Zhou Yaoyun seemed angry, yet not quite. At home, his interactions with Ji Chenai were minimal, making it difficult for Ji Chenai to gauge his mood.

The original owner’s parents, Zhao Yumian and Wang Zhixiu were incredibly kind to Ji Chenai. It was precisely of their kindness that Ji Chenai often felt guilt as he wasn’t truly the original Zhou Yaoqin but a wandering soul who had inexplicably taken his place.

The Positive Energy System, Xiao Qi, remained unbothered by this. It explained. “Zhou Yaoqin chose death himself. It had nothing to do with you. By using his body, your responsibility now is to honor his obligations. When Zhou Yuming and Wang Zhixiu grow old, being an additional dutiful son who ensures they don’t have to endure the tragedy of burying their child will be the best way to repay them.”

Ji Chenai went silent for a moment before asking softly. “Isn’t suicide foolish?”

Xiao Qi replied. “Yes, because your death only hurts those who love you.”

Ji Chenai chuckled faintly. “But staying alive might hurt the ones I love. Better a short pain than a prolonged one. If I hadn’t died, I wouldn’t have met you.”

Xiao Qi fell silent. It didn’t tell Ji Chenai that its binding was to his soul, not his body. If Ji Chenai hadn’t chosen death, he would have become its host in his original body. Some truths, especially the unchangeable ones, are better left unsaid. Knowing too much can make life even harder to bear.

After the incident at the sports center, Zhou Yaoyun didn’t go out to play basketball for two or three consecutive days. Ji Chenai cautiously asked. “Why haven’t you been playing basketball lately?”

Zhou Yaoyun replied curtly. “I’m tired.”

The look in Zhou Yaoyun’s eyes when he said this was particularly unsettling, causing Ji Chenai to seriously suspect that Zhou Yaoyun might have figured out what happened that day.

Xiao Qi reassured him. “I swear on the dignity of my system that he didn’t see you!”

Ji Chenai doubted. “If he didn’t see me, how could he know it was me?”

Xiao Qi silently thought to itself: whether he figured it out… that’s another matter entirely.

Ji Chenai was still a bit short of the 4,000 energy points he needed to level up. Recently, he had caught a thief, changed a few people’s destinies, and earned several hundred points. A few days ago, he inexplicably gained another hundred points after the incident with Zhou Yaoyun.

When Ji Chenai asked Xiao Qi about the source of those points, the system playfully refused to explain, saying he’d find out in due time.

A few days later, Ji Chenai had just returned from another outing to pick up litter when he spotted a familiar face near the building’s entrance—none other than the person who had confessed to Zhou Yaoyun a few days ago.

The man was holding a bag and smoking, his expression troubled.

Feeling a pang of guilt, Ji Chenai nervously rolled his wheelchair forward, intending to pretend he didn’t recognize him and hurry inside. But before he could escape, the man called out.

“Zhou Yaoqin?!”

Ji Chenai froze momentarily, then turned to look at him. “You…”

The man introduced himself. “You probably don’t know me. I’m your brother’s friend—Fu Angran.”

Ji Chenai hesitated but replied. “Oh… so, what do you need?”

Fu Angran said. “I’m leaving for the U.S. in a couple of days and wanted to give your brother a farewell gift, but I forgot your address.”

Ji Chenai hesitated. “Well, do you want to come up with me?”

After extinguishing his cigarette and tossing it into the nearby trash bin, Fu Angran shook his head. “No need. I still have things to do. Just give this to Zhou Yaoyun for me.” He then handed Ji Chenai a bag, the contents unknown.

Ji Chenai hesitated. “I’m not sure about this… you’re leaving, and this seems important… What if Xiao Yaoyun has something he wants to say to you?”

Fu Angran paused for a moment, but upon hearing Ji Chenai’s words, he suddenly became determined. He thrust the bag into Ji Chenai’s arms. “Just give it to him. If he doesn’t want it, throw it away.” After that, he turned and walked away.

Ji Chenai called out after him a few times, but he couldn’t catch up. With a sigh, he resigned himself to holding the gift, his face filled with unease as he headed up in the elevator.

When Ji Chenai entered the apartment, Zhou Yaoyun was watering plants on the balcony. He had decided not to play basketball that afternoon, but still made sure to keep up with his exercise routine throughout the day.

Without turning around, Zhou Yaoyun asked. “Did you come back, bro?”

Ji Chenai responded with a soft hum. After a moment of silence, he added. “I ran into one of your friend’s downstairs…”

Zhou Yaoyun’s movements paused briefly before he turned around. When he saw the bag Ji Chenai was holding, his expression shifted. It was clear from the way he looked at it that he knew exactly who the gift was from, and the bright mood he had earlier dimmed slightly.

Ji Chenai: “Yeah… your friend threw this at me and ran off. I tried calling him, but he didn’t even respond.”

Zhou Yaoyun hummed in acknowledgment, taking the gift from Ji Chenai before turning and heading into his bedroom. His expression clearly showed his displeasure with Fu Angran’s behavior.

Seeing Zhou Yaoyun’s reaction, Ji Chenai suddenly thought. “Xiao Qi, it wouldn’t be Fu Angran that I changed the fate of, would it…?” He wondered if Fu Angran leaving had anything to do with what had happened a few days ago when he came out in front of everyone in a moment of anger.

Xiao Qi: “Yes, you changed his fate.”

Ji Chenai felt a bit troubled because he hadn’t anticipated Fu Angran’s feelings for Zhou Yaoyun, especially not confessing in front of so many people. Given the current societal situation, Fu Angran would likely face some judgment. But since he had earned positive energy points, it meant that Fu Angran’s altered fate wasn’t as tragic.

Xiao Qi added. “If you hadn’t been involved, he would likely have died next summer.”

Ji Chenai froze.

Xiao Qi didn’t explain how Fu Angran would die, but instead said. “You know he’s going to the U.S., right?”

Ji Chenai replied. “What about it?”

Xiao Qi continued. “He’s going to make it into the NBA, continuing to pursue his original dream.”

In the past, when Ji Chenai heard Xiao Qi talk about changing someone’s fate, he didn’t feel particularly moved, because those whose fates were changed were strangers to him, people he might not have even met once. However, when he learned that Fu Angran’s fate had been altered, a person he actually knew, Ji Chenai felt an unprecedented sense of joy and relief.

Many people, after doing good deeds, don’t always get good results, so they begin to question whether what they did was right. But the truth was, many things were indeed right, though not everyone has the courage to do them.

When Ji Chenai’s courage had been worn down, Xiao Qi appeared. It told him that if he does good deeds, he would be rewarded. Every person with a kind heart deserves a beautiful ending. Reality was cruel, so Xiao Qi appeared. Even though Xiao Qi was still weak at that time, as long as Ji Chenai persisted, it would eventually grow stronger.

Ji Chenai didn’t know exactly what Fu Angran gave Zhou Yaoyun, but he could tell that when Zhou Yaoyun came out of the bedroom, his face was even darker than before. He didn’t say anything to Ji Chenai, just turned and went into the kitchen, where he started chopping meat with loud, rhythmic thunks.

Ji Chenai, standing weakly outside the door, asked in a soft voice. “Xiao Yun, what are you doing?”

Zhou Yaoyun turned around, smiling brightly and showing off his white teeth. “We’re having dumplings for dinner tonight.”

Ji Chenai shivered slightly from Zhou Yaoyun’s smile. Knowing he was in the wrong, he didn’t dare say anything more. He turned and went to his room, where he started posting on the forum.

After some time of persistent effort, Ji Chenai’s forum account was nearly level 11. Most of his posts were harmless pet-related ones, and the members of the forum had gradually become familiar with him, jokingly calling him “Pet Little Spirit.”

Sometimes, Ji Chenai would encounter some provokers in the comments, with people using foul language, but he just ignored them. The worst were those who posted abusive animal pictures under his posts.

The first time Ji Chenai saw such images, he nearly lost his temper completely. He was so angry he could almost imagine crawling through the internet cable to give the person on the other side a good beating.

However, Xiao Qi remained calm and offered some advice: “Don’t rush. Once your level is higher, you’ll naturally find ways to punish these people.”

Ji Chenai’s face darkened in silence at that moment.

Xiao Qi sighed. “If it’s simply for food, then killing animals is understandable, but when it’s done for the purpose of cruelty or killing, there will ultimately be consequences.”

Later that day, Ji Chenai hadn’t posted many more things when he suddenly noticed a pinned post in the pet section of the forum. He clicked on it and immediately became furious—someone had exposed a cat abuse organization. This group even had its own video library, and after a user infiltrated it, just a few screenshots were enough to send all cat lovers into a frenzy.

Ji Chenai gritted his teeth as he read the post, but realized there was nothing he could do. He immediately asked, “Xiao Qi, how much energy would it take to unlock that skill you mentioned?”

Xiao Qi said, “Don’t rush. If the situation escalates further and your negative energy increases, you’ll be able to unlock additional skills at the second level of negative energy.”

Ji Chenai asked, “Will these people be punished then?”

Xiao Qi’s voice turned cold as it replied, “Of course. And the punishment will be very severe.”

Ji Chenai knew that Xiao Qi didn’t lie lightly. He stared at the post for a while, then, furrowing his brows, closed it. He no longer felt motivated to continue posting positive content.

As he shut down the computer, Ji Chenai felt a twinge of irony. While he had been diligently earning positive energy, barely making a dent, his negative energy had already reached level two, unlocking more skills…

But perhaps that was for the best, Ji Chenai thought. Only when those who did wrong realize their mistakes could they hope to correct them.

=^_^=