The Thirteen Trials of the Deceptive Monk

"—"

The dwarves' last words were never heard; they all vanished into the jaws of the ravenous wolf. Bones and flesh shattered with each swallow, and the giant wolf raised its bleeding jaw.

There was no room for communication, not even time to turn and flee. The mad wolf pounced straight at them, its massive jaws capable of crushing a human's upper body. Lu Wenjun hurriedly raised his hand, trying to use a spell to deflect the attack, but although the extraterrestrial light shot out, it only slightly pulled the mad wolf to the side for a moment. That momentary misalignment was not enough to interfere with the attack.

The volume is too large, and the surgical technique cannot exert enough force!

Lu Wenjun held his breath. For a moment, he completely forgot that this was a test; sharp teeth and fangs became an imminent threat. There was no time to dodge. Neither the fox spirit nor the beam of light could stop this beast. If this continued, he would be swallowed whole by its enormous jaws!

There's one more chance. One-Eyed. If I can get in touch with Mad Wolf, I'll have a chance to analyze it—

Lu Wenjun charged forward with all his might, throwing a punch at the giant wolf, but his fist just missed the wolf.

The abyss-like maw suddenly veered off course, and the massive body of the Braden beast arched instantly. A woodcutter's knife pierced its waist, like a punishing nail driven into the bones of a sinner, pinning it firmly to the carriage wall.

Blood gushed out, staining nearly half of the carriage red!

Chapter 7 Boss Isn't Your Speed ​​Bump

Everyone was stunned, even the giant wolf itself was filled with astonishment. Suddenly, the iron door at the back of the carriage opened, and a ghostly face emerged from the bottomless darkness.

That was a demon. A monster. A fusion of the ugliest elements of humanity. Beast horns stood menacingly on its head, bulging eyes like those of a hanged man were embedded in its wrinkled face, and twisted, yellowed fangs protruded from beneath its lips.

It emerged from the darkness with its long, hairy body, like a lantern drawing out a shadow behind the light. It was at least 3 meters tall, holding a torch in one hand and raising the other hand forward in the air.

It was that hand that threw the wood-chopping knife.

Braden's beast howled in agony, filled with rage and hatred. It broke free of the machete and leaped down, letting the blade tear open its belly and spill out its foul-smelling intestines. It was as fast as a phantom; in the blink of an eye, it swept across the carriage, its sharp teeth about to bite into the masked monster's shoulder.

However, it suddenly fell down, and another pitchfork pierced its back.

The second masked monster appeared, coldly stabbing down with a sharp weapon!

It wore a goat-like demon mask and possessed incredible strength, even suppressing ferocious beasts like the Braden Beast. The first masked monster stepped over the mad wolf and picked up a wood-chopping knife from the blood.

It turned around and beheaded the wolf.

The headless wolf carcass twitched for a moment, like a large worm, and then lay still. Lü Wenjun realized he was covered in a cold sweat; judging from Faris's hoarse voice, he wasn't in much better shape than him.

"So this is some kind of ingenious little trick, huh? First, we show you an incredibly powerful phantom spirit, then we let a freakish phantom spirit tear it apart... and then we have to fight this thing?!"

“It’s not an urban legend,” Ling Gong suddenly said. “It smells much older than those frivolous stories. It’s a story that was once deeply believed by people… a story forged by faith and worship…”

She stopped, for a third ghostly face emerged from the shadows. It was a raven-faced creature with a long beak, its tall, thin figure resembling that of the dead. The first two ghostly faces stepped aside, and three pairs of cold eyes stared at them, the silent pressure almost suffocating.

Lu Wenjun let out a long breath and said, "Could this be perchtenlaufen?"

The third masked man also stepped aside, his small orange-red head peeking out from beside his furry body, his expression inexplicably somewhat cheerful.

"You know quite a lot. Their name is 'Beast Witch,' a spell passed down in my hometown!"

·

The term "perchtenlaufen" is a tradition prevalent in Germany and Austria, which can be directly translated as "Perchtenlaufen run".

During the coldest time of the year, local residents wear wooden masks and fur coats, dressed as demons called "perchten," and parade through the streets. They carry gongs and torches, and their bells jingle, using this grand ceremony to drive away the evil spirits of winter.

Perchten are generally divided into two types of appearance: beautiful and ugly. If the "beast witches" are the ugly type, then the girls who summon them are undoubtedly beautiful.

Lu Wenjun used to think that human beauty had its limits; even the most beautiful person was no more than a Hollywood star, and after seeing too many, they seemed nothing special. What has no limits is the beauty of the world. People from thousands of years ago would sing praises of the stars in the sky, and people thousands of years later will still gaze at the starry sky and dream.

When the girl appeared, he felt as if he had seen a star.

The girl was slender and tall, wearing a gray-blue evening gown over a fitted women's corset, and a snowflake-colored crown adorned her medium-length orange-red hair. Her face was exquisitely beautiful, like that of a doll, every curve and contour perfectly sculpted.

Such a girl needs no expression; any artificial impurity would disrupt the harmony bestowed upon her by heaven. Yet she smiles, a confident and sly smile, that touch of childlike innocence banishing any sense of inhumanity, making her truly existent. Like a noble princess leaving the palace to embark on an adventurous journey through the mortal world.

"Are you a descendant of some goddess?" Lü Wenjun asked subconsciously.

She casually tossed a strand of hair aside: "Pershka Nacht Holer, not a god but the daughter of a witch. It doesn't matter if you can't remember this long name, since you'll hear it often in the future."

Lu Wenjun said "Oh," and then smiled warmly, "Thank you so much, Miss Holler. To be honest, I was so scared that I almost forgot this was a test. Your help is a great help!"

Pershka glanced at him: "Please put away that fake smile of yours. If you don't want to communicate, there's no need to speak... Also, please don't call me Holler. Only enemies call me by my surname."

“I’ll remember Miss Pershka,” Lü Wenjun continued with a smile. “Also, I’m a little curious, why did you go to the trouble of going out of your way to help us? Logically speaking, you’ve already won, haven’t you?”

Pershka came from carriage number 8, which was where the original text was located. She was undoubtedly the strongest among this group of trainees, and there was no reason for her to abandon the championship and hand it over to someone else.

“Because wasting time there is pointless, it’s impossible to win this test,” Pershka said.

Ling Gong frowned: "Such a assertion is too..."

Pershka interrupted, "Why do you think the school held this test?"

"So that everyone can get to know each other beforehand?" Faris said.

Lu Wenjun, however, recalled the notice before the test began: "In order to teach freshmen to respect knowledge and maintain reverence for original texts."

“You’re a bit smarter than the others. The real purpose of the exam is to instill a fear of the original texts in everyone.” Pershka pointed to the blood-stained crystal scoreboard. “What do you think those rankings mean?”

Lu Wenjun smirked: "A milestone, is it?"

Although everyone thought "whoever ranks first wins," Senior Mingxiao hadn't said that before. He vaguely felt that it was probably some kind of twisted record... Scores were the battle record, while rankings were the order. The leaderboard didn't record achievements, but rather how far you could go before you fell.

"Exactly. This isn't a ring match, it's a race. Everyone starts from the same starting line, seemingly competing to see who can run the farthest. However, the track has no end, and there's only a monster constantly chasing you from behind. No matter how fast or well you run, you'll eventually be caught by the monster and die."

Pershka held up one finger: "If you really encounter a situation where the original text goes berserk, you can only hold on until the rescue arrives, and don't even think about attacking the original text itself. This is the lesson that your teacher has been trying to teach you."

“If I were a teacher, I wouldn’t instill such despairing ideas in children,” said Lü Wenjun.

“But you were scared just now, weren’t you?” Pershka laughed. “You’ve fully grasped their intentions, haven’t you?”

Lu Wenjun fell silent for a moment, while Pershka chuckled and walked past him.

"There are still 13 minutes left in the exam. I don't think I have the ability to win by relying on conventional methods, so I'll go investigate the Phantom Spirit in the front carriage first. Everyone is welcome to try their luck. If you happen to win, I promise I will applaud loudly to cheer for you all."

The other three beast witches bowed slightly, as if to say, "I'm really sorry that our young lady's unruly nature has made you all laugh," and then hurriedly followed her out of carriage number 7.

The headless wolf carcass disappeared a few seconds later, and another announcement of "Pershka +20000 points" rang out.

At this point, the last batch of freshmen who could still move also failed, leaving only five people on the leaderboard. The first place winner was far ahead with a high score of 48000, while the second place winner, Vilsa, also had a respectable score of 12000.

As for the third, fourth and fifth place, they are Ling Gong (2610), Lü Wenjun (2600) and Faris (2600), with a total score of 7810. The three who have survived to this day have fully demonstrated their wisdom and luck, composing a hymn to ordinary people.

Linggong glanced back for a moment, then said softly, "She didn't even ask our names..."

Faris said viciously, "That girl looks like a genius dog who's won an Olympiad math prize!"

“I’ve also won an Olympiad trophy,” said Lü Wenjun.

"Sorry to offend you, you genius #2." Faris plopped down on the ground. "What do we do now? The little witch has made things so clear. Instead of humiliating ourselves, let's just AFK and wait for the results?"

Lu Wenjun took a deep breath and quickly sorted out his logic.

To be honest, Pershka's statement, while arrogant, wasn't entirely wrong. She easily soloed two of the 20000-point phantoms, a challenge that even the three of them combined couldn't defeat. For someone like her to declare victory impossible, then there was indeed little chance of success.

The test is nearing its end. Although he only scored 2600 points, he's still fourth in the entire grade, which is barely enough to cover up his lie about being a descendant of immortals. He can test the eyes on his hands at another time; there's no need to create unnecessary trouble here.

but……

"Being defeated by a phantom is certainly embarrassing, but surrendering directly is too boring, isn't it?" Ling Gong said. "I think the process is more important than the result. At least we should try."

“I feel the same way. And I can’t stand Miss Witch’s attitude.” Lu Wenjun nodded. “If I can’t do it, then of course you have no hope either—the subtext is so obvious that it makes people want to try it out of spite.”

"Alright, let's not fight for pride, let's join hands and charge forward!" Faris said with a carefree attitude.

"Wait a moment, let's make some preparations first." Lu Wenjun pondered for a moment, "Farris, please open the window again."

"?"

Faris casually opened the car window closest to the door, and the air inside rushed out, blowing the stray hairs on Ling Gong's forehead like a broom. Lü Wenjun reached his hand out the window.

"It's slower than I expected, but it's feasible." He suddenly looked up and shouted, "Senior Mingxiao! Huanling died if she fell off the train, so what would happen if we freshmen also unfortunately fell off the train?"

The train was quiet. Lü Wenjun shouted relentlessly, "This test is already dangerous enough. If even basic safety measures aren't clear, the students will lose confidence in the teaching!"

A few seconds later, a line of small print reluctantly appeared on the crystal panel in the corner of the carriage: [I can guarantee with my own strength and the professor's who-knows-how-many-years of cultivation that you could jump out of the window unscathed... but that would definitely count as elimination! And I won't interfere with the normal fighting process.]

"Thanks for the explanation, senior." Lü Wenjun patted the window frame. "Very good, let's begin."

Faris looked horrified: "Tell me first what kind of lousy idea you came up with?"

30 seconds later.

"Master Lü, you really should get your head checked out sometime!" Faris screamed.

Lu Wenjun also shouted, "There are less than ten minutes left! This is the fastest way to fool Huanling!"

They had to shout at the top of their lungs because the wind was so strong. The biting wind high in the sky felt like ten thousand motorcycles carrying dry ice were speeding around them.

Lu Wenjun stepped onto the car window frame, leaning most of his body out of the window. He barely managed to grab the roof, then used his core muscles to leap up as lightly as a monkey.

Faris then followed suit, his arm stiff as a robot's. Lu Wenjun, lying on the roof, grabbed his wrist and pulled him up with a forceful tug.

With his help, Ling Gong was the third to climb onto the roof of the car, exclaiming excitedly, "Wow! The view from up there is so expansive!"

"Right? It's not dangerous at all. The plan is already half successful," Lu Wenjun encouraged.

Faris gasped for breath, his face turning deathly pale: "I think half of your brain has rotted away! How could you so casually suggest such a ridiculous idea as 'climbing onto the roof of a car without tools'?!"

"Don't be scared by the movie. Once you try it, you'll find that climbing a train itself isn't dangerous. The real danger comes from obstacles around the train, such as trees, utility poles, and tunnel ceilings," Lü Wenjun explained. "The train we're on has a wide field of vision, plenty of light, and no obstacles, making it an excellent environment for climbing. It's much easier than climbing a regular high-speed train."

"Why would you have such a terrifying experience?! What did you do for a living before you came to school?!" Faris was utterly devastated. "And this car is shaking, damn it! I keep feeling it tilting to the left!"

Lu Wenjun looked towards the back of the carriages and said, "It must be because of Lord Bachi..."

Ling Gong was also surprised: "Those two phantom spirits are still chasing after them? They're so persistent!"

Lu Wenjun jumped back into the car, glanced at his watch, and said, "Time is running out, everyone get ready and take your positions."

Okay~

"I'm not ready! I'm not!!" Faris was still screaming.

Pershka has already dealt with the two 20000-point phantoms in front and behind carriage 8. The one next to the original text is most likely the last phantom she believes is unstoppable. His perfect battle plan is to have Lü Wenjun enter to attract the phantom's attention, and then have the two lurking on the roof launch a sneak attack.

Lu Wenjun himself thought it was incredibly brilliant... but with limited intelligence on the enemy and only a handful of resources at hand, there really wasn't a better way.

He pushed open the door of carriage number 8, preparing to face a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood, or a three-headed, six-armed demon.

But the reality was nothing like his imagination. Carriage number 8 was empty, with no blood, no corpses, no phantoms, only a large black book floating in the center.

That was the original text that Mingxiao had previously thrown out, and now it was quietly waiting like a trophy.

"Let's give it a try first." Lü Wenjun ran over, reached out and grabbed, "Excuse me, is anyone home?"

The grab missed, as expected. A silver-white figure suddenly slumped down, its scarlet eyes staring directly into his pupils. Lü Wenjun hurriedly withdrew his hand, knowing that the phantom spirit had finally appeared, but this…

What exactly is this thing?

This person wore a silver mask and a smooth, white bodysuit; his two scarlet eyes resembled miniature fireballs. He didn't look like a monster or demon at all, but rather like...

A third-rate weirdo who somehow escaped from some second-rate tokusatsu studio...

"Three-tenths cooked, five-tenths cooked, or fully cooked?" the man in white asked gently.

"Huh? Huh?" Lu Wenjun was taken aback. "I like my steak medium-well."

The man in white nodded knowingly, then bowed slightly while still hanging upside down, and said gently:

"You tasteless Eastern boy, we don't serve medium-well steaks at our proper steakhouse!"

A spark ignited in his mouth, and the light quickly grew into a blue fireball the size of a car's front!

Chapter 8 has no numerical balance whatsoever.

Lu Wenjun gasped, leaning back in a standard backbend. The fireball grazed his nose, blackening half his face.

The man in white laughed loudly and snatched the original text away. His "hands" were a pair of gleaming steel claws, like prosthetics that had been cut off and roughly sewn back on.

Lü Wenjun used two daring backflips to create distance, then stood up, crossed his arms, pointed to his sides, and shouted, "Drink!"

With all six windows on both sides of the carriage open at the same time, he stood tall in the gale with his blackened face, looking just like an African war god!

The man in white was immediately taken aback: "What kind of witchcraft is this?"

"Little Phantom Spirit, you have no eyes to recognize Mount Sinai, and you don't even know who you've messed with." Lu Wenjun smiled arrogantly, "I am the son of Zephyrus, the god of the west wind. The divine wind in my hand can blow evil spirits to dust. I never kill nameless people. If you know what's good for you, quickly state your name!"

Faris, who was clinging to the roof of the car above him, almost wanted to applaud: "He's really good at talking nonsense."

The old train's soundproofing was mediocre; you could hear everything inside the carriages if you pressed your ear against the metal. Lü Wenjun had specifically asked Faris to help with this charade, hoping to intimidate the enemy's phantom spirits and prevent them from making any rash moves, lest he be suddenly punched to the face and killed. If they could actually extract information, it would be a pleasant surprise.

The man in white bowed upside down, his manners as impeccable as a madman from England.