The Forsaken Hero - Chapter 3: Reborn as a... not human

Eric Maddox, a 70-year-old American retired football coach once hailed for his tactical brilliance, now forgotten by time—closes his eyes for what he believes is a normal nap in his quiet Florida retirement home.But when he opens them, he's not staring at ceiling tiles, instead, he's on a touchline.Wearing boots in the rain.With players running on the pitch, fans jeering behind barriers, and the smell of cheap turf pellets in the air.“What the hell is this?”He’s twenty-five again, but it’s not Earth. It’s a world where football reigns supreme. A world where the sport is religion, its practitioners, deities in cleats. Coaches are revered, players are worshipped, and even the kit man gets treated like royalty.But there's one catch: none of it is familiar. The clubs, the players, the leagues, the competitions, and even the currency—they're all different. Alien. Like waking up in a dream where the rules are the same, but the language is foreign.As if that wasn’t enough, the body he’s now in? A youth coach with a laughable win record, a looming divorce, and a measly fifty thousand in the bank that his ex-wife is fighting tooth and nail to take. All of it.Just when the spiral seems inevitable, a monotone chime pierces the noise.[Initiating Golden Finger…][…45%… 75%… 100%][System Integration Complete.][Welcome, host. You are now bound to the Pro Manager System. Objective: Dominate the Football World. A new era begins]From washed-up has-been to chosen one of destiny, Eric Maddox is about to trade arthritis pills for tactical boards, and shuffleboard for Prestigious Cup glory.Because in this world, tactics are power.And on this touchline, he’s about to become a god.

A world filled with heroes with superpowers. A world attacked by calamity fiends. A modern world filled with wonders and dangers.

Shi Xiaobai, a child from normal Earth, walked into such a world, proclaiming to be its king. But at the first signs of danger, he is forced to make a choice, one which he cannot refuse for time would repeat, making him face the choice again.

He is not humble nor is he modest, but neither is he delusional. Yet, the Absolute Choice seems to make fun of him. Will the joke be on him or will he laugh at his opponents? There will be many watching his escapades, and there will be some joining him in his adventures.

To see through the world and to grasp its truth, that is the destiny of the King.

- Description from novelupdates

Gary Smith arrived in a peculiar world of beastmasters, where an ancient taboo was reborn from the depth of time, and an evil god was lurking.In this world, birds and beasts, rivers and mountains, even elements could spawn spiritual power and turn into pet beasts. Among them, the powerful ones became ecological niches by themselves, radiating secret realm ecosystems such as the Yellow Spring, Skeleton Kingdom, Succubus Nest, and Kingdom of the Sky Tree, nurturing countless followers.The beastmasters make contracts with the pet beasts, nurture them, and control the spiritual power.After witnessing the “Taboo Sun” event, Gary Smith obtained the ability to extract materials from everything in the world and compile “Secret Food”.Through the Evolutionary Secret Food, the combination of “The Shattered Dusk World” + “Ancient Dragon’s Dead Egg” results in the Feast of the End. When the pet beast consumes it, it evolves into the Dusk Dragon God. The Dusk Domain erodes the world, turning into the God at the end of time.The Skill Secret Food allows the pet beasts to plunder skills from everything, becoming omniscient and omnipotent. The Sacrificial Secret Food snatches the taboo time, sacrifices the ancient beings, and blasphemes against the gods.His style of beast control also started to become peculiar.There is the Spider Shadow that devours ancient dragons and weaves dreams of all lives with its threads, the Red Master that pollutes the multiverse, and the Devourer of the Realms, who consumes worlds...In response to this, he explained, “My pet beasts are just a bit peculiar. They really are not evil gods!”

Anita White gave up everything for love.Her family. Her power. Her legacy.Eight years ago, she found David. He was poor, brilliant, naive, and loyal. Or so she believed. She built his empire from the ground up, turning a nobody into a billionaire.But when betrayal came, it was more than infidelity. David Blackwood shattered her body, her mind, and her soul—infecting her with disease, killing her child, and freezing her out of the very world she created.But Anita is a White. And now, she’s coming home.Back in the arms of the most ruthless family in the country, Anita must navigate corporate warfare, mafia politics, and deadly alliances.To take down David—whose saintly public image masks darker secrets than she ever imagined—Anita turns to the one man she vowed never to see again: Maverick Ravenswood, a mafia kingpin with questionable loyalty and a dangerous obsession.And then there’s Killian Wellington. The childhood fiancé whose life was destroyed, and who may want revenge... or something far more complicated.As secrets unravel and past sins come to light, Anita realizes the betrayal goes deeper than one man. She was never the queen... she was just a pawn in someone else’s game.But now?She’s about to burn the board with Maverick on her right, Killian on her left, and her father, Reginald White behind her.#Slowburn