First Response.

A week had passed.

Ace had yet to leave his room.

The space was quiet, cozy in a way that felt both foreign and familiar. Sunlight occasionally filtered through the wooden screens, casting shifting patterns across the floor, but it did little to warm the cold pit in his stomach.

Confusion and fear gnawed at his consciousness, relentless.

In one hand, he was Ace—a sixteen-year-old boy who had spent his days navigating the ordinary struggles of life. But now, he found himself trapped in the body of an adult, someone who had already lived twenty years.

And in the other hand—the system.

It loomed in the corner of his mind like an unreadable message, waiting for him to be someone worthy of its presence.

A strange, unfamiliar power that he didn't know whether to fear or embrace. Was this a curse? A second chance?

Then there was Xiao Zhi.

The original owner of this body. A name that felt hollow when he said it, like it didn't quite belong to him. The information that surfaced in his mind painted a bleak picture.

Xiao Zhi was born into a prestigious family—one with deep roots in cultivation and strength. But he had been an embarrassment, a talentless failure in a lineage of prodigies. So bad, in fact, that they had practically disowned him, sending him to this remote village as a teacher just to keep him out of sight.

And if that wasn't enough, he had been arrogant about it. Too full of misplaced pride to form real connections, too blinded by his background to realize his own insignificance.

Which meant…

Ace didn't have to worry about anyone questioning his identity.

No friends to notice the shift. No family to check in. No one to care.

The thought should have unsettled him, but instead, it was oddly reassuring. If anyone should be worrying, it was the original Xiao Zhi, wherever he was now.

At least, that was how Ace had managed to convince himself.

For the past week, he had been holed up in this room, searching for answers to questions that didn't exist. Looking for a way to make sense of the impossible.

But no amount of thinking would change the truth.

He wasn't Ace anymore.

And sooner or later, he would have to face whatever came next.

No sooner had he thought that, a knock came at the door.

Ace stiffened.

It was the first real sound that had interrupted his solitude in a week. For a moment, he debated ignoring it, but curiosity won out. Slowly, he moved to the door, hesitated, then peeked through the gap.

A small girl stood outside, barely reaching his waist. She clutched a woven basket filled with fruits, her tiny fingers curled tightly around the handle. Her round eyes blinked up at him, hesitant but determined.

Ace opened the door fully.

The girl—Liu Mei.

The name surfaced in his mind, unbidden. One of his students. And that fact puzzled him even more.

This Xiao Zhi—the old Xiao Zhi—had been a known drunkard, a bitter, violent man who didn't hesitate to beat his students. Even the ones who weren't yet ten.

Maybe that was why he only had two students in the first place.

Granted, this village was small, barely enough to fill a proper class, but still… How had someone like him been allowed to teach? And more than that—why was this girl standing here, worrying about him?

"Teacher…" Liu Mei's voice was soft, unsure.

Ace stared at her, still trying to process the situation. He stepped aside and gestured for her to come in. She hesitated for a moment, then shuffled inside, hugging the basket to her chest.

He cleared his throat. "What brings you here, Liu Mei?"

She rocked on her heels, looking down. "You didn't come outside," she said. "Not even a little."

Ace blinked.

"I thought maybe you got stuck," she added, peeking up at him. "Or… maybe you turned into a ghost."

Ace almost choked. "A ghost?"

Liu Mei nodded solemnly. "Mama says ghosts hide in dark rooms." She glanced around, as if expecting to find one lurking in the shadows.

Ace exhaled, running a hand through his hair. "I'm not a ghost."

She squinted at him, unconvinced. "But you're so pale."

"That's just—" He sighed. "Never mind."

Liu Mei held up the basket. "I brought fruit! You gotta eat, or you will turn into a ghost."

Ace hesitated. Her tiny hands still clutched the handle tightly, as if bracing for him to swat it away.

He pulled out a chair for her instead. "Sit," he said gently.

Liu Mei hesitated, then obeyed, swinging her short legs as she placed the basket on the table.

Ace sat across from her. He reached for a plump, ripe fruit and took a bite.

Sweetness burst across his tongue.

Liu Mei's eyes lit up. "Good, right? I checked first!"

Ace chuckled, the first real laugh that had escaped him since waking in this world. "Yeah. Not bad."

Liu Mei beamed, her small frame visibly relaxing.

Ace studied her, thoughtful. If someone like her could still offer kindness after everything the old Xiao Zhi had done, maybe… just maybe, he had a real chance here.

_____________

Ding!

[System Farm Game Initiated!]

You have received 4 plots of land!

You have received 100 Gold Credits!

You have received 20 Moonstone Seeds!

Shop Unlocked!

[Host! Let's take over the world—not with swords or brute strength, but with the power of actual cultivation ~farming!]

Of all the things he expected after eating a fruit, this wasn't one of them.

His gaze flickered toward Liu Mei. She was still swinging her legs absentmindedly, her tiny fingers drumming against the basket's edge. Completely unaware of the system notification that had just appeared before him.

[New Quest: Healing Liu Mei]

Liu Mei suffers from an illness that causes her to forget important things. Sometimes, she is even regarded as a lunatic due to her erratic behavior.

Hint: Lots of Spirit Apples can heal her!

Ace frowned. Forget important things?

He clenched his jaw. He didn't know much about her yet, but even in their short interaction, it was clear she wasn't some lunatic. Just a kid who had been cast aside because people didn't understand her condition.

Well… maybe because she's kind to me despite how harsh I was.

Ace froze. No—he hadn't been harsh. That was the old Xiao Zhi.

He scowled and shoved the thought aside, taking another bite of the fruit as he thought.

"Open shop."

At his command, a translucent window flickered into existence, golden text lining up neatly before him. Liu Mei, of course, saw none of it. She only saw her teacher staring off into space while chewing an apple.

She tilted her head but didn't say anything.

Okay… maybe I get why people call her strange, Ace thought. But hey, she's kind of cute.

His attention returned to the shop interface, scanning the list of available items. Then, he spotted it—

Item: Spirit Cleansing Apple Seeds (Recommended!)

Cost: 1,000 Gold Credits

Effect: Helps cleanse the spirit and slightly increases the cultivation talent of the consumer (approximately 0.001% increase).

Ace choked on his apple.

Liu Mei blinked. "...Teacher?"

He swallowed and waved her off. "Nothing. Just… just thinking."

A week ago, he'd been a different person, in a different world.

Now, he was a teacher with a questionable past, a farming system, and an injured kid who needed Spirit Apples to heal.