22: Chapter 22 Driven by Desire

Fang Che's brain went boom, and he crashed on the spot.

"This voice... that's not right!"

"It's definitely not Jiang Ning!"

Jiang Ning's voice was clear and bright, carrying an overwhelming wildness, like the wind on the prairie. It was definitely not this... a tone that was mature yet intellectual, forcibly suppressed, and laced with a hint of scholarly air!

The impulse igniting his entire body from the thirst for power was like being doused from head to toe with a bucket of well water mixed with ice shards, instantly chilling him to the bone.

It was over.

He had completely messed up!

The figure in his arms froze completely after that short, sharp gasp.

The sound of rushing water continued to roar in his ears, but the air in this confined space seemed to have solidified into iron, pressing down on him until he could barely breathe.

Run?

Withdraw immediately and pretend nothing happened?

It was too late!

Just as his mind was in a chaotic mess and his body was about to react before his reason could, the rigid figure moved.

She used the last ounce of her strength to slowly, inch by inch, turn her head amidst the spray of mist.

Warm water droplets slid down her soft, delicate facial contours, traced across her fair neck, and finally dripped into the hollow of her beautifully defined collarbone, splashing a tiny, almost invisible droplet.

That face...

That face, which was usually stern on the podium and could silence the entire class with just a single glance, was flushed bright red at this moment due to extreme shock, panic, and bewilderment.

The cheeks covered in water droplets were none other than...

It was the backbone of everyone in this carriage, his mentor—Teacher Qin Bing!

"Teacher... Teacher Qin?"

Fang Che's voice was dry and trembling; these two words seemed to exhaust all his strength, squeezed out from between his teeth.

He felt as if all the blood in his body had frozen in that instant.

If it were Jiang Ning, it would at most be considered a reckless sparring match and energy exchange between young people to improve their strength.

But the person in front of him was Teacher Qin Bing!

She was his teacher!

This gap in status was like an invisible mountain, pressing heavily against his chest, making it impossible for him to breathe.

His brain stopped functioning entirely, and his body subconsciously wanted to let go and retreat, ending this absurd mistake.

However, just as his muscles tensed and he was about to pull back...

A strange resonance suddenly came from their backs where their skin was pressed together.

The magic power he had stirred up in his earlier impulse did not dissipate or break as he had imagined.

Instead...

It fluctuated gently.

It was an extremely faint, cautious, and tentative connection of spiritual power.

Once.

And again.

Each fluctuation carried an indescribable magical resonance, as if... it were silently drawing upon the energy within him.

This completely illogical reaction caused Fang Che's movement to retreat to abruptly freeze in place.

Reason screamed wildly in his mind, telling him to retreat quickly!

But his body's instinct was drawn by that marvelous magical pull, reignited by that most primitive impulse to pursue a breakthrough in power.

In the bathroom, only the rushing sound of water remained, along with their slightly rapid breathing caused by tension.

Fang Che's brain had abandoned all thought and began to move.

...

After a long battle, amidst extreme tension, unexpected stimulation, and that incomprehensible magical channel, he poured everything he had into her.

[Talent: Absolute Critical Hit has been triggered!]

[This energy transfer is judged as a reasonable judgment, triggering a Critical Hit!]

[Critical Hit Multiplier: ×50!]

Fifty times!

The moment this number appeared, a scorching torrent of magic power, far exceeding any previous time—several times larger than the sparring session with Jiang Ning—was released and surged into Teacher Qin Bing's body!

"Ah—!"

This time, Teacher Qin Bing could no longer suppress it; it broke through her throat, only to be instantly drowned out by the rushing sound of water.

The scorching torrent of magic power made her entire body tremble violently; she tensed up like a fully drawn bow, her back lines beautiful to the extreme, before collapsing heavily into Fang Che's arms.

Her vision went blank, and her brain completely lost the ability to think.

Immediately after, the cold system prompt sounded simultaneously in both their minds, devoid of any emotion.

Making them, who had just recovered from that terrifying shock, petrify once again, simultaneously.

[Special Agreement Triggered — Fang Che × Teacher Qin Bing]

[Magic Covenant Judgment: Success]

[Basic Reward: All Attributes +5 (First Covenant)]

[Talent: Absolute Critical Hit triggered!]

[Critical Hit Multiplier: ×4!]

[Actual Gain: All Attributes +20!]

All Attributes...+20!

Teacher Qin Bing leaned weakly against Fang Che, panting heavily, feeling the lingering energy deep within her body and the waves of warmth rapidly reshaping her internal functions.

But her consciousness was already completely occupied by that last line of golden text.

She subconsciously opened her attribute panel.

[Name: Teacher Qin Bing]

[Level: LV1]

[Strength: 7+20]

[Agility: 8+20]

[Constitution: 7+20]

[Spirit: 10+20]

Looking at that glaring, scorching +20 after each base attribute, Teacher Qin Bing was completely stunned.

Somewhat disbelievingly, she slowly raised her hand, curling her fingers in the hazy water vapor.

An unprecedented, powerful sense of strength, one she found incredibly unfamiliar, was clearly transmitted from her palm to her brain.

This power was more than ten times stronger than before!

At this moment.

Her worldview as an intellectual, her inherent perceptions as a teacher, everything was shattered in the face of that cold, brutal, yet infinitely magical number: All Attributes +20.

So... that was it.

She instantly understood Fang Che's true value!

She understood why that girl Jiang Ning, with her fiery and unyielding personality, would choose to acquiesce after experiencing that kind of magical baptism, and even... even under that cold, hard attitude, there was a hidden hint of expectation that she hadn't understood before!

Behind this seemingly absurd and unorthodox method of improvement lay such a terrifying, yet tempting, kind of power!

This power could turn a weak woman with no strength to truss a chicken into a transcendent overnight.

This power could allow anyone to build their own absolute confidence in this damned apocalypse!

She felt that powerful strength surging and flowing through her limbs and bones.

The panic, shock, and bewilderment in her eyes had quietly faded, replaced by extreme complexity and awe.

Along with a hint of fanaticism for survival and strength, hidden in the deepest part of her heart, which even she herself had not yet realized.

She looked at this student who had mistaken his target, yet had brought her a strength akin to rebirth.

A crazy thought, for the first time, took root in her heart.