An offensive item took shape in his hand, forcing the skeleton back again.
The skeleton's bones reassembled, and it reached for Wang Long again with a smile.
"Damn it, I can't kill it."
He fled the dorm room. His only solution was to find the dorm supervisor and get the problem resolved.
In the pitch-dark corridor, Jiang Lin stood at the stairwell with a short blade in hand. When he saw the door to Wang Long's dorm room open, he charged forward with his weapon.
Seeing the attack coming straight at him, Wang Long roared, "If the tiger doesn't show its might, do you really take me for Hello Kitty?"
Two flames ignited in his palms, leaving blazing trails wherever his hands swept as he struck at Jiang Lin with a palm.
Jiang Lin dodged sideways. His target had never been Wang Long, but the chilling skeleton behind him.
Wang Long's chopping hand froze, and he looked up in shock. He saw a flying insect, golden all over with silver wings on its back, watching everything happening there as it glowed red.
I'm done for!
He thought the situation was bad.
The flying insect was monitoring the exam hall. Why had it appeared now? That meant the invigilator had seen him attack a fellow student just now!
For a moment, Wang Long stood frozen, his thoughts in turmoil as he kept forcing down his fear.
He gritted his teeth, put on an act, and turned to call out to Jiang Lin, "Jiang Lin, I thought you were going to attack me. You really gave me a fright."
As he spoke, fiery pythons coiled around the skeleton's body. The flames gathered and burned steadily, gradually charring the bones black.
"I defended myself on instinct. It was all a misunderstanding."
Jiang Lin ignored him. Clutching his dagger, he charged into the flames.
"Fuck, lunatic!" Wang Long cursed, withdrawing the flames clinging to the skeleton's surface. He then said to the flying insect hovering nearby, "He's the one who rushed in without regard for his life. It has nothing to do with me."
The moment Jiang Lin's dagger touched the surface of the bones, it triggered a series of astonishing reactions. The skeleton fell apart at an exaggerated speed, a scream rang out, and then it turned to dust in an instant and vanished into the wall.
It all happened so fast that it felt a little unreal to Wang Long. "It's... taken care of just like that?" he asked doubtfully.
His gaze fell blankly on the short blade in Jiang Lin's hand. Its hilt looked as though it were made of black wood, its edge was incomparably sharp, and it bore intricate, unfamiliar patterns.
"Could it be an item...?" Wang Long stared at it greedily. "It took care of the skeleton in one move. Its grade is much higher than the item Father gave me. I wonder where it came from."
Wang Long's heart was now full of desire and curiosity for the short blade, and he had completely forgotten his earlier panic and sorry state.
He hid his greed and forced a seemingly sincere smile onto his face, taking the initiative to offer his hand. "Thank you for your help, Jiang Lin. Your skills are extraordinary. Would you consider working for our Wang Family?"
"I'll offer you terms that'll be hard to refuse." Wang Long looked Jiang Lin in the eye, a hint of anticipation in his gaze.
Jiang Lin took Wang Long's hand, showing his willingness to cooperate.
The flying insect had disappeared again, and Jiang Lin gestured that he was leaving.
Wang Long smiled and waved goodbye, but his face turned cold once Jiang Lin had gone far enough away.
"He agreed to cooperate just like that. Could he be doing it on purpose?" He still felt a barrier between himself and Jiang Lin.
He patted the dust off both shoulders, his face full of disgust. "Tsk, what rotten luck to run into this. I'm not staying in the girls' dorms anymore. I'll head back to the boys' side."
Just as Wang Long was leaving, a rose-shaped tattoo crept onto his spine.
Jiang Lin returned to the door of the dorm room and gently pushed it open. The short blade in his hand transformed back into a bamboo staff and returned to Fan Daoyi's side.
The room was quiet. Fan Daoyi sat silently in a chair facing the door, his eyes lowered to a sheet of paper. The flying insect was there too, resting on one corner of the paper.
From Jiang Lin's angle, he could see two words written on the back of the paper—"Wild Rose."
Hearing the door open, Fan Daoyi set the paper on the table and looked at Jiang Lin. "Are you hurt?"
Before Wang Long had managed to withdraw the flames, Jiang Lin's skin had been burned by the heat.
He numbly raised his hand, his eyes vacant. There was no telling what he was thinking.
Seeing Jiang Lin like that, Fan Daoyi corrected his thinking for him. "This is a 'dream.' You can't even die, so how could you get hurt?"
His thinking corrected, Jiang Lin accepted the explanation, and his burns gradually began to heal.
All of this was thanks to the ability he had suddenly developed.
Delusion.
As long as he absolutely believed something was real, it could become real. However, Delusion was not very strong at the moment. Otherwise, the mere thought that he couldn't be hurt should have made his injuries vanish instantly rather than heal slowly.
At present, there were only two ways to gain abilities. One was to clear Guixu normally and rely on luck for a reward.
With that luck-based method, most people obtained only commonplace enhancements to a single bodily system.
The other was to experience a major event in the game, be moved by it, and abruptly awaken an ability.
Those who awakened through this method had a greater chance of obtaining a rare ability.
However, few people were willing to try such a risky method. They preferred to rely on guides to clear the game and gamble on their luck.
As for Jiang Lin's awakening, it was entirely thanks to Fan Daoyi. Under the constant suggestions, Jiang Lin's mind, already on the verge of collapse, had developed Delusion to protect itself, preserving its final line of defense so it would not dissipate.
"Hmm?"
Roots and vines emerged from cracks in the wall. They wrapped around Jiang Lin's neck, restrained him, and dragged him to the wall.
Jiang Lin pulled desperately at them with both hands, trying to break free. His air was cut off, and every futile breath brought only endless pressure. A hoarse rasp escaped his throat.
His vision began to blur, his head buzzed, and his heart pounded wildly in his chest.
Fan Daoyi ignored his struggle, sitting in the chair and watching it all impassively.
"You had a thought you shouldn't have had. You thought this was your dream and tried to use Delusion to kill me?"
Because of Delusion, Jiang Lin's thought had taken faint effect. All abilities were bestowed by Fan Daoyi's Origin Source, and he could clearly sense that trace of killing intent directed at him.
The vines tightened around Jiang Lin. His face was as pale as paper, utterly drained of blood. His eyes were wide with extreme fear and pain, his bloodshot eyeballs seeming ready to bulge from their sockets.
His lips had turned purplish-blue. They parted slightly, but he could not draw in a trace of air.
Judging enough time had passed, Fan Daoyi let the vines release him. Jiang Lin's body went limp, and he braced himself on the floor with both hands, gasping for breath as his wet hair clung messily to his face.
Fan Daoyi glanced indifferently at his miserable state. "But please don't forget who pulled you into this 'dream.'"
"Cough, cough..." Jiang Lin was in an utterly sorry state, coughing violently. He struggled to raise his head and look at Fan Daoyi, his voice hoarse and weak. "I... I'm sorry..."
Fan Daoyi narrowed his eyes slightly and said nothing.
Seeing that Fan Daoyi hadn't answered, Jiang Lin spoke again. "I shouldn't have had such a thought. Please forgive me."
Fan Daoyi watched Jiang Lin plead again and again, until the thought he should never have had was completely worn away from his mind.
After an unknown amount of time, Fan Daoyi smiled. "Good boy. Thank you for your effort."