Chapter 104 Haunted High School (38)
The president gave a very enthusiastic response to Wei Wan's question.
-I'm in the cafeteria now, you can come over anytime you want.
-Do you need me to prepare anything?
-If you have any questions, you can ask them now.
Messages flashed across Wei Wan's screen like snowflakes. At the same time, Su Yue looked at his phone, which was dead silent.
Cang Zhi said sincerely, "This is also a lesson to learn. Don't torture NPCs too much in the future, otherwise they will refuse to talk to you."
Su Yue: "..."
Su Yue now just wanted to throw a rag to cover Cangzhi's mouth.
In short, with Wei Wan's help, asking the president for information became a very simple matter. Wei Wan and the president agreed to meet at the cafeteria entrance. Su Yue and Cang Zhi would of course follow them, but Su Yue, as the president's number one target of hatred, had to stay away and not annoy the president.
"I'm sorry for putting you through this." Cangzhi continued sincerely.
Su Yue: "..."
Su Yue could only pretend not to hear.
He originally planned to ask the president a few questions and then leave, but as soon as he arrived at the cafeteria door, Su Yue's attention was attracted by something else.
It was already quite late when they arrived at the cafeteria, it was already quite dark, and there was only half an hour left before the school's new curfew.
Normally there would be few people in the cafeteria at this time, but now there was a long queue at the cafeteria door.
The lights from the roadside illuminated the students standing in line. Everyone's face looked grim under the lights, creating a lifeless scene.
"What are you doing?" Wei Wan asked in surprise.
The president of the Inviting Immortals Club was waiting outside the crowd. He looked pale, and even in summer he wore long sleeves, as if his skin couldn't stand the light. The president always gave people an impression of being gloomy and eccentric, but this time he was obviously happy to see Wei Wan and walked over quickly.
"What do you want to know?" the president asked, "Anything related to the Pen Fairy, as long as I know it, I will tell you."
Although Su Yue has some understanding of the legend of "Pen Fairy", the rules of each game world are different, and the settings are also subtly different. He cannot follow his previous experience, because if he follows the old experience and ignores the new and key settings of this game world, he won't know where to cry.
Wei Wan paused for half a second, then pulled out a small piece of paper from the pocket of his casual pants. He unfolded it with familiarity and read the question on it: "What are the origins of the Pen Fairies?"
These questions were thought up by Su Yue for Wei Wan. He combined his own tricks for passing levels and helped Wei Wan organize the questions.
Unfortunately, when Wei Wan asked the question, he, the real questioner, could only hide behind a pillar in the cafeteria and listen.
There's nothing I can do about it. I'm the one that NPCs hate.
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"Generally speaking, we believe that the Pen Fairy is the soul of someone who died in vain somewhere. Because of the resentment in his life, he stayed in the place where he lived and refused to leave. The personalities of the resentful spirits are different, so it is easy to invite the Pen Fairy in different places, and the personalities of the Pen Fairy invited are also good and bad. This is because the Pen Fairies in different places are different." The president replied.
"Then...are all pen fairies evil spirits?" Wei Wan asked.
"Of course," the president said. "You have to understand that all summoning spells are somewhat unorthodox. Souls that are supposed to be in another world are forcibly summoned to this world, and they can even meet humans. Even for spirits, this comes at a great cost."
"What price did the Pen Fairy pay?" Wei Wan asked.
"I paid my nature." The president replied, "The essence of the Pen Fairy is that it came because of strong resentment. The Pen Fairy lingered in the place where he lived in his previous life for a long time. The resentment attached to the Pen Fairy's spirit body and coexisted with the Pen Fairy's spirit body, nourishing each other. The longer the time, the stronger the resentment."
In other words, the longer the time is, the more the pen fairy will lose its nature.
After hearing this, Wei Wan was silent for a long time before saying, "I don't understand."
"What don't you understand?" the president said gently. "Just ask."
"If you have to sacrifice your true nature to return to the real world, then what's the point of coming back?" Wei Wan asked, "Is it just to be summoned?"
"Of course not." The president laughed.
Su Yue was very familiar with this smile. He often saw the president show this expression during club activities.
"Because of hatred, Wei Wan," the president said in a gentle, yet precisely because of that gentleness, chilling tone. "Resentment is their weapon. Why not sacrifice a part of yourself in exchange for the power to seek revenge?"
Wei Wan bit her lip with a pale face: "Is there any way to remove the resentment of the Pen Fairy?"
"Of course there is, but it depends on the willingness of Master Pen Fairy himself." The president suddenly changed the subject, "Your questions are very strange. Is there anything you want to do?"
"No." Wei Wan denied it flatly, "I was just asking."
"It's better not." The president grinned again, "Wei Wan, you have to know that resentment is the power of the Pen Fairy. To remove the resentment is basically equivalent to turning them into the most fragile spirits. No Pen Fairy would be willing to do that."
"But are they willing to be swallowed by resentment?" Wei Wan asked.
“You don’t think there are any good men and women among those spirits that linger around for a long time after death, do you?” the president asked in return.
Wei Wan stopped talking.
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"Don't be sad yet." After the president left, Su Yue comforted the pale Wei Wan, "Don't believe his nonsense. We still don't know who the Pen Fairy is. Maybe it's not Gao Zhuo at all."
It is possible that Gao Zhuo is not the Pen Fairy, but to be fair, the possibility is not very high.
After all, Wei Wan is the main NPC, and Gao Zhuo is the memory he recovered with great difficulty. This memory is 99% related to the main storyline.
But he could only comfort Wei Wan in this way.
"Yes, we should at least ask the Pen Fairy once more to see what his true identity is." Wei Wan was a little depressed, but after hearing Su Yue's words, his expression became firm, "Let's go back and ask the fairy to take a look now."
Su Yue was just about to follow him when his attention was suddenly drawn to the commotion nearby.
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When Su Yue and the others arrived at the cafeteria, they noticed something was wrong. It was almost curfew and lunchtime had passed for a while. Normally, cafeterias on campus would be relatively empty, but there was a long line outside.
At that time, Su Yue did not go up to ask, because if someone just wanted to have a meal and he asked all kinds of questions, it would seem like he was being nosy.
But now the team began to move forward slowly, and everyone in the team had a stern face, which made it impossible not to ask.
"Friends." Su Yue poked the shoulder of a student next to him, "What are they doing?"
"Checking in," the student replied.
"Card?" Su Yue was stunned. "Now? Card for what?"
Su Yue knew that human college students sometimes needed to punch in, such as for physical examinations, showers, and going to the library.
But he didn't understand why he had to drag others to the cafeteria door to punch in when it wasn't mealtime.
"It's for needy students," the student replied. "The dean of studies has issued new school rules saying that since the true thief of the Ruby Goldfinch hasn't been found, needy students can't eat with regular students until the school anniversary. They have to wait a while after everyone else has eaten to line up and punch in, then get their meals based on who's in the room. I heard that needy students have also been given special bracelets that ring when they enter or leave any checkpoint."
"Is she crazy?" Su Yue blurted out, "Does she think she's guarding a prisoner?"
"Who knows?" the student shrugged. "It wasn't me who punched the clock in, so I don't care."
Su Yue was too lazy to pay attention to him. He thanked him briefly and walked to the front of the group of poor students.
As he walked, he observed the wrists of those people and easily saw the bracelet that the student mentioned. It looked like an ordinary iron ring, buckled on everyone's wrist, and looked no different from handcuffs worn on only one side.
What's even more outrageous is the function of these handcuffs. They make a sound when someone gets close, which means they can sound the alarm. Wearing a device that can sound the alarm is like monitoring poor students as if they were criminals.
But when Su Yue walked to the front of the team, he suddenly became furious.
At the end of the long line was a time clock machine where poor students were queuing up to clock in. When they were clocking in, Su Yue clearly heard a bracelet someone was wearing making a "beeping" alarm sound like a watch alarm. If it was among a group of students, the sound would be very clear, but everyone here was making an alarm sound.
So there was nothing to be ashamed of, but there was a dead, numb atmosphere in the team.
At the end of the line is a machine.
It was a time clock that was assembled temporarily, so it didn't even have a metal coating on the outside. The shell was a dull grey with rough frosted particles.
The red light used to indicate "check-in successful" has no lampshade, so the dazzling red light is everywhere.
Every time a student walks over and puts his or her bracelet on the gate, the machine will emit a shrill alarm, then the red light will come on and there will be a "beep" sound.
Finally, an emotionless female voice announced: "The poor student successfully checked in."
On the screen of the time clock is a roster.
The densely packed names on the screen were probably all poor students. Every time someone walked over and swiped their card with the bracelet, a name would flash and then disappear on the screen.
This should be a sign-in mechanism. If the name remains on the screen and does not disappear, it means that the student is not present or has escaped detection and entered the room.
I don’t know what the consequences would be if I really did that, but considering the character of that headmaster, it would definitely not be a good thing.
It should be said that the existence of this machine, those neatly arranged names, the bracelets on everyone's wrists like shackles... their existence itself is a humiliation.
Su Yue stood there and watched about two people check in. He couldn't help it anymore and walked forward quickly.
There was a petite girl in front of the time clock machine, preparing to punch in. She was so thin, with an empty bracelet on her thin arm.
Just as she was about to stick the bracelet on the turnstile, someone suddenly held her wrist.
The girl was stunned, raised her head and met Su Yue's eyes.
"Don't punch the card." Su Yue said, "You haven't done anything wrong, why do you need to punch the card?"
The girl was stunned, lowered her eyes, and whispered, "No, I can't. Not punching in is against school rules and you will be expelled..."
Before he finished speaking, Su Yue's hand had already pressed on the LCD screen of the time clock. No one could see that he was using much force, but a "click" sound was clearly heard.
Spider-web-like cracks suddenly appeared on the screen of the time clock, and then it was shattered with a loud bang. The neat words on it instantly turned into a garbled code of red, green and yellow, and a sharp alarm sounded at the same time.
The line of poor students waiting to punch in suddenly became chaotic. Some looked up in panic, some turned around and wanted to run, and more people looked at Su Yue in confusion.
They didn't dare say anything, but they didn't remain indifferent either.
Su Yue felt genuinely angry, even though he knew it was just a game.
Gao Zhuo's story has ended, but there are still so many people standing here. The headmaster has not reflected on herself at all because of Gao Zhuo's death. On the contrary, she wants all the "Gao Zhuos" to be completely trampled under her feet, bow their heads to her, and consider themselves inferior.
In this way, no one will resist and things like what happened to Gao Zhuo will not happen again.
Su Yue slapped the screen of the time clock so hard that it caved in, just like a bloody mouth suddenly opened on a big face. A shrill alarm sounded throughout the cafeteria. A red light shone, illuminating the square shrouded in a gray night, and Su Yue's eyes were dyed with the color of fire.
Su Yue punched the time clock, which was basically scrapped. With a loud bang, the LCD screen, buttons and part of the gate were twisted and dented by the punch, and wrinkled and squeezed together, turning it into a pile of scrap metal.
This crushing machine also announced that Su Yue had broken the head teacher's prejudiced shackles against "poor students".
"You won't need to punch in anymore." Su Yue declared sternly.
His voice wasn't loud, but it was resounding in the cafeteria, which should have been very noisy.
Everyone held their breath and listened to him quietly.
"The time clock is broken, and the bracelet is useless." Su Yue said, "You are poor students, not students who have committed crimes. Why do you want to carry such things?"
There was a commotion in the crowd, and the poor students looked around blankly, as if trying to determine their companions' behavior.
But no one took off the bracelet.
Su Yue could understand this kind of thing because these students had been treated differently by the dean of studies for too long.
With the danger of losing their student status hanging over their heads, they dared not resist at all.
Su Yue neither expected them to really join him in the rebellion, nor did he have any idea of leading a group of NPCs in the game to pursue an equal life.
He was just angry, angry for Gao Zhuo and angry at the dean.
An originally excellent student lost the honor he deserved and even lost his life because of his arrogant prejudice. Su Yue could not let this happen again under his nose. He needed to vent his anger when he heard this story, that's all.
Just as Su Yue was about to dismantle the time clock machine, and a student began to hesitantly reach for his right wrist where the bracelet was worn, everyone finally heard the expected sound.
The sound of high heels clicking was heard as they hurriedly ran through the entire corridor.
Then, the dean's furious roar echoed throughout the square: "Who broke the time clock? Blatantly violating school rules and going against the teacher? Get out here! I want him expelled!"
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The dean walked through the corridor with an imposing pace, and behind her were several tall and strong men who looked very capable in fighting.
It’s hard to understand why she didn’t ask the teachers from the security department to go with her, but instead brought people from outside.
The students who were originally a little agitated suddenly quieted down. It seemed as if the dean had a blood suppression on them. When they saw the dean, they were like eggplants hit by frost and wilted instantly.
So the dean's eyes easily locked on Su Yue who was standing next to the time clock.
The moment she saw Su Yue, anger flashed across her face. She raised her hand and pointed at him from a distance, "You again?! I've let you off the hook for all the trouble you've caused before, but today you've openly vandalized school property and violated school rules. I must punish you severely!"
As she spoke, she walked quickly towards Su Yue, and at the same time quickly took out a pre-printed list from the pocket of her beaded suit jacket, tore off a page with a "swish", and stuffed it into the hand of the big man next to her.
Anyone with a sharp eye would be able to see that the list had seven big characters printed on it: "Notice of Expulsion from School."
"Destroying public property, openly violating school rules, leading students to gather..." The dean of studies recited Su Yue's "crimes" one by one, and the big man took notes quickly with a ballpoint pen, like a tiger embroidering.
"You have repeatedly violated the rules and regulations, and have seriously affected the school's morale and discipline." The Dean of Studies had already walked in front of Su Yue and stretched out his hand behind him. "Therefore, the punishment is—"
The assistant taking notes behind him followed the Dean's pace and wrote two large characters in the "Punishment Decision" box with expert and flamboyant strokes. The Dean took the penalty notice, raised his hand with great authority, and pressed it against Su Yue's raised right hand, saying loudly:
“—Dismissed!”
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The air seemed to freeze at this moment, and everything fell into a dead gray silence.
The dean of studies raised his little finger with red nails and slapped Su Yue's thin wrist in a domineering manner. The notice with the huge word "expulsion" written on it was slapped there, as if announcing that Su Yue would be deprived of his qualifications as a player in the next second.
There were also a few players in the cafeteria who were trying to find out what was going on. When they saw this scene, they couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
But Su Yue still stood there with a cold expression. He looked down at the dean of studies with no emotion in his eyes.
The situation remained deadlocked for a few seconds, and the dean's arrogant expression froze.
She suppressed the smile on her face, as if wondering why the person opposite her didn't understand the tension at all. She stared blankly at Su Yue for a moment, then again, her mouth suddenly opening into an "O" shape as she shouted in disbelief:
"How is it possible, no... impossible... how could you have such a thing?"
The strong man who tried to pull Su Yue away was easily pushed away by Cang Zhi on the side, and had no way to get close to Su Yue.
A gust of wind blew by, fluttering the notice stuck to the lower edge of Su Yue's palm, revealing the small card Su Yue was holding in his hand underneath the notice.
On the thin card, the top line of words was a dazzling red, bordered by a delicate gold border.
-Jinling University Honorary Student Certificate
The effect is to "offset any penalty".
This honorary student ID card, which originally belonged to Gao Zhuo, was finally used where it belonged most.
——
There was dead silence all around again, but this time the silence was like water before it boils, with all kinds of emotions brewing underneath.
Su Yue could clearly see these emotions on the faces of those students.
Some people remain numb, some are anxious, and some are suppressing their anger and injustice, looking at Su Yue with hope, wondering if their fate can be rewritten.
It all depends on the outcome of the confrontation between Su Yue and the dean of studies.
The Dean of Studies hadn't expected Su Yue to pull such a trick. His face flushed red with anger, his chest heaving violently. "Impossible! You can't possibly have an honorary student ID. Bring me your ID so I can verify whether it's real or fake!"
Su Yue's heart tightened, but his expression remained calm. He asked coldly, "The honorary student ID card has the school seal on it, so how could it be fake?"
The Dean of Studies chuckled. "Of course. Honorary Student ID cards are always blank when they're issued. They only become valid after the student has filled in their personal information and affixed the school seal."
As soon as she reached out, the assistant who had been helping write the order immediately produced a light green box with assorted patterns. Inside was a seal and ink pad. However, this seal was different from ordinary seals. It had a crank on top and two seals underneath. The user could turn the crank to choose which one to press.
"The one on the left is the valid school seal." The dean took the seal, turned it around, and showed it not only to Su Yue but also to all the students. The seal had the goldfinch emblem of Jinling University and the words "Jinling University" written by the old principal himself.
"This one on the right—" the Dean of Studies flicked the handle of the seal with his finger, "It's a fake seal. It proves that the thing that needs my stamp is fake."
The seal on the right does not have any extra patterns, only a large word "Fake" stained blood red by the ink, standing in the middle of the seal in a shocking manner.
The Dean stared at Su Yue with a rather unfriendly smile, "Let me verify now whether this student ID card in your hand is yours."
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Su Yue held up his student ID card with an expressionless face. He knew that he could not feel guilty at this time.
But to be honest, he wasn't quite sure what to do.
If it really doesn't work, you can only use your divine power to resist.
"Student's name, Su Yue." The dean slowly read out the personal information Su Yue had written on the student ID. She was very sure that the owner of this student ID was not Su Yue, so she read it slowly, as if she was enjoying every moment before the execution.
"Okay," the assistant replied, "I'm checking the issuance of honorary student certificates in recent years."
The dean looked at Su Yue with a smile, as if he wanted to see guilt or fear on his face, but Su Yue still looked at the dean expressionlessly.
He had thought it through completely. Before the principal stamped the document, he would use some kind of mind control or other magic to make the principal stamp the real document.
But there are other players present. If he does this, there is at least a 50% chance that he will be kicked out of the game for abusing divine power, and another 50% chance that he will suffer divine punishment.
There is no other way. If you don't do this, the probability of being kicked out of the game is 100%.
"Director, there has never been a student named Su Yue on the list of distribution in previous years." said the assistant.
"I think so." The director raised the corner of his mouth, looked at Su Yue with a smile, raised the seal in his hand, and gently turned the handle. Su Yue clearly saw the huge, bright red word "Fake" on the seal she chose.
"So your student ID is—"
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Just as the dean was about to stamp his seal and Su Yue was about to cast a spell, Cang Zhi on the side took a few quick steps forward for some reason, and at that moment, a strong wind suddenly blew up!
The temperature dropped suddenly, the lampshade above their heads was blown around, and the blackboard fell to the ground with a bang. The students screamed in fear and wanted to run, but they didn't dare to.
Su Yue looked up in surprise. The scene was strange, yet a little familiar. The wind that came out of nowhere was just like the scene when the spirit of the pen descended every time he summoned the spirit of the pen.
The dean frowned and raised his head: "What is this - ah!"
She suddenly screamed, and the wind swept over, swallowing her figure in a flash!
Su Yue's pupils suddenly shrank, and he subconsciously wanted to rescue the dean from the wind, but before he could move, he felt a heavy pressure on the palm of his hand.
The next second, the strong wind dissipated.
In the messy cafeteria, the chandelier struggled to flicker, and the students whispered to each other in fear. Even Su Yue himself felt a little shocked.
The dean of studies stood there, unharmed, as if the wind had done nothing to her.
However, there was a bright red stamp on the student ID card in Su Yue's hand.
The outer circle of the seal is surrounded by the words "Jinling University" written by the former president, and a ruby goldfinch stands in the middle, flapping its wings as if about to sing.
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