Chapter 156 : Chapter 156

Chapter 156: So this is what the World Script means

Inside the arena's infirmary.

I simply couldn't imagine that just a short while ago, I was a patient with severe injuries all over my body, including major organ damage and fractures.

And now, I wasn't even wrapped in gauze and bandages lying on a hospital bed.

This was all because of this Teacher Lina, and the potion she handed me.

After taking it internally and applying it externally, I was mostly healed.

Not much time had passed at all; it was truly a transcendent potion.

But Tan Han on the opposite side wasn't so lucky.

Her injuries were similar to mine, and she was mostly healed now too, but she was still unconscious.

At this moment in the infirmary, the senior volunteers from before had also been sent out by the teacher.

So this place was suddenly filled with people I knew.

Lina, Ji Niang, and Big Sis Bai.

When Big Sis Bai saw me defeated from the audience stands, she immediately bypassed the protective spell of the stands and ran onto the field.

Although she was stopped, she insisted on following me here in the end.

Of course, it was also with Ji Niang's approval that she was able to enter here.

After all, this was the infirmary for the contestants, and unauthorized personnel were naturally not allowed in.

“Little Han, how are you feeling? Are you okay? Do you feel any discomfort anywhere else?”

“I’m fine, Big Sis Bai, I’m great.”

I met Big Sis Bai’s anxious gaze and still smiled to comfort her.

“Alright, Bai Yu, Little Han is fine, stop clinging to her.”

Ji Niang saw Bai Yu's concerned look, stepped forward to speak, and pulled Bai Yu away at the same time.

Because next, there were more important matters to attend to here.

With a snap of Lina's fingers, a spell instantly enveloped this area.

Of course, it also separated the unconscious Tan Han.

From the outside, it looked like a hard, soundproof, and mosaic-covered independent space.

“Alright, let’s not dawdle, it's time to explain some serious matters.”

Lina said as she walked towards me.

I was a bit bewildered by the sudden change.

Wasn't I just an injured patient?

Once I'm healed, the special treatment is gone?

I watched as Lina handed me a piece of parchment, and I subconsciously took it.

“Secrecy Contract?”

I looked at the content on it and then looked at Lina with some confusion.

Then my gaze shifted to Ji Niang and Big Sis Bai.

“What am I supposed to keep secret?”

I asked curiously, but at the same time, I started reading the content below.

The secrecy contract required me to keep secret everything I saw in this competition related to the World Script, including but not limited to the concept of the World Script itself, and so on.

“I believe you’ve seen it, it’s the content on the contract.”

“But, I don’t even know what the World Script is? Why do you want me to keep something I don't even know about a secret?”

I looked at Teacher Lina speechlessly and asked.

Moreover, this secrecy contract had many compulsory restrictions, such as limiting personal actions regarding the confidential content.

For example, if I didn't realize I had let something slip, I could be suddenly silenced.

Even subjective suggestive actions would be restricted, and although it wasn't specified how it would be enforced, it was clearly stated in the contract.

“You don’t know…”

Lina looked at me, seeing that I didn't seem to be lying, and hesitated.

But the contract had already been given out, so whether I had seen it or not wasn't really important anymore.

The important thing about the World Script Theory was never the content of the script, but that the concept itself could not be spread.

And for Lina, Yang Yuehan was a loophole-like existence.

Rather than letting her be a ticking time bomb, it was better to be upfront and impose restrictions from the beginning.

“So do you want to know?”

“Um…”

I looked at Lina with a face full of confusion.

Was this teacher here to tease me?

Coming here specifically to tell me a confidential matter, and then making me sign a secrecy agreement.

Did something leak somewhere, and they were using me to take the blame?

“I don’t want to know, can I not sign it?”

“I’m afraid that won't do. Even if you don't know about the existence of the World Script, you may have already come into contact with it unintentionally. Think about it, have you had any contact with matters related to Tan Han? I know your Spirit Vision has reached the level of the Floating World, you can see many things that others can't.”

“Well… there are quite a few. That giant golden eye, which seems to be a talent Tan Han calls the Spirit Eye, and…”

“And what else?”

Lina leaned in and continued to ask, obviously interested in my description.

“And… Tan Han said she could observe fate, weave fate, and something about golden threads.”

“Golden threads like this?”

After hearing my description, Lina reached out her hand to my side and pinched something.

But when I saw what was in her hand, my pupils shrank!

Isn't this wisp of golden thread the same kind of thread I saw Tan Han weaving before!

How could it exist in reality too?

“It seems so. Want to know what this is?”

“I… kinda… um, no. The more you know, the less happy you are, and the faster you die.”

In response to my answer, Lina showed a visibly puzzled expression.

Were kids these days so afraid of death?

She didn't seem that afraid of death on the field earlier.

“You kid. Xi Lan, you go persuade her.”

Lina stood up, holding her forehead as she spoke.

“What does this have to do with me?”

Ji Niang crossed her arms and turned to the side.

“She's your student, is that reason enough?”

“Fine.”

Ji Niang finally agreed, but not because she was persuaded, but because she didn't want to be bothered anymore.

“Little Han, just sign this contract.”

“But…”

My gaze shifted to Teacher Ji Niang, then to Big Sis Bai.

Because these two teachers were here, even Big Sis Bai couldn't get a word in at this moment.

“Sign it, so I can help you fight for the most resources. Some things can't be avoided. Just think of it as listening to a story. It'll also be good for your future academy life. Don't you want to know why your Big Sis Bai didn't want you to have too much contact with Tan Han before?”

“This…”

My gaze turned to Big Sis Bai again.

To be honest, wasn't I dragging this out because I was hesitating?

Even though I knew very well that things had gotten to this point and I seemed to have no choice.

But I just felt a stuffy and uncomfortable feeling in my heart, as if I were powerless and at the mercy of others, especially after learning that I had lost my first match just now.

Just because I went out of bounds?

But hadn't I already defeated Tan Han before that?

“Bai Yu, you persuade your Little Han. You couldn't say anything before because of the secrecy contract, but the situation is different now.”

At this moment, Ji Niang pushed the matter onto Bai Yu again.

“What? Do you need some private space? That can be arranged.”

“No need.”

Bai Yu raised her hand to stop Ji Niang's suggestion.

She walked towards me, her face filled with an indescribable complexity.

“Little Han, I just want to ask you one question. Do you want a plain and simple life, or a life full of troubles and ups and downs?”

“Hmm… Is this something I can choose?”

I hesitated for a moment before asking.

Although a plain and simple life is the real deal, I had already experienced such a dull life in my previous life.

If I really wanted to live a plain and simple life, who would choose to apply to a Transcendent Academy?

But being entangled in trouble, with a life full of ups and downs, was another extreme.

This wasn't what I hoped for either; living like that would be too tiring.

And it wasn't something you could experience just by wanting to.

Even if a person goes around provoking everyone, you'll only become a universally disliked street wanderer, not a protagonist who soars to the sky after a conflict and a bet.

In life, no one will trouble you for no reason, and no one's life is a constant triumphant march…

But none of these were things I could choose.

“Just pick one.”

Bai Yu said softly.

“Pick one? Then I'll pick the third one. I want a life that is not defined. I don't like plain and simple, nor do I like being entangled in trouble.”

“Hehe, I feel that Little Han is more like a natural-born witch, an undefined witch. At least this mentality is very similar. As for other aspects… they still need some work.”

Ji Niang commented with a smile from the side.

“Is that so…”

Bai Yu was also a little surprised by my answer, but on second thought, it seemed not surprising at all.

Just as she was thinking about how to continue guiding me, I had already picked up the pen and was preparing to sign.

“Big Sis Bai, I probably know what you mean by this question, but I'm not a child anymore, and you don't need to be so considerate of my tolerance and thoughts. I know that with things having come this far, I actually have no choice. I just want to know if I can get the same treatment as Tan Han?”

My last sentence was directed at the two teachers.

Then, the tip of my pen rested on the signature line of the contract.

Because I knew that dragging this on would probably waste more time and wear out everyone's patience, so I just laid things bare.

The reason I hesitated, wasn't it because I hadn't seen the final push that would make me decide?

I recalled what Ji Niang had taught me before, saying I was too thin-skinned and didn't dare to speak up.

Coupled with Teacher Ji Niang's hint just now that there would be resource compensation, I didn't mind cooperating actively.

Wasn't the trigger for all this the battle just now?

“I can't guarantee it, but I will help you fight for it,” Ji Niang said.

“Do you know what kind of treatment Tan Han gets? If you're referring to the resources she has currently obtained, that's naturally not a problem. But the treatment she receives is far from being definable by resources alone.”

Lina also spoke from the side, her voice directly overpowering Ji Niang's.

“Then I signed it. Can you explain it to me now?”

I looked at the two teachers playing their parts and finally signed the contract.

Anyway, it was something I had to sign sooner or later, just like the contract I signed at the beginning of the school year.

This was never a negotiation.

“Signed? Then that makes things easier.”

Lina didn't expect me to be so decisive; she thought she would have to spend more time persuading me.

Seeing that the contract was signed, Lina didn't mince her words anymore.

She was very relaxed at this moment, even turning around and pulling a chair to sit next to me.

“Where should I start? Let's start with the World Script Theory. Little Han, do you like reading novels? The kind of fast-food novels that are popular now, the daily updated ones full of tropes.”

“I know them.”

I nodded.

How could I not know about those?

Haven't they become a part of most people's lives in today's society?

“What do you think of the protagonists in those novels?”

“Protagonists… oh… wait, is this what the World Script means?”

Hearing this, I quickly reacted.

If you treat a world as a novel, then the script…

Isn't it the development of the story?

Then the protagonist of this world is Tan Han?

“It seems you have good comprehension skills. You can think whatever you want, the World Script is inherently undefinable. You just need to have this concept.”

“…”

I didn't speak for a moment.

A guess was ultimately just a guess.

The teacher's confirmation was the final heavy blow to me.

“What? Does this feeling of being fated feel bad? Many people have this thought after learning about this concept. Life always abhors having its destiny manipulated, but this is all just scaring yourself.”

“If the script was truly unbreakable, then we wouldn't have banned the spread of this concept. Do you understand?”

“Our actions are to maintain the script because it is fragile, beautiful, and more profitable. And being profitable is the most important thing.”

“As the core of the entire script, Tan Han is tied to something very important, destiny, the power of destiny.”

“Because of destiny, everything will revolve around Tan Han as a huge vortex, drawing in many people and things. This is why your Big Sis Bai told you to stay away from Tan Han.”

“Is this really something I can know?”

I raised my head and asked.

If it was just about resisting fate, then bring it on.

The ignorant are fearless!

But when it involves the interests of the entire world, then I'm sorry, I'm just an ordinary person, don't drag me into it.

“Of course, but what are you referring to?”

“Destiny and all that, it still feels too ethereal.”

“Ethereal? Is that what you think? Then what is this thing currently wrapped around you?”

“This is destiny?”

My gaze turned to the wisp of golden thread by my side.

In my Spirit Vision, it was as if it was stuck to me and couldn't be shaken off.

“What else? This is the destiny you plucked from Tan Han. Now it belongs to you, so you can see it even without Spirit Vision, and only you can touch it. Even if plundered, it can't be taken away by ordinary means, because now this is your destiny.”

“Destiny… What's it for? I mean, its specific function.”

I held this wisp of thread in my hand.

It had no weight in my hand at the moment, but I could see its existence.

I could even feel a faint connection between myself and it.

“Not sure. It’s like luck, can you describe it well? There are too many things in this world that cannot be defined with just a few simple words, but the fact that it will bring you benefits will not change.”

“But I saw that Tan Han was bound by this, like a marionette, and she wasn't even aware of it.”

I clenched my fist around this wisp of thread and continued to ask.

“Hehe, in the end, you're still worried, aren't you? This world isn't black and white. Everything has two sides. You said you weren't a child anymore, surely you understand this principle?”

“Putting aside willingness, objectively speaking, Tan Han paid a price and received a reward. From your perspective, Tan Han might be a marionette with no freedom. But what about from Tan Han's perspective?”

“Don't try to pity others, to have mercy on others. Maybe they are enjoying it. In the end, it's just a matter of acceptance or non-acceptance. If we continue this conversation, it will delve into more philosophical realms. I'm not too involved in that area. If you're still confused, you can go and have a look. The library has plenty of wisdom and philosophy from our predecessors. They will enlighten you.”

“Do you have any other questions? If not, then this topic ends here. After this isolation spell is removed, none of this content can be discussed anywhere. Of course, if you feel confused, you can talk to me privately.”

“Mmm…”

Although I felt like I still had many questions unanswered, I had just been hit with so many new concepts that I needed to take a moment to process it all.

“By the way, you can also discuss these issues with your counselor Xi Lan um, Ji Niang. After all, I'm usually very busy, so you might not be able to find me.”

“Next is the matter of temporary compensation. This is my personal compensation. The specific resource allocation still needs to be discussed, but it won't keep you waiting for too long.”

Then, Lina took out quite a few things and handed them over.

With my eye, I could naturally tell that these were all spellbooks!

“Take these spellbooks for now. These are basic elemental evocation spellbooks with one point of magic power consumption, and of course, they include the Fireball you are familiar with.”

“I very much admire your modded Fireball and Energy Shield. I hope to see your related papers in the library in the future.”

“Of course, even as temporary compensation, this is not enough. Here are some spellbooks with ten points of consumption and one spellbook with one hundred points of magic power consumption. Forgive me for not usually carrying too many unused spellbooks on me. I'll add another one hundred Magic Power Sources for you.”

“Stingy, just giving this much?”

At this time, Ji Niang on the side began to exert pressure.

“Xi Lan, don't you yell at me. This is my personal compensation. Among the classes I teach, besides Tan Han, no other class president gets this treatment.”

“Heh.”

“It’s useless to argue with me, and you won’t be laughing in a moment.”

As Lina spoke, she took out the things she had promised and placed them in front of me.

Then she took out a stack of envelopes.

“What's this?”

I asked curiously as I watched Lina hand me these letters as well.

“These are invitation letters that other teachers asked me to pass on to you. They are inviting you to join their laboratories, research labs, and so on. If you agree, there will be corresponding resources…”

“Wait! How did I not know about this? When did they write these? Poaching from me? Don't they know I was the one who scouted Little Han!”

“Xi Lan, it's not that I'm picking on you, but the research group you've formed is like a game. I shouldn't have agreed to let you be a counselor. Letting you lead a Class 14 is just harming people, do you understand?”

“How am I harming people! What does this have to do with Little Han? Did you get my consent? Did you get Little Han's consent?”

At this moment, Ji Niang was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, not caring if Lina was the grade director, she still retorted fiercely.

“I'm just giving her a choice. If you can't keep her, it's because you're not capable. Little Han only has these few spellbooks so far. Don't you think about whose problem that is?”

“Little Han's focus has never been on the Newcomer Competition, and I don't care if she can achieve good results. I have already planned a gradual path for her, so you don't need to worry about it.”

“Hehe, that's why I say you're not suitable to be a teacher. Look at what you're saying. You don't care?”

While these two teachers were bickering, I quietly put away all these spellbooks.

I didn't care about biting off more than I could chew.

After being crushed by multiple spells, I finally understood that only by biting off more than I can chew now will there be a future.

Otherwise, it would be a problem just to have something to eat in the future.

My previous thinking was limited to modding spells.

Because of the lack of time, no comparison, and limited energy, I had no demand.

In addition, with Teacher Ji Niang's attitude of giving me whatever I asked for, I didn't take it too seriously.

Now, with a comparison, there is a gap.

In the end, Teacher Ji Niang and Teacher Lina spoke very heatedly.

It was only after I comforted Ji Niang and promised not to leave that the matter was considered over.

Actually, I really had no intention of leaving.

After all, Ji Niang was my counselor, a link that couldn't be bypassed.

And fussing around would only waste time.

I believe that after this incident, Teacher Ji Niang would not treat me unfairly.

In the end, she even gave me another hundred Magic Power Sources.

Now the number of my Magic Power Sources has reached three digits, and I can even use spellbooks that consume three-digit amounts!

After the isolation spell was lifted, the few of us appeared in the infirmary again.

The two teachers didn't stay any longer.

Lina showed some concern for Tan Han and then left.

Just as she said, she was very busy, especially since such a troublesome incident occurred in the Newcomer Competition.

Some of the morning events might be delayed until the afternoon.

Fortunately, there were special spells to clean the arena, otherwise it might have wasted even more time.

When only the three of us were left in the infirmary, Tan Han, who had been on the hospital bed, stopped pretending.

She had woken up halfway through, only to find no one there, just an isolation spell.

But unfortunately, she couldn't find out what had happened inside.

So she simply continued to close her eyes and meditate.

Now that there were only three people left, Tan Han spoke directly.

“Little Han… you were right, maybe I was too arrogant, but… congratulations on winning this match…”

“You're awake? But it seems you don't know what happened yet. I have to go now, see you around.”

I interrupted her.

Her words felt like sarcasm to me, but they also showed that she had fainted before the referee's announcement.

And I went out of bounds before Tan Han fainted.

This was a specific detail I learned after asking the teacher earlier.

I could understand why Tan Han would say such words now, but to my ears, the sarcastic tone was still very strong.

Besides, such a victory or defeat seemed a bit too much like child's play, but everyone who watched the match felt that there were no losers in this match.

But I knew very well that there were no winners in this match.

I did not win against that script, and Tan Han did not win against me.

And this would be the only time Tan Han would nominally win against me.

In the future, Tan Han would no longer catch up to me, if she continued to maintain such an attitude.

This was the confidence I gained after this battle, or rather, it was the first time I faced myself squarely.

I would not be worse than Tan Han.

“Hey! Wait! Where are you going?”

“To prepare for the revival round in the afternoon. Student Tan Han, please rest well here.”

After speaking, I took Big Sis Bai's arm and prepared to leave the infirmary.

I deliberately used a tone and address that kept a distance from her.

On one hand, it was because I had promised Big Sis Bai not to have any more relations with Tan Han.

On the other hand, it was my own assessment of the pros and cons; Tan Han was a source of trouble at this moment, and I should indeed keep my distance.

“Revival round? Wait? Why are you going to the revival round…”

But the only response she got was the cold sound of a door closing.