Astral Ascendant: My Goldfinger's Forte is Deception

The timer beeped once when the time hit 2AM.

Zhao Fao ignored the sound and kept his eyes glued to the screen. Meanwhile, his hands continued moving rapidly across the keyboard as he typed lines upon lines of code into the system.

The company he worked for, Balswick Tech, was launching a new product the next week. As one of the lead programmers, the volume of work allocated to Zhao Fao over the past week had been nothing but a source of sleepless nights and constant migraines.

"This much work, but the extra pay bonus is not even up to twenty-five percent!" He grumbled to himself. "After this project, I'm better off looking for employment elsewhere."

Zhao Fao was exhausted. Seven straight years of working under these conditions had left a toll and he couldn't imagine living the rest of his life like this. At this rate, it wouldn't be surprising if he had a heart attack and dropped dead in two minutes.

[Ding! The host has met the hidden conditions required for integration. Binding to the Ultimate Deception System now....]

Zhao Fao suddenly had a blank look on his face and mentally uttered a 'what the f*ck?' What was the absurd sound in his head just now?

[Ding! Binding complete.]

Following this notification, Zhao Fao felt a sharp pain in his chest, followed by a series of anomalous body reactions. Blurred vision, erratic breathing, temporary paralysis.....he suddenly realized he was having a heart attack as his body slumped forward on his work desk.

"Shit! I was only joking about working myself to death earlier!" Zhao Fao thought in despair. The intense pain made it increasingly difficult to move and he could feel his lifeforce slip away rapidly.

As his consciousness faded, his last sight was the glowing screen in front of him.

He could not help but be secretly relieved.

At least it didn't reflect his balding hairline.

If it had, Zhao Fao might just had another heart attack all over again!

The world spun.

______

[Ding! Host vitals critically low. Cardiac failure detected. Initiating emergency protocol...]

[Ding! Activating Ultimate Deception System... Revival in progress...]

[System override complete. Consciousness preserved. New vessel integration commencing...]

______

"Ding!"

Zhao Fao was excited when he finally heard the notification sound in his head.

It had been a week now since he inexplicably transmigated to this world. It turned out to be a parallel world that was almost completely the same as Earth.

Cars? Phones? Tech? The Internet? This world had them too.

The major difference was that it was possible for one to harness the mysterious energy between heaven and earth in this world. Everyone here had the potential to cultivate divine abilities just like the characters in the webnovels Zhao Fao loved to read to pass time back on Earth. This was a world where the rules of reality favoured the mystical!

To the newly transmigated Zhao Fao, this setting was not bad and actually a much desirable reprieve from his lethargic life experience on Earth. As for ties, he had been an orphan and somewhat of a recluse, so he didn't feel too sad, especially when he realized the basic physical stats of his new life.

Young.

Agile.

Handsome.

Gone were the stiff bones and receeding hairline. Zhao Fao now had the body of a sixteen-year-old and had never felt happier in his life. His new long and wavy hair gave him more joy than anything ever had.

His predecessor, the previous owner of the body, was an orphan like him, but the conditions of foster care in this world weren't too bad. Little Zhao Fao was in his last year of high school and had a chance to turn his fate if he got into a prestigious university. Unfortunately, he had overexerted himself by studying for two months in a row without any sleep and eventually died, paving the way for Big Zhao Fao's possesion of his body.

"Since we have the same name and similar circumstances, there's no distinction between us. From now on, I will live the best life for the both of us. Good riddance to slave work and sleep deprivation!"

Turning his attention back to the notifications appearing in his mind, Zhao Fao smiled broadly. A classmate seated beside him noticed this and followed his line of sight to the voluptuous teacher in front. He leaned forward to whisper in Zhao Fao's ears.

"Tsk tsk, it turns out our new substitute teacher is your spec. I've never seen you look so pleased before!"

Zhao Fao gave the smirking guy a glare and ignored him altogether.

"......."

[Congratulations! Host has successfully activated the Ultimate Deception System]

[Objective: Survive. Adapt. Deceive.]

[Welcome to your new existence, Zhao Fao.]

"It's the same voice I heard before my heart attack!"

Zhao Fao could not help but wonder if the system was somehow involved in his untimely death and Little Zhao Fao's too.

[Ding! The host's death had nothing to with the system. Only at the verge of your death did the system perform a grand deception to give you another lease at life.]

"Oh!" Zhao Fao did not dwell too much on the matter. "What's the principle behind this grand deception that you speak of?"

[The System is not at liberty to explain the truth behind your transmigation at your present level.]

"Fine!" Zhao Fao was not unfamiliar with the operational mechanisms of Goldfingers and chose not to dwell on this for now. In due time, he would meet the requirements.

"System, introduce your functions!"

[The Ultimate Deception System is a support-type Goldfinger that provides the best help to the host. By completing specific tasks and mission prompts, the host earns rewards ranging from useful resources to unique opportunities, all designed for your growth optimization]

"What kind of missions are we talking about?" Zhao Fao was already lost in his imaginations. It would be best if he had missions that required him to be the hero saving damsels in distress....

[Ding! The host’s thoughts have been analyzed. Please note that the Ultimate Deception System does not cater to such shallow ambitions.]

Zhao Fang was stunned. But then again, if the system missions didn't involve tsunderes and harems, what was the point of claiming to be the best support-type Goldfinger? How useless!

The school bell suddenly rang. The students eagerly jumped to their feet and started to leave the class.

"Remember to turn in your projects before the week runs out. It will count as the continuous assessment for your final exams!"

The teacher, Miss Shao, frowned when she realized the few students who stopped to listen only did so to glance furtively at her figure. She sighed internally. If only she hadn't eaten so much papaya while growing up.....

Meanwhile, Zhao Fao quickly walked out of class and left for his foster home immediately. His thoughts were on the sudden prompt he had received just as the school bell rang.

[Demo Mission System Initialization…]

[First Mission: "Young Master."]

[Details: Assume the role of a rich young master in front of a crowd. Performance will be evaluated based on the authenticity of your pretense]

[Mission Duration Countdown: 3 days]

[Main Reward: Spirit Cleansing Fruit]

[Failure Penalty: Twenty years of lifespan!]