‘Devil’ Hao as his subordinates liked to call him, stepped through space to arrive in front of the glowing, humanoid creature.
Several minutes ago, Cheng Hao had met his untimely end.
A managing director at a bulge-bracket investment bank, Cheng Hao had made no shortage of enemies throughout his tumultuous Wall Street career. After suffering a few early defeats, he changed his values and attitude, truly becoming ‘Devil’ Hao. From that point on he out-thought and out-worked his opponents, using his intellect and cunning to rise back towards the top.
Unfortunately, all his plots and schemes failed to save him when one of his disgruntled subordinates pushed him in front of a New York subway train. When he woke up, he was standing in the void overlooking a vast circular expanse containing innumerable stars. The only other thing in view was the creature he was now approaching.
An avid light-novel reader back in his college days, he had a feeling he knew what was happening. That or he was hallucinating, although this felt far too real to be an illusion.
Arriving in front of the creature, he gave a small bow.
“Did I die, and you are the being that will reincarnate me?” Cheng Hao asked respectfully
“Yes to both questions” answered the being, his rumbling voice containing a rich timbre.
“I made a bet with one of my friends about whether or not I could choose someone from a mortal planet and have them conquer this world given limited assistance”
“World?” queried Cheng Hao, not seeing anything of that sort in front of him.
The being waved his hands, encompassing the entirety of the starry expanse in front of them.
“This is the world in question. In the world of cultivation, planet and world are not synonymous. Your goal is to conquer this expanse”
“What defines conq-”
The being raised his hand to forestall any further questions.
“Like you might have predicted, you will be given a System to assist you in your quest. The System will explain to you all the necessary information. Now pay attention!”
The being took a step and appeared in front of Cheng, flaring their inviolable aura.
“The two things I am about to tell you are very important. Do not forget them!” It paused to let the words sink in before continuing.
Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
“First of all, remember that the system is only a tool. If you try to rely on the system to reach the peak it is inevitable that you will fail. My gambling partner has made sure of that. Otherwise couldn't I just reincarnate a random idiot and give them an overpowered system? ”
It chuckled at its own joke before continuing
“Secondly, from a macro perspective the gap between cultivation levels is different from the novels you used to read; it is rather slim. This is the reason that I chose you. Your chance of rising to the top lies in your people skills, management ability, creativity and work ethic. You are not talented enough to rise to the peak by relying solely on yourself, system or not”
The being clapped its hands.
“That’s enough talking from me, time to send you off. Any last questions as you go?”
Cheng Hao’s body gradually started turning translucent. Right before he completely disappeared, he opened his mouth to ask
“I never said I would accept your quest, why did you assume that I would?”
The being let out a deep rumbling laugh
“Your greed for wealth is only matched by your lust for power. I knew you would jump at this chance.”
That was the last thing Cheng Hao heard before his vision faded to black
________________________________________________________________________
Cheng Hao awoke with a start.
As he gradually came to, he realized he was laying down in the middle of a grassy meadow.
A clear stream burbled a few meters to his left, while a light blue screen covered the other half of his field of vision.
For a brief moment he was disoriented, but he quickly realized two things:this was his new world, and the blue screen was his System
Like a child during Christmas, he could barely contain his excitement. He hurriedly sat up and clicked on the screen, eager to explore its functionality.
White words gradually resolved themselves on the blue screen
Locked System (specialty not set)
Name: Cheng Hao
Cultivation Level: N/A
Quests (!)
System Selection Menu
Complete Beginner Quests to unlock the entirety of the System
Cheng Hao hurriedly clicked on the Quests tab
Quests
Learn About The World
Welcome to a brand new world! Time to learn its basics. Use the Quest item to gain a basic understanding of your new home.
Quest Item: [Book of Basic Knowledge]
Reward: [Cultivator’s Garb] (Mortal Rank)
Select Your System Type
What type of system will accompany you on your journey to the top?
Choose carefully as this decision is irreversible.
Reward: [Coil Shedding Fruit] (Will take user to the peak of the body refining stage)
“System type?”
Cheng Hao was rather confused. He clicked on the System Selection menu in order to learn more.
System Selection Menu
[Cultivator System] All system options will assist you with your cultivation, but this one will place extra emphasis on cultivation and combat.
[Sect System] This system will assist you with creating and leading a sect.
[Empire System] This system will assist you with creating and ruling an empire.
[Blacksmith System] This system will assist you with becoming a peerless blacksmith.
[Alchemist System] This system will assist you with becoming a peerless alchemist.
[Side Dao System] This system will assist you with learning side Daos, whether it be becoming an insect master, a beast tamer, a formation expert, or any other side Dao. Further specialization will be required later on.
[Harem/Romance System] This system will assist you in conquering the hearts of innumerable beauties. Emphasis will be placed on gaining power through dual-cultivation, and using the power and resources of your lovers.
[Merchant System] This system will assist you in climbing up the Dao of wealth, and rising to the top using the power of money and resources.
Cheng Hao let out a deep breath “Wow, that’s a lot.”
Quickly refocusing, he analyzed every option in order to glean which one was the most optimal. Eventually he closed the system tab. He decided to find out more about this world by reading through [Book of Basic Knowledge] before rushing to a decision. At the same time, he could complete his other quest.
The words of that golden being were still ringing in his head, so he already had a pretty good idea of which system he would use in his quest to dominate the world. However, it didn’t hurt to double check.