Su Bei had always been a cautious man.

  Cautious toward his classmates.

  Cautious toward his family.

  Cautious toward strangers.

  And today was no exception. The robotic and artificial voice echoing in his mind raised his guard to the maximum.

  "Who are you? Tell me your name!"

  At that moment, he had just reincarnated into another world or rather taken over the body of the person who had died that day.

  [I am the Domination System.]

  [Developed in a secret laboratory, I am at your service to ensure your survival.]

  He was surprised but still remained vigilant as he released his grip.

  "Are you inside my brain?"

  [Precisely in your soul.]

  Soul.

  It was most likely attached to him.

  After all, he couldn’t have a microchip in his head since his body was crushed under a truck at this very hour.

  "How did you get here?"

  [Your current authorization level is insufficient to access classified information.]

  There were locks in his head?

  Su Bei had complicated thoughts.

  Having a digital chip in his soul that stuck naturally to him and came with unknown limitations was frustrating.

  "Can you read my thoughts, my memories? That kind of thing?"

  [Only with the host's permission.]

  He could do it! That piece of information was very dangerous! For a moment, he thought this machine could control him.

  However, considering that he had already regained his body for some time, he calmed down.

  Think rationally!

  "How do I know if you're lying to me?"

  [Unfortunately, I cannot resolve your internal conflicts. However, I can show you that I am completely harmless.]

  Then knowledge began streaming into his brain. It felt like watching a virtual reality movie. Hundreds of thoughts, images, and unknown memories surfaced in his mind, flooding his head.

  After half an hour, he opened his eyes again. Dark circles were visible, but that didn’t bother Su Bei, who had already gotten back on his feet.

  It could lie, but it didn’t really feel hostile to him…

  In the end, he chose to trust this machine. Not completely, but it was very useful.

  "Your name will be Nano."

  ===

  [Domination System initializing.]

  [Procedure in progress.]

  [Displaying results.]

  ===

  [Cloning X]

  [Potential: Growth]

  [Rank: (E)]

  [This technique was invented by Kelvin Cart, a renowned mage who revolutionized his world. He died of an illness while completing his technique and recorded his knowledge in a skill book. Due to its low utility and untapped potential, it was categorized as (E).]

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  ===

  Su Bei was excited.

  It was a growth-type book!

  He had once read in a library in the slums, which gathered abandoned or cheaply bought books, that there were different types of books.

  Fixed-skill books, unique books, and untapped books. The name ‘growth’ was widely known but rare because few people could identify them, unlike common books.

  It required a specific item that was very expensive and especially difficult to use!

  He jumped for joy.

  It was a real lottery win!

  If he sold it on the market, he could probably earn 2,000,000 C! That was as valuable as an A-rank skill book, even S-rank if you considered the book's latent potential.

  As he smiled in satisfaction, Su Guang pulled out some blue potions from his bag. Each one glowed with a fluorescent blue light.

  Each color indicated its purpose.

  Red to enhance physical strength and muscle power by improving the body.

  Green to heal injuries, from light to severe, by boosting regenerative tissues.

  Purple to increase special abilities.

  And blue to boost mental energy, the extraordinary energy needed to use supernatural powers.

  Su Bei held it in his hands.

  [4x Mental Energy Enhancement Potions]

  It was raw mana harvested from fertile planets, then refined before being mixed with other elements. The result was a completely edible and safe product.

  [5% efficiency]

  Efficiency depended on many factors. The quality of ingredients, how the raw mana was stored… A low value meant it was a low-quality potion, while high efficiency indicated a top-tier potion.

  He thanked his father and drank all the potions in one go.

  [Refined mana absorption in progress…]

  Then he finished eating and went back to his room, preparing to head to the ceremonial event that would take place in the prefecture center, the city hall of Hun.

  Just before leaving his room, he checked his appearance. After all, appearance always mattered. Whether animal or human, favorability would rise or fall depending on others’ perception.

  For example, a cat was treated better than a blobfish (look it up online).

  Women were treated better than men in society. In terms of appearance, it was important to be well-groomed during events.

  A man with black hair and red eyes. While black hair was common, red eyes were unusual.

  His parents didn’t have red eyes. His father even admitted he thought his mother had cheated, which led to an argument.

  Eventually, with the help of a priest from a major religion, they confirmed he was indeed their child. However, the reason for his eye color was never discovered.

  They eventually dropped the issue, assuming some ancestor might have had red eyes too. In any case, the red eyes added a certain charm to his otherwise average face.

  Highlighting his sharp nose, hollow cheeks, and pale, sickly complexion.

  Su Bei left his house, walking through Bill Hun, a poor neighborhood of the prefecture.

  This place was filled with impoverished and destitute people, forming a slum.

  Fortunately, his family lived on the outskirts, so the authorities patrolled the area regularly, or else they’d already be dead.

  Robbed and stripped bare.

  That was the fate of those who had lost their homes. He silently swore never to end up in that situation again.

  Su Bei continued on his way, ignoring the envious looks. A massive building with a clock stood in the square.

  Several families were heading inside where the official ceremony would take place. His family entered as well, and he spotted several familiar faces.

  "Su Bei! How are you doing?"

  A huge man stood there with his hands on his hips.

  "Rather than me, are you sure you should keep eating when the ceremony is about to start?"

  "Haha! You got me, brother!"

  He hurriedly pulled out the bag of chips he had hidden behind his back.

  Su Bei walked up and pulled out another bag of chips from behind his back before opening it and eating a few, then handing it to Gu Zheng.

  "Hey, isn’t that Gu Zheng?"

  "Ah! I didn’t recognize you, uncle and auntie! As usual, you both look great! Ow—!"

  Gu Zheng raised his hands dramatically.

  Su Bei had hit the back of his head.

  His parents laughed.

  "Flattery won’t work on us."

  "Stop joking around, son. Hello Lu and Hua."

  "Oh, the Gu family!"

  Hua Ya covered her mouth in surprise.

  A handsome man and a beautiful woman stood before them. Unlike the overweight Gu Zheng, they were true model material.

  "How is your family doing these days?"

  "We managed to recover a few high-level corpses..."

  Gu Zheng’s parents joined the conversation. Since listening to adult talk wasn’t that interesting, they started walking toward the hall.

  The hallway was very long, about 500 meters. During that time, Gu Zheng talked excitedly about the event.

  "Did you hear the rumors? One of my cousins said the Ice Queen arrived early at the main hall!"

  "By Ice Queen, you mean..."

  "Huang Rui...!"

  Su Bei was genuinely curious to hear that.

  Huang Rui was known as a model student, but cold due to her emotionless expression and distant demeanor.

  But that wasn’t what surprised people the most. If she was just a cold beauty, people would have simply nodded.

  However, she came from another prefecture, a particularly wealthy one. Coming to a mid-level prefecture was unusual.

  But who knew what went through their minds? He wasn’t strong enough to know their motives.

  Soon, they reached the hall and entered. Stunning lights lit up the room, which was surrounded by chairs and had an elevated platform at the front with a rather massive crystal orb.

  About ten meters high?

  People stood next to it. They carried swords and staffs. Their expressions were professional and gave nothing away.

  They walked through the hall and found a row of empty chairs. They sat in the third row in front of the illustrious crystal orb.

  From his seat, its massive size was even more impressive.

  Soon everyone was seated, and a person in red attire stepped forward.

  "Welcome, everyone! We will now begin the planet assignments for future students!"

  With just that announcement, the crowd applauded. The parents seated in the upper levels of the hall looked tense.

  "Alright! We will announce the first person!"

  He could somewhat understand their anxiety.

  "Sun Yue!"

  After all, this was the moment that would dictate their future destiny.