The Thirteen Trials of the Deceptive Monk

Its iron claws pierced the carriage wall, inch by inch, getting closer and closer to Lü Wenjun's eyeballs.

"Is the story over?" it whispered.

"Then that night, you couldn't sleep. You closed your eyes, but you saw that terrifying face. It jumped, it laughed wildly, and you hurriedly drew the curtains, even though there was nothing outside the window. You dared not tell anyone, afraid that they would think you had gone mad, but you knew it was real—it existed! It saw you, it remembered you, and perhaps at that very moment, it flew over your head."

"Then, you get scared. You don't know if it will show up again, you don't know what it will do to you. So you walk around every corner with your heart pounding, praying that you will never see that terrible shadow again."

Spring-Leg opened his mouth, his chin drooping long like a snake, and laughter rose from the firelight deep in his throat: "This is fear. The unknown is fear. You won't die, of course. But imagine as much as you can, imagine what I'll do to you before it's all over. I'll make you remember me!"

Lu Wenjun's face was pale. He desperately looked out the window, as if he wanted to escape to the sky.

"I... I also have something to say."

He screamed as loudly as he could before the fireball was launched.

"Farris, open the window!"

The car window was wide open, and a gust of wind swept in. Lü Wenjun quickly crouched down and rolled to the side. His slender figure leaped into the car with the strong wind.

That's the woman in red shoes! The unlucky phantom spirit who was tricked out of the car at the beginning!

Having been tricked out of the carriage, she finally found a chance to get back on the train, and she jumped back in without hesitation!

"I'm going to kill you—"

Red Shoes spotted Lü Wenjun. She roared in mid-air, only to be met with a blue-white fireball. The flames from Spring Leg ignited at that moment, catching Red Shoes off guard. The intense heat instantly engulfed her.

"What the hell—"

Lu Wenjun rolled on the spot, trying to create as much distance as possible. Spring Leg was completely bewildered by this sudden change. He instinctively raised his iron claws, but another pale giant hand smashed in from outside the window, piercing through the flames and grabbing it!

The largest phantom in this test was climbing outside the carriage. The eight-foot-tall adult's agonizing screams made even the phantoms tremble. She was about to catch her prey; the only child on the carriage was right before her. But everything was ruined—ruined by Spring-Heeled Jack himself!

"Pop...pop pop!!!"

The enraged eight-foot-tall woman grabbed Spring Leg and slammed it against the bottom of the car with tremendous force. Her excessively long black hair was blown into the carriage by the gale and tangled in her hands. She slammed it once. Twice. A third time. Suddenly, her entire arm shattered into hundreds of pieces, and Spring Leg spread its blood-soaked claws.

It remained the strongest phantom spirit here. Even amidst the infighting, no one could rival it. It swung its claws at the eight-foot-tall man's massive face, then kicked the giant woman out of the carriage. At that moment, it caught sight of several unfamiliar small creatures out of the corner of its eye.

Four illusory fox spirits emerged from the eight-foot-tall man's long hair.

They were so close. So close that by the time Springlegs noticed, the little foxes had already touched his shoulder. Suddenly, Springlegs felt a jolt in his head, and in his dazed state, he heard the sound of a gust of wind.

"Don't move!!" Ling Gong shouted.

Spring Legs froze, coming to a halt. The phantom, moving at breakneck speed, was brought to a standstill for the last time. Lü Wenjun lunged forward, grabbing Spring Legs Jack's collar tightly.

Finally, he caught the phantom. The cold, one-eyed pattern appeared on the back of his hand. Words popped into his mind.

[Parse? (Cost 1)]

"Yes!" Lü Wenjun shouted.

The single eye mark shone brightly for a moment, and Spring Leg detached from its Fox-like state, only to be bounced to the opposite side of the carriage by the sudden burst of light. The color of that light was very similar to Spring Leg's silver-white clothes; it detached from the back of his hand and danced violently around Lü Wenjun.

"What the hell... All of you, get them!"

Spring Legs warily gave the order, and the phantoms charged forward. Silver Light leaped autonomously into the sea of ​​phantoms. It smashed Mothman, knocked Snow Mountain Monster away, and rampaged through the sea of ​​phantoms as if it were nothing.

People gradually came to see the true form of the light: a spring, a lively, bouncy, silvery-white metal spring. It swept through the carriage in just a few seconds and returned to Lü Wenjun's side.

Lü Wenjun felt as if he had acquired another eye. He looked at the real train carriage, and at the same time at a multitude of unfamiliar scenes: a foggy night in 19th-century London, rioters fleeing along the Thames, rooftops rapidly approaching and receding... So many phantom images transformed into blurry words, rushing into his mind like a waterfall. Only one line was clearly visible in this sea of ​​words.

[Divine Essence Nourished/Divine Power Manifested/Divine Will Assimilated]

Recalling Versa's earlier attack, he immediately made a decision: "Condense!"

The spring leaped up, expanded, and enveloped him in its center. The silvery-white spring shattered into countless showers of light, rushing towards his body.

A flash of blue-white flames transformed into a half-face armor etched with eerie patterns. The pure white combat attire, formed by the light, billowed with the hem of a long-collared coat and the brim of a top hat turned sharply upwards, resembling a Victorian-era men's formal suit. Two pieces of steel melted and reshaped, becoming claw-shaped gloves covering the hands. A final shower of light surged towards the legs, forming spirally nested, alien-shaped leg armor.

[Original Text Analysis, Technique Generation]

[Other Theories: The Transformation of Spring-Leg Jack]

Lu Wenjun slowly opened his eyes, revealing blue pupils that were different in color from Huanling's.

He suddenly vanished, reappearing behind the astonished Spring Legs, the spiral patterns on his legs instantly filled with light. He kicked out with all his might, sending the phantom flying halfway across the train!

Chapter 10 Urban Legend

The force of the impact spread, creating ripples on Spring-Heel Jack's back. Then, in a split second, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, the power exploded, sending Spring-Heel flying like a cannonball!

飞跃早已空空如也的11~7号车厢！飞跃6号车厢的变形史莱姆们的头顶！飞跃5号车厢被捆住的小猪们身侧！飞跃4号车厢的鱼头人们身旁！重重砸落在4号车厢的尽头……嵌入厚如城墙的，铁门深处！

"What, what happened... what..."

The freshmen stared in shock at the approaching phantom, while Spring-Heeled Jack muttered unconsciously, "My power... how could it possibly be... my power?!"

Then, a second, ghostly white figure flashed before the freshmen's eyes. Dragging two beams of eerie blue light, like phosphorescent fire in the dead of night, it hurtled towards them. It leaped onto the spring-legged man's head and kicked down again.

Spring-Heel Jack raised his iron claws to block, spitting out a blue fireball. The white figure leaped back, using the steel claws as leverage, the fireball grazing his clothes. He spun in mid-air, unleashing a powerful spinning kick, his toe striking Spring-Heel Jack's shoulder!

"Ooh!"

Spring Leg cried out in pain, leaping towards the roof. The white figure landed calmly, its eerie blue eyes fixed on Phantom Spirit. With a barely perceptible sway of its torso, it dodged the claw attack from above, then leaped up, its body spinning dramatically, unleashing a bicycle kick! Like a shot on goal, it struck Spring Leg's chin, sending him flying back into carriage number 5!

The white figure immediately gave chase, leaving only the echoes of their battle in carriage number 4. The fish-headed men's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Fish, fish, fish!" (Just who is this amazing guy?)

"Fish..." (Why does that person look so familiar...)

Amidst the chorus of fish calls, a surprised shout arose: (It's Lü Wenjun! He's that mixed-race immortal!)

Two carriages away, Pershka turned his head in surprise and uncertainty.

"How could this be..." she murmured to herself.

At the very front of the train, Ji Chuanjun stared intently at the monitor. Mingxiao had already stood up, his fingers digging excitedly into the paper.

"Professor, did you feel that? That was..."

Ji Chuanjun nodded slowly: "Mythical-level... power!"

At carriage number 12, Faris, who had just climbed in, shouted excitedly, "Awesome! That's insane! Did you guys see that? He beat that freak like a dog!!"

“Yes, yes, we all saw it. It’s an amazing technique.” Ling Gong pushed up her glasses. “Could it be that it instantly analyzed the phantom spirit… But how is that possible? That Spring-Leg Jack clearly has the enhancement from the original text.”

"What you said is indeed true..."

Faris recovered from his excitement. Even if Lü Wenjun possessed the same spell, his magical power was no match for the original Spring Legs, who possessed the original text, especially since Spring Legs had been enhanced by the original text. How could he possibly suppress the original?

“No, that makes perfect sense. Because the enhancement of the original is comprehensive!” Velsa said.

He brushed the ashes off his body and struggled to his feet: "Spring-Leg Jack's jumping ability was already very strong, so the original enhancement gave him a stronger fire-breathing ability and the ability to regenerate to protect himself, making him a powerful phantom... But the logic of spells is exactly the opposite; a spell only has one ability."

Ling Gong realized, "Lu Wenjun's spell probably only gave him the spring-like jumping ability, and he used all his magic power to enhance this one and only special ability..."

"Therefore, in terms of speed alone, his transformation actually surpasses his original form!"

·

Spring-Heeled Jack screamed as he burst into Car 6. He bounced and bounced throughout the car, commanding the phantoms to crowd the aisles and use their bodies as shields to block the pursuers.

Seeing that there was nowhere to go in the aisle, Lü Wenjun decisively jumped up, stepping on the seat. He moved across the carriage wall at an unbelievable speed, like a white wheel parallel to the ground!

"This is so strange! What are you?!" Spring Leg exclaimed. "Why do you have my strength?!"

"Fear comes from the unknown, doesn't it?" Lü Wenjun said coldly. "You can ponder those unsolvable questions to your heart's content, and then feel the fear that you can't escape!"

He dodged the fireballs spewed by his spring-loaded legs one after another, landing and kicking away the beast-shaped phantom that attempted to sneak attack. His demonic blue eyes flashed in an extremely short time, clearly capturing attacks from above, behind, and on the luggage rack.

He acted naturally, kicking, slapping, grabbing phantoms and throwing them as weapons. In less than a second, the area around Lü Wenjun was cleared, and any phantoms that dared to approach were all defeated.

Jumping ability is a very broad concept.

A powerful body capable of supporting high-speed movement, maintaining normal thinking speed and reaction ability while moving at high speed, reflexes that pulsate in complex situations, and powerful legs and unusual feet capable of supporting spring-like jumps...

All of this is part of the "jumping ability," and the enhancement technique grants Lü Wenjun this all-round enhancement.

Lu Wenjun could feel his physical strength rapidly draining away, the price of maintaining the spell. But at the same time, he could also feel the earth-shattering transformation.

He could perceive the actions of those around him and react at speeds far exceeding his previous abilities. In his high-speed vision, objects became abstract points and lines, while the world itself became vivid. The flow of magic brought a near-omnipotent feeling, and this fact of power made his heart pound violently.

He felt excited, almost ecstatic. It was as if he had stepped into a magnificent dream, being touched on the head by an immortal and ascending into the clouds. His life was changed because of this!

"Hahaha. Hahahaha!!"

He burst into laughter in the middle of the battlefield, and Spring-Heeled Jack exclaimed in horror, "You're absolutely insane..."

Lu Wenjun suddenly gave chase: "In the Demon Realm, madness is a constant companion!"

Spring-Legs retreated to the far end of the carriage, its steel claws wielding force to tear the heavy iron door off its hinges. It swung its claws, slicing the door into several pieces, then kicked them out in rapid succession, the flying metal chunks resembling cannonballs. Lü Wenjun dodged each attack, kicking the last piece back with his own leg. Spring-Legs, however, took advantage of the obscured view to leap onto the roof, its crossed claws slashing down menacingly.

Lu Wenjun lowered his center of gravity and focused intently. Under the enhancement of the cultivation technique, the movements of his spring-like legs seemed to slow down several times in his eyes.

He dodged, then threw punches, relentlessly. No technique or experience was needed; he simply kept striking his enemy with his powerful fists. The force of his punches created streaks of white light in the air, all converging on the spring-like leg's abdomen.

He threw a total of 23 punches in one round, and the powerful impact sent Spring Leg flying backwards once again!

"Aaaaaah—!"

Spring Leg felt dizzy and disoriented. It had smashed through countless seats and walls before finally coming to a stop. It looked up in a daze and realized that it had arrived at the very front of the train, in carriage number 1, with the female magician it had seen before standing not far away.

Pershka looked just as surprised as he did.

"...Hidden strength? Who is it?"

Spring-Legs stood up, retching. The sight of the red-haired woman sent a chill down his spine. Those terrifying beast witches had nearly reduced him to ashes. Yes. But they had the last laugh. Even this woman hadn't succeeded.

Its injuries—the wounds inflicted by Lü Wenjun—have all healed completely. Failure is impossible. Because it has the original text!

Spring-Heeled Jack yelled nervously, "You're out of options, kid! You've failed! Spring-Heeled Jack is immortal!!"

Lu Wenjun stopped in his tracks and quietly gazed at the illusory spirit in the distance.

He heeded the call of his instincts, lowered his body, and concentrated his weight on his right foot.

A spring is a very simple thing. The deeper it is compressed, the stronger the force it releases.

And what he had in abundance was pressure. The regret of missing out on higher education. The frustration of having to repeat a year of high school. The panic of accidentally boarding a train full of demons… tension… fear…

All the emotions accumulated until now were pressed into the strange foot along with the power. The spiral patterns above the heel then glowed layer by layer, the light growing brighter with the infusion of power.

At the moment when the light reached its peak, Lü Wenjun, like a spring, was finally compressed to its limit. The propulsive force exploded instantly, and he leaped up, transforming into a lightning-fast, silvery-white phantom!

All the pressure transformed into motivation; he felt incredibly light, as if he had wings and was soaring through the air. He charged forward with all his might, cutting through the train occupied by demons. At such extreme speed, the world became abstract, reduced to rough dots and lines, with only that dazed phantom at the edge of his vision.

He launched his leg mid-air, a lightning-fast strike piercing through the phantom's chest. The aftershocks of the force spread upon impact, shattering the spring-like leg into thousands of fragments!

Spring-Heeled Jack was utterly shattered by the blow, revealing the open Tome among the flying debris. The Tome hurriedly released black mist, attempting to reassemble the phantom's body. Lü Wenjun turned and grabbed it with a swift movement. The Tome struggled violently in his hand, and the single eye on the back of his hand lit up once more.

Celebrate victory with your magic!

The black mist was rapidly absorbed by the single eye, filling one of the hollow tear stains beneath it. Yuan Dian instantly lost all strength and ceased struggling. Lü Wenjun stopped, realizing he was standing beside Pershika.

He smiled at the girl and closed the book with one hand.

"The exam is over," he said.

The countdown reached zero at that very moment, and the phantoms disappeared as the original text closed, leaving the train completely silent.

Moments later, tiny magical fireworks rose up throughout the train, and the leaderboards in each carriage simultaneously refreshed, displaying two lines of ink-wash calligraphy:

First place: Lü Wenjun

Leaping across rooftops and scaling walls, an urban legend!

Chapter 11 Once the arrow is released, there's no turning back.

The small magical firework drifted for a while before dissipating, and Lü Wenjun sat down nearby. The moment he released the spell, he felt as weak as if he had just climbed up from the bottom of a cliff, barely able to lift a single finger.

He heard crisp applause, both enthusiastic and solemn.

Pershka is clapping.

"Congratulations, Mr. Lü Wenjun. You have proven me wrong with your actions. I underestimated you all."

—If we happen to win, I promise I will clap loudly and cheer for everyone.

Someone did say that not long ago, and Lü Wenjun gave a wry smile.

"There's no need to be so serious."