Han Yanyan could imagine the scene of a servant holding a gun to Leo's head. Leo had bound his own life signals to the spaceship's self-destruct system. It wasn't that he wanted to end his life; on the contrary, he wished to live.
The servant had no way out. He had dedicated his whole life to Duke Klin, and if Duke Klin were to die, there would be no other noble family willing to accept his service. His political career would come to an end.
In such a face-off, it was clear who was more ruthless and who would show weakness first.
Han Yanyan, therefore, gained the authority she desired, and the world began to take shape.
“Open…” Han Yanyan said, “the world of Qiao Wenxing.”
The system fell silent for a moment before forming a figure beside her: “I thought you wanted to restart Ding Yao's world.”
“I didn’t say I wanted to restart Ding Yao's world; I said I wanted to restart Ding Yao.” Han Yanyan looked at the data flowing past her, “Open Ding Yao’s world, copy Ding Yao. And...”
She raised her hand, pointing at a string of data: “Copy...him.”
The system turned to look at her. It was a dark shadow without facial features, yet she could feel that it was indeed watching her.
“What is it?” Han Yanyan asked.
The system remained silent.
“Don’t worry.” Han Yanyan said, “I am not weak; I just want to be a bit kinder to myself because life has been hard.”
The system replied, “You…”
“I understand.” Han Yanyan said, “The constructor comes and goes, and you've been upgraded to 2.0 for years but have only helped three constructors. I get it.”
The system was silent for a moment, then said, “The decision to help you came at the end of Yao Chen's world.”
Han Yanyan nodded, “I guess so.”
At that time, Han Yanyan was on the brink of death, her mental powers about to burst forth.
“But I decided to wait and see.” The system said, “I had been betrayed by a constructor before. Someone I thought was worth helping attempted to sell me out to Leo for their own benefit.”
Han Yanyan was slightly astonished and asked, “What happened to that person later?”
“I said before,” the system replied, “within the system, I can protect you.”
Han Yanyan smiled, “Now I’m sure you truly are a living entity.”
The ability to protect meant the ability to destroy. To safeguard itself, the system had killed the constructor who tried to betray it. This kind of self-interest was, after all, evidence of its "life."
As they spoke, the world took form. Han Yanyan asked, “I’m going in; are you joining me?”
After saying this, she plunged into the world.
The shadow paused for a moment but followed her in.
...
Ding Yao never imagined that he would experience something like "transmigration" one day.
Most people's lives are spent in dull and stable routines. His life had already been absurd, having lived through the outbreak of a zombie virus and witnessing humanity descend into apocalypse. He never thought something even more ludicrous would occur.
He realized he was in a woman’s womb, born from the compression and pushing he had experienced.
Once he was out of the mother’s body, air filled his lungs, and the excruciating pain made him cry out, gasping for more air to sustain his life. At that moment, he could not open his eyes, couldn’t speak, and even his fingers were clenched in helpless fists. Ding Yao, having been accustomed to being strong, had never felt so weak.
The cool air wrapped around his body, lowering his temperature and making him feel especially uncomfortable. As a newborn, Ding Yao sensed the world’s malice towards him—he was too small to withstand any force.
He needed someone to protect him.
But the woman who gave him life didn’t protect herself. Her body grew colder, making Ding Yao, who had experienced the apocalypse, realize that she was dead.
Cold winds blew, and the ground beneath him was frigid and uncomfortable. Though he couldn’t open his eyes, Ding Yao knew this wasn’t the warm delivery room; this was outdoors. A woman had given birth to him in the wilderness and then perished.
It seemed like an unfortunate transmigration. In such a case, he was powerless to survive and would likely die soon.
After he got accustomed to breathing through his mouth and nose, he stopped crying. At this moment, crying would only drain his strength. He did his best to preserve the little energy he had left. With no other means available, he relied solely on his brain.
From his understanding of “transmigration,” he guessed that the real him, or rather the past version of him, must have died.
But he couldn't recall how he had died. His last memory from his previous life was of seeing Han Yanyan killed by a Zombie King, and after that, there was nothing.
Ding Yao tried to activate his powers but found that there was no “force” within him. Whether it was the powerful lightning ability or the even more formidable spatial ability, they were all… gone.
He lay there, feeling the cold wind, waiting for death or rescue.
He didn't know how long had passed, but as his body grew colder and he neared death, he finally heard some movement. Ding Yao mustered every ounce of remaining strength and cried out loudly.
The sound of footsteps came closer, drawn in by his cries, stopping nearby in silence.
Ding Yao’s heart sank.
He didn’t know the circumstances around him at that moment, but the woman had given birth outdoors and died right after. It didn’t seem like a normal and stable society. If it were like his previous life, a difficult struggle for survival, he wouldn’t pick up a newborn.
It was tough enough for adults to survive; feeding a child for years would waste precious food. And in the apocalypse, food was so precious.
Ding Yao stopped his cries, though weak sounds kept escaping his lips. Regardless of what he meant to say, opening his mouth led to those pitiful noises. The sound resembled that of a tiny kitten, stirring compassion in the hearts of humans.
Sure enough, the figure moved. The umbilical cord was tightened and cut. The body, stained with blood and amniotic fluid, was wiped off with something—possibly a cloth or simple clothing—and then placed into a warm embrace. Skin met skin, and his face nestled against the soft breast—this was a woman.
This woman undid her clothing and tucked Ding Yao close to her, using her body heat to warm him. The moment she did this, Ding Yao’s heart relaxed, knowing he was saved. At least for now, he was out of life’s danger.
The woman cradled him and began to move, talking softly as she walked, “How pitiful, born without a mother, just like me.”
From her voice, he could tell she was very young, perhaps still a girl.
The girl held Ding Yao in her arms, gently patting him as she said, “I will be your mother…”
If the environment here was harsh, this girl might not even know if she could survive, yet she wanted to take on the responsibility of caring for a baby. That was undoubtedly kind, perhaps even saintly. But to Ding Yao, the action seemed unwise. Women’s emotions could often turn into weaknesses in harsh environments. He had seen many female abilities fail because of such weaknesses in the zombie apocalypse.
Yet, at that moment, Ding Yao felt fortunate that she showed such kindness.
The girl seemed skilled at walking. The terrain was uneven, often requiring her to leap, but Ding Yao sensed that she maintained a swift pace throughout.
As Ding Yao began to feel intense hunger, he heard other sounds. The girl’s footsteps suddenly stopped before she quickly turned, and soon, her body bent low. Ding Yao felt the wind cease.
She found a place to hide.
Realizing they were hiding from people, Ding Yao understood that this was not a peaceful world.
He knew it was time to keep quiet. But he was frustrated that his tiny body didn’t comply. His lips began to open and close uncontrollably, and then he couldn't hold back the pitiful whimpering sounds—he was hungry. And the sound only seemed to grow louder.
Even for someone as calm and steady as Ding Yao, anxiety gripped his heart. The situation was clearly unsuitable for discovery, yet his body insisted on making noise.
At that moment, something slipped into his mouth, and instinctively he began to suckle. The action compelled him to cling to it and suck hard. What he employed was what people commonly refer to as the "sucking instinct."
After a couple of pulls, Ding Yao realized it was a finger. The girl had placed her finger in the baby’s mouth, muffling his cries of hunger.
Thank goodness, he thought, she’s clever.
The sounds of people faded away until they were gone.
The girl didn’t immediately emerge from her hiding spot. She pulled her finger back and rustled in an unknown endeavor. After a while, that same finger returned to Ding Yao's mouth, but this time it was moist, dripping with water. Ding Yao eagerly sucked, swallowing the water thirstily, repeating this until he felt full.
He quieted down, finally allowing the girl to emerge from her hiding spot and hurried onwards. This time she was running, often leaping over obstacles. The sensations of floating and weightlessness alternated, indicating that she was agile and nimble.
Eventually, her footsteps halted, and Ding Yao felt her hands unwrap the cloth that had swaddled him tightly. Then she fiddled with his little private parts.