Chapter 38
Not only was Tyr confused about the situation, but to be precise, everyone present—except for Fan Peiyang and Zheng Luozhu—was utterly stunned.
Anyone who had played games before knew that in certain settings, if a boss was overwhelmingly powerful, its stats would simply appear as “???”—meaning unfathomable. It was a warning for players to think twice before challenging it.
However, no matter how strong Tang Lin was, he couldn’t possibly be so powerful that even this world of trials couldn’t decipher his stats. Besides, throughout the entire trial process, Tang Lin had only contributed his intelligence. In terms of combat ability, he was about on par with Tan Hua.
For someone like that, having stats displayed as question marks made no sense at all.
While the others remained completely bewildered, Tyr, after his initial shock, gradually turned to look at Tang Lin, his gaze filled with curiosity and scrutiny.
Tang Lin stood up. Like every challenger before him, it was now his turn to fight.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his hand. The person gripping him not only refused to let go but tightened their hold even more.
Tang Lin struggled twice but couldn’t break free, his expression turning slightly displeased.
Fan Peiyang, still grasping his hand, stood up. Beneath his knife-sharp brows, his gaze left no room for argument. “I’ll go in your place.”
Tang Lin narrowed his eyes, his naturally light brows furrowing in obvious displeasure. “If you go in my place, then who’s going in yours?”
“Hey,” Tyr crossed his arms, his eyes filled with mockery, as if watching a joke unfold. “I don’t recall saying substitutions were allowed.”
The air instantly turned ice-cold.
Fan Peiyang slowly turned to look at him, his voice as frigid as the coldest tundra. “He doesn’t even have a Stationery Tree. How is he supposed to fight you?”
Tyr shrugged with complete indifference. “That’s his own problem.”
“Fan Peiyang,” Tang Lin called his name.
Just three simple words, spoken lightly, yet they carried a frost-like chill, making the already cold atmosphere drop several more degrees.
Fan Peiyang met his gaze.
Tang Lin lifted his tightly restrained hand. “I’ll go. At worst, only one person dies. If you insist on holding me back, then we both die together. Do you want to rethink your calculations?”
Fan Peiyang didn’t do calculations. He only knew one thing: “I brought you in.”
Bringing someone in meant taking full responsibility.
Tang Lin suddenly chuckled. “You brought me in without my consent, so now you don’t have to respect my opinion either, is that it?”
If Fan Peiyang’s coldness was like a sharp blade, then Tang Lin’s was like the wind—where a blade could only cut through flesh, the wind could pierce deep into the bones.
No one had ever seen this side of Tang Lin before.
He had given both his gentlest and sharpest edges to Fan Peiyang alone.
For a brief moment, Fan Peiyang was dazed, as if time had rewound.
Over the years, they had been so busy with the company that all he saw was Tang Lin smiling at everyone, navigating through social circles effortlessly. He had almost forgotten that the Tang Lin from the past had once been so unrestrained, so full of sharp edges.
That Tang Lin had always been loyal only to himself. If he wanted to do something, no matter how difficult or humiliating, he would do it without hesitation. If he didn’t want to do something, no amount of coercion would work.
Just like now.
The grip holding him loosened.
Tang Lin pulled his hand free and stepped onto the battlefield.
A transparent wall rose around him.
Fan Peiyang didn’t sit down. He stood where he was, pressed close against the transparent wall, his gaze radiating a chilling sense of oppression.
Tyr had seen this kind of look plenty of times before. Every time he guarded a checkpoint, he would receive a few glares filled with hatred—it didn’t bother him in the slightest. But today, for some reason, he felt uneasy, like he was being watched by a feral beast lurking in the darkness, ready to pounce and sink its teeth into him at any moment.
Frowning, he looked up just in time to see Tang Lin approaching.
Tyr wasn’t in a hurry to attack. He glanced at the mysterious data displayed on the screen, then at Tang Lin. “Care to explain?”
Tang Lin had expected this question. But before answering, he asked first, “I want to know—how are the comprehensive danger rating and Stationery Tree determined?”
Both questions piqued everyone’s curiosity. Outside the transparent wall, ears perked up one after another.
“Such a simple matter—I thought you would have figured it out long ago.”
Tyr didn’t hesitate in the slightest, as if it were no secret at all. “The Stationery Tree is formed by compiling data from all the stationery items you’ve used in the previous stages. The type of stationery you handle best, the effects you utilize most skillfully—that’s the direction in which your tree will evolve. As for the comprehensive danger rating, it’s a combined evaluation of your Stationery Tree and your current physical and mental capabilities.”
It was exactly as Tang Lin had guessed.
With no further questions, he answered candidly, “I never cleared the previous stages.”
No stages cleared meant no data. The truth was actually quite mundane.
The onlookers were baffled. How did someone who hadn’t gone through the trial reach this point? Did he have connections? Was he an exception granted special entry?
Tyr raised an eyebrow slightly, waiting for him to elaborate.
Tang Lin didn’t mince words. “Someone wished me in.”
The Wishing House.
Everyone—including Tyr—immediately understood.
And when they recalled Fan Peiyang’s earlier remark, ‘I pulled you in,’ the culprit became obvious.
The spectators, still unaware of the full story, turned to look at Fan Peiyang with complicated expressions.
“…Damn. What kind of grudge would make someone do that?”
Zheng Luozhu shot them all a glare. “What the hell do you guys know? My boss—”
“Shut up,” Fan Peiyang’s voice was dangerously low, like a storm about to break.
Zheng Luozhu flinched and instinctively turned his gaze to the battlefield.
Tyr hadn’t moved from his spot, but his clear eyes now held an unmistakable killing intent. “I don’t know how you managed to get past this checkpoint, but even if you slip through one, you won’t get past the next. Might as well die early and save yourself the trouble.”
His tone was casual, like he was about to crush an ant underfoot.
“This place doesn’t need dead weight. Blame the person who brought you in.”
The last syllable had barely faded when Tyr lunged forward, his speed like a lightning strike.
But Tang Lin was even faster. Not in raw speed, but in reaction time—before Tyr had even finished speaking, he had already begun moving to the side.
Tyr’s punch barely grazed his waist, striking nothing but air.
Tang Lin didn’t stop. Taking advantage of Tyr’s brief moment of surprise, he widened the gap between them, retreating two meters away.
Tyr turned to face him. “You dodged early.”
“You talk too much,” Tang Lin replied. “Villains always do.”
Tyr smirked. In a flash, he lunged at Tang Lin again.
But just like before, Tang Lin had already moved in advance, sidestepping Tyrl’s attack.
This time, however, Tyr shifted sideways in an instant, his movement eerily fast—like a horizontal teleportation. The next second, he was right in front of Tang Lin again.
With no time to dodge, Tang Lin took a direct hit. The force sent him crashing into the transparent wall.
He slid down, coughing from the pain, his shoulder trembling uncontrollably.
Tyr approached him leisurely, looking down with a hint of pity. “Why struggle? The easier it is for me, the faster and less painful your death will be. Saves everyone the trouble.”
Struggling was meaningless.
Tyr’s arrogance and condescension were well-founded. He only had to use a tenth—no, perhaps not even a tenth—of his strength to crush challengers who possessed a Stationery Tree. And Tang Lin didn’t even have that.
But still, Tang Lin had no intention of waiting to die.
He had spent two years waiting for death in a hospital bed. Every bit of his so-called Buddhist-like detachment had been drained away in that sterile room. Even if he was going to die, he would be the one to light the final spark himself.
With a sudden leap, Tang Lin lunged at Tyr, wrapping his arm tightly around his neck in a chokehold, leaving no room for escape.
Tyr never expected that someone who seemed so cold and indifferent could go berserk like this—wilder than even Cui Zhan.
What a pity… There was no Stationery Tree.
For the first time, Tyr felt a hint of regret. But that didn’t stop him from acting. He grabbed the arm daring to strangle him, yanked it hard, and flung Tang Lin away effortlessly.
“Bang——”
Tang Lin crashed heavily onto the ground. The sound alone made the spectators wince.
Cold sweat covered his forehead.
His whole body was in excruciating pain. If he wanted to get up again, he’d need at least a full minute to recover.
But Tyr didn’t have that kind of patience.
A flash of cold light—he now held a beautifully crafted dagger in his hand.
The last ten challengers, aside from He Lu, he had taken down barehanded. Even against He Lu, he had merely tossed the dagger at him, just to break his so-called “rules.”
It wasn’t that those before Tang Lin weren’t worthy of a weapon, but rather, the moment he drew his blade, there would be no turning back.
Everyone understood this.
This dagger wasn’t just a weapon—it was the line between sparing someone and eliminating them completely. A declaration of absolute intent to kill.
Tang Lin hadn’t even had time to recover from the pain before Tyr’s shadow loomed over him, blocking out the light.
The world darkened.
The dagger came down, aimed straight at the pale nape of Tang Lin’s neck.
A flash of blood, the brutal inevitability of death—
“Awooo—!”
A strange, wolf-like howl suddenly shattered the suffocating silence.
Everyone’s eyes widened in shock. Zheng Luozhu was so stunned that he shot up from his seat.
They all saw it—something black, like a stain on Tang Lin’s shoulder, suddenly shot up, twisting into a dense cloud of black mist. It howled like a chilling gust of wind and coiled around Tyr’s wrist, stopping his descending blade.
The dagger’s tip was already grazing Tang Lin’s skin—but it refused to go any further.
The lower half of the black mist drifted to the ground, while the upper half remained wrapped around Tyrl’s arm. As it solidified, the shape became unmistakable—
A black wolf.
Its body landed gracefully, while its head stayed coiled around Tyr, razor-sharp fangs clamped down fiercely on his wrist!
“A Night Roamer?!”
It wasn’t just the spectators who gasped in shock—even Tyr himself sounded incredulous.
His disbelief made him momentarily forget to defend himself.
The beast’s fangs sank in, piercing through his skin.
The sharp pain triggered his instincts—his free hand lashed out with a powerful punch.
The Night Roamer instantly dispersed into a swirling mist of darkness.
Tyr took two steps back, pressing his slightly bleeding wrist.
The black mist reformed in front of Tang Lin, once again taking the shape of the wolf. It stood protectively in front of him, like a loyal guardian.
“Awoo—!”
The spectators were completely dumbfounded.
What the hell was this? A portable Night Roamer?
Tyr wasn’t any better off than they were.
The creature itself wasn’t terrifying—at most, it was just a promising challenger’s ability. But for it to appear here, out of nowhere, was bizarre enough. And for it to protect someone without a Stationery Tree? Unheard of.
“How did you bring that in?” Tyr needed a moment to process this.
Tang Lin was just as baffled.
For a split second, he had truly thought he was going to die. He had even started wondering if he would, like the others, be enveloped in that violet glow after death—he just had no idea where he would end up floating to.
And then… the wolf had appeared.
He had only ever dealt with one Night Roamer before, so he didn’t know what the other wolf shadows looked like. But somehow, he was certain—this was the same one.
After all, the wolf shadow was currently growling at Tyr while still finding time to rub its tail against his pant leg, sneaking in moments of flattery whenever possible.
Tang Lin struggled to his feet, enduring the pain as he adjusted his breathing. “I didn’t bring it in. It followed me in on its own.”
He hadn’t seen how the wolf shadow got inside, but outside the transparent wall, Nan Ge kept pointing at his own shoulder. Connecting the dots, Tang Lin quickly figured it out.
“Impossible.” Tyr didn’t believe the explanation at all. “No Night Roamer has ever crossed the checkpoint.”
“It’s inside now,” Tang Lin shrugged. His smugness lasted only a moment before pain shot through him, forcing him to suck in a sharp breath.
Tyr stared at the wolf shadow as if looking at a cheap imitation. “Attacking those who attempt the challenge is in its nature.”
How could it not attack, yet even protect him? And secretly follow him in just to do that?
Tang Lin reached out his hand, careful not to bend down too much to avoid aggravating his injuries.
The wolf shadow immediately stood up, pressing its head into his palm and rubbing against it.
“You saw that,” Tang Lin said, not meaning to show off, but left with no other choice.
The spectators’ eyes lit up.
What the hell kind of beast-taming talent was this? It was way too cool.
Tyr was unsettled. Dealing with Tang Lin and the Night Roamer was easy, but not understanding what was happening annoyed him. “Did you use ‘Night Beast Tamer’?”
Tang Lin suspected it might be a lingering effect from that item, so he answered truthfully. “I did, seven days ago.”
Tyr: ”Impossible. The item’s effect expired long ago.”
Tang Lin looked at him helplessly. “Every ‘impossible’ you say has a chance of proving you wrong. Are you sure you don’t want to rethink that?”
Tyr: “…”
The final boss of the checkpoint was thrown into confusion, but Tang Lin wasn’t.
If the item wasn’t the reason, then there was only one explanation left—the wolf shadow remembered his mercy and had been holding onto the thought of repaying him.
Attacking challengers was in its nature?
Yeah, right.
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