Transition Chapter
Tang Xi’s eyes widened abruptly. Before he could say anything, he was pulled into the system space.
What met his eyes was the familiar white void—spotless and completely empty.
It was eerily quiet, with only the sound of his own breathing breaking the silence.
If not for the lingering warmth of the man’s touch on his cat ears, Tang Xi would have suspected he had merely imagined everything.
1551 drifted over from the direction of a white sofa. As it passed in front of Tang Xi, he swiftly reached out and grabbed it.
Trapped in his palm, the little ball of light played dead.
Tang Xi shook the glowing ball in his hand.
[Stop pretending. What did he mean by what he just said?]
‘See you in the next world?’
Could it be that the poop scooper was also a mission taker…?
1551: [I don’t know!]
Tang Xi didn’t believe it. He shook the ball harder, then directly asked, [What is the poop scooper’s true identity? Why has he been following me through each world…?]
His voice gradually trailed off, and his gaze toward 1551 grew scrutinizing.
However, being glared at with such round, adorable cat eyes didn’t have much of an intimidating effect. 1551 let out a miserable sigh.
[I really don’t know! I’m just as curious as you. This has never happened before—not even the higher-ups detected anything unusual.]
Fortunately, this anomaly hadn’t disrupted the peace of the small worlds yet.
The poop scooper had played the role of the villain flawlessly and had even been successfully “saved” by the cat. He had given up on sinking deeper into the abyss.
Since the system was unreliable, Tang Xi could only analyze things himself.
[Ji Fuqing has no memories. Not just him—every world’s poop scooper only remembers their identity as the villain.]
1551: [Are you sure?]
Tang Xi nodded firmly.
1551 sighed in relief. [That’s good. That means he can only recall everything once he leaves the mission world. So as long as you treat him as just another native villain in each world, you don’t have to worry about any unexpected incidents.]
Tang Xi, however, was more concerned about the poop scooper’s true identity than the system was.
1551: [Let me go first. I’ve already reported this to the judge.]
Tang Xi refused to release his grip. [I know you already reported it before. Since the regular judge couldn’t help, why not ask someone even more powerful?]
1551 was momentarily stunned. [Someone more powerful?]
After a two-second pause, it suddenly raised its voice. [Are you talking about the Supreme Judge?!]
[The Supreme Judge is incredibly busy! How could we bother him over something so trivial?!]
It was so excited that its voice even cracked slightly.
Tang Xi pouted.
He couldn’t understand why all the systems held that person in such high regard.
Just as Tang Xi was about to give up, 1551 suddenly heated up.
1551: [I just received a message.]
[What message?] Tang Xi asked, only mildly interested.
1551: [The judge wants to meet you.]
Finally freed from Tang Xi’s grip, 1551 spun around comfortably.
Seeing the confusion on Tang Xi’s face, it reassured him: [It’s nothing serious. Maybe it’s because you got another 3S rating on your mission, so they want to have a face-to-face chat. The judge in charge of me appreciates talent.]
Perhaps systems took after their hosts—1551 was also quite dense in some ways.
Without overthinking, Tang Xi opened the door and stepped out. This was his first time leaving the system space to see the outside world.
Beyond the room was a direct teleportation point to the Tasker Transit Hub, a place filled with taskers recruited from various worlds.
The workforce of the vast multiverse.
At first, Tang Xi felt a little self-conscious about his cat ears, but after seeing several people with rather peculiar appearances, he relaxed.
Taskers came from all kinds of worlds—some were fully human, while others had features that set them apart. Even beast-like forms were perfectly normal in the transit hub.
The systems varied too—some appeared in irregular shapes floating beside their hosts.
Only 1551 was a smooth, round sphere, which made it a favorite of cat-like creatures.
The transit hub had a mix of architectural styles. The area where Tang Xi stood looked like something straight out of a sci-fi movie, complete with a massive Damocles sword suspended overhead.
A few steps forward, and the scenery changed completely—green tiles, red walls, an entirely different aesthetic.
The hub looked like a chaotic patchwork of various worlds, yet somehow, it was breathtakingly beautiful.
Tang Xi gazed at the scenery in awe, unaware that he himself had become part of it.
As taskers passed by, many glanced in his direction—some even stopped openly to admire him.
A clean, delicate-looking young man didn’t seem like someone suited to traveling through mission worlds, but he was undeniably pleasant to look at.
While marveling at the transit hub’s ever-changing landscape, Tang Xi followed the system’s guidance toward the teleportation point.
It was worth noting that the hub housed hundreds of teleportation points, each designed for taskers. Some even led directly to dining districts, offering a convenient way to grab a meal.
Halfway there, he was suddenly stopped.
Looking up, he saw a tall man in a suit.
With a slightly playful tone, the man asked, “Would you be interested in visiting Banquet City? I have a VIP card.”
As he spoke, he pulled a golden card from his pocket and flashed it in front of Tang Xi.
Before Tang Xi could ask, 1551 quickly explained: [Banquet City is a massive entertainment plaza with everything—food, drinks, parties every night. Many taskers go there to unwind after finishing a mission.]
Tang Xi smiled politely at the man, about to decline, when suddenly, a shadow loomed behind him.
“Hello, Tasker Tang Xi.”
Tang Xi turned his head in confusion and saw a man dressed in a black and gold robe, wearing a mask.
As soon as the man appeared, everyone nearby lowered their heads in respect—including the people who had just been chatting with Tang Xi.
Tang Xi heard them greet the masked man with deep reverence, calling out, “Greetings, Judge.”
Even 1551 and the other systems followed suit.
Having never left the system space, received no formal training, and been dragged into this job halfway, Tang Xi panicked for a moment, unsure if he should greet the man as well.
Just as he was about to lower his head, the Judge spoke. “Tasker Tang Xi, do you have a moment to speak with me?”
Tang Xi nodded blankly. “Okay.”
The man who had been chatting with him earlier didn’t dare show any displeasure in front of the Judge. Instead, he slipped Tang Xi a business card, believing that the polite smile Tang Xi had given him earlier was an agreement.
Tang Xi awkwardly held the card, then casually stuffed it into his pocket before following the black-robed Judge.
Through a teleportation point, they arrived at a cold, minimalist space.
Unlike the lively atmosphere of the taskers’ area, this place was eerily quiet and monotonous—so uniform that even the judges looked the same.
Seeing so many identical black-robed figures made Tang Xi feel a little dizzy.
However, their resemblance was limited to clothing, speech patterns, and movements. Their height, build, and even the lower half of their exposed faces showed clear differences beneath the masks.
1551 leaned in and whispered, [This is my direct superior. Actually, he’s a pretty nice guy.]
The Judge seemed to hear that remark and cast a cool glance at 1551.
After leading Tang Xi into a private office and closing the door, the Judge unexpectedly used a respectful tone. “Please forgive my abruptness earlier.”
He spoke methodically, as if carrying out a carefully assigned task, and went on to explain some of the benefits available to taskers in detail.
Tang Xi listened in a daze. It felt strange—someone in such a high position was treating him far too kindly.
With no better choice, he simply nodded along. Yet, by the time their conversation ended, his treatment had significantly improved.
1551 muttered in a hushed voice, [Only veteran taskers usually receive this kind of privilege…]
Tang Xi had only traveled through a handful of worlds—he was nowhere near being a veteran.
The Judge, however, showed no reaction to their confusion. Once everything was arranged, he respectfully sent them on their way.
Still bewildered, Tang Xi returned to the system space, completely unaware that, after his departure, the mysterious Judge had gone straight to meet the Supreme Judge—the one who governed countless worlds.
Lowering his head with the utmost caution, the Judge didn’t dare glance at the high throne before him.
Thus, he failed to notice the glowing screen before the Supreme Judge, displaying an image of a young man’s smile—gentle, radiant, and unforgettable.
The space was vast beyond imagination, as grand as the universe itself, yet utterly empty—except for the scattered points of light. Each light represented a world.
And they all revolved around that man.
Like a solitary king, the figure above finally spoke. “He should be happy, right?”
The Judge carefully considered his words before replying respectfully, “No one would turn down such favorable conditions.”
The man said nothing, only nodding almost imperceptibly.
. . . . .
1551: [Oh, right! You still haven’t claimed your reward from the last side mission.]
Tang Xi rubbed his hands together excitedly. “Let me try it now!”
A massive gacha machine materialized before him, filled with colorful capsules the size of fists.
He turned the dial, and soon, a capsule dropped out. When he twisted it open, inside was a Teleportation Talisman.
1551: [This is a great item! In a mission world, you can teleport anywhere without worrying about character settings or plot constraints.]
A crucial life-saving tool in times of crisis.
But Tang Xi looked disappointed. He would have preferred a giant plush toy or a truckload of jerky.
Seeing this clueless little kitten completely lacking survival instincts, 1551 sighed in exasperation and promptly threw him into the next mission world.
. . . . .
This time, the new world was an apocalyptic one.
When Tang Xi opened his eyes, he found himself trapped inside a container.
His vision was limited, and he could barely make out the scene outside.
He struggled to identify what he was seeing but couldn’t recognize any of the machines around him. Even so, he quickly realized—he was being held as a research subject.
1551 panicked. [Oh no! I accidentally messed up the timeline! You were supposed to arrive one month before the apocalypse started… but now it’s already been a year since it began!]
Tang Xi blinked blankly, then calmly reassured the system.
[It’s fine. Let me go through the original host’s memories first.]
The host’s early memories were normal. An orphan, but supported by kind people in society, he made it to university and funded himself through part-time jobs.
Then, during his second semester—everything changed.
The cause? A blood-red moon.
Animals were the first to mutate. Two hours later, humans started falling into a deep sleep.
The sleep lasted anywhere from seven to eight hours, but when they woke up—the world had already turned upside down.
Some people had transformed into zombies. Others gained supernatural abilities.
And thus, the apocalypse began.
The original host awakened a healing ability and barely managed to escape campus alongside his roommates and fellow students.
Healing abilities weren’t particularly rare in the apocalypse, but his was special—it made him immune to the zombie virus.
His roommate, however, was an ambitious man. Among the hundred or so survivors from their school, he had awakened a fire ability and naturally became their leader.
He looked down on support-type ability users like the original host. But the original host, being optimistic and pure-hearted, had a one-sided crush on this charismatic leader.
Completely oblivious to the hidden disdain, he naively revealed his immunity to his roommate.
And that was his downfall.
His roommate sold this secret in exchange for a place in a survivor base.
The base leader was short-sighted and greedy. Upon discovering the host’s value, they locked him in an underground research facility and kept the secret for themselves—until two weeks ago, when they leaked the information to larger survivor bases in exchange for resources.
Ever since, the small base had been bleeding him dry like a parasite.
But karma came swiftly.
Shortly after they exposed the secret, a zombie horde attacked their base.
Trapped in the underground lab, the original host had no idea what was happening outside. All he knew was—no one had come to check on him for three days.
That was where his memories ended.
A literal hell-mode start.
Tang Xi, still eerily calm, asked the system: [Would you like to be made into a cat teaser wand or a chew toy?]
Author’s Note: The new world is an apocalypse! Click to read a kitty take on zombies in an all-out brawl! 🐱🧟♂️🔥
Ohoho this going to be good since I love apocalypse zombie arc! Also I think ML is the supreme judge hmm 😏