Destiny's Choice

At the cellar entrance.

Han Dong had witnessed firsthand the strength of an evil spirit at four-star difficulty.

Instant arm regeneration, and the scene of Chen Li being completely suppressed after Yin Energy was injected into her... Ordinary people had no chance of surviving against an evil spirit like this.

The situation was far more troublesome than Han Dong had imagined.

"This is four-star difficulty... Edward Mori was truly incredible. He actually survived against such a terrifying inhuman ghost and even managed to injure it to some extent.

"I only have one chance.

"If I fail... Chen Li and I will both die here."

Steady.

He had to stay steady.

Even with life and death hanging by a thread, even as Chen Li's agonized screams echoed through the cellar, even without absolute certainty of victory.

Han Dong could not panic in the slightest.

If he made any sound while approaching, he would definitely die!

Chen Li, invaded by Yin Energy and with her neck tightly strangled, had already fallen into a state of suffocation. She could not hold on much longer.

Yet there was not the slightest plea for help in her eyes as she looked at Han Dong. Instead, she hoped he would ignore her condition and successfully get close from behind.

Five meters.

Four meters.

Three meters.

Two meters.

One meter.

The stealth approach succeeded.

Han Dong did not take out the Plague Doctor's Short Blade he had obtained from the Hidden Event.

After all, Han Dong was not yet a mysticism-related profession and could not unleash this weapon's true power.

"...Recall that strange feeling."

Having practiced beforehand, Han Dong held his breath and focused, trying to recall the strange sensation from his nightmare.

It was deeply unpleasant.

For some reason, whenever he thought of the Faceless students sitting neatly throughout the classroom, along with all sorts of objects bearing tentacle-like elements, Han Dong felt deeply uncomfortable...

Maintaining that strange sensation, Han Dong slowly reached out and placed his right palm against the back of the evil spirit's head.

During this process, an imprint of "Faceless Tentacles" emerged on Han Dong's forehead.

By the time the evil spirit Akaman sensed the faint touch on the back of his head, it was already too late.

Squelch, squelch! (The slippery sound of writhing.)

Some kind of slick, spotted tentacles rapidly grew from Han Dong's palm, ignoring the skull's protection and piercing straight into Akaman's brain.

There was no scream.

No blood.

No bloody scene.

No outward sign one would expect from someone gravely injured.

The evil spirit Akaman merely turned his head with a blank expression, staring wide-eyed at Han Dong, who should have been dead.

He could not understand why Han Dong had "returned from the dead."

Nor could he understand why Han Dong possessed such an ability.

The evil spirit that should have inspired fear in others now revealed terror in his own eyes... It seemed that the tentacles implanted in his brain had shown Akaman a terrifying sight he had never witnessed before.

In Akaman's vision.

Han Dong was no longer a brown-haired young man, but an indescribable being.

A monster that could not be looked upon directly, one capable of stirring deep-rooted terror.

Strange tentacle patterns spread around the evil spirit's eye sockets, rapidly extending across his entire face and covering his whole body.

An unbelievable scene unfolded.

The tentacles growing from Han Dong's palm, together with the evil spirit Akaman, "corrupted."

In a short time, they turned into a large pool of foul-smelling filthy water.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle! The filthy water that landed on the ground slowly evaporated upon coming into contact with the air.

"Dead? An evil spirit capable of Super Fast Regeneration, one that even flames couldn't burn away, just died like that!?"

Han Dong stared at the rapidly evaporating filthy water on the ground, unable to believe his eyes.

He had originally thought this would seriously injure the evil spirit and interfere with its movements, allowing the freed Chen Li to finish it off with her kitchen knife... He had never expected this sneak attack to end everything outright.

Han Dong could not help turning to look at his own palm, curious about what exactly those tentacles were.

Curious as he was.

Han Dong still crouched down immediately. A brass-trimmed syringe appeared in his hand, and its needle pierced the filthy water on the ground... A portion of Cellular Essence was extracted.

At the same time.

An indescribable weakness swept through Han Dong's entire body.

It was far more intense than the weakness caused by practicing with the tentacles in the room earlier.

Combined with all the activity, traveling, and mental exertion of the past half day.

Han Dong could no longer endure it. His eyes went vacant, and he fell backward.

'Evil Spirit Event—"The Hex (Director's Cut)" has been completed.'

Completion method: Kill the evil spirit.

Rewards granted:

①. 1 basic Destiny Point.

②. 1 additional Destiny Point (obtained for killing the evil spirit).

③. One "Destiny Card (Novice Grade)."

As you are a Newcomer and have not allocated any Destiny Points.

Please first allocate your Destiny Points to determine your primary profession. You may then proceed with the random draw for the "Destiny Card (Novice Grade)."

The voice in his mind gradually brought Han Dong back to consciousness.

He was no longer in the dark, damp plague cellar.

Han Dong found himself in a clean and tidy White Space... It had a regular pentagonal structure, with a distinctive door positioned at the center of each wall.

The first door was made of metal, with a sword and shield design engraved on its surface.

There was a prominent cross symbol on the shield.

The plaque read—Crusader.

The second door was made of earth, with three books depicted on its surface, representing magic, holiness, and strange writing Han Dong did not recognize.

The plaque read—Library.

The third door was covered in Beast Skin, with a hand imprinted on its surface and a circular mark engraved in its palm.

The plaque read—Control.

The fourth door was made of brass, with large and small precision gears interlocking on its surface.

The plaque read—Machinery.

The fifth door was made of ebony, with a pentagram mark and a crystal ball imprinted on its surface.

The plaque read—Mysticism.

Han Dong was not excited by having cleared the evil spirit event. Instead, he immediately placed himself in the mindset of the "reward collection stage," adapting to and observing what lay before him.

At the same time, he established contact with Possessed Chen Li through his consciousness.

Chen Li was currently resting in prison. Everything was normal.

"Allocate Destiny Points and determine my primary profession!?

"So the reason those knights in the Holy City—Neunter—were so extraordinary was indeed because they had obtained supernatural abilities from Destiny Space.

"Based on what I currently know about this world, choosing Machinery should make things easier in the future, right? After all, this is the age of steam machinery, and most facilities in the city are related to brass mechanical engineering.

"However, I need to find a profession suited to me."

Before his death, Han Dong had been a scientific researcher.

He first stood before the earthen door called Library.

If he chose this door, Han Dong guessed that he would most likely gain abilities related to "magic."

Moreover, Han Dong had loved "magic" since childhood. He believed that with his scientific expertise and ability to read documents, he could quickly study all kinds of Magic Books and get started rapidly.

Just then.

A strange sensation arose in Han Dong's mind, driving him to turn his head toward the fifth door.