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"An unfamiliar ceiling… Where the hell am I? Was I captured by the Ōtsutsuki for experiments?!"
Qianyu's eyes snapped open.
He was in a bright, clean hospital room. Tubes snaked across his body. A ventilator mask clung to his face.
Swoosh!
He ripped off the mask, leapt from the bed, and went into a mid-air flip—
"Doctor, the patient—!!"
The commotion brought a young nurse to the door. She froze for a second, then bolted to find the doctor.
"The patient woke up?" a doctor asked, approaching.
"No. He did a kip-up, sat straight up, then backflipped and planted his head on the floor. He's out cold again," the nurse described with dramatic gestures.
The doctor was speechless.
…
"Did I pass out again? Damn it, my head… Was I knocked out by an Ōtsutsuki powerhouse?"
Qianyu regained consciousness. He struggled to sit up. This time, he noticed the mask and tubes were gone.
"Tian'r, you're finally awake! You passed out suddenly yesterday, you know? Scared your old man half to death!"
A voice called out. A young man in his early twenties, who'd been waiting outside, walked in. He saw Qianyu was awake and let out a heavy sigh of relief.
"Tian'r? You're… Zhang Chao?!"
Qianyu stared at the young man. Recognition dawned. This was Zhang Chao, his roommate before the transmigration. 'Tian'r' was what his roommates used to call him.
"What's going on?!"
Qianyu vaulted off the bed. He yanked open the curtains. Blinding sunlight flooded in, followed by the view outside.
A familiar cityscape. Office buildings he knew. Traffic lights. Car horns. Perpetually congested streets… A feeling of lifetimes having passed washed over him.
"This is… Earth?!"
Suspicion and disbelief churned inside him. He snatched Zhang Chao's phone. He checked the date.
"An illusion? Am I under a genjutsu? God damn it, why is it so realistic? I can't see any flaws. Where's my chakra?"
"Holy shit, Ye Tian, don't fucking scare me like that. I just heard the doctor say… you hit your head?"
Zhang Chao gulped as he watched Qianyu's crazed muttering. He carefully retrieved his phone. "Uh, I just got off the phone with your folks again. They got off the train half an hour ago. Should be here any minute."
"My parents?"
Qianyu froze. Their faces grew sharper in his mind. At the same time, his memories of the 'other world' began to blur.
It was like a dream. Crystal clear upon waking, but growing fuzzy moments later. Soon, you might even forget you had a dream at all.
"Yeah, your aunt and uncle are on their way. Dude, I told you not to grind so hard. Had to pull all-nighters studying, and now your body's giving out, huh?"
Qianyu seemed calmer. Zhang Chao relaxed. He grinned. "But the doc said you're fine. Just overworked, your body couldn't take it. Hang on, I'll go get him for another check-up."
This place might not be real. How could I just suddenly be back on Earth?
Qianyu still doubted everything. He watched the doctor and nurse enter for rounds with a critical eye. He was a med student himself; he knew all the procedures.
But everything was… normal. The nurse, the doctor, the people in his sight, the slight rustle of movement nearby—not a single hint of anything was off.
He couldn't sense chakra. Couldn't refine it. This seemed to be a world utterly devoid of supernatural power. Mundane. Ordinary… Earth.
"Ye Tian, what was that all about earlier? I heard 'chakra.' You had time to watch Naruto while pulling all-nighters for exams?"
Looking at his concerned roommate, Qianyu was starting to lose the line between reality and dream. Hesitantly, he explained.
"I… I had this dream. I dreamed I transmigrated into the Naruto world. And I got this system that gave me rewards for saving lives…"
"Oh, I know that one!" Zhang Chao laughed. "When I was obsessed with One Piece, I dreamed I got a 'More Kids, More Blessings' system. In the dream, I was with Boa Hancock, Robin, Nami… heheh!"
He wiped a bit of drool from his lip and gave Qianyu a thumbs-up. "But seriously, dude, even in your dreams you're saving people. A true model for us med students!"
"Right! The system!"
Qianyu suddenly smacked his forehead. He sat up, excited. He knew how to test this.
If this was really a genjutsu, this was all a projection of his consciousness. The system was linked to his consciousness. If the system was still there, it would prove all of this was fake!
Life-Saving System, display system interface.
He glanced at the confused Zhang Chao and chanted the command silently in his mind.
The system screen he expected never appeared. Minutes passed. Nothing happened.
"Just… a dream after all…"
Under Zhang Chao's puzzled gaze, Qianyu slumped back onto the bed. The memories of the 'other world' grew even fainter.
Yeah. Maybe it was all his imagination. Some wish-fulfillment web novel plot he'd read somewhere, mashed up with his favorite anime world… Just the fantasy of a stressed-out med student. It all fit so neatly.
In the dream, he had grown into an unrivaled powerhouse against all odds. He could command everything.
Now, the dream was over. He was back in a dull, colorless reality where he had nothing.
…
"Dad. Mom…"
Qianyu didn't know how much time had passed, but it felt like he hadn't seen his parents in years.
They were there now, holding his medical reports, anxiously surrounding a doctor, desperate for a definitive answer.
"Doctor, what's really wrong with our child?"
His mother's weather-worn face, lined from hard work. His father's back that couldn't quite stay straight anymore… It all matched his memories perfectly. It all felt so agonizingly real.
If all that really was just a dream… maybe that's not so bad?
The thought sprouted in Qianyu's mind. If he had really transmigrated… how devastated would his parents have been?
"Don't worry, your son is fine. All his vitals are normal. No brain damage at all. It's likely just from excessive stress recently."
The doctor patted the distracted Ye Tian on the shoulder, smiling. "Young man, I went through this phase too. When I was studying for the medical licensing exam, I could barely sleep. I lost over ten pounds, and my hair was falling out every day."
The doctor's voice was gentle. "I know your generation is under immense pressure. But instead of drowning in beautiful illusions, why not embrace the beauty in reality?"
"The beauty in reality?"
Ye Tian looked at his worried parents, and at his roommate Zhang Chao, who'd put his own studies on hold to stay with him. A look of relief spread across his face.
Yeah. He had parents who loved him. Friends who cared. Who said he had nothing? He already possessed so many beautiful things.
"Heh, you're right, senior. I'll take that to heart."
Immersed in the warm family atmosphere, Ye Tian could hardly remember anything from the dream anymore.
But then.
A violent shudder tore through the very core of his soul. It was an agony as if a piece of his spirit was being ripped away.
"AAAAARGH!"
Ye Tian collapsed onto the bed, convulsing, teetering on the edge of blacking out. Yet, with the excruciating pain came flashes of memory.
The beginning. A pitch-black, rainy night… a medical kit… a mission… a battlefield… the system…
"Xiao Tian, what's wrong? Are you okay?"
"Tian'r, say something! What's happening to you?!"
The doctor was already preparing a sedative. Faced with the concern of his parents and friend, Ye Tian ignored them. He forced his mind to focus.
Even if this is a projection of my consciousness… if even I don't 'believe' the system will appear… how could it possibly manifest?
"It's okay, son. Don't be afraid. Just sleep, and you'll feel better."
The doctor's needle pierced Ye Tian's skin. His eyelids grew heavy. Drowsiness dragged him down.
"LIFE-SAVING SYSTEM! DISPLAY SYSTEM INTERFACE!"
Ye Tian felt all strength leave him. Clinging to the last shreds of consciousness, he poured his remaining will into that mental roar.
Bzzzt—zzzt—
Everything around Qianyu flickered like a badly tuned old TV. The world drained of color.
The doctor, his parents, Zhang Chao—they all froze mid-action, like puppets with their strings cut. They stood silent and rigid, lined up neatly in a wordless mockery of Qianyu's solitude.
Whoosh!
At that moment, a beam of vibrant light pierced the monochrome world, illuminating Qianyu's solitary form.
[Ding! System interface displayed for host!]
As the system prompt sounded, the world in Qianyu's 'eyes' dissolved into nothingness.
[Host has escaped near-death state. Self-rescue successful. Congratulations on achieving the final accomplishment: Obtain "Own Power" Stack x1!]
…
Whoosh!
Qianyu's real eyes opened in reality.
Most of his physical body was gone. Only the upper part of his torso remained, cradled in Kaguya's arms.
"Kaguya. Stop."
After another spatial jump, Qianyu's voice was low, thick with suppressed rage.
"But Lord Qianyu…!"
Kaguya was confused. Even if Qianyu had truly awoken, they were still no match for Shibai Ōtsutsuki and Isshiki!
BOOM!
Qianyu didn't explain. In the next instant, a violent energy erupted from deep within his soul. It almost instantly reconstituted his missing body, violently reinforcing his physique.
"Lord Qianyu, I knew you'd find a way!"
Kaguya's beautiful eyes lit up. She ceased using Amenominaka. Obediently, she retreated behind Qianyu, waiting nervously for the arrival of Shibai and Isshiki.
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