The Returner - Chapter 400: See? I told you that the dude’s a turtle brain (5)

Set in the Shadow Slave world...a time before Sunny was born...this story follows a simple soldier who must survive in a dystopian, apocalyptic landscape where magic and gun warfare collide.In a far-off Quadrant known as North America, a young soldier named Hope is 16 years old when he gets infected by the Nightmare Spell. He passed! But...he feels a bit scammed...?A flaw that makes him fade from people's memories...A cursed attribute that makes him remember everything endlessly in eternal wakefulness...It's as if the Spell is twisting his future and existence into an almost improbable one.All he has ever known his purpose to be was to serve as a simple soldier. Not too powerful. But not so weak either. And maybe, just maybe like some others, become an Awakened. Although he never dreamt of being one.Now that his whole life is compromised after his First Nightmare, his first objective is to survive on his own. But as he tries to escape his fate, his actions seem to lead him further from his goal.He struggles against obstacles that slowly grow bigger and out of proportion.Maybe the Dream Realm and the Real World aren't so different than one may think.Hope's journey involves uncovering secrets and gaining knowledge about his true nature and his new role in the world.Is he fit to be a hero?Could he redefine it?***Please read the READER DISCLAIMER in Volume 0.This is my spin-off novel of “Shadow Slave” by Guiltythree.But please don't expect the same writing style, setting, and characters, especially the main character.This story reveals more about how people/cities/governments operate after the Spell’s arrival. I always find it interesting how maybe one country handles it fairly, but how others handle it with desperation to the point that you question humanity.There will be easter eggs pointing to the original novel either intentional for the plot or unrelated to it, but all for fun.I am a new author so props to all who bear with me and helps me improve my writing. If it is not for you, please don't leave outright hate comments. Eat wassabi instead if you want pain. Critique and advice would be great too.

What if I told you, right now, everything you know about what happens after death is a lie?

What if I told you that there is no afterlife after death, just an endless cycle of reincarnation after wiping your memory?

What if I told you that there is a way out of the cycle of reincarnation and all you have to do is wear a religious artifact, and if you die with it on, you are given the opportunity to reincarnate into a world of your choice while keeping your memories?

Would you take it...or would you continue with the mundane cycle that has gone on since the beginning of time?

This is a story about two brothers, one is a responsible police officer, the other a heartless weeb, who died during WW3 and are offered the opportunity to reincarnate into another world as brothers once more.

Upon their death, they are summoned to a mysterious Realm named the Hall of Gods, where they obtain a Game-like System from the Raven God Odin and The God of Light Yahweh.

Once the system, named The Over-Break System, is installed into their souls, the brothers are Reincarnated into a massive, ever-expanding, technologically advanced fantasy world called Vinestra, as newborn babies with the names, Cynrik and Brance Jetlensr.

But, in Vinestra, things aren't as they seem. Several types of Spatial Tears called “Egresses” frequently open up to an unknown dimension where monsters who drop items when killed spawn.

Cynrik and Brance, under the watchful eye of their respective Deities, learn how to utilize their new system, to become powerful existences who wield Mana like their plaything. But are they in control of their lives, or are the Deities?

((THIS STORY IS WRITTEN IN A VERY SPECIFIC WESTERN FORMAT, WHERE CERTAIN CHARACTERS WILL BE HIGHLIGHTED IN CERTAIN WAYS MORE THAN OTHERS! AT ITS CORE THIS STORY DOES HAVE 2 MAIN CHARACTERS EVEN IF EARLY ON IT DOES NOT SEEM THAT WAY!))

This year, Ji Jingqiu is 16 years old.To survive, he envisions the Fire House Buddha Prison, plants a bodhi treasure tree, and embarks on the path of martial arts.Many years later,A brilliant light arises, illuminating endless darkness.A towering ancient tree, with emerald green leaves and a canopy like a pavilion, rises with glass-like clarity into the sky, supporting a divine realm of pure land, spanning countless ages, illuminating the three realms and ten directions.On this day,All martial artists under heaven look up to it, like mayflies seeing the blue sky.......“Within there is a bodhi tree, which I planted when I set foot in martial arts, and now it has grown to provide a canopy.”“I see everything in the world, and nothing is like me.”“That year, I scoured history books, this history without era, I looked horizontally and vertically, and saw those characters – ‘The world’s storms come from us.’”...— Excerpt from the autobiography of Ji Jingqiu, the proud sun of the martial arts world of today.

Due to unfortunate circumstances, “Ari” Ariel Matisse lived in the slums of Los Angeles, also known as Skid Row.One night, on his way home, he was killed while witnessing an old man getting beaten.When he woke up, he had been thrown into a dumpster, and a strange screen flashed across his eyes, and no matter how he looked at it, it reminded him of a status window in a game.[System Integration Complete!][Become a Global Music Superstar!]For some reason, he gained a system that wanted him to join a survival show and become a globally famous idol.If he refused to complete his given tasks, he would die.But if he succeeded, he would have the money and power to change his life as well as get revenge against the person who killed him.P.s. this story is kind of a love letter to LA and the amazing blend of cultures (American, Asian, Hispanic, African, etc) that can be found there. I hope you all fall in love with the area as much as I love it.