Amber City Central Hospital.
Bai Wanyang lay on his hospital bed, staring blankly with a numb expression.
He had been suffering from a long streak of bad luck. Now, covered in injuries, he couldn't even move.
But that wasn't the worst part.
The worst part was that his supernatural powers were gone!
He could no longer fire his Energy Cannon.
No matter how badly he was injured, his automatic recovery would no longer trigger.
When exactly did all of this start?
The first time he tripped for no reason was...
As if remembering something, Bai Wanyang turned his head toward Zhang Songyun, who was sitting by the bed peeling an apple.
Since Yue Shi left, Zhang Songyun had become Bai Wanyang's new friend.
But from that day on, everything had gone wrong for Bai Wanyang, one stroke of misfortune after another.
In contrast, Zhang Songyun had always been lucky.
Back when Zhang Songyun was still an ordinary human, he had encountered a Rules Horror in a food processing plant and two supernatural creatures fighting on the same day.
In those two high-risk supernatural incidents, almost everyone with him had perished.
Yet he had escaped with only minor scratches, leaving not even a scar.
Later, he had even undergone an awakening and become an honorable investigator.
The day Zhang Songyun awakened his supernatural powers was also the day Bai Wanyang's luck hit rock bottom.
He had been completely broken, likely destined for long-term bed rest, no different from a cripple.
“Was it you?”
Bai Wanyang looked at Zhang Songyun. His expression and tone were calm—there was no anger, no loud accusations.
Although his question was only three words, he knew Zhang Songyun would understand exactly what he was asking. There was no need for elaboration.
His bad luck, his lost supernatural powers.
Hearing this, Zhang Songyun didn't stop peeling the apple. He simply nodded calmly.
He admitted it directly, with no intention of hiding it.
Things had reached this point, and he had accomplished what he set out to do. There was no longer any need for pretense.
“Why?”
Sadness flickered across Bai Wanyang's face.
“Aren't we friends?” was what he really wanted to ask, but the words wouldn't come out.
Zhang Songyun, however, seemed to see right through him and spoke plainly.
“There is no ‘why.’ You were my target from the very beginning. We were never friends.”
Bai Wanyang's breathing quickened. He could no longer maintain his composure and glared fiercely at Zhang Songyun.
“So you approached me on purpose from the start? What exactly did you do to me!”
Zhang Songyun set down the peeled apple. “You should know very well. I took your luck and your abilities.”
“Why ask about such an obvious fact? It only makes you look stupid.”
Bai Wanyang's teeth ground together.
Seeing him like that, Zhang Songyun sneered. “You know? I really hate that look on your face.”
“You have everything I crave, yet with such great conditions, you have no ambition.”
“You never thought of ways to improve your strength. Instead, you spent all your time working to make money.”
“Wasting all that time, risking your life for money that you didn't even spend on yourself.”
“You supported those classmates of yours for nothing. Did you not notice their appetites growing larger until they turned into complete parasites?”
Bai Wanyang wanted to argue. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
Zhang Songyun said disdainfully, “During the time you've been hospitalized, which of those classmates has come to see you?”
“They only contact you for one reason: to stick their hands out for money.”
“Because you refuse to do anything unethical, you have to work yourself to the bone every day to support a pack of ancestors.”
“Look at you. Look at what you've turned yourself into.”
Bai Wanyang was silent for a moment before he quickly broke away from Zhang Songyun's logic and accused him angrily.
“How I choose to live is my business! What does it have to do with you?”
“That's no excuse for you to sabotage me!”
Zhang Songyun grinned and suddenly asked a completely unrelated question.
“Do you ever read rebirth-themed web novels?”
Bai Wanyang was baffled. “???”
Zhang Songyun continued, “In those stories, the protagonist's past life is usually brilliant, with the best looks, background, and talent, possessing countless resources.”
“And yet, despite being dealt a perfect hand, they play it so poorly that they end up dying miserably at the hands of some low-life villain.”
“Do you think a protagonist like that is actually smart?”
“Give me a break. No matter how you look at it, they're idiots—the biggest idiots imaginable.”
“A winner is a winner. So what if they're despicable, shameless, or unethical?”
“Yet Heaven favors those idiotic losers, practically spoon-feeding them. Even when they die, they're given a chance to start over.”
Bai Wanyang's mind was spinning. He couldn't understand the point of what Zhang Songyun was saying.
Zhang Songyun said, “You're a lot like one of those protagonists.”
“You led a group of people to survival during a disaster and even awakened powerful supernatural abilities.”
“The people at the Investigation Bureau praised you for being smart, courageous, and full of potential, treating you as a prime candidate for cultivation.”
“And yet, a fine specimen like you was devoured by a weak, shameless pest like me. My methods were incredibly crude, yet you fell for them without any defense at all.”
Bai Wanyang's face turned pale.
Zhang Songyun's tone grew more intense. “You're truly stupid. Watching you act like a fool every day made my blood boil.”
“Having supernatural powers is a complete waste on you.”
“If I had that power, I could do so much more than you.”
Bai Wanyang retorted, “I awakened those powers; they are mine.”
“They're mine to use however I want. Even if I use them to haul bricks, that's my business.”
“Stealing someone else's abilities and luck makes you the despicable one with no character! No matter what you say, you're just making excuses!”
Zhang Songyun nodded. “You're right. I am despicable and I have no character.”
“But so what?”
“You awakened such great abilities yet remained stagnant, wasting heaven's gifts.”
“I just happened to have a way to take your luck and abilities. Why would I pass that up?”
“In ancient times, emperors who couldn't hold their thrones were overthrown. Why should you be any different?”
“The underlying truth of this world is the law of the jungle—survival of the fittest, winner takes all.”
“Now, I am the winner, and you don't get a second chance.”
“Even if you could be reborn, with your personality and brain... heh. If I didn't screw you over, someone else would have.”
Bai Wanyang clenched his fists and said nothing.
Fury burned in his heart, but it didn't consume his reason.
A loss was a loss. No matter how underhanded the opponent's victory was, in this survival game, you had to accept it.
For a winner who stopped at nothing, the result of victory itself could be used to justify and whitewash the means.
Losers didn't get a second chance.
Zhang Songyun stood up, preparing to leave.
“Actually, while I was getting close to you, if you had shown even a hint of suspicion toward me, I would have stopped.”
“After all, you really are a good person. I felt a bit of hesitation when I struck.”
“But your denseness was beyond my imagination. Group Leader Ling warned you clearly, yet you turned a deaf ear.”
“You only look smart on the surface. Inside, you're as dull as a pig.”
After being called stupid repeatedly, Bai Wanyang's temper flared. He roared, “You call me stupid, but are you so smart yourself?”
“Villains die because they talk too much! I'm not dead yet. Aren't you afraid I'll make everything you've said public!”
Zhang Songyun gave a half-smile and a deep look at Bai Wanyang, completely losing the desire to speak with him further.
“Idiot.”
“Everyone else realized my excessive luck was strange and refused to let me get close. You were the only exception.”
He still hadn't figured out the unspoken rules of the Amber City Investigation Bureau.
Director Tang provided a free environment for growth and accepted the existence of competition.
She favored the winners of that competition.
But she was also willing to protect losers who still had value.
Zhang Songyun walked out of the ward, a smile curling on his lips.
“Passively absorbing the luck of those around me, stealing others' opportunities, clutching victory with a sliver of health when beaten half to death, being as impossible to kill as a cockroach...”
“All these abilities combined are clearly a protagonist halo.”
“Bai Wanyang had the last two and still managed to end up this miserable. It turns out I'm the real protagonist.”
“I wonder what other parts the halo is missing?”
Inside the ward, Bai Wanyang stared blankly at the ceiling.
He was so unwilling to accept this.
“Was I really wrong?”
“No, I wasn't!”
“Maintaining kindness and high moral standards isn't a mistake. What's wrong is the environment—what's wrong is this world!”
“I still have a chance. I can still turn this around!”
...
“Who exactly are you?”
“You didn't come here specifically to look for trouble with the forbidden zone master, did you?”
The GM asked Yue Shi with a look of shock.
Just moments ago, the two of them had shared a harmonious and friendly exchange.
The details were inconvenient to describe, but in short, both sides had reached a pleasant consensus.
The GM acknowledged Yue Shi's strength and was so impressed by his character that he volunteered to become his friend.
That was a lie.
The GM had simply been beaten into submission—absolute physical suppression.
Most importantly, Yue Shi had dragged him into an extra-dimensional space and somehow managed to temporarily sever his connection to the Supernatural Game Show!
The GM's gaze suddenly became very clear and honest.
Yue Shi looked at him leisurely.
“Now is my time for questions. Cut the chatter.”
“Who exactly are you? And what kind of role is a ‘game administrator’?”
The GM's eyes flickered before he answered honestly, “I used to be a player too.”
“Then how did you become a GM?” Yue Shi pressed.
The GM forced a smile that barely counted as one.
“If you clear a hundred games, you gain the qualification for promotion to become an administrator.”
“From then on, you no longer have to risk your life in those death-trap game instances. Instead, you're responsible for maintaining game order and fixing bugs.”
“You also have to deal with intruders and eliminate players who discover and exploit bugs.”
“Oh?” Yue Shi raised an eyebrow. His tone was neutral. “This forbidden zone is quite humane. It doesn't grind players to death and even offers a path for promotion. Is that a benefit?”
The GM gave a bitter laugh, his expression complicated. “If you want to call it a benefit, I suppose it is.”
“What? Is there a catch?” Yue Shi caught the strange note in his voice.
The GM's voice dropped. “Administrators don't have to risk their lives in instances anymore, but they still have to work to keep the games running.”
“And once you become an administrator, you can never leave. You're stuck living here forever.”
“So you're just trading one prison for another? That is pretty miserable,” Yue Shi remarked sharply, sounding quite pleased with the GM's misfortune.
“It's not that bad. Life here is peaceful. There are no supernatural threats or conflicts from the outside world. It's just... dull.”
The GM tried to make his voice sound light, but failed.
“Where do administrators usually live? In that darkness out there?” Yue Shi asked again.
The GM shook his head. “Of course not. We live in the Temple.”
Before Yue Shi could ask more, he added voluntarily, “Only those with administrator status have the authority to perceive and enter the Temple.”
“An... uh, outside visitor like you won't be able to find it, let alone get in.”
Yue Shi didn't say anything, but studied the GM intently.
The GM felt his scalp tingle under the gaze, his back tensing up. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Your attitude is a bit strange,” Yue Shi said slowly.
The GM froze. “What's strange about it?”
“Before, you were arrogant and stubborn. But after I hit you a few times, you softened up way too fast. You're answering everything I ask. Why are you cooperating so much?”
Yue Shi's voice was flat.
The GM's throat bobbed as he explained sincerely, “Big brother, I can't beat you. Our strength is worlds apart.”
“If I don't give in immediately, should I just act tough and wait for you to tear me apart? I'm just being realistic.”
Yue Shi watched him for a few seconds before dropping the subject.
He reached out and patted the GM's ornate armor, leaving a mark on it as he did.
“These game instances—what are they? Where do they come from?”
“I don't know.”
“What is the name of the ruler of the Supernatural Game Show?”
“I don't know.”
“What is the purpose of bringing in so many players?”
“I don't know.”
Yue Shi fell silent, then rolled his eyes.
“You don't know anything. What kind of useful information do you actually have, you ‘administrator’?”
The GM said helplessly, “I'm just a low-level worker. I don't know much about the inner workings here.”
“Maybe the senior administrators know more, but I haven't been one for very long.”
“Fine then.”
“You're just a useless little piece of trash. You can get lost now.”
Yue Shi seemed to accept the GM's explanation. His tone was casual, as if he were dismissing a random passerby.
He then dragged the GM out of the extra-dimensional space with him.
The GM looked dazed and confused, almost thinking he had misheard.
He subconsciously asked, “You're just letting me go?”
“What? You don't want to go? You want to stay and keep being my punching bag?”
Yue Shi's gaze turned malicious, as if he would be happy to oblige if the GM showed any inclination to stay.
The GM shuddered and didn't dare say another word.
The light on his ornate armor flashed, seemingly activating some sort of teleportation authority, and his figure rapidly vanished.
Yue Shi stood alone on the ruins under the low, leaden sky.
In his perception, the mark he had left on the GM's armor suddenly moved to a very distant location and stopped.
The Temple. Found it.
Rate on N.U.
