Ita Era

Chapter 113 Fragments
Ding Shi retreated from the room and circled around to the side of the dormitory building. There were lights on the stairs, but the only way to get upstairs was to climb the water pipes.

Ding Shi reached the second-floor wall through the water pipe, stretched out his right arm to grab the railing, and swung over. He was now outside the east railing of the corridor, with the staircase in the middle of the corridor and lights on. Ding Shi could vaguely see something on the other side of the staircase with the help of the lights.

Grabbing the railing with his left hand, Ding Shi took out the Wildcat Crossbow and looked over with the help of night vision goggles. He saw Gao Shao leaning halfway out of room 203, staring menacingly in Ding Shi's direction.

Ding Shi was already prepared. He pulled out the key to 203 and threw it towards the track and field. The key landed and struck the stone with a crisp sound. Gao Shao rushed to the railing and looked into the darkness from which the sound came. After watching for a while, Gao Shao leaped up, stomped his bare feet on the railing, and his entire body shot towards the direction of the sound, plunging into the darkness.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Ding Shi climbed over the railing, pushed the door to 201, and found it locked. He then took out the key to 201 and slowly inserted it into the lock, gently turning the key. His movements were very light, but inevitably a little noise was still made, though Ding Shi thought that this noise was enough to fool people.

Turn the key all the way, give it a gentle push, and the latch comes off. Then push the door again, but unexpectedly, the door has a big problem. It makes a 'clunking' sound, as if a small stone is stuck at the bottom of the door.

Upon hearing the sound, Ding Shi immediately pushed the door harder, then turned and left, vaulting over the railing, grabbing it with one hand and using the crossbow in the other to watch the stairwell. Gao Shao jumped from the darkness to the second-floor railing, vaulted over, and landed silently. Gao Shao hesitated at the door of 201 for a few seconds, then Ding Shi, scratching his toes, threw the crossbow at him.

Gao Shao was affected, gaining a sneezing buff that lasted for one hour. Gao Shao went into room 201, and from then on, a sneeze came from room 201 every five seconds.

Should we leave the dormitory area first? Ding Shi turned around and used his night vision goggles to check the surroundings, then saw the short guy. There was a cement path from the dormitory to the teaching building, lined with flowers and greenery on both sides. The short guy was lying across the cement path, motionless. That's a lazybones; he wants to eat but doesn't want to move.

Now that he knew the location of the two ghosts, Ding Shi returned to the first floor by the same route, bypassed the short boy, arrived at the teaching building, went directly up the stairs to the third floor, and then sneaked into the darkness to wait, in order to confirm that the evil spirit had not discovered his whereabouts.

No abnormalities were found in Class 1 of Grade 9, Class 2, Class 3, and so on, until Class 4.

The classroom of Class 4, Grade 9 contained only one desk. As Ding Shi stepped into the classroom, the front and back doors closed automatically without any wind, isolating the area.

A white candle was lit on the table, and three girls sat at the table, each holding a pen. A ghostly face with blue fangs was faintly visible at the edge of the light.

The three people and the ghost were frozen in time, and red words appeared on the wall: Find the person who violated the rules of the Ouija board. You only have one chance to identify them. If you identify the wrong person, your soul will stay here in her place.

The three people and the ghost all looked at Ding Shi, revealing sinister smiles.

Pshaw, after experiencing the Ghost Milk's face-to-face attack, this is child's play.

The three were wearing school uniforms, with their names written on the left chest: Pen One, Pen Two, and Pen Three.

The ghost disappeared, and the three returned to their bowed heads and closed eyes. Time began to flow, and the three, holding pens, began to chant: "Pen spirit, pen spirit, please answer my question."

The wind howled, and the three people, though terrified, forced themselves to stay calm...

Bi Yi asked, "Does Shuai Yi love me?"

After a short wait, the candlelight flickered, and a ghost appeared at the edge of the light. The pens in the hands of the three girls began to move.

Ding Shi curiously reached out to pinch the ghost face, partly out of boldness and partly out of curiosity. Most importantly, he didn't even care about death, so he didn't take this little girl's toy ghost seriously. However, Ita disappointed Ding Shi; his hand passed right through the ghost. Undeterred, Ding Shi tried to touch the pen, but it was still just a mirage.

The candle returned to normal, the ghost retreated, and a single word appeared on the white paper: "Yes."

A new round of the game began. After chanting the incantation, Bi Er asked, "Does Shuai Yi love me the most?"

Bi Yi immediately opened his eyes and cursed angrily, "You bitch!" The two started fighting, and Bi San immediately stepped in to break them up.

To say that girls fighting is boring is ridiculous; it's just hair-pulling and clothes-grabbing. But when it comes to men fighting, even in a proper boxing match, they take off their shirts before they even start.

Through their grumbling and persuasive chatter, Ding Shi learned the gist of the story, which was very simple: all three girls thought that Shuai Yi loved her.

Ding Shi admired Shuai Yi's ability to win over three girls, something he couldn't do with even one.

Shuaiyi said to Biyi, "I truly love you, but I need Bier to help me with my studies. Bisan's father is the benefactor who sponsored his schooling, so he can't say anything that would hurt Bisan."

Shuaiyi said to Biyi, "I truly love you, but I grew up with Biyi and know she has bipolar disorder. I'm afraid she'll hurt you, so I need to deal with her." Biyi's benefactor.

Shuaiyi told Bisan, "I truly love you, but Biyi has bipolar disorder. I need Bier to tutor me so I can get into the top high school like you."

The fact that Pen One attacked Pen Two first suggests that Pen One does indeed have bipolar disorder.

Ding Shi was organizing the information: Bi Yi was his childhood sweetheart, Bi Er was a top student, and Bi San was rich. Shuai Yi didn't make choices; he wanted them all.

Pen One interrupted Pen Two's questioning, "Does this violate the rules of the Ouija board?" Ding Shi had no idea that he never played with these things, but his deskmate often played with the girls so that they could openly touch hands.

After the three of them had been messing around for a while, they started again. Pen Two asked the same question: "Am I the person that Handsome One loves the most?"

After the same process, a single word appeared on the blank sheet of paper: "Yes".

The two pens started arguing. The first pen accused the second pen of cheating, while the second pen countered that the first pen was the one who cheated. How did they cheat? Someone controlled the power of the pens, rather than the spirit of the pen controlling its power, to write the words on the paper.

Pen Three was very anxious and asked them who had cheated. The cheater had to be punished by pricking their finger with the pen tip and feeding the spirit with their blood in order to gain the spirit's forgiveness; otherwise, everyone would die.

Pen One was very annoyed, finding Pen Three too verbose. She was convinced Pen Two had cheated and didn't believe in the existence of a spirit, so she planned to leave. However, Pen Two and Pen Three stopped her, insisting that the ritual had to be completed.

So Bi San started asking questions: "The person Shuai Yi truly loves is me."

After the process, a single word appeared on the blank sheet of paper: "No".

The three girls started arguing. About 30 seconds later, a cold wind blew, and the three girls huddled together in fear, as if they had seen a blue-faced, fanged female ghost, and waited desperately for death to come.

Time seemed to freeze. The three girls looked at Ding Shi together, and the female ghost also turned to look at Ding Shi, waiting for his answer.

Blood-red words appeared on the wall. Who violated the rules of the Ouija board? If you can provide a detailed and accurate explanation, you will receive a gift.

Ding Shi said, “We can use the process of elimination. Bi Yi asked: ‘Does Shuai Yi love me?’ It’s certain that Shuai Yi does love Bi Yi. You see, Bi Yi’s grades are not good, her family is poor, and she is the least attractive. Since she already has two excellent goddesses, there is no need for her to deal with Bi Yi. Unless Shuai Yi really has feelings for Bi Yi.”

Ding Shi said, "Bi Er asked: 'Is Shuai Yi's most beloved person me?' The pen spirit gave the answer yes. The answer is correct. Shuai Yi's true love is Bi Er, and he loves her the most."

Ding Shi said, "Bi San's question is also correct. The spirit of the pen gave a no answer. Shuai Yi does not love Bi San."

Ding Shidao said, "At school, academic performance is a direct reflection of your status."

Ding Shi said, "My explanation above explains the same issue, and the rationale behind the Ouija board giving the answer 'yes or no.' There's a detail here: after receiving the answer, the third pen stabbed her left thumb hard with the pen tip, and blood stained the tip. Clearly, the third pen controlled the pen's direction, but did she cheat?" Ding Shi replied, "If she cheated, she would have punished herself correctly, and the three girls wouldn't have died."

Ding Shi replied, "So Bi San didn't cheat, because the answer she cheated with was the correct answer. Bi San doesn't love her. The reason she used the power of the pen to write the word 'no' was that she didn't want to get involved in the melodramatic plot, or she hoped to remain a spectator. We can also understand it this way: Bi San thought Shuai Yi loved her, but she didn't want Bi Yi and Bi Er to know, so she deliberately cheated. She wasn't afraid of cheating because she knew that she could avoid greater punishment by accepting the punishment."

Ding Shi said, "The core issue is still: Did Bi San cheat? Through the above analysis, we have come to two conclusions: Bi San took the lead in writing the word 'no'. Bi San used the pen tip to prick his finger to complete the punishment."

Ding Shi said, "Based on the analysis, Pen Three writing 'no' is the correct answer, so it cannot be considered cheating. Therefore, Pen Three is not qualified to prick its finger with the pen tip, so Pen Three is the one who violated the rules of the Ouija board. Thank you." Being punished for cheating is a rule of the game; punishing oneself without cheating is a violation of the rules.

Blood-written words on the wall: Correct answer. Clue: Class 1, Grade 8, School Building.

A green light flew into Ding Shi's palm. Because of the short time allotted and the detailed answer, a special gift was given: a deck of cards bearing the truth.

Truth #30: It's not that humans have 500 million years of life, it's that humans have only 500 million years of life.

(There are many different accounts of human history, some say 50 million years, some say 5 million years, some say 2.5 million years, and some say 600,000 years. Here we take the median: 5 million years.)
Ace of Spades, skill: One hand cannot clap.

This is a highly insulting skill that doesn't cause any damage, but can still inflict considerable pain. Simply put, it's a slap in the face. To put it more complexly, it's a must-have skill for tanks in traditional team games: taunt.

This skill can only be used on targets within the reach of the palm. It will not cause fractures, bleeding, or even tilt a person's head, nor will it make a sound. However, the victim will experience excruciating pain and an uncontrollable surge of hatred towards the skill's user. The pain and hatred last from 30 seconds to 5 minutes.

This skill works on all creatures with faces.

Thus, Ding Shi's four skill slots gained a third skill. Currently, the three skills are: Three Missing One, Unaccustomed to Water and Land, and Lone Hand Cannot Clap.

Having already obtained four fragments, Ding Shi went up the grand staircase to the second floor and turned right towards Class 8-1.

Class 8-1 was ordinary, with neat desks and a dark classroom. Ding Shi looked around with his night vision goggles but didn't see the wall with the bloody words.

what happened?

The first possibility is that the dog system's clues are incorrect.

The second possibility is that it needs to be triggered.

The third possibility is that someone took the fragments beforehand.

The fourth possibility: He/She has been targeted.

Ding Shi recalled the detail of coming down the bright, grand staircase, his expression changed slightly, and he immediately ran to the window.

This was the second floor, and it was pitch black below. Should he risk jumping based on unsubstantiated speculation? This is where Ding Shi's decisive character shone through. Having witnessed too much life and death, he didn't hesitate when faced with the choice and jumped out of the window. Without sight, he couldn't estimate the exact time of impact, so he didn't dare land on his feet. Instead, he curled up, landing face-down on his left side on the ground floor.

With a soft thud, Ding Shi hit the edge of the drainage ditch. Ignoring the pain in his left arm, he quickly took out his night vision goggles and left.

Ten seconds later, the short, nimble creature reappeared silently in classroom 801. It reached out and turned on the light; the room was empty. With a light leap, the creature landed on a desk, moving silently as if weightless.

The short boy reached the window and looked down for a while, but the darkness blocked his view. Finding nothing, the short boy squatted on his desk, scanning the classroom. With the intelligence of a 12-year-old, he thought, "I clearly saw people coming down the main staircase and turning right, which could only lead to 801 and 802. 802 is empty, so why is 801 also empty?"

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass came from Class 3, Grade 7. The short boy immediately sprang into action, jumped out of the classroom, climbed over the railing, and ran towards 703.

Ding Shi, who smashed the glass in 703, watched in the darkness as the short young man entered 703, quickly went up the grand staircase, and returned to 801.

During this visit, all the doors and windows of classroom 801 were closed, and the fragment assessment began.

The assessment consists of 30 minutes of proctoring, during which the examinee must catch at least ten cheaters. Catching all the cheaters will earn the examinee a special gift. However, if the examinee is wrongly accused, the examinee will be punished.

The lights are always on. Thirty students are seated at individual desks arranged in five rows and six columns, with each student standing beside their desk. On the teacher's desk is a pen holder containing 30 small white flags. Placing a flag on someone's desk will disqualify that student from taking the exam. Each student has a name above their head: Exam 1, Exam 2... Exam 30.

Before the exam begins, teachers have the right to search desks, but not students' bodies.

All the desks were empty, but Ding Shi wasn't in a hurry. He ran his hand over the desks, stopping at the desk in Exam 6. He looked down at the desk and saw many math formulas copied on it with a ballpoint pen that had stopped writing. Ding Shi raised a white flag, and the students in Exam 6 turned into white shadows and sat in their chairs.

After touching the table, Ding Shi lay on the floor for a while, then walked to Kao 10's desk, reached under it, and tore off a cheat sheet. The cheat sheet was stuck to the bottom of the desk. Kao 10 received the white flag and became a white shadow.

"The exam begins."

All students took their seats, and at 7:00 AM, the exam papers were distributed and passed down to students.

In the next 30 minutes, Ding Shi's eyes were opened wide, and he dominated the battlefield.

Some girls would stick cheat sheets on their thighs, so that they could be seen when their skirts were pulled up.

Some boys used Morse code to transmit answers by scratching their scalps.

Someone had prepared cheat sheets behind the curtains; you could see them by simply pulling the curtains closed.

Some daring students even swapped exam papers with others and wrote their own names on them.

Even worse, someone stuck a cheat sheet on the back of Ding Shi's jacket while he was on patrol, and whenever Ding Shi moved, the students behind him would stick their heads out.

There are also those who use sign language. Some deliberately fall to cover for their teammates cheating. Others pull on their chest 'color glaze' to attract attention and protect their teammates.

In the end, Ding Shi caught 20 students cheating, but unfortunately, there were a total of 25 students cheating. Xue Zi expressed both admiration and regret for this result.

Although he didn't receive a special gift, Ding Shi collected the fifth fragment.

The clue in blood: the math department office.

Mathematics? Ding Shi suddenly had a bad feeling.

(End of this chapter)