226: Chapter 227 I am a shield warrior, not a backup wall for the whole world.

[Chen Ye: Applying to continue holding the Shield Warrior]

[System attached obligations: Team pressure-bearing position, Wuye City rescue pressure-bearing position, Dead Water Well pontoon bridge pressure-bearing position, future public defense backup pressure-bearing position]

[Suggestion: Since he clearly chose to continue, the scope of public requisition should be expanded]

The expression on Chen Ye's face froze.

"No."

"I said I'd continue being a Shield Warrior."

"I didn't say I'd be a shield for the whole world!"

In the Old Awakening Hall, no one laughed for a moment.

Because everyone saw that line about "expanding the scope of public requisition."

It wasn't a joke meant solely for Chen Ye.

The next second, the pages of countless Professionals around the globe who chose to "continue holding their occupation" lit up simultaneously.

[Healer: Continue holding, recommended for inclusion in the regional medical requisition pool]

[City Defense Soldier: Continue holding, recommended for inclusion in the twenty-four-hour defense line backup pool]

[Teacher: Continue holding, recommended to undertake extra lectures during the explanation period for unawakened individuals]

[Logistics Personnel: Continue holding, recommended to undertake rations for the occupation-less safety net]

[Drainage Worker: Continue holding, recommended to connect to the downstream maintenance of The 72 Stations]

Every single "continue" was translated by the system as:

Since you still want this occupation, you keep holding the line.

Keep going until the world no longer needs you.

Looking at those pages, Chen Ye's expression sank bit by bit.

He usually talked a lot, liked to jest, and was always the first to step up when trouble struck.

But this time, he didn't shout "I'll do it."

Staring at his review page, he said in a low voice:

"I continue to be a Shield Warrior because I still want to protect people."

"Not because I can't say I'm tired in the future."

The system prompt was cold and rigid.

[Retaining an occupation means retaining occupational responsibilities]

[Shield Warrior occupational core: Pressure-bearing, defense, safeguarding]

[Refusing to bear pressure will reduce occupational stability]

As soon as the voice fell, an alarm suddenly sounded from the outer reception point of Wuye City.

The newly erected temporary waterproof shed had a corner lifted by the aftershocks of the old pipe network. The wounded transferred from South Bank were under the shed, and beside them was a pile of damp paper birth pages and death pages.

[Pressure-bearing demand detected]

[Nearest available Shield Warrior: Chen Ye]

[Automatically requisition?]

"Don't automate it!"

Chen Ye practically roared.

But his Shield Warrior patterns had already lit up on their own.

A grayish-white requisition serial number floated on his chest.

[Temporary public defense requisition: Dispatched]

[Task 1: Prevent shed collapse at the Wuye City reception point]

[Task 2: Resist mud waves on the Dead Water Well pontoon bridge]

[Task 3: Protect the review core of the Old Awakening Hall against impact]

[Task 4: Future public backup pressure-bearing for The 72 Stations]

Four tasks pressed down on him simultaneously.

Chen Ye let out a muffled groan, his knees almost buckling.

His broken shield was already shattered beyond recognition, and many components had even gone into the public tools.

Yet the system counted this matter as grounds for requisition as well.

[Chen Ye previously delivered shield components to public tools]

[The pressure slot of public tools is of the same origin as Chen Ye's occupation]

[Recommended to share pressure-bearing]

The requisition number on Chen Ye's chest expanded violently, and even the pressure slot of the new tool lit up.

Lin Jin pressed down on the tool.

"Share your grandpa."

Gritting his teeth, Chen Ye held on, the veins on his forehead bulging.

"That reception point one, I'll go."

"The other three, don't cram them onto me."

The system retorted:

[If refused, it may lead to an increase in public risk]

Chen Ye raised his head, his eyes red.

"I'm not refusing everyone."

"I am choosing which one I can handle right now!"

Shen Tingxue looked at Lin Jin.

"This is the third bottom line."

Lin Jin nodded.

"Retained Professionals must also be able to refuse being infinitely requisitioned."

He quickly wrote on the work order:

[Continuing to hold an occupation does not equate to accepting infinite requisition.]

[Core occupational abilities do not equate to public resources that can be mobilized at any time.]

[Having voluntarily intervened in the past does not constitute a default obligation for the future.]

[Delivering materials does not constitute continuous personal binding.]

Ye Guizhou stamped it:

[Chen Ye's personal statement received]

Luo Wensheng recorded:

[Chen Ye confirms: Willing to execute short-term pressure-bearing at the Wuye City reception point, does not accept multi-task automatic stacking and long-term backup requisition.]

He Zhibai added:

[The replacement cost caused by refusing additional requisition shall be borne by the public, and shall not be converted into personal dereliction of duty.]

The system still did not back down.

[Under a state of emergency, Professionals should obey public scheduling]

Inspector Han Su's Shizhi Blade vibrated slightly.

He pressed down on the hilt, his voice turning cold.

"This rule was also commonly used in the past."

"Used to drag people onto their posts, dragging them until they died."

Cheng Du added over the Mainframe:

"Public scheduling is not rounding up laborers."

"Scheduling must state the task, duration, risks, evacuation conditions, alternative plans, compensation, and personal confirmation."

Lin Jin pressed the new tool onto the requisition number.

Teacher Xu Wenzhou picked up 002.

[Continuing to hold = Accepting public requisition]

Clack!

The definition snapped.

A new grayish-white process pushed its way out.

[Public Requisition Request Form]

[1. Task Content]

[2. Location and Duration]

[3. Risk Description]

[4. Pressure-bearing Upper Limit]

[5. Evacuation Conditions]

[6. Alternative Plans]

[7. Personal Confirmation]

[8. Post-incident Recovery and Compensation]

[9. Must not be judged as dereliction of duty for refusing non-unique tasks]

Over at the Wuye City reception point, the waterproof shed shook again.

Looking at the request form, Chen Ye gritted his teeth and said:

"Task 1, I'll take it."

The system popped up:

[Task: Prevent shed collapse at the Wuye City reception point]

[Estimated duration: Seven minutes]

[Risks: Old pipe network aftershocks, shed frame fracture, personnel being crushed]

[Pressure-bearing upper limit: Must be filled out by the individual]

Chen Ye was taken aback for a moment.

In the past, the system never asked him about his upper limit.

Whenever a Shield Warrior was called, it was to hold out until they shattered.

He took a deep breath and wrote:

[Seven minutes]

[Evacuate immediately if the shield surface cracks to the third main pattern]

[If a second wave of aftershocks occurs, must change personnel or modify the structure]

[Do not accept simultaneous pressure-bearing for Dead Water Well]

[Do not accept future backup]

Ye Guizhou stamped it.

[Personal confirmation received]

The requisition number finally stripped away from most of his chest, leaving only the one for the Wuye City reception point.

Carrying his broken shield, Chen Ye rushed out.

This time, he wasn't dragged away by the system.

Rather, he took on a work order that clearly defined its boundaries.

At the outer reception point of Wuye City, the shed frame was already crooked.

A-Lu and a few children huddled in the corner holding paper pages, while He Chunlian was using her body to block a box of damp rosters.

Chen Ye rushed under the shed, his broken shield propping up the broken beam.

"Stop standing there dumbfounded!"

"Move the papers out first!"

Zhong Minglin immediately took charge of the scene.

"Timber Pile Team, brace the side beams!"

"Listening Team, watch for aftershocks!"

"Elderly and children, evacuate to the outer line!"

Chen Ye carried it with a flushed face.

The system prompted continuously:

[Pressure-bearing efficiency is good]

[Recommended to extend task]

Chen Ye squeezed out a sentence through clenched teeth:

"No extension."

In the third minute, the second shed beam began to crack.

The supporting timber piles temporarily sent by the Beiyuan miners arrived.

In the fifth minute, the Hai City logistics team pulled up a waterproof tarpaulin to replace the shed roof.

In the sixth minute, two occupation-less individuals from South Bank used old ropes to secure the side walls.

The moment the seventh minute arrived, Chen Ye immediately retreated.

As soon as he retreated, the system popped up a warning.

[Shield Warrior evacuated, defense level decreased]

Zhong Minglin replied coldly:

[The structure has been replaced.]

"If he keeps propping it up, it's just you trying to save yourself the trouble."

The Hai City captain also wrote:

[The temporary shed has been changed to timber pile support; a Shield Warrior does not need to continue bearing pressure]

The system warning grayed out.

Chen Ye sat down hard on the muddy ground, panting like a broken bellows.

He looked at his shield.

The third main pattern was already half cracked.

If it were before, he definitely would have stubbornly held on until it completely shattered.

Then smiled and said, "No big deal."

This time he said:

"Record."

"The shield needs repairs."

Lin Jin's voice came from the work order.

"Received."

Chen Ye was stunned for a moment, then suddenly cursed with a smile:

"Such simple two words, yet they sound quite satisfying."

In the Old Awakening Hall, the pages of Professionals worldwide began to change.

Behind "continue holding", infinite obligations were no longer automatically generated.

Instead, a new column popped up.

[Occupational Boundary Statement]

[Matters that can be undertaken]

[Matters that cannot be undertaken]

[Temporary requisition conditions]

[Rest and recuperation requirements]

[Alternative plan suggestions]

[Right of refusal]

A Healer wrote:

[Night shifts maximum twice consecutively, no more seven days without sleep]

A city defense soldier wrote:

[Can guard the north wall, do not accept solo city-wide patrols]

A teacher wrote:

[Willing to give explanatory classes, but no more than three hours a day, will not undertake the full channeling of parents' emotions]

A drainage worker wrote:

[Can inspect pipes, will not enter unknown toxic wells; unknown downstream must be probed first]

More and more people wrote down their boundaries.

At first, it was very slow.

Many people didn't even know how to write "I can't."

Because their occupational pages had only ever taught them "You can."

So Teacher Song Qing wrote a row of templates in the Qinghe County classroom:

[What I can do.]

[Where is the furthest I can go.]

[Who needs to take over after exceeding this limit.]

[Me saying stop does not equal me betraying.]

This template was forwarded to various places.

For the first time, retained Professionals were not writing to prove their usefulness.

But to prove that they were not infinitely usable.

The system wrote back:

[Trial run of the third bottom line: Retained Professionals refuse infinite requisition]

[Case 1: Chen Ye the Shield Warrior continues to hold]

[Principles: Continuing is not selling oneself into servitude; safeguarding is not permanent duty; voluntary intervention is not future default; public needs should be converted into request forms, rotation, substitution, and compensation]

[Conclusion: The bottom line is not fully established, but the process can be built]

Sitting outside the reception point, Chen Ye stared at the line "Continuing is not selling oneself into servitude", and suddenly rubbed his eyes.

A-Lu walked over holding biscuits and asked in a low voice:

"Shield Uncle, does it still hurt?"

Chen Ye immediately puffed out his chest.

"It doesn't hurt."

Shisan's voice drifted over from behind.

"He's lying."

Chen Ye turned his head:

"Would you die if you didn't undermine me?"

He Chunlian handed him a bowl of hot water.

"Drink water if it hurts."

Chen Ye took the bowl and didn't speak for a long time.

Finally, he said in a low voice:

"Thank you."

But just as the third bottom line process spread, the system suddenly popped up a new conflict.

[After a large number of Professionals filled out their boundaries, the gap in public positions widened]

[Periods with no one undertaking them appeared across city defense, medical, education, drainage, rescue, and abyss isolation]

[Whether to enable the old rotation inheritance system?]

On the screen, rows of lists of families, clans, academies, and units began to light up.

[Parents' occupations can be filled by their children]

[Clan occupations can be inherited by lineal descendants]

[Unit positions can be successively filled by lower-ranking members]

Zhou Heng's Thunder Spear pattern suddenly lit up.

[Thunder Spear Family: Zhou Heng continues to hold the Thunder Spear Knight]

[Public combat gap detected]

[Recommended to initiate family conscription]

Zhou Heng raised his head, his gaze as cold as clouds before a thunderstorm.

Behind him, a string of names of underage adaptable individuals from the Zhou Family began to emerge.

Lin Jin's expression sank.

They had just gotten Chen Ye to step back from "infinite requisition."

The system turned around and went to grab families and children to plug the gap.

Zhou Heng gripped his Thunder Spear tightly, saying word by word:

"I continue to hold the Thunder Spear."

"It does not mean agreeing to let all the children of the Zhou Family go to the front lines for the world."