a breeze caressed a skin and shook the branches, the area morphed into a terrifying crime scene, where the shadows lurked in the dark where the lights could not reach.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Someone’s dead!” She shrieked as she sprinted towards the brightest place she could see.

…

Fang Ning was far away from the vicinity when he heard the shrill scream of a woman. He sighed. The woman finally realized that something was wrong only when he was already 200 meters away. She probably only found out after she read the comments from the experts online. It seemed like her lack of intelligence was on par with the System.

Fang Ning paid her no mind. He focused only on his body, and after he reminded the System, it led his body to go to a secluded place to shed off its disguise. He only returned to his rented house, taking the scenic route, after he had completely reverted to his original self.

‘By the way, this jogging speed is really fast!’ Fang Ning felt like he was faster than when he was riding a motorbike. Did the System use Nimble Steps during the run?  ³

Sadly, he did not manage to see any system notification about that matter.

He took quite a long time to regain his breath after he arrived in his rented room. However, Fang Ning still could not control his body. He did manage, though, to see how he should go about things after tonight’s experiences. He found out that the System would listen to his suggestions as long as they were able to increase the chances of survival for the System.

If that were the case, the System might give him some sort of control over his body one day, when it felt that he might be able to survive better that way.

One of Fang Ning’s self-identified strengths was that Fang Ning was a die-hard optimist. Now, he once again used this strength of his to search a new way of living for himself.

The System once again commanded Fang Ning’s body to take a shower afterward. When Fang Ning thought that the System would finally rest and sleep, and that he could finally take control of his body, a new notification appeared.

[The System has decided to train in isolation.]

Fang Ning felt an omen breathing down his neck. The next thing he saw was the System sitting crossed legged on his bed, his palm facing the sky as if he were meditating.

“Alright, you win,” Fang Ning grumbled. He felt a warm flow of air rise from his lower abdomen, and soon it separated itself into four currents. Two of them went to the left and right of his lower body, while the other two went past his chest to reach the left and right of his upper body. When the warm air reached his hands and feet, it returned and flowed back to his abdomen.

The cycle repeated itself over again and again.