Chapter 67: A Desperate Gambit and a Sudden Darkness

Yalin didn’t truly understand why the malevolent deity within him reacted so intensely to Celeste.

It seemed to crave something from Celeste, yet at the same time, it harbored a subtle apprehension towards her.

Still, as the heroine, she undoubtedly held some unknown secrets.

Of course, none of this was the immediate concern; Yalin needed to leverage the mental magic he had just learned to seize a fleeting chance at escape.

This was one of the malevolent deity’s authorities, capable of briefly controlling others by disrupting their minds.

Though Yalin’s current mastery was far from proficient, this was his only recourse.

Whether Liyang or Celeste, if he could render either of them unconscious, even for mere tens of seconds, Yalin could exploit the resulting chaos to make his escape.

To cast mental control magic, the act of ‘making eye contact’ was essential for activation.

Only when his gaze met theirs directly would the spell take effect.

Furthermore, the duration of eye contact could not be too brief; even a slight shift in gaze would significantly diminish its power.

Thus, it was impossible to cast while moving; he had to wait until this moment, seizing the opportunity while sitting down to rest, to even consider making a move.

Alright, then, who should he target first?

In terms of sheer mental fortitude, Liyang would undoubtedly be utterly outmatched by Celeste.

After all, she hadn’t yet matured, and her relatively gentle disposition made her a remarkably easy target for manipulation.

However…

Yalin glanced at the ‘lines’ encircling Liyang, so faint they were almost imperceptible.

Someone had cast a barrier-like enchantment upon her, rendering her impervious to mental magic attacks.

Without a doubt, Professor Fulin must have been responsible, likely to prevent a recurrence of that past incident.

That left only Celeste as a candidate for hypnosis.

Despite being the formidable ‘Feng Aotian’ heroine, possessing immense power capable of striking him dead with a single punch,

most of her battles up to this point had been physical confrontations, suggesting her resistance to mental magic might not be as robust.

Therefore, an opportunity might just present itself!

“Celeste, may I have a moment?”

“Huh?”

It was the first time Yalin had initiated a conversation with her since transferring to the Alchemy Branch.

Could it be that he had something important to tell her?

Celeste quickly looked up, her expression tinged with anticipation.

Yalin remained silent, simply staring intently into her amber eyes.

“Yalin…?”

Under such a direct gaze, Celeste felt a touch of embarrassment. She instinctively tried to avert her eyes, but found that Yalin’s dark pupils seemed to hold a certain magical allure, preventing her from looking away.

Deep within his pupils, a faint, ominous red glow flickered into existence.

‘—Huh? That’s strange?’

‘Why do I suddenly feel a little dizzy…’

Witnessing Celeste’s pupils gradually unfocus, a wave of elation surged through Yalin.

“Excellent! It’s working!”

While using hypnotic magic on the heroine might sound distasteful, everything he did was a desperate measure for survival.

He had no other choice.

‘My apologies, Celeste; you’ll just have to pass out for a while.’

Just as Yalin prepared to intensify his efforts, his vision abruptly went black.

His consciousness felt as if a piece had been brutally severed, and the surrounding scenery transformed in an instant.

One moment he was in a bustling cafe, the next, he was plunged into a realm of utter darkness.

The atmosphere here was eerie and oppressive, yet it carried a trace of familiarity. Yalin attempted to summon his Conceptual God, only to find it unresponsive.

Indeed, it was much like the domains the malevolent deity created within dreams.

But where was this?

Yalin had no idea.

Yalin looked up, discerning faint glimmers of light in the depths of the darkness, outlining several tall, indistinct black figures.

One of these shadowy figures appeared to twitch a finger.

The next instant, lightning flashed.

Like a sudden thunderclap in the dead of night, dazzling white light instantly engulfed the entire space, and a torrent of wild energy poured down mercilessly, submerging Yalin.

His vision was consumed by white, and he lost consciousness in an instant.

Back in reality, at that very moment, Yalin’s gaze lost its focus, and the hidden red glow within his eyes vanished.

Celeste snapped back to awareness; the brief discomfort she had felt earlier faded, and she paid it no mind.

“Um, what’s wrong with you…?”

Yalin seemed peculiar. Celeste tried calling out to him, but he offered no response.

Suddenly, without warning, blood gushed forth.

It streamed incessantly from his eye sockets, ears, and nose.

Yalin’s body swayed, then collapsed heavily to the ground.

The events unfolded too rapidly. Celeste paused, then, realizing what had happened, rushed frantically to Yalin’s side.

On the other side, Liyang also sensed something amiss. She stood up, and upon seeing Yalin on the ground, his face covered in blood, her complexion instantly turned ashen.

“W-what happened to him!?”

“I don’t know! He was fine a moment ago, then he suddenly fainted!”

Celeste shook her head frantically, her eyes filled with anguish.

“Hey, Yalin, wake up! What’s wrong with you? Don’t scare me like this!”

She shook Yalin’s body, but he remained utterly unresponsive.

Liyang’s legs felt weak, and a terrifying thought materialized in her mind.

‘Death.’

‘Would Yalin die?’

‘Would he die like her parents?’

‘No… that absolutely cannot happen!’

Fear surged upwards from her feet. Liyang bit her lip, using the pain to dispel the panic in her heart.

‘I have to do something, quickly!’

Forcing herself to calm down, Liyang immediately knelt on the ground, her trembling hand reaching for Yalin’s chest.

Only after feeling a faint heartbeat did she allow herself a small sigh of relief.

“Th-thank goodness, his heart hasn’t stopped, but it’s very weak…”

She quickly placed her fingertips beneath Yalin’s nose, and her expression instantly changed.

“But he’s not breathing! His airways might be blocked by blood; he’ll suffocate if this continues!”

“What do we do?”

Celeste had never encountered such a situation before, leaving her utterly bewildered.

Yet, she ultimately didn’t lose her composure. After a moment of thought, she made a swift decision.

“I’ll try using healing magic first to see if it helps!”

Liyang was somewhat astonished; White Magic was a specialized discipline, typically only studied by dedicated students.

However, Celeste, despite never having taken relevant courses, was somehow capable of wielding healing magic.

Nevertheless, in their current predicament, it was an immense help.

A pale green light bloomed from Celeste’s palm, slowly mending the shattered wounds within Yalin’s body.

“How is it? Is he any better?” Celeste asked anxiously.

“A little, but his breathing is still almost nonexistent…”

Liyang pressed her lips together, then declared with a determined resolve, “We must perform artificial respiration immediately!”