Yuying University
Chapter 476: I am the president after all
The drawn-out final sound easily vanished into the darkness. For several seconds, no one spoke again.
The dim hall was deathly silent, and the security room was unusually empty.
A faint smell of blood permeated the chilly air. Although there was no obvious danger present, it created a strange and ominous feeling.
Everyone present knew that, as an area only unlocked in the second academic year, they wouldn’t be the only team interested in the administration building. During this period, there must have been many anchors who had attempted to explore this place.
But “attempted” and “succeeded” were two different things.
There were too few bloodstains left behind.
More importantly, the security room was empty, which meant… the intruder was still alive.
There weren’t many people like that.
“Uh, don’t worry too much,”
Wen Jianyan came back to his senses and analyzed rationally, “This time we’re entering the mirror world. The possibility of actually running into other teams isn’t high.”
Under these circumstances, the existence of a second team that could lure away the terrifying security guard from the first-floor hall was actually more advantageous for them.
…probably?
Wen Jianyan thought with some uncertainty.
“Who cares,” Orange Candy spoke up.
Her voice was lazy. “Worst case, we fight.”
When it came to PVP, she had never been afraid of anyone.
“Let’s go.” With that, Orange Candy hopped and skipped into the hall.
The others exchanged a look, then also started moving, following her.
Without the security guard present, the group’s actions became much bolder. Soon, they arrived at the center of the hall.
“Is this the passage you were talking about?”
Orange Candy tilted her head, curiously observing the huge mirror in front of them, which was taller than a person and nearly two meters long.
In the mirror, her blurry reflection also tilted its head.
“How do we get in?”
Wen Jianyan raised his hand and placed his palm against the mirror’s surface—but this time, his fingers did not sink in as they had before.
The mirror under his palm was cold and smooth. Even after Wen Jianyan pressed his hand against it, there was no change.
It was utterly ordinary.
“…”
Wen Jianyan was stunned.
In the “Integrity First” live room chat:
[?]
[Huh?]
[What’s going on? Why can’t he get in this time?]
The others also realized something was wrong.
“What’s wrong?”
Su Cheng stepped forward and also tentatively placed his hand on the mirror’s surface.
…Still, nothing happened.
“Can’t we get in?”
Wen Jianyan: “No.”
Last time in the administration building, both entering and leaving had been very simple. He barely had to do anything to travel between the two worlds through the mirror, but this time…
The situation seemed to have changed.
He frowned slightly.
“How did you get in last time? Or did you use some kind of item?” Tian Ye tentatively suggested, “Try it again this time?”
Wen Jianyan lowered his eyes and didn’t speak.
Indeed, he had used a dead person’s eyeballs to find the mirror last time.
However, the function of those eyeballs was to “see” and “reveal,” not to “open” something.
The real reason he was able to enter the mirror just by touching it last time probably had nothing to do with the eyeballs. So what was it?
Suddenly, Wen Jianyan froze, as if he had thought of something.
He lifted his eyes and stared at the mirror right in front of him.
The surface of the mirror was covered in dust. In the dim light, he could only see his own blurry outline.
Perhaps… it was because the condition for opening the passage had already been met by someone else.
“I know.”
Wen Jianyan’s voice was light and hurried.
“Hmm?” The others turned their heads and looked over doubtfully.
“Everyone, come over and stand here.” Wen Jianyan beckoned to the others, signaling them to stand in front of the huge mirror.
The others did as they were told.
The dirty mirror surface reflected the figures of several people, but other than that, there was still no change.
“And then?” Orange Candy asked, tilting her head.
Wen Jianyan’s answer was concise: “Wait.”
In the “Integrity First” live room chat:
[?]
[Wait? Wait for what?]
[Oh, oh, oh! So that’s it, I finally get it!]
The last time they were in the administration building, apart from Brother Hu and A-Bao, who had acted with Wen Jianyan, everyone else had entered the mirror world.
The only difference between them was…
One group had stayed in the hall, while the other had left.
And what did the people who stayed behind have in common?
Wen Jianyan turned his head slightly and looked to the side.
The surface of the large mirror was dirty, giving it a frosted texture under the light. He could only vaguely see his own blurry, unremarkable reflection.
It was so large that as long as one was in the hall, it was almost impossible not to be reflected in the mirror.
So… this was perhaps the reason why the anchors who stayed in the hall were pulled into the mirror.
In the “Integrity First” live room chat:
[So, the anchor thinks that the reason Zhao Ze and the others were pulled from the hall into the mirror before was because they were reflected for too long?]
[That’s very likely. If it weren’t for waiting for the vice-principal’s award ceremony at midnight, who would stay in the first-floor hall for so long!]
Unlike in the livestream room, the entire hall remained silent.
The group stood in front of the mirror, staring at their motionless reflections. Everything seemed unchanged from three minutes ago.
“How long do we have to wait?”
Tian Ye asked in a low voice.
“Hmm…” Wen Jianyan blinked, and his reflection in the mirror made the same motion. “In any case, it won’t be more than half an hour… I think.”
Based on a rough calculation from his last experience, it definitely wouldn’t exceed that time.
“—assuming my guess is correct.”
Wen Jianyan thought for a moment and carefully added.
The group in front of the mirror: “…”
So, if he was wrong, they would have just been standing foolishly in front of a mirror for half an hour?
Just then, Wen Jianyan suddenly felt a slight pain on the back of his hand.
He froze and looked down.
At the web of his thumb, the bluish-black tooth mark had deepened. The black and purple color was spreading across his pale skin, occupying almost the entire side of his palm, looking particularly shocking. This color…
Wen Jianyan’s brow twitched. He suddenly had a very ominous premonition.
At that moment, a “click” sounded from the corridor behind the mirror, as if a door had been opened from the inside.
The others were all startled.
They didn’t expect there to be anyone else in the administration building.
“What are you worried about?” Orange Candy said coolly, “It has nothing to do with us.”
After all, they hadn’t broken any rules this time.
Besides, judging by the sound, the door that opened was likely on the first floor, and they were also members of a club, so there was naturally no need for a conflict between the two parties.
“Clack, clack, clack.”
Steady, heart-pounding footsteps came from within, echoing in the empty corridor, seemingly heading straight in this direction.
“…”
Wen Jianyan slowly took a step back, raised his hand, and abruptly tugged on Su Cheng, who was next to him.
“?”
Su Cheng looked over, puzzled.
Wen Jianyan gave a somewhat shy smile.
Su Cheng: “…”
This smile, it’s so familiar.
Wen Jianyan whispered, “Cover for me in a bit.”
Su Cheng: “?”
What?
Before he could ask further, two figures had already appeared in the hall.
They looked like a teacher and a student.
Although they had human appearances, their deathly pale faces and empty, cold eyes looked extremely strange and terrifying.
The two stopped at the junction of the corridor and the hall, their gazes slowly sweeping around before finally settling on the group in front of the mirror.
“You few,” the person who looked like a student spoke, “who participated in the basketball game the day before yesterday?”
The group: “…”
Among them, only one person had participated in the basketball game, and that was—
Su Cheng slowly turned his head to look at Wen Jianyan, who had retreated to the very back at some unknown point.
Damn it, I knew you were the one they were looking for.
“Answer me.”
The student urged.
Behind him, the person who looked like a teacher said nothing, scrutinizing everyone present, his gaze slowly licking over their bodies. The temperature seemed to drop a few degrees, sending a chill down one’s spine.
“It was me.” A steady voice came from the back.
In an instant, all eyes turned towards the source of the voice.
The seer stepped out from the back of the team.
Under everyone’s gaze, Su Cheng calmly repeated:
“It was me. What about it?”
“Hand it over.”
The student slowly took a step forward, his terrifyingly empty eyes fixed on the other person. He held out his hand and commanded, “You know what I want.”
Su Cheng: “…I don’t.”
In a sense, he wasn’t really lying.
“You’d better do as you’re told,” the other person said slowly, his face expressionless, “if you still want to leave here alive.”
Su Cheng paused, then asked, “What do you want it for?”
“None of your business.”
The club student replied.
“How is taking something from my hands none of my business?”
Su Cheng retorted.
“Truly, you refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit.” the student’s expression almost instantly turned grim. He slowly took another step forward. “Are you going to give it or not?”
Su Cheng: “I’m afraid I must refuse.”
“It seems we’ll have to teach you a lesson.”
That student sneered.
Something subtle in the air seemed to change. The cold air cut at their skin like a sharp blade, and an intangible sense of terror was building—
Everyone’s heart skipped a beat, and they subconsciously looked towards Su Cheng.
Su Cheng stood his ground, not even knitting his brows, seemingly unaffected.
However, he seemed to quickly realize something. He frowned, clutched his chest, and put on an expression of great pain.
“…?”
The club student’s action paused.
He looked down at his own hand, a look of suspicion on his face.
In the “Integrity First” live room chat:
[Ahahaha, I’m dying!]
[NPC: Hmm? Isn’t this reaction a bit off?]
[I don’t think I was squeezing your heart?]
[Hahahahahahahaha Su Cheng, you… It’s hard to learn good things, but so easy to pick up bad habits.]
Suddenly, the teacher, who had been silent from the beginning, spoke without warning:
“Enough, you fool.”
He slowly walked forward, his cold eyes sweeping slowly across the crowd. An immense sense of pressure immediately washed over them. Even Orange Candy couldn’t help but frown, her body tensing.
“Haven’t you realized it yet?”
The teacher’s gaze went past Su Cheng’s shoulder, looking behind him:
“You’ve got the wrong person.”
A pale, slender hand rested on Su Cheng’s shoulder and patted it lightly.
The exaggerated expression of pain on Su Cheng’s face instantly receded like a tide. He paused, then turned sideways, making way for the young man behind him.
Wen Jianyan stepped out.
“You really did get the wrong person.” His voice was calm, but his face had an unnatural pallor.
As he spoke, Wen Jianyan slightly turned his right hand, which had turned completely bluish-black, and grimaced.
“Honestly, it really hurts.”
“…”
Clearly, although they had found the wrong person, the target of the “lesson” was not wrong.
“But…” Wen Jianyan’s tone shifted, his final syllable drawing out, “thanks to the hint you gave, otherwise, I probably wouldn’t have guessed what this thing was for a while.”
With a flip of his hand, a blood-red, button-sized human-face badge appeared in his palm.
“!”
At the sight of this, the two NPCs in front of them were no longer as cold and calm as before. They leaned forward, and the club member who looked like a student couldn’t help but take a step forward.
Seeing this, Orange Candy also arched her body like a small leopard.
Although she had been silent from the beginning, she had never relaxed her guard, but was quietly waiting for the moment the other party would make a move.
“It’s okay.”
Wen Jianyan gave her a reassuring look, then turned his head to look at the club members in front of him again.
“First, let me guess…”
Wen Jianyan narrowed his eyes, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Unless I hand it over voluntarily, you can’t actively snatch it, right?”
Within the instance, the suppression from different statuses was terrifying. If the opponents were just two club members, it would be normal to use “negotiation” as a means. But the problem was, there was also a teacher on the other side.
However, if he remembered correctly, when faced with Su Cheng, who might have been carrying the badge, the method they chose was “threat,” not “snatching.”
“…”
The other side didn’t speak.
However, that wasn’t important.
Their silence, on the contrary, proved Wen Jianyan’s guess.
After all, in this “Yuying Comprehensive University” instance, although the NPCs could give them wrong guidance, and even kill anchors who provoked them, the one thing they couldn’t do was “lie.”
“Well then, this item is truly special.”
Wen Jianyan toyed with the badge with his uninjured hand. The crimson color formed a stark contrast with his pale fingers, uncontrollably drawing one’s gaze to it.
“Not only does it need to be specially awarded by the vice-principal as a competition prize, and only club members can wear it…”
The badge twirled between his fingers, reflecting a dazzling blood-red light.
“It even gives me the illusion that it bestows a special status upon a person, like… the president of the basketball club, for example.”
As he said this, Wen Jianyan’s gaze remained firmly fixed on the faces of the two people opposite him, catching the subtle changes in their expressions.
He suddenly blinked and smiled slightly:
“—Ha, looks like I guessed right.”
“!”
Hearing this, everyone was startled and subconsciously turned their heads to look at Wen Jianyan.
As if not feeling everyone’s gaze, Wen Jianyan continued:
“However, if it’s just the president of a basketball club… after all, it’s just a club, it shouldn’t be enough to warrant a teacher being dispatched—why are you so nervous?” Wen Jianyan tilted his head, a particularly puzzled expression on his face.
“Until just now, I suddenly thought of something…”
He looked at the people in front of him and said:
“As far as I know, none of the clubs in this school have presidents, right?”
Wen Jianyan’s fingers suddenly closed, and the badge between them made a “ding” sound as it was firmly clasped in his palm.
A dark tide surged slightly in the young man’s eyes. He slowly curled his lips:
“If I put this on, wouldn’t I be the only president among all the club members?”
In the “Integrity First” live room chat:
[?]
[???]
[Holy shit?? Hold on, I haven’t caught up, what’s going on???]
As everyone knew, in the “Yuying Comprehensive University” instance, “status” was of utmost importance.
Ordinary students had the lowest status, victims who could be slaughtered at will. Slightly better were the club members, who, although no different from ordinary students in most scenarios, could appear as perpetrators in elective courses.
Further up were the club advisors, the student council, and the student council advisors. However, the power hierarchy among these three was rather vague, not as clearly defined as the previous groups.
At a higher level, of course, were some “order maintainers”.
The administration building’s security guard, the admissions office teacher, and the vice-principal.
In their “sworn” state, they would become increasingly unable to resist these types of NPCs.
In an instance with such a strict status hierarchy… which club one was president of was not important. What was important was the status of “president” itself.
What’s more, to become a president, one had to meet three conditions:
- Already be a club member.
- Win a competition related to the relevant club’s content.
- Be awarded by the vice-principal.
And to date, the only person in this instance to have completed all three prerequisites was Wen Jianyan.
Which means…
He was the only one in the entire school to have obtained this status.
“…”
A dead silence fell all around.
The faces of the two people in front of him were grim. They said nothing, but they did not step forward as they had just now. The two sides were in a stalemate.
Wen Jianyan held the badge, a smile playing on his lips. He cast a light glance to his side—
Not far away was a mirror taller than a person. The surface of the mirror was covered in dust, appearing very dirty. However, in the blurry mirror, several clear reflections could be seen.
In the mirror, the young man stood in the crowd, smilingly turned his head sideways, and met his own reflection in the mirror for an instant.
Then, he retracted his gaze and said softly:
“…Now.”
As if rehearsed a thousand times, even though there was no prior communication, everyone present was a battle-hardened, tempered anchor. With just a glance as quick as a spark, they understood Wen Jianyan’s meaning.
The quick ones violently retreated, pulling the slower ones along with them—
The cold mirror surface that should have been behind them now vanished as if it were air. In the blink of an eye, the light in front of them went dark, as if swallowed by some kind of terrifying dark red existence.
The next second, the two people who had been standing in the hall disappeared, leaving only an empty space in front of them.
In the dark hall of the administration building, the suppressed gasps and heavy heartbeats of several people echoed.
“Is this…” Tian Ye swallowed and asked in a low voice.
Wen Jianyan slowly took a step back, surveying his surroundings.
The familiar hall, the dark reddish light, the oppressive, cold air. Apart from the empty security room, it was almost identical to last night.
He lifted his eyes and looked towards the upper right corner.
The SAN value, which was originally 60, had now become 50.
—Just as Zhao Ze had said, apart from the drop in SAN value, this process was completely unnoticeable.
“Yes.”
He moved his fingers. His palms were sweaty. He nodded and replied:
“We’re in.”
However, the only difference was that this time, the mirror did not disappear but remained standing motionless in front of them.
In other words, they could leave directly.
“Will they follow us in?” Su Cheng looked at the mirror in front of him and asked.
Wen Jianyan: “The possibility is not high.”
Unless voluntarily given, the president’s badge could not be forcibly taken.
Before he had figured out its underlying rules, it was still possible for him to be threatened into handing over the badge. But now it was different—the last veil had been lifted, the rules were clearly revealed. The other party would naturally not dare to act rashly now.
Strictly speaking, Wen Jianyan didn’t want to wear this badge—the degree of his own contamination was already deep enough. If he really accepted this status, the difficulty of him leaving the instance would probably be even greater.
And the other side didn’t want him to wear the badge and obtain the status of club president either.
With this premise, the possibility of the other party chasing them into the mirror was very low.
Of course, they wouldn’t give up because of this either.
At most, they would no longer choose such an aggressive approach, but use more roundabout and euphemistic means to obtain the badge.
But in any case, their crisis this time was temporarily resolved.
Wen Jianyan slowly took a step back and let out a long breath. The calm and composed control he had just now instantly dissipated. He gripped his slightly twitching right hand. The bluish-black color that had already spread across his entire palm was now slowly receding with time. Even the tooth mark that had originally been deep in his flesh began to lighten, fade, until only a faint green mark remained, lightly imprinted on the web of his thumb.
However, his fingertips were still trembling slightly, as if still feeling the aftershock of the pain.
“…When did this happen?”
Yun Bilan walked over, her gaze falling on his palm as she asked.
Wen Jianyan moved his fingers and grimaced.
“During the physical education class earlier… Don’t worry, it’s just a small mark. It only takes effect once a day.”
The one just now was clearly today’s share.
Before midnight tonight, the club members would not be able to find him so easily again.
“So,” Yun Bilan seemed to realize something. She raised her eyes and looked at Wen Jianyan inquiringly, “it’s been two days?”
Wen Jianyan: “…”
An ominous premonition.
Yun Bilan continued to ask coldly:
“And you weren’t planning on telling us?”
Wen Jianyan: “Haha… I hadn’t figured out what it was at the time… Besides, the situation didn’t allow for it—”
Before he could finish his sentence, Yun Bilan froze, suddenly realizing something:
“So that’s why you’ve been acting alone these past two days?”
She took a step forward. “To not drag down the team?”
Wen Jianyan: “…No, really not, it was just a coincidence—”
Yun Bilan grabbed his wrist. Wen Jianyan immediately fell silent, wanting to retreat timidly, but her slender white fingers were now like an iron hoop. Wen Jianyan’s face couldn’t help but twist.
Yun Bilan lowered her reddish eyes, the thorns on her profile menacing.
She took something out of her backpack and slowly pressed it onto the back of Wen Jianyan’s hand.
“Hey, hey, hey!” Wen Jianyan jumped three feet high in pain.
After a long while, he finally recovered and looked down at his hand.
It was a small smiley face sticker, perfectly sealing the tooth mark.
“Wow.”
Orange Candy leaned over from the side and whistled a long, drawn-out note as if watching a show.
“This is good stuff.”
—A sticker that could temporarily seal a curse, a very difficult item to obtain.
“Don’t take it off,” Yun Bilan said coldly. “It only works once, and at most it can buy you one day.”
“Th-thank you,” Wen Jianyan’s eyes were teary with pain. He held his slightly trembling fingers and asked pitifully, “But was it really necessary to stick it on so hard?”
Yun Bilan’s lips twitched into a smile. “What do you think?”
Wen Jianyan: “…”
“Well done.”
From behind, Su Cheng clapped and said coolly:
“Next time, I suggest being even rougher.”
Wen Jianyan: “…………”
At least I’m a president, give me some face?
Without even having time to rest, the group started moving again.
After all, although the security guard had been lured away for now, there was no telling when he might reappear. They had to hurry.
“So, what’s the first step?”
Orange Candy asked as she went upstairs, turning her head.
Wen Jianyan seemed to have had a plan for this all along:
“First, go to the second-floor admissions office and steal the graduation certificates.”
“Then we go to the third-floor vice-principal’s office, enter the door inside the cabinet, find the principal’s office, get the item from there, and then fill in our names on the graduation certificates and leave the instance.”
He said it very simply, but everyone present could hear that every step here was fraught with danger. The slightest mistake, and they might not even leave their bones behind.
“Alright.” Orange Candy still had that carefree look. She nodded and skipped upstairs.
Soon, they reached the second floor.
Just like in his memory, this entire floor was enveloped in a crimson light. The doors to the offices along the corridor were tightly closed, making it impossible to tell which one was occupied.
Even Wen Jianyan couldn’t help but lower his voice:
“The admissions office is at the end—”
Before he could finish, suddenly, Orange Candy stopped without warning.
“?!”
Wen Jianyan was startled and subconsciously stopped as well.
“What’s wrong?”
Orange Candy didn’t speak, just stood fixedly in place, staring straight at the empty, blood-red corridor in front of them, saying nothing.
“Tsk.”
Not far away, a soft clicking of the tongue was heard.
“It’s been a long time. You’re still as sharp as ever, Orange Candy.”
A familiar voice, tinged with a cold smile, came from the air.
“…!”
Wen Jianyan’s pupils shrank slightly.
This is—
The next second, the air in front of them rippled, as if an invisible curtain was parting to both sides, and several figures walked out from behind.
The leader was a person of medium build, his ashen-gray face like that of a dead man, like a wall smeared with cement, or wax that had not yet melted. A pair of pitch-black, terrifying eyes stared fixedly over, his gaze cold and greasy, carrying a kind of greed that made one’s skin crawl.
It was the Bricklayer.
Wen Jianyan: “…”
He shrank his shoulders and, with very poor grace, hid behind Orange Candy.
In the “Integrity First” live room chat:
[…]
[Who was it that just said not to worry too much???]
[Who was it that said the possibility of running into other teams wasn’t high???]
[You jinx!!!]
[Well, what can I say? The smell of death on you is too strong. I simply couldn’t ignore it,]
Orange Candy said with a grin.
“But I am surprised. You actually dared to show up?”
In the girl’s palm, a long, rusty blade slowly appeared. Although she was grinning, her tone was not friendly:
“You think I don’t know what you did to my people?”
Wen Jianyan: “…”
The way she said that, why did it sound so strange?
Did he look like some kind of pretty boy?
Although he was thinking this, Wen Jianyan still spinelessly hid behind Orange Candy and secretly tattled:
“Captain, it was him!”
The Bricklayer took a step forward, as if to say something.
Orange Candy’s voice suddenly turned cold: “Don’t move.”
“Or would you rather be chopped in half?”
The Bricklayer obediently stopped. He raised his hands, putting on an agreeable appearance:
“Hey, hey, don’t be like that.”
“I didn’t come here to fight you this time.” A smile played on his lips, and he spread his hands. “Did you forget the message I sent you? I just want to talk to you.”
With a seemingly sincere smile on his face, his gaze swept over Wen Jianyan, who was hiding behind Orange Candy, then slowly retracted, looking at Orange Candy again:
“Whether you believe it or not, this time I’m really here to cooperate with you.”
