112. From D University to North City

This story is long, spanning a vast expanse of time. Feng Qian and I spoke for an entire afternoon, and even as the sun dipped below the horizon, we felt no trace of exhaustion.

For the first time, I recounted my experiences to someone in such detail. From that initial incident after a drunken class reunion back at the dormitory, to the "Old Corpse" paying a visit, discovering the secret of the playing cards, and meeting Lin Wan in the bathhouse.

The first great purge at D University had begun, and the vast majority of ordinary people perished in that slaughter. It was because of this event that I began to assemble my small team: Chen Hao, Li Yuan, Sun Cheng, Wu Mingran, and, of course, my good brother "Carbon Head," along with Lin Wan, Lu Ling, and Han Xue.

The life-or-death trials of D University officially commenced. Some ordinary people successfully transformed into "Contractors," while the rest died in the trials. Some changed their minds due to the awakening of their power, while others killed simply to survive.

A top student from the medical school successfully contracted the Six of Hearts, awakening the power of the divine beast "Jingxie," granting him the special ability of "Sharpness." Su Mu, the bespectacled underdog from the agricultural department who was often bullied, possessed the "Life" ability of the Four of Spades' Ancient Tree, rising up to join the ranks of the strong.

The "Gravity" user Lin Xiayue (Seven of Hearts), the "Air" user Hu Xing'er (Five of Hearts), the "Speed" user Lin Wan (Five of Spades), and the "Hardness" user Lu Ling emerged one after another in the subsequent trials. Some became my friends, while others stood on the opposite side.

Innocent ordinary people died miserably, and the power-wielders attacked each other out of mutual disdain. Wu Mingran, Li Yuan, and Pang Dongqiang struck out on their own. We developed a rift with Wang Yan, who then joined Lin Xiayue’s faction.

Then came the appearance of the "Ghost Card" users, Xia Qingqiu and Zhou Tongtong. Wen Lingyu, the leader of the literature department, was humiliated, and the only healer, Chu Yuyan, joined the girls' camp.

The death of Wu Yuwei caused Sun Cheng, the "Teleportation" user (Six of Hearts) who had been by my side, to leave me. As the next stage began, a new class was formed. Under the suppression of our homeroom teacher Wang Chen, we were forced to continue participating in the cruel death trials.

Han Xue used my family heirloom to awaken the "Word Spirit" ability of the Three of Spades' Ancient Jade, becoming a contractor. A transfer student, Qian Duoduo, participated in the battle with the "Voice" ability of the Ten of Hearts.

Carelessness and underestimating the enemy led to the loss of our comrades during the class's first major trial. Lu Ling and the "Light" user Mei Mei (Two of Hearts) perished together, and Lin Wan fell into the shadow of Lu Ling’s death, unable to pull herself out for a long time. Meanwhile, Carbon Head’s personality changed completely during this battle, becoming an indifferent person I no longer recognized.

After a period of rest, Lin Wan finally recovered, becoming an inseparable close friend of mine. In a game of Truth or Dare, the Knight of Clubs, Zheng Wei, emerged, and his formidable "Shadow Ghost" ability directly eliminated the game manager, forcing the dean to step in to restore order.

The appearance of the Queen of Spades, Li Ergou, made me realize the gap between the awakened and the unawakened. With Ergou’s help, Lin Wan entered the new world of the awakened.

During the final chaotic battle in the library in the second stage at D University, all the remaining ordinary people were erased by the rules. Before they died, they dragged an unlucky contractor down to the underworld with them, without even leaving behind their names. In this battle, Han Xue successfully awakened, and we rescued Xue Ning, who at the time could not use her powers. We also met the strongest of the Spades, the "Attack" ability user Midnight (Ace of Spades), and Sun Xiaoxiao, the tomboy with the "Size" ability (Six of Diamonds).

The Ten of Clubs, Zhou Tongtong, who possessed the "Reality" ability, actually stood with us in this battle, which caught me by surprise. Unfortunately, our desperate efforts ultimately served as a wedding dress for someone else; the ancient scroll fragment we fought for ended up in the hands of Wu Mingran, who had been hiding in the shadows all along.

Wu Mingran became the Knight of Spades and a contractor of the Ten of Spades. To this day, we still do not know his specific ability.

The final battle before leaving D University—the third stage—was the most heartbreaking. To save the situation, Lin Wan was killed by a spirit-type ghost. If it hadn't been for Chen Hao, the "Divine Strength" user (Two of Diamonds), constantly comforting me, I don't think I would have moved past the grief so quickly.

However, this battle was not resolved through force, but because Li Ergou discovered a shift in the D University management. We took Midnight to confront the vice-principal, only to discover it was Shan Feng, the "Infant Spirit" user who had previously been removed from the game.

The life-or-death trials of D University were merely part of a ritual; only by completing this ritual could the incident truly end. No matter where we fled, the trials would follow us until the ritual was finished. There were only two conditions for completion: either find the Big and Small Ghost Kings and kill them, or have all contractors kill each other until only one remained.

We became so-called "Free Men," but after leaving D University, the powers of us unawakened contractors were severely suppressed. Because we lacked the special power-enhancing environment of D University, our abilities could not be released unless we became awakened.

But before we could enjoy this freedom, we were captured and brought to this so-called "Top Student Training Camp," forced once again to accept these unconditional, life-or-death trials alongside a bunch of high school students.

There is no need for me to elaborate on what happened later; Feng Qian experienced it himself. The trial at the Ghost Village of Fengmen, the nightmare Jiang Linlin who finally admitted to her "Dream" ability, Wang Shaowei, the "Touch" ability user with the Ghost Card, and my last roommate, Li Yuan, who never used his power.

Then there were the new contractors we met after returning to the building or saw on television: the Knight of Hearts with an unknown ability, Hu Qingqing; the Two of Clubs "Hunger" user, Wei Yan; the Three of Hearts, Tang Zifeng; and the Ten of Spades, Gao Ge. And of course, Feng Qian himself, the "Blood" ability user (Nine of Diamonds).

By now, over 30 of the 54 power-wielders in the deck have appeared. Four have died, and more than 20 remain. These unknown power-wielders are a huge variable. If we can recruit them to our alliance, it will be of great help in finding the hidden Big and Small Ghost Kings. Currently, Sun Cheng (Six of Hearts), Hu Qingqing (Knight of Hearts), Wei Yan (Two of Clubs), Li Yuan, and Wu Mingran have become our primary suspects. Of course, I cannot rule out others, but I will be extra cautious regarding these few.

The week of rest finally ended, but we did not welcome a new trial. It is said that we must wait for the final group to finish their trials before the next round begins. I checked the phone app and saw that the progress bar for the North City trial had moved forward significantly; it seems we are about to enter the next stage.

Many new contractors awakened during this trial; they need new trials to hone their abilities and take the opportunity to eliminate all the interfering ordinary people. Soon, we all received a notification on our phones from the app: the second stage of the North City trial is about to unfold. Before that, we have one week of free time. After one week, everyone must gather at the Huaxing Hotel in North City to participate in the second round.

Below, there was a special note in red: this time, all contractors must participate.

The North City Huaxing Hotel is the most luxurious hotel in the city. The lowest standard rooms are presidential suites, each equipped with private small swimming pools, jacuzzis, and other high-end amenities. When I first arrived in North City for school, I had noticed this towering building, but I never expected to check in under such circumstances.

Upon learning that we could leave the building, most chose to flee the dangerous place immediately. However, our small group couldn't leave, as Chen Hao and the others, like me, were from out of town and had nowhere else to go besides the D University dormitory. Feng Qian’s high school dorm couldn't accommodate so many of us, so we just stood there, staring at each other in bewilderment.

Fortunately, Lin Xiayue finally stepped in and solved the problem by inviting us to stay at her home for the week. When we arrived at her house, we country bumpkins finally understood what it meant to be wealthy. Lin Xiayue’s home was actually on a mountain—though not a real mountain. They had built a massive mansion that resembled a small mountain in the middle of the city. It wasn't just me; Chen Hao, Feng Qian, Sun Xiaoxiao, and Wu Yuwei were all wide-eyed, asking in disbelief, "Sister Xiayue, this is your home?"

Lin Xiayue tossed her hair triumphantly. "Don't you know about the Lin family, the richest in North City?"