Night Exploration and First Trial of Mental Thread

The night was deep and quiet, and snores filled the Seventh Dormitory.

Lin Kun opened his eyes silently. He hadn't been asleep, but had been quietly digesting the knowledge from the Basic Movement Technique Outline and circulating the Mysterious Heaven Skill (he had privately tried to imitate it, but only managed to get the form, with results far inferior to the genuine article) to cultivate his Spirit Power.

Feeling the time was right, he moved his intent and took out the Low-Grade Spirit Power Enhancement Potion, quickly drinking it down.

The gentle medicinal power dissolved, integrating into his limbs and bones, finally converging in his dantian. His Spirit Power, which was near the peak of level 3, broke through the bottleneck as a matter of course, steadily increasing until it stabilized at level 4.

His strength had advanced another small step!

But what he was more concerned about at this moment was the newly acquired Spirit Skill – Mental Thread.

He needed to find a quiet, secluded place to test this ability. The Seventh Dormitory was obviously not suitable.

Holding his breath and concentrating, he carefully listened to the sounds around him, confirming that everyone was fast asleep, including Tang San on the opposite bed, whose breathing was even and deep. Lin Kun slid off the bed as silently as a cat, using the stealth footwork from the Basic Movement Technique he had just grasped. Without making a sound, he quietly slipped out of the Seventh Dormitory.

Nuoding Academy was quiet at night, with only the chirping of insects and the rustling of leaves in the wind. Moonlight, like water, cast a clear glow.

Lin Kun avoided the patrolling teachers and arrived at the garden he had cleaned during the day, hiding behind a dense rose bush. This place was relatively hidden, and with various flowers and trees, it was perfect for testing the probing and manipulation abilities of Mental Thread.

He focused his mind, sinking his intent into his sea of consciousness, communicating with his Book Spirit. The cover of the book glowed faintly, resonating with his mental power.

"Mental Thread, condense!"

He silently recited the Spirit Skill, feeling his mental power separate into an extremely fine strand, like unraveling silk. Under the control of his intent, it slowly extended out of his body!

One meter, two meters, five meters… When it reached a distance of about ten meters, Lin Kun felt a slight strain, and his mental power consumption increased significantly. This was the current limit.

He controlled the thread, as if manipulating an invisible hand, and carefully touched a rose leaf in front of him.

He had touched it!

An extremely subtle tactile feedback returned to his mind, not a physical sensation, but a perception on a spiritual level – the softness of the leaf, its fuzziness, even its fine veins, all clearly presented in his mind! It was more detailed than touching it directly with his hand!

"What a marvelous ability!" Lin Kun exclaimed excitedly in his heart.

He continued to control the Mental Thread, attempting more complex operations. He made the thread wrap around a leaf stalk and then gently pulled –

The rose leaf trembled slightly.

The strength was indeed very weak, probably only enough to move a leaf to this extent. But for precise probing and information transmission, it was enough!

He then tried to extend the Mental Thread into the depths of the rose bush, weaving through the tangled stems and thorns, sensing a night moth sucking nectar, and even "seeing" the fine scales on its wings!

This probing ability was the perfect complement to Insight Skill! Insight Skill provided basic information, while Mental Thread could conduct in-depth, microscopic probing!

After testing for nearly half an hour, until he felt a bit mentally fatigued, Lin Kun retracted the Mental Thread, still feeling unsatisfied. His control over this new Spirit Skill was becoming increasingly proficient.

"Let's try linking them…" he remembered the hint in the skill description. How to link it with Spirit Shock?

He condensed another Mental Thread, slowly extending it to a small stone about five meters away, and gently wrapped around it. Then, he took a deep breath, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes –

"Spirit Shock!"

The target was not the stone, but the Mental Thread connecting to it!

An invisible shockwave transmitted rapidly along the Mental Thread! The speed was much faster than releasing it directly! Almost in the instant his thought flashed, it reached the end of the thread!

The small stone seemed to be struck by an invisible force, jumping violently. A very subtle crack even appeared on its surface!

Lin Kun grunted, his face paling, feeling as if his brain had been pricked by a needle, and his mental power was instantly depleted by more than half! Spirit Shock was already a huge drain, and transmitting it through the Mental Thread seemed to require even higher control, with a stronger backlash.

But the effect was significant! Spirit Shock, transmitted through Mental Thread, achieved near instantaneous casting and precise targeting! Although the range was limited by the length of the thread, and the power seemed to have slightly weakened, its concealment and suddenness were greatly enhanced!

This was definitely a trump card that could catch someone off guard!

Lin Kun quickly sat down to regulate his breathing and restore his mental power. At the same time, his heart was filled with excitement. The linkage of these two Spirit Skills had elevated his self-preservation ability by a notch!

As he was regulating his breathing, Insight Skill and his Book Spirit passively detected extremely faint energy fluctuations and footsteps from a distance.

Someone? This late?

Lin Kun immediately concealed all his aura, using the rose bush and the night to perfectly hide himself, while cautiously extending a wisp of Mental Thread like an antenna to probe the direction from which the fluctuations were coming.

The thread silently spread across the lawn, winding around the rockery.

In a corner of the academy not illuminated by the moonlight, a small figure was moving rapidly and silently. Her movement technique was light and agile, and it was none other than Xiao Wu! She seemed to be dodging something, or perhaps searching for something, occasionally looking back vigilantly.

Why was she out so late? Lin Kun wondered.

Just then, another figure appeared from the other side, blocking Xiao Wu's path. The person wore the academy's teacher uniform, but had a sinister expression, sharp eyes, and faint Spirit Power fluctuations emanating from him, clearly not an ordinary teacher.

"Little girl, why are you sneaking around outside so late instead of resting in the dormitory?" the "teacher" said in a low voice, with a hint of interrogation.

Xiao Wu stopped, her big eyes blinking, revealing an innocent expression: "Teacher, I… I couldn't sleep, so I came out for some fresh air. I'll go back right away."

"Fresh air?" the "teacher" sneered, "I don't think you're just out for fresh air, are you? Come with me, there are some things you need to explain."

Xiao Wu's smile remained unchanged, but her body tensed slightly, a flicker of imperceptible panic and fierceness flashing in the depths of her eyes: "Teacher, I don't understand what you mean. I'm just a student, what could I possibly need to explain?"

"Hmph, stop playing dumb! The aura you have… it's not as simple as an ordinary student's!" the "teacher" pressed forward, his Spirit Power fluctuations subtly increasing, as if he could make a move at any moment.

Lin Kun's heart skipped a beat! Did this person discover Xiao Wu's Spirit Beast identity? Who was he? A spy from the Spirit Hall? Or someone from another faction?

Xiao Wu is in danger!

Save her, or not?

Saving her would mean revealing that I sneak out at night and the abilities I might possess, possibly even dragging myself into immense, unknown trouble. If I don't save her, and Xiao Wu is captured or worse... the consequences are unthinkable. Tang San would surely go mad, and the story would completely derail.

Just as Lin Kun was engaged in a fierce internal struggle, and the "teacher" was about to make a move—

Another powerful aura suddenly erupted from nearby!

"Stop!"

A figure appeared like a ghost, blocking Xiao Wu. The newcomer was also wearing a teacher's uniform, tall with a square face, exuding an imposing presence even without anger. It was the disciplinary director, Teacher Yinshu, who usually seemed a bit rigid! (A minor character from the original work, borrowed here for use.)

Teacher Yinshu coldly looked at the sinister man. "Who are you? I've never seen you in the academy. Why are you threatening a student late at night?"

The sinister man's expression changed. He clearly hadn't expected someone to intervene. His eyes flickered a few times, and he let out a dry laugh. "Ah, Director Yinshu. It's a misunderstanding. I just saw this student out late and was asking a few questions out of safety concerns. Since the director is here, there's no issue."

With that, he stopped pressing the matter, his figure flashed, and he quickly disappeared into the night.

Director Yinshu's brow furrowed. He looked in the direction the man had vanished, his gaze grave. He turned to look at Xiao Wu, his tone stern but not accusatory. "Don't go out alone at night anymore. The academy hasn't been peaceful lately. Hurry back to the dormitory."

"Thank you, Director Yinshu!" Xiao Wu breathed a sigh of relief, gave a sweet smile, nodded obediently, and immediately turned to run towards the Seventh Dormitory.

Director Yinshu stood in place, lost in thought for a moment before turning to leave.

From behind the rose bushes, Lin Kun retracted his Mental Thread, his back already soaked with cold sweat.

Tonight's incident showed him the undercurrents beneath Nuoding Academy's calm surface. Xiao Wu's identity was not absolutely safe; some force was already targeting this place.

And was Director Yinshu's appearance a coincidence? Or had he been secretly watching Xiao Wu all along? Or perhaps, watching for any potential "anomalies"?

This world was far more complex and dangerous than he had imagined.

He had to be more careful and improve his strength faster.

Glancing in the direction Xiao Wu had left, Lin Kun also silently got up, melting back into the Seventh Dormitory like a shadow, and lay back on his bed as if he had never left.

The night was still silent, but for some, their hearts were already in turmoil.