HEAVEN'S FORSAKEN SON

Ding! The System

The first punch drove the air from Arin’s lungs. His body slammed into the training yard’s dirt and ribs screamed in pain. Dust rose around him in a choking cloud, but the laughter of the other clan youths still cut through. It was sharp and cruel.

“Trash.”

“Can’t even take one hit.”

“Why does the clan keep feeding him?”

Kael stood above him. His fists burn faintly with ember light. His smirk curved cruelly.

“You embarrassed me today,” Kael said. “So I’ll carve that shame into your bones.”

His boot crashed into Arin’s side. Pain ripped through him. Arin coughed blood, the copper taste flooding his mouth.

The world blurred at the edges. His body screamed to surrender. To curl up and stay down. or better still, just vanish.

But his heart… his heart refused.

‘No. Not like this. Not on the ground.’

Kael dragged him up by his collar and drove a fist into his stomach.

Something cracked. Arin gasped, bile and blood spilled from his lips.

Another blow snapped across his face. His vision went black for a moment.

He stumbled, fell and then forced himself up again.

Laughter rained down. Torches cast long shadows on the walls as the youths watched all in support of Kael.

“You’ll never rise,” one sneered.

“Curses don’t defy fate.”

Kael’s next strike sent Arin sprawling again. He lay face-down, blood soaking the dirt and his breath shallow. His fingers clawed at the ground but found no strength.

His vision tunneled. The night sky above him blurred. The stars was distant and cold.

“Is this it? Will my story end here, as nothing but a beaten cripple?” His heart begged for a second chance.

“Ding!”

And then, It came. A voice that was not from the clan, not from the earth and not from the heavens either. 

“Ding! Fate-Defying System activated.”

Arin froze. His mind, drowning in pain, snapped wide open.

“What?” He echoed silently. 

Before his eyes, lines of glowing text unfolded in the air. They were sharp, luminous and unseen by anyone else.

The voice came again, “Fate-Defying System: Bound to Host, Arin Darkveil

Status: Crippled Meridians 

Lifespan: 17 years

Warning: Every quest failure results in immediate lifespan reduction.”

A new tab flickered open right in his face. 

“First Quest Issued

Quest: Fight back once against Kael Darkveil.

Reward: 1× Meridian Repair Fragment.

Penalty: –3 years lifespan.”

The letters pulsed with cold light. Arin’s breath caught.

‘Fight back?’ He echoed with disbelief. That was impossible. His body was broken, beaten and he was drenched in his own blood.

But the words didn’t fade.

And behind them shimmered a single glowing icon. It was a crystal fragment shaped like a sliver of bone, burning with faint golden light.

‘Meridian Repair.’

A sudden sharp hope speared through his despair.

If he fought back, he could fix his body piece by piece.

This was his only chance. 

“Still breathing?” Kael sneered, coming closer. His fists crackled faintly with fire qi.

Arin’s body screamed at him to stay down. To pretend to be dead. To make the pain stop.

But the words glowed before him, merciless of his present condition.

“Quest Active: Time Limit… 10 seconds.

Failure: –3 years lifespan.”

A countdown began, “10… 9… 8…”

Arin’s eyes widened. His heartbeat thundered in his chest.

If he failed, If he did nothing, three years would be gone and stolen by this merciless voice.

“I… I can’t…” he whispered.

But another thought struck him, sharper and louder.

Kael reached down to grab him by the throat.

At that instant, Arin’s body moved.

His fingers were shaking, blood dripping from his split lips. He drove his fist upward.

It was weak and pitiful. A child’s desperate punch. But it landed. His knuckles cracked against Kael’s jaw.

For a moment, silence blanketed the yard.

Kael’s eyes widened. He staggered back half a step. The shock flashed across his arrogant face.

The crowd gasped.

“Trash struck back?” Their jaws widened

The glowing window before Arin flared.

“Ding! Quest completed.

Reward issued: 1× Meridian Repair Fragment.

A shard of light broke off the system’s screen, streaking downward.

It sank into Arin’s chest, fusing into his crippled meridians. Heat surged through, healing his body. 

A fissure in his broken pathways sealed slightly. His blood felt less heavy. His breath came sharper.

For the first time in his life, he felt a thread of qi. What they had said was impossible.

Tears blurred his eyes. His lips trembled.

‘It’s real. The system is real.’ He echoed silently. 

“Did he… just hit Kael?”

“No way, trash can’t fight back!”

“I saw it! He struck him!”

Kael’s face darkened. Shame twisted his features.

“You dare.. !” he roared with fury igniting. Flames burst around his fists.

But Arin barely heard him. His whole body shook as he clutched his chest, feeling that tiny flicker of repaired strength.

Even if it was only a fragment, it was his.

The system had given it to him.

The power faded quickly. His body still battered and bruised, could not keep him standing.

Arin staggered, then collapsed onto his knees and then onto the dirt.

Blood soaked his robe. His vision blurred again, but with awe.

His trembling hand rose, reaching toward the faint glowing interface still hovering in the air.

He could change his fate. He wasn’t bound to be trash forever. The system was his lifeline.

But then, the glowing screen shifted again.

“System Rule Unlocked. All quests must be completed. Failure results in immediate lifespan reduction.”

Arin’s breath caught when another line unfolded, “Penalty for minor quest Failure is Loss of 3 years. Major Quest Failure: Loss of 10 years. Accumulated Failures equals Death.”

Arin stared. His heartbeat thundered. Blood dripped down his chin.

If he failed… if he hesitated even once… His very life would be devoured.

The glowing letters pulsed in the air. 

“Survive against Heaven’s Will, or perish.”

Arin’s blood froze. His breath came shallow.

He clutched the fragment of hope burning in his chest, knowing what it cost. And knowing… there was no turning back.