Chapter 64: Breaking the limit

Opening her eyes, Xueqiu saw mountains and forests.

She knew she was in a dream, but she couldn’t move.

She was in a mountain, surrounded by lush vegetation, the endless darkness at the horizon confirming it was night.

In dreams, day or night didn’t matter. She just needed to wait to wake up.

A bell tolled.

She heard it again.

The first time was five months ago, in a dream. The second was during the Contract exam, the third at the Investigation Team.

Whenever the bell rang, she saw the masked figure in a tattered cloak.

Maybe it was a ghost—perhaps a Shadow Ghost.

But would a Shadow Ghost steal from the Investigation Team, flashing a peace sign at the camera?

And would a Shadow Ghost use weapons?

As she thought, Xueqiu suddenly felt a knife in her abdomen.

A silver blade, blood-soaked, steaming with mist.

It wasn’t Xia Yin’s “Mist Cutter,” which was pitch-black.

Whose knife was this?

Why was it piercing her stomach?

She woke.

Instinctively leaning to her side, she felt warmth.

Someone was beside her.

“You’re awake! Surgery was a success—you’re officially a girl now… Kidding, kidding. Good to see you up. Don’t stand yet—you might wobble and fall into my arms. Not that I’d mind, but… let’s keep that for dreams,” Xia Yin said.

Xueqiu didn’t need to guess who it was.

Only Xia Yin could ramble like that.

She opened her eyes again.

No strange forest this time.

She was surrounded by screens and buttons, a 24-inch monitor before her.

The monitor’s clock showed five minutes had passed since the underground archive elevator.

Xueqiu didn’t recall this room. She only remembered fainting.

Zena had told them to head to the fifth-floor library.

Zena, supporting a paler Hishiro Nagi, walked toward the library exit like a nurse with a patient.

From Zena’s calm tone, few Shadow Ghosts remained, none near the library.

Xueqiu worried about Zena and Hishiro running into Antidote.

But she’d had no time to dwell.

Seconds later, danger struck again.

Familiar Shadow Ghosts, humanoid this time.

They appeared silently after Zena left, slipping into the library like the earlier jackal-like horde.

Without hesitation, Xia Yin unleashed his domain.

His ‘Yinglong’ cutting ability sliced a Shadow Ghost in half without a blade.

This time, Xueqiu saw the “blades’” source.

Countless thin, translucent threads.

She saw them clearly.

Within ten seconds of watching Xia Yin’s slaughter, her eyelids grew heavy, her body weak.

Warmth flooded her limbs and mind.

Then, she lost consciousness.

Now awake, she was here.

“Little Xia, take her to the infirmary. The Shadow Ghost issue is mostly resolved, and the barrier’s gaps are repaired,” a crisp, aged voice said, familiar to Xueqiu.

She stood, gripping the table, spotting Xia Yin circling a familiar old man.

Professor Chen cleared his throat. Xia Yin, who’d been pacing, stopped, turned to Xueqiu, and launched into complaints.

“She’s fine. Probably just freaked out from seeing too many monsters…”

Turning to her, his words multiplied.

“Seriously, why didn’t you stay in the dorms with Chang Mu? You wouldn’t have fainted. I meant to carry you on my back, but you were limp as noodles, no strength. You don’t know how tough it was hauling you from the first floor when the elevator stopped… Not saying you’re heavy—you’re definitely not a hundred kilos of rice—but I’m not bored enough to lug rice…”

Xueqiu stared blankly, silent.

She felt strange, in every way.

Since waking, her vision wasn’t hazy but crystal clear, as if painstakingly focused. Her eyesight felt doubled.

What was this feeling? She couldn’t say.

A raspier, older voice, like a broken bellows, came near Chen. “You’re students. Go back to the dorms. I’ll send two escorts. Don’t cause trouble.”

Xueqiu glanced around, spotting the source—a hunched old man at the console.

She’d met him once, on Contract exam day.

“They’re not tougher than me…” Xia Yin muttered.

They could stay here, given the situation.

But if they left, meeting a Shadow Ghost was as likely as winning the lottery. Two minutes ago, Chang Yi reported only two Shadow Ghosts remained, near the North Gate, awaiting security.

“Let’s go back, Brother,” Xueqiu said softly, noting Xia Yin’s lack of response.

It was her first time calling him “Brother” instead of “Senior.”

He’d said the terms were similar at the Academy.

Escorted by the old man’s chosen staff, still in lab coats like they’d just finished an experiment, they left the command center.

Descending the stairs, Xueqiu didn’t recall climbing them.

She’d been unconscious, carried up by Xia Yin.

The thought stirred faint embarrassment.

She knew Xia Yin wasn’t faring much better.

Four or five months ago, she was a normal high schooler. Since that day, her gender, height, skin, and voice had changed…

He knows who I was, she thought.

Yet his tone suggested he’d taken advantage of a girl.

She was a girl now, but something felt logically off.

A strange feeling lingered.

The library’s first floor was a mess—glass shards on once-pristine tiles.

A Shadow Ghost, sliced into three, lay by the door—the one she and Xia Yin faced before going up.

“Oh, Snowball, didn’t you wonder why I didn’t take the elevator? I’m not bored enough for weight training,” Xia Yin said out of the blue.