Chapter 2: Where am I?

Jiang Li gasped, his chest heaving as he was abruptly jolted awake. He clutched his chest, feeling a pain where the bullet had once struck. His eyes darted around frantically, taking in his unfamiliar surroundings.

The room was modern, with clean lines and minimalist decor. The walls were painted a soft gray, and a sleek wooden desk sat against one wall. A digital clock on the desk displayed the time—2:47 AM—in bright red numbers. The faint hum of an air conditioner was the only sound.

"What the hell...?" Jiang Li whispered to himself. His voice sounded different, younger. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, feeling an odd sense of detachment from his own body. His vision was clearer now, and he noticed that his hands were not his own. They were slender, with long fingers that trembled slightly as he moved them.

Rising to his feet, he felt a sudden wave of dizziness and had to steady himself against the desk. He glanced down at his reflection in a large, wall-mounted mirror. Staring back at him was the image of a young man with dark blue hair cascading down to his chest, his features sharp and almost ethereal, with deep black eyes that seemed to pierce through the dim light.

"This isn't my body," he murmured, running a hand through his unfamiliar hair. Panic bubbled within him, but he forced himself to stay calm. He needed to understand what had happened.

A leather-bound book on the desk caught his attention. It looked old and worn, with pages sticking out at odd angles. As he picked it up and opened it, he saw erratic handwriting scrawled across the pages. The writing was disjointed, switching from detailed scientific notes to incoherent ramblings and curses.

...

Daily Log - 29051963

Red appeared in my laboratory today, his presence as unnerving as ever. His eyes, deep-set and black as coal, seemed to pierce through my very soul. He rambled about eternal life, invoking the forbidden arts of undeath and black magic.

"The key to true power lies in defying the natural order," Red's voice echoed through the chamber, laced with a manic fervor. "Life, death—they are mere illusions. With the dark arts, we can break free from the shackles of mortality itself, ascending to heights unimaginable.

Tsk, that madman

...

Flipping through more pages, Jiang Li found entries where Jiang Wei cursed Red under his breath, expressing hatred and contempt for the man's reckless pursuit of forbidden knowledge.

Jiang Li's eyes widened as he found a torn photo tucked between the pages. It was a picture of an old man with sharp features, deep-set black eyes, and gray hair on the verge of turning white. The man looked like an older version of the body Jiang Li currently inhabited. Was this the scientist?

Soon, memories not of his own began to flood his mind. Jiang Wei, professor at Pearl Magic University. His life, his family, his struggles—it all came rushing in, merging with Jiang Li's own memories.

He closed the weathered journal, his mind racing with questions. Who was Red? And how was his transmigration related to all of this? Jiang Wei's thoughts spun as he tried to piece together the fragmented memories of both Jiang Li and Professor Jiang Wei.

As he looked around, Jiang Li noticed a faint glimmer under the bed, sparking his curiosity. Kneeling down, he saw a small red circle etched into the wooden floor—a mark of magic. Pushing the bed aside, Jiang Li hesitated, holding his breath as he cleared away the dust to reveal a larger, more intricate circle drawn in crimson. Symbols and patterns decorated its edges, pulsing with a red glow.

His heart raced as he found another note from Jiang Wei's journal.

...

Daily Log - Date Unknown

It worked! The summoning ritual exceeded my wildest expectations. The barriers between dimensions blurred, and I made contact with beings beyond our world. 

...

Jiang Li's hands trembled as he read. The summoning circle hummed with magical energy, both enticing and perilous. Driven by curiosity and a growing urgency, he reached out, tracing the intricate lines with his fingertips.

A surge of energy shot through him, pain searing his hand. Jiang Li pulled back, gasping as a faint red mark—a miniature summoning circle—appeared on his skin.

Jiang Li stared at the mark on his hand, bewildered. "What is this?" he muttered. The intricate magic circle that had been on the floor was now etched into the back of his hand, glowing faintly with a crimson light.

"This is some kind of magic," he said to himself. "But what does it do?"

He noticed the precision of the markings, each line and curve meticulously drawn. Each symbol pulsed with life, their crimson glow mesmerizing. He traced the lines with his eyes, trying to decipher their meaning. The complexity of the design was beyond anything he had ever seen.

[Ding]

A sudden sound resounded in Jiang Li's mind, startling him.

[Prompt: Abnormality detected]

[Prompt: It has been detected that the host has found the ancient summoning circle.]

[Prompt: Merging circle with current system functions]

"What the...?" Jiang Li muttered, bewildered by the sudden intrusion. A digital interface appeared before his eyes.

[Prompt: Merger complete]

[Welcome to the League of Legends system, Traveler 0084742-A. Your ID has been registered.]

Jiang Li blinked "A system? Like in those web novels?"