Being Viewed Differently Comes at a Price

What met his eyes was a stretch of pure white.

Fang Zheng stood at the center of the platform, feeling nothing amiss. But that didn't put him at ease—having inherited this body's memories, he knew full well that the power level of this world was extremely high. He'd read his share of web novels; in many of them, so-called "rule-based" powers were trump cards only the top experts could wield. But in this world, people had even learned to harness certain "rule-based" forces as their own weapons and tools!

Take this platform array before him, for instance—it used the rule power of "Order" and "Purification," which the Cultists hated most. And this power was something the Cultists simply couldn't resist, because it was the world's fundamental law; opposing it meant opposing the entire world.

What Fang Zheng worried about was what effect this power might have on him.

He wasn't a Cultist, and he had no interest in the messy beliefs crammed into this body's head. But Fang Zheng wasn't sure whether he, as a reincarnated transmigrator, might cause some disturbance in this world's Order laws.

It was like antivirus software: if you just wanted to "kill the virus," it was simple—find the "virus" that had harmed the system and eliminate it.

But don't forget, sometimes the firewall would also flag "an unknown program attempting to modify system settings."

"Ding."

Just as that thought crossed his mind—bad luck always comes when you least want it—a crisp system notification rang in his ears, followed by a line of text appearing before his eyes.

[Order Parallel Port Detected]

[Initiating Port Activation]

Oh for crying out loud, hold on—tell me what the hell this is first!

Staring at that message that said almost nothing at all, Fang Zheng was taken aback. But before he could find customer service to figure out what was going on, the notification line vanished with a "whoosh," and then Fang Zheng suddenly felt the pure white radiance around him begin to tremble.

"This is...!?"

The old man looked up in surprise at the platform before him. Before his eyes, the pillar of white light blazed even brighter. Not only that, but the Order Array carved beneath the platform now shimmered with golden brilliance. It transformed into threads of light, silently appearing around the white pillar's perimeter, then coalescing into runes filled with sacred meaning.

"This is... Law Resonance!!"

"Whoosh—"

The white pillar of light dissipated instantly, leaving only Fang Zheng standing at the platform's center. Everything before might have been an illusion—if not for that sudden system notification popping up, Fang Zheng probably wouldn't have noticed anything unusual. But now... hah, watching the Old Bishop look like he'd seen a ghost, Fang Zheng's own mood wasn't much better.

Didn't everyone say golden fingers were supposed to give the protagonist cheats? Why was this system only screwing me over?

"Is there a problem?"

While inwardly cursing the system for causing him trouble, Fang Zheng put on a curious expression and looked at the old man before him. The Old Bishop, hearing his question, shuddered, then stared at him in astonishment.

"Order above, I never imagined you would trigger Law Resonance!"

"Law Resonance?"

Hearing that term, Fang Zheng was completely clueless, having no idea what it meant. But judging by the Old Bishop's expression, it didn't seem like a bad thing?

"Yes, sir, please follow me..."

The Old Bishop's attitude had grown much more respectful now—earlier he'd called Fang Zheng "young man," but now it was "sir." He led Fang Zheng inside, explaining what Law Resonance meant as they walked. Through the Old Bishop's explanation, Fang Zheng came to understand.

Simply put, "Law Resonance" wasn't some sign of a savior or a legendary hero's mark, as Fang Zheng had imagined. In fact, it was more like an omen—this phenomenon meant that the person who triggered it wasn't rejected by Order, but rather welcomed by it. It indicated that Order welcomed his presence here and believed his being here would benefit the Order.

It was like drawing a "Good Fortune" lot—not as good as "Great Fortune," but still better than "Misfortune."

"I recall the last one to achieve Law Resonance was a brave warrior who helped us eliminate the necromancer entrenched in the Black Tower... That was truly a grueling battle..."

The Old Bishop was quite excited, chattering on about his past. Listening to him, Fang Zheng's tense heart relaxed a little. Though he didn't know exactly what Law Resonance was, he could be sure it wasn't harmful to him... well, probably not.

"...I know why you've come. Under normal circumstances, it would be hard for me to find you a guide. But thank the heavens, Great Knight Stone is here right now. I'm sure he'll be interested in a chosen one who's triggered Law Resonance!"

Oh for crying out loud!!

Hearing the old man's words, Fang Zheng's face turned pale. A Great Knight was one rank above a Knight, considered mid-to-high-level combat power in this world. He'd originally just wanted to join the Holy Temple as an ordinary Acolyte Knight and take on simple quests. But judging by this, they were going to assign him a personal mentor?

And a Great Knight at that?

Fang Zheng couldn't guarantee whether the higher-ups knew about his existence. What if they knew about this body's original identity and drew their swords the moment they met?

He'd planned to take the low-profile route!

But now, it seemed the plan would have to change again.

Just then, the old man had led Fang Zheng to a training ground on the side of the Holy Temple. It was an open space, with only a tall figure swinging a longsword in practice.

It was a middle-aged man with golden hair and the robust physique typical of Westerners, standing a full two meters tall. He was bare-chested, vigorously wielding a two-handed Greatsword. The blade was as wide as two palms and taller than a man. Yet in his hands, that massive sword moved as lightly as a willow branch. Fang Zheng could barely track the arc of his swings. After a long moment, the golden-haired man suddenly pulled back and stepped away. The instant he did, a powerful burst of sword energy exploded, shattering all the wooden posts around him into splinters.

This was the power of a Great Knight?!

Seeing this, Fang Zheng couldn't help but be awed. Such strength was practically enough to cut down a thousand enemies single-handedly!

"Hey, Hark, what brings you here?"

The man turned around, looking at the Old Bishop beside Fang Zheng, a smug grin spreading across his face.

"What, you want to come down and spar with me?"

"Forget it—these old bones of mine can't take your abuse, Stone."

Hearing Stone's words, the Old Bishop rolled his eyes, then stepped aside and gestured.

"I brought him to see you."

"A noble pretty boy?"

At the Old Bishop's words, Stone glanced at Fang Zheng and curled his lip in disdain.

"What do you want me to see him for? It's not like he's some noble lady."

"He wants to join the Holy Temple and become a Guardian Knight Trainee."

"Can't you just handle that yourself? Isn't it your specialty to brush off those idle noble brats who live off their family's wealth?"

Stone clearly had no interest in Fang Zheng, and it was hardly surprising—Fang Zheng's current body was far from strong, even frail by most standards. To Stone, this was just another spoiled scion of a decadent noble house, the kind he always looked down on.

But the Old Bishop didn't seem bothered by Stone's words. He simply smiled faintly and offered a hint.

"He just triggered a Law Resonance."

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Stone finally stopped what he was doing. He narrowed his eyes and took a proper look at Fang Zheng for the first time.

"Kid, you want to become a Guardian Knight Trainee?"

"Yes."

Facing Stone's question, Fang Zheng nodded. He was already here, and there was no turning back now. Hearing Fang Zheng's answer, a mocking expression crept onto Stone's face.

"Well then, since you want to be a Guardian Knight Trainee, you should know that everyone has to pass an assessment."

"Of course... I know."

"Good."

As he spoke, Stone stepped onto the training ground, swung the Greatsword in his hand once more, and looked at Fang Zheng with a half-smile.

"Then come on. You're in luck—I'll personally handle your assessment... What do you think? Isn't that an honor?"

"This..."

Staring at the muscular man before him, Fang Zheng was momentarily speechless. The Old Bishop beside him furrowed his brow.

"Stone, don't go too far."

"What's the harm, old man?"

Stone waved a hand dismissively, unconcerned by the Old Bishop's displeased complaint.

"You just said he triggered a Law Resonance, didn't you? I want to see for myself what this scrawny kid is capable of, to actually set off a Law Resonance!"

As expected, being singled out came at a cost.

Hearing Stone's words, Fang Zheng sighed inwardly. But after only a moment's thought, he stepped down from the platform and onto the training ground. Seeing Fang Zheng's move, both the Old Bishop and Stone were taken aback. Then, the old man's face showed worry, while Stone let out a whistle.

"Not bad, kid. You've got some guts. Ready already? Go ahead and use all your strength—let me see your limits."

"Of course, Sir Stone."

As he spoke, Fang Zheng slowly drew Skybreaker from his waist. He had already decided: since things had come to this, his plan had to change. If the low-profile route wouldn't work, then he'd show his strength and take the high road instead. After all, with a buff as big as "Law Resonance" hanging over him, it was acceptable for him, as a chosen one, to possess some unexpectedly powerful abilities, wasn't it?

And besides... Fang Zheng wanted to experience for himself what true strength meant in this world.

"Please guide me."

Looking at Stone before him, Fang Zheng said quietly. Then, in a flash, his whole body blurred, and the longsword in his hand turned into a bolt of lightning, thrusting forward!