novelraw Chapter 70: The Possession Trick
Chapter 70: The Possession Trick
There weren’t many posts on the Apostle Forum discussing shells fainting.
Apostles generally avoided letting their shell’s fatigue reach zero, because once the shell fainted, the feeble wandering soul would automatically leave the body for a short period.
And the feeble wandering soul wasn’t just incredibly fragile, it also seemed to carry a cursed aura of bad luck.
Even if you cleared all the mobs on the map and then used the wandering soul to explore, you would still inexplicably get hit by random attacks.
For example, being killed by a falling bird from the sky or tripping over a rock on the ground and dying…
It was as if the game world actively rejected the wandering soul.
If you fainted while grinding monsters and your wandering soul detached in a horde of monsters, even a level-one mob would instantly kill you.
The consequence of the wandering soul dying was a permanent account ban…
Such severe death penalties made Apostles avoid any instance of the text “You feel a bit tired” like the plague. They would rather get killed by a monster than collapse from exhaustion.
After completing the initial chapters, when Apostles re-entered a chapter, there was always a Resting Page at the starting point.You could refresh your shell’s fatigue there, so it was almost impossible to encounter fainting situations.
After figuring things out, Lin Xun continued the game.
He controlled the Yellow-Robed Bishop and headed all the way to the small church at Fox Castle.
Next to the Resting Page, he opened the Shell Slots. Only two shells were still alive, and he switched to the Dancer shell.
Then… he began madly attacking the air.
He kept at it until his fingers went sore, and finally the text popped up: [You feel a bit tired.]
“This is rough on my hands, and I do care about my future girlfriend’s well-being.”
Lin Xun shook his hands out, returned to his bedroom, and dragged a big cardboard box out from under the bed.
After rummaging for a while, he pulled out a massage gun with a powerful vibration mode.
“A physical cheat is the deadliest kind.”
He turned on the massage gun, and the silicone massage head began twitching uncontrollably.
He pointed it at his phone screen to activate his physical cheat. Finally, just before the tempered glass screen protector cracked, he managed to make the Dancer faint from exhaustion.
[Prolonged attacks leave you panting and weak all over. You feel utterly exhausted, and even the slightest movement is an impossible luxury.]
[The shell of the Corrupted Theater Dancer has collapsed from overwork and fainted. Do you want to detach from this shell?]
Tossing aside the massage gun, Lin Xun clicked Yes.
He immediately possessed the Yellow-Robed Bishop, opened the Shell Slots, and sure enough, it now showed 4/5.
The Dancer shell lay quietly inside the small church.
For other Apostles, this kind of operation was pointless because they only had one shell and couldn’t let their feeble wandering soul leave the Resting Page. Otherwise, they could die suddenly at any time and get their account permanently banned.
But Lin Xun was different. Humming a little tune, he controlled the Yellow-Robed Bishop and rode off toward the Exchange.
[You dismount and walk into the Exchange on foot.]
[The Blind Merchant is leisurely sitting on a chair, browsing through the items in his linen bag.]
[Do you want to purchase items from the Blind Merchant?]
After checking the trade list, Lin Xun found that the items he had previously emptied out had disappeared completely, with the rest of the inventory unchanged and no new items added.
He opened the panel and was about to click Corrupt Sunlight, but then reconsidered, realizing the skill was too powerful. One shot would probably reduce the merchant to ashes.
He quickly switched to a normal attack.
[Do you want to stab the Blind Merchant with the Thunder Dragon Staff-Spear?]
[You grip the staff-spear tightly and thrust the spear tip into the merchant’s chest…]
[You defeated the Blind Merchant. Your experience increased slightly.]
After killing the merchant, as expected, no items dropped.
[You look at the merchant’s shell in front of you…]
[Blind Merchant Shell: A middle-aged merchant who settled in the town of Saint Rance. After the invasion of the Blood Sun’s power, he failed to escape Saint Rance and was later corrupted by the Corrupting Blood Sun. There is a bloody hole in his left chest, caused by a fatal penetrating wound that ruptured his heart. Compatibility 102% (+35%).]
[Do you want to possess this shell?]
Lin Xun possessed it and opened the Shell Slots to check.
The shell level was 2, and thanks to the compatibility exceeding the critical threshold, its shell quality had improved to Ruined+ grade.
The merchant’s shell came with just one piece of equipment: the familiar Bloodstained Linen Clothes, still with its junk attributes.
A thoroughly trashy shell. If not for quest requirements, Lin Xun wouldn’t even glance at a shell like this.
He immediately controlled the merchant’s shell and headed for the catacombs beneath the ancient theater.
[The catacombs are vast and brightly lit. On both sides are over a dozen dilapidated living quarters, with large iron cages placed in the center.]
[In the deepest part of the catacombs, the Corrupted Circus Clown is waiting quietly inside an iron cage.]
[You step forward and approach the cage. The clown, upon seeing your appearance, shows an excited expression, puts two fingers in its mouth, and blows a sharp whistle.]
[A huge, terrifying beast’s shadow suddenly pounces on you from behind. Its gaping maw snaps down and bites off your unsuspecting head.]
[You died!]
“…”
Lin Xun had a vague sense that the clown and the merchant had a grudge, but he didn’t expect it to act so decisively.
No talk, no nonsense, just immediately ordered the Three-Headed Lion to kill the merchant.
Shouldn’t there at least have been some villain monologue?
Something like, “You have your day too,” or “Finally, you’re in my hands now.”
[The feeble wandering soul is reborn at the familiar small church…]
Inside the small church, just as he expected, the Dancer’s shell lay quietly, just like the Choir Sister had before.
He reclaimed the Dancer’s shell, and the Shell Slots returned to 5/5.
“Mm, another successful trick play.”
He possessed the Yellow-Robed Bishop, mounted his warhorse, and arrived at the catacombs.
The game text changed.
[The catacombs are vast and brightly lit. On both sides are over a dozen dilapidated living quarters, with large iron cages placed in the center.]
[In the deepest part of the catacombs, the Corrupted Circus Clown cheerfully waves at you.]
[You step forward and approach the cage. The clown is very pleased with your performance. You perfectly fulfilled its wish.]
[The clown gestures for you to hand over the Brass Whistle. It promises to lift the seal on this item.]
[Do you want to hand over the Brass Whistle?]
Could it be that after handing over the whistle, the clown would turn hostile?
Judging by the cursed nature of the game, a plot twist like that wouldn’t be surprising.
However, if the whistle wasn’t unsealed by the clown, it was nothing more than junk.
Lin Xun silently prepared to attack, just in case the clown betrayed him.
With his lightning-fast reflexes, he was confident he could kill the clown before the Three-Headed Lion could pounce.
[You hand the Brass Whistle to the clown.]
[The clown takes the whistle, clasps it between its hands, and closes its crimson eyes…]
[Not long after, the clown hands the Brass Whistle back to you.]
[You have obtained Brass Whistle (Special Item).]
[With a deafening roar, the Corrupted Three-Headed Lion dissolved into shimmering starlight and disappeared…]
[The little lion engraved on the Brass Whistle seems more lively now!]