Chapter 261: A Mad Delusion
Xu Zhi sat in her wheelchair and rested for quite a while before finally relying on her body’s remarkable absorption efficiency to draw in enough extraordinary energy from the air to regain her composure.
She frowned slightly, a headache forming, unsure what kind of madness her internal talent circuit had just gone through. It wasn’t that she disliked the sensation—only that she found it surprising, even unexpected.
Those cores had originally been meant for upgrading. But now that she had consumed them, there wasn’t the slightest change in her level.
When Xu Zhi tried to focus inward and observe the extraordinary circuit within her body—one that seemed to have undergone some kind of change—she found that, unlike before, the moment she saw that familiar yet slightly unfamiliar circuit, a brief wave of dizziness struck her.
She felt that her current mental state probably wasn’t suited for examining it. Perhaps she should wait until she was in better condition.
And after recovering somewhat from the earlier state of extreme hunger—so intense that it had dulled her ability to think—Xu Zhi belatedly realized something.
Just now… she seemed to have sensed a faint trace of “grievance” coming from her extraordinary circuit?
What did that even mean? Was a talent circuit actually blaming its owner for not being able to feed it?
That was simply—
She immediately activated her wrist device and began searching for information.
After getting her answer, Xu Zhi could barely suppress the torrent of thoughts surging through her mind. Her hand clenched tightly around the box that had originally contained the cores. She gripped it so hard that veins bulged on the back of her hand, her fingertips turning pale, yet even that did nothing to calm the violent emotions churning within her.
She had carefully studied knowledge about talent circuits. Even the most basic understanding made it clear that a talent circuit was like a part of the human body—your blood, your bones, your organs.
Had anyone’s blood, bones, or organs ever shown signs of expressing something like “grievance”?
Absolutely not.
She had deliberately searched for this just now, and the answer remained the same—no. Everyone believed that circuits and attributes were simply parts of an extraordinary being’s body. Though mysterious, they possessed no autonomy.
Naturally, they couldn’t express emotions.
But her extraordinary attribute once could.
It had only been a fleeting sensation, almost like an illusion, yet Xu Zhi felt an overwhelming surge of joy because of it.
Even if there was only the slightest possibility—even if it was nothing more than a baseless “illusion”—she was willing to make some kind of crazy plan for it.
If she could repair the circuit of [Moth], then she would once again possess two extraordinary attributes.
She had once managed to strip [Lamp] away—so why couldn’t she do it a second time?
Only this time, it wouldn’t be an unconscious act. She would do it better.
This wasn’t a new thought. It had already quietly taken root in her heart the moment she awakened.
She had never intended to accept her fate. If even “dead” gods could be resurrected, then why couldn’t she?
It was just that before this, she hadn’t thought too deeply about it. It had merely been a simple idea—because it was nothing more than a hopeless fantasy.
But today, she had suddenly caught a glimpse of a sliver of light.
Still, to achieve this, she had a long road ahead. She needed more knowledge, and careful, long-term planning.
“No rush. Stay calm.”
She needed to calm herself first.
The girl kept taking deep breaths. Even as she tried to steady her emotions, her mind continued racing. Perhaps the abnormality in her [Lamp] circuit was because she had once done something truly shocking—she had stripped an attribute from herself.
And afterward, her extraordinary attribute had actually developed its own “thoughts.” When it fused back with her, those thoughts and the independent “personality” had disappeared—but who could say what consequences such an unprecedented act might bring?
Perhaps it had made her [Lamp] attribute something special—granting it a kind of “spirituality” that other extraordinary attributes didn’t possess.
Xu Zhi speculated wildly, unsure whether her thoughts were true or false. After all, there was no game system now to verify them for her.
But…
She recalled that [Gods Heavy Industry] seemed to have conducted considerable research in this area. Perhaps, given the chance, she should go take a look.
“No rush.”
She reminded herself again. This wasn’t something that could be hurried.
Besides, she wasn’t even sure that, even if she succeeded in separating it again, she could recreate an identical “game console.”
That seemed far too difficult—at least for her current self, she had no clue where to begin.
After thinking through so much, her turbulent emotions finally settled a little.
Only then did Xu Zhi notice that, due to the earlier emotional upheaval, her limbs felt somewhat stiff. But—
She suddenly realized that her body seemed to have improved again?
No.
It was her self-healing ability that had increased once more.
Moreover, in her perception, “Curse Speech” had also risen by two levels.
Although her overall extraordinary level hadn’t increased, her abilities had grown stronger.
That wasn’t a loss at all.
Xu Zhi tried standing up from the wheelchair and walked a few laps around the room. Basic movement was no longer an issue, as long as she didn’t engage in strenuous activity. At this rate of recovery, she might be able to regain enough strength before the Lost Lands selection to handle the trials.
As for a full recovery…
That would require far too much extraordinary energy. Her body was no longer that of an ordinary extraordinary being. Xu Zhi even speculated—once fully recovered, could her physical strength rival that of a [Named One]?
Probably not too far off.
But for now, being able to walk freely was enough. She had no intention of going to class in a wheelchair—it would be far too conspicuous.
After all, this was an academy for extraordinary beings. Aside from her, there probably wasn’t a second student who had trouble even with daily movement.
What Xu Zhi didn’t know—because she hadn’t checked the forums—was that even without the wheelchair, she was already more than eye-catching.
At this moment, the academy forum was in an uproar over just who this newly ranked triple-first “Xu Zhi” was.
Especially after people saw that she was a first-year transfer student, the forum’s activity exploded to unprecedented levels. Of course, no one was foolish enough to think the rankings were wrong or that Xu Zhi had cheated. They were simply discussing where the academy had managed to recruit such a genius from.
How old was she?
Just because she was a freshman didn’t necessarily mean she was of “freshman age,” after all.
[I bet 5 credits this transfer student is definitely from some major conglomerate family, raised in seclusion until now before being sent out to study.]
[I bet 10! Maybe she’s the child of some top-tier big shot, sent here as part of a deal with the academy.]
A matter of [Gods Heavy Industry], after all. Plenty of noble students in the inner academy were like that. This transfer student had probably just stayed at home longer and enjoyed more resources.
[That big of a move? Then I’ll bet 1 credit—this transfer student is just a young super genius!]
that guy betting 1 credit is gonna regret only betting 1 credit lmao