Part Three: The Girl Who Returned
“Some people pray for miracles.
Others spend eight years creating one.”
The golden contract floated silently between them.
Its edges shimmered with countless ancient runes, each one radiating a power Yu Mingyue could neither understand nor describe.
She reached out instinctively.
Just before her fingertips touched the contract, she paused.
“…If I accept…”
Her voice was calm.
“Can the world really be saved?”
System Number 1123 nodded.
“Yes.”
“And if I refuse?”
The little system lowered his eyes.
“The River of Time will continue to collapse.”
“The fracture will spread.”
“Eventually…”
“There will be nothing left.”
Yu Mingyue remained silent.
She had never considered herself a hero.
She was just an ordinary girl.
A girl who had spent more time inside hospitals than playgrounds.
A girl whose greatest wish had once been to run beneath the sun without collapsing halfway.
Saving countless worlds…
It sounded far too grand for someone like her.
She looked down at the transparent hands that no longer contained a heartbeat.
Then she smiled helplessly.
“…Even after dying, I still have to work.”
The system blinked.
“…Is that your conclusion?”
“What else should it be?”
“I thought you’d say something inspiring.”
Yu Mingyue shrugged.
“I’m dead.”
“I don’t have the energy to make an inspiring speech.”
“…”
The system suddenly realized…
His host might be much more difficult than expected.
Yu Mingyue looked back at the contract.
“I have one question.”
“Go ahead.”
“You said my body died.”
“Correct.”
“So…”
“If I return…”
“Will I be a ghost?”
“…No.”
“A zombie?”
“…Absolutely not.”
“A borrowed body?”
The system quickly shook his head.
“The Main God reconstructed a new body using your soul as its foundation.”
Yu Mingyue tilted her head.
“…Meaning?”
“It is your body.”
“But perfected.”
She blinked.
“Perfected?”
The system nodded proudly.
“The congenital heart disease has been completely removed.”
“The damage your body suffered over eighteen years has been repaired.”
“Your immune system has been reconstructed.”
“Your physical strength has been recalculated.”
“Your life expectancy has returned to normal.”
Yu Mingyue stared blankly.
“…You’re saying…”
“I’ll be healthy?”
“Yes.”
“…Completely?”
“Yes.”
She asked again, almost afraid of the answer.
“…No more medicine?”
“No.”
“…No more surgery?”
“No.”
“…No more waking up unable to breathe?”
“No.”
“…I can run?”
“Yes.”
“I can eat ice cream every day?”
“…Within reasonable limits.”
“I can stay awake all night reading novels?”
“…Please don’t.”
“I can climb mountains?”
“Yes.”
“I can travel?”
“Yes.”
“I can live until I’m old?”
“…If nothing unexpected happens.”
Silence.
Yu Mingyue looked down.
Then, very slowly…
She covered her face.
The system panicked.
“…Host?”
“…Are you crying?”
A soft laugh escaped between her fingers.
“…No.”
Another laugh followed.
Then another.
Her shoulders trembled.
For eighteen years…
Doctors had repeatedly told her what she couldn’t do.
Don’t run.
Don’t jump.
Don’t become emotional.
Don’t stay up late.
Don’t eat too much sugar.
Don’t catch a cold.
Don’t overwork yourself.
Don’t…
Don’t…
Don’t…
Her life had always been a list of things forbidden.
Yet now…
Someone had finally told her—
“You can.”
A single tear slipped through her fingers.
It wasn’t sadness.
It wasn’t regret.
It was relief.
The relief of someone who had spent her entire life trapped inside a fragile cage…
Only to discover that the door had finally opened.
The system quietly floated beside her.
He pretended not to notice.
Some moments…
Didn’t need comforting.
They simply needed time.
Several minutes later, Yu Mingyue lowered her hands.
Her eyes were slightly red.
But the smile on her face had become brighter than before.
“…Thank you.”
System Number 1123 smiled.
“You’ve decided?”
Yu Mingyue nodded.
“I’ll go.”
She wasn’t going because she wanted to become a heroine.
Nor because she dreamed of saving the world.
She was going because…
There were still people waiting for her.
She wanted to see Uncle Lu and Aunt Lu again.
She wanted to hug Uncle Gu and Aunt Gu.
She wanted to tease Uncle Xie until he laughed helplessly.
She wanted to scold Gu Mengmeng for crying so much.
And…
She wanted to tell three very stubborn men…
That eight years was far too long.
The system stretched out one tiny hand.
“Then…”
“Yu Mingyue.”
“Will you form a contract with me?”
She smiled gently.
“I will.”
The instant her hand touched the golden contract—
Boom!
Brilliant light exploded across the endless white world.
Countless golden chains emerged from the contract before transforming into streams of light that circled around Yu Mingyue.
The transparent body that had represented her soul gradually became solid.
Color returned to her skin.
Warmth flowed through her veins.
Her heartbeat…
Returned.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Yu Mingyue instinctively pressed a hand against her chest.
The steady rhythm echoed beneath her palm.
Strong.
Powerful.
Alive.
Her breathing caught.
“…It’s real.”
She could feel it.
Every heartbeat.
Every breath.
Every drop of warm blood flowing through her body.
She wasn’t dreaming.
She was alive again.
At that moment, the system’s cheerful voice rang through the white space.
[Binding Successful.]
[Main God System No.1123 has officially formed a contractwith Host Yu Mingyue.]
[Please assign a nickname to your system.]
Yu Mingyue looked toward the tiny figure.
He immediately puffed out his chest.
“I personally recommend maintaining my official designation.”
“Main God System Number 1123 is dignified and authoritative.”
Yu Mingyue looked thoughtful.
“…Too long.”
“It isn’t.”
“I’ll forget.”
“You won’t.”
She smiled.
“…How about Xiao Bai?”
The little system froze.
“…Xiao…
Bai?”
“You’re white.”
“…”
“You look fluffy.”
“…”
“And you’re tiny.”
“…”
“So Xiao Bai suits you.”
The system looked devastated.
“I prepared seventeen impressive self-introductions…”
“And I ended up with Xiao Bai?”
Yu Mingyue laughed.
“It sounds cute.”
“I don’t want to be cute.”
“Too late.”
A transparent screen suddenly appeared before Xiao Bai.
[Nickname Registered: Xiao Bai.]
“No!”
“It accepted it!”
Yu Mingyue laughed even harder.
“Hello, Xiao Bai.”
The tiny system drooped his wings in defeat.
“…Hello, Host.”
“…”
“…I mean…”
“Hello, Yu Mingyue.”
For some reason…
That sounded much warmer.
Suddenly—
The surrounding white space trembled violently.
The smile disappeared from Xiao Bai’s face.
“…That’s strange.”
The golden light flickered.
A crack spread across the empty space.
For a brief instant…
Yu Mingyue thought she heard someone laugh.
Low.
Ancient.
Filled with endless malice.
Then—
Everything returned to normal.
The crack vanished.
Xiao Bai quickly scanned the surroundings.
“…What was that?”
He frowned.
“…I couldn’t detect anything.”
Yu Mingyue looked toward the place where the crack had disappeared.
“…Maybe I imagined it.”
“…Perhaps.”
Even so…
An inexplicable unease settled inside Xiao Bai’s heart.
It lasted only a second.
Then the transfer array beneath Yu Mingyue’s feet lit up.
Golden light rose around her.
Xiao Bai smiled once more.
“Ready?”
Yu Mingyue nodded.
“Ready.”
“The destination is eight years after your death.”
“The location…”
Xiao Bai checked the screen.
“…Yunse Nightclub.”
Yu Mingyue blinked.
“…A nightclub?”
“…Yes.”
She sighed.
“I disappear for eight years…”
“And the first place I return to is a nightclub.”
“Life really has a sense of humor.”
The light swallowed her whole.
…
At the same moment—
Inside the most luxurious private room on the third floor of Yunse Nightclub—
A waiter respectfully knocked on the door.
“Young Master Lu.”
“There is a young lady outside.”
Without even looking up, Lu Yanxi replied coldly,
“Tell her to leave.”
The waiter swallowed nervously.
“…She said…”
“…her name is…”
The room fell strangely quiet.
“…Yu Mingyue.”
Crash!
A crystal wineglass shattered against the marble floor.