The sword entered my chest exactly as the novel described.
Cold. Sharp. Surprisingly disappointing.
I watched the protagonist's face hover above mine. Handsome in that generic way all cultivation heroes seemed to be, jaw clenched with righteous fury, eyes blazing with the particular arrogance of someone who had never considered he might be the villain in someone else's story.
"Lin Feng," I gurgled, blood filling my lungs. "You... do not understand..."
"Silence, Chen Wei!" He twisted the blade. "You dared harm Junior Sister Liu. This is your fate."
No, you idiot. I wanted to laugh. I did not harm anyone. I was written to harm her. There is a difference.
But the words died in my throat, along with the rest of me.
Darkness swallowed the training yard of the Azure Cloud Sect. The last thing I heard was the ding of the protagonist's system notification. Probably something obnoxious like [Congratulations! You have slain the Stepping Stone Villain! Reward: 500 EXP, Liu Mei's Favor +50].
Then nothing.
---
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING...]
The voice did not come from my ears. It resonated in my bones, my soul, the spaces between my thoughts.
[Host identified: Chen Wei]
[Status: Deceased (Timeline Prime)]
[Status: Reincarnating (Timeline Variant #7,291)]
[Anomaly detected: Host retains memories of Prime Timeline]
I opened eyes that should not exist.
White ceiling. Cheap wooden beams. The smell of medicinal herbs and poverty.
I knew this room. I had died in this room. Would die in this room. Twenty three chapters from now.
"Young Master?" A timid voice. "You are awake?"
I turned my head. A girl of perhaps sixteen stood in the doorway, plain faced, nervous hands clutching a bowl of steaming liquid. My maid, Xiao Hong. Destined to betray me in Chapter 15 when the protagonist's charm aura proved too strong for her commoner sensibilities.
Timeline Variant #7,291.
I sat up, ignoring her gasp, and looked at my hands. Young hands. Sixteen years old. Three months before the "incident" that would make me a villain, two years before my scheduled death.
"Leave the medicine," I said. My voice sounded different. Harsher, hungrier. "And close the door. I need to think."
She fled.
I did not blame her. In the original story, Chen Wei was a minor character. A stepping stone for Lin Feng's early growth, a cautionary tale about arrogance, a corpse that taught the hero about mercy by receiving none.
But I was not Chen Wei.
Not exactly.
I was Alex Chen. Twenty eight years old. Former investment analyst. Died in a car accident on my way to a job I hated, reading a webnovel on my phone to escape the reality of my failing life.
The same webnovel where Chen Wei died in Chapter 23.
[SYSTEM INTEGRATION COMPLETE]
The notification appeared in my vision. Semi transparent, glowing cyan, utterly impossible. I reached for it instinctively, and the interface expanded.
---
[THE GREAT MERCHANT SYSTEM v2.0]
[Welcome, Host Chen Wei]
[Core Function: Commerce Across All Boundaries]
[Current Access: Low Level Martial World (Azure Cloud Continent)]
[Merchant Rank: Bronze (0/1000 Reputation)]
[Active Inventory: 1]
* [Beginner Cultivation Manual: Azure Cloud Technique] (Common)
Value: 5 Spirit Stones
Note: Standard sect issue. 99% of disciples never surpass Foundation Establishment.
[SYSTEM SHOP: LOCKED]
*Unlock at Silver Rank*
[Special Ability: FATE EVALUATION]
*Analyze individuals to determine their narrative importance and hidden potential.*
---
I stared at the interface, my heart hammering against ribs that had never felt a sword.
A system.
Not a combat system. Not a cultivation system. A merchant system.
In a world where power came from punching mountains and screaming technique names, I had been given... inventory management?
[Query detected. Response: Combat systems are temporary. Economic systems are eternal.]
The System's voice held something almost like dry humor.
[Additional data: Host's predecessor in Timeline Variants #1-7,290 possessed standard "Villain Reversal" combat system. Average survival time: 18.3 chapters. Longest survival: 41 chapters (Variant #4,102).]
[Current Host possesses unique qualification: Professional experience in derivative markets, risk arbitrage, and identifying undervalued assets.]
[Translation: You know how to sell things. In a world where destiny is the only currency that matters, this makes you infinitely more dangerous than any swordsman.]
I laughed.
It started as a chuckle, grew into something hysterical, and finally settled into a cold, calculating silence that would have terrified anyone who knew the old Chen Wei.
They were right. I was not a fighter. I was a trader.
And I had just been dropped into the most inefficient market imaginable. A cultivation novel where power was hoarded by idiots who thought destiny was earned through "hard work" and "righteous heart" rather than information asymmetry and strategic positioning.
"System," I said aloud, testing the weight of the word. "Show me the FATE EVALUATION. Target: myself."
[Processing...]
---
[FATE EVALUATION: CHEN WEI]
[Narrative Role: Stepping Stone Villain (Minor)]
[Original Destiny: Death at Chapter 23, hands of Protagonist Lin Feng]
[Current Status: ANOMALY. Destiny thread severed, reweaving in progress]
[Hidden Stats:]
* Commercial Intuition: SSS (Transcendent)
* Political Acumen: A (Hidden by arrogance facade in original timeline)
* Cultivation Potential: C (Limited by lack of resources, not talent)
[Undervalued Assets:]
1. Chen Family Merchant Connections (Father's trading company, bankrupt in Chapter 8 due to "protagonist's lucky encounter" with rival)
2. Xiao Hong (Maid). [FATE EVALUATION: B Grade Supporting Character, destined for early death. Hidden trait: Eidetic memory, perfect for inventory management]
3. Azure Cloud Sect Library Access (3 months remaining before expulsion incident)
[Critical Information:]
* Lin Feng arrives in Azure Cloud City in 72 days
* "Lucky encounter" that establishes his cultivation speed located in Eastern Wastes, Tomb of the Fallen Prince
* Current market price of Foundation Establishment Pills: 200 Spirit Stones (Artificially inflated by Alchemist Guild monopoly)
---
I read the evaluation three times.
Then I started planning.
Not to fight Lin Feng. Not to "surpass" him through some delusional training montage. The novel had made it clear. Lin Feng had protagonist armor. Fate itself bent to ensure his victories. Every "close battle" would end in his breakthrough. Every "certain death" would reveal a hidden inheritance.
Fighting that was fighting the narrative itself.
But merchants do not fight markets. They exploit them.
"System," I said, swinging my legs off the cheap bed. "I need to see the shop interface. How do I unlock Silver Rank?"
[Requirements for Silver Merchant:]
* Reputation: 1000/1000 (0%)
* Transaction Volume: 10,000 Spirit Stones equivalent (0%)
* Special Condition: Complete first "Fate Transaction". Alter the destiny of a named character through commercial means.
The last requirement pulsed gold.
I smiled.
Xiao Hong was still outside, hovering nervously. In three days, according to the original story, she would accidentally witness Chen Wei. Old Chen Wei. Attempting to force himself on a female disciple. She would run to the elders, beginning the chain of events that led to my expulsion and eventual villain branding.
But that Chen Wei had been desperate, stupid, acting out scripts written by an author who needed a disposable antagonist.
I opened the door. She jumped, nearly dropping the medicine bowl.
"Xiao Hong," I said, keeping my voice gentle. Calculated gentleness. The kind that cost nothing and built trust. "How long have you worked for my family?"
T... three years, Young Master."
"Three years. And in that time, have I ever... forced you to do anything?"
Her eyes widened. In the original story, she had been too terrified to answer honestly. But I was not asking honestly. I was asking strategically, establishing a baseline for future transactions.
"N... no, Young Master. You have been... distant, but never cruel."
Good. The narrative has not locked in yet. There is flexibility.
"Starting today, that changes. Not cruelty. Engagement." I handed her the empty medicine bowl, our fingers brushing deliberately. She flinched, but did not pull away. "I need someone with perfect memory. Someone who can track inventory, prices, supplier names. Someone who sees everything and forgets nothing."
Her breath caught. "Young Master, I am just a maid..."
"You are a resource," I interrupted. "Currently undervalued by the market. I am offering you a position: my business partner. Equal share of profits, protection from... certain narrative developments, and training in cultivation techniques appropriate for your hidden talents."
I watched her process this. She was not stupid. Just uneducated, overlooked, written as background decoration.
"What do you want in return?" she asked finally.
Smart girl.
"Information. Loyalty. And one specific task three days from now." I leaned closer, dropping my voice to a whisper. "When I tell you to run to the Eastern Pavilion and accidentally discover Elder Brother Liu's secret cultivation chamber... you will do it. Not because you are spying for me, but because you are concerned for my safety."
Her eyes flickered with understanding. And something else. Opportunity. She recognized it, even if she could not name it.
"Why?" she asked.
"Because Elder Brother Liu is about to frame me for a crime I have not committed yet. And when you discover his setup, we will have evidence to sell to his political enemies." I straightened, offering my hand. "Partners?"
She stared at my hand like it was a snake. Then, slowly, she took it.
[FATE TRANSACTION DETECTED]
[Xiao Hong's destiny modified: From "Betrayer (Chapter 15)" to "Business Partner (Ongoing)"]
[Reputation +100]
[Silver Rank Progress: 10%]
The notification blazed in my vision, but I kept my focus on the girl in front of me. Her grip was firmer now, her eyes sharper. She had made a choice, stepped off the script, and neither of us knew where it led.
That was the point.
"Young Master," she said, testing the new dynamic. "What exactly are you planning to sell?"
I thought of Lin Feng, currently training in some backwater village, completely unaware that his destined lucky encounter in the Eastern Wastes had just become a tradeable commodity.
"Everything," I said. "Power. Information. Destiny itself."
I gestured, and the System interface flickered into existence between us. Visible only to my eyes, but its presence real, potent, profitable.
"The cultivation world thinks strength is the ability to destroy. They are wrong. Strength is the ability to choose. And I am going to be the one who sells that choice to whoever can afford it."
Xiao Hong did not understand. Not yet.
But she would.
In 72 days, Lin Feng would arrive in Azure Cloud City expecting his first stepping stone. A pathetic villain to crush, a woman to save, a destiny to claim.
Instead, he would find a merchant.
And everything would have a price.
---