Chapter 1

It was nine o'clock in the evening.

Qinzhou Art College.

He leaned back, hands clasped behind his head, lying on the grass beside the school playground, gazing at the stars—

The sky above seemed no different from Earth, but even he, who couldn't find the North Star, knew this wasn't Earth, but a parallel universe called Blue Star.

"Lin Yuan, a sophomore in the Composition Department at Qinzhou Art College."

This was his new identity after crossing over.

He inherited everything from the original, but couldn't remember his previous name or the reason for his crossing.

He only remembered that he seemed to be a painter in his previous life?

So he could naturally consider himself:

"Lin Yuan."

He scanned the original's memories.

As expected, Lin Yuan found that the historical trajectory of this world was completely different from his previous life.

History diverged from the Qin Dynasty, with Fusu inheriting Ying Zheng's legacy, leading the Qin cavalry to conquer the world, making the East the dominant force until a century ago when it was replaced by the more powerful Xia Kingdom.

Global unification.

The world was divided into eight continents.

Lin Yuan was in Qinzhou.

On this planet that had bid farewell to war, art became a common pursuit, with an extremely rich cultural atmosphere. Every field related to art—film, music, painting, literature, calligraphy—was unprecedentedly prosperous and flourishing!

"The Ideal Country."

That's how Lin Yuan described it.

Especially for those in the arts.

However, even in this utopian ideal country, misfortune still occurred. The original Lin Yuan experienced such a misfortune—

He had a terminal illness.

Yes, the term that frequently appears in TV dramas, always accompanied by a pot of dog blood being poured down:

"Terminal illness."

This was what Lin Yuan discovered in his memory after crossing over. He had inherited a body that wouldn't last long, and the doctors had long given the original a death sentence:

"This child won't live past twenty-five."

This was the pain the original couldn't bear, so he chose to take sleeping pills to commit suicide, which is why Lin Yuan became the new owner of this body. The original, at nineteen, had given up on his remaining life—

Out of fear of death?

So he chose death?

Lin Yuan initially thought this was the reason for the original's suicide, but after delving deeper into the original's memories, he realized the situation was more complex than he imagined:

The original came from a single-parent family.

His father had died of illness long ago.

His mother raised him alone.

The original had been weak and often fell ill since childhood, frequently falling into a coma due to fever. To treat him, they had to be hospitalized frequently, and the enormous expenses were borne by his mother alone.

Some of the money was borrowed.

Some was earned by his mother.

To raise him, his mother endured countless hardships. Not to mention, the original had an older sister and a younger sister—

Both were very sensible.

Despite the poor life they had because of the original, his sister gave up the opportunity to pursue a master's degree to earn money for the family.

His younger sister wore her sister's old clothes to reduce the family's burden.

The final straw was...

The original lost the qualification to pursue his dreams.

He was originally a student in the vocal department, born with a powerful voice, and his vocal conditions were undoubtedly the best in his field. His dream was to become a singer.

But in his first year, his illness flared up again, and the direct consequence was:

The original could no longer sing.

His vocal cords were damaged and could no longer withstand continuous high-intensity vocal training, let alone the high notes he was proud of—

Out of necessity.

He transferred to the Composition Department, which he wasn't as skilled in.

And in his second year, he chose to commit suicide.

Not only because his dream was shattered, but also because he didn't want to be a burden to his family anymore. Once life entered a countdown, every second was a torment.

After digesting these memories,

The Lin Yuan who crossed over could fully understand the original's decision. He couldn't stand on a moral high ground and accuse the original of being weak.

He could only say...

Everyone has their own misfortunes, and some people's misfortunes are more unbearable than others.

This is similar to the Buddhist saying, "Life is inherently full of suffering."

But Lin Yuan wouldn't choose suicide.

Although the body he inherited was still one that wouldn't last past twenty-five, there were still a few years to make a difference... right?

Copy some songs.

Copy some books.

Transfer culture.

Earn some money for the family.

Yes, Lin Yuan couldn't change his own fate of having a terminal illness, but in the remaining time, he might be able to change his family's fate.

This thought was urgent.

Lin Yuan couldn't tell if it was the original's will or his own desire.

Perhaps what he inherited wasn't just the original's memories, but also all the joys, sorrows, and that mysterious bloodline.

Lin Yuan didn't resist this feeling.

But when he tried to recall some artistic works from his previous life, he was surprised to find that he couldn't remember anything, just like he couldn't remember his previous name.

His previous life was like a dream.

Once the dream was over, nothing was left.

What is the meaning of my crossing over?

Lin Yuan asked himself.

Then a voice in his mind responded: [Blood test... Gene test... Iris test... Compatibility 99.36%... Meets standards... Database selection... Solar System Earth... System binding...]

System?

Lin Yuan understood.

Although the details of his memory were blurry, he still remembered some system-based web novels from his previous life, knowing that this was a golden finger, and the meaning of his crossing over.

No more random thoughts.

He quietly waited for the system to install.

Not long after, the mechanical current sound in his mind spoke again: [Loading successful, artistic system binding complete!]

"Hello."

Lin Yuan greeted.

[Hello, host. Congratulations on binding the artistic system. This system will do its best to help you become an artist on Blue Star. You can communicate with the system through your thoughts. The following will display your host information in text form.]

The mechanical voice paused.

Transparent subtitles appeared before Lin Yuan's eyes.

[Age: 19]

[Lifespan: 22]

[Painting: 45]

[Literature: 105]

[Music: 1038]

[Overall: 1188]

[Other: Waiting to be unlocked]

[Note: Except for age and lifespan, the values in each category represent reputation, i.e., the recognition the host has received in the field. There is theoretically no upper limit, and the higher the reputation, the more benefits the host will receive...]

Lifespan is... 22?

The system seemed to know what Lin Yuan was thinking.

Another line of subtitles appeared: [Twenty-five is the theoretical maximum age the host can live to, considering the actual situation, the host will live up to twenty-two years old, and will be completely paralyzed at twenty-one.]

"Can it be cured?"

Lin Yuan asked in his mind.

System: [When the host's reputation reaches the system's standard, the host will receive treatment from the system. Through several rounds of treatment, the host can be cured. The system will prompt the host when a certain reputation level is reached...]

So it can be cured.

Lin Yuan asked skillfully: "What about the newbie gift package?"

Perhaps Lin Yuan was too skilled, and the system couldn't keep up with his pace, pausing for a few seconds before responding: [The newbie gift package has been sent to the host's backend warehouse.]

"Enter the warehouse."

As soon as Lin Yuan spoke, a virtual interface similar to a game inventory appeared before his eyes. In the first grid, there was a small audio file—

Song: "Life as a Summer Flower."

Just the newbie gift package is one song?

Can you remove the "big" part?

While Lin Yuan was internally complaining, he listened to the song. As soon as the prelude started, he confirmed it was the work he remembered.

In fact,

The moment he opened the song, the memories of this song from his previous life flooded back, even though he couldn't recall the melody or lyrics before.

Lin Yuan roughly understood the system's approach.

The so-called reputation points were probably about releasing songs and gaining enough recognition. When this recognition reached a certain level, he could be cured and wouldn't have to die early...

It's a rather perfunctory setting.

The system seemed dissatisfied with Lin Yuan's complaints and promptly added a setting: [When the host gains reputation points, they can also gain lottery opportunities, with a very high chance of winning.]

"Oh."

Lin Yuan reacted indifferently.

He was considering the song.

His vocal cords were already damaged, and although the song "Life as a Summer Flower" didn't have a high vocal range, it was still best for Lin Yuan not to sing according to the doctor's advice.

But this didn't bother Lin Yuan.

If he couldn't sing, he could have someone else sing.

As long as he could gain reputation, it didn't matter. Although theoretically, the person who sings would become more famous, Lin Yuan didn't like fame and even disliked it—

He didn't know why.

Maybe it was influenced by his previous life?

Although Lin Yuan couldn't remember his previous memories, he could vaguely feel that he was quite capable in his previous life, perhaps even with some achievements.

The song was also interesting.

At least it suited the original's situation.

Thinking about this, Lin Yuan suddenly became curious: "System, since I crossed over to this world, did my previous self disappear from Earth?"

System: [Life exchange]

The system had already figured out Lin Yuan's style. This person had a very strong understanding and acceptance ability, preferring simplicity and directness, so the system also became concise.

"Life exchange, huh."

Lin Yuan's eyes flickered, and he smiled gently. The feeling of someone living in his place wasn't bad.

Since he was single anyway.

Even if many things were unclear, Lin Yuan could roughly sketch out the vague outlines of his previous memories.

Not good, but not terrible.

Even a terrible life is better than a life on a countdown, wishing the stranger could also have a system, rather than living a life like a summer flower—

At least, we still exist.