The well brimmed with cold, clear water. Mist curled from its surface, catching the morning light like silver threads. Liang Shan dipped a cracked wooden ladle, hands shaking as though touching a relic.
"It's real…" he whispered. "It's actually real."
Ping'er clapped both palms against her cheeks and spun in a wobbly circle. Liang Yue knelt, testing the water's clarity with a practiced eye. She nodded once, sharp and decisive. "Safe. Cleaner than anything we've had in weeks."
Haoyang rubbed the back of his neck. "Good. Great. Now—let's figure out food and shelter."
The System drifted beside him like a smug lantern.
"Host gaining initiative. Marking this development as: 'finally acting like someone with cosmic responsibility.' Shall I commemorate with fireworks?"
"No."
"Confetti?"
"No."
"A tasteful, understated glow?"
"Just… help me check the village."
The gremlin made a theatrical sigh. "Fine. But you're missing out."
They walked the main path—if it could still be called that. Dirt had long since overtaken the paving stones, weeds sprouting through gaps. Haoyang kept pace with the children, noting how quietly their feet fell, how instinctively they scanned the ruins around them.
These weren't children who had grown up playing. These were children who had grown up surviving.
The System projected a small, floating grid of buildings.
[SCAN — COMPLETED]
Structural Integrity: 14%
Usable Houses: 3
Collapsed: 11
Repairable: 6 (with moderate labor)
Food Stores: Zero
Threat Presence: Low (raiders unlikely to return soon)
"Three usable houses," Haoyang repeated aloud. "We'll have to consolidate. Put the kids in the safest one."
Liang Yue frowned. "What about you, Young Lord? You need shelter too."
"I'll be fine," Haoyang replied. "There's a roof I can fix fast enough."
She stared like he'd said something sacrilegious.
"You… will fix it yourself?"
Ping'er looked scandalized. "But Young Lord is… Young Lord!"
Haoyang fought a laugh, more touched than he wanted to admit. "I'm still just a person. And people fix houses."
The children exchanged a look—one part confusion, one part awe.
The System whispered, "Mortals in this realm do not expect leaders to do manual labor. You're already destabilizing their worldview. I approve."
Haoyang squatted beside the nearest collapsed hut, brushing aside debris. It wasn't hard to imagine families living here—someone's parents, someone's siblings. The silence felt heavy, like it demanded something from him.
He exhaled slowly. "We start with repairs. Liang Shan, help me sort usable wood. Liang Yue, see if any tools survived. Ping'er… uh…"
Ping'er lifted her doll in triumph. "I will cheer!"
Haoyang grinned. "Perfect job."
The next hour was work—actual, physical work. Haoyang stacked beams with one hand, careful not to use too much strength. His sealed body still exceeded mortal capability by leagues, but he tried to keep it subtle.
Liang Shan watched him lift a beam three times the boy's weight without a grunt.
"Young Lord… are you really not an immortal?"
Haoyang shook his head. "I'm really not."
"Then what are you?"
The question stilled him.
The System answered for him, fluttering by his ear: "He is your Young Lord, obviously. That's the only relevant answer for now."
But of course only haoyang can hear it.
Haoyang shot it a look.
The gremlin winked.
Then he said to Liang Shan " Look at me, I'm also a human like you, but you know just bit more stronger then you three"
"Will young lord to continue to protect us?"
"Of course I will, and we also try to save others too in the future "
"Promise?" Liang Shan need assurance.
"I promise " he said with a kind smile.
Liang Shan foolishly grin hearing his answer
" young lord is powerfull! ". The three of them cheering Haorang after they get his promise.
By midday they had cleared two huts and rebuilt the frames enough for temporary use. Liang Yue organized the salvaged items with military precision—pots, blankets, even a little clay stove.
Haoyang watched her. "You've done this before?"
She nodded. "When the raiders took the adults, we had to move from house to house. I learned to fix things."
There was no complaint in her voice. Just fact. The kind that carved itself into a person.
He crouched to her level. "Thank you. You're keeping everyone alive."
She choked a little, caught off guard. "I-I'm just doing what we have to."
"That's what leaders do," Haoyang said softly.
The words landed like a pebble dropped in still water. Liang Yue didn't speak, but she stood straighter.
Liang Shan jogged up, face bright. "Young Lord! I found dried peas in one of the pots. Not much, but we can cook something tonight."
Haoyang opened his hand. "Let me see."
The handful of peas looked pitiful. A night's meal at best. But it was something to start with.
He glanced at the farmland beyond. The soil looked rich, but overrun with wild growth. If cleared and irrigated, the village could feed itself again.
The System hummed. "Host, would you like agricultural optimization data?"
Haoyang didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked at the three children—thin, tired, waiting for someone to steer the world back into place.
"Yes," he said quietly. "Show me."
An overlay formed before his eyes—contour maps, water flow, soil density. It was astonishing, almost frightening, how easily he could understand it. Not because he was trained, but because something within him—sealed though it was—recognized natural patterns instinctively.
Absolute Origin.
The thought flickered unbidden.
A truth too big for him yet.
He pushed it aside and pointed toward the fields.
"Liang Shan, we'll clear that area first. Liang Yue, collect all the pots and jars—we'll need to clean and boil water for cooking. Ping'er…"
Ping'er saluted with her doll. "Cheering duty!"
"Exactly."
Together they walked toward the fields. Wild grass reached their knees. Birds flitted through the air, startled by movement that hadn't existed for weeks. The land felt abandoned, but not dead.
As Haoyang moved through the overgrowth, something subtle shifted inside him. A certainty. A clarity he didn't have before.
It wasn't arrogance, just a realization form on his mind.
He crouched again, scooping soil into his palm. It fell easily, good texture, fertile. The only obstacle was work.
"We'll make this place live again," he said.
Liang Shan's voice softened. "Young Lord… why help us? You don't know us."
Haoyang opened his mouth—then closed it again. The real answer was too complicated. Too cosmic. Too unbelievable.
So he gave the truth he could offer.
"Because I won't let innocent people be crushed in a world like this."
Liang Yue's eyes shone. Ping'er hugged his leg.
The System drifted beside him, far quieter than usual.
"…Not bad, Host."
Haoyang smirked. "Did I earn another approval point?"
"Absolutely not. You're greedy."
Haoyang laughed under his breath.
The sun dipped lower, painting the broken village gold. It was still ruined. Still wounded. Still fragile.
But for the first time, the air held a softness, a shape of hope.
And Jin Haoyang—still in pajamas, still utterly overwhelmed—felt himself take the first real step toward becoming something he never intended to be:
A leader... for three kids for now