Replica 04

In the United States, Hanks wore a grim expression. He had exhausted all his points to ensure absolute success. The demon had indeed been a diversion, and for a moment, he thought he had already won. Regardless of whether the townspeople lived or died, by nightfall, that tree would come to life and begin its "cleanup." As for the unlimited time limit set for clearing the level, it was all meant to mislead Fang Zhiyi. Hanks had been confident that Fang Zhiyi would never make it through this level—yet now, this lunatic had ruthlessly proven him wrong! He had cleared it before night even fell?

In a flash of white light, Fang Zhiyi reappeared in the spot where he had vanished earlier. Waiting for him were a group of heavily armed soldiers and several government officials, who immediately whisked him away for psychological evaluation. Though Fang Zhiyi found it tiresome, he had no choice but to comply.

"Question: If you were walking down the street and saw an overturned truck with its cargo scattered everywhere, and a crowd rushing to loot it, what would you do?"

Fang Zhiyi glanced at the bespectacled female psychologist and answered casually, "First, I'd take out my phone to get the coordinates of my location."

The doctor jotted something down and nodded.

"Then, I'd figure out a way to have the military launch indiscriminate artillery strikes on those coordinates."

The tip of the doctor's pen tore through the paper.

"Next question. If you were walking down the street and someone approached you, claiming to be your fan, then handed you ten thousand dollars and asked you to smile for them, what would you do?"

Fang Zhiyi leaned back on the sofa. "I’d sternly refuse, of course. Then I’d lecture and reprimand them, informing them that since they’ve insulted me, they owe me ten times that amount in compensation."

"..."

"He’s insane. Absolutely insane!" The supervisor watching from outside the door paced anxiously.

"The next round is our turn to design a level. Can we really entrust something this important to a madman?" someone asked.

An elderly voice chimed in, "If he weren’t insane, he might not have made it back this time."

"Minister!" The others turned toward him.

"Given Fang Zhiyi’s previous personality, do you really think he could have survived the level the Americans designed?"

The question left everyone speechless.

Indeed. If it had been the old Fang Zhiyi—the kind, self-sacrificing man who’d risk his own life to save others—he might have cleared the level, but at a terrible cost. The analysis team had already reconstructed the entire scenario. That level had been tailor-made to exploit Fang Zhiyi’s weaknesses. The American had banked on Fang Zhiyi’s unwillingness to harm innocents. Had Fang Zhiyi acted as he usually did, giving the demon enough time to feed on the negative energy from the townspeople, it would have been a death sentence. And that tree at the end? Utterly sinister. Though they didn’t know exactly what it did, it was clearly the killing blow.

"He’s a smart man. Maybe it was realizing this that drove him to... become like this." The minister gazed at Fang Zhiyi through the window. "This level was a wake-up call. This isn’t just a fight against the supernatural anymore—it’s a battle between humans. Time to abandon naive illusions..."

"Two fast-travelers have arrived," Xiao Hei reminded.

"Where?"

Xiao Hei mimicked Fang Zhiyi’s cold smirk. "One from Organland, one from Feiguo."

"Why?" But after a moment’s thought, Fang Zhiyi understood. Because this world’s Heavenly Dao was overwhelmingly powerful, fast-travelers couldn’t attack him directly. The best way to eliminate him was to use this world’s own means.

Outside, news of Fang Zhiyi’s drastic personality shift spread like wildfire, but he couldn’t care less. He spent his days eating, sleeping, and doing nothing else, much to the frustration of the think tank. Whenever they asked about his level design, he’d just say, "No problem." But every time they checked on him, he was either gaming or stuffing his face.

No one could do anything about it. After all, he was the challenger—he had absolute control over the level design. Other countries had think tanks strategizing while the challenger made the final call, but Fang Zhiyi? He was in a league of his own.

Meanwhile, challengers from four other countries had taken on levels designed by their opponents. Humanity had begun treating this supernatural game as a competition. Some nations were even publicly soliciting ideas from their citizens. After all, while the supernatural remained unsolved, human conflict was eternal.

Finally, the time came for the next challenger nation.

Feiguo had been chosen by the supernatural to face the level designed by Longguo. In the original storyline, Fang Zhiyi had merely crafted a haunted village scenario, but even that had terrified Feiguo’s challenger.

But Fang Zhiyi knew this challenger was different—this was Meilin, a seasoned fast-traveler who had seen it all.

And sure enough, after adjusting to her new identity, Meilin focused entirely on Fang Zhiyi. She was here for the massive bounty on his head.

The timing, however, was less than ideal. She’d barely arrived before being forced to tackle his level. After watching Fang Zhiyi’s previous clearance footage, she was filled with disgust. No wonder the Fast-Travel Bureau wanted him captured—he was practically a psychopath!

The supernatural world didn’t faze her. She’d survived several such worlds before. The only complication this time was human involvement.

As the white light of teleportation faded, the world tuned in to watch the level designed by the "psychotic, violent, serial-killing maniac."

When Meilin opened her eyes, she stood before a dilapidated school—rusted iron gates, a lifeless security guard at the entrance, and a gloomy sky overhead.

She smirked. So this was Fang Zhiyi’s big challenge? Pathetic!

She strode inside without hesitation.

"Objective: Graduate successfully. Time limit: Unlimited."

Meilin glanced down at her school uniform. So she was a graduating student? She scoffed, even flipping off the sky with an internationally recognized gesture.

The entire world saw it—including Fang Zhiyi and the analysts seated beside him. They had been unable to pry any details about his level design from him, leaving them deeply unsettled.

Meilin’s confidence unnerved them, but she had every reason to be self-assured. A veteran of multiple worlds, she was proficient in combat, firearms, cooking, and even wilderness survival. Once, she had swum across a strait to exact revenge on a target.

She believed herself invincible. So when the system mentioned the "Hunter," her interest was piqued. An endless journey needed challenges to keep her excited.