Ch 39: The Awakening of Doubt

Feng Chen's breath was shallow and ragged, his muscles aching as his body demanded rest. He stood drenched in blood, sweat, and rain, gazing blankly at the glowing system window in front of him.

His eyes, however, weren't focused on the system's words... they were focused inward, reflecting the whirlwind of thoughts raging in his mind.

His heart pounded furiously in his chest, not from the physical exhaustion, but from the growing realization that had been gnawing at him for days. Maybe even weeks. Something's wrong… That thought kept repeating, louder and louder, like a drum beating inside his skull.

The system's timer for the egg continued to tick down. He had less than 10 hours before it would hatch. That should've been cause for excitement... a new companion, another powerful creature that would walk alongside him in this perilous world.

Yet, Feng Chen found no joy in the thought. His face, usually animated and full of emotion, had turned dark and unreadable. His lips formed a grim line, and his eyes narrowed with suspicion and a strange sense of foreboding.

Without a word, Feng Chen gritted his teeth, steeling himself against the pain wracking his body. He began circulating his qi, feeling the now-familiar surge of yin and yang energy coursing through his veins.

His body transformed once again, the black and white patterns rippling across his skin, but there was something different this time. His movements weren't as fluid. The energy felt... off.

He ignored it and took off running, his body a blur as he leapt through the trees, each step sending shockwaves of energy into the ground. His pace was frantic, the once-calm and controlled leaps now driven by urgency and frustration.

If I run at full speed... I should make it back in time before the egg hatches... he thought. But even though he was racing against time to return to his cave, the anger bubbling inside him couldn't be ignored. It was more than just irritation with the system... this was something deeper, something far more unsettling.

His expression darkened as his thoughts spiraled further into doubt. He clenched his fists, his knuckles white with tension. The rain pounded down on him, soaking his clothes, but he barely noticed.

"This whole life..." he whispered to himself, his voice laced with frustration.

"It's too easy."

For fourteen long years, Feng Chen had lived in this world, struggling with the weight of being unable to cultivate. He had been exiled from his family, forced to wander aimlessly, all while feeling like an outcast... a nobody. But ever since the system had activated, everything had changed. Too smoothly. Too conveniently.

And now, finally, the truth was dawning on him.

"How could I have been so blind?" he muttered angrily, pushing his body harder, leaping from branch to branch, each jump more forceful than the last. The veins in his neck bulged as his frustration mounted, his blood boiling beneath his skin.

The system... His teeth ground together as he thought about it. This so-called system... It's been off from the start. And I was too much of an idiot to see it.

The realization hit him like a punch to the gut. His body moved with instinct, but his mind was now fully locked onto the issue that had been bothering him for days.

"Even if I don't know everything about this world's lore, I've still spent years here," he hissed, his voice barely audible over the sound of rain and the rushing wind.

"I've read enough of those damn cultivation novels to know that this isn't how it's supposed to work. Something's not right."

His leaps grew more aggressive, more violent. He could feel the yin energy inside him bubbling up, taking over his thoughts, adding fuel to the fire of his growing rage. He had been too complacent, too willing to accept things as they were.

"It's too smooth. This system... it's supposed to be my cheat, my way to become stronger, faster... but everything about it has been wrong from the start."

He grit his teeth and pushed harder, launching himself forward with such force that the branches he landed on snapped under the weight of his frustration.

"I should've seen it. A real system wouldn't act like this."

The system's mocking tone, its constant jabs at him, the way it laughed at his suffering. Feng Chen had been so caught up in the rewards, so desperate for power, that he had ignored the glaring truth staring him in the face.

"Every time I think about it... it doesn't add up," he growled.

"A real system would protect its host, help them grow... not constantly mock them, not constantly withhold crucial information. And the rewards... it's like they were designed just to keep me barely alive. Barely strong enough to survive, but not strong enough to figure out what's really going on."

His pace quickened as his thoughts became more coherent.

"This thing... whatever it is, it's not a system."

Feng Chen's grip tightened around the Abyssal Devourer Blade, its cold surface buzzing in response to his emotions. His muscles tensed, and the black and white aura surrounding him flickered dangerously, reflecting the turmoil inside his mind.

"I've been an idiot, following its lead like a mindless pawn," he spat bitterly.

"But no more. I see it now... This thing's not a system. It's something else. Something... pretending to be a system."

His anger surged, and with it, the yin energy inside him swelled, clouding his mind even further. His teeth ground together as he shot forward, faster now, almost recklessly so. The forest blurred around him, but his thoughts were crystal clear.

"I don't know who or what is behind this, but I won't be a pawn anymore," he muttered darkly, his voice barely audible over the sound of his own heartbeat.

He had been manipulated. Tricked. But not anymore. Now that he understood, the game had changed. He wasn't going to fight against it blindly. No. He was going to play along. But on his terms.

"I'll play your game," he whispered through gritted teeth.

"But from now on... it's my game."

As the entrance to the cave finally came into view, Feng Chen's expression hardened. His mind was racing with thoughts of vengeance, but his body was focused on the task at hand.

The egg was about to hatch.

But the egg didn't matter right now.

What mattered was that Feng Chen was done being manipulated. Done being played like a fool. He wasn't the naive kid from Earth anymore. He had power now. Real power. And he wasn't going to let anyone take it away from him.

He clenched his fists tighter, his knuckles white as the rain continued to pour down. The Abyssal Devourer Blade hummed in his hand, feeding off his growing rage.

"No more," he said, his voice low and dangerous.

"No more games. No more tricks."

As the cave loomed closer, the timer for the egg ticking down in his mind, Feng Chen's lips curled into a grim smile.

"System or not... I'm in control now."