Chapter 1082: Chapter 507: Time Vortex (Part 2)

At the same time, the chanting of the Graveyard of the Deceased began to echo in his ears again—a sound that felt both unfamiliar and familiar, like it was transmitted from a distant, abandoned and shattered world.

In a daze, he seemed able to see some distorted images—a group of ancient and bizarre beings dancing around a bonfire on a deserted, storm-tossed island, performing some kind of dark ritual. They were singing prayers so heart-wrenching they could drive one insane, the prayers traversed dimensions, torn apart by unknown forces, finally merging with the sound of the Graveyard of the Deceased, into that dry and hoarse, indescribably ancient voice:

[「I AvgruNnen av tåKe og mørke jaGer forTapte Sjeler fanTome」!!!]

[「I Avgr…uNnen av tåKe…og mørke… jaGer forTapte… Sjeler… fanTome」!!!]

(Cautions: In the abyss of mist and darkness, lost souls chase phantoms)

In the swirling light bands, countless Pseudo-Human students in the Graveyard of the Deceased had their bodies elongated, swaying their heads and bodies like kelp or a group of cobras. They sang passionately in the twisted time, and the dark cautions channeled through their throats reached Lin Yi’s ears.

Ultimate eeriness, ultimate frenzy, ultimate madness!

“Hah…”

“Hah hah hah…”

A deep sound started emanating from Lin Yi’s throat. He felt his blood boiling uncontrollably, bowing his body like a leopard ready to launch an attack, yet he did not know where his enemy was.

With the continuous chanting of the Graveyard of the Deceased, the “hah hah hah” from his mouth gradually turned into a deeper “fuh fuh fuh,” as blood-red steam faintly steamed from his pores, like a storm suddenly forming around him…

Meanwhile, an ethereal and eerie little girl’s laughter also appeared in his ear.

“Hee hee…”

Just a simple laugh, but its clarity surpassed the prayers and chantings of the Graveyard of the Deceased.

The steaming blood-red steam suddenly halted, and Lin Yi’s arched back stiffened as if doused with icy water.

The little girl’s laughter…?!

Even if Lin Yi could ignore everything, he could not ignore this laughter!

This was the laughter of the Mage’s projection!

He looked down at his left hand, and indeed, the Secret Mark imprinted by the Mage had somehow lit up, shining brightly in the vortex, and what terrified him even more was the sudden appearance of the Ouroboros Ring on his hand!

In his left hand!!!

The Mage’s laughter and the appearance of the Ouroboros Ring brought his mind into sharp clarity, like being plunged into ice-cold water.

The chanting and cautions of the Graveyard of the Deceased could no longer invade his will—no kidding, when you’re facing a tiger, no amount of barking dogs at your feet could distract you.

The insane voices had almost driven Lin Yi berserk, but now he had eerily turned cold as ice.

His wrist subtly turned, aligning the watch face with his sight, and his now-clear mind brought him fresh deliberation.

Since the Graveyard of the Deceased 0-frame start right up in his face, his pace had fallen into passivity, even though he knew something felt off, he couldn’t calm down to think it over due to the passivity of his rhythm.

Until now.

“There’s been an issue, something major since just now!”

“This feeling… this sense of distorted time after falling through the layers… something’s wrong!”

Initially, he felt his encounters somewhat resembled something, but he couldn’t quite place it, not until he heard the laughter of the little girl, saw the Secret Mark of the Mage, did he startlingly realize—is this the so-called “Time Exile”?

Even though he hadn’t experienced “Time Exile”, its literal meaning aligned substantially with his predicament perhaps.

Distorted time overlaps, collapsing and chaotically splicing time… isn’t that akin to a truncated version of “Time Exile”?

As the thought emerged, his gaze fell upon the watch face—19:56.

Not a minute had passed!

“Still caught in that moment!”

Lin Yi suddenly realized, the cloudy haze that had been enveloping his mind felt like it had been struck by lightning, tearing away a large portion of darkness, allowing the light to pour in.

In the light, he closed his eyes.

The vortex formed by the Graveyard of the Deceased vanished, and the “he” from May 8th slowly disappeared as well. Before disappearing, the watch on “his” wrist paused at the fading mark of 21:26, ultimately becoming 20:58…

Lin Yi slowly opened his eyes.

A pendulum clock on the blackboard met his gaze, the minute mark at 19:56.

—This was the moment he looked at the clock due to a sudden flash of instinct before leaving the classroom by pressing the door handle.

Everything that happened just now was real; had time indeed rolled back to this moment?

Or was everything that happened just now mere illusions—a certain future, yet to occur, “extrapolated” in his mind due to a sudden burst of inspiration at seeing this moment?

In his hesitation, the “click” of the door handle startled him.

Looking over, he realized something was off.

His memory was of having checked the time, pressed down on the door, and then left the classroom. But… it seemed, checking the time and pressing the handle were simultaneous?

The mist and chill that seeped into the classroom led to his unnoticeable fall through layers, caught in time’s whirlpool?

“Bang!”

He pushed the door closed.

The mist choked off by the door dissipated, leaving a final phantom, like an illusory face emitting an evil smile.

“‘My name is Lin Yi! My student number is X0230506098! I’m on the cobblestone path to the Dormitory building…'”

Lin Yi muttered the chant from the Graveyard of the Deceased’s 0-frame start, recalling the experiences from May 8th and the interplay at the Graveyard, understanding dawned on him about something.

If the “mechanism” of the Graveyard of the Deceased revolved around time, ought there not be a connection between the two dream-like experiences he just underwent…?

Cobblestone path…?

“I’m not on the cobblestone path, I should be in the Teaching Building…”

“No, I’m in the classroom, wait, classroom?!”

“Classroom!”

A brilliant light suddenly flashed through Lin Yi’s eyes.

“If I were to anchor myself just now, what should I say?”

My name is Lin Yi, my student number is X0230506098, I’m in the classroom of Class B2 in the Teaching Building.

[I’m in the classroom of Class B2 in the Teaching Building.]

“The Graveyard of the Deceased wants to anchor my position!”

“Their essence still desires to invade the classroom, and I am just one medium through which they infiltrate the classroom!”

“The medium could be another Experience Student, a Sports Student, or it could be me!”

“Anyone could be influenced, but those with lesser resilience might directly be amalgamated into the Graveyard of the Deceased, while those with greater resilience like me become their medium of infiltration…”

The Graveyard of the Deceased lurked sharply, yet Lin Yi had to leave, and in a flash of inspiration, he conceived a tactic.

He pressed the door handle again, pushed the classroom door open, and dashed out into the corridor at high speed.

As soon as he exited, the wind accompanied by heavy rain swept over him from outside, like shattered waves nearly knocking him over.

He cast a glance at the room plate, confirming it was “Class B2” before firmly shutting the door.

Meanwhile, the chilling aura of the Graveyard of the Deceased imposed heavily on him…

Everything experienced in the dream descended upon him unaltered, the Graveyard of the Deceased, heads clustered like grapes appeared around him, enveloping him.

[My name is…]

“My name is Song Rentou, my student number is X0230503075, I am on the way from the Teaching Building to the Cafeteria!” Lin Yi suddenly spoke loudly, forcibly interrupting the chant of the Graveyard of the Deceased.