"Aaah!"
Luo Jingya woke up with a start, staring in shock at the old ceiling above her. It had its paint peeling off at many spots, revealing the stained, dark grey concrete underneath while sporting patches of dark mould in most of the remaining space.
It took her a few more seconds to realise that it was the ceiling of her room. Her bedroom in the tiny, cramped old danwei unit where she had been living for nearly a month now.
'*sigh*' Luo Jingya struggled to regain her bearings, still disoriented from that dreadful dream– no, not a dream. A dream where you died– can you still call it a dream? Especially when you dreamt it, no- even felt as if you experienced it down to the very last bit of gory details?
'...'
Finding her old phone after groping around for a while -which had somehow mysteriously taken a walk only to rest under her bed at some point during the night-, Luo Jingya checked the time. It was 6.12 in the morning.
"Argh!"
Yesterday, when she came back home from her late-night part-time job at the bar in downtown Lintong, it had already been close to one in the morning. And now, she had to be woken from her sleep 13 minutes earlier than expected– all because she saw an absurdly scary nightmare.
'...'
To her, even those extra few minutes of sleep mattered. But it was also a fact that her life sucked in general, so…
Not to mention, '... This one takes the cake for sure.'
Luo Jingya was no stranger to… nightmares. In fact, she used to dream up so many messy, shadowy, incomprehensible, as well as possibly the most terrifying dreams imaginable when she was younger. It was to a point that she even found herself occasionally wondering how she was… ok like this, until now?
'...'
Well, it may be because she was young at the time, so her mind just… Anyway, as she grew older, the frequency of these nightmares gradually lessened. Though, even now, at least once or twice a year, she would dream some shitty stuff here and there, waking up in a cold sweat.
"It's like some god damned dog skin plaster!!" Besides, today's nightmare– it had been particularly… unsettling. Especially with how clear and detailed it was. Almost as if the stuff she dreamt actually happ-
"Ding!"
'...'
"Ding?" What-
[This is an urgent reminder to commence the Death-to-life system mission sequence!]
.
.
"Huh?"
[Dear host, it has been calculated that your remaining life span is 6 days, 18 hours and 13 minutes.
Your remaining death points are zero.]
[Ongoing tasks are zero.
You currently don't have any targets of purification.]
[Generating new task.]
.
.
.
[Task no.1 generated!]
[Task type: Major task]
[Task introduction:
'Resentments should be resolved, not deepened.'
Resentment binds one to suffering, perpetuates the cycle of pain and births evil. But a noble person doesn't nurse grievances, and works tirelessly to eradicate all evil.]
[Task details:
Successfully detect and purify a low-level resentful ghost.]
[Task rewards:
60 death points]
.
[Accept the task: Yes/No]
"What the-" Luo Jingya stared at the thing– the- the… screen?
[Dear host, please work hard to complete the system task and earn death points to extend your current life span.]
[Please kindly note that in addition to completing the tasks generated by the system algorithm, the host is also able to earn death points by purifying souls other than those who are identified as task targets.
The death points would be converted into precious time to be added to the life span of the host.]
[Please be informed that all major tasks are mandatory. Once you accept a major task, it must be completed within the stipulated time period.]
[As a newbie benefit, the host will be gifted with a free 'special tip'.]
[Please kindly note that this is only a special benefit granted to you as the newly bound host of the 'Death-to-Life system'. In the future, special tips would have to be purchased from the system using death points earned by the host.]
.
.
[Special tip: It's easy to invite a deity in, but hard to send one away.]
"..."
"!!!!"
Luo Jingya stared at the floating, nearly transparent... game screen-like thing in front of her, her eyes showing confusion. Maybe she was still… dreaming?
Rubbing her eyes to clear the cobwebs– nope! The bloody thing was still there!!
"A-a system?" She finally croaked out, the words sounding rusty on her tongue. D-death points? Tasks? And something about purifying… ghosts?
'...'
[Dear host, to answer your question, I'm indeed what you would call a system, officially known as the 'death-to-life' system. But you can address me as you see fit.]
In all fairness, the… system– it was quite polite. Luo Jingya even vaguely felt that it sounded somewhat like her grandma's favourite news anchor on the National TV.
Back when she was younger, she would huddle on the sofa together with her grandmother at night, listening to the lady with the polite, cultured, immaculate and evenly toned voice, which sounded almost, '...like an AI.'
[Selecting you to bind with the 'Death-to-life' system was decided after your death, through an extensive calculation process conducted to determine our compatibility. And you have been able to experince rebirth as a consequence of becoming my host.]
[I hope you will carefully use this opportunity and make the best out of it in order to extend your lifespan while eradicating the influence of evil ghosts and spirits in this world.]