America, 2006
Ding! Congratulations, host. Energy recharge complete—Space Gate opened. Your personal items will remain in the Space Magic Cube. You can store items via the Space Magic Cube. Transporting items between worlds requires payment in corresponding wealth resources.
First dual-world crossing. System rewards host with free transport permission for 100,000 USD worth of supplies.
To help you integrate quickly into the second world, the system will craft a new identity for you and apply visual deception to your body.
Now, to all outsiders, you appear as a 12-year-old European-American pretty boy. But to yourself, you still see your true form, and the body you're using remains unchanged.
A soft, sweet voice echoed in Xiao Yi's mind. He felt his entire body sucked into a whirlpool, plunging toward the ocean floor. Overwhelming dizziness and suffocation forced his eyes shut.
It felt like an eternity—or just a blink.
The moment Xiao Yi opened his eyes again, warm sunlight pierced them, blinding him.
Beep... beep beep... Car horns blared.
"Hey! Sir, this is a hospital. Please..."
"Doctor, how's my child? Please, you have to save him—do something!"
The clamor and sharp scent of disinfectant hit him like a dream from another life.
Where am I? Back in the normal world? Did I make it home?
As his eyes adjusted to the light, Xiao Yi's excitement surged. He took in the spotless room and the doctors murmuring nearby. The system had transported him to another world entirely—not his original one!
"Oh! My dear Andy! You're awake at last—you scared Mommy half to death! Are you okay now, sweetheart?"
Before Xiao Yi could shake off his daze, a stunning woman in her thirties swept him into a fierce embrace, peppering his face with kisses. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
This Western beauty stood about five-foot-ten, with porcelain skin, chestnut waves cascading down her back, and mesmerizing blue-green eyes. She wore a black casual tee that hugged her firm, full breasts—no bra, judging by the faint peaks pressing against the fabric. Low-rise light-wash denim shorts accentuated her long legs and plump, perky ass—an absolute knockout figure.
For a guy like Xiao Yi, who'd devoured Playboy spreads of supermodels, she was instantly recognizable.
Stephanie Seymour: world-famous supermodel, once ranked the second most beautiful woman by France's Match magazine, a frequent fashion cover star across the globe.
And now... she was his birth mother.
As Stephanie Seymour's passionate hug enveloped him, a flood of information poured into Xiao Yi's mind.
This was a parallel world—March 15, 2006.
To outsiders, he was a handsome 12-year-old American boy: Andy Brandt.
His mother: supermodel Stephanie Seymour.
His stepfather: American tycoon and media mogul Pete Brandt, polo enthusiast.
Recently, rebellious Andy had stormed out after a humiliating scolding from Pete and his brothers. In a fit of anger, he'd swiped Pete's Mercedes.
A 12-year-old with no license, barely able to drive in secret, predictably crashed—and ended up here.
In truth, the real Andy was dead. And his death? Shady as hell.
Before the crash, Pete and brother Jerry's words and actions toward Andy reeked of ominous hints.
To Xiao Yi—with thirty years of life experience and a lifetime of suspense thrillers—it all screamed foul play.
Ding! Congratulations, host—first arrival in the second world. System detects your stored Zombie Core Energy can sustain a five-hour stay. After five hours, you will return to the apocalyptic world...
No time to dwell on Andy's fate—the system's chime cut in again.
Only five hours here?
Xiao Yi felt a twinge of disappointment.
He couldn't return to his old life, but 2006 America—with a supermodel mom and tycoon stepdad? Beats the hell out of the man-eating apocalypse.
In America, money meant freedom: anything you wanted, no limits.
For the rich, it was paradise.
2006 marked America's peak prosperity—ripe with opportunities. With his past-life knowledge, Xiao Yi could conquer it all.
Too bad his Zombie Core Energy reserves limited him to five hours.
Fine, then.
He'd maximize them: stockpile survival supplies and weapons for the apocalypse.
And... lay the groundwork for revenge.