ASPWL Ch98.1: It Should End

Huo Yan’s voice was particularly angry; even from several meters away, Qin Yao could hear him clearly.

“Are you just messing around?” Huo Yan said in a deep voice. “Ye Leyao, I don’t care whether you are a system or not, but I absolutely cannot agree to this matter!”

Qin Yao silently took a couple of steps forward, and Ye Leyao’s voice soon followed—

“Huo Yan, I have already explained to you. I came to your world for two purposes: the first is to change your ending, and the second is to change Qin Yao’s ending. Now that I have achieved my first goal, I must save Qin Yao…”

“I’m not stopping you from saving Qin Yao; I just don’t agree with your terrible idea!” Huo Yan shouted. “Since you know that Qin Yao is destined to be hit by a truck, then why can’t you and he leave together beforehand?”

“As long as you don’t appear in that place, both of you will be fine, right?” Huo Yan said.

Qin Yao slowly walked to the door of the makeup room.

The door was slightly ajar, leaving a small crack.

Qin Yao saw Huo Yan with his back to Ye Leyao, who was sitting on the sofa, his head bowed so low that his expression couldn’t be seen.

After a long while, Ye Leyao’s hoarse voice finally came from inside: “No.”

“What?” Huo Yan asked.

Ye Leyao said, “Even if we avoid the street where the truck appears, we cannot avoid the fact that Qin Yao is destined to die.”

Huo Yan stiffened, staring at Ye Leyao in disbelief: “How is that possible…”

Ye Leyao suddenly smiled, but his smile appeared particularly pale. “Because I’ve already tried twice before.”

Huo Yan looked at Ye Leyao in shock, his eyes full of disbelief. “What do you mean…”

What does it mean to have tried twice?

Ye Leyao chose not to conceal it any longer: “Didn’t you ask me the first time you saw me? You said you felt like you had seen me somewhere before. Huo Yan, we have indeed met before, during the two previous time resets, and in the timeline of my first arrival in this world, we have seen each other many times.”

Having restarted so many times, the deepest emotions Ye Leyao understood were sadness and sorrow.

These were also the feelings he hated the most.

Ye Leyao raised his head, and the sadness in his beautiful eyes was impossible to hide. His voice trembled slightly: “I’ve tried twice, Huo Yan… But no matter which attempt it was, Qin Yao would die… His death is certain, an unchangeable ending. The only way to deceive fate is to choose someone to replace him at the moment of his death.”

This method was derived from L1’s two years of watching the timeline replay in his own main god space.

It was during the third reset of the timeline that Ye Leyao decided to use this method to save Qin Yao.

Since Qin Yao’s death was fated to be unchangeable, as long as someone named “Qin Yao” died at that moment, the regulatory system would not determine it as a plot error.

So during the third timeline reset, Ye Leyao edited a program for himself, allowing the main system’s regulatory program to recognize him as the “Qin Yao” of the A20231007 world.

To avoid the main system detecting any anomalies, Ye Leyao sealed away most of his abilities, allowing himself to act more like a “human.”

Only in this way could he truly replace Qin Yao’s death on that day without being identified as a plot error.

That was why Ye Leyao would appear in front of Qin Yao after this incident reset; he wanted to accompany Qin Yao as much as possible in the two months.

Not because Qin Yao liked Ye Leyao.

But because Ye Leyao liked Qin Yao.

The regulatory system L1 could not predict what would happen after his death, so he chose to leave behind a string of the most beautiful memories before he died.

With red-rimmed eyes, Ye Leyao’s voice choked: “Huo Yan, please, I beg you, help me, okay?”

As a system, despite having understood human emotions, Ye Leyao was still not human. So even though he was sad, he couldn’t cry without the acting buff from the point system. His beautiful eyes were only stained with the color of sorrow.

Huo Yan quietly met Ye Leyao’s gaze.

After a long time, he shook his head, a bitter smile appearing at the corners of his mouth. “I can’t do it… Xiao Yao… Even though I don’t have the memories from before, after spending these two months together, I’ve already come to see you as a brother… I certainly understand that you don’t want Qin Yao to… but…”

Huo Yan suddenly lifted his head, trying to force the tears back into his eyes, but still, a hot tear rolled down his cheek. His voice was hoarse: “What kind of brother would personally send his younger brother to die? There’s no such reasoning…”

“Moreover, how can you be sure that as long as you die in place of Qin Yao, he will be safe?” Huo Yan’s question was almost cruel.

Ye Leyao replied, “My calculations won’t be wrong.”

That was the one thing Ye Leyao was certain of.

“Then what is the probability of you surviving?” Huo Yan asked again.

Ye Leyao fell silent.

Huo Yan also didn’t say anything further.

Silence spread infinitely within the makeup room.

Outside the makeup room, Qin Yao also got up to leave.

This conversation ended without resolution.

That night, Ye Leyao returned very late.

Although all the servants of the Qin family and Qin Hongxi knew about Ye Leyao’s existence, he still preferred to walk through Qin Yao’s balcony.

At this time, it was already past midnight, and the lights in Qin Yao’s room had been turned off.

Ye Leyao flew to the balcony and did not immediately return to his room; instead, he sat on the lounge chair, gazing at the roses on the balcony.

After the last season of blooming and wilting, new buds had begun to open over the past two days.

Ye Leyao suddenly thought of the last timeline when Qin Yao left, yet these flowers were still being cared for, just that the caregiver had changed from Qin Yao to Qin Hongxi.

But Qin Hongxi didn’t take care of them for long.

Qin Yao’s death had been too much of a blow to him; within two years, Qin Hongxi had also passed away.

In the end, the roses on the balcony, after losing their two masters, froze to death on a frigid snow day.

Ye Leyao didn’t know why he thought of this, but he couldn’t help feeling sad.

Because these roses, now unattended, also reminded him of the coming day—

Suddenly, the lights in the room behind him turned on.

Ye Leyao turned around and saw Qin Yao coming out with a glass of milk.

“Why are you squatting on the ground?” Qin Yao laughed, walking over to squat down beside Ye Leyao. “Today… No, yesterday’s milk hasn’t been drunk yet.”

Qin Yao handed the milk to Ye Leyao.

Ye Leyao lowered his eyes slightly, took the warm milk, and after thinking for a moment, said, “I thought you were asleep.”

“Didn’t I promise you? I’ll make you a cup of milk every day. As long as you haven’t drunk it, even if I should be sleeping at this time, I still have to make your milk, right?” Qin Yao smiled.

Ye Leyao’s eyes suddenly felt a bit sour, and his heart was filled with warmth.

For a moment, he felt as if something was surging in his eyes, but it was quickly suppressed.

Ye Leyao took a sip of the milk and said seriously, “Thank you, President Qin.”

Qin Yao suddenly reached out and ruffled Ye Leyao’s hair: “Silly.”

Ye Leyao said earnestly, “I’m not silly. Didn’t I tell you before? I’m the number one regulatory system of the Space-Time Regulatory Bureau!”

Qin Yao laughed and gently hummed in agreement.

But in his heart, he thought, what a silly little system he had.

How could there be a system that doesn’t first consider its own well-being and instead focuses on the lives and deaths of other humans?

He could clearly live freely, never having to think about these troublesome matters, yet he chose to be by Qin Yao’s side.

His little system had kept its promise, so Qin Yao would also keep the promise he made when he was young.

Before the out-of-control truck hit, Ye Leyao pushed Qin Yao away in time.

But the next moment, Ye Leyao suddenly felt his vision turn upside down as he was forcefully pushed away.

The harsh sound of tires screeching against the ground followed, and then there was a loud bang.

The pouring rain blurred his vision, and Ye Leyao felt as if his heart had stopped for a moment.

When he looked up again, Qin Yao was already lying in a pool of blood.

The cold raindrops fell, taking away his vibrant vitality.

Ye Leyao heard his own voice straining, “Qin Yao—”

He lost Qin Yao once again.

Ye Leyao stumbled forward, panicking as he picked up Qin Yao.

Qin Yao lay in his arms, coughing up a large amount of blood: “Yao…”

“Don’t talk! Don’t talk! I’ll think of a way… I’ll find a way to save you…” Ye Leyao couldn’t see Qin Yao’s face clearly anymore, as his vision blurred.

“I’ll find a way… I’m…” The program that had been imposed on Ye Leyao was unlocked, and he began to redeem potions in the points shop, but just like before, no matter how effective the potions were, they couldn’t be used on Qin Yao, whose body was growing colder.

“How could this happen… How could this happen… Qin Yao…” Ye Leyao’s voice choked up. He lowered his head and found that several hot tears had rolled down his cheeks.

It turned out that even a system could cry.

Qin Yao struggled to curve his lips into a smile, extending his hand to gently wipe away the tears at the corner of Ye Leyao’s eyes: “Don’t, don’t cry…”

Ye Leyao cried out loud: “Ahhh… why… why can’t I ever save you…”

Qin Yao shook his head with a smile. He looked at Ye Leyao seriously, his voice very soft: “You… have already saved me… Yaoyao, you… you came to see me again, so this time, it’s my turn to keep my promise…”

Ye Leyao couldn’t understand. All he could hear was his own cries growing louder as he helplessly held Qin Yao, crying his heart out: “You can’t die… Qin Yao, you can’t die… can you promise me, don’t die…”

Qin Yao didn’t speak; he only used his last bit of strength to wipe away the tears at the corner of Ye Leyao’s eyes once more.

But there were too many tears, and Qin Yao had no strength left.

That beautiful hand, stained with blood, lost its vitality and fell forever.

People seemed to gather around.

Ye Leyao heard Huo Yan shouting for him to let go.

“Let go! Xiao Yao… the doctor is here, the doctor is here…”

Ye Leyao shook his head helplessly. He couldn’t even say a word, his mouth opening only to release cries: “Can’t… can’t be saved…”

That day, the rain was still pouring down, the large raindrops hitting his body like daggers to the heart.

Qin Yao had died again.

Once more, he died in Ye Leyao’s arms.

Two days later, the Qin family held a grand funeral for Qin Yao.

Ye Leyao did not attend; he seemed to have vanished, and even the Huo family couldn’t find him.

It was at this moment that Huo Yan remembered what Ye Leyao had told him a few days earlier.

Ye Leyao said he was a system, and his task was to save them and Qin Yao.

But now that Qin Yao was dead, what about Ye Leyao?

Had he left?

Huo Yan felt immense regret.

He shouldn’t have spoken so definitively that day…

He should have stayed and brainstormed solutions with Ye Leyao.

But—

Even if Ye Leyao couldn’t think of a better way, could he really come up with a better method to save Qin Yao?

Huo Yan didn’t know and was also extremely confused.

From that day onward, he began to blame himself.

It was all his fault.

If only he had talked more with Ye Leyao that day.

Perhaps if they had discussed it together, they might have come up with a good idea to save Qin Yao.

After all, it was a human life at stake.

How could Huo Yan say such things to Ye Leyao?

Ye Leyao only wanted to save Qin Yao; he was innocent.

But Huo Yan also only wanted to save Ye Leyao.

Huo Yan didn’t want Ye Leyao to die, and he especially didn’t want to see Qin Yao die…

So how did it come to this?

Unbeknownst to him, Huo Yan’s mind had started to twist and become unbalanced.

Huo Yan was an excellent actor, extremely skilled at hiding his emotions.

So no one noticed anything amiss.

Only when night fell would Huo Yan remove his facade.

He would sit by the bed in a pitch-black room, repeatedly questioning himself why he hadn’t saved Qin Yao.

He would also tell himself, on the verge of breaking down, that if only Ye Leyao didn’t like Qin Yao.

Yes.

As long as Ye Leyao didn’t like Qin Yao, Qin Yao’s death…

Each time he thought of this, Huo Yan would break into a cold sweat from his own thoughts.

How could he think like that?

He clearly understood how important Ye Leyao was to Qin Yao; how could he think this way?

The more Huo Yan thought about it, the more guilt he felt, even developing tendencies towards self-harm.

It was at this moment that Ye Leyao returned.

He immediately noticed Huo Yan’s abnormal behavior and informed Mama and Papa Huo about it.

But Ye Leyao did not accompany Huo Yan to the hospital.

Mama Huo now understood the situation and looked at Ye Leyao, her eyes filled with compassion: “Xiao Yao, do you… blame him?”

Ye Leyao was shocked and looked at Mama Huo: “How could I?”

Huo Yan treated him like a brother, and in Ye Leyao’s heart, he had long considered them as his own family.

Ye Leyao shook his head and said earnestly, “I don’t blame anyone.”

It was his inability to come up with a win-win solution that led to today’s outcome, and Ye Leyao could only accept it.

Ye Leyao didn’t stay long at the Huo family; he had other matters to attend to.

After Qin Yao’s death, Ye Leyao returned to the Space-Time Bureau.

This time, his goal was particularly clear; he directly found Qiu and asked her how he could save Qin Yao.

Qiu saw the determination in Ye Leyao’s eyes, so she didn’t hide anything this time: “There is indeed a way, but after you save Qin Yao, you might never be able to be together again.”

Ye Leyao listened quietly to Qiu’s method and suddenly smiled: “No, we can be together.”

Qiu looked at him in confusion: “L1, what are you planning to do?”

“I’m now called Ye Leyao. Ye is from Ye Fan, and Leyao is the name my lover gave me.” Ye Leyao didn’t answer Qiu’s question but quickly returned to the A20231007 world.

At this point, a full six months had passed since Qin Yao’s death.

The support system, Bai Yu, had also come to the A20231007 world.

Ye Leyao went straight to find him.

Upon seeing him again, Bai Yu was so furious that the whole system seemed on the verge of smoking: “L1, what are you doing?! Because you keep rebooting the timeline of this world, my task has been unable to be completed. I’ve already done…”

“Bai Yu,” Ye Leyao interrupted him, “how did you get your name?”

Bai Yu paused for a moment before frowning: “Why are you asking this?”

Ye Leyao replied, “I’m now called Ye Leyao, and Leyao is the name my lover gave me. You were originally not called this; you were called the S325 system.”

Bai Yu fell silent.

After a moment, he whispered, “My… host said that every time I spoke to him, I was very gentle, like a feather that made his heart itch, so he originally called me Xiao Yu. Later, I added a surname and changed it to Bai Yu.”

Ye Leyao said, “You like your host.”

Bai Yu exploded: “What nonsense are you talking about?! I’m a system; how could I like…”

This sentence circled on his lips but ultimately went unspoken. Bai Yu turned his head away and muttered, “Systems can’t like humans; I…”

“Why can’t systems like humans?” Ye Leyao asked. “I like a human.”

Bai Yu looked at him in shock: “You—”

Ye Leyao suddenly smiled: “I used to struggle with this question, but Qin Yao said that fundamentally, humans are just a collection of cells, and as a system, I am ultimately just a string of data.”

“He is cells, I am data; we are a match made in heaven.”

In that short statement, it struck deep.

Bai Yu stared at Ye Leyao in astonishment and finally asked, “Why are you telling me this?”

“I want you to help me with something,” Ye Leyao said with a smile, “because I will help you too.”

“I will isolate all the plot lines related to your task. Once this task is completed, you won’t have to repeat the task again, and I will also change your time flow rate,” Ye Leyao said.

Bai Yu was shocked: “The task lines of a small world can be independent from the small world?”

Bai Yu quickly checked: “There is indeed a precedent for this, but it requires a lot of points, right?”

“And why do you want to change the time flow rate?” Bai Yu asked in succession, “Doesn’t that cost even more points?”

Ye Leyao replied, “I have plenty of points; I can do it. Changing the time flow rate is to ensure that in the future, you will definitely meet me.”

Bai Yu looked at him in confusion: “Why are you doing this…” In the next moment, he realized, “For that human who gave you your name?”

Ye Leyao said, “Yes.”