Seized by the System

Translator: J_Squared, Zenobys Editor: J_Squared, Zenobys

When this miracle that surpassed modern technology was laid out clearly before her, it was natural for the bright Qi Yan to understand that the tracks for the future were shifting. The ones who do not possess these extraordinary powers would be eliminated, like the ones that were lost in the previous technological revolutions. They would only be able to struggle to survive from then on. The pressure to rise up again would fall on their young, but this time, maybe even the next generation couldn't do anything to change their lives, Qi Yan thought. This was not like the technological revolution; once you were gone, you were probably gone for good.

This extraordinary power was not like technological knowledge that could be shared freely. Instead, this power could only be passed on to the new generation.

Previously, there was always a possibility for one's offspring to climb up the social ladder, as long as they were relatively talented and were diligent enough to acquire the required skills and knowledge. At that time, no matter how rich a family was, they could only provide their children with the best learning environment. There was no way for any sort of direct transfer of information.

However, that no longer applies to the present situation. She felt that this extraordinary power could probably be passed down the bloodline, as that theory was proposed by one of the most brilliant youths during the family gathering. Even though she desperately wanted to learn the martial arts of her family, in the eyes of the old, stubborn men, she was a woman that was destined to leave the household after marriage. Thus, she was never one of those who would be considered for the training, not even if her husband was willing to marry into her family. Even that was not believable, they said.

Her parents loved their only daughter so much that they had sent multiple gifts to the elders, but all of that was in vain. Instead, they urged her to quickly marry, as they had already chosen quite a few young men that would probably do great in the new age…..

The new age is here, and some of the most ordinary men in her household had gotten the training from the elders. All of them did amazing in the training, which led their rise in status among the family. Their future, once dim, were now lit as bright as fireworks.

How could Qi Yan remain indifferent before all of this? She knew that she was better than any male in her family. Then, she managed to seize a rare chance to push that slightly cuckoo Vigilante A to give her a martial art of her choice. Initially, she thought that it was quite a good Internal Strength mantra, but once she read the Internal Strength scripture he gave to her, she nearly went crazy with rage; it was almost an achievement to the man, as it was very difficult to get such a conserved lady like her to lose her composure. It was evident how offensive the book felt to her. Even if she had had the scripture for so many days already, she hadn't even practiced once. That warm gust of Internal Strength that was from Vigilante A remained curled in her chest, unmoving.

Until this night arrived.

"Oh, Qi Yan! Why didn't you contact Xiao Zheng after I introduced him to you? He's not our son, and even if you both share the same surname, he's so far removed that it doesn't matter anymore," blabbered Qi Yan's second aunt, "Besides, he would be willing to look beyond gender differences and teach you the martial arts in the family once you've married. How great is that! Your parents wouldn't need to go around begging people anymore." Her monologue broke into a series of disapproving clucks before she continued, "None of us could bear to see you and your family like that anymore. It's not that I'm trying to bother you, but a girl like you shouldn't be as hard-headed as a bull! Don't focus so much on success; after all, what could you do even if you've learnt martial arts? It's not like you could join the men in their fights and battles, no?"

'It's not like I'm begging for your help, why are you so concerned about my business?' Qi Yan grumbled in her head, but she forced out a strained chuckle to portray her feelings. The aforementioned guy was a nephew of her second uncle, but he was raised by her aunt and uncle like he was like their son. He was lazy and ugly, and had a cheap and boring personality.

If Vigilante A was the sky, then this guy would be an earthworm living underground. Even though Vigilante A's choice of words were all kinds of ridiculous, but at least he was skilled in martial arts, and was easy on the eyes. There could be inexplicable joy felt by just looking at him! Most importantly, he wasn't a troublesome person; he didn't behave like most men when they saw her, showing off like a peacock whenever she was around. They were immensely annoying, and they stuck on like chewed gum.

This second aunt of hers was the typical inflexible kind. Whenever she talked about martial arts, she would only think of the ancient assassins, heroes, and the likes; it never occurred to her that martial arts were at their most useful when applied with current gadgets and technology.

After Qi Yan managed to force-chuckle her extremely considerate second aunt away, she finally decided to f*ck everything and start practicing. She could always choose to train on the darkest of nights! Come to think of it, tonight, being a cloudy, moonless and starless night where people wouldn't be able to see even their outstretched hands in the dark, was quite suitable. After she managed to cultivate her own Internal Strength and use that to earn good money, she could then buy herself a mansion, which would solve all of her problems once and for all.

After she solidified her determination, the beauty Qi Yan clenched her teeth in fury. 'D*mn you, Vigilante A,' she growled in her heart, 'Don't let me find out that you taught me this kind of martial arts on purpose!'

////

[You obtained aggro from Qi Yan. Aggro Bar 3 has filled up to 80%.]

Fang Ning was reading novels online when he saw another System Notification. He temporarily moved his attention away from the text to look at the external environment via the System's view. Ah, the System had farmed its way to the Qi Family's area. How many days has it been? To be fair, he couldn't exactly blame the beauty's grudge; it was the System that gave her such an unscrupulous scripture. At this point, he wouldn't be surprised if the girl would curse the System every time she trained.

He did read the extract of the scripture, and the requirements for the Half-step Jerk was peculiar, to say the least. It differed from the usual meditative way of cultivation. Instead, it was based on the circulation around the acupuncture points at the chest, and would require the person to make rapid bounces at its execution. The faster the bounces go, the better the vital energy would circulate within the person's body. It would not be a problem if the person was a man, but when the person was a woman, it would seem to be quite inappropriate for onlookers.

To Qi Yan, this was naturally the Vigilante A's intention to purposely embarrass her, so that she could not be proud of this scripture in the family.

As one of the few families within the Qi City that maintained their line till today, the Qi Family has their roots deep within the ground, their branches spreading wide. They accumulated enough, and managed to ride the waves of change when the new age arrived. The new products strengthen the bonds within the family members, and their gatherings had increased from at most once a year to more than an annual meeting.

And on those gatherings, there would be people who would boast about their superpowers or martial arts. Others would show off their new gadgets, and even though Qi Yan seemed to be unaffected when she saw them, she was actually envious of her family members. What she didn't know, was that even though the former would provide the person envious eyes and even higher status, the latter could easily attract some superpowered individuals that had an interest in illegal activities. That was why the System would always camp around the area, which led to her meeting Vigilante A.

Now, she had no idea that Vigilante A once again appeared around her house, disguised and ready for action. The System came not to seek for girls, it came only to farm.

Nowadays, the rumors and news had gradually increased in intensity, of official surveillance becoming became stronger in the area. Thus, the ordinary criminals spawned less than usual. Of course, as more and more people had awakened their abilities, the ones that had the guts to go about committing crimes were the ones that felt that they were special, and stronger. The ordinary peacekeepers were not equipped to handle them, and the local Special Affairs did not have a coverage wide enough to cover the near-million population in Qi City.

Even so, no one could stop the diligent System. Its tactics were clean and no-nonsense, as it would never waste its time interrogating criminals. Aside from delivering some meaningless lines before it went down to business, the System would never start a second move if it could resolve the threat with one strike. Thus, the System had single-handedly caused a short crime vacuum in Qi City, and despite the lack of public personnel, the city's public security had increased.

These circumstances had caused most of the awakened to change their crime-making mind, and to declare their willingness to undergo the re-education programme of the new age. No matter what, most of them were still registered citizens of the city.

Other similar cities did not have the same luxury. With similar population counts, geographical environments and shortage of manpower in the Special Affairs office, these cities were faced with uncontrollable chaos, which was a stark contrast to Qi City. Apparently, Qi City had received numerous recognitions and accolades because of this, and was named to be the model city for public security management in the new age.

Sadly, that had resulted in low farming rates. In the past two days, the System had only managed to farm a few criminals, even if it traveled a significant distance. This had directly impacted Fang Ning's focus in his games, and instead, Fang Ning has tried to comfort the System by telling it that once the Celestial Weapon was completed, they would start to actively attract criminals, and there would no longer be a vacuum like this. Once it could continuously farm, its efficiency would most definitely increase.

However, they still require more EXP to craft the Celestial Weapon.

In an effort to gain enough EXP, the System intentionally delayed leveling up after it reached Level 10. If that were not the case, it would have leveled up long ago! There was no question as to why the System would be so anxious about this.

As it couldn't find the criminals, the System had no choice but to squat at the high spawn rate areas and wait for them. The Qi Family was one of its camping spots, and today, the System was back to camp. Of course, it would never waste its waiting time to stare at a smartphone screen. Instead, it used every second to meditate.

Coincidentally, Fang Ning was currently getting scolded by a certain gaming pro due to him being a no-show and causing the latter to die in the most bloody way possible. Now, he no longer had the courage to log back into that particular game, and since he was not in the mood to explore other games, Fang Ning has resorted to passing his days by binge reading novels. Thus, when he heard the System Notification, he was fully prepared to come out and breathe some fresh air. If he were lucky, he might even be able to catch some great views during that time!

The System was currently standing on the tallest building at the junction near Qi Family's mansion. It was a balcony of a three-storey building, and all the cottage houses at the nearby junction were populated by the Qi Family. These cottages were antique and unassuming, but everyone knew what it meant when these old homes survived the modernization of this overpopulated city.

Soon, Fang Ning was able to locate Qi Yan through the System's view. She was now in a courtyard, looking very bothered indeed.