In a high-standard house bedroom in the Xia Empire.
Shen Bing slowly woke up.
Looking at the familiar furniture and posters in the room,
she felt a nostalgic sensation.
It would be even better if she could recover her strength to the time before her fall.
Well, that was not a reason to complain. She quickly got up and went to open the curtains.
Looking at the very familiar sun that she had not seen for years, she felt extremely happy.
She had never thought before that she would feel happy just for seeing the sun.
After a brief moment, Shen Bing stopped and did something she had already done several times.
"System!"
This time something appeared. A basic holographic interface appeared with the following words.
[The Supreme Shop System is online.]
[Which world path do you want to follow?]
With that, several options appeared for a former otaku like Shen Bing.
Many options were familiar: outer gods, magical girls, immortal cultivation.
There was an enormous variety.
She looked at the reminder in the corner of the screen.
[This is one of the compensations for the error.]
[Choose carefully, because even though you can buy things from other paths, it will be more expensive.]
She fell into deep thought…
After all, this could determine her future level.
She searched the interface for some other compensation.
She knew she shouldn't care about the so-called "compensations," since returning was already a miracle.
And she even received a "golden finger," but humans are greedy, clinging to the chance of "what if?"
After searching, she only found one more and that was it.
It was a phone icon. When clicked, she could talk to three people.
[Cute artifact spirit]
[Handsome shop owner]
[Shop owner's number one sister]
Only names appeared, no photos.
Well, she thought that since the shop spirit had made a mistake,
she wouldn't be suitable to talk to her, since speaking with her would be like rubbing salt on a wound.
She also didn't know the shop owner's sister.
She didn't know anyone except the shop owner, who seemed easy to talk to.
So she clicked the shop owner icon.
Held it and started calling.
[Shop]
Vicente was lying down in a state of apathy.
Right beside him, Ellie and Lisa were at the console.
It had already been two days inside the shop since he delivered the first system.
Everything was going well, so he told Lisa and Ellie to continue playing.
He stayed waiting to avoid any unexpected events.
And as expected, there was an unexpected event.
The unique river of time is special and would not allow someone to return from the future.
Because this is not just changing the entire future of the world.
It is destroying the future timeline and creating a new one.
Even without consciousness, the rules of time would not allow it.
If it were only Vicente, it would be fine, but a native soul wanting to return is an illusion.
So he was submerged by the water of time and had to pay a price.
A price of 1,000,000 to calm the river of time.
Thus they returned even faster to the specific era.
Sending Shen Bing back.
Vicente felt his heart bleed when remembering this.
He naively thought the only investment would be the 1,000 for the external body.
That way he could earn a large amount of points.
But he saw that he was naive. In the end he could only hope to recover the costs.
Current balance: [42,094,995]
He didn't know how many points came from the drop, but at least he had to earn existence.
Enough to evolve to level 4 or 5.
Thus his comprehension could officially be raised to level 5.
Well, currently because of his strength level he could only be considered level 4.
After all, it should be a memory star, not a planet.
Well, he only realized this later.
He only hoped that Shen Bing could return his investment, otherwise…
He didn't know where to complain.
Maybe he would raise the price even more, but not now.
After all, she was still necessary regardless of how compatible she was with his tastes.
If he still didn't love her and it wasn't mutual, he had even less reason to ignore one million.
While Vicente was thinking about life in the same apathetic state as always,
he heard a cellphone ringtone, but he didn't use a cellphone.
He quickly remembered that he had added the call function to the system only for the five people.
Who was calling was obvious.
Vicente adjusted his mood so it wouldn't affect his basic conversation.
Then he walked outside and used his authority to shape the environment around him.
The house remained unchanged.
But the exterior that used to be full of grass and flowers changed.
It was as if the ground had turned into a mirror and several clouds appeared in that mirror reflecting the blue sky.
It was a tourist spot that Vicente remembered seeing on the internet in his past world.
Then he disguised himself again, covered in gold.
And accepted the call.
Shen Bing felt her vision darken and fainted.
Her consciousness arrived in this strange yet beautiful space.
There stood someone she knew well — the shop owner.
Vicente: "Hello again."
Shen Bing: "Hello, Mr. Shop Owner."
Vicente: "So why did you call me?"
"Just warning you that I won't always have time to answer or I might simply not want to answer if I'm busy."
Shen Bing: "Before anything, I wanted to talk about my future path and about your final words, could I?"
Vicente thought for a moment and replied,
"Sure, it's nothing big, go ahead."
Shen Bing: "First I want to know about your final words."
"That should be easy for you to understand, right?"
"Your world started an evolution, so all timelines merged, creating the beginning of this 'new world' where you live now."
"That's why many empires have great similarities with your previous world."
"You only went from one timeline to another, you didn't really leave your world."
"Just like obviously… your parents."
Shen Bing felt her heart beat faster when she heard this news.
She forced herself to calm down. "So I reincarnated?"
Vicente: "Yes."
"And the experiences were almost all similar, even the scratch on your hand."
"But you only remembered your past life later."
Shen Bing: "I understand…"
She really felt unreal after hearing this, but her mental strength tempered by 10 years in the apocalypse made her recover quickly.
"So about the paths in the system?"
"It's exactly what you imagine."
"But you don't need to care about strength, because as long as you stay alive I have ways to take you to the top."
"Of course, everything depends on you having enough money."
Shen Bing: "I understand… but anyway, immortal cultivation here is really what I'm thinking, right?"
Vicente nodded. "Yes, weak in the early stages and extremely powerful at the end."
"Just don't expect something like cultivation fanfics where everything can be suppressed by a saint — saints this, saints that."
"Saints are really strong but not invincible, remember that."
Shen Bing: ???
"Why did that sound like a personal complaint?"
Seeing that he seemed easy to talk to, Shen Bing relaxed more.
Vicente: "Ah, that's because it really was…"
"I always liked reading immortal cultivation fanfics and novels, but I got irritated by how writers seemed mentally slow in that part."
"Whenever something involved saints or the primordial world, they ignored everything and downgraded all other worlds."
"Like a certain world that in the settings wasn't weaker than the primordial world suddenly became just a grain of dust."
"Someone who could easily kill saints according to the settings got defeated by a Golden Immortal…"
"They simply don't care about power scaling when writing fanfics." (x2)
Vicente: ???
"I understand you, shop owner."
"In my previous world similar things also happened."
"I even understand when western works were humiliated because of the 'east vs west war' thing."
"But… I found it really ridiculous when eastern worlds that greatly surpassed the primordial world were also downgraded."
"Or when a protagonist goes to the primordial world with amazing golden fingers but still can't kill a saint."
"I even understand they can't kill saints because saints are pillars of the primordial world, but being submissive…"
"Really… so most topics involving saints or the primordial world were excluded back in my old world."
"Because there's a consensus that if you involve the primordial world, the power system breaks."
At the moment Vicente looked at Shen Bing again he felt his heart beat stronger.
Even if it was just one stronger beat he knows this feeling well it wasn't "love".
It was the joy of finding someone with similar thoughts.
He really found her more pleasant to look at now.
Vicente: "In fact, whenever it was involved it broke the previous system it was downgraded and the primordial world ruled."
"Not that the primordial world is weak but it always seems inflated."
"Of course I understand them not wanting to see their gods being beaten but they quite like beating other people's."
Well Shen Bing didn't care much about works regardless of which ones.
As long as in the story it is well placed and fun she likes to watch even without knowing it.
"Sorry, I think we changed the subject too fast."
"But it's not always that I find someone to talk about this."
Shen Bing: "I understand you"
Vicente: "Going back to the subject all paths will lead to the same end which is transcendence"
"As long as you have money any path is a 'saint' level path of course the price is high."
"Even complaining about the way saints are portrayed they are not really weak."
"So doubt removed?"
Shen Bing: "Yes"
"I think that was all, I still need to make plans for the apocalypse."
"So I will have to take my leave."
Vicente: "Ok until next time, I eagerly await your presentation."
"Ah right it may not matter much but maybe my sister will go to your world"
Shen Bing wondered if this action had some deep meaning so she asked directly.
"Actually no, and it's not her real body I would never let her descend it's just an avatar to enjoy modern life"
"It's hard to find a modern world so I want her to enjoy it before it falls into catastrophe."
Even though she can enter a simulated modern world it is different with real people.
The simulated world is still a little fake in terms of interaction.
They don't have their own thoughts, they only act according to the character's original personality.
Well for Vicente they are fine especially at certain moments.
But he still thinks they are fake, maybe one day he can give life to simulations, but not now.
Anyway, it's always good to take a look at the outside world, Vicente himself is thinking about having a permanent avatar to go out once in a while.
Of course, this is not something urgent, the console world is still good so he is only thinking about maybe and not confirming.
And even though they don't have thoughts and personality of their own, just simulations they still beat the AIs of the previous world.
Vicente: "This is just a random thought, maybe I'll send her and maybe not just be warned."
"She will be with you if I send her so take good care of her maybe there will be an unexpected surprise"
Vicente spoke in a mysterious tone but he wasn't lying.
With his comprehension it is easy to create something to help her parents and uncles and friends.
After all he knows the exact reason for the apocalypse and the talents.
It is something he discovered walking in the river of time.
Shen Bing thought her system was just a test product, a surprise should be something good regardless of everything.
Shen Bing: "She will be welcomed with open arms if she comes."
Vicente: "Ok, you can go now see you later."
With that he cut the connection and Shen Bing returned to her room.
The sea of clouds returned to the green field and Vicente stood still for a moment.
Then he turned around and walked back to the house.
(End of the chapter)