章 2: Venus System 001 Activated
[Target Locked]
[Name: Shen Ting]
[Gender: Female]
[Appearance: Incredibly hideous]
[Personality: Dark, cold, distant]
[Charm Points: -20,000]
[Modification Level: Deep]
[Venus 001 Appearance Modification System has initiated a transformation plan for Earthling Shen Ting. Consent required. If no response, default to 'Yes' in 10 seconds...]
Ten... nine... eight...
[Two... one. Earthling Shen Ting has defaulted to binding with Venus 001 System. System initialization commencing...]
[5%... 10%... 15%... Venus 001 Simulation loading complete.]
[Loading System Store: 5%... 10%... 15%...]
What is that noise? Stop... my head hurts...
[System Store loaded. Downloading local data... Search engine activated. Encyclopedia activated. Cultural data activated. Global beauty standards activated...]
Shut up, it's too loud. My head feels like it's going to explode.
In the darkness of a dingy room, a frail figure lay curled up on a wooden bed, resembling a shrimp boiled alive in scalding water.
[System hardware and software fully loaded. Venus 001 system activated.]
Who's talking? Shen Ting, rigid with fear, moved her fingers slightly and forced her eyes open. Through a narrow slit, she saw a stunningly beautiful woman. As her eyes widened, panic set in—who was this?
[Dear host, I am Venus 001. From now on, I will accompany you until your complete transformation. Initial diagnostics show your current physical condition is poor. Would you like the system to heal you? This will cost 100 points.]
The mechanical voice in her ears was both icy and sweet. Strangely, the woman in front of her continued to speak while pulling a glowing blue screen from thin air, filled with numerous icons.
Shen Ting's already cold hands and feet felt even colder. Her pupils constricted, taking in the inexplicable scene before her. Was she dead? Where was she? And who—no, what—was this woman? A robot?
[Host, you are not dead. You have been reborn. Today is June 1, 2006. This place is your home from ten years ago, and I am the Venus 001 appearance modification system. The figure you see is a simulation, not a robot.]
It can read my mind?! Shen Ting stared at the flawless face before her in horror.
[Apologies, host. Due to our 100% binding, I can easily interpret your thoughts. If it troubles you, I can block the mental link.]
Shen Ting lay in bed for a long while, slowly processing the information. She had been reborn, returned to the age of 15, and gained an appearance modification system. A system with a simulated interface.
Has the world gone mad?
This time, there was no response to her question. The room was damp and musty, with dust particles floating lazily in the sunlight that streamed in. Shen Ting's head felt heavy, her body ice-cold. She tried clenching her fist but felt only weakness, frowning as she wondered what was wrong with her.
Fifteen years old... June 1... just before the high school entrance exams... Her body suddenly stiffened, and she blurted out, "Grandma!"
Today was the day of her grandmother's funeral. With all her remaining strength, Shen Ting crawled out of bed.
Struggling to her feet, Shen Ting attempted to stand, but her knees buckled, and she collapsed back to the floor, utterly powerless.
What should I do? What should I do? Crawling forward with her elbows, she suddenly noticed a pair of glowing shoes. Raising her head, she saw the delicate curve of a perfect jawline—this so-called "system" had mentioned healing, hadn't it?
"I need you to heal me. Now, please!" Shen Ting pleaded.
[Very well. Which healing method would you prefer? Option one...]
"I want the fastest one," she interrupted, panic seeping into her voice. She had to see her grandmother one last time. She couldn't let her be buried without saying goodbye.
[Activating Photon Healing...]
The glowing beauty swiftly moved a few icons with graceful gestures. Shen Ting felt a warm sensation ripple through her body, and within three seconds, she was on her feet, her weakness completely gone. She barely had time to process what had just happened before rushing out of the room.
[Host has left the three-meter radius. To maintain discretion among Earthlings, I will switch to hardware mode.]
In her haste, Shen Ting didn't notice the delicate silver bracelet adorned with blue beads that silently wound itself around her wrist.
Throwing on her shoes, Shen Ting yanked the door open, only to be momentarily blinded by the sunlight. She squinted, raising her hand to shield her eyes, then blinked at the group of neatly dressed people gathered outside her home.
"Ugly!" a sharp child's voice pierced the silence, and Shen Ting lowered her gaze to find a little girl in a lace dress clinging to a woman's side.
"Ah!" The child screamed, startled by Shen Ting's appearance, and ducked behind the woman, repeatedly shrieking, "Ugly! She's so ugly, I'm scared!"
The woman gently patted her daughter's back, her expression hardening as she eyed Shen Ting with disdain. "You filthy girl! If you look that ugly, stay inside so you don't frighten people. Look what you've done to my poor Yueyue!"
Shen Ting's face remained expressionless as she stared at them, but the icy coldness in her eyes made the woman shrink back a step.
"Has my grandmother been buried?" Shen Ting's voice was cold as she addressed the group of two men and one woman before her.
The taller, stockier man glanced at the woman, who said nothing, then nodded.
Beside him, a shifty-eyed, weaselly man leered at Shen Ting, clicking his tongue in disappointment before saying, "Well, now that the old lady's buried, it's time we settle the inheritance, eh?"
Shen Ting clenched her fists by her sides. Blocking the doorway, she stared coldly at them. "Grandma's body isn't even cold, and all you can think about is money? Aren't you afraid her spirit will come back to haunt you?"
The woman rolled her eyes. "Ghosts? Seriously? What century are you living in? You've clearly been around that old woman too long. It's messed with your head."
The stocky man whispered something to her, but she angrily waved him off, her voice rising again, "What? You're her son! If this house gets demolished, you have every right to a share! And who knows if the old lady stashed away any private savings. We'll have to give the place a good search."
The woman's screeching made Shen Ting's head throb. It had been ten years since she last saw her, but she still remembered every detail of this woman's awful behavior. How could she forget someone like her?
Just then, the door to a neighboring house flung open, and an equally sharp-tongued woman shouted, "Could you all shut up? Some of us are trying to nap! Can't you argue inside like civilized people?"
The stocky man grabbed the woman's arm, holding her back as she prepared to yell back, muttering, "The people who live here aren't to be messed with."
Triangular eyes glinted with malice as the weaselly man sneered at Shen Ting. "So? Shall we go inside?"
In her memories, Shen Ting recalled her grandmother's younger son—a no-good, idle man who had fallen into an even worse lifestyle by middle age, turning to human trafficking and drug dealing.
A man capable of such evil had no heart. She wasn't in any position to challenge him now.
"Come in," Shen Ting said coldly, stepping aside and heading back into the house.
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