1. While Lin Xuan was deep in thought, he suddenly felt someone nudge him. Startled, he opened his eyes.

In front of him stood his stern-faced teacher, looking down with a piercing gaze.

Beside him, Lin Qiye let out a resigned sigh. He had been trying to wake Lin Xuan by nudging him with his foot several times, but the guy refused to budge. Now, this happened. Busted by the teacher.

Lin Qiye: ┑(￣Д ￣)┍

Lin Xuan's face turned slightly awkward. Being caught sleeping during class? He couldn't deny it. It was his fault for dozing off. But honestly, who could blame him? After all, school was the place where dreams began, right?

(funny face emoji)

He was ready to endure the teacher’s scolding. To his surprise, the teacher simply glanced at him and said, "Don't let it happen again!" before walking out of the classroom.

The bell rang—class dismissed.

"Eh?"

Lin Xuan was dumbfounded.

"Lin Xuan, you got lucky today! The tigress didn’t make you stand outside her office," teased Li Yifei from the seat behind him, poking Lin Xuan on the shoulder.

"By the way, have you grown taller?"

Li Yifei suddenly asked, gesturing to measure Lin Xuan's height.

Hmm? Taller?

Lin Xuan became aware of his body. It seemed that after becoming a hybrid, his body had indeed grown a bit taller and more proportionate. His muscles felt leaner, more defined.

"Maybe I just slept too much. Growth spurts, you know."

Beside him, Lin Qiye turned his head, his expression one of disbelief.

He was realizing that his deskmate could really sleep—starting the moment class began and only waking up after it ended.

That wasn’t even the craziest part. The craziest part was that if their teacher hadn’t come over out of concern for Lin Qiye, she might not have even noticed Lin Xuan sleeping.

“Unbelievable,” Lin Qiye thought to himself.

"Speaking of which, Lin Xuan, why are you so sweaty?"

Li Yifei poked Lin Xuan’s back, noticing that his shirt was soaked through.

"Ah, bad dream," Lin Xuan said dismissively, brushing it off as he glanced at Lin Qiye.

That look wasn’t directed at a person. It was as if Lin Qiye was a treasure chest waiting to be opened.

Lin Xuan suddenly grabbed Lin Qiye and called Li Yifei from behind.

"Let’s go to the restroom."

"I’m good, I don’t need to go."

"No, you need to."

Lin Qiye: ???

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The night sky was clear, with the moon and stars shining faintly above. Time passed quickly, and soon the school day was over.

Students left the classrooms in groups, chatting and laughing. Occasionally, they glanced back toward a particular group.

At the center of the crowd was a young man with black, silky hair, surrounded by classmates like a loyal entourage protecting their king.

Lin Xuan followed them from a distance, choosing not to join their group.

During the day, he had experimented with his abilities and discovered that he could enter the mysterious space with just a thought.

Between classes, he also tested his Zero Time. By activating it and mentally counting seconds, Lin Xuan determined that the maximum time dilation he could achieve was 20 times normal speed, lasting for only three seconds.

A three-second god of war.

That was his current limit, dictated by his mental strength.

To be honest, it felt more like a momentary burst than true control over time. Moreover, his Zero Time wasn’t an area effect—it only applied to himself.

Lin Xuan speculated this limitation might be due to his low mental capacity.

In the power hierarchy of the "Slayers" system, his mental strength was currently at the "Lantern" tier. However, his physical strength far exceeded that level.

He had tested it with a utility knife, trying to cut his skin, only to leave a faint white scratch on the surface.

Lin Xuan continued searching for tools. He vividly remembered that Lin Qiye was destined to encounter two ghostly entities known as "Faceless Men" tonight.

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He felt it was necessary to intervene. The sooner he grew stronger, the better.

It would be an excellent opportunity to test whether killing a Faceless Man could increase his bloodline purity.

Every 5% increase in purity granted him a new ability and significantly enhanced his physical attributes.

This made sense—being a dragon-human hybrid, the closer his bloodline leaned toward the dragon side, the stronger his body became.

But that wasn’t all.

Lin Xuan had a hunch that if his bloodline purity surpassed 50%, he wouldn’t end up as a Deadpool-like mutant but would undergo some kind of transformation—perhaps even a metamorphosis.

This feeling was strange, like a faint intuition guiding him.

It made him eager to see what would happen if he reached 50%.

One more thing puzzled him.

The tombstone he had seen earlier recorded a maximum bloodline purity of 99%, marked with a single dragon head. There was no mention of a full 100%.

He suspected that reaching 99% marked the pinnacle of godhood.

However, to surpass that and break the limit, he might have to forge his own path.

If he could push his bloodline beyond 99%, would he ascend to become Nidhogg, the Black King—a supreme emperor of the dragon race?

Or would he transcend even the Black King?

What level would that be?

A "Half-Ascendant"? An "Ascendant"?

The thought sent waves of excitement coursing through him.

But he quickly dismissed these ideas—they were still too far away.

Lin Xuan refocused his attention on Lin Qiye, who was still surrounded by his classmates.

He remembered that tonight, Lin Qiye would awaken his Worldly Domain, opening his eyes and reversing the battle to kill one of the Faceless Men.

It would be the perfect chance to test if absorbing energy from the Divine Ruins could boost his growth.

At the same time, Lin Xuan wanted to gauge his current strength.

With the hybrid’s near-superhuman physique and his Zero Time, killing one Faceless Man should be within his ability.

And if things went south, his combination of Zero Time and raw physical power would at least ensure a safe retreat.

The only thing Lin Xuan needed to be cautious about was that using Zero Time twice in quick succession was practically impossible—it would leave him with a splitting headache.

Still, he needed to find a suitable weapon.

The utility knife he had tested earlier was definitely not up to the task. It might even break before he managed to kill a Faceless Man.

Unfortunately, Lin Xuan couldn’t find any better options. A mop soaked in water wasn’t exactly a weapon against such a foe.

As he scanned his surroundings, his gaze landed on something simple yet effective: a brick lying near the school wall.

Rushing over, Lin Xuan picked up the brick and weighed it in his hand. It felt awkward to use. Without hesitation, he slammed it against the ground.

The brick shattered into three sharp fragments. Lin Xuan stuffed them all into his pocket.

Broken pieces were even sharper and more lethal. Plus, having multiple pieces meant that if one slipped during the fight, he could just pull out another from his pocket.

Armed and ready, Lin Xuan quickened his pace, catching up to the conspicuous group ahead.

"Let me tag along. We’re heading the same way," he said casually.

Lin Qiye’s mouth twitched at the sound of that voice.

He had a growing aversion to it. Every time class ended, Lin Xuan would drag him and Li Yifei out to the restroom under the excuse of "getting some exercise."

Lin Qiye didn’t understand. Did boys really enjoy going to the restroom as a group?

If not for the fact that Lin Xuan often didn’t actually need to use the restroom, Lin Qiye would’ve suspected he had a bladder problem.

“Hmm?”

Lin Qiye suddenly frowned.

He had a perceptive ability, almost like a sixth sense, allowing him to clearly "see" everything within a ten-meter radius. Naturally, this included the contents of Lin Xuan’s pockets.

Bricks. Why was he carrying bricks?

For a moment, Lin Qiye’s mind raced with possibilities. Could Lin Xuan have family issues? Or was he planning to lash out in violence?

As they walked farther from the school, the group gradually thinned out, until only six of them remained.

While the others were engrossed in a conversation about the mysterious fog from a century ago, Lin Xuan followed behind, half-listening, his eyes scanning his surroundings. His hands were buried in his pockets, gripping two pieces of brick.

Lin Qiye answered their questions but seemed noticeably distracted—his attention was fixed on Lin Xuan.

What was he looking for?

"Yifei, doesn’t this path take you farther from home?" Lin Xuan suddenly asked.

Li Yifei paused for a moment, looking a bit startled. "Eh, it’s fine. I just wanted to keep Qiye company for a bit longer."

"There’s no need. My place is close to his. I’ll walk him home. You’d better head back—our teacher gave us a ton of homework, and you didn’t finish it during study hall. Stay up too late, and you’ll end up napping in class tomorrow."

"You’re one to talk! Who was it today sleeping like a log and couldn’t be woken up?" Li Yifei retorted.

Lin Qiye nodded in agreement at that.

"Alright, enough chit-chat. Go on, get going. And don’t forget you’ve got my homework too," Lin Xuan said, waving him off impatiently.

Li Yifei was the second persona of the Naga Demon. If a Faceless Man attacked him, the demon would undoubtedly emerge during the life-and-death struggle. However, before the Naga Demon could silence them, Zhao Kongcheng would likely arrive, leaving the demon with no way out.

Yet, Li Yifei was a critical character in the later stages of the story. If he were to die now, it would cause major disruptions.

In the original plot, Li Yifei came out unscathed, but who could say for sure here?

This wasn’t just a story anymore—it was the real world.

And with his presence as a wildcard, things were bound to change.

"Fine, fine," Li Yifei muttered, reluctantly turning back.

"Be careful, though. I’ve heard the old district’s been dangerous lately—already over a dozen deaths in a row," he added, waving to the group before walking off.

"Hey! Li Yifei, are you crazy? Saying that kind of thing at night! Get back here!" Jiang Qian’s face turned pale, her eyes darting nervously around. The thought of a killer lurking in the shadows made her heart race.

Lin Qiye waved him off nonchalantly but turned back with a thoughtful expression.

Was Lin Xuan deliberately trying to send Li Yifei away?

Combining Lin Xuan’s earlier actions—carrying bricks in his pocket—and what Li Yifei had just said, Lin Qiye began piecing things together.

His grip on his blind cane tightened.

After Li Yifei left, the group walked for a while longer.

"Alright, this is my turn. See you guys later," Wang Shao said, waving as he prepared to leave.

"Wait," Lin Xuan called out abruptly.

If he remembered correctly, the two Faceless Men were lurking in the alley Wang Shao was about to enter.

Although Lin Xuan had forgotten many details of the Slayers storyline, he clearly remembered that Wang Shao and Jiang Qian both met their end that night.

They were classmates, and Jiang Qian, as class president, often helped others. If there was a chance to save them, Lin Xuan felt it was worth trying.

Seeing Lin Xuan speak up, Lin Qiye’s senses heightened. He noticed Lin Xuan instinctively tightening his grip on the brick in his hand.

Something was up.

"What is it?" Wang Shao asked, puzzled.

"Uh, don’t you smell something foul?"

"Foul smell?"