Chapter Three: The Debut of the Powered Exoskeleton Battle Armor

Being cautious was hardly a fault, for Zhou Shu felt he might be on the brink of seeing his dreams come true.

The last time his roommate asked, “Are you sure you’re alright?” a flood of information suddenly surged through Zhou Shu’s mind—like a string of garbled code, yet somehow conveying a vague message. These indistinct fragments became crucial clues, sparking a sudden realization: first, he had experienced an incredibly vivid dream, and now mysterious information was surfacing in his mind. Such occurrences, he knew, were practically routine setups in certain web novels.

As a high school student in the digital age, Zhou Shu consumed plenty of web fiction. Even now, in his final year, he hadn’t abandoned the habit. His school allowed phones, but the rules were strict: they were forbidden in classrooms, not even to be mentioned. If you brought one in, it had to be silenced—no buzzing allowed, only mute mode. Anyone caught using a phone in class faced immediate confiscation and a call to their parents.

Zhou Shu was a model student with strong self-control; naturally, he wouldn’t play on his phone during lessons. He only brought it for contacting the outside world, watching videos, playing the occasional game, and, most importantly, reading web novels. That, he believed, relieved stress better than any outing, trip, or exhibition—after all, travel often led to crowds and traffic jams, sending his blood pressure soaring; web novels, by contrast, were pure relaxation.

Having read so many, nothing about their wild settings or plots could surprise him anymore. Especially since he himself had already experienced something extraordinary.

He hadn’t originally belonged to this world.

To this day, he still hadn’t determined whether he had transmigrated, been reborn, or somehow swapped lives. But that question no longer mattered. What did matter was that he had come from another world to this one, had lived here for over a decade, and now, suddenly, had acquired a cheat—his “golden finger.”

But why could other people bring things out of their “dream worlds,” while all he got was a sweaty body? Surely, what he’d experienced wasn’t just a dream? If it was, then what was the source of the cryptic information he’d received?

As a seasoned reader—yes, counting his memories from the other world, he’d encountered at least ten thousand “golden fingers” in web fiction—he knew from “experience” what to do next: perhaps he should try asking.

He didn’t speak aloud, but instead focused his thoughts precisely on certain topics within his mind. This, too, was “experience.”

“I’m not dreaming, am I?”

As soon as he formed the thought, more information appeared in his mind. A response!

“Hey!” Zhou Shu clenched his fist in excitement.

Just as he’d hoped—though the reply was frustratingly vague, requiring him to “translate” it before he could roughly grasp its meaning. It almost made him question his sanity.

But then, after reading so many web novels and having his own strange adventure, who wouldn’t fantasize about gaining some fictional cheat ability? He’d even “designed” a few in his mind.

After this peculiar “dream,” it was hard to say whether he was still simply imagining things.

He needed something tangible to prove it.

The most convincing proof would be to retrieve the powered exoskeleton armor he’d worn in the “dream.” If he couldn’t, then this was all just fantasy. And even if it was real, a cheat that couldn’t produce actual objects was a pretty feeble one. That was his honest thought.

No sooner had he firmly settled on this idea than another ambiguous message came to him. After some “translation,” he understood it to mean “possible,” with a request for confirmation.

Possible? Of course he confirmed.

“Let’s see if this thing is really any good,” Zhou Shu muttered under his breath.

He confirmed, but instead of the powered exoskeleton armor materializing, another hazy message arrived. This one seemed to say there would be a price to pay, though nothing that would affect his health or daily life, and once again asked for confirmation.

If it wouldn’t affect his life or health, then what cost could there be?

Driven by curiosity, he agreed once more.

After all, he was so close to the finish line—how could he stop now?

He turned, leaning against the sink and wall to clear the squat toilet area. From all those novels, he knew items usually appeared in front of the protagonist, hence the maneuver.

Once in position, he agreed.

The moment he did, he felt it.

“It’s coming!”

Suddenly, he felt a tightness envelop him, his perspective rose slightly, and a familiar helmet visor overlay appeared before his eyes.

“What the—?”

He turned to look in the mirror.

“Whoa!”

Good heavens—he didn’t see himself, but a “mechanical warrior.” The sight startled him so much he shivered.

His hand instinctively rose, and with a hiss from the electromagnetic servos, the mechanical arm effortlessly tore off the ceramic sink and mirror.

Crash!

Clatter—

Smash!

“Holy—!”

...

Well, Zhou Shu had woken up the others again.

This time, not just his own dorm, but several others nearby—and nearly attracted the fearsome dorm supervisor.

At four in the morning, some final-year students were already awake, even studying. The college entrance exam was only two months away.

It took Zhou Shu quite a while to calm everyone and send them away. Thankfully, he’d locked the bathroom door beforehand, or they might have burst in.

Once the outside quieted down, Zhou Shu stared at the shattered debris on the floor in silence.

“So this ‘golden finger’ really is ‘golden’—but before even making money, I’m already losing it. How is that fair?”

“It claimed there’d be no harm to my health, but was this the ‘necessary cost’?”

The longer he pondered, the more his thoughts spiraled—especially with his already meager pocket money now destined to shrink further, and he couldn’t help but curse inwardly.

“Damn, my allowance!”

Although he came from another world, he’d been a student there as well.

Back then, he had no way to earn money while attending school; it was the same here.

Especially as a high schooler just two months from the college entrance exam, always buried in revision—pocket money came from parents, and earning his own was nearly impossible.

Geniuses were exceptions, of course.

True talent would succeed anywhere, but Zhou Shu clearly wasn’t the type to rise above his circumstances, even after crossing worlds.

Without a cheat, he’d simply be a well-behaved, self-disciplined student—not the sort to worry his parents.

Being able to take first place in class was already an achievement.

But now, with this “golden finger,” the first thing he did was destroy school property.

How absurd.

So what if you have a cheat? You still have to pay for damages.

Looking down at his hands—now returned to flesh and bone, not metal—he dared not linger in the bathroom. After cleaning up the wreckage, he slipped out.

If he stayed any longer, his roommates really would break down the door.

He’d truly caused a commotion today.

...

Not far from Dongyuan No. 1 High School, in the shadows, a tall, thin figure was dashing through an alley at an inhuman speed. Blood covered its chest and arms, yet its agile movements betrayed no sign of injury.

Pausing beside the school, it sniffed the air, gazing at the campus two alleys away and murmured, “Ah, the scent of youth—must be delicious.”

It licked the blood from its hand—no, the back of its claw—then spat in disgust.

“Disgusting.”

Just then, it glanced warily over its shoulder before leaping over the wall into a nearby construction site.

“Annoying pest. One day I’ll kill you—and savor the taste of your heart.”