Crossing Over?

"Inf... information... co... collecting... collec... complete..."

Pain. My head hurt so badly.

Intense stabbing pain came wave after wave, as though his mind were being torn apart, then crushed into fragments beneath rolling wheels.

"...Complete."

In an instant, the stream of information suddenly fluctuated. Like a picture in his mind abruptly becoming animated, words transformed into wavering sounds.

"Based on deep-layer information... Electric Current Resistance... acquired."

"Based on deep-layer information... Heat Fluctuation Resistance... acquired."

The pain lessened. Hiss, that hurt! Whose voice was that?

It didn't seem to be a voice?

It was an incredibly strange sensation—hazy, yet incomparably clear. But it was definitely not something hearing could produce.

At the thought of hearing, Jiang Rui's consciousness snapped awake.

He couldn't sense any sounds, nor could he see anything. Yes, it wasn't darkness, but nothingness—emptiness. He couldn't even feel the existence of his eyes.

The concept of opening his eyes was something his body seemed completely unable to understand or respond to.

Oh, his body—he couldn't feel his body either!??

In his daze, Jiang Rui was utterly baffled...

A vegetative state? No, brain death was a vegetative state. If his body was gone, then what was this? Paralysis?

Or...

Was he dead?

"Physical Attack Resistance... acquired."

The incomparably clear transmission of information appeared again, pulling Jiang Rui's increasingly distant thoughts back.

That's right. I'm dead.

This thought suddenly surfaced in his consciousness. It was a "fact" etched deep into his memories.

Dead... then I... I've... crossed over...?

"Paralysis Resistance... acquired."

The information in his consciousness continued to be supplemented and transmitted. Gradually, as he searched through his memories of his former life, the transmitted information became increasingly familiar to Jiang Rui.

"Pain Nullification... acq... Based on surface data and deep-layer data correction, pain reduced by 80%... acquired."

"Unique Skill Great Sage... acquired."

"Unique Skill Predator... acquired."

So...

I crossed over into a Slime??!!

"A body that requires no flesh and blood... acq..."

Wait, nooooo! I don't want to become some Slime!

"Based on deep-layer information... confirmation complete. Current body form retained. Skill Mimicry... acquired! Skills Absorption, Dissolution, and Self-Regeneration... acquired!"

So I still became a Slime... right?

Emmm, no longer human? Still, not being human in the Slime world didn't seem too bad. He could become a Demon Lord.

At that thought, Jiang Rui's spirits lifted. Could it be that the legendary life of revelry every night was about to begin?

"Confirmation complete."

As the final stream of information passed through him, Jiang Rui gradually regained a trace of sensation. Though his body felt weak and sore, the moment he sensed the existence of his eyes, he tried opening them!

Huh? Why did he have eyes? Shouldn't it be magic perception?

"Answer: Based on subconscious desire, current body form has been retained. Mimicry or Dissolution may be canceled to return to Slime form."

His body... so unlike the original story, he hadn't merely transmigrated as a soul? Fine by him. He hadn't wanted to devour things like... corpses anyway...

Overall, this was a pretty good start.

Thinking so, he habitually looked around. Hmm, a dim environment.

A white ceiling decorated with luxurious patterns. Oh, oh, oh! Though dim, the chandelier still practically radiated the word "expensive."

Hmm? Jiang Rui blinked.

He hadn't seen wrong! A chandelier!

Whoosh! Jiang Rui shot upright, ignoring the soreness in his body.

Dark red curtains tightly covered the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows. Beside them, gold-trimmed bedding lay neatly spread over the bed. There was an in-room telephone at the head of the bed, as well as things carrying various scents...

It was clearly a hotel, and not a cheap one at that. Jiang Rui turned and pulled open the curtains.

With a swish, dazzling yet warm sunlight shone over him, leaving his entire body pleasantly warm. He felt as though he had suddenly come alive.

Floor-to-ceiling windows, and a high floor too. Jiang Rui looked at the towering buildings outside, while the endless traffic below made him think he had just had an absurd dream.

Great Sage?

No response? Was this a dream?

"Answer: Mental state currently stable. The possibility of being in a dream has been ruled out."

! It wasn't a dream.

Modern times. This was modern times!

He remembered clearly. The memories engraved in his consciousness—or perhaps in his soul—said that he had died.

Or rather, there had been a plane crash!

Jiang Rui, twenty-nine years old, utterly ordinary. After graduating from junior college, he had struggled through society. After years of working nine to five, he still couldn't even afford a down payment!

In order to live comfortably in the future and fulfill his little dream—opening an internet café, browsing online, watching anime, reading novels, and trying his hand at writing whenever he was bored—

As long as he could support himself and his future family, that would be enough.

It was such an insignificant dream. And so, gritting his teeth, he boarded a plane to work abroad!

It was 996 work hours, the language barrier was terrible, and living expenses were high. The only benefit was the high salary.

Of course, besides that insignificant dream, he had gone so far away to avoid something.

The disappointed looks in his parents' eyes!

As the saying went, one should settle down by thirty. Jiang Rui had planned to work one more year before returning home. He had almost saved enough money, but one day, at the age of twenty-nine, he received terrible news from his relatives.

His father had worked desperately to earn money so he would return sooner!

Already suffering from a brain condition caused by longing, pressure, old age, and other reasons, his father had suddenly passed away while driving fatigued.

And even more tragically, his mother... had been in the car too...

When the call came, his mother had been resuscitated, but she was still not out of danger. In order to contact him, the police had even worked overtime to reach the embassy and had searched through almost every overseas number they could find.

He had truly panicked then. He had always drifted through life without ambition, yet he had never been so terrified.

His heart felt as though it were being cut apart, and he hurriedly boarded the nearest flight.

Then the plane crashed.

Amid the soaring flames, he had thought he could quietly fade away, find release, and go seek his father in another world.

Yet the world had played an enormous joke on him?

When he received the terrible news and rushed to catch that flight, he had been so frantic that his heart had seemed ready to stop at any moment—or leap wildly out of his chest.

That had been the first time he had ever been so panicked. And now, this was the second...

Jiang Rui fell silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth and began rummaging through everything. He was looking for a phone...

The modern world... or perhaps he had been rescued?

But he wasn't in a hospital, and he had somehow become the Moe King.

At that thought, Jiang Rui's movements slowed.

He was afraid!!!

He was afraid this was his original world! His father was dead, and his mother's fate was unknown! He had wanted to care for them, but they could no longer wait—

In a daze, his gaze swept toward the foot of the bed. There was a full-length mirror there, positioned at a strange angle. It faced the gap between the window and bed, forming a triangle with the headboard and window. Wouldn't it reflect light like that?

It also seemed possible to see outside from the bed...?

He shook his head, casting the unnecessary thoughts from his mind. Slowing his movements, he walked toward the mirror and exhaled. Though still panicked, he felt much steadier.

The person in the mirror...

Was not what he had looked like before.

Light brown hair, a high nose bridge, deep-set yet light-colored eyes.

A foreigner? Jiang Rui frowned. No, mixed race!

He should keep looking for the phone. At least it was a source of information about this world, and he could check the date while he was at it...

What if...

What if he had returned to the past?

"Bzz bzz bzz." "Bzz bzz bzz."

An urgent phone vibration sounded from beneath the bed, interrupting Jiang Rui's hopeful train of thought. At the same time—

Bang!

A bullet broke through the window's negligible resistance and pierced his head...

PS: The protagonist's form is Rimuru's appearance. The first volume is a fast-paced transition at the beginning.

Friends who think the Marvel arc is too short, don't worry. There will be more later.

Also, these words were last revised when the story had reached 480,000 words. Looking back now, the first volume is already unbearable to read, so those with strong poison resistance can pretend I said nothing. Those with weak poison resistance can start from Volume Two.

My first book. Still growing, w.