Gone Girl

Gone Girl

County High School.

Graduation ceremony.

"It went up! Both intelligence and speed went up!"

A trace of joy appeared on Adam's blank face. He had been transported here for over a year now. No matter how useless this nameless system was, he had gradually figured out what it could do.

Intelligence seemed to be directly linked to IQ. It had shown no change over the past year, so based on the growth patterns of his other attributes, Adam guessed it had something to do with his friends' IQs.

Spend enough time with smart people, and you were bound to become a little smarter yourself!

So, when he learned that a nine-year-old boy named Sheldon Lee Cooper in the school's middle division had skipped fifth grade and would enter ninth grade in high school next semester, Adam decided to befriend him.

This was a super genius with an IQ of 187!

But before he could become Sheldon's friend, Juno, one of his classmates, suddenly gave him a surprise!

It was both shocking and delightful!

The shock was that she had actually noticed him, which sent chills down his spine. The delight was that his intelligence had finally increased for the first time. It seemed his guess had been right: interacting with geniuses with high IQs could indeed increase intelligence!

It was just that this increase was a little too dangerous...

Strength, endurance, and speed were all useful attributes, but they did little to help his lifespan. Only improving his intelligence could truly help him escape the tragedy of dying young.

Based on what he had learned over the past year, increasing his lifespan seemed to depend on good deeds—and they had to be direct, hands-on good deeds. Things like helping an old granny cross the street or massaging an old man's sore back. But those increased it far too slowly. Adam had spent over half a year at it and only accumulated 0.05 years. It was barely worth the effort, better than nothing.

Fortunately, he once saved a bratty kid who had dashed across the street, and that gave him hope, because it had directly added 0.01!

Afterward, he understood. Saving a life was worth more than building a seven-story pagoda. If he wanted to increase his lifespan, he still had to study medicine—and become a top-tier surgeon. Only then could he reliably and safely save lives.

But then he ran into a problem. As an ordinary person, inheriting a body even worse than his own—a dim-witted, adorable academic failure—the odds of studying medicine and becoming a top surgeon were simply too low!

Doctors and lawyers in the United States were both considered representative middle-class professions. In other words, becoming a doctor or lawyer meant you were guaranteed entry into the middle class, and with a little effort, you could become one of its best.

Thus, the competition was extremely fierce.

First, you had to finish college and earn a bachelor's degree. Only then would you have the chance to compete with classmates, upperclassmen, and even teachers, construction workers, or other completely unrelated people in their thirties or forties who wanted to switch careers, for a place in medical school.

After four years of medical school, not everyone could graduate; the washout rate was high. Then came three to seven years of residency. Working one hundred hours a week during training was standard practice. Only if you endured it could you be considered a qualified doctor, and even then, you were still a long way from the top.

You had to memorize an enormous amount of medical knowledge. Without a good brain, firm resolve, and enough hard work, you were dreaming!

Fortunately, he had a system. Even if it was a Damn System, it still gave him a chance to increase his intelligence and reduce the difficulty of studying. Otherwise, even with an endurance of 300 that let him work twice as hard, his chances would still be slim.

Hard work could make up for shortcomings, sure, but he really did not have much time!

These thoughts flashed through his mind. Adam looked again at his attribute panel. The strength attribute seemed related to positive emotions like familial affection and friendship. Speed was probably related to negative emotions like fear. As for endurance... well, he still had not figured that one out!

Clap clap clap!

Another round of enthusiastic applause jolted Adam awake. His face instantly slipped back into character. Amy, who was slowly stepping down from the stage, did indeed glance at him. Seeing his expression, she smiled faintly before looking away.

After the ceremony, the graduates, all dressed in graduation gowns, took pictures outside. Ever the dedicated actor, Adam sidled over again and took several photos with "his beloved Amy." Only after Amy reminded him several times did he leave, "looking back with every step."

"Amy is too much! Not only did she rob the cradle, she's dumping him without a second thought!"

"Adam is so pitiful!"

The girls who witnessed the scene condemned her one after another. There was no other reason: Adam had a perfectly ordinary face!

Although Adam had been transported here for over a year, he was still often amazed whenever he looked in the mirror.

So he understood why his predecessor had managed to date even a popular senior girl several years older than himself. It was perfectly reasonable!

Hearing the faint condemnations drifting over, Amy's smile grew sweeter. She finally put Adam behind her completely. Soon, she would leave this place and begin a new life. There was nothing here worth her attachment. She had willingly let go of everything. Perfect!

He pushed his bicycle away from the school, looking back with every step. He kept it up until the school was completely out of sight, then mounted the bike and pedaled furiously, going faster and faster as he sped away.

There were few vehicles on the suburban road, and at this hour, there were none at all. Towering trees on both sides shaded the sunlight, leaving the road cool and dim. It was quite the American countryside scene.

"Ah!!!!"

After riding nonstop for a long time, Adam looked back. The straight road behind him was completely empty. At last, he could not hold back any longer and shouted at the top of his lungs, venting the frustration he had bottled up for more than a year!

He had been nothing more than an ordinary person, yet after being transported here, he had been forced into becoming an actor. The bitterness and frustration of it were beyond words. The more he said, the more it hurt!

And it was not as if he had a choice. His ex-girlfriend, the mysterious Amy, was truly "mysterious." She excelled at controlling everything and had arranged every aspect of Adam's life with meticulous clarity. After the initial thrill wore off, Adam quickly grew tired of it.

But when he realized that this Amy was the teenage version of the female lead from Gone Girl, the classic romantic thriller he had watched in his previous life, he gave in.

Breaking up was impossible. There was no way he would ever be the one to suggest a breakup in this lifetime!

The only thing he could do was play along and make Amy let go of him on her own. Fortunately, the teenage Amy's feelings for the young Adam were only adolescent restlessness, not love. At graduation, she took the initiative to break up with him—pitying, yet resolute.

Adam's feelings at the time had been impossibly complicated. Not only did he have to forcibly suppress his wild joy, he also had to show admiration, reluctance, pain, and all sorts of other emotions.

If he showed even the slightest hint of happiness, Amy would definitely notice. Once she lost what she believed was her control, she would absolutely take revenge on Adam by any means necessary.

At best, his reputation would be destroyed and he would end up in prison. At worst, his throat would be slit and he would die a miserable death!

You could never imagine how she might take revenge on you. Tell me, wouldn't you be scared?

Fortunately, it was all over!

"I'm free! Finally free!!!"