Chapter 2 - A Strange Floating Man

Just when the bomb exploded, the first thing that Zion felt was a wave of stabbing pain in his limbs. Every part of his body was suffering through intense pain. It felt as if millions of scorpions were impaling him at the same time. For the first time in his life, he was feeling helpless.

But the next second, the immense pain vanished. As if it was just his worst nightmare. His body was floating above as he stared down at the bloody scene beneath him.

The fire hadn't died down, and the scene before his eyes was horrifying. The residents saw several burnt bodies on the ground as fire sparkled the area.

But before he could give it some thought, his transparent body floated above with great speed.

Everything around him became blurry. Zion was confused about what's happening around him. Where was that place? Was he dead or alive? Then suddenly, his body stopped, and everything became clear around him.

If he had a physical body, all the hairs of his hands would've risen because of the floating speed.

After stopping, what he saw before his eyes was a vast universe and…

A handsome young man with long waist hair and a crown on the top of his head. This man was also floating in the universe, with a warm smile on his face.

But what made Zion choke was what this person was wearing.

He had long golden ornaments around his neck, almost as if this wasn't the neck of a man, but a woman who loved to show off gold. And this man's entire clothing had fluffy, pinkish fur. He even had a furry scarf around his neck, which made things even worse.

Zion couldn't help but feel nauseous. "What the heck are you wearing?"

The man glanced at his attire and tilted his head in confusion.

"Isn't it the latest fashion?"

"No!" It was almost like the latest fashion disaster, but Zion held his tongue, realizing the absurdity of the situation. He squinted his eyes at the man. "Who're you?"

"Methuselah."

"Methu…" Zion couldn't pronounce that name properly. Just what kind of name was that?!

"No, it's Methuselah."

Methuselah could tell that the youth was getting impatient. So he chuckled awkwardly and said, "Don't worry about what, where, and how. Yeah?"

Zion said nothing and instead kept on staring at him with his cold eyes. At one point, this Methu person was intimidated enough that cold sweat started forming on his forehead.

After some moment of brief silence, the Methu guy laughed awkwardly and said, "Okay, so I'll explain things in short. You're dead."

Zion again stared at the man as if the latter had gone crazy. He already knew he died tragically, but this person had to rub salt on his wound.

Methuselah coughed, "Of course, you know that already."

"Come to the point. Why am I here?"

"Aren't you surprised? Like I've seen many people screaming out of fear for the first ten minutes. To be honest, I was kind of expecting you to scream and yell at me."

Zion felt a headache coming on. This Methu person sure was stupid. Otherwise, why would he chat so casually like this?

If he still had physical hands, he would've punched Methuselah until the latter's body fell apart. But it wasn't possible. Even if he tried, his hands would have passed through the man's body. Zion was a ghost now. Touching physical objects was no longer possible for him.

The man suddenly felt a chill down his spine, and he could tell that the youth before him was on the verge of losing his patience. So he cleared his throat, coming to the point.

"Since your good karma points are so high, we have given you a second chance at living."

"Good karma points?" This phrase attracted Zion. He could tell what it meant, but he still wanted to confirm it from this weird-looking Methu man.

"It's the number of points you get every time you do a good deed."

"Okay, go on." Zion nodded.

"As I was saying, you'll get a second chance, but you'll have to prove yourself."

"What do you mean?" Zion frowned.

"Um…" Methuselah fell silent for a moment. He didn't know where to start, but he clearly knew about those latest novels on Earth related to the system. And what he was going to propose was like stories. "You'll get a system, and-"

"I don't need it." Zion clearly knew that if there was a system, there would be something to hold him back, and he clearly didn't want to be forced to work under someone. He would rather reincarnate into a beggar's body than to get a system.

"This…" Now the man was getting a headache. If things weren't urgent, he wouldn't have chosen this person. The level of arrogance this person had was even higher than the citizens of his planet. But he didn't have any other choice. So he could just beg… "Mr. Nelson, to be honest, we really need your help."

Zion's eyebrows rose. So this was the real reason. They needed his help. He nodded and urged the other person to continue.

Methuselah gave the other a bright-eyed glance.

"One planet is going to be destroyed and pr-" Then the man paused as if he held himself back from saying another word and continued. "And you're the only person who could save everyone."

"Earth's population is around 7.8 Billion, but you still felt like I was the only one who could help you." Zion shot an indifferent glance at the man, clearly not believing a word. "Interesting."

The man felt another wave of chilling sensation running down his spine. He knew the youth was smart, but he didn't expect for Zion to interpret that he had been hiding a lot of things. It was important to hide the truth from Zion by hook or by crook!

Determination flashed in the man's eyes at that. He had to stop this youth from deducing something new!

Methuselah avoided the other's eye contact and was rude for the sake of billions of lives on the other planet! "Well, you don't have any other choice. We have already attached the system to your subtle body."

"Subtle body…?"

"It's an invisible body wrapped around your soul. Your ghost body." The man paused and continued. "Now, you'll be reborn with a system that would help you survive. So, toodles!"

Before Zion could open his mouth to curse the other person, his body started fading and vanished from that place.

Methuselah heaved a sigh of relief. That person was hard to deal with, and he could only use force against him.

He hoped Zion could live up to his expectations.

Just then, an anxious voice transmitted into his mind. "Boss, did you send Mr. Nelson?"

"Yes, why?"

"There was a minor mishap…" The voice paused for a second as if he was contemplating something in-between.

The other person transmitting his voice gritted his teeth and said, "Somehow, the coding of an immoral system mixed with the detective system."

"So it became an immoral detective system…" Methuselah finally felt a trace of fear rising in his heart. He was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say.

If Zion realized Methuselah had made this gross mistake, would that youth come rushing after him with guns or bombs? His limbs suddenly trembled in fear. "Listen, don't pick up Zion's call in any situation. No matter what! Just block the helpline number!"

"…Okay."