Morning sunlight splashed through the dorm window as Li Cheng's alarm went off for the fifth time.
He groaned and smacked the "snooze" hologram with a lazy hand.
"System, wake me up gently next time…"
[Noted. Next alarm will include motivational slap simulation.]
"Wait—what simulation—"
SLAP!
A burst of electric sting zapped his wristband.
"OW! System!"
[Motivation achieved.]
"Achieved my death, maybe."
Li Cheng rolled out of bed, still grumbling, and grabbed his uniform jacket. The moment he stepped outside, a cool breeze greeted him, along with the distant chatter of students already gossiping about yesterday's plaza scene.
"Did you see him roast Zhao Mingyu again?"
"He's like the walking embodiment of karma."
"Li Cheng? Bro's trending on campus forum #1 again—under the tag 'CEO of Face-Slapping!'"
He sighed. "I need a new identity before graduation."
Classroom Buzz
The moment he entered the class, the noise shifted instantly. Dozens of heads turned. Some smiled, others whispered, and a few glared.
A rich, pompous voice cut through the air.
"Well, if it isn't the Red Code Entrepreneur himself," said Chen Hao, the spoiled heir of a minor conglomerate and self-proclaimed prince of the Business Department.
He was tall, wore a diamond earring, and had that smirk that made you want to file a noise complaint.
"What's this I hear?" Chen Hao continued, voice loud enough for the whole class. "Our little celebrity wants to start a company? How cute. Planning to sell memes or bug spray?"
The class snickered.
Li Cheng slid into his seat calmly, completely ignoring him.
[Trigger Detected: Arrogant Young Master.]
[Auto-Response Suggestion: Humiliate with style.]
He smirked faintly. "Actually," he said, "I was considering teaching a class on how not to act like a discount peacock. You'd make an excellent case study."
The laughter that followed was instant and merciless.
Chen Hao's face darkened. "You—"
"Relax," Li Cheng said, resting his chin on his palm. "I charge extra for private tutoring."
Even the professor walking in had to fight back a grin. "Alright, class, enough comedy—unless someone's launching a media startup."
Xiaoyu leaned over from behind, whispering, "You've officially started the day with a 9.5/10 roast. Nice."
[Campus Reputation +12.]
The Startup Plan
During break, Xiaoyu dragged Li Cheng to the campus courtyard with a huge binder labeled: "Red Code Enterprises — Version 0.1."
He blinked. "You actually made one?"
"Of course!" she said proudly. "We've got a company name, logo, and even a fake slogan: 'Code the Future, Slap the Past.'"
"…Please tell me that's temporary."
"Nope! It's perfect!"
She spread out a rough plan—like a mix between a business proposal and a chaotic dream:
Step 1: Make money.
Step 2: Look cool.
Step 3: Make more money.
Step 4: Face-slap competitors.
Li Cheng couldn't help but laugh. "At least you understand the core concept."
He skimmed the proposal again, a spark of real interest forming. "But if we're actually going to do this, we'll need something unique. Something people would never expect from students."
"Like what?"
He looked around the busy campus and thought aloud. "What if we build an app that ranks students' skill growth—like an academic power index? It'll gamify learning."
Xiaoyu blinked. "You mean… like a System for the school?"
Li Cheng smirked slightly. "Exactly."
[New Quest Created: 'Prototype the Campus System App.' Reward — 2,000 System Points + Reputation Boost.]
"Perfect," he murmured.
The Rival Returns
Just as they started drafting the first interface, Chen Hao strolled over with two of his buddies, holding an expensive-looking tablet.
"Well, well, future entrepreneurs," he said mockingly. "I just came to warn you—don't bother signing up for the Entrepreneur Fair. My father's company sponsors it. I'm winning the startup grant."
Li Cheng raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Then I guess I should thank you in advance for funding our victory."
Chen Hao's grin twitched. "You've got jokes, huh? Let's see how long that lasts." He tossed a folder onto the table—inside was a sleek, professional business plan with the name HaoTech Dynamics.
"Read it and weep," he said smugly. "AI-powered dating recommendation system. It's guaranteed to dominate."
Xiaoyu squinted. "So… basically a glorified love calculator?"
He puffed out his chest. "It's data-driven."
Li Cheng leaned forward, voice calm and cutting. "You built an app that guesses relationships using stolen campus data. Congratulations, you just described a lawsuit."
The nearby crowd gasped.
Chen Hao froze. "You—what nonsense—"
Li Cheng tapped his wristband. "Your code repository's public, genius. I took a look this morning. You forgot to encrypt the student info API. I'm sure the disciplinary board would love to see it."
The color drained from Chen Hao's face.
[Face-Slap Counter: +1.]
[Public Humiliation Multiplier: 2.4×.]
Students started whispering: "Wait, he's serious?" "Chen Hao's using campus data?"
"You're finished," Li Cheng said lightly, standing up. "And next time, if you're going to act superior—at least learn to debug."
Chen Hao's jaw clenched. He grabbed his folder and stormed off to muffled laughter.
Xiaoyu was practically doubled over. "You just ended him socially and academically. That's efficiency!"
"Just another day at work," Li Cheng replied coolly.
Café Conversation
Later that evening, he stopped by the café across from the university. To his surprise, Qin Ruo was there, quietly reading with a cup of milk tea.
Their eyes met again—soft, almost nostalgic this time.
"Li Cheng," she greeted, her tone half-teasing. "Or should I say, CEO Li?"
He chuckled. "You heard."
"Everyone heard. Half the girls' dorms are following your Red Code rumor."
He sat down opposite her. "It's not a rumor anymore. We're entering the Entrepreneur Fair next week."
She tilted her head. "Do you really think you'll win?"
He smiled faintly. "I don't play to win. I play to dominate."
She laughed quietly, eyes glimmering. "Still the same confident troublemaker."
He shrugged. "You sound like that's a bad thing."
"Not bad," she said softly, "just dangerous."
For a moment, the air grew lighter—something unspoken between them flickering like a spark. Then her phone buzzed.
She glanced at it, expression dimming briefly before she stood up. "I have to go. Good luck, CEO."
As she left, the System pinged quietly.
[Emotional Resonance: 27% ➜ 31%.]
[Sub-Mission 'Heartbeat 02' Activated.]
Li Cheng stared at the fading reflection in his drink. "System… who is she really?"
[Unknown. But Host's emotional patterns align with anomaly source.]
He sighed. "Figures. Even romance comes with diagnostics."
Midnight Brainstorm
Back in his dorm, Xiaoyu was sprawled across the floor surrounded by soda cans, muttering, "We need something viral. Something so crazy people can't ignore it."
Li Cheng rubbed his temples. "You're suggesting a dance challenge, aren't you?"
"Exactly!" she said, snapping her fingers. "But with coding! CodeDance!"
"…That's the dumbest and most genius idea I've ever heard."
They both burst out laughing.
[System Tip: Creativity detected. Bonus +50.]
He turned serious for a moment. "Xiaoyu, what made you want to do this? It's a lot of work."
She looked up. "Honestly? Because you make it look like anything's possible. You were just that quiet guy in the back once. Now the whole campus can't stop talking about you. I wanna see how far we can go."
For once, Li Cheng didn't have a sarcastic reply. He just smiled.
"Then let's build something that slaps the world awake."
The Announcement
The next day, the campus forum exploded again.
Red Code Enterprises Official Launch!
Team Members: Li Cheng, Lin Xiaoyu, and more TBA.
Mission: Revolutionize Campus Life with Tech.
Attached was a photo of Li Cheng casually leaning against a vending machine, with the caption:
"The Face-Slapping CEO Has Logged In."
Within hours, the post hit 10,000 views. Comments poured in:
"Why is he cool even when he's chaotic?"
"Red Code forever!"
"Chen Hao's somewhere crying."
[Popularity Surge: +120.]
[System Upgrade Progress: 89%.]
Li Cheng couldn't help grinning. "Now that's what I call good PR."
Rooftop at Dusk
As the sun set, he stood alone on the rooftop again—the same one where everything started. The campus below buzzed with laughter, gossip, and new beginnings.
For once, there was no duel, no shouting match, no System alarm. Just quiet determination.
He took a deep breath. "Alright, world. You've seen the warrior. Now meet the CEO."
[Main Quest Updated: "The Red Code Revolution." Stage 2 Begins.]
And somewhere deep within the System, unseen code lines shimmered—slowly rewriting themselves in sync with his heartbeat.