Elite Mages’ Academy (Web Novel)

Chapter 202: Talent Level Up (5)

Sure enough, Lilith was not as warm as he imagined. He still had to repay that debt in the future, but at the very least, Xiao Lin managed to save 3,500 New Dollars for the time being.

After leaving the trans-spatial communication room, Xiao Lin went straight back to the dormitory. The method he got was so simple yet so unexpected. He was quite stunned when he looked at the soft halo around the flawless diamond. It was not that he did not believe Lilith’s words; it was just a pity that a beautiful work of art would have to be broken.

Xiao Lin curled his lips and put that strange thought behind him. He then raised the dagger in his hand and slashed it toward the surface of the diamond. After a sharp metallic crash, Xiao Lin actually bounced back and fell on the ground.

The diamond’s density was beyond imagination. Xiao Lin smiled bitterly at the notch on the blade. The dagger was his first novice dagger and the evaluation was practically the lowest. He already had thoughts of changing the weapon early on, but then noticed some slight cracks on the surface of the diamond.

Its intensity still appeared to be within an acceptable range because Xiao Lin would have had a real headache on his hands if that were not the case. He had to consider the looming monthly exam before changing to another weapon, since his order was still with Lu Renjia and could not possibly be completed so soon.

“If that’s the case, let’s use Slashing!”

After ten minutes, Xiao Lin’s room rumbled with rattles and thumps. With his Slashing at MAX, he was able to execute at least twice the level of damage, and coupled with Miracle’s attribute transformation, the maximum destructive power Xiao Lin could inflict in that instance was actually quite significant.

Even so, Xiao Lin was out of breath, especially after the continuous use of his Miracle skill. When the attribute transformation state ended, the physical exertion was simply astonishing.

In the end, the diamond had reached its limit as Xiao Lin was flat on the ground. The first crack expanded rapidly, then extended to the entire surface of the diamond, causing it to shatter quietly. The fragments scattered all over the place, and to his surprise, the fluid-like substance inside the crystal evaporated rather quickly when it came into contact with the air, turning into a cloud of blue mist which filled every corner of the room in the blink of an eye.

The whole process took only a moment and Xiao Lin instinctively held his breath. The blue mist did not smell very good and had a faint mustiness, like food that had been expired for a very long time. Most notably, in the span of a few seconds, he felt his mind get a little dizzy and his whole body turned hot. The feeling of uneasiness grew.

The events that followed were even more bizarre. The mist seemed to be attracted to him, rushing quickly toward him. His body was like a magnet that frantically absorbed the mist.

‘This thing isn’t poisonous, right? Was I tricked?’

As soon as that thought came up, Xiao Lin felt his consciousness become more and more blurry, and he had a bad feeling in his heart. Although he did not believe that Lilith would lie to him, he was more willing to believe that there was something problematic about his body at that moment. Before he could run to the door to open it, he fell directly onto the carpet.

What Xiao Lin did not notice was a milky-white halo appeared suddenly on the surface of his skin after he had passed out. The halo quickly dimmed again but did not completely disappear. It turned into a very shallow film, covering Xiao Lin’s body and greatly reducing the influx speed of the blue mist around him.

If the previous speed could be likened to crashing waves, the white halo had placed it under control and slowed the rate at which it entered his body to a gurgling stream. The blue mist’s absorption time had also been greatly extended.

Xiao Lin felt like he was in a long, long dream. Within that dream was a world filled only with that white glow. His subconscious was familiar with that place, as if he had been to somewhere similar before, or rather, he had dreamt the same dream before.

He was the only person walking in that empty and quiet dream. He did not know where he was going and he could not even discern directions. He had no idea how long he had been walking, but he ended up exhausted. An apple tree suddenly appeared in the middle, abruptly appearing just like magic.

Xiao Lin rubbed his eyes vigorously. He was in disbelief, but an even more surprising sight existed behind the tree. A young man with brown curly hair and blue eyes was sitting under the apple tree. He was clearly not Chinese. With a smile, he looked and Xiao Lin and nodded, saying, “I’ve been waiting for you for a long time. This is a rare occasion. Come, sit down.”

Xiao Lin was still dazed, so the man took the initiative to stand up and walk toward him. Even though it was only a dream, Xiao Lin’s subconscious vigilance prompted him to retreat a few quick steps back, distancing himself from the man.

The man waved his hand helplessly and said, “Don’t be nervous. Your subconscious mind is too tense. This will influence the effect of your talent advancement, and come to think of it, you are quite reckless. SS-level talents are different from ordinary talents. They are unique. Each SS-level talent can only exist once, yet you actually took over and used someone else’s advanced capabilities.”

“You mean the list is fake? And the blue mist is poisonous!”

The man laughed and shook his head. “Of course not. With that kind of energy component, your list is probably the same as what I used back then… That aside, thank me. I’ve already helped you tweak the energy component and allowed you to fully absorb it so your talents can be raised to its peak. It’ll take a while, so in the meantime, you can chat with me here first.”

“Who are you? And, this, where is this?” Xiao Lin was surprised.

“Haven’t we met? Your subconscious forgets things so quickly. As for this place? This is the depths of consciousness. You can call it a dream, if you’d like.”

“So, it is a dream.” A dreaming person might not realize that they were dreaming, but Xiao Lin did not seem too startled as he stared at the man in front of him and asked, “Well, you haven’t answered my first question. Who are you and what are you doing in my dream!”

“Ah, haven’t I introduced myself yet? That’s impossible.” The man was surprised, but he had an even bigger smile on his face. He said, with a playful tone, “You’ve probably guessed the answer by now. My name is Ivan. Ivanovich.”

Xiao Lin’s pupils contracted at once and he suddenly remembered why that bright white world was so familiar. He was not dreaming when he was at the area of Ivan’s alleged tomb in The Final Land; in fact, he had actually entered the very same place deep in his consciousness!