Agonizing pain washed over him in waves. Jiang Lin felt his vision darken repeatedly as cold sweat drenched his undershirt, nearly causing him to lose consciousness several times.
Finally, the strengthening was complete. Feeling the surge of power welling up within his body, Jiang Lin was overjoyed.
His physical strength had increased by this much?!
Finally...
His cheat had finally arrived!
'Sorry, System. I admit I was a bit too loud just now.'
His body was filled with an explosive sense of power that made Jiang Lin feel a bit uncoordinated for a moment.
For the past three years, he had trained diligently every day, yet he had only increased his health points from an initial 200 to 2,000.
And now, in less than a minute, his physical fitness had reached this level!
...
Seeing that Jiang Lin hadn't actually scammed him, Tie Chen lay back down, staring at the ceiling with a look of utter despair.
Jiang Lin noticed this and thought of his second task.
As he searched around for small insects or mosquitoes, he asked casually, "Confession failed?"
Tie Chen liked a girl who was the 'class flower' of another class and had been pursuing her relentlessly.
Yesterday, he had told Jiang Lin that he was prepared to sound the horn for a final charge.
"She said... she'd rather just be friends," Tie Chen replied.
"Oh. So you're giving up?"
"I'm not giving up! She's just the type who takes a while to warm up to someone," Tie Chen said with a look of absolute certainty.
Jiang Lin looked at this simp, momentarily at a loss for words.
Tie Chen's class was a warrior, level 4. He was ranked first in the bottom-tier class and was the most likely candidate in the entire class to get into a Middle Magic Academy.
"Then do you think she likes you?"
"Well... last time she let me walk her home, and we were walking quite close. We almost held hands... and the time before that, she even gave me a handkerchief..."
Hearing this, Jiang Lin couldn't hold back anymore. He asked, "Do you think you're handsome?"
Tie Chen remained silent.
"Do you think you're strong?"
Tie Chen continued to be silent.
"Then do you think there are many people who like her?"
Tie Chen thought for a moment, recalling that the class flower seemed to be close with quite a few boys.
"Then why do you think she would like you?"
Tie Chen stared at the ceiling and didn't answer.
"You've already confessed, and she still hasn't said yes. That means she doesn't like you.
"The reason she stays friends with you is simply because she likes the feeling of being liked by you.
"Her occasional kindness is just to keep you hooked, so she can continue to enjoy the vanity of your affection.
"It's like when a pet dog runs too far away—the owner calls its name just to bring it back..."
Tie Chen didn't react.
Jiang Lin's voice wasn't loud, but the students in the front row could just barely hear him.
A student in front turned around and interrupted Jiang Lin, "Bro, stop. One of my friends is breaking down."
【Devil's Whisper: With just a few simple sentences, you've crushed the mental defenses of three people. You truly are a demon among demons.】
【Reward: mental power +1000】
It really worked!
But besides Tie Chen and the guy in the front row, who else was there?
In the next instant, Jiang Lin felt a sharp pain in his head.
It felt as if millions of needles were piercing his soul, but at the same time, his mental power began to grow at an inconceivable speed.
【Name】: Jiang Lin
【Class】: Paladin
【Level】: 2
【Stamina】: 3000
【Mental power】: 200 → 1200
Growth in mental power wasn't like physical strength; it couldn't be increased through simple exercise.
It required constant meditation and the honing of one's will and spirit to improve.
For a close-combat class like Jiang Lin's, mental power was naturally weak, making the growth rate in this area even slower.
A level 2 paladin with 1,200 mental power like him was an extremely rare existence.
The two magic-based skills Jiang Lin currently mastered—Low-level Healing and Low-level Strengthening—didn't consume much mental power overall.
However, when Jiang Lin only had 200 mental power, he could probably only use them a dozen times in battle. Now that his mental power had surged to 1,200, he could basically use them as he pleased in combat at his current level.
Meanwhile, after a long period of contemplation while staring at the ceiling, Tie Chen let out a long sigh, a look of determination appearing on his face.
"Old Jiang, in the end, it's just because I'm not good enough, not strong enough!"
As he spoke, he glanced at the countdown hanging next to the blackboard, a fiery passion igniting in his eyes.
"71 days of hard work! I'm going to get into a Middle Magic Academy!!"
He slapped Jiang Lin's shoulder and said, "Old Jiang, I'm not like a loser like you. I actually have a bit of talent! As long as I set my mind to it, I'm sure I can make a name for myself!!
"When I make it big in the future, you can come and work for your brother Tie!"
Although Jiang Lin was decent in his academic subjects, his talent for cultivation was too poor. Being level 2 put him at the very bottom even in this low-tier class.
So in the eyes of an average person, with only 71 days left, there was no way Jiang Lin could reach level 5—the minimum requirement for a Middle Magic Academy.
Jiang Lin didn't respond. His vision was still darkening as his mind continued to throb with pain.
It took a long while before the pain subsided. He looked at Tie Chen expressionlessly and said, "Yeah, that's great. Good luck. I'm not going to hide it anymore either; I'm starting to put in the effort. I hope you can keep up with me."
Hearing this, Tie Chen looked confused.
What was with this guy Jiang Lin? Had he lost his mind and started talking in his sleep?
...
Time flew by, and the class soon ended.
At the same time, Jiang Lin, who had spent the entire class swatting mosquitoes, received a new system notification.
【In just forty minutes, you have slaughtered ten defenseless living beings and felt joy in doing so. You are truly a natural-born demon.】
【Daily Task: Killing for Pleasure, (10/10)】
【Reward: Random skill proficiency increased to max level.】
【Selected Skill: Basic Swordsmanship (proficient)】
In the next moment, a flood of memories that didn't belong to Jiang Lin surged into his mind. He seemed to see himself wielding an iron sword, hacking, slashing, and thrusting over and over again, repeating the most fundamental movements of swordsmanship.
He integrated every point of exertion, every muscle required for each movement, the way every inch of muscle exerted force, and how different levels of force changed his strikes deep into his mind and carved them into his body.
He seemed to see himself standing on a giant rock, brandishing his iron sword as the tides rose and fell and the sun and moon cycled, day after day.
His appearance changed from that of a youth to a middle-aged man.
Yet the sword in his hand grew increasingly sharp, and the aura about him shifted from raw and unpolished to sharp, and finally to reserved...
【Skill】: Basic swordsmanship (proficient) → Basic swordsmanship (superlative)
...
Rate on N.U.
