Chapter 5 | The First Contract Refusal

It was late at night.

The night in the mountain village was always very quiet, so quiet that you could hear dogs barking in the distance, so quiet that when the wind passed through the woods, it sounded like someone whispering.

Chen Ye sat on the wooden bench behind the house, not holding a gun, but only holding a cigarette, which he hadn't lit.

In the house, Chen Xue had already fallen asleep.

But he knew she wasn't sleeping soundly.

[Potential Contract Target: Chen Xue]

[Compatibility: 71%]

[Status: Unawakened]

[Initiate Guidance Contract?]

The system's prompt hung in his mind, like an invisible door.

As long as he nodded, the door would open.

He knew very well what this meant.

Power, growth, survival ability...

And—danger.

Chen Ye closed his eyes.

What flashed through his mind wasn't the system interface, but many fragmented images.

When his sister fell as a child, she didn't cry first, but looked up for him;

In the cold winter river, she would shrink her hands, but still help her mother wash clothes;

After the rain last night, she dreamed he was being chased, but she knew which path he would run on.

That wasn't from the system.

That was blood ties.

A light sound suddenly came from the house.

Chen Ye opened his eyes abruptly and pushed open the door.

Chen Xue was sitting on the bed, hugging her knees, her face a little pale.

"Brother." she called softly.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Chen Ye walked over and softened his tone.

Chen Xue nodded, then shook her head: "I don't know if it counts as a dream... I just now, I seemed to see you standing outside."

Chen Ye's heart sank.

He was indeed outside just now.

The system prompt quietly refreshed:

[Abnormal Resonance Enhanced]

[Suggestion: Initiate guidance immediately to reduce the probability of losing control]

This was the first time the system used a tone other than "suggestion."

Chen Ye looked at his sister, but his heart was unusually calm.

"Xiaoxue." He sat on the edge of the bed, "No matter what you feel, don't think too much."

Chen Xue looked up at him, her eyes bright: "Brother, is there something you haven't told me?"

This sentence made Chen Ye silent for a long time.

He only reached out and gently pressed on her head: "Some things, the later you know, the safer you are."

Early the next morning, his father was going to town.

Before leaving, he glanced at Chen Ye and said casually: "Don't go into the deep mountains lately."

It wasn't a command.

It was more like an old hunter's intuition.

Chen Ye nodded: "I know."

His father didn't say more and turned to leave.

But at the moment the courtyard gate closed, the system once again popped up a prompt—

[External Threat Assessment Rising]

[Environmental Pressure Will Accelerate Potential Awakening]

Chen Ye's brow, for the first time, truly furrowed.

At noon, Wang Hu and Zhao Yan came to find him.

"There's movement in the black market." Wang Hu said in a low voice, "Someone is inquiring about your sister."

This sentence was like a stone, smashing into Chen Ye's heart.

"Why?" he asked.

Zhao Yan licked his lips: "They suspect that you're not the only one who can 'get things'."

Chen Ye didn't speak.

But he already understood.

System, abnormalities, resources—

These things had already begun to be noticed by others.

In the evening, Chen Ye went into the back mountains alone.

Not hunting.

It was to confirm.

He stood at the edge of the forest, his consciousness sinking into the contract space.

The space was more stable than before, like a truly "existing" place, rather than an attached tool.

The system interface slowly unfolded.

[Contract Guidance Confirmed]

[Target: Chen Xue]

[Risk Level: Unpredictable]

[Confirm Initiate?]

Chen Ye stared at the line of words for a long time.

Then, for the first time, he made a choice about the system.

"No."

Just one word.

The world seemed to fall silent for a moment.

[Command Confirmed]

[Contract Guidance: Rejected]

[Warning: Abandoning this stage will result in the loss of the best guidance window]

Chen Ye had no regrets.

"She's still young," he said, his tone very calm, "This road shouldn't be so early."

The system was silent.

A full three seconds.

This was an unprecedented pause.

[Record Updated]

[Contract Person: Chen Ye]

[Status: Autonomous Choice Confirmed]

[System Behavior Mode Adjusting...]

Chen Ye felt the space tremble slightly.

Not a backlash.

More like... approval.

At night, Chen Xue suddenly woke up.

She sat up, looking vaguely out the window.

That strange feeling was slowly fading away.

No longer clear, no longer dazzling.

It was as if something was gently blocking it.

She didn't know the reason.

She just felt a sudden sense of peace in her heart.

Chen Ye sat in the main room, wiping his gun.

The Type 56 semi-automatic rifle was disassembled very cleanly by him, every part arranged neatly.

The system was no longer urging him.

But at the moment he closed the bolt, the last line of prompts popped up—

[Reminder]

[A real contract doesn't only come from the system]

[Also comes from bearing]

Chen Ye raised his head and looked at his sister's door.

The light had been extinguished.

The room was very quiet.

He suddenly understood one thing—

The system could choose people,

But who should be protected was his own decision.