Transcending Dreams 3 - Chapter 6

William hadn’t been successful in solving his Qi issue. That was frustrating, but it was more frustrating that nobody had bothered to check on him in the week since Mei Lingxi’s visit. Nobody responded to the deafening racket he made when he destroyed the room.

He had been under the impression that the house arrest wouldn’t last much longer. Obviously, that assumption had been wrong.

He let out a puff of air in irritation. His experimentation had destroyed everything in the room, so he had been sleeping on the hard stone floor, making the whole thing an entirely miserable experience.

Elder Yu was being literal when she told him to knock if he needed him. However, he wanted to push himself to see how long he could last without calling for help. Besides, he needed to entertain himself somehow, and this was what he chose.

“I might actually die of hunger if this goes on for too long,” William muttered to himself, though that was nowhere close to being true. At the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, dying from a lack of food was a difficult task to succeed in.

The door swung open suddenly, as if his worries were heard. Elder Yu gave the ruined room a brief, uninteresting glance and said, “You’re free to go.”

William sprang up in excitement. “Really? Just like that?”

“You’re also free to stay here as long as you wish. However, I’m afraid we won’t be replacing your current furnishings.”

He winced at the blank tone Elder Yu had. She might have said nothing about the unintended destruction, but it was a clear mark against him in her mind. “No, no. I’ll leave!”

Elder Yu nodded. “I thought you might. Remember, don’t speak of what you experienced in the abyss. And more importantly, never activate that eye in public.”

William agreed without question. He had no plans to use something that would instantly put him at a massive disadvantage.

“Good, then out you go.”

***

William's first action was to run to the library. The heavy silence inside hit him like a brick, since he had completely forgotten about it. He subconsciously placed his hand over his heart, feeling it beating steadily. He realized his pulse was much slower than usual, a probable result of his enhanced cultivation. 

“Overdue books borrowed from Section J-7. Bold of you to miss the deadline the very first time you took something from the library. It seems we don’t deserve any respect.”

William tuned in surprise to see the woman speaking to him. She was the girl was studying in Section J-6, and she was also the one who hinted that his Inner Court pass needed to be used to find books.

“It’s you! Do you know any librarians? I was stuck on a mission, so I wasn’t able to bring back the books in time,” Cal said in quick succession. He noticed she seemed displeased and realized he was being rude. “By the way, thank you for the help you gave me to find the books I needed. I’m Wei Liang.”

The girl stared at his outstretched hand a little too long before finally shaking it.

“Zhi Ning.”

“Thank you, Zhi Ning,” William repeated sincerely. “If you can help me with my late books, I’ll owe you another favor.”

Turning off his system’s auto-reveal worked out, allowing for a genuine response.

“Follow me,” Zhi Ning walked off without another word. William was a little confused by the abruptness, but he wasn’t about to complain about the quirks of a person who was willing to help him.

He followed her as he thought about what the penalty might be. Even Elder Yu took it seriously, and that was the only reason he was nervous. He could deal with being charged money, but restrictions to the library would be a tough thing to accept. This was the period he felt it would be required the most.

William finally had clues about the damned egg that was stored, and that was only one of the many things he wanted to research.

Zhi Ning led him to a second-floor office overlooking the library’s center; there, sect members were visible, consulting the central catalog before going to the specific sections.

“Have a seat.”

William did as requested, confused by why Zhi Ning went to the other side of the desk. She sat down and wrote something in the notebook on the desk.

“The penalty for overdue books varies depending on severity. In your case, it is very light since it was a first time offense. Return the overdue books, pay a hundred sect points, and face a one-month ban on borrowing new books.”

William suspected Zhi Ning’s identity. It was in these moments when Detailed Observe came in handy.

[Spiritual Energy insufficient for Detailed Observe on target]

That shocked him. He reverted to the simpler method and tried to use Observe.

[Use Observe? | Cost: 1000 Spiritual Energy]

[Warning | Factoring Luck, there is a 90% chance of the target sensing Observe]

William forced himself to keep calm. Zhi Ning wasn’t a peer of his. She was the librarian he was fearing to meet.

“Wei Liang, do you have any objections?” Zhi Ning asked when he was silent for too long.

He quickly figured out the best path forward. Since she didn’t make her status obvious, he would keep acting like she was his peer. Maybe she was an old monster that liked to act like a young sect member.

“Everything seems reasonable, but you have to help me convince the librarian to lessen the borrowing restriction.”

“A month is too much to bear?” Zhi Ning’s tone contained a warning.

William shook his head quickly. “It wouldn’t be too bad usually, but there are things I found on my mission that I have to research soon. I can’t spare a month.”

“There’s nothing stopping you from doing so in the library itself. You just can’t take any books outside.” When William still looked reluctant, Zhi Ning asked, “What mission did you take? I could ask for leniency if it’s that important.”

William wished he could tell, but Elder Yu let him know to keep his mouth shut about it. “I can’t say.”

Zhi Ning’s expression grew colder. “Then there’s nothing I can do.”

“What if I pay more sect points?” William immediately knew he made a mistake.

“No.” Zhi Ning slid a sheet of paper across the desk. “Sign here and return the books. The points will be deducted automatically.”

It looked like she was waiting for him to ask about how she had the authority to decide on his penalty. As if he would. If he couldn’t reduce his penalty, he would use their ‘relationship’ when he was studying in the library in the future.

In fact, having a librarian to help would be better than getting his penalty reduced. With that in mind, William read the contract carefully before signing it, not allowing Zhi Ning to get another word in.

“Just like that?” Zhi Ning asked with a raised brow as she took back the signed paper.

“If you say it’s impossible, it must be true,” Willam flattered her while taking out the books he borrowed. “You seem like a trustworthy person.”

Zhi Ning narrowed her eyes, making him think his honeyed words disgusted her. But that only lasted a moment. She sat straighter in her chair as she looked over the books, pleased as can be. “You have good instincts.”

William changed his mind about her being an old monster. Maybe she was another genius that reached her position at a young age. He didn’t think old monsters would say something to his flattery and just accept as fact. But someone young, who didn’t get as much respect from her older peers, definitely would.

“Where did you get this?”

He saw that Zhi Ning was skimming through the autobiography of Lin Lin, How I Accidentally Hatched a High-Tier Spirit Beast Egg and Became the Strongest Cultivator. Elder Yu seemed suspicious about that book too.

“From Section J-7.”

Zhi Ning frowned as she shook her head. “That’s not right. This shouldn’t have been placed there. I’ll have to look into this.”

William’s heart skipped a beat. This was the book that was the most useful. Even though Lin Lin depended on luck to get most of his opportunities, the man still explained, in great detail, about what he experienced. It was more helpful than one would assume.

“Would I be able to look at the book when I come to the library again?”

“That would depend on a librarian,” Zhi Ning said with a straight face.

William continued to play along. If he flattered her enough, she would likely do him the favor. “Of course. Please let the librarian know how important it is. The book really is helpful to me. Maybe the librarian would be interested in some things I found that relate to what Lin Lin came across in his travels. It would be amazing if someone experienced helped me with my research.”

Zhi Ning sat even straighter than she already was, perking up at the indirect praise. “I will relay your wishes.”

William thanked her with a small smile before taking his leave. He would need to return soon, but before anything else, he had to meet Kae. The man went through hell with him, and he was owed a massive, in-person show of appreciation.