Chapter 706: The Deep Night, Yet People Cannot Sleep…
At this moment in the outside world, as the live broadcast with Li Feiya went offline abruptly, it sparked a stir among those paying attention.
However, no matter how much they discussed, it couldn’t bring back the people who disappeared from the screen.
In principle, live broadcasts during the unified exams shouldn’t be cut off without reason, so the concept of voluntarily pausing the broadcast wasn’t explicitly stated.
But even if someone figured out this function on their own, they would quickly discover that… the pause lasts only about an hour, a private hour per day, which is part of the “hidden rules” within the unified exam.
If one pays close attention, they could find that there are quite a few hidden rules in this unified exam, such as the first discovered trigger rules for tracking locations, and the logic rules concerning disarmament, many of which are not explicitly mentioned, as well as personal privacy rules regarding rewarding the Knowledge Seed… Many rules may be encouraged or discouraged, but all rely on self-exploration to discover.
Although this time the unified exam said that everyone has a personal live broadcast perspective, not everyone’s perspective has viewers. The focus on hot events during this exam defines whether a particular broadcast perspective is popular.
And the disputes among the teaching assistants, gathered in a one-to-many format, were indeed eye-catching. Although the teaching assistant group is merely “supporting characters” in the unified exam, they also represent the top combat power from various Extraordinary Academies at levels below the extraordinary!
It was precisely this group of people who conspired to besiege a particular individual. Although many viewers felt that such bullying of the weak was not good, they were equally curious whether the person being attacked could reverse the situation!
The development of the event also aligned with the viewers’ expectations!
So many people attacking one person, yet not losing ground, truly slapped the faces of the teaching assistants.
Especially during the breakout segment that followed, which opened a dramatic turn, Li Feiya’s sudden betrayal directly dealt with the first Holy Angel who caught up, buying ample time for Teaching Assistant Xiao Han.
Then, in the end, she used the hunting party’s direction to reverse the situation, forcing the teaching assistant groups to collapse, which thrilled many, though some were disappointed not to see Xiao Han unleash a bloodbath…
Just when everyone thought it was over, the evening came, and it was clearly time for a recap. They had just started discussing sensitive topics when the live broadcast was suddenly cut off!
Who can stand that?
When the broadcast restarted, the screen had turned into a live outdoor eating show!
……
“I’d say this final unified exam was just like that. This is the first large-scale promotional test of the Power Network. We don’t need to speculate too much, just as you pointed out earlier, the configuration of skills blocks everyone’s personality development, and the same goes for profession choices…”
“Um, is it really okay for us to criticize the Power Network like this?” At this moment, Li Feiya paused while eating, didn’t she remember the broadcast was already on?
“What’s there to be afraid of? The Power Network has gone through many versions, maybe you haven’t seen the initial version, which was really very different from now. Only by realizing where the problems lie can we make better progress.” I shook my chopsticks and laughed, presenting a demeanor as if I was pointing out the world.
“Maybe only you would dare to say that in Witch Academy…”
“Anyone can say it! Instructors are actually very welcome to testers’ constructive opinions. Of course, mindless statements aren’t necessary, like suggesting powerful skills that increase the attack power limit—there’s absolutely no need for that. The increase in power limits is just another template nesting doll. In fact, I think the main problem with this Power Network lies in the rigid configuration between professions and skill trees.”
“The configuration between skills lacks systematic synergy… Just stacking those skills in different directions… is too monotonous, and there are very few skills available.”
“Actually… I think this configuration might also promote a mode of team cooperation?” Li Feiya also shared her thoughts.
“Now that you mention it, that seems to make sense? But not everyone pursues a team model; there are also many loners.”
Li Feiya and I discussed many topics in this regard but occasionally drifted to other gossip issues.
I must say, Li Feiya remained the same Li Feiya, genuinely interested in many gossip events, and she was quite skilled at using the Knowledge Seed to surf the internet, quickly obtaining real-time information.
Until we finished enjoying this camping dinner, the leisurely time temporarily came to an end, and then we started to clean and organize the utensils. However, after banning the spellbook, we couldn’t even use the Cleaning Spell, so we had to wash them in a river not far away.
After washing,
“Are you sure you don’t need my tent? I actually prepared many, and I didn’t even use one today.”
“No, no, I’ll sleep in the tree.”
“Are you sure?”
“Why don’t we sleep together?” Li Feiya suggested.
“Then you might as well sleep in the tree.”
“Eh? What, are you just going to toss me up in the tree like that?”
“Uh-huh~ Otherwise, I can’t just put you in my tent, can I? At most, I can give you a little mosquito repellent incense. How about that?”
“Sure, I’ll take some, thank you~”
In the pitch-black night, a few short exchanges floated by, and the time belonging to the night quietly passed.
Meanwhile, on the screen outside the broadcast, a flurry of comments floated by, but unfortunately, the main character could not see them.
“Wait, are you already sleeping so early?”
“Isn’t a witch’s nightlife just starting? Am I the fake witch, or is Xiao Han the fake witch?”
“Today is another day watching Xiao Han go to sleep on time; this schedule… really is healthy.”
“Today’s sleep log for Xiao Han, check-in successful, end the broadcast!”
“It’s clear that Li Feiya the cat isn’t asleep; this is a big victory for night owls!”
However, such a carefree night isn’t something everyone can sleep through.
For instance, at this moment, Li Feiya was experiencing something she had opened up about for the first time in a long while, touching upon her most vulnerable inner parts.
Although during the conversations in the evening, she acted indifferent, especially when she said she realized she didn’t need her family’s charity… she hadn’t anticipated she would say such things.
Now Xiao Han had fallen asleep again, leaving her alone in the dark, making her recall the family’s charity once more.
Charity for what?
Charity for the… freedom she could only hope for and not obtain.
Yet she also feared freedom.
The family’s shackles felt like an invisible collar tightly constricting her throat.
But digging deeper… it’s simply that she couldn’t foresee the life after achieving the extraordinary; she could only foresee that without her family’s shackles, this freedom would equate to standing in opposition to her entire family.
This refusal of family’s charity might be some inexplicable courage, but part of it also stemmed from her fear of freedom.
At this moment, she clearly felt what her mentor had told her about the impact of Earth Vein Shackles on a person.
Earth Vein Shackles are not a tangible image but an invisible bond; they are the rules that govern the operation of the world, society, and civilization, rooted in the emotions born of a society composed of people—affection, love, friendship—these are the most fundamental prototypes of shackles. So what are shackles?
Bonds that originate from kinship and develop into family concepts, child-rearing methods, and ideological indoctrination, ultimately forming the final shape of the family as a unit, later corrupted by interests, replacing the bond of affection with distorted views that trap people in bloodlines—that is the shackle of kinship.
Bonds arising from love, deriving into instinctual desires to form family units, with responsibility as the foundation and economy as the pillar, creating the concept of passing on to the next generation, ultimately twisted by human flaws into tragic lives that trap people in emotions—that is the shackle of love.
Bonds that arise from friendship, constituting interpersonal relationships, creating modes of interaction between people, trust, loyalty, betrayal, dependence, attachment, jealousy… trapping people in others—that is the shackle of friendship.
But one cannot be perpetually trapped in the past. Although Li Feiya always thinks of impossibilities, using various methods to validate her own immaturity.
However, judging by actions rather than intentions, she indeed rejected the family’s conditions, and that statement was also an impromptu expression, the yearning for freedom within her unconsciously revealing itself; she just wasn’t ready to face the unknown and unexpected.
The greatest gain from this betrayal was that it made her see clearly that the previous transaction that stirred her emotions was, in essence, a denial of all her efforts—an opportunity to escape the shadow of her family that she could only hope for.
The family is not granting freedom from their standpoint but offering it from their perspective of charity.
But this impromptu revelation led her to realize that… freedom could be bestowed by others… but is the freedom given by others truly freedom?
For a moment, Li Feiya found herself confused… but for things she couldn’t comprehend, perhaps she could ask her mentor.
Her mentor has always been willing to smooth over any obstacles in the academy for her, which is enough to show that they have not given up on her; if that’s the case… she felt it wasn’t time for her to give up on herself.
……
In the deep of night, who else besides Li Feiya couldn’t sleep?
The teaching assistants who had been scattered by the hunting party during the day gathered again in the dead of night.
Only compared to last time, there was a hint of despondency…
They couldn’t understand why one person could progress so quickly; is it really possible for someone to be omnipotent?
Without restrictions on power, they had been afraid to act against one another; now that their powers were limited, they couldn’t k*ll each other either.
Their proud combat experience had not brought them absolute advantages.
They pondered many questions and even questioned the rationality of the Power Network, but they never considered their own dependency on the spellbook and the rigidity of their combat styles, as stubborn as the imperfect Power Network at this moment.
The Power Network, as a “dead object,” would innovate from generation to generation, but as living beings with more active minds, they had become trapped in the past due to their accustomed experience.
The night had grown deep, and the following day quietly approached.
“Everyone, let’s all turn off the live broadcast…”
At that moment, someone suggested.
There are indeed clever people among the teaching assistant group who took the interference of the live broadcast seriously.
Living in modern times, exploring some unknown functions is quite common.
Thus, they figured out the hidden rule of being able to turn off the broadcast for an hour each day. Although initially, they wanted to find a way to completely shut it down, now they could only settle for a second-best option.
Once the broadcast was turned off, everyone knew that the ensuing conversation would be about topics that weren’t suitable for broadcasting.
“Mission failed this time; we didn’t k*ll that Yang Yuelan.”
“Our lives are still intact, aren’t they?” At this moment, someone spoke up, directly silencing the crowd.
Failed the mission… but saved their lives.
What does that mean?
“Don’t talk nonsense.” Someone rebutted.
“Yang Yuelan isn’t an Extraordinary Witch; even if she died completely, it wouldn’t drag us all down to be buried with her.”
“What about Yang Yuelan’s extraordinary girlfriend? Can we stop avoiding reality?”
“Those who ascend to be extraordinary won’t be nostalgic. Our family has practiced this many times, but look, very few have returned after leaving our world. Even if they do come back, they won’t protect their original families; a girlfriend… haha—without even the bl**d bond, what gives her the right?”
“Stop arguing. The failure to k*ll Yang Yuelan this time was due to force majeure, which counts as a… vague explanation…”
“Well… did we really completely k*ll…?”
“Ahem! I don’t know, and you don’t either, so that means we didn’t.” Someone quickly interrupted the previous speaker.
“Alright…”
In fact, they indeed didn’t completely k*ll someone; not even a resurrection spell could bring them back.
After all, the effectiveness of the Witch Contract is no joke.
But that doesn’t mean the contract cannot be exploited; however, facing such a complete contract, even if one wants to exploit loopholes, it would inevitably require exceptional means.
Now it was already a late stage of the hunting exam, and these people were clearly waiting for something.
If it was merely for killing one person, they obviously wouldn’t be so united.
What about for the face of the aides? When they bullied the weak with numbers, such things shouldn’t even be mentioned.
So there must be deeper reasons behind it.
“There are still two days until the hunting ends, right? This encirclement was proposed by you; we initially thought you were ready, but are you saying… that you weren’t prepared?” The aiding teaching assistant from Witch Academy questioned.
“There are naturally methods… But we have to adhere to the contract, and we can’t fully blame us, can we? Who knew they’d be so inefficient…”
“Who? Can you not speak in such an incomprehensible manner? If it weren’t for the family… who would want to join a blindfolded task?” Someone from Beast Academy spoke bluntly from the side.
“If you can’t understand, shut up, and listen more!”
“Not again, you have to give us some hope! What are we waiting for?”
“I can only say this hunting in the unified exam isn’t that simple; there’s a high possibility of unexpected events. It’s really that simple; do you understand?”
“Unexpected events? What unexpected events?”
“How would I know? Maybe… some academies dislike us and will create some trouble.”
“Which academies would dare dislike us, such top-tier academies united?”
“……Abyss Demon…?”
At this moment, someone uttered those words, and everyone instantly fell silent.
