Having made up his mind, Jiang Lin returned to the dormitory and began cultivating.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye another night passed.
As usual, after Jiang Lin finished bullying ants, he went to the academy cafeteria to collect his daily medicinal food, then returned to his room to cultivate.
By about tomorrow, Shadow of Blood would finish copying. When that happened, he could finally see how strong this “mount” of his really was.
But just as Jiang Lin was about to settle down and cultivate, he heard another knock at his door.
When he opened it, Aili was standing there prettily at the entrance.
“What are you here for?”
Aili shoved her way into his dorm room and said as if it were the most natural thing in the world:
“Obviously I’m here to cultivate with you.”
Jiang Lin hadn’t expected her to be this persistent.
He was even starting to suspect she’d been possessed by demons in the God-blessed Land.
But before entering the God-blessed Land, he’d checked the records—over so many years, it seemed there really were no documented cases like that.
So he stepped aside and let her squeeze in.
Since he needed to cultivate and couldn’t be bothered to manage her, he sat down cross-legged and started cultivating.
And Aili didn’t disturb him either. She truly seemed to be here to cultivate—she sat down right beside him and began as well.
She had only just broken through recently, so she was still learning the 1st-rank breathing method.
She propped her cheek up and stared at the book in her hand, but as she read, she began to space out. Her gaze wandered—until it landed on Jiang Lin.
Watching Jiang Lin cultivate with his eyes closed, Aili recalled that day in the God-blessed Land, when Jiang Lin faced the crowd alone.
Even though she was a fish-hooking, manipulative girl, she was still just a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old.
For someone like that—a powerful figure who saved everyone in a moment of crisis, and appeared in that kind of posture—asking her not to swoon was honestly difficult.
So this time, Aili truly had fallen for him.
But because of how she’d acted in front of Jiang Lin before, and because Jiang Lin genuinely seemed to have no romantic thoughts at all, Aili felt the chances of making him fall for her were tiny.
After all, this was the ruthless guy who made all three schools in Boulder City stay up late along with him.
With a cultivation heart that firm, if she could break through it in one shot, that’d be a miracle.
So Aili decided she’d stay near him more—slowly and subtly leaving a deeper impression in his mind.
Just like the saying:
“A simp who keeps licking will eventually get everything!”
Of course, Miss Aili wasn’t a simp.
This was merely one part of her plan.
She wouldn’t let herself sink in too deep—she had a sense of measure!
Yes—exactly!
…
Soon, an entire day passed.
In the blink of an eye, evening arrived.
When Jiang Lin went to eat, Aili followed behind him like a little tail.
“Aren’t you going back?” Jiang Lin asked.
Aili rested her chin on her hand.
“Back at school, I was always by your side at night too.”
Jiang Lin’s expression didn’t change.
“But now this is my dormitory.”
Aili shrugged.
“Are you going to kick me out?”
Jiang Lin had no reply and went back to cultivating.
And Aili stubbornly remained in his room.
Soon, another night passed.
Who would’ve thought that a lone man and a lone woman staying in the same room, with the lights on all night, would do nothing but cultivate their own breathing methods?
With the sunrise, Jiang Lin went as usual to bully ants, then bought breakfast and his medicinal food.
“Why do you step on these ants?” Aili, trailing behind him, asked in confusion.
“It’s my family tradition. Stepping on ten ants every day brings me good luck.”
Hearing that, Aili nodded thoughtfully.
Then came more dull, boring cultivation.
Near noon, there was another knock at Jiang Lin’s door.
When he opened it, Anya Castrot—golden hair and golden eyes—appeared before him.
“Miss Anya Castrot? Why are you here?” Jiang Lin asked, puzzled.
Anya Castrot sighed.
“Don’t even ask. All my relatives are spoiled wastrels. They loaf around all day, and whenever they’re bored they come over to chat me up. I can’t even calm down to cultivate.”
“So you came here to find a place where you can cultivate in peace?” Jiang Lin immediately guessed her intent.
Anya Castrot nodded.
“I won’t disturb you, will I?”
Jiang Lin shook his head.
“Of course not. Besides, I already have a guest here.”
Anya Castrot was surprised—then she saw Aili sitting cross-legged in Jiang Lin’s room.
The two girls looked at each other. Anya Castrot’s eyes lit up as if she’d found a kindred spirit.
“You couldn’t find a quiet place to cultivate either, right? I feel like when Jiang Lin is nearby, it creates a strong cultivation atmosphere.”
Aili smiled on the surface, but inside it felt like she’d swallowed a fly.
“Haha… yeah, totally.”
After that, the three started cultivating with fiery enthusiasm.
As Jiang Lin and Anya Castrot looked at the two extra people beside them, a familiar feeling rose in both their hearts.
Yes—this is the right flavor!
Ever since leaving the Radiant Junior Magic Academy, they hadn’t felt this sense of urgency in a long time—watching classmates cultivate and feeling pressured themselves!!
It really did take a whole room of people staying up late together to make it feel right!!
As for Aili, her expression turned subtle. It was hard to even describe her situation.
The main problem was that she couldn’t just leave—if she did, it would be Jiang Lin and Anya Castrot alone in a room.
Even though, with Anya Castrot’s muscle-brained personality, she probably wouldn’t spark anything romantic with Jiang Lin…
Aili still couldn’t relax.
So she could only vent her resentment into cultivation.
She clenched her teeth and cultivated the breathing method she had just barely initiated. For some reason, Jiang Lin and Anya Castrot both felt a wave of grievance lingering in the room.
“Aili, did you run into some issue with your 1st-rank breathing method?” Anya Castrot asked, puzzled by Aili’s expression.
“If you have questions, you can ask me and Jiang Lin. Both of us have some insights into the 1st-rank breathing method.”
She spoke seriously.
Aili forced a smile and shook her head.
“No… I just feel like my cultivation speed is a bit slow.”
Hearing that, Anya Castrot comforted her:
“Don’t rush. Sometimes haste makes waste. We’ll just work steadily.
“Your talent is pretty good, and you’re willing to stay up late—so compared to people with the same talent, you get nearly half again as much time.
“Step by step, solid and steady. Passing the entrance test won’t be a problem for you!”
Aili simply smiled and said nothing.
After that, the three cultivated in silence.
Time moved again, and night fell—the time when people should sleep.
Anya Castrot opened her eyes, saw that Aili didn’t seem to be leaving, and that Jiang Lin kept cultivating. After a moment of thought, she decided not to break the balance.
So she copied Aili and stayed in Jiang Lin’s room too. After all, staying up together felt more atmospheric.
And Jiang Lin could only look helplessly at the two girls in front of him.
One had a brain full of cultivation. The other—who knew what she had stuffed in her head.
For some reason, he felt a little endangered.
If this kind of thing got out, wouldn’t the tall and mighty image he’d built up collapse?
But he couldn’t be bothered to care. He continued cultivating. It had been four days since he broke through to 1st-rank adventurer, and in a day or two he would likely reach level 11.
The next day, the sun rose.
Shadow of Blood finally completed its copying.
Jiang Lin had it detach from his body. This thing would be exposed sooner or later anyway, so letting the two girls see it now was no big deal.
A figure identical to Jiang Lin appeared.
But it had no intelligence—its eyes were empty—and its entire body radiated dazzling golden light.
The two girls sensed an extra presence in the room and both opened their eyes.
Seeing that there was now another Jiang Lin, they were stunned.
“What is that?” Anya Castrot asked in shock.
Jiang Lin thought for a moment and answered:
“My mount.”
Anya Castrot and Aili both stared at him, their eyes saying the same thing:
Do you think we look like idiots?
Jiang Lin felt his scalp tingle under their gaze. He didn’t explain further. Instead, he lifted a hand, and a complex magic formula appeared in his palm.
It was the paladin’s mount brand.
Then, to their astonishment, the golden Jiang Lin was pulled into the mount space.
It really was a mount?!
Now the two girls were completely lost.
“Why does your mount look like this?!”
“What kind of creature is it?”
They fired off their questions.
Jiang Lin considered for a moment and explained:
“It’s a demonic beast that can copy other creatures’ forms. I don’t know exactly what it is.”
Even if he didn’t explain now, once he brought it out to fight later, teachers or strong seniors would inevitably ask.
He’d have to come up with an excuse sooner or later.
Both girls were deeply shocked.
They’d only seen creatures like this described in books—yet Jiang Lin had actually contracted one as a mount.
“It doesn’t seem intelligent. Did you erase its intelligence?” Anya Castrot asked.
Jiang Lin didn’t know the exact situation either.
“No idea. After I contracted it, it seemed to lose its intelligence. But I’m connected to it—I can control it freely.”
As he spoke, Jiang Lin summoned it again and began studying this mount of his.
Off to the side, after hearing “no intelligence” and “connected to Jiang Lin,” Aili looked at the golden Jiang Lin, then at the real Jiang Lin. Her mind clearly ran off somewhere—and the corners of her lips rose uncontrollably.
“What are you smiling about?” Jiang Lin gave her a sidelong look.
“I’m not smiling,” Aili argued.
“You’re smiling so hard you’re about to drool,” Jiang Lin sneered.
Aili froze, wiped the corner of her mouth, and found no drool at all—only then realizing she’d been played.
She huffed, crossed her arms, and decided to punish Jiang Lin by ignoring him for three seconds.
Anya Castrot watched them in confusion, having no idea what they were doing.
Why laugh? What was so funny about a golden Jiang Lin?
Then Jiang Lin said to the two of them:
“I’m going to the academy training grounds to test my mount. You two stay in the dormitory. When I come back, I’ll buy breakfast too—what do you want to eat?”
“Just bring whatever’s convenient. Thank you,” Anya Castrot said.
But Aili watched Jiang Lin head out and prepared to follow behind him again.
“I’ll go with you. I can help buy breakfast and bring it to the training grounds.”
However, Jiang Lin refused:
“Stay here. My training isn’t convenient to share with others.”
Aili puffed out her cheeks.
But she understood priorities. Since Jiang Lin didn’t want to reveal it, she wouldn’t force herself over and make him dislike her.
…
Different from the Radiant Junior Magic Academy, Saint Brilliance Magic Academy had single-person training grounds. Once you swiped in, outsiders couldn’t enter.
Arriving at one of the academy’s private training grounds, the morning sunlight streamed in through the glass windows overhead.
Jiang Lin stood at the center. With a thought, a ripple of space appeared.
A figure glowing with golden light stepped out of thin air.
It looked exactly like Jiang Lin—same face, body, and clothing—radiating a gentle, holy brilliance, like a spirit of light itself.
Jiang Lin tried switching off the effect of the Holy Arbiter title.
The warm, gentle aura vanished instantly, replaced by an evil, chaotic, violent presence.
At the same time, the golden radiance on its body completely disappeared, returning to the crimson of Shadow of Blood itself.
Staring at the Shadow of Blood before him, Jiang Lin felt as if he were looking at another version of himself.
Maybe calling it a “Blood Clone” was even more fitting now.
For now, it hadn’t copied any other creature. And among beings of the same level, Jiang Lin was already at the very top, so he estimated that for a long time, he would keep Shadow of Blood in the form of his own clone for combat.
He could also give it the form of a flying creature—maybe it would come in handy for traveling.
That was what Jiang Lin thought.
Next, he tested its copying effect.
“Attack the target ahead. Use Seven Star Holy Glow Slash.”
He issued the command in his mind.
The moment the command landed, the Blood Clone moved.
Its actions were almost identical to Jiang Lin’s—smooth and swift.
A blood-red energy longsword condensed instantly, slashing toward the magic-energy target dozens of steps away with a piercing whistling sound.
Blood energy flowed along the blade, gathering into a compressed blood-red sword qi that crashed down!
Boom!
The magic-energy target shook violently, a deep cut appearing across it. Then, as the array formation at its base circulated, it began to slowly restore itself.
Watching the damage from the blood-red sword qi, Jiang Lin assessed it in his mind.
Overall, it was similar to the power it had shown before when fighting him.
But if it faced the current him, it would definitely be slightly inferior.
After that, Jiang Lin had it test his other skills one by one.
Without exception, everything could be used normally. The magic essence circuits of each skill followed the original magic formula structures.
The only difference was that, for some unknown reason, every skill output was coated in a layer of blood-red color.
Jiang Lin switched the Holy Arbiter title effect back on.
Immediately, the Blood Clone returned to its glittering golden appearance.
And when he had it release skills again, the originally blood-red attacks were now overlaid with golden holy light.
After finishing the most basic tests, Jiang Lin began thinking about how to use it.
He tried giving it a command to “fight autonomously,” but it didn’t react at all.
It seemed every movement and attack needed his direct instruction.
In that case…
He’d need to get used to doing two things at once.
Otherwise, it would be hard to take advantage of having two combat units in battle.
Rate on N.U.
