Chapter 7
On the White Jade Square, sunlight shines through the translucent protective cover, illuminating the ground like flowing mercury.
Lin Yao stood in the shadow at the edge of the square, his silver hair gently blown by the breeze, and his blue eyes reflected the supernatural power practice class going on in the distance.
"Look, that 'F-class loser' is peeking at the S-class course again." A deliberately suppressed laugh came from behind.
Lin Yao didn't look back. His fingertips trembled slightly at his side, and the spiritual thread extended silently, capturing the source of the sound - three teenagers in school uniforms, led by Wang Rui, who had a conflict with him when he entered school.
He had been severely punished by Lu Cheng in several practical combat classes, and now it seemed that the punishment was not enough.
"I heard that he can't even do the most basic mental detection, and he's only able to stay in the academy because of Young Master Lu's connections." Another voice echoed.
Lin Yao lowered his eyes, his long eyelashes casting a shadow on his pale skin. He had deliberately chosen this loose white uniform today, which made his figure look even thinner and more fragile.
This was Lu Cheng's favorite look—like a fragile piece of glass art, the city lord's son whose memory had been tampered with always described him that way.
The threads of his mind silently entwined themselves around the surface of the three students' consciousnesses, and a barely perceptible sneer curled up at the corners of Lin Yao's mouth. With just a thought, he could cause these three ignorant brats to have a mental breakdown on the spot.
But no, now is not the time.
"Yaoyao? Why are you here?"
A gentle voice came from behind him, and the spiritual thread was instantly retracted. When Lin Yao turned around, his face had replaced the expression that Lu Cheng was most familiar with, with a hint of uneasiness.
"Acheng..." he called softly, his voice as soft as a feather, "I...I want to watch you train."
Lu Cheng still had the static electricity unique to his lightning ability, and his black hair was slightly standing up, obviously he had just rushed over from the training ground.
He reached out and stroked Lin Yao's cheek, his eyes full of heartache: "Didn't I tell you? The energy fluctuations in the practical class are too strong, which is not good for your health."
Lin Yao placed his face against Lu Cheng's palm, his blue eyes flickering with tears. "But... I want to know more about your world."
What a perfect performance! Lin Yao sneered inwardly. This S-rank genius, whose memory he had tampered with, was incredibly protective of his "lovers who had endured so much hardship."
In fact, they had never met each other three months ago - at that time, Lin Yao had just traveled from the old world and his strength was almost exhausted. He happened to meet Lu Cheng who was patrolling alone on the edge of the outer ring area.
"Young Master Lu, the dean is looking for you." An assistant teacher hurried over.
Lu Cheng frowned, turned to Lin Yao and said softly, "Can you go back to the dormitory and wait for me? I'll be back soon."
Lin Yao nodded obediently and watched Lu Cheng leave. When the tall figure disappeared around the corner of the college's main building, the soft expression on his face instantly disappeared, replaced by a cold expression.
"Hey, Master Lu's little pet was left behind?"
Sure enough, Wang Rui came over with his two followers. Lin Yao didn't turn around, but just stood there quietly, his silver hair shining coldly in the sunlight.
"I'm talking to you, you F-class loser!" Wang Rui grabbed Lin Yao's shoulders and turned him around. "Do you think you can just walk around the academy with Lu Cheng?"
Lin Yao raised his eyes, a barely perceptible silver glint in his blue ones. The mental thread silently penetrated Wang Rui's consciousness—much easier than dealing with Lu Cheng. This so-called B-level potential cultivator's mental strength was pitifully weak.
"Student Wang..." Lin Yao's voice was soft, with just the right amount of trembling, "Please don't do this... Lu Cheng will be angry..."
"Ha! It's Lu Cheng again!" Wang Rui laughed loudly, and the strength in his hands increased. "I want to see how he can protect you now-"
Before he finished speaking, Wang Rui suddenly froze. His expression became dull, his eyes unfocused, and his grip on Lin Yao loosened.
"Brother Wang? What's wrong with you?" The follower next to him pushed him in confusion.
The next second, Wang Rui suddenly turned around, knelt on one knee in front of the statue of the academy's founder in the center of the square, and shouted with great emotion: "Ah! Great guardian of the academy! Please accept my most devout love! I am willing to give you everything I have!"
The square fell silent, everyone's attention focused on Wang Rui. He continued his passionate confession to the statue, even unbuttoning his uniform.
"Brother Wang, are you crazy? That's a statue!" One of the followers stepped back in horror.
Lin Yao stood aside, his face regaining that frightened expression, but his eyes were cold.
He gently rubbed his fingertips... The mental suggestion just now was effective, and Wang Rui would maintain this state for at least half an hour.
It was enough to make him look foolish in front of the whole school, but not serious enough to arouse the suspicion of senior psychiatry teachers.
"What's going on?" a commanding voice called out. Professor Zhou, the head of the Department of Psychiatry, walked over quickly. Upon seeing Wang Rui's strange behavior, he immediately frowned and raised his hand to release a soothing mental wave.
Wang Rui stopped moving and looked around blankly: "I...what happened to me just now?"
Professor Zhou's sharp eyes swept across everyone present, finally stopping at Lin Yao: "Student Lin, were you here just now?"
Lin Yao shuddered at the right moment, his blue eyes gleaming with tears: "I... I don't know... Student Wang suddenly..."
"Professor Zhou!" Lu Cheng's voice came from a distance. He almost ran over and protected Lin Yao behind him. "What happened?"
Professor Zhou looked at Lu Cheng's protective posture, then at the obviously frightened Lin Yao, and finally sighed: "It's nothing, it might be the mental disorder before Wang Rui's ability awakens. Take your... friend to rest, Mr. Lu."
Lu Cheng put his arm around Lin Yao's shoulders and left the square, whispering comfort to him. Lin Yao leaned in Lu Cheng's arms, but his eyes went over his shoulder to look at Wang Rui who was being helped away in the distance.
The mental thread trembled gently again, implanting a vague memory deep in Wang Rui's consciousness - about how he inexplicably developed feelings for the statue. Even if an investigation was conducted later, it would only be considered Wang Rui's own mental problems.
"Don't be afraid, I'm here." Lu Cheng stroked Lin Yao's silver hair with his warm hands, his voice full of heartache, "Don't act alone when I'm not around."
Lin Yao buried his face in Lu Cheng's chest, his voice muffled: "Well... I'll do as you say."
But a hint of sarcasm flashed in those blue eyes. How ironic, the person whose memory he controlled had become his best protector.
After returning to the dormitory, Lu Cheng was urgently summoned to attend a meeting at the City Lord's Mansion. Lin Yao stood at the window, watching Lu Cheng disappear outside the academy gate, and the weak expression on his face immediately faded.
He walked to the desk and pulled out a black notebook from the back of a drawer. Opening it, he found densely packed records of various information about the academy's copy system—all of which he had collected under Lu Cheng's authority, using his observer identity.
"Instance number E-427, energy fluctuations are similar to those in the old world..."
Lin Yao's slender fingers traced across a line of records, his blue eyes narrowing slightly. This world's copy system held many secrets, and the most crucial of them might be the key to restoring his full power.
A bell rang outside the window, and Lin Yao quickly closed his notebook and hid it. When the dormitory door opened, he had already put on the gentle smile that Lu Cheng was familiar with.
"I'm back." Lu Cheng walked in, holding an exquisite food box. "Guess what I brought you? Blueberry mousse, your favorite."
Lin Yao's eyes lit up. This time, he was genuinely surprised. The blueberries of the old world had long since vanished with the world's collapse, but the mutated blueberries of this world tasted surprisingly similar.
It was one of the few things that made him happy.
"Thank you..." he said softly, and his fingertips deliberately brushed across the back of Lu Cheng's hand when he took the food box.
Lu Cheng's ears immediately turned red. This innocent reaction amused Lin Yao. He ate the mousse in small bites while observing Lu Cheng's expression.
What an easy-to-manipulate creature! A little sweet food, a glance, and he'll be completely devoted to you.
"By the way," Lu Cheng suddenly said, "There will be a freshman dungeon experience class next week. Although it's voluntary, I want to take you with me."
Lin Yao paused for a moment. A copy? This was exactly what he needed.
"But... I'm only F-rank..." He lowered his eyes, looking inferior.
"It's okay." Lu Cheng excitedly shook his hand. "It's just a basic E-rank dungeon. I'll protect you the whole way. And..." He lowered his voice, "There might be materials in the dungeon that can help you 'awaken' higher-level psychic abilities."
There was a gleam in Lin Yao's eyes. Just for that "maybe", she could give so much for him. It seemed that Lu Cheng's "feelings" for him were deeper than expected.
"Really?" He raised his wet blue eyes, his voice trembling, "I don't want to... be a burden to you..."
"Silly boy, you've never been a burden." Lu Cheng held him in his arms, "You are everything to me."
Lin Yao leaned on Lu Cheng's shoulder, a cold smile on his face. Life? No, you are just a tool for me to regain my strength.
When it was late at night and everyone was asleep, Lin Yao got up quietly after confirming that Lu Cheng was asleep.
He walked to the window, his silver hair gleaming coldly in the moonlight. With a flick of his fingertips, a nearly invisible mental barrier enveloped the entire room, ensuring that no sound could escape.
"E-level dungeon experience class..." he muttered to himself, "It's a good opportunity to explore whether this world's dungeon system has some connection with the original world."
A silver light flashed in his blue eyes, and Lin Yao's mental power spread silently, passing through the dormitory area, through the teaching area, and finally stopped at the copy control center in the deepest part of the academy.
It was heavily guarded, but for the former world number one, this level of mental defense was useless.
His consciousness deftly bypassed various alarm systems and seeped into the control center's database like mercury. Countless copies of information flooded in like a tide, and Lin Yao precisely selected those relevant to his goal.
"Found it..."
The corners of his mouth curled up slightly. Instance E-427 was indeed connected to the Old World. Next week's trial class would be his perfect opportunity to experience this instance.
Suddenly, an unfamiliar mental wave swept over. Lin Yao immediately retracted all his mental threads, disguising it as a normal release of mental power. The wave lingered around him for a few seconds before finally disappearing.
Someone was also monitoring the academy? Lin Yao narrowed his eyes. It seemed that the situation in this world was more complicated than he had imagined.
When they returned to bed, Lu Cheng unconsciously held him in his arms in his sleep. Lin Yao did not resist, but leaned into the warm embrace.
What a good cover! Who would doubt the beloved partner of the city lord's son?
Outside the window, the moonlight was obscured by dark clouds. Lin Yao lay awake in the darkness, planning his actions three days later. Wang Rui's unusual behavior would surely draw some attention, but that was okay. He had already prepared more "accidents" to distract attention.
After all, in this world, everyone except himself is a expendable pawn.
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