Short, Light, Free - Chapter 1: The Knowing

When people pass away, they often leave behind unfulfilled wishes. I will act as a force of justice, helping the deceased achieve their final desires before I return to my own world to confront and make peace with my own regrets.

During her cultivation practice, Nie Yinzhi encountered a mishap and nearly fell into qi deviation. After emerging from seclusion, she discovered she could see floating subtitles above her head.From these danmu (bullet screen comments), she learned that she was merely a substitute supporting character in a novel.Everyone in her sect doted on and loved her only because her eyes resembled those of the beloved senior sister who had perished ten years ago.And in three days, that blind senior sister would return to the sect—Nie Yinzhi would have her core forcibly removed by her master, her eyes gouged out by her senior brother, and ultimately die alone.Armed with spoilers from the danmu, Nie Yinzhi set up a forbidden array, sacrificing her soul to summon the novel’s antagonist – the great Demon Lord.Covered in blood, amid everyone’s terrified gazes, she coldly smiled and said, “If that’s how it is, then none of you shall live!”The Demon Lord appeared slowly in his dark robes, reaching out to wipe blood from the corner of her mouth: “You’re so young, why harbor such deep resentment? If there are any misunderstandings, we can sit down for tea and talk things through. Why resort to violence?”Nie Yinzhi: “???”Is this the ruthless, evil Demon Lord everyone spoke of?![The Demon Lord says no with his mouth but his actions prove otherwise. Don’t worry, it’s not frustrating, feel free to dive in.]Gu Jiang: Today my wife is asking me to kill againNie Yinzhi: Today the Demon Lord is preaching virtue to me againCultivation World: Being persecuted again todayLaid-back retired veteran couch potato Demon Lord male lead VS grudge-holding can’t-take-any-grievance female lead[[Warning: As you can tell from the synopsis, the female lead isn’t designed to be morally good! She has character flaws! She’s not a perfect victim! She won’t wait until they actually remove her golden core and gouge out her eyes before fighting back! Proceed with caution if this bothers you!] ]

“Mana to breathe, mana to eat, mana to fucking live,”Inhale: -0.001 MP… oops! You're out of mana points.(Pay-to-breathe RPG.)Humanity's last walled stronghold._____In the world Elio lives, every gasp of air comes at a price.A floating indestructible book for every human, a magical system that turns survival into a pay-to-breathe RPG.Here, poverty isn't just being broke, it's choking.Surrounded by barren land and a sea of monsters on top of it (No water, just literal monsters), each day is a suffocating dance of survival, a balancing act between mana for air and mana for food.In this economy, holding your breath isn't just a game, it's a retirement plan.Driven by desperation (and the city's miserly rulers that don’t cut anyone a break), Elio dives into the Book System’s trials to save his family.Along the way, he unlocks powers he didn’t ask for and starts to figure out... Who he really is.Immerse yourself in an adventure where one young man's stubborn refusal to become a statistic could spark a revolution. Who knew being a pain in the system's rear could change the world?Because in Elio's world, breathing is just the beginning of the revolution and... he's gasping for change.But hey, who said saving the world had to be all doom and gloom? Join Elio as he kicks monster butt, uncovers ancient secrets, and maybe, just maybe, figures out how to grow a tree or two along the way.__________Warning:May contain traces of world domination, an unhealthy obsession with the periodic table, damage points, progression math, and yes, even a sprinkle of that old “power of friendship” magic. Because sometimes, you need a buddy to help you remember which element does what or even help you calculate those sweet, sweet stats.A quick heads-up:Despite what the cover might suggest, this isn’t a hack-and-slash adventure. Think more along the lines of a turn-based RPG, where strategy and choices matter as much as action. Get ready for a different kind of challenge!If you want to know more about the cover:Yep, that's our first FL crying and crossing the transparent barrier straight into a pixelated, indistinguishable sea of monsters. Because why not mix emotions with chaos? She's crazy like that! (Not really... or is she?)Discord to check the visuals: https://discord.gg/W3CjfC2cw4I’m still working on it in the little moments I find between writing, editing, making more character images, etc.Little by little, we’ll have a Poked... uh, a full SummonDex! Meanwhile, you can check out the ones on Fandom with their... funny descriptions? Or at least I hope so... orzWarning 2 (Privilege 4 and 5):I just wanted to stick to the novel’s level system, so I had to add those '0s'!!! Don’t be an elephant... unless you’re an enormous one... A whale! Seriously, nooooo!You’re going to make me die from the pressure, and I’ll feel terrible!! It’s just one chapter!!! You can wait... But if you’re dirty rich and really, Really, REALLY want to support, well... okay, though I’ll still feel bad!!! orz

He Yuan had accidentally caused his own death. He had no idea he was even dead until he suddenly woke up on the hard floor of an empty room.

As he tried to get his bearings right, a strange guy suddenly popped out of thin air and he was offered a job.

The job offer granted him eternal life with the alternative being reincarnation. Most would hastily choose to be reincarnated so they can start a new life but not He Yuan.

He was skeptical, why would anyone want reincarnation? Once you reincarnated 'you' cease to exist. He didn't care about what people said about starting afresh, gaining new memories and all that.

All he knew was that once a person reincarnated, they get thrown into a different environment, different family, meet new people and in short became a different person entirely.

What scared He Yuan the most was losing his own thoughts and hence, awareness of his current self and so, he chose to accept the job.

What did the job entail? He carried out tasks given to him by people who were called 'leasers.' They were called this because they leased out their bodies to 'taskers' for a period of time to help set their crooked lives straight.

What the leasers didn't know was that the taskers got into realms and helped them so they( taskers) could focus on their own main tasks which was world/realm balance.

These realms had 'special ones' who siphoned the luck out of it. Luck was the binding force of these realms so without it, the realms would begin to break apart and deteriorate into unlivable hells.

So in essence, leasers gave put their bodies and 'payment' in the form of soul energy, taskers helped out the leasers while balancing the realms and the realms become stable once more.

Pretty straightforward right? Yes.

But can someone tell He Yuan why these world was so full of hypocrites, Mary sue and Gary stu characters who thought it was excusable to do horrible things just because they were in love?

He Yuan grit his teeth. If you want to be in love, then be in love, was there any need to use others as stepping stones?!

He rolled up his sleeves and bounced forward. Just you wait as I teach you all a valuable lesson!