Chapter 27

"Breaking free from the shackles, ushering in a new life."

Tang Qiu murmured the system's words to herself. Looking at her wound that had already stopped bleeding, she thought dazedly that perhaps her arrival in this world carried such a hope and expectation.

Tang Qiu pressed on the wound, and the pain once again brought her back to calmness. She suddenly felt her feet were cold, so she climbed back onto the bed and covered herself with the blanket before continuing to ask, "If the shackles are never broken, what will happen to my world? Will it go on until humanity is extinct and the world becomes dead and lifeless?"

The system screen flickered, displaying words.

"Although it's a bit cruel, based on the existing data, I predict that humanity will not go extinct. They will only be controlled and herded, just as you humans once herded cattle and sheep for food. You will be herded to sustain the survival of your enemies. After all, although they possess intelligence, their bodies are too feeble to survive independently."

Tang Qiu let out a cold laugh. Should she be grateful that their physical forms are so crucial to their enemies? So even as mortal foes, they cannot completely annihilate humanity, always keeping a spark alive?

Tang Qiu's deep-seated hatred surged again, and she asked fiercely, "Then, in the future, can I go back? Use this system to become strong, then go back and slaughter them all?"

The system replied.

"The special prize pool contains voluntary gifts from countless small worlds like my master's. They are diverse and varied. I don't know if there are any items with similar functions. Perhaps there are. If I can draw one, I would naturally be willing to go back with you. I also miss my master very much."

Amidst her hatred, a fire ignited in Tang Qiu's heart. Previously, she only wanted to become strong to survive, but from now on, besides living, she also wanted revenge.

Adding a new goal for herself, Tang Qiu pressed on the wound, letting the continuous pain cool her mind. She thought for a moment and asked a key question.

"I want to become stronger, so I need to stop crimes and save the people who would be killed," Tang Qiu said. "Does this action have to be carried out by me alone, or can others participate as well?"

Tang Qiu pondered. If taking a slight risk could quickly make her stronger, she was willing to step beyond the safety line she had previously set and tentatively contact the police.

The system's black cursor jumped rapidly.

"Others can participate, but only those outside the scope of plot-related characters. Because they are lives born from the world outside the plot, they are not within the strong binding of the shackles. Their participation can be considered as variables."

Tang Qiu's heart stirred, thinking of Lei Yue, and she subconsciously asked, "Are there any plot-related characters around me? Like Lei Yue?"

The system quickly replied.

"She is, but not a traditional plot-related character. She is the opening of a story, and her death becomes the prelude to that story."

This completely surprised Tang Qiu. She had originally thought that even if Lei Yue wasn't the protagonist, she would be a relatively important supporting character. But it turned out she was just a cannon fodder, dead even before a story began.

"And the protagonist?" Tang Qiu pressed. "Who is it?"

Although she asked, Tang Qiu already had a guess in mind.

Sure enough, the system answered.

"It is Si Zhao. Her lively and innocent personality will become reserved and mature due to Lei Yue's death, and she will eventually grow into an excellent criminal police officer who solves countless major cases."

Tang Qiu calculated. Although Lei Yue wasn't a main character, she was still within the shackles' binding. Tang Qiu couldn't have her involved. The same went for Si Zhao. Among the police officers she knew, besides Cai Xuemin, whom she had saved during the day, there was only Qiao Yang, an old classmate of the original body whom she had only met once.

Cai Xuemin was a community police officer, while Qiao Yang was a crime scene investigator in the municipal bureau's technical team, often traveling with his mentor to solve cases. Comparatively, involving Qiao Yang would be more convenient and useful.

Tang Qiu pondered. It seemed she needed to find an opportunity to use an external action image to contact Qiao Yang and see if she could get him involved in the operation.

Tang Qiu added another item to her mental plan list and then continued asking the system, "You said earlier that because this world evolved from a book, its world barrier is relatively thin. That means there aren't just one person like me in this world. How many are there? Do you know?"

Tang Qiu naturally wasn't thinking of forming a "transmigrator alliance." She was just considering whether, without exposing herself, she could use other similar individuals to accelerate her own strengthening.

The system responded.

"Naturally, there is more than just you, but I don't know the exact number. Only through close contact can I sense similar energy clusters on them and confirm their identities."

Tang Qiu was a bit disappointed. It seemed this plan was temporarily unfeasible. For now, the most convenient and likely collaborator was Qiao Yang.

Unknowingly, she had been communicating with the system late into the night. Only when the overwhelming amount of information gave her a splitting headache did she force herself to lie down and rest.

The next day, she woke up a little later but still went for her morning run. Afterward, she made a simple breakfast and continued communicating with the system while eating.

This time, she wasn't seeking truth but asking for advice.

Taking a sip of porridge, Tang Qiu tried asking silently in her mind, 'Do you have any suggestions for my actions, something more efficient to help me become stronger faster?'

The system interface immediately appeared and replied.

"Based on my understanding of humans, I believe you should leave your familiar and safe environment and go to places where surveillance coverage is low, and where social fringe elements tend to gather. The bar you once visited called 'Despair' is a good choice."

Tang Qiu was noncommittal but recalled, because of the system's suggestion, a mysterious middle-aged man she had encountered at that bar. He exuded a similar aura to hers. Before, she didn't have the Fate's Prophetic Eye item triggered, so she couldn't determine if he was a hidden murderer as she suspected. Now, with the item, she could go there at night and try her luck. Even if she didn't meet that man, such a complex environment with diverse people would make it easier to trigger the item.

Spending a regular day, Tang Qiu's otherwise dull life gained a new pleasure from installing the intelligent module. During their back-and-forth conversation, she gradually learned more information.

For instance, the system's generation was not random but based on the host's strong desire. At the moment of death, Tang Qiu was extremely unwilling and regretted not being strong enough, so the system's core purpose was to make the host stronger.

Also, the system could be upgraded. The more actions she took, the more people she saved, the farther the item could predict fate's time range, and the triggering method would no longer be limited to manual searching.

What surprised Tang Qiu the most was the little boy she had unintentionally saved, which had triggered the system. He was only a few years old.

More than half a month had passed, and Tang Qiu had long forgotten the boy's name, but she still remembered his chubby, clumsy look as he held his stomach, confused and innocent. She originally thought the little boy was like other victims whose fate she had changed. But the system told her that the little boy was both a victim and a future perpetrator who would harm others.

When Tang Qiu saw these words, she was baffled. In her several actions, all the people she saved were those who would die within the next 48 hours. How was he different? What made him special?

The system explained: "He is a murderer in a later criminal case in another book. Due to his father's negligence, he was trafficked. His mother died searching for him. He grew up in a violent, controlling, and high-pressure environment. When he grew up, he eagerly sought his biological family. But when he found them, he discovered that his beloved mother was dead, while his father, who had caused his abduction, was still alive, with a new family and a new child. In his rage, he raised a knife."

Tang Qiu fell silent. She was thinking about a question. Since she had made a significant change to the boy's fate, why hadn't her family's fate changed accordingly? Had she missed out on some rewards?

Tang Qiu asked the question seriously.

This time, the system also paused for a moment before replying.

"His mother died of illness, but the search accelerated the disease progression. His father, because you prevented his death at the boy's hands, will still be killed by someone else. This is the shackles performing plot correction."

Tang Qiu was speechless and understood why the system had earlier said that plot-related characters could not participate in her actions. Because their actions were always subject to correction by the shackles. Tang Qiu had to bypass them and act outside the plot.

Thinking of this, Tang Qiu hesitated and asked, "That is to say, even if one day Lei Yue triggers the Fate's Prophetic Eye item, and I save her once, she would still have a high probability of dying the next time."

The system replied succinctly: "Yes."

A thought struck Tang Qiu, and her eyes lit up. "Then if I save her, will I still get rewards?"

The system fell silent again, then replied after a few seconds: "You will, but unless the plot goes to its conclusion and she truly survives, it will be at most a moderate change."

Tang Qiu's eyes grew even brighter, as if she had found a way to cheat. She didn't care whether the rewards were basic attribute points or universal attribute points. As long as they were useful to her, that was good. Tang Qiu would never reject such good things.

She immediately asked, "Do you know the exact time of Lei Yue's death?"

The system replied: "I do not know. I only know that she will die on a rainy night, a night of torrential rain."

Tang Qiu noted this key point and planned to use her cat form to track Lei Yue, determine her address and frequent locations. Then, every time there was a night of torrential rain, she could go check on her, and perhaps gain that 1 attribute point belonging to her.

After her evening run, it was another night entirely belonging to Tang Qiu's personal time, where she no longer had to disguise herself as the original body.

Standing in front of the full-length mirror, Tang Qiu carefully applied the Confusion Mask to her face, making sure it was perfectly fitted and revealed no flaws. She then put on her hat and mask, checked the weapon at her waist—everything was flawless—and transformed into her cat form, leaving home quietly and stealthily.

On the way to a surveillance blind spot near the Despair Bar, Tang Qiu leaped gracefully from wall to wall, asking the system in her mind, "Is the one who killed me in this world definitely not part of the plot from Si Zhao's book? Is the person really not in Hongning City?"

"Yes," the system replied. "This case was never solved in Si Zhao's book. There’s only a brief segment near the end: a colleague of Si Zhao received a call requesting assistance in a joint investigation. The file mentioned the victim was you in this world. The case was transferred, and the murderer was eventually caught, but the book never specified who it was."

"Which city's criminal investigation unit was it transferred to?" Tang Qiu pressed.

The system answered: "Xiyuan City."

Tang Qiu committed the city to memory, as if foreseeing the busy days ahead. However, while avenging this world’s version of herself, she could also gain some attribute points in that city—an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. The only thing to consider was how to prevent the police from connecting her actions to her true identity.

Cats have excellent night vision, a small build, and light bodies. Tang Qiu reached her destination in even less time than before. She first reverted to human form in a blind spot completely free of surveillance, then pulled down her cap brim and blended in with the excited crowd entering the Despair Bar.

Compared to last time, the bar seemed even more lively. Everywhere she looked, people were drinking, dancing, playing drinking games, or drunkenly hugging their friends and sobbing. But the liveliest spot remained the center in front of the stage—a beautiful girl wearing glittering makeup under the lights, dancing to stir up the atmosphere while belting out a fast-paced, passionate song.

Tang Qiu recognized her face but couldn’t recall her name. Last time, she had seen her trembling in fear at her target's threats, yet occasionally showing a fierce determination to fight back. Now, however, she seemed to have completely emerged from the shadows, wearing a joyful and carefree smile while standing in the most eye-catching spot on stage.

Tang Qiu merely glanced at her; she felt nothing. But the system suddenly popped up, displaying a sentimental message on the interface.

"Host, seeing someone you saved again—are you a little moved? Or a little gratified?"

Tang Qiu couldn’t help but show a slightly disgusted expression. What nonsense was the system talking about?

Ignoring the system, Tang Qiu found a relatively quiet corner with a good view and continued scanning the entire bar with her eyes. She was trying to spot the strange middle-aged man from that day, while also checking to see if the system would trigger.

She carefully searched every visible corner. Just as she was about to think she would leave empty-handed tonight, the bar door was pushed open again, and several people squeezed in. Coincidentally, one of them—a middle-aged man lagging behind—was exactly the person she was looking for. The moment she clearly saw his face, the system interface immediately appeared.

You see Li Jianzhang. Item: Fate's Prophetic Eye is in use. Activation successful.

You have predicted Li Jianzhang's fate. You foresee his death at 23:49 on April 8.

Tang Qiu raised an eyebrow, feeling that this mission was very interesting. The target was both a victim and, from another perspective, a perpetrator—unlike the little boy who had activated the system.

What's worth saving him for? Just because he'll be killed as a victim tomorrow night?