In 2017, on Earth, in China, in Jiangzhou City—this city, standing in the East and known as the Pearl of the East, is also the most prosperous first-tier city in the vast country of China.
In this city with a population of 24 million, traffic flows endlessly, the air is filled with the hum of activity, tall buildings rise like mountains, and the crowd, bustling with energy, hurried through their busy work, their faces showing signs of urgency.
On Zhonghuan Road in the PDX District of Jiangzhou, inside a simple and monotonous rental apartment, a thin, pale young man leaned against the headboard of his bed. His sharp, bright eyes carried a hint of sadness and loneliness.
Lin Feng, an ordinary high school student at Jiangzhou Normal School, was a young man whose fate had been somewhat tragic. His parents died in a car accident just eight days ago, on his seventeenth birthday.
After their death, all his parents left behind was an eighty-square-meter house in Lin Feng's hometown and over thirty thousand yuan in savings.
Over the past few days, he had complained about his fate, wondering why he couldn't be like the protagonist in novels, with extraordinary strength to take care of his family. He longed to return home when he made a mistake, face his father's scolding and his mother's gentleness, and then be whipped by his father with a leather belt.
Feeling his stomach rumble, Lin Feng, not wanting to move, had no choice but to drag his tired body out of the apartment and head for a small restaurant nearby to feed himself.
Just as he stepped out of the building, Lin Feng suddenly noticed a figure across the street that looked remarkably like his girlfriend, Guo Min. Lin Feng hoped his eyes were deceiving him, as the figure was currently arm-in-arm with a man, chatting and laughing.
Unfortunately, dreams are beautiful, but reality is often cruel. When the figure turned around, Lin Feng felt as though lightning had struck him.
Indeed, the figure belonged to his girlfriend, Guo Min. To make matters worse, the man she was holding was none other than his best friend, Ye Luo.
Lin Feng truly wished this wasn't real, but instead of confronting them, he silently followed the two of them into a restaurant.
Though Lin Feng didn't have much money, to preserve his dignity and avoid being publicly humiliated, he spent a few hundred yuan to book a private room next to the one Ye Luo had reserved.
Upon entering the private room, Lin Feng listened carefully. Soon, he heard sounds coming from the adjacent room that were not suitable for children.
Filled with anger, Lin Feng could no longer hold back and kicked open the door to the neighboring room.
What he saw was Guo Min, disheveled, engaged in intimate activities with Ye Luo. To his horror, the position they were in was one Lin Feng had often desired, but Guo Min had always refused.
Lin Feng could hardly believe what he was seeing. Guo Min, though not the most stunning beauty, was still a top-tier looker, and more importantly, she was his first love. Yet, the girl who had sworn eternal vows with him was now tangled up with his best friend in such a way.
Ye Luo, momentarily stunned by the intrusion, quickly regained his composure and mocked, "I didn't expect you to find out. Well, no need to hide it anymore. Let me be clear, I've been with Min Min for half a year. If it weren't for her sake, you would have lost a few limbs by now. How dare you still call me 'brother'?"
Guo Min stood up, casually putting on her clothes and then linking arms with Ye Luo. Her gaze was filled with disdain and mockery. "Lin Feng, although I admit I liked you before, what could you ever give me? You have no money, no power, you're nothing but a pitiful worm."
Unable to endure their harsh words any longer, Lin Feng rushed at Ye Luo, and a scuffle broke out.
In his rage, Lin Feng felt no pain as he pummeled Ye Luo, whose soft skin didn't stand a chance. It didn't take long for Ye Luo to be beaten to a pulp.
Eventually, Guo Min charged forward, using all her strength to pull Lin Feng away. Seeing this, Lin Feng's heart completely died. He slapped her hard across the face and shouted, "Bitch, get lost!"
Whether it was because of Lin Feng's slap or his curses, a flash of malice crossed Guo Min's eyes. She grabbed an unopened bottle of beer from the table and smashed it on the back of Lin Feng's head.
It hurt—a lot. Looking at the broken beer bottle in her hand, Lin Feng's eyes filled with desolation.
He didn't say anything else, turning and leaving the room.
Blood dripping from his head, Lin Feng didn't care about the curious onlookers. In his mind, memories of the times he spent with Guo Min kept replaying.
Three years ago, Guo Min entered Lin Feng's life and brought him warmth. Over time, Lin Feng grew fond of her.
After his relentless pursuit, Guo Min eventually became his girlfriend. But he never expected that people's personalities could change so quickly. Three years of love ended so abruptly. If he said he wasn't hurt, it would be a lie.
Lin Feng staggered back into his rented apartment, like a walking corpse, with no expression on his face.
"Infinity Snatching System Detection in progress."
While Lin Feng was lost in his thoughts about his future, suddenly, a mechanical voice rang in his mind, giving him quite a shock.
"Who? Who's speaking?" Lin Feng held his head, repeatedly asking, thinking that the bottle hitting him had caused a hallucination. He kept reassuring himself that it couldn't be real, it must be just a hallucination.
"Infinity Snatching System detection complete. Host barely meets the minimum requirements for system integration. System fusion successful."
These words completely shattered Lin Feng's mind. If not for his good mental fortitude, he might have suffered a heart attack from the shock.
"System? Who exactly are you?"
When Lin Feng heard the word "system," his first thought was that this was like the golden fingers of the protagonists in those novels or TV shows. Despite the fear, a small sliver of hope rose within him.
"Host, I am the Infinity Snatching System."
The mechanical voice reappeared in Lin Feng's mind. The voice was devoid of emotion, slightly stiff, but it confirmed Lin Feng's suspicions.
At the same time, Lin Feng's heart filled with joy. Though he didn't know what this Infinity Snatching System was exactly, since he had been chosen by the system, his life would likely be different now.
He thought of those chosen ones in novels, each of them gaining extraordinary abilities, wealth, and power, eventually reaching the peak of the world.
However, despite his excitement, Lin Feng quickly calmed his inner joy and asked, "What do I need to do? Why was I chosen?"
After an unknown amount of time, the system did not respond. Lin Feng helplessly asked again, "Infinity Snatching System, what is it used for?"
This time, the system did not avoid the question. The mechanical voice again appeared in Lin Feng's mind: "In this world, there exist countless planes and time spaces. The Infinity Snatching System will lead the host through these planes. The host's task is to complete the missions issued by the system."
Upon hearing the system's explanation, Lin Feng's heart couldn't help but pound.
Traveling across various planes—what did that mean? It meant he could experience countless exciting lives, meet beautiful women, learn powerful techniques, and even possibly gain immortality, things only seen in legends.
"Calm down, calm down."
Lin Feng suppressed his excitement, his eyes shining with fiery determination. He made a decision: no longer would he live as an ordinary person, but as the master of his own fate.
However, there were still things he didn't understand, so he continued asking the system. After about two hours, Lin Feng finally understood the functions of the Infinity Snatching System.
The so-called system tasks were simply to complete missions issued by the system. For example, he would plunder the fortune, skills, resources, or even women of the protagonist in a given plane!
Lin Feng clenched his fists, his heart swelling with excitement. This system was tailor-made for him, and it was exactly what he had been waiting for.
After spending another ten minutes calming himself down, Lin Feng asked, "System, can I now travel through time and space?"
The system pondered for a moment before replying, "Based on the host's physical condition, the system will open a beginner's package. At the same time, the lowest-level time-space has been detected. Shall I proceed with the time-space travel?"
"Let's go! Open the package when we arrive at that plane. By the way, what time-space is it?" Hearing that he could travel through time and space and also receive a beginner's gift package, Lin Feng felt as if he had just eaten honey, sweet all over.
"Time-space to be traversed: High School of the Dead Time-Space!"
"High School of the Dead?" Lin Feng was surprised. This was an anime from Japan that he had watched before, and he particularly liked the characters Sayaka Takajo and Saeko Busujima. It seemed that this time, Lin Feng was about to taste some sweet rewards.
"Let's begin!" Lin Feng said excitedly in his heart.
As soon as the words left his mind, the system spoke again: "Initiating physical time-space travel!"
The space in front of Lin Feng began to distort, forming a blue vortex door.
Once Lin Feng stepped inside, the vortex door disappeared, as if it had never existed.