Chapter 33: Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage?

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This question had not arisen out of thin air.

It had already taken shape the moment he obtained his Adept Certificate today.

The certificate clearly stated that his ability was “Memory Manipulation.”

But could Memory Manipulation really be this powerful?

Could it grant him the ability to devour painful memories and transform them into source energy?

Obviously not!

Did that mean the original Lin Xiao had lied when applying for his certificate?

Lin Xiao thought that unlikely. With the blade of “Absolute Truthfulness” hanging over his head, the original owner could not have lied.

He must genuinely have believed that his ability was Memory Manipulation.

So what had changed the situation?

Lin Xiao believed the most likely explanation was that something abnormal had occurred because of his transmigration.

If he had still harbored some doubts before, he was now completely certain of his guess.

The “Phantom” ability he possessed was unquestionably far beyond the level of a second-tier ability!

But at that moment, Lin Xiao could not determine anything more about it.

There were still two aspects of Phantom’s abilities that he had yet to confirm. He therefore controlled the phantom double, opened the office door, and walked toward the lobby.

His viewpoint abruptly shifted. Through the phantom’s eyes, he could now clearly see everything in the lobby.

The room was pitch-black. Only the flickering neon lights outside filtered through the glass doors, casting patches of color across the wooden floor.

The multicolored neon divided the counter into different blocks of color. The ceramic surface of the lucky cat ornament reflected the shimmering lights, while the half-finished cup of coffee he had left on the bar cast a long, narrow shadow.

Could this scene, viewed through the phantom, become a memory that he could enter?

Lin Xiao tried to enter the memory before him and found that his consciousness glided effortlessly into the lobby.

It worked!

He reached out and touched the reception counter in the lobby. A message immediately flashed through his mind:

[A huge wooden counter: Replication requires 1 point of source energy.]

Having obtained his answer, Lin Xiao withdrew from the memory with complete satisfaction.

It was unbelievably powerful!

The memory generated through the phantom double’s senses was no different from one produced by his true body.

That meant that if he ever wanted to obtain some heavily guarded treasure, he could simply have the phantom double stand in for him and try to create a memory of it.

“Looks like I’ve really struck gold. The Phantom ability suits me far better than Telekinesis,” Lin Xiao exclaimed.

After confirming that Phantom could generate memories, Lin Xiao began testing its resistance to impact.

He needed to find out how much force would cause the phantom to collapse.

“I’ll start with an ordinary collision,” Lin Xiao murmured. He stepped forward and lightly bumped the phantom with his shoulder.

He used only ten percent of his strength. The phantom staggered slightly, then quickly regained its balance.

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The result eased his mind. At least he would not have to worry about being scattered by accidental contact while walking through a crowded area.

Next, Lin Xiao increased his strength. Using twenty percent of his power, he slammed into the phantom with a powerful shoulder strike.

Bang!

The phantom was knocked one step backward, but its form remained stable.

Lin Xiao continued increasing his strength. This time, he used thirty percent.

When his shoulder struck the phantom’s chest, there was a crisp pop, and the phantom’s body suddenly burst apart like a soap bubble.

Countless black specks sprayed from the rupture. They drifted and spun through the air, eventually transforming into wisps of black smoke that slowly dissipated.

The entire process took no more than two or three seconds. There was no scream, no blood—only the sensation of a black dream being punctured.

“Looks like thirty percent is the critical point,” Lin Xiao mused.

The impact test was over. Although the phantom double was rather fragile, it could withstand ordinary collisions, and that was already enough for Lin Xiao.

“What a perfect ability,” Lin Xiao sighed. “Although, that isn’t quite true. It does have one flaw: the phantom double has no sense of touch.”

What a pity!

Otherwise, Lin Xiao might have had some rather daring ideas.

With all the tests complete, Lin Xiao stretched and slowly walked toward the bedroom.

A full day of activity had left him exhausted in both body and mind. All he wanted now was a good rest.

He casually picked up the smart tablet from the bedside table and checked the day’s surveillance footage. The monitoring system had been installed the previous night and was equipped with the latest generation of risk-assessment algorithms. Through facial recognition, micro-expression analysis, behavioral-pattern analysis, and other technologies, it could intelligently evaluate potential dangers in the surrounding area.

Lin Xiao regarded checking the tablet as a mere formality. He did not expect to find any problems.

Yet the instant the screen lit up, several glaring red alerts seized his attention.

“Warning: Suspicious individual detected repeatedly in the vicinity!”

“Alert: Abnormal loitering detected in the target area!”

“Emergency: Potential threat level elevated to orange!”

Lin Xiao’s drowsiness vanished instantly.

“Looks like I’ve been too careless.” He quickly swiped across the screen and brought up the surveillance clips.

In the footage, a thin man wearing a baseball cap repeatedly appeared around the shop.

At times, he pretended to read a newspaper. At others, he squatted by the roadside and smoked. Yet his gaze remained fixed on Lin Xiao’s shop.

When the camera captured a close-up of the man looking up, Lin Xiao was startled.

That greasy face and those sly, triangular eyes—wasn’t he the peddler from the commercial street yesterday, the one who had pretended to sell snacks while actually providing cover for his accomplices?

Lin Xiao rapidly called up more surveillance footage.

Sure enough, the same familiar figure appeared at key locations, including the alley behind the shop and the side entrance.

Even more troubling was the fact that the system had also captured two other young men with bleached-blond hair coming to “case the joint” at different times. The three of them were clearly taking turns keeping watch.

What were they planning?

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Lin Xiao found it baffling. Surely they were not planning to retaliate simply because they had failed to steal any money yesterday?

He immediately dismissed the thought. If they were really doing that, they would no longer be a gang of thieves, but a gang of robbers.

Lin Xiao noticed one particular surveillance clip in which the triangular-eyed man had attempted to enter the shop to take a look. But the moment he saw Lin Xiao’s face from a distance, he hurriedly backed out in panic.

“Interesting…” Lin Xiao pondered. “This gang of thieves didn’t know this was my shop before coming to scout it out.”

That was why the triangular-eyed man had been so shocked upon seeing him.

He had not expected to run into Lin Xiao. Worse, he feared that Lin Xiao might recognize him, so he had quickly withdrawn.

Then what exactly were they after?

Whatever their goal, it had given Lin Xiao a faint sense of danger.

It seemed he needed to make some preparations…

…

The morning sunlight slipped through a gap in the curtains and cast a golden band across the bedroom floor.

Lin Xiao stretched and casually closed the game interface for Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI, which he had played all night.

With the night so quiet, it was not suitable to play Treasures of Nadia—it was liable to lead to some rather distracting activities—so Lin Xiao had chosen a strategy game instead, a reliable way to kill time.

He turned his head and saw a figure lying on the bed, identical to him in every detail.

That was his true body, breathing evenly as it remained sunk in deep sleep.

“Time to change shifts,” the phantom murmured.

The next second, Lin Xiao’s consciousness flowed out of the phantom like a receding tide and returned to his true body.

The Lin Xiao lying on the bed suddenly opened his eyes and sprang upright.

He rolled his stiff neck, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.

The night’s experiment had been a complete success. He had used the phantom to stand watch and play games while his true body enjoyed a full night’s rest.

Nothing had happened during the night, but he had discovered another use for the Phantom ability:

His true body could sleep and replenish its energy while his consciousness possessed the phantom, allowing him to remain awake without sleeping.

That meant he could gain an additional eight hours of wakefulness every day.

“The Phantom ability really is endlessly useful.” Lin Xiao happily climbed out of bed.

After washing up, he hummed a little tune as he walked toward the shop entrance.

The moment the rolling shutter clattered upward, a flash of bright yellow unexpectedly burst into view.

“After three trips, I finally get to see you, Boss!”

The girl in yellow, her hair tied into twin ponytails, stood bathed in the morning light…