Chapter 435: Reuniting with Tan Han
In the Dream Chamber, within the Primordial Dream World.
“They’re treating me entirely as a testing tool.”
After I casually pinned down and beat up the first four stages of myself, I stood up and lightly clapped my hands, looking forward to the final stage.
It was obvious that the first four stages were eased, probably to accommodate the new students. In the dream, we could choose our spellbooks, and new students could quickly arm themselves for battle.
The last stage, being time-unlimited, meant that in this moment of the dream, the other me would be the strongest version of myself from before.
On that day, I fought with her for quite some time, and it ultimately ended in a draw—one might say it was a forced draw because that mentor didn’t want to wait anymore.
While it was a bit regrettable, that opponent, synchronized with my data, was so terrifying that although I had the Knowledge Tree as my ultimate trump card, capable of deriving spells for offense, the other party could synchronize with me at no cost and do the same, dragging me into a protracted battle.
I gave my all using the various spells derived and altered from the Knowledge Tree, improving my body techniques, and honing my combat mindset. Yet with a mere synchronization, my opponent was on par with me. Every bit of my improvement was practical in enacting my combat philosophy, crushing the opponent in any form possible.
However, the other party only allowed me to enjoy a fleeting sense of overwhelming dominance, with the rest being endless delays.
This feeling was quite frustrating for me.
Yet, I had to admit that just that battle transformed my accumulated insights into manifest combat techniques and thoughts, while I… visibly became stronger.
Still, I was well aware that this strength was not unlimited; this extreme combat style tapped into potential, and without sufficient accumulation, a life-and-d*ath struggle would yield no improvement.
It was exactly because that mentor noticed my condition that she made me stop; continuing was no longer meaningful.
But now, I was meeting this foe in this dream again, and it would be a lie to say I wasn’t excited.
Watching the other me rise slowly, dressed just like me, I noted that this time, she lacked the slightest spark of brilliance from two days ago.
In the next moment, multiple spells erupted around me and her, with nearly invisible spell trajectories slashing towards me at sharp angles, but I met them head-on and shattered them.
This feeling was very similar to that of the previous battle, yet the ensuing clash of energies spread the elemental-rich areas created by the magical explosions.
This was a combat style primarily focused on body techniques, with spell attacks as auxiliary distractions. In the frantic combat rhythm, high-cost, long-charging spells became burdensome; even when casting spells from the spellbook, they weren’t instant. But in this moment, in close combat, that brief instant was the difference between victory and defeat.
However, after several more clashes, the other party gradually fell into the disadvantage, and she clearly realized this, quickly distancing herself from me because she knew I was stronger now—I’m progressing, but she wasn’t.
Her only option left was to crush me with spells.
“But… it’s too late! Those who won’t improve will be eliminated faster than you can imagine!”
I didn’t choose to engage in a spell duel like she did, because I understood that it wouldn’t be long before her mastered spells would fall behind mine. As long as she had no effective countermeasures or equivalent means, she could only be crushed by me.
Unchanging outcomes, having already foreseen the result, I naturally lacked interest in continuing to drag on with her, after all, this was just a monthly exam.
Once the exam is over, I still need to go to the plantation to find Sofiry.
“Teleporting to gain distance? You’re really imaginative.” Having seen her attempt to drag out the fight in this manner, I already recognized her inability.
“d*e,” I said plainly.
Even though I knew she wouldn’t respond, I still delivered her ending.
With a loud reverberation of spells, the moment drew to an emphatic end.
I turned away, not looking back at the explosion; the strong never look back at explosions.
Then a purification spell dispelled some negative spell effects I hadn’t had the chance to deal with during the battle.
Information regarding the real combat test in the Primordial Dream appeared at this moment.
“4 minutes and 28 seconds, not bad; last time, I fought you for several hours, didn’t I?” Observing the time taken for this last stage, I felt unsurprised.
Even slight improvements could lead to absolute domination.
In this month’s exam, even I barely managed to finish her within five minutes, which just qualified as scoring full marks for the basic stage of the fifth phase; according to the timed k*ll rules, that should mean a total score of full marks for me, right?
It seemed easy, but it might not be the same for others.
At this moment, the built-in system of the dream hinted that I had completed this practical assessment, and I didn’t linger in the dream any longer, directly exiting.
Upon leaving the examination area, I sensed that a crowd had gathered outside; this crowd didn’t feel like the waiting-to-enter vibe when I came in before, but rather an ambiance suggesting they were lying in wait.
“Tsk… did the first batch of those guys recognize me when they came out?”
After this thought flashed in my mind, I immediately used a disguise spell to change my appearance, of course, including my most crucial hair color.
Then, with my head lowered, I walked out from the side.
“Classmate, may I ask what you guys are doing?” After coming out, I casually grabbed someone and curiously asked.
“I don’t know; I heard someone saw the person whose data was entered during this practical test, and the first batch of those coming out seemed to have been thoroughly thrashed by that person’s generated virtual opponent.”
“Ah? I see; sorry for the trouble.”
I briefly ended the conversation, preparing to leave immediately, feeling that my choice to disguise and slip away had been the right call.
Just as I was set to leave, I spotted a familiar face in the vast crowd.
Tan Han, along with Minian and the others, surrounded by quite a number of people. I paused for a moment, then realized these must be the supporters of Tan Han. Tan Han could be said to be the quintessential Child of Fortune at the Witch Academy, possessing immense power since the start of the school year, along with a dazzling aura and a substantial following.
Has Tan Han really come this far?
Perhaps Tan Han had not done much; merely by virtue of her own abilities, she had surprisingly good relationships with others, while the rest of those people were essentially just following and aligning with her.
“Is Tan Han also waiting for me?” I murmured quietly, but my gaze remained fixed on Tan Han. After not seeing her for a long time, it felt like she had changed a lot, seemingly more confident than before.
However, this certainly posed a conundrum for me, as I wasn’t adept at handling scenes with so many people; all I felt in my mind was the term “mob.”
Shaking my head, I chuckled softly and turned to leave, but before I departed, I employed a little trick.
At this moment, on Tan Han’s side.
“Hmm?” Tan Han suddenly sensed that something seemed to have locked onto her; it felt very subtle, almost like a trick of perception.
However, just as she was about to focus again on the main entrance of the exam hall, her peripheral vision caught sight of a white figure quietly standing in the moving crowd, just looking at her.
“Xiao Han?”
“What? Did Sister Xiao Han come out?” At this moment, Minian, who was beside Tan Han, naturally heard Tan Han’s whisper.
“You didn’t see… oh, I must have seen wrongly.”
“Tan Han, someone with such conspicuous white hair like Sister Xiao Han shouldn’t be mistaken, right?” Minian instinctively looked in the direction Tan Han was focused on, but didn’t see the conspicuous feature.
“You all stay here and watch. I need to go take a break; I can go alone.” Tan Han casually fabricated a poor excuse to leave, and the others didn’t have the tact to follow.
Once she had distanced herself from her crowd of followers, Tan Han became quite certain that the shadow she saw was indeed Xiao Han. She suspected it was not a real person, but an Illusionary Clone; she quickly thought of this spell, as she had suffered under its effects several times and had witnessed its great and terrifying power.
But she recalled that the spell had to meet certain requirements, right? How could she have become ensnared so silently?
She unconsciously quickened her pace, chasing after that figure, but she found that she couldn’t catch up; the other party merely intended to guide her somewhere.
However, this also proved one thing: Xiao Han had already come out!
That speed… was it a bit too fast?
From what she gathered, this practical assessment usually took about half an hour, and for typical students, they might find it hard to defeat the earlier stages of Xiao Han; however, at least resisting for five minutes until they advanced to the next stage would still grant some points.
Given that Xiao Han couldn’t possibly be eliminated as early as those ordinary students, this meant that she had resolved the fight at extreme speed, which included prep time, entering the dream, and so forth.
Had only a few minutes passed?
When Tan Han arrived at a deserted corner, the figure she had seen earlier had completely vanished; she hadn’t even had the time to see how that figure disappeared.
“It’s been a while, Tan Han; how have you been lately?” At that moment, a familiar voice reached Tan Han’s ears, originating from behind her.
“Xiao Han?!”
“Yes, you really gave me quite a surprise; I exited the test only to see such a commotion, I’m truly flattered.” I said with a smile.
“Sorry, that’s not what I intended.”
“No worries, I’m just joking. I understood those people’s curiosity, so I used this way to get you over to chat with me. I noticed you lurking earlier; is there something on your mind?”
“Lurking…” Tan Han was at a loss for how to respond to my description, but it really did seem like that was what they were doing just now.
“Actually, I learned from the first batch of practical test participants that your opponent in this test might be me.”
“That’s certainly true, and that’s why I was surrounded by so many people?”
“Initially, yes. As for so many people watching, maybe it was because those in the first batch spotted you entering.”
“Oh~ so it’s still my fault. I wish I had disguised before going in.” Upon learning the truth, I sighed, “By the way, calling you here isn’t holding up your testing time, is it?”
“Nope, I’m in a later batch; it might not be until the afternoon that it’s my turn.” Tan Han waved her hand dismissively, indicating it was fine.
Tan Han then took the initiative to steer the conversation.
“I want to ask, since this test is a prototype, is the data you left behind your strongest combat capability?”
“Well… how should I put this? I updated the data just two days ago; for me at that time, it was everything I had, but for now, not necessarily so. Each meaningful battle makes me stronger.”
“Is that so?” Hearing this answer, Tan Han unconsciously smiled, feeling relaxed.
But she also silently mourned for those classmates for a second.
“You seem eager to try? Then I wish you good luck.” I said, then suddenly thought of something, pulling out an item—her entire spellbook she had sent me through Ying Shiqian. “And this, you unexpectedly had Ying Shiqian bring it to me without any prior mention. You really didn’t need to; it was just a joke back then, after all.”
“For me, it’s more than just a joke; it’s a farewell to my past.”
“There’s no need to say goodbye to the past… hmm, okay, it seems I’m starting to ramble. Are you sure you don’t want it? The pressure you’ve created for me is quite significant; to be honest, I actually don’t want it.”
“So you can feel pressure too, Xiao Han? I thought someone as free-spirited as you wouldn’t care.” Tan Han said, laughing lightly.
“How could it be? I’m terrified of these worries and avoid them at all costs. However… to be honest, I think for your upcoming practical test, if you don’t have these spells, you might suffer a significant loss.”
“Are you that confident?”
“Of course.”
“Then how about we make a wager?” Tan Han proposed upon seeing my attitude.
“A wager? What are the stakes?”
“To bet whether I can defeat the peak version of you at that time with these spellbooks. If I can, then I’ll keep the spellbooks; if not, you’ll take them.”
“Wait, you mixed it up, right?” I looked at Tan Han with a puzzled expression.
“No mix-up; I’ll give it my all. If I still lose, then that just means these spellbooks are the same as if they didn’t exist for me, and I won’t ask for them back; I’ll continue getting stronger in my own way.”
“And if you win?”
“If I win, it means I probably shouldn’t have entrusted these spellbooks to you. I acknowledge that they impose more of a burden on you, and… you said you didn’t want them. How about that?”
“That actually makes a tiny bit of sense; are you betting that you can’t defeat me? When did you become so pessimistic?”
“No, it reflects my confidence and also signifies that I won’t lose my heart and become arrogant because of my strength. Although I don’t know what you’ve been doing during your disappearance, I do know you wouldn’t engage in meaningless actions.”
“All right then… I’ll add another clause. If you manage to win by some fluke, I’ll tell you what I’ve been doing, how about that? I promise you’ll find it interesting.”
“Hehe… are you that unconfident I’ll go easy on you? But since you put it that way, I must go all out.”
“So you weren’t planning to give it your all beforehand?” I asked back with a smile.
“No, it’s just that I’ve added a reason on top of already giving my all. The thing you can’t possibly mention, it should be script-related, right?”
“I haven’t said anything!” I raised my hands, feigning ignorance.
Because I was unsure if it was related to the script, but that small world’s entry into the main world must have a high probability of being designed as a script node by the Academy Head and others.
“I’ll take my leave now; my excuse for leaving is to take a break.”
“Is that it? After taking a break, freshening up also takes time. I still have something for you.” I smiled and stopped Tan Han, speaking up.
“What is it?”
“This.” I handed her an item, which was the positioning summoning ceremony for the Reverse Summoning Spell I had crafted with alchemy. Previously, I had given several to others and had some left, so it was just right to give one to Tan Han.
“What’s this?”
“This is a summoning ceremony for the Reverse Summoning Spell. Once you activate it, if I have time, I will respond to the summoning and appear before you.”
“Reverse Summoning Spell?” Tan Han looked at the small tool with great curiosity and surprise. “What a marvelous item.”
“Here’s my advice: don’t activate it just for fun. If there’s an emergency, you can activate it twice in a row, and also, don’t set me up in crowded places.”
“Okay… sure.” Tan Han, holding this small alchemical item, quickly realized the implications of my requests. “Thank you for this nice gift; I’ll head back now.”
“Alright, no need to see you off.” I waved my hand without the intention to hold her back, then my figure vanished from the spot.
