Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Lucky night, business opens tonight.

No one can escape the allure of advertising. With a mindset of treating a dead horse as if it could still be cured, many students sent private messages requesting enchantment services, addressing Ji Xinghai as "Boss Ji" with great enthusiasm. Ji Xinghai's business boomed, and in the following hour, he received over thirty orders, thriving.

The most surprising request came from "Universe’s First Lucky," asking him to inscribe an exorcism pattern on the outside of a silver-plated pistol.

Without a moment's hesitation, Ji Xinghai accepted the order. A straightforward transaction, as if the subtle tension between them had never existed.

The world of adults is this realistic, driven by perpetual interests.

To inscribe effective runes on these weapons, the demon blade was the most suitable choice, and with two summoning opportunities per day, each lasting half an hour, it ensured sufficient endurance.

The demon blade itself never expected that, despite its innate bloodlust, its primary task would become carving.

But it didn’t dare to make a sound or resist.

The runes crafted by Ji Xinghai indeed proved exceptional. Whether it was the Soul Soothing Incantation engraved on prayer beads or the Demon-Banishing Pattern on a kitchen knife, they stunned the opposing ghosts and monsters upon their debut.

However, not everyone had the courage to counterattack the monsters. Most merely managed to escape safely. Only two failed to utilize the enchanted weapons effectively and died, their IDs turning gray.

Without the person, there was no payment.

After successfully countering or escaping, the students had to fulfill their promises.

Among these two dozen or so individuals, one presented a doll, an unattractive water monkey, while the others offered utility cards. The most prevalent were "refueling" cards, accompanied by a pair of Low-Level Vehicle Upgrade Cards and a Car Restaurant Lunch Experience Voucher.

Those who gave the vehicle upgrade cards likely had nothing else valuable; these cards were now scarce.

Five others did not offer anything, perhaps still engaged in battle, lacking suitable items, or curious about the consequences of breaking the contract.

Ji Xinghai was also curious about the repercussions of violating the contract, so he waited patiently.

The contract he established stipulated that Ji Xinghai would provide enchantment services with a 24-hour effect, and in return, they needed to provide a doll or a function card within 24 hours.

If Ji Xinghai broke the agreement, he would randomly lose a function card, which would then compensate the other party. If the other party violated the agreement, they would lose the weapon, which would compensate Ji Xinghai.

Considering that the weapons they sent for enchantment were often their most useful tools, this punishment held significant deterrent power.

Thanks to external assistance, the students safely navigated through critical moments and couldn't help but express their gratitude to Boss Ji in the student channel, reflecting on life.

Amidst the lively discussion, "Universe’s First Lucky," who had been absent for a long time, reappeared, sharing a photo of a small ghost doll. This time, however, he didn't reveal specific loot, perhaps due to newfound humility or some unspoken reason.

Some students, previously ridiculed, couldn't resist mocking him, but Universe’s First Lucky unusually remained silent.

This was intriguing.

Several official students who had previously noticed him took a closer look at the small doll's photo but found no clues. Small ghosts were low-level monsters in the Western world, and with silver bullets and a pistol, dealing with such creatures wasn't difficult.

Ji Xinghai also saw the picture posted by Universe’s First Lucky.

He couldn’t determine how much credit the appearance of the small doll owed to the Exorcism Incantation, but as someone who had lived a long life, he typically possessed a natural "filter of forgetfulness." Unimportant people and matters weren't worth his attention, so he didn’t delve deeper into the matter.

At half past eleven, the two-hour service period ended, and Ji Xinghai disregarded the students' thoughts, stopping the enchantment service, taking a shower, and going to bed.

The lights dimmed, and with double-layered curtains drawn, the room became pitch black. Ji Xinghai crossed his hands over his abdomen, sensing an alien presence lingering outside, unable to truly approach.

Beside his pillow, several monster dolls sat neatly in a row.

As the night deepened and the clouds darkened, the examination world grew quiet.

Students who had defeated monsters could sleep peacefully in the monsters' lairs, while those who escaped successfully could find another place to rest—assuming they weren’t unlucky enough to go from the frying pan into the fire.

With the students resting, the audience finally had the leisure to discuss the developments of the second day of the scenario.

The death rate on the second night was still too low. Initially, there were still around twenty survivors, but by the end, the number dropped to single digits. Even casual viewers could sense the impact of that human-shaped bug.

Yes, the one named after JiuZhou, more adept at exorcisms than Western mystics, akin to a game merchant selling powerful artifacts at bargain prices, disrupting the entire examination order.

He was likely a thorn in the side of the Hungry Academy.

With sudden temperature fluctuations and reduced chances of obtaining Car Motel Experience Vouchers, the Hungry Academy seemed intent on eliminating weaker students. But the JiuZhou cheat code, through sheer skill, kept these people alive.

If they were the Hungry Academy, they'd be having heart attacks.

Officially, the people of JiuZhou claimed it was all about "mutual benefit and win-win," part of "a global perspective," privately worrying to the point of losing their eyebrows.

Damn, in the next scenario, Gege will surely be targeted to death by the Hungry Academy.

Still, although the Hungry Academy doesn’t participate directly in ongoing scenarios, shouldn’t they have contingency plans for unexpected situations?

In previous scenarios, once a student emerged as a bug-like presence, similarly boundary-crossing anomalies would appear to deal with them, but why were there no signs of the examination being corrected this time?

Was there an internal issue?

Within the examination, outside the game.

Wave after wave of "gazes" pierced through layers of darkness, focusing on the illuminated corner.

If humans possessed such transcendent "gazes" beyond their physical bodies, they would be astonished. On the map, numerous light points gathered, flickering brightly or dimly, some nearly extinguished like candles in the wind, each representing a scenario the students had experienced.

"Chortle... Although we only captured fragments of their souls, this human is indeed fascinating. He can devour us." A cheerful laughter echoed in the air, alternating between a girl's voice and a coarse male voice, peculiar and awkward.

"Is he really human, not one of our kind?"

"Indeed, I knew it during the last exam. It’s a surprise~" Another voice appeared, surprisingly the masked man's voice. "A delicious fruit that doesn’t need to ripen."

"We didn’t receive many soul energies in the last exam, and it seems the same will happen this time. How interesting~"

These entities have a complex relationship with the Hungry Academy, akin to coerced employees who receive wages and bonuses, but for these monsters, freedom, destruction, and chaos are what they truly desire.

Thus, seeing the Hungry Academy suffer setbacks, these entities take delight in their misfortune, though only some of the monsters feel provoked.

"Shouldn't such unexpected beings be eradicated sooner? This human has become a threat to the examination system."

"Eradicate! Eradicate! Must eradicate!"

A seam tears open in the void, and pallid fingers reach out, only to be severed by a beam of light just as they are about to touch a pinpoint of light. "Aaah—" A scream of agony rips through the void.

"Examination grounds: interferers die." The new inspector's cold voice is sharp as a nail, piercing the spirits' minds painfully.

The monsters hiding in layered spaces all 'look' towards the ongoing scenario, their 'view' obstructed by a barrier.

This is the inspector exercising their authority, preventing any entity from disrupting the order of the examination.

Ah... him again.

Though unseen, he likely wears his uniform buttoned up to the top, his hat perfectly placed, his boots and socks spotless, white gloves holding the scepter of light symbolizing his power, stern and serious.

They adore him so much, eager to kill precisely because of this adoration.

"Hmph, don't you have ulterior motives?" The crows squawk noisily.

"I act according to the rules; report any objections." The inspector's 'voice' echoes across realms, and within the examination grounds, they have the final say unless the rules are violated.

"Must you protect that human examinee?"

"I uphold the rules, and the rules are paramount." Even over the Hungry Academy itself.

"Fellow examiners, let us adhere strictly to the examination rules. Any objections?"

Several indistinct figures of monsters appear vaguely within the softly glowing examination grounds, all saying, "No objections, we follow the rules."

"Hmm? Your auras seem off, were you just disciplined?" That alternately male and female voice asks again.

"No, no," the auxiliary examiners in the examination grounds hastily deny once more.

"Tsk... the inspector is terrifying, hehe." With that, the voice retreats, content with provocation but not daring to escalate further.

During the examination period, the inspector holds absolute authority.

The inspector's attention shifts back outside: "Unrelated parties must leave the examination grounds, or I will exercise my authority as inspector."

"Hehehehe, worthy of being an inspector who mastered the rules after passing the Nine Depths extreme trials in just two years. But don't let me catch you abusing your power. Otherwise..."

The masked figure peeks out from its isolated space, then quickly withdraws before the inspector notices, a cruel smile still on its lips: "Once you lose your status as inspector, you'll be devoured, won't you?"

"The inspector is going to be devoured? I want a piece, I want a piece! His soul must be delicious!"

"I'll devour his skull!"

Many tiny, sharp voices echoed through the void, as if the monsters were laughing and cavorting without restraint.

Perhaps it wasn't laughter at all; once a weakness was exposed, this could turn into a frenzied killing spree.

But he didn't care.

Malice seeped from countless overlapping dimensions, yet it was all kept at bay outside of the small instance. The overseer's gaze returned to the special student, only to find the bed empty, with a row of innocent dolls staring blankly with lifeless eyes.

His breath faltered for a moment.

"Are you looking for me, dear... teacher~"

Ji Xinghai had somehow appeared, sitting on the sofa, one hand holding a loaded shotgun aimed at the overseer.

His presence seemed to meld with the darkness, completely undetectable until seen, then striking like a nocturnal flower blooming in the night.

A slender figure, barely into adulthood, poised between boyhood and manhood, his pale skin revealing purplish veins beneath. His flawless features were doll-like in their delicacy and inorganic quality, swathed in a white robe.

He held the shotgun, his delicate wrist barely supporting its weight.

Yet no one would mistake him for harmless.

Those slightly golden eyes gazed calmly, devoid of any emotion.

No wonder the monsters suspected him of being one of them.

Beautiful, elegant, dangerous—a born hunter.

"Tsk, boring." Ji Xinghai raised the shotgun, pointing the muzzle at the ceiling.

The heartbeat's frequency hadn't changed at all—did he feel the shotgun posed no threat, or that there was no chance of it being fired? Or did he simply not care?

Any of these possibilities was disappointing.

"Whether sharing information or offering paid assistance later, it's all to help more students survive..."

"Hmph." Ji Xinghai interrupted with a derisive laugh, quickly composing his expression, his lips curled in a smile that belonged to someone unaware of the hardships of the world, "You overestimate me. I didn't even know I could be so friendly. What do the lives or deaths of those people have to do with me?"

The overseer watched him, saw him tilt his head and play with the shotgun, his beautiful face wearing only a proud smile.

This smile was false. The heartless madness might have been partly true, but it wasn't all of him. That sudden shift in expression hinted at something real hidden away.

There was some disdain, some mockery, and an unspeakable regret.

As if deeply hurt by humanity, yet unable to resist a bit of hope and pity.

Perhaps too aware of human nature's tendency to bully the kind and fear the powerful, he refused to show kindness.

But there was always that lingering hope.

Ripples appeared in the Inspector's eyes, which were like black whirlpools, as rays of soft light pierced through layers of obstacles into the dark depths of his heart's lake.

"Making a visit at such a late hour, is there something you want to talk about, Teacher~" Ji Xinghai, under her gaze, called out the word 'Teacher' in a syrupy tone laced with danger, much like a cat extending sharp claws from its soft paw pad, carrying a half-threat.

If a wrong word was spoken, one might likely be pinned down by those claws, wouldn't they?

The Inspector suddenly felt as if she had come to deliver a midnight snack.