Chapter 65 Part 1

Pale Land.

Tuantuan saw Zhai Yi clutching her chest, looking somewhat uncomfortable, and asked worriedly: 【First Sister, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere? Do you want to go to Yuheng Hall for purification?】

Zhai Yi let out a breath. “It’s nothing. The pain from a thousand arrows piercing the heart probably left some lingering effects. I just didn’t react right away. It’s not a big deal. No need to go to Yuheng Hall.”

Tuantuan nodded: 【As long as First Sister thinks it’s fine.】

Tuantuan: 【First Sister, I gained another 25,000 points this time. I’m so happy.】

Tuantuan: 【First Sister, how much did you gain this time?】

Zhai Yi checked the data panel. “50,000 points.”

Tuantuan said in surprise: 【Wow, that’s more than last time. First Sister, you’re amazing.】

Zhai Yi smiled faintly and looked at the Points Leaderboard. Her name had moved up another rank.

Tuantuan suddenly remembered something and asked: 【First Sister, are you going to Heaven Knows Pavilion to verify the female lead identities from these two task worlds?】

Zhai Yi hesitated for a moment. “Let’s go take a look.”

Whether it was the same person or not, it would at least give her some closure.

In all the tasks Zhai Yi had done before, she had naturally encountered the same world carriers, but there had never been one person who developed admiration for her in two different task worlds.

This feeling of pursuit felt somewhat familiar to her.

Heaven Knows Pavilion.

The Main System looked at Zhai Yi in surprise: 【You’re actually requesting a soul match for the world carrier?】

Zhai Yi smiled indifferently. “Just to understand the situation.”

The Main System said meaningfully: 【I think you already know what the truth is. Why waste points on a soul match? It’s not a small amount, after all.】

Zhai Yi shrugged. “I don’t lack points. The main reason for the soul match is for peace of mind.”

The Main System: 【Since you’ve decided, I have no right to refuse.】

The Main System looked at Zhai Yi and Tuantuan: 【10,000 points deducted from Tasker Zhai Yi. Beginning extraction of soul fragments from the original carriers in the task worlds.】

Zhai Yi and Tuantuan watched as the Main System emitted a bright white light. It wasn’t dazzling, very gentle, like flowing water coursing through their bodies and souls.

Because Zhai Yi and Tuantuan had been in those two task worlds and were closely connected to the original carriers they wanted to verify, the Main System used them as mediums to retrieve the soul fragments from the original carriers in the task worlds for matching.

The Main System: 【Match complete.】

The Main System: 【Match result: 100%.】

Zhai Yi wasn’t surprised. She looked at the Main System. “Someone like this will awaken, right?”

The Main System: 【That depends on her abilities.】

Zhai Yi nodded without saying anything.

The Main System: 【You care a lot about this person?】

Zhai Yi raised her eyes. “The Main System is overstepping a bit, isn’t it?”

The Main System: 【I sensed your emotional fluctuations.】

The Main System: 【You’re a veteran of the Pale Land. The departures of Wen Nuan and Cheng Huan weren’t without impact on you.】

Zhai Yi’s tone was calm. “I’m not as rational and calm as the Main System. I’m human. Naturally, the departure of friends affects me.”

The Main System: 【Zhai Yi, you’re panicking.】

The Main System: 【And I don’t mean friends.】

Zhai Yi’s gaze fluctuated slightly. “The Main System truly sees through everything.”

The Main System: 【These are emotions you’ve shown. Zhai Yi, after knowing you for so long, both I and the late Second-Generation Main God hope you have a good ending.】

With that, the Main System vanished from Heaven Knows Pavilion.

Tuantuan looked at Zhai Yi, who had lowered her eyes in silence. It didn’t quite understand the conversation between the Main System and Zhai Yi; it was a bit too profound and confusing.

It hesitated before asking: 【First Sister, are you okay?】

Zhai Yi let out a long breath and smiled. “I’m fine.”

Tuantuan: 【Should we go do tasks then?】

Tuantuan: 【You look a bit tired. Want to rest?】

Zhai Yi shook her head. “No need. Let’s do tasks. I want to climb to first place in this task mode as soon as possible.”

Tuantuan: 【Okay.】

—

“Let me tell you, the Gaokao is approaching, and you don’t have much time left. Don’t slack off every day. Look down and check your math papers. How many of you passed the passing line?” The man pushed up his glasses, took two sips of goji berry water from his thermos, and continued lecturing the students below the podium. “The subject teachers lowered the difficulty this monthly exam, thinking you might have slacked off during summer vacation after it just ended. So we relaxed the difficulty and narrowed the scope. And the result?”

“You all turned in what kind of garbage scores? We’re Class 1, a key cultivation class, and only ten students passed math. Only five exceeded 550 in total across seven subjects, and just one over 600.” The man slammed the desk in anger. “You were playing at home those few days of vacation, right? Hearts not back yet? Forgotten you’re students? Don’t want to take the Gaokao? Want to hit the streets or factories after graduation?”

“As your homeroom teacher, with math scores like this, I want to go to the principal’s office, hang a rope at the door, and apologize with my death!”

The girl behind Zhai Yi burst out laughing. “Old Class Teacher Feng, don’t say that. Our principal is getting on in years and can’t take a scare like that from you. Don’t want a death on your hands.”

Old Class Teacher Feng frowned and threw a piece of chalk at her. “Jian Xing, have I not disciplined you enough? Look at your scores—they don’t even add up to the first digit of Zhai Yi’s total. And you have the nerve to laugh?!”

Jian Xing dodged by tilting her head. “Old Class Teacher Feng, you know my ambitions don’t lie here.”

“Right, your ambitions are in prison, huh?” Old Class Teacher Feng pointed at her exasperatedly. “Keep messing around, skipping classes, fighting—if you keep this up, someone will get you thrown in jail for a meal of prison food!”

Jian Xing didn’t care. “It’s fine. No need for Old Class Teacher Feng to worry. My dad’s rich. He can bail me out.”

Old Class Teacher Feng rolled his eyes in anger. “….”

At that moment, there was a knock at the door of Class 1.

The English teacher asked hesitantly from the side: “Um… Teacher Feng Shao, this is my first period. The bell has rung twice already. If you’re using it, can we swap?”

Old Class Teacher Feng waved his hand. “No need to swap. Sorry, truly. I didn’t notice the bell. I’ve delayed your class, Teacher Liu. Come on in.”

“I’m just disciplining these little brats. This monthly exam was a total mess—unbearable to look at. Got me all fired up.”

Teacher Liu walked in with the textbook and smiled politely. “Teacher Feng, take care of your health.”

“Alright, Teacher Liu, go ahead with class. I’m leaving. If anything, have the class monitor call me at the office.”

“Mm.”

Old Class Teacher Feng glared at the students in Class 1 and turned to leave the classroom.

Teacher Liu looked at the dejected students below the podium who had just been scolded and smiled gently. “It’s okay. It was just a small monthly exam. It won’t affect anything. Senior Year 3 has just started. If we work hard now, we can still get good Gaokao results.”

The class monitor grinned. “Teacher, you’re the best to us.”

The academic committee member chimed in. “You’re a hundred times gentler than Old Class Teacher Feng. He cussed us out like dogs this morning.”

Teacher Liu said: “Alright, no tattle-taling. Take out your monthly exam papers. Let’s go over the difficult points and mistakes together.”

“Okay—”

Jian Xing was rummaging in her desk for her English paper, not sure where she’d stuffed it, when the person in front suddenly moved, causing her desk to shift too.

Jian Xing clutched her forehead and glared irritably at the front desk student. “Hey, you spasming or what? Why move around?”

Zhai Yi turned back. “Sorry.”

Jian Xing paused. “Yo, sun rising in the west today? A top student like you actually talking to a slacker like me?”

They’d barely spoken a handful of times over the entire first semester of junior year.

Zhai Yi looked at the red mark on Jian Xing’s forehead. “If it swells later, I’ll take you to the school infirmary.”

Jian Xing stared at her in astonishment. “Did studying fry your brain?”

“Take me to the infirmary for what?”

Zhai Yi said: “Or should I just send you straight to cremation?”

Jian Xing: “….”

Jian Xing laughed despite herself at Zhai Yi’s words. “Your little mouth is like it’s dipped in poison.”

Who would’ve thought Zhai Yi, who seemed aloof, gloomy, taciturn, with a cold face like everyone owed her millions, was actually so sly and sharp-tongued.

“Thanks for the compliment.”

Zhai Yi turned back, took out her English paper, and looked at the perfect score. The original host this time was also a study god, much like her.

“Tuantuan, transmit this world’s framework, the original host’s plotline, and wishes to me.”

Tuantuan: 【Okay.】

The plotline and wishes of this task world’s original host had been transmitted to Zhai Yi. She frowned slightly, uncertain. “The original host actually has two wishes this time?”

And one of them seemed particularly simple—simple enough that Zhai Yi suspected some conspiracy or trap.

Tuantuan: 【Cannon fodder conquest mode doesn’t limit the number of original host wishes you can complete, so having two is normal. Plus, more wishes mean more points after completion.】

Zhai Yi understood. “Did you see her first wish? Doesn’t it feel… really strange?”

Tuantuan nodded: 【I think it’s strange too. It’s too simple—literally just one sentence, yet it’s a wish.】

Tuantuan cheered: 【But I believe First Sister can complete it easily.】

Zhai Yi flipped through the paper while listening to Teacher Liu explain the reading comprehension. “We’ll adapt as we go. During lunch break, I’ll find that Yi Jie and see if one sentence really completes the original host’s wish.”

The original host’s impression of this Yi Jie was too vague. In the original host’s plotline, Yi Jie always wore a mask and hat, face unclear.

Zhai Yi had just entered this task world and hadn’t had direct contact with Yi Jie yet, so she couldn’t trigger Yi Jie’s plotline. She only knew from the original host’s memories that Yi Jie knew Jian Xing behind her. The rest she’d have to observe.

Tuantuan nodded: 【Okay, First Sister.】

Tuantuan noticed something. 【First Sister, this person’s title seems like yours.】

Zhai Yi smiled faintly. “Just a form of address.”

First Sister was what taskers and assistant systems in the Pale Land called her. Zhai Yi didn’t mind and let them.

The English lesson finished just as the bell rang. Teacher Liu assigned two pages from the workbook for the class rep to collect, correct, and explain later.