"Finally… I'm back."
Gazing into the endless white before him, Aedric realized he had successfully returned to the System Space from the target world.
Although this was only his second visit, unlike his first time—when he was panicked and uncertain—after decades of tempering in that world, his mindset had become as steady as an old dog's. It was difficult for anything to ruffle his composure anymore.
Not only that, but once detached from the target world, all the emotions he had developed there began to fade rapidly. Though his memories remained, he now viewed them as a detached observer.
Decades ago, Aedric had been nothing more than one of Earth's countless ordinary workers, living the miserable life of a corporate wage slave under the tyranny of the 996 or even 007 work culture. By chance, he had been chosen by a system called Protagonist's Fulfillment, becoming one of the so-called "honorable" members of the great transmigrator army.
The so-called Protagonist's Fulfillment System was created to traverse myriad worlds and help the fated protagonists—those blessed with destiny and fortune—achieve the perfect ending of their lives, leaving behind no regrets.
Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?
After all, these "Children of Destiny" are chosen by heaven, favored by fortune, surrounded by halo effects; they find secret manuals after falling off cliffs, and even random pebbles they pick up might turn out to be heavenly treasures. How could such blessed people possibly need help to "fulfill" their lives? Isn't that just pure, unadulterated Versailles-level boasting?
But reality, as always, was different.
According to the System, although protagonists are blessed by fate and encounter endless opportunities, there is balance in all things. The higher they climb, the greater the trials they must face. Before reaching their peak, every protagonist must endure countless calamities—"three tribulations and nine hardships," as the saying goes.
Most of them have pitiful family ties—if they're lucky, their parents die early to serve the plot; if unlucky, they're born under a star of misfortune, doomed to lose everyone around them and barely survive alone. Some are so unlucky that even after completing their stories, the world itself finds a way to snuff them out—like the cursed protagonists from Final Destination.
Thus, when some of these protagonists gained self-awareness through the System, those especially unlucky ones refused to accept their fates. They willingly sacrificed their own protagonist's fortune, begging the System to rewrite their destinies—to make their lives whole.
And the one chosen to carry out this work of "divine intervention" was Aedric.
In other words, like the countless webnovel heroes before him, Aedric was "lucky" (or unlucky) enough to be selected by the System—transferring from a modern-day corporate cog serving capital, to a dimension-hopping laborer serving the System.
For Aedric, who had been thoroughly brainwashed by webnovels, this was both shocking and thrilling—he saw it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. His first mission after beginning his journey through the worlds was to enter the universe of The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber and become Zhang Wuji, helping him protect his parents so that Zhang Cuishan and Yin Susu could live to old age in peace, instead of dying tragically as they did in the original story.
Since The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber was such a famous wuxia novel, Aedric knew the plot inside and out. With his foresight as an advantage, he filled in every potential pitfall for Zhang Cuishan and Yin Susu, guiding them safely past their destined calamity. Along the way, he collected countless secret manuals and treasures, and using the Kunlun Immortal Peach and Bodhi Serpent Gallbladder—legendary heavenly treasures mentioned in the Golden Book—he achieved mastery in Nine Yang Divine Skill years ahead of schedule.
After attaining his peak power, Aedric leveraged the influence of his grandmaster Zhang Sanfeng and his maternal grandfather Yin Tianzheng to recruit renowned heroes and talents from across the land. Those who obeyed were rewarded; those who resisted were quietly eliminated before they could rise to prominence.
By the time the "Six Major Sects besieged Bright Peak," Aedric had already assembled a top-tier team of geniuses. He crushed the Yuan court's scheming factions in one decisive blow and confronted the Six Sects head-on, convincing them through both power and diplomacy. Overwhelmed by his strength, they unanimously accepted him as the new Leader of the Ming Cult, and soon after they allied under his banner to resist the Yuan Empire.
With the combined power of the Ming Cult, the Six Sects, and the immense wealth of the Hidden Treasure of Liancheng, Aedric raised the banner of rebellion. Within just ten years, he had unified the realm, founding a new dynasty. As for Zhu Yuanzhang, Chen Youliang, and the like—they had all been swept away in the tides of his conquest, reduced to dust in history.
When Aedric ascended the throne as Emperor and Zhang Cuishan and Yin Susu were honored as the Retired Emperor and Empress Dowager, their safety was finally ensured. After all, their original deaths had stemmed from the secret of the Dragon Saber. Now that Aedric wielded imperial authority and commanded a million troops, even the most ambitious martial artists dared not act rashly.
As for the "secret" of the Dragon Saber and the Heaven Sword? It no longer mattered. People only believe what they want to believe. Even though Aedric had long removed the Martial Legacy of Wumu and the Nine Yin Manual from the weapons and publicly revealed that the saber contained only a military treatise, there were still those who suspected he was hiding some greater secret.
So, enough nonsense—let fists do the talking.
While fulfilling his mission, Aedric naturally didn't forget the story's beautiful heroines. To prevent tragedies from the original plot, he kept Zhou Zhiruo close since childhood, cutting off her ties with Abbess Miejue. The two grew up as childhood sweethearts, and Zhou Zhiruo ultimately became the Empress of the new dynasty.
As for the others: Yin Li's blood relation made marriage impossible by modern standards, so Aedric granted her a noble title and arranged a good match. Zhao Min, captured during his campaigns, eventually entered the palace voluntarily to spare her family, becoming one of his concubines. Xiao Zhao—his favorite heroine—was made a noble consort, though her foreign heritage and ministerial opposition prevented her from becoming Empress. Her mother Daiqisi joined her in the imperial harem, while the Persian Ming Cult was crushed under Aedric's armies without leaving a ripple.
After founding his dynasty, Aedric ruled for over forty years. When he was in his seventies, he finally outlived Zhang Cuishan and Yin Susu, completing his mission at last.
The System told him that upon fulfilling a protagonist's story, he could permanently replace them and travel freely in that world—but Aedric, now an aged emperor who had tasted every form of glory, power, and pleasure, had nothing left to linger for. After ensuring a smooth succession by passing the throne to Zhou Zhiruo's son, he quietly departed that world.
Back in the System Space, he felt the youthful vitality of his restored body, though all his martial power was gone. Reflecting on the seventy years he had lived, Aedric asked softly, "System, does that mean I can't bring anything from the target world back with me?"
"Everything must be exchanged using Fortune Points," the System replied.
"Fortune Points…" Aedric murmured. "And what can fortune do?"
"Fortune is omnipotent," the System explained. "In all the heavens and worlds, fortune stands alongside merit as one of the two supreme energies—even Heavenly Saints covet it. Accumulate enough fortune, and you can do anything. Even becoming an all-knowing, all-powerful god would be as simple as raising your hand."
"Incredible…"
Had this been the old Aedric, he would've been ecstatic. But after seventy years of ruling an empire, his heart was calm as still water. "Then tell me," he asked evenly, "how do I earn more fortune?"
"The protagonist's fortune belongs to the System—it is the price paid to fulfill their destiny and the energy that powers your world-hopping," the System said. "However, everything and everyone else in those worlds holds fortune of their own. How much you gain depends on your ability.
"If it's an artifact or treasure, acquiring it earns you fortune. If it's a secret art or technological knowledge, understanding it grants you fortune. If it's a character—well, you'll have to kill them to claim their fortune.
"The more critical someone or something is to the plot, the more fortune it holds."
"..." Aedric pondered for a long moment. "Then… how much fortune do I have now?"
The System did not answer directly. A luminous screen appeared before him, listing in detail everything he had acquired in the Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber world: the Nine Yang Divine Skill, Nine Yin Manual, Martial Legacy of Wumu, Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms, and countless others; treasures like the Heaven Sword, Dragon Saber, and Black Jade Ointment; and slain figures such as Zhu Yuanzhang, Cheng Kun, and Chen Youliang—all accompanied by their fortune values.
At the bottom, a total appeared: 30,000 Fortune Points.
"An exact number, huh…" Aedric muttered. "And how do I use them?"
"Simply exchange them," said the System. "Anything you desire can be traded here with fortune. Even a nuclear bomb—if you can afford it."
"You've got quite a sense of humor," Aedric said dryly. "In that case, restore my peak strength first. I've had enough of this weak corporate drone body."
As soon as the words left his lips, a brilliant column of light engulfed him, bathing him in warmth and energy. When it faded, his strength had returned to its zenith—but his total fortune had dropped by one-third, leaving him with 20,000 points.
"Instant results," he said, flexing his hands as waves of pure yang energy surged within him. After a few test strikes, he asked, "Can I bring this power into the next world?"
"Anything exchanged from the System can be brought across worlds."
"What's the next world?"
"A Western fantasy low-magic world," replied the System. "If you wish to know its name in advance, it will cost 1,000 Fortune Points."
"Charging for everything—typical black-hearted merchant," Aedric muttered. After a moment's thought, he decided he could manage without knowing the details. "Forget it. By the way, do you have some sort of storage space I can buy?"
"Storage for inanimate objects: 1,000 points per cubic meter. For living beings: 5,000 points per cubic meter," the System explained. "Objects stored here can be carried into any world. Capacity is based on volume, not weight—even a billion-ton object counts as one cubic meter."
"Alright," Aedric said after a quick calculation. "Three cubic meters for dead storage, one for living."
He immediately felt the distinct presence of two separate storage spaces and instinctively understood how to use them.
"Can fortune only be used here in the System Space?" he asked.
"Yes," the System replied. "In the target worlds, your actions draw the world's attention. Any abnormal fluctuations in fortune would alert the world's consciousness. Therefore, no exchanges are allowed inside target worlds."
"Heh, so I'm still just an interdimensional smuggler after all," Aedric said with a self-deprecating chuckle. "Got any advanced cultivation techniques I can exchange for? My current skills are maxed out—I can't progress further."
"Of course," the System answered. "Postnatal-tier cultivation methods cost 10,000 points. Innate-tier costs 100,000. Human Immortal-tier, one million. Earth Immortal-tier, ten million. Celestial Immortal-tier, one hundred million."
"As for anything beyond Celestial Immortal… you're not ready to know."
"Yeah, no kidding," Aedric scoffed. "Just give me the Postnatal-tier one—I can't afford anything else anyway."
At once, 10,000 fortune points vanished. A new technique appeared in his mind—Postnatal Inner Elixir Art.
As expected, System quality was unmatched. Though it was also a top Postnatal-tier technique like Nine Yang Divine Skill, its depth and potential far surpassed it—tenfold at least.
It was like comparing a three-story house to a skyscraper planned for 300 floors. Even at the same height, the foundation and resources required were worlds apart.
Even better, the System had provided a detailed explanation of every step, so clear and thorough that even a fool could cultivate it without error.
"Don't think I'm overcharging," the System said smugly. "You get what you pay for. This technique not only links seamlessly to higher realms, but I've also customized it to your physiology—your exclusive VIP version. You'll advance smoother than anyone else, no matter how talented they are. I trust you understand what that means."
"I do," Aedric replied. It meant he could use it to found his own sect without worrying about betrayal or rebellion. Understanding this, his earlier stinginess vanished, replaced with satisfaction. "I still have 2,000 points left—exchange all of it for the usual items I used in the Heaven Sword world: poisons, hidden weapons, the works. You decide the mix."
With that, his remaining fortune was spent, and his storage space filled with countless tools and weapons—poisons, darts, throwing knives, and even his old favorite weapon: the True Martial Sword.
He drew the blade, its mirror-like edge gleaming in the light.
"It's been a long time, old friend," he murmured.
After a few graceful flourishes, he sheathed the sword and stored it away. Taking a deep breath, Aedric nodded.
"I'm ready. Send me to the next world."
The white mist swirled once more.
Then, darkness swallowed him whole.