Scarlet

Hu Qi said he was embarrassed, but his hands were brutally honest as he accepted it without hesitation.

After all, his understanding of this world was extremely limited. Relying solely on the original owner's memories was never entirely reliable.

And now that he was lying in a hospital bed, having a phone would undoubtedly be of immense help to him.

At the very least, he could use it to pass the time.

The two chatted briefly.

Li Yi had plans with classmates that afternoon, so after helping empty the urinal, he left with the lunchbox.

Before leaving, he told Hu Qi to call him if he needed anything.

Watching the other man's departing back, Hu Qi's smile slowly faded.

His current situation was not too terrible.

At the very least, this so-called aunt's family treated him fairly well.

Though that was only directed toward the original owner, not him, an outsider who had taken over the body.

Still, the result was the same.

But even so, he could not keep relying on their support forever.

Hu Qi did not have skin that thick. Not to mention that he was not the original owner, so he had no reason to enjoy all this with a clear conscience.

Therefore, the best solution was to make money.

At that thought, he could not help falling into deep contemplation.

From what he could tell so far, this world's level of technology was not much different from his previous life. It had everything it should have, with only a few minor differences in certain details.

This world was called Planet Earth. Its area was roughly three or four times that of Blue Star from his previous life.

Originally, it too had been a land of many nations, locked in year-round warfare.

But a century ago, things had changed somewhat.

The two strongest nations, Dragon Abyss and Purple Gold, had suddenly ceased their wars and shaken hands in peace.

They formed the present-day Xiya Federation, achieving complete unification.

This had concentrated educational resources even further, producing talents and elites in unending streams.

The original owner, however, had merely been a miserable young man who dropped out to work after finishing high school, able to earn only a little hard-earned money each day.

What was more, he now had a high chance of becoming a disabled person with impaired legs. His future was a vast blur of uncertainty.

Wanting to become rich by relying on technological knowledge from his previous life was clearly unrealistic.

After all, this world's technology was not inferior. In some aspects, it had even surpassed his former world.

As for becoming a plagiarist, copying ancient poems and song lyrics to become a great literary master or famed composer?

Heh! He sorrowfully discovered that he only knew a few simple verses and a handful of basic lyrics.

In a world that had already developed into a federal system, with the globe nearly unified, there was simply no chance of competing with those masters and renowned figures.

Still, if he handled things properly, earning a little money should not be much of a problem.

Of course, he would need to look up some information later and gain a concrete understanding of this world's situation before making a decision.

Hu Qi sighed inwardly. This transmigration was not even as good as his previous life.

In his previous life, he had at least struggled and bought himself a house, paying off most of the mortgage.

He could at least be considered a homeowner.

As far as Hu Qi was concerned, the only benefit of transmigrating was that it had turned him from a middle-aged man in his thirties into a young man barely past twenty.

Suddenly, at that moment, a flash of red light appeared before his eyes again.

But this time, the red light did not vanish in an instant.

The red light twisted continuously as though it possessed life.

Very quickly, it transformed into a line of strange runes seemingly traced in blood before his eyes.

Scarlet Modifier activating... Activation complete!

Though he did not recognize those characters, the instant he saw them, Hu Qi clearly understood their meaning.

He froze for a moment, then quietly pulled open the brownish-yellow privacy curtain beside him. He found that his two roommates showed no movement and seemed to have fallen asleep for their afternoon nap.

Only then did he retract his gaze and begin examining the panel that had appeared before him.

System Host: Hu Qi

Status: Abnormal (Both legs fractured) △

Age: 21 (Remaining Lifespan: 59 years)

Skill: Culinary Arts (Proficient) △

Modification Points: 8

The panel was exceedingly simple, containing only a few lines of text.

Hu Qi was no stranger to this thing, because it was a cheat program from a game he had developed. Due to its font, he had named it the Scarlet Modifier.

Its function was also simple: it could modify everything about a game character without side effects.

However, there had not originally been any so-called Modification Points. This thing must have undergone some unknown change during the time he had transmigrated.

After fiddling with it a little, he roughly understood the purpose of the Modification Points.

By using Modification Points, he could alter anything on the panel.

Furthermore, he could put away or summon this modification panel with a thought.

Just like a game character's personal status panel.

Hu Qi began scanning the panel.

Very quickly, he noticed that there was a flashing, rotating triangle-like symbol after both Status and Culinary Arts, indicating that they could be modified.

However, his gaze settled on the remaining Lifespan under the Age category.

At once, a more precise string of numbers appeared in his vision.

59 years, 36 days, 5 hours, 23 minutes, 36 seconds.

The final 36 seconds continued to decrease.

Can this be modified too? The thought suddenly surfaced in his mind.

Unfortunately, there was no triangular symbol behind that category indicating that it could be modified.

Perhaps he lacked sufficient Modification Points, or perhaps there was another reason.

Shaking his head, he lowered his gaze to the Skill category.

There was only one skill listed: Culinary Arts, and it had reached the Proficient level.

His gaze fell upon the word "Proficient," and a stream of information immediately surfaced.

Ordinary skills such as Culinary Arts were divided into six levels: Beginner, Familiar, Minor Achievement, Proficient, Major Achievement, and Perfection.

This Culinary Arts skill had not come from the original owner, but from Hu Qi himself. In his previous life on Blue Star, he had been a chef for more than a decade.

To him, all kinds of cuisines came readily to hand.

Yet unexpectedly, the panel's evaluation had only rated him as Proficient.

It seemed there was still plenty of room for his culinary skills to improve.

Hu Qi's gaze paused for only a moment before moving on.

Because his Modification Points had other uses.

With that in mind, he looked at the triangular symbol behind the Status category.

As his thoughts focused, a line of information appeared.

Status: Abnormal (Moderate fractures in both legs). Modify?

So it really worked!

Hu Qi's eyes lit up slightly. Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately issued a command in his mind.

"Scarlet! Modify!"

Buzz!

The instant Hu Qi's thought fell, the translucent Scarlet Panel before him trembled slightly.

His Modification Points dropped from 8 to 7.

At the same time, the rune representing the Status category twisted.

When it became clear again, it had changed into—

Status: Abnormal (Mild fractures in both legs)

"One Modification Point turned moderate fractures into mild fractures?"

Hu Qi pondered.

He could clearly feel two streams of cool air appear in his legs, which had originally been numb and aching.