The System Teaches You How to Be Human

Si Yisi never expected that a casual act of kindness would lead to such a significant turning point. Even if he had known, he would have simply smiled indifferently.

The path ahead was one that Lu Yizhi had to walk on her own. Even without Si Yisi’s unintentional help, those destined to rise would always find a way. Because from the very beginning, they possessed an exceptionally strong will.

Si Yisi helped Lisa onto the small aircraft. Under the envious and jealous gazes of the slum dwellers, the aircraft powered up, breaking through the clouds and soaring into the sky!

The pure white clouds drifted past the aircraft, and the overwhelming sense of freedom brought Lisa to tears. She ran her right hand over the precious citizen identification card again and again, while her left hand clutched Si Yisi’s arm tightly.

“Freedom…” Lisa murmured, her gray eyes filled with longing.

Si Yisi patted Lisa’s back absentmindedly, trying to soothe her overwhelming emotions.

Meanwhile, the attendant accompanying them glanced at the mother and son before turning away. Entering a soundproof chamber, he used his neural-net to contact Lin Xian.

“Young Master Xian, the target, Si’an, has granted citizenship to two people; his mother and a girl from the slums who recently underwent aptitude testing and was found to have an E-rank mental power level.”

“Hmm, I see.”

On the desk beside Lin Xian lay a file. Since he wanted to win over Si Yisi, it was only natural that he had thoroughly investigated every aspect of the boy’s life, eliminating any potential threats to his own interests.

His fingers brushed over Lisa’s holographic image. This woman was of little significance; gentle and timid by nature, nothing more than the mother of Si’an in name.

Another key figure, Lu Yizhi, was also prominently listed. Lin Xian’s gaze fell upon a particular record; during the aptitude test, she had been identified as possessing E-rank mental power, yet had been unfairly disqualified due to the examiner’s personal bias.

A corrupt official abusing his power?

Lin Xian tapped his fingers against the antique sandalwood desk.

Demote him first. Then, throw him into prison for a while. That should be sufficient. As for the girl, I’ll instruct his people to pay extra attention to her.

Lin Xian suspected that Si Yisi was likely to keep an eye on such matters. By handling this issue, he would be securing a favorable connection with him.

The so-called arrogant and untouchable official was nothing more than an ant, easily crushed beneath Lin Xian’s authority.

This was the taste of power!

And what about this Huo Zhifou?

Lin Xian turned to his attendant and ordered, “Connect me to Si’an.”

***

Si Yisi had already heard the rustling noises on the other end. That so-called ‘excellent’ soundproofing material did nothing to block his hearing.

Calmly accepting the call from Lin Xian, he listened as the man, seated in his traditionally styled office, asked, “Si’an, do you need me to cover the 1,000 copper star coins you owe Dr. Huo Zhifou?”

“No need.”

Si Yisi didn’t want to reject the offer outright. In the conditions of their transactions, star coins were rarely involved. Even when they were, the majority had to be allocated to academy tuition, leaving the remaining disposable funds practically insignificant in the exorbitantly expensive Imperial Capital.

Lin Xian’s offer was clearly an attempt to make him owe a favor.

And a favor was always harder to repay than a financial debt.

After this communication, Si Yisi had finally caught a lead on Lin Xian’s true identity. Based on the office setting revealed behind him, he could deduce; Lin Xian was the only son of Kaz Empire’s First Marshal, Lin Zhenying!

“Alright then.” Lin Xian lounged lazily in his chair. “Since you’ve officially registered as a citizen, you can try logging into StarNet and exploring things that interest you.”

“The imperial celebrations are happening over the next 2 days, so flight restrictions will be in place. Your arrival in the Imperial Capital might be delayed by 2 days. If you have any questions in the meantime, you can ask Wang Qiqi.”

Wang Qiqi referred to the guard accompanying them on the aircraft; a slender young man with an unexpectedly feminine name.

Once Lin Xian ended the call, “Wang Qiqi” introduced himself helplessly to Si Yisi and Lisa. “I’m Wang Qi, Chief Guard under Young Master Xian. Over the next 2 days, while the aircraft is grounded, I’ll do my best to answer any questions you may have. I hope we have a pleasant time together.”

Answer any questions?

Si Yisi’s gaze toward Wang Qi held a trace of hidden desire; he hoped Wang Qi could satisfy his curiosity.

After all, no matter how advanced StarNet was, it would never contain private information on high-profile individuals. But from Wang Qi, the Chief Guard, he might be able to extract plenty of valuable intel.

As for the possibility that Wang Qi had undergone special confidentiality training? That was irrelevant. As long as Si Yisi was present, any trace of information revealed in Wang Qi’s words wouldn’t escape his notice!

***

Lin Xian ended the call and left for the imperial banquet.

On his way, he happened to bump into someone; a man with a stormy expression. Who else could it be but Tru?

Lin Xian stood there carelessly. “Trulu~, who are you planning to settle accounts with this time? Don’t tell me it’s me?”

Tru had just received word that Lin Xian had personally taken Si Yisi out of prison, and he exploded like a powder keg! Running into Lin Xian now was truly a case of enemies crossing paths!

Furious but mindful of his surroundings in the imperial palace, Tru kept his composure. “Are you deliberately trying to make an enemy of me?!”

Lin Xian lowered his voice, smirking. “My dear Prince Tru, how could I be so intentional? But let me ask you; was the so-called Blood Moon Mist phenomenon something you orchestrated? Because that… won’t hold up to investigation.”

“You…!” Tru was so enraged that he laughed. “Very well, you’re really something!!”

“I can’t deal with you here, but let’s settle this on StarNet! A two-player mecha battle; do you dare?”

StarNet was directly linked to a citizen’s neural-network. Any damage suffered in a virtual duel would result in corresponding physical pain in reality. More importantly, the two-player mecha battle Tru proposed had its realism level set to 100%!

Injuries or deaths in the game would translate into extremely realistic sensory feedback in real life!

Lin Xian glanced at Tru. “Sure, but given your terrible mecha skills, I’ll opt for a random teammate.”

Tru glared at him, flames burning in his eyes. “I’ll make sure you understand what true despair feels like!”

“I’ll be waiting, Tru…lu.”

Lin Xian deliberately dragged out the nickname.

And who was Trulu? That was Tru, the same Tru who, as a child, had been curious about crossdressing and ended up in an utterly ridiculous outfit. That particular picture of him in drag had been copied thousands of times and stored in multiple folders under names like “Trulu’s Humiliation Chronicles.”

“Damn it!” Tru cursed, barely restraining himself from punching Lin Xian’s smug face.

With their verbal agreement set, it was only a matter of time before the two refined the terms and came up with all sorts of ridiculous and humiliating stakes for the loser.

***

Meanwhile, Si Yisi was following the instructions to register on StarNet.

The moment his consciousness connected; StarNet opened itself completely for him!

A fully functional system against StarNet’s semi-intelligent A.I.? That was pure domination!

Countless streams of data flashed rapidly through Si Yisi’s lowered eyes. Finally, he locked onto one signal; the most active and the one that best matched Tru’s characteristics!

It pointed to that so-called…

Dual Emperor Tournament!