Chapter 2

When Zhang Chen woke up, he was not greeted by an unfamiliar ceiling, but by a gray-black sky of unknown height.

In the sky, chains as thick as arms crisscrossed and intertwined, tightly wrapping around a pitch-black cube.

The cube, seemingly made of steel, hung in the sky like a black sun. Its size was indeterminate, and it was engraved with strange patterns and grooves, the meaning of which was unclear.

"Where am I?" Zhang Chen looked up at the sky and muttered to himself, "What's going on with me? Rebirth? Transmigration?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a jet-black light flashed on the cube, and suddenly, a little girl descended from the air. Her face, as delicate as a porcelain doll, showed no emotion. She was dressed in a black Gothic Lolita outfit, with a large red bow tied at the back of her head, making her stand out.

The girl walked step by step to Zhang Chen, her clear eyes looking at him coldly, and said, "Welcome to the Cube World. I am your guide, and you can call me 'Proxy.'"

Zhang Chen tilted his head, his gaze sweeping over the girl, who seemed to be only about eleven or twelve years old. Finally, he stammered, "Excuse me, did you buy your clothes on Taobao? I think I saw a thread that wasn't cut properly."

Smack!

The little girl, wearing bright red rain boots, kicked Zhang Chen's leg with all her might. Pouting, she said angrily, "Why did you have to mention my last purchase on Taobao!"

"Last purchase?"

"What, didn't you notice?" The girl tilted her head and smiled at Zhang Chen, "You're already dead, and so am I!"

"What are you saying?" Zhang Chen shouted, his behavior bordering on madness, "I'm dead! Who killed me!"

"Pretty fake," the girl commented, "If you're going to act, why not act like a villain who knows he's dead? Why act like a normal person?"

Zhang Chen's lips twitched, "Why do you know I'm good at playing villains?"

"Or do you think the Cube brought you here for nothing?" the girl said.

"You mean the Cube is that thing?" Zhang Chen pointed to the giant cube in the sky and asked.

The girl nodded, "Let me explain again. This is the Cube World—an incomplete Cube World. The big thing in the sky is the Cube, the core of the Cube World and the only one who makes the rules. I am the Cube's spokesperson, the Proxy."

"The Cube World uses special technology to gather the dead from the real world and give them a second chance. Since the Cube World is not yet complete, it only brings in useful people. I was the first, and you are the second."

"So, when it's complete, it will bring in others?" Zhang Chen asked.

"Exactly. When the time comes, the Cube will send these people into different worlds to complete various tasks, achieving one goal or dream after another."

"But what does the Cube get out of it?"

"How should I know?" the Proxy shrugged and rolled her eyes at Zhang Chen, "I just need to do my job."

"Job?"

"What do you think the Cube brought you here for? Of course, it's to work for it," the Proxy said. "Your talent as a villain makes the Cube think you are useful, so it brought you back to life to help build the complete Cube World. You can refuse, but if you do, you'll be dead for good."

Zhang Chen shook his head, "No way, I'm not done living yet."

"What do I need to do?" Zhang Chen asked.

"The Cube World needs challenging task worlds, and your job is to go to these worlds, play the role of the big villain, and create interesting worlds for challengers to enter and challenge you."

"Doesn't that mean I'll be killed by them?"

"You've already died dozens of times in Hengdian, so why care about this? Besides, once you accept the job, you'll be indestructible. At worst, you'll just feel some pain," the Proxy said.

Zhang Chen scratched his head, thinking for a moment. Realizing he had no choice, he said, "How do I accept the job?"

The Proxy nodded, reached under her skirt, and pulled out a stack of A4 papers, densely filled with text, which made Zhang Chen's eyes spin.

"Just sign the contract. There are two copies. I'll stamp it and give you one," the Proxy said.

Zhang Chen was stunned and flipped through the contract, surprised to find two copies of his ID card inside!

With so many clauses, he didn't bother to read them and decided to sign directly.

"Aren't you going to read it?" the Proxy asked.

"Um, it's too long to read," Zhang Chen smiled bitterly, "But if I can, I'd like to know what I can get from this."

"You can get a lot. For example, every time you go to a world, you'll earn Cube Points. Once you accumulate enough, you can exchange them for things like your life. Remember, even though you're indestructible now, if you leave the Cube World, you'll turn into bones. So, if you want to live, you should prepare well. There are also some enhancements, which I'm sure you can imagine."

The Proxy thought for a moment and continued, "In short, you and the challengers—perhaps later called players—have similar task modes. Your rewards will definitely not be less!"

Since the Proxy had said this, Zhang Chen had no hesitation and signed his name.

As soon as he finished, the Proxy clapped her hands and smiled, "There's one more thing you might find interesting. After you complete each world's task, your innate villain attribute will decrease a bit. If it disappears completely, you'll automatically be released from the Cube. If you survive, you won't be a villain anymore!"

Zhang Chen was instantly grateful and threw flirtatious glances at the Cube in the sky, but it completely ignored him.

The Proxy put away the contract, and Zhang Chen suddenly felt his body tighten. Then, his body gradually became intangible, and a huge suction force emerged.

"Am I about to enter the task world?" Zhang Chen asked with interest, "By the way, what's your job?"

The Proxy was taken aback, then pointed around, "Drawing, drawing the entire Cube World..."

Zhang Chen's mouth dropped open, "You don't have a job at all!"

Whoosh!

In the last moment before his body disappeared, Zhang Chen clearly felt a small rain boot fly over his head, bringing a breeze.

...

The scene brightened again, and Zhang Chen opened his eyes to find himself in a rather cramped old room.

A small bed, crumpled and stained, was placed in the corner, emitting a foul odor. The room was cluttered with adult magazines, and in the trash can, there were a few unused condoms. At first glance, it was clear that the room belonged to a rather promiscuous person.

"Would you like to open the Cube World Beta 2.0 virtual screen?"

Zhang Chen, with a black line on his face, looked at the virtual screen, which clearly stated "Beta 2.0," and reluctantly chose "Yes."

Instantly, a transparent virtual box popped up.

Task World: "City of Fire" (Part 1)

Task Object: Ken

Task Goals:

1. Once the player enters, create the maximum obstacles for the player. The player's loss rate must not be less than 70%. Under these conditions, you must die at the hands of the player. Reward: 100 Cube Points.

2. Kill Yan Feng. Reward: 30 Cube Points, a set of Plum Blossom Sword Techniques.

3. Within three years, gather at least 300 subordinates. Reward: 50 Cube Points.

Overall Reward: If all three tasks are successful, deduct 10 villain points (86657).

Failure Penalty: For each failed task, add 10 villain points (86657).

Overall, the first task was relatively humane, but the displayed villain points made Zhang Chen feel like a Spartan.

"Over 80,000 villain points, how long will it take to make them up!" Zhang Chen sighed helplessly.

Soon, he shifted his gaze back to the virtual screen.

As a staff member of the Cube World, he had some privileges, allowing him to understand the world.

This was the world of the "City of Fire" movie, set in 1983, 13 years before the main storyline began, and two years before the conflict between Ken and the protagonist, Chen Hao Nan, started.

Since it was not synchronized with the comic world, the world before the storyline began was actually created by the Cube World.

Now, as the future big boss of the first "City of Fire," Ken was still a new recruit in the Hung Hing triad. At this moment, the second leader of Hung Hing, Jiang Tian Sheng, had just been assassinated by Yan Feng of the Xin An triad.

Although the assassination was successfully prevented, Yan Feng escaped unharmed, and Jiang Tian Sheng was severely injured.

Therefore, today, Hung Hing was launching a full-scale revenge against Xin An, and the chaos was about to begin!

Zhang Chen walked into the bathroom, looked at the sinister face of Wu Zhenyu, and grinned, "Although it's revenge, we are still the righteous side!"

Poor as he was, he could only find some psychological comfort this way.

However, even this small comfort was quickly shattered.

Bang!

The door, which was not properly closed, was yanked open, and a burly man rushed into Zhang Chen's room, brandishing two watermelon knives.

"Ken, are you ready? We're about to start!" The man shouted, his eyes quickly turning lecherous, "Hehe, everyone agreed that after we kill Yan Feng, we'll take turns with his celebrity girlfriend!"

Smack!

Zhang Chen stumbled, his face turning bitter, "I don't do that kind of thing!"

...