Chapter 152

Chapter 152

The school bell rang, and Jiang Xingzhuo rose from her seat, took two steps, and nearly stumbled.

"Hahahaha, watch where you're going, transfer student." The boy who had stuck out his foot to trip her said with a sneer. The others laughed along.

Jiang Xingzhuo glanced at him, her hair sliding back to reveal the burn scar that covered most of her left cheek, grotesque and ugly. Those on her left turned their heads away.

"Hey, freak, why aren't you answering? Did you know you kicked my foot?" Seeing no response from Jiang Xingzhuo, the boy frowned in irritation.

"Apologize quickly," ordered a girl drinking bubble tea beside him.

There is always someone in every class who gets bullied, and Jiang Xingzhuo was clearly their target.

Ignoring them, Jiang Xingzhuo remained silent, and the girl threw her bubble tea at her, hitting Jiang Xingzhuo's back. The lid wasn't properly secured, and some of it splashed onto her back.

Jiang Xingzhuo paused, then looked at the group.

They wore triumphant expressions.

Jiang Xingzhuo bent down, picked up the bottle of bubble tea, and walked over.

"What's that look for?" the girl asked, displeased.

"Just looking at scum," Jiang Xingzhuo said calmly.

"What?"

Before anyone could react, Jiang Xingzhuo grabbed the girl by her hair, pulled her head close, and forced the straw into her mouth, pouring the bubble tea in.

Jiang Xingzhuo was strong; each movement was forceful and steady. Caught off guard, the girl choked and struggled but couldn't break free. Fortunately, there was only half a bottle left, so it ended quickly.

"Damn!" the boys were stunned and jumped up from their seats.

Jiang Xingzhuo finally released the girl's hair, leaving her clutching her nose and coughing frantically.

Jiang Xingzhuo took off her school uniform jacket, picked up the one the girl had left on the chair, and put it on, her expression as cold as ever. This silence fell over the entire class as they watched her.

Looking at the girl, Jiang Xingzhuo said, "Wash my jacket and return it to me tomorrow."

Then she suddenly lifted her foot and kicked the boy who had tripped her. The kick hit his knee from an awkward angle, causing him to kneel down with a loud thud.

"Ahh! Damn! Sss... sss..."

"Try tripping me again next time," Jiang Xingzhuo said, looking down at him.

Seeing Jiang Xingzhuo's gaze, the boy swallowed his curse, feeling a sudden fear that his leg might be chopped off.

A few seconds after Jiang Xingzhuo left the classroom, a voice broke the silence: "Is she some kind of psycho?"

"So ugly, both inside and out!"

"Stay away from her, she's terrifying."

"..."

Realizing Jiang Xingzhuo was fearless and had a strong sense of revenge, they dared not bully her physically anymore and resorted to cold violence instead. Even without these incidents, Jiang Xingzhuo found it hard to make friends due to her scarred face. Few people had ever been willing to befriend her, even if they did, it never lasted long.

"When eating with her, it's a bit nauseating. You have to sit on her right side, otherwise just seeing her face..." she had once heard a former friend say behind her back.

When Jiang Xingzhuo was young, she accidentally knocked over a hot soup pot, burning her left face and disfiguring her. The once-popular girl in kindergarten became the one everyone shunned.

"Xingxing!" Tian Youyou called out loudly, running over with her ponytail swinging. Her sunny and beautiful face drew everyone's attention, and all eyes followed her.

Tian Youyou grabbed Jiang Xingzhuo's arm. "Xingxing, come to my house for dinner today! Dad brought home lots of crabs from work."

"No thanks."

"Please, please! I need your help with my homework after dinner."

"...Alright."

Jiang Xingzhuo thought Tian Youyou had only invited her, but she had also invited several other classmates, who were surprised to see her.

Jiang Xingzhuo and Tian Youyou had grown up together, though they attended different high schools. Jiang Xingzhuo had just transferred, and they weren't in the same class. Unlike Jiang Xingzhuo, Tian Youyou was a campus goddess, admired by countless people wherever she went.

Jiang Xingzhuo got up to go to the bathroom and heard voices as soon as she approached.

"How can Youyou have a friend like this? It's scary."

"Her right face is angelic, her left face is demonic. Such a pity."

Jiang Xingzhuo had heard such comments countless times since childhood.

Tian Youyou chatted with her classmates about school events, sports meets, and gossip, but she didn't forget Jiang Xingzhuo, often mentioning her to prevent her from feeling left out.

After finishing their meal and helping Tian Youyou with her homework, Jiang Xingzhuo went home.

Another ordinary day passed.

In the dead of night, Jiang Xingzhuo woke up to a strange sensation. She looked up and saw a shadow standing silently in the corner of her room. If it were any other girl, she would have been frozen with fear.

What is it? Jiang Xingzhuo immediately turned on the light and stared at it warily.

"I heard the sound of desire and came here upon its call," the shadow spoke in a deep male voice, like a devil tempting a mortal.

Jiang Xingzhuo: "What desire?"

The shadow seemed taken aback by the question, hesitated, and ignored it. "Want to draw a card?"

"What would happen if I don't draw?" Jiang Xingzhuo asked cautiously.

"If you don't draw... nothing will happen."

"Then let me try drawing."

"...Alright."

It might have been a hallucination, but Jiang Xingzhuo felt that the mysterious person's tone seemed somewhat reluctant.

A small wooden stick appeared in the shadowy figure's hand, and with a light wave, the white mist vortex spun, and ten glowing cards flew out from its center.

Jiang Xingzhuo's eyes widened slightly.

"Please flip your card."

Hesitantly, she reached out to touch the first card.

The card flipped over, revealing a transparent body like ice, adorned with mysterious patterns and words.

Jiang Xingzhuo stared at the words, feeling a bit strange.

"Congratulations, you've drawn a Restoration Pill. Using this pill can restore ten percent of your bodily damage."

The card transformed into light and entered her body. Jiang Xingzhuo felt her left cheek heating up. She turned to look at the mirror on the table and saw that the grotesque scar on her left side had faded, looking less revolting.

Was it healed?

"Please continue flipping your cards."

Jiang Xingzhuo's mind raced, but her expression remained unchanged as she continued to flip the cards.

The second card revealed a Mind Reading Card.

The third card revealed an ordinary-looking knife.

The fourth card was blank.

The fifth card revealed a Stealth Card.

The sixth card revealed a Vision Card.

The seventh, eighth, and ninth cards were all blank.

With the last card, even Jiang Xingzhuo couldn't help holding her breath. This game always brought a gambling-like thrill.

The tenth card flipped over...

"Congratulations, you've drawn an SSR Copy Card, the Dominant System. Using this system, you can collect the negative energy you generate and change yourself."

Jiang Xingzhuo looked at the card. "Seems like my luck is pretty good; I've drawn quite a few useful things."

"Indeed. This proves that your desires are strong."

"Are the cards I drew related to my desires?"

"That's right."

"Can I continue drawing cards?"

"Certainly, but it comes at a cost: ten million per draw."

"But how can I find you to draw cards?"

"When you call me in your heart."

"How do I call you?"

"Master."

"I see."

The shadow vanished as mysteriously as it had appeared.

Jiang Xingzhuo sat cross-legged on the bed, staring at the cards in her hand. Were these cards related to her inner desires?

The next day, Jiang Xingzhuo experienced the magic of these cards firsthand.

Every thought of everyone she encountered at school entered her ears.

"Gross"

"The scar is so gross"

"Why is she looking at me?"

"Gross"

"Gross"

"..."

She met Tian Youyou.

"Today, I'll use Jiang Xingzhuo to highlight my beauty and kindness. The push when we were kids was accidental, but it's fortunate I did it, or I wouldn't be the most beautiful one today... Still, it's disgusting, never gets any easier to look at."

If not for the Mind Reading Card, Jiang Xingzhuo wouldn't have known about the thoughts behind Tian Youyou's sweet smile.

With the Mind Reading Card, she felt more malice. Countless hidden arrows shot at her, enough to pierce through even a heart made of steel and shatter it completely.

And when she saw the group who had tried to bully her earlier, the Dominator System absorbed their negative emotions directed at her. Jiang Xingzhuo felt her body becoming lighter and her vision improving.

As she walked by the principal's office, the see-through card showed her that the principal was engaged in a passionate moment with a married teacher.

In her eyes, almost everyone in this world had no secrets left. Obtaining ten million yuan to draw another card was such a simple task—extortion, theft, gambling, or information trafficking; there were countless ways. Revenge against those who harbored malice towards her would be equally effortless.

The dark figure watched Jiang Xingzhuo from the shadows. No matter how kind a person might be, encountering a card would certainly change them. They might suddenly turn bad or try to play the role of a superhero, unaware that being influenced by a card would ultimately lead them down the same path, regardless of whether they turned good or evil.

—Continuously drawing cards, never satisfied, falling into the vortex of greed formed by the cards. Whether this greed stems from love or something else, they will ultimately drown in it.

Jiang Xingzhuo had long made this path clear, yet her world did not collapse because she had placed an unbreakable lock called "faith" on those people.

Now, before her, who had felt endless malice since childhood, this path also appeared, with the tempting apple emitting a seductive aroma.

Jiang Xingzhuo skipped class and left the school openly.

"Is it finally going to begin?" the dark figure eagerly leaned forward, staring at the All-Seeing Eye.

Jiang Xingzhuo arrived at the police station.

"Little girl, what can I help you with?" asked the gentle policewoman.

Jiang Xingzhuo took out a card from her pocket. "I want to report a crime."