Dormitory group chat, my information updated daily.

Several hours later, in the early morning.

Daily settlements arrive on time.

[Ding! Congratulations on successfully surviving for one day. Rewards for today are being calculated!]

Today, you successfully crafted wooden barrels, stone spears, stone axes, and stone campfires using the workbench, arming yourself and enhancing the strength of the entire team. You explored the southeastern region, discovered a stalactite cave, and successfully found the miraculous fruit 'Earth Source Fruit' that enhances physical fitness.

Facing an ambush by your enemies, in a desperate situation, you utilize the unique characteristics of a lord-level beast to successfully escape danger and, with your own strength, rescue your roommate from the clutches of your foe...

[After your return, you consumed three Earth Origin Fruits, causing your strength to steadily increase.]

Today's score: 45 points, reward being distributed...

Congratulations on obtaining: Skill Book: Tranquility, Small Beast Cage x3

Congratulations! You have received an additional battle reward: Intelligence +1

"Skill Book!"

Xiao Yun's eyes lit up, and he took out a crumpled piece of parchment from the settlement reward.

[Skill Book: Focus]

[Applicable Occupations: General]

[Level: E+]

[Passive effect: You are more likely to calm down and concentrate your thoughts and attention.]

[Active Effect: When activated, consumes 2 mana per second to enter the 'Tranquility' state, increasing Intelligence by 20%, and granting Attack Power, Reaction Speed, and Coordination a 120% Intelligence bonus.]

[Learning Requirements: Intelligence Level 9]

[Description: Calm your mind, quiet your spirit, concentrate your attention, and unleash your full potential—you will be invincible!]

"Those who survive a great calamity are sure to have good fortune in the future!"

Xiao Yun was amazed, but at the same time he muttered to himself:

"But this 'calmness, tranquility, and concentration,' isn't that what the old man told me about before?"

Xiao Yun suddenly thought of his old man, who appeared refined and easygoing but actually enjoyed toying with ignorant teenagers.

"I wonder if the old man has traveled through time. His nursing home is very luxurious and offers high-quality services, so there shouldn't be any problems, right?"

Thinking of this, Xiao Yun suddenly chuckled and shook his head.

My grandfather has seen it all. If he didn't time travel, I don't need to worry. Even if he did time travel, he might be living a better life than me now. Why am I worrying so much?

Xiao Yun cleared his mind of his complicated thoughts and looked back at the skill book.

With a thought, a system pop-up appeared.

Should we learn the skill of "calming the mind"?

"study."

Xiao Yun silently recited the command. The next second, the characters on the parchment in his hand flickered with a faint light, trembled continuously, and finally slowly floated up, hovering in front of Xiao Yun.

Immediately afterward, to Xiao Yun's astonishment, the characters flew out like shooting stars, disappeared into his brow.

Old Man —

A soft buzzing sounded in his head. Xiao Yun closed his eyes and silently comprehended the information that appeared in his mind.

The other three people witnessed the whole thing.

"Holy crap! This is the legendary enlightenment!"

Wang Tianyuan exclaimed in surprise, his eyes filled with envy as he looked at Xiao Yun.

"Sigh, it's so frustrating to compare yourself to others. How come A-Yun gets such a great skill as a reward? My best reward is just an accessory..."

Ji Mingyu sighed softly with a look of regret, which aroused Wang Tianyuan's curiosity.

"Oh? What kind of jewelry? Let me see."

Ji Mingyu didn't hide anything and took out a bronze bracelet, handing it to Wang Tianyuan.

Wang Tianyuan took a look, his lips twitched violently, and he glared at Ji Mingyu:

"Damn! Your accessory comes with a built-in aura-like skill, and it's purely for boosting stats. I think it's even better than Brother Yun's. What are you even doing here in Versailles?"

"Hehe, keep it down, keep it down, it's not good if the dorms next door hear us."

Ji Mingyu forcefully snatched the bracelet back from Wang Tianyuan's hand, put it on his wrist, and carefully covered it with his sleeve.

"This is outrageous! How can everyone be so lucky?"

Wang Tianyuan's gaze turned deep as he looked at Zhong Mo, who had been silently keeping his head down beside him. Suddenly, his eyes lit up:

"Hey, Fatty, don't stay silent! What good stuff did you get in the settlement? Show it to us."

Zhong Mo snapped out of his daze, scratched his head, and said with a smile:

"That's all. I got a terrible skill, much worse than Brother Yun's."

"What skill? What are its effects?"

"Enmm, it's called [Stabilizing]. When activated, it increases constitution and strength by 100%, but greatly reduces movement speed and consumes a lot of stamina."

Wang Tianyuan remained silent for a long time, opened his mouth as if to say something, but felt that he could not say anything.

I feel like I've been tricked by that system...

[Ding! You have mastered the skill 'Mindfulness' (Beginner)]

Xiao Yun opened his eyes, let out a soft breath, and looked at Ji Mingyu and the others:

"It seems everything is ready."

Without a word, the group exchanged glances, a cruel smile simultaneously creeping onto their lips.

It's time to make the enemy pay the price...

Three minutes later, when Huang Haoran opened the dormitory door and saw the 301 students carrying weapons and exuding murderous intent, he was so scared that he almost wet his pants.

"Don't be afraid, they're not here for you."

Xiao Yun patted his shoulder kindly and asked gently:

"Don't you have the dorm's contact list here? Can you help me find out which dorm Zhao Pengfei, a junior, is in?"

"2...2nd floor, room 227."

Thanks!

Xiao Yun nodded and considerately closed the door for Huang Haoran.

Only Huang Haoran remained standing at the door, wide awake in the slightly chilly night.

"Things are about to get turbulent..."

Ten minutes later, when Xiao Yun and his group tiptoed to room 227, they were surprised to find that the door to room 227 was wide open.

"What...what kind of approach is this?"

Ji Mingyu frowned, peeked out from behind Xiao Yun, and looked into dormitory 227.

Zhao Pengfei sat imposingly in the center of the dormitory, staring at himself while wiping the blood off his serrated broadsword.

The bright red health bar reveals naked hostility.

There was no trace of his other roommates in the dormitory.

But behind him, at the entrance to the toilet adjacent to the balcony, a leg was sticking out of a pool of dried, blackened blood.

Ji Mingyu fell silent, staring intently at Zhao Pengfei, his expression growing increasingly grim.

"This is absolutely outrageous! To increase their strength, they even prey on their roommates..."

Xiao Yun looked at Zhao Pengfei and slowly tightened his grip on the broken mithril blade in his hand.

"They are all my dearest friends and family, my brothers and sisters, I had no choice..."

A look of sadness flashed in Zhao Pengfei's eyes, but when he turned to look at Xiao Yun, only madness and hatred remained:

"It's all your fault, Xiao Yun! You're the one who killed them!"

"Beast! Bah!"

Wang Tianyuan spat, his composite bow already drawn and the arrow fully pulled back, the carbon fiber arrowhead aimed directly at Zhao Pengfei's heart.

Although the beasts in this world far exceed those on Earth, the composite bow is still powerful enough for now, comparable to the weapons produced by the system.

"There's no point in talking to this beast, Brother Yun. Let's all gang up on him and kill him!"

The words may be rough, but the principle is sound.

Ji Mingyu nodded, and the bracelet on his wrist emitted a bronze-colored light.

[Ding! Ancient Warrior Aura activated, Constitution +1, Strength +1]

"Um."

Xiao Yun nodded, his eyes gradually becoming as deep and calm as an abyss.

[Take Control], now open!

Next, [The Poem of Blood and Fire], third gear, activated!

[Ding! Strength +2, Agility +2, Intelligence +2!]

[Gained a negative status effect, reducing health by 9 every 5 seconds]

The blazing flames burned on the broken sword, but Xiao Yun's heart remained calm, only a cold killing intent flowed within him.

"Haha, you've come at the right time!"

Zhao Pengfei laughed loudly and crushed the blood-red card in his hand.

[Explosive Growth Card II], already used!

A violent power surged from his body, and in the darkness, Zhao Pengfei's eyes flashed with a scarlet blood light.

Outside the window, on the dark trees, countless crows raised their blood-red eyes and gazed into the distance.

The entire dormitory building was silent; it was already past midnight, and most people were asleep.

Click—

The door closed, and immediately afterwards, a whooshing sound echoed through the air.

call out--

A deadly arrow pierced the air, aimed directly at Zhao Pengfei's head.

Even faster than the arrows were the silver blades burning with flames.

clang--

Swords clashed, sparking dazzling flashes in the darkness.

Two pairs of eyes met behind the swords, one cold and calm, the other filled with hatred and madness.

*Pfft*

Arrows were embedded in his body, but Zhao Pengfei was completely unaware; instead, a cruel smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Xiao Yun, die!"

He roared, raised the serrated broadsword in his hand, swung it in a wide arc, and brought it down hard.

Clang-clang-clang—

A metallic clang, like a blacksmith striking iron, rang out as Zhao Pengfei swung his broadsword, leaving afterimages. Wang Tianyuan, standing at the door, could even feel the wind whipped up by the longsword.

The items on the surrounding tables were scattered all over the floor.

The clash of swords filled this small space of just over thirty square meters, occasionally leaving exaggerated scratches on the wardrobe next to it.

Several iron bunk beds were shaken precariously by the impact, creaking and groaning.

"This is too brutal, this guy is acting like he's not human..."

His own composite bow could even shoot through a deer, yet it couldn't cause much damage to Zhao Pengfei, demonstrating that his physical attributes had reached an exaggerated level after using the [Explosive Growth Card].

Wang Tianyuan clicked his tongue, then looked at Xiao Yun with a somewhat complicated expression.

Under Zhao Pengfei's relentless barrage of attacks, Xiao Yun remained calm and composed, gripping his broken sword and constantly maneuvering to parry and create an unbreakable defensive line.

In fact, each of his parries was a fraction of a second faster than Zhao Pengfei's attack, as if he had anticipated Zhao Pengfei's attack method.

"Okay, this one's a superhero too."

Wang Tianyuan sighed softly, nocked an arrow again, aimed at Zhao Pengfei, and waited for the right moment to inflict fatal damage.

In the center of the battlefield, Xiao Yun appeared to be in control, but in reality, he was constantly being forced to retreat under Zhao Pengfei's attacks.

Zhao Pengfei's inhumanity, coupled with the use of the Burst Card, resulted in a qualitative leap in his strength. Even with the enhancements from [Calm Mind] and [Poem of Blood and Fire], he was finding it difficult to withstand.

[Health Points -9]

On the panel, my health is rapidly decreasing due to the side effects of [Poem of Blood and Fire]. In just over a minute since the start of the battle, my health has already dropped to 60%.

Moreover, Zhao Pengfei's attacks were causing continuous damage.

If things continue like this, I'm afraid Zhao Pengfei will drag me down to my death!

Fortunately, I'm not fighting alone.

"Zhao Pengfei, die!"

Zhong Mo's eyes burned with fury, and the [Steadfast] skill was activated the instant he closed in.

He took Xiao Yun's place, using a shield to withstand Zhao Pengfei's slashes while simultaneously hacking away with a ceremonial axe, looking even more insane than Zhao Pengfei.

"what!"

Zhao Pengfei roared and swung his broadsword swiftly, switching from defense to offense and suppressing both men simultaneously.

A resolute look flashed in Xiao Yun's eyes, and with a thought, the flames on his body surged.

[The Poem of Blood and Fire], Level 5, activated!

"They've all gone mad! They've all gone mad!"

Ji Mingyu clicked his tongue and put away the [Survival Dagger] in his hand.

"Tennaidai, I'm coming too!"

Ji Mingyu roared, and black and purple patterns flashed across his body as his power surged.

Then, he took out the [Divine Blessing Staff], used it as a stick, and swung it around to smash it.

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! BYD, just die already!"

The battle reached a fever pitch. Even after sacrificing his roommate and going into overdrive, Zhao Pengfei was still completely overwhelmed by the combined firepower of Xiao Yun, Zhong Mo, and Ji Mingyu.

Wang Tianyuan moved along the edge of the battlefield, firing stray arrows.

In the darkness, sparks flew, accompanied by the clanging of weapons and occasional splattering of blood.

The scene was a mess; the once perfectly good dormitory was now in ruins.

Several iron bunk beds were "accidentally damaged" too many times and could no longer hold on, collapsing with a crash.

Rumbling--

The crashing sound of the beds collapsing echoed through the dormitory, but the battlefield grew increasingly silent; not a single person spoke.

All that could be heard were five heavy breaths, and all that could be seen were Wushuang's bloodshot eyes.

Both sides were already bloodthirsty...

As time went on, Zhao Pengfei, who was being attacked by four people, gradually couldn't hold on any longer.

His body was covered in wounds, almost turning him into a hedgehog from the arrows.

Blood turned the dormitory floor a filthy red. Gradually, the sounds of weapons clashing grew slower and slower, Zhao Pengfei's momentum weakened, and his eyes became increasingly unfocused.

Huffing and puffing—huffing and puffing—

The pool of blood on the ground continued to expand, and at a certain moment, the panting stopped abruptly.

Blood gushed from his chest, soaking Xiao Yun's clothes and flowing down the sword hilt onto his hand.

The stench of blood filled Xiao Yun's nostrils. He forced himself to suppress his nausea and stared into Zhao Pengfei's eyes.

His eyes gradually lost their luster, and his pupils began to dilate.

But whether it was a misperception or not, Xiao Yun actually saw a hint of pleasure and anticipation in those eyes.

"I will... wait for you..."

Above his head, the health bar gradually decreased to zero.

thump--

Zhao Pengfei fell to the ground, shattering the moon's reflection in the pool of blood.

His pupils gradually dimmed and became lifeless, and under the gaze of Xiao Yun and the others, he lost his last breath...