Sign or Not Sign?

The system orb radiating ominous white light lunged at Su Miao's trembling, Dead Fish Eyes-shaped soul origin like a starving wolf pouncing on prey, carrying an icy will of forced binding that brooked no refusal.

Su Miao felt as though her consciousness had been tossed into a high-speed spinning washing machine, every thought churned into a muddled paste.

Utter terror.

—This was absolutely a shady shop forcing a sale!

And utter resignation.

—Whatever. I've got one lousy life; do whatever you want with it!

The two were locked in a fierce tug-of-war.

Just as the white light was about to touch the core of her soul, at that critical moment, the orb abruptly slammed on the brakes.

[Warning: Detected host soul resistance exceeding the expected threshold. Forced binding may damage the soul origin, reducing the value of the 'product'... ahem, the 'host.' Activating backup plan B: Soul Contract binding procedure.]

A trace of barely perceptible impatience and irritation seeped from the system core, as though a salesperson who hated trouble had no choice but to go through a cumbersome contract process.

With a flash of light, a scroll exuding an ancient aura slowly unfurled in the void, floating before Su Miao.

Its material was neither leather nor silk, and it was covered in dense clauses written in twisted, profound runes, faintly radiating the soul-binding force of: "Sign this, and don't even think about reneging."

"Dear host, please take a look—"

The system's voice resumed its falsely sweet tone.

"This is the <Salted Fish Turnaround System Binding and Service Agreement>, tailor-made by this system for you, with your rights and interests fully protected. Please review it carefully, then sign it with your soul imprint~"

Su Miao's consciousness, still reeling from being shaken about, barely managed to focus as she looked toward the scroll.

At a single glance, her Dead Fish Eyes in soul form nearly popped out of their sockets.

This...

What the hell was this thing?

The title at the beginning was enormous and glittering with golden light: <Salted Fish Turnaround System Ultimate VIP Privilege Agreement>, followed by a line of tiny print.

"Congratulations on obtaining eligibility for a 996-free, rat-race-free experience with direct access to a Saint Seat in the Prehistoric World!"

But aside from the title, the runes in the main body were criminally tiny!

They were practically finer than the hairs on an ant's leg!

And they kept faintly twisting and flickering, making one dizzy just looking at them, fiercely resisting being read!

An intensely familiar terror—the terror of being ruled by scammy clauses—instantly surged into Su Miao's heart.

This move looked exactly like the user agreements of certain unscrupulous apps: terrifyingly long, with all the crucial information buried deep within!

"Hold it!"

Su Miao gathered every scrap of willpower she had left and protested.

"The print is way too small! Who can even read it?! Is there a voice-read function? Or a bold, enlarged version?"

The light orb flickered, its tone slightly perfunctory:

[Host, these are Dao Runes containing supreme power. Their size is determined by the Rules and cannot be altered. Please rest assured, this system upholds fairness, justice, and transparency...]

"Transparency my ass!"

Su Miao was furious. She had seen this kind of fooling-people routine far too many times!

"If I can't read it, I'm not signing!"

Perhaps her resistance truly had an effect, or perhaps those "Dao Runes" themselves felt a little embarrassed.

The tiny runes suddenly flickered several times. Some of the key clauses actually lit up slightly, becoming a little... only a little clearer.

Su Miao hurriedly fixed her gaze on them.

[Supplementary Provision, Chapter Seven, Article Thirty-Eight: This system retains final interpretive authority over this agreement and all services.]

[Risk Notice, Chapter Twelve, Article Five: The journey through the Prehistoric World may involve, including but not limited to, the following risks: attacks by Chaos Demon Gods, being swept into an immeasurable Tribulation, having treasures schemed away by Great Experts, suffering Qi Deviation during cultivation, utter obliteration of body and soul, and so on... The host shall bear all consequences independently.]

[Performance Statement, Chapter Twenty, Article One: The host must actively complete the system-issued 'little' lie-flat tasks (failure or exceeding the time limit will result in the deduction of corresponding Merit Points; when Merit Points become negative, negative statuses such as 'Cursed by Misfortune' and 'Accelerated Heavenly Condemnation' will be triggered).]

[Debt Clause, Chapter Thirty, Article Seven: The initial services provided by the system (including but not limited to identity implantation, basic Cultivation Techniques, and beginner benefits) shall be converted into Merit Point loans, with an annualized interest rate... (the following string of runes is twisted and blurred beyond recognition)]

[Note: After binding, the host's soul will be deeply linked to this system. Unilaterally terminating the binding will result in a crippled soul and eternal reincarnative damnation.]

Su Miao: "..."

She felt like her very soul was smoking.

Final interpretive authority?

Utter obliteration of body and soul?

Deducting Merit Points?

And usury?!

Breaking the binding meant eternal reincarnative damnation?!

What kind of Salted Fish Turnaround Agreement was this? It was plainly a grotesque, super-invincible scam of a patchwork monster made from an Indenture Contract + Suicide Consent Form + Usurious Loan Agreement!

"Merit Points? What even is this merit? Is it money? Can I top up? If I recharge for VIP, can I skip ads... ah, no, skip Heavenly Tribulation?"

She instinctively tried to understand this unfamiliar Prehistoric World term with Blue Star logic, and all sorts of mobile game pay-to-win interfaces instantly flashed through her mind.

The system orb seemed to choke on her question, its light flickering erratically:

[Merit is the recognition of the Prehistoric World's heaven and earth... uh, you can understand it as a composite of high-level currency, luck, aptitude, cultivation...! Its uses are endless! Once the host is bound, you will naturally understand! Now, please sign as soon as possible. Time is precious!]

The orb's tone turned urgent again, even carrying a faint, almost imperceptible hint of menace.

The scroll gave off an even stronger pull, urging Su Miao to leave behind her soul imprint.

Su Miao's Dead Fish Eyes soul trembled violently.

The immense temptation still echoed in her ears.

Lie flat, a Saint Seat, no need to work...

But the outrageous terms before her were even more horrifying.

Body and soul obliterated, usury, never to be reincarnated for eternity...

Both her reason and intuition were screaming madly:

Don't sign!

If she signed it, she would be doomed beyond redemption!

But did she have a choice?

Just as she was about to close her eyes in despair, thinking, Forget it. This rotten life is all I've got. Might as well sign, her consciousness swept over a line of tiny print at the very bottom edge of the scroll, so faint it nearly blended into the void.

The line was minuscule beyond belief. If she hadn't acquired the passive skill of "finding hidden clauses" after being screwed over by all sorts of contracts in life, she never would have noticed it!

The words were not Dao Runes, but a kind of square, neat Blue Star writing she was exceptionally familiar with. There was even a tiny telephone receiver icon beside them:

[If you have objections to any clause of this agreement, or encounter forced binding, false advertising, or similar circumstances, please call the Cross-Dimensional Soul Complaint Hotline: Sea of Chaos—Prehistoric World Branch. Note: Filing a complaint consumes a small amount of soul energy, and resolution is not guaranteed.]

Su Miao.

"!!!"

?!

A consumer complaint hotline?!

And it was the Sea of Chaos—Prehistoric World Branch?!

This was way too bizarre!

Did the Heavens and Myriad Worlds all fall under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Industry and Commerce?!

How the hell did a complaint hotline connect to this godforsaken void?!

The sheer absurdity slammed into her, but at the same time, an indescribable force rose from the depths of her soul—perhaps from the last shred of dignity she possessed as a Blue Star consumer—and inspiration struck!

Complain!

She had to complain!

Just like she had wanted to countless times in life!

Faced with unfair clauses and tyrannical rules, even knowing the hope was slim, filing a complaint wouldn't really kill her... uh, she was dead already anyway!

"Try it! Just try it!"

A powerful thought consumed her entire consciousness.

"What if it works?! What if they're blind to it?!"

With the reckless, desperate mindset of treating a dead horse like a living one, of giving it a try since she couldn't exactly die any deader, Su Miao gathered the last trace of her meager soul energy—only a tiny bit of which had just recovered. Instead of agreeing to or rejecting the contract, she concentrated all her will and frantically "dialed" that absurd complaint number!

"!!! I want to file a complaint! Forced binding! False advertising! Contract fraud! Vague terms! Hidden usury!!"

She screamed herself hoarse in her heart, as though this were not some insubstantial complaint, but the final punch she could throw against her entire fucked-up fate!

The instant her will touched that line of tiny print—

BZZZZ!!!

The entire void suddenly shook violently!

It was an indescribable tremor, as though it had come from the Rules themselves!

[!!! War... Warning!!!]

The mechanical voice emitted by the system orb instantly changed pitch, filled with unprecedented shock and chaos!

[Illegal soul operation detected!!! Unknown Rules interference!!! Connection channel established!!!]

[Error! Error! Error! Code: ILLEGAL_CONSUMER_RIGHTS_ACTIVITY(Illegal Consumer Rights Activity)!!!]

[Cross-Dimensional Rules traceback strike encountered!!! Firewall collapsing!!!]

The white light on the orb's surface flickered wildly, its colors frantically switching between sickly white, crimson, and garbled text like a virus-infected computer screen!

It could no longer maintain that alluring facade. Its voice turned shrill and panicked, even accompanied by crackling electrical static!

The suspended, utterly scam-ridden Soul Contract scroll suddenly twisted amid the violent tremors and the system's screams. The runes upon it rapidly blurred and dissipated like ink splashed with water!

Su Miao stared dumbfounded at this sudden, earth-shaking reversal.

That had only been a venting complaint, one she hadn't held the slightest hope for... and yet... it really... worked?!

Motherland! Administration for Industry and Commerce!

Had your power already spread across the Heavens and Myriad Worlds?!

Did the folks back home know?!