Lin Qing felt a jolt in her heart.

This wasn’t part of the plan.

There’s no doubt, this was Honglian’s method of verification—she might really be as the other party claimed, not very familiar with mechanisms, but clearly she couldn’t verify things she didn’t understand herself. For now, the only thing she was sure of knowing was herself.

However, Lin Qing knew that the transactions at the Ability Store were fair trade; if the other party didn’t agree, Chen Xuan wouldn’t be able to take any ability from her.

Using pop-up reminders to deceive Wang Baihu was calculating with intent, but now that Honglian mentioned it, it’s evidently unlikely she’d fall for the same trick; she probably would consider every detail.

"This..."

"Agree with her," Chen Xuan said decisively.

"Are you sure?" Lin Qing cautioned him in her mind, "She’s not easy to fool."

"Rest assured, I have my methods. Just follow and repeat what I say." 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

"Alright, I’ll contact the World Ability Center for you," Lin Qing offered with a shrug.

"Wait," Honglian seemed somewhat surprised, "Right now? We don’t need to leave this place for that?"

"Normally, barriers can’t hinder Shixin’s power; it can traverse worlds, spaces, even time..." She took out her phone, switched to video call mode, and placed it on the table.

"Now it’s watching you."

Honglian stared warily at the screen, but couldn’t see what’s on the other side... It’s like a pitch-black mirror, and upon closer inspection, could only see her face approaching.

"Your abilities... there are four," Lin Qing suddenly said, "They are ’King’s Castle’, ’Shifting Form and Shadow’, ’Mind Fortress’, and ’Encyclopedia of Ancient and Modern’... Hmm? Two displacement-type abilities?"

Honglian gasped inwardly.

Wow! The legendary ability-consciousness collection really does have the power to see through all abilities at a glance! Her colleagues all thought that she moved items around solely with ’King’s Castle’, but in fact, she used two abilities—’King’s Castle’ was limited to herself and an object, while object-to-object exchange was done with ’Shifting Form and Shadow’, something she hadn’t told anyone.

The Dimensional Limit Mechanism certainly knew about this; during a physical examination at headquarters, the result was dual abilities.

Honglian had always considered those two abilities as her all.

Unexpectedly, the other party not only easily saw through her hand but added two more abilities.

"’Mind Fortress’... ’Encyclopedia of Ancient and Modern’? She couldn’t help but repeat, "What are those?"

"Consider them passive abilities," Lin Qing replied according to Chen Xuan’s explanation, "Most people find it hard to perceive their existence, yet they’re widespread among humans. For example, if you know a lot about history, the ability ’Encyclopedia of Ancient and Modern’ appears."

To her astonishment, Honglian found it baffling, "A person’s ability... isn’t it caused by mutations from erosion?"

How could it be obtained through learning?

Under this theory, wouldn’t all history major students be considered Ability Users?

"Narrow-minded," Lin Qing scoffed, "Ability is innate, it’s cognition, it’s the accumulation of experience, and it’s a cosmic gift. It’s far more complex and expansive than you can imagine."

"Really?" At the end, she quietly confirmed.

"I made it up," Chen Xuan shrugged, "I can’t just say abilities are commodities for trade."

Plus, he wasn’t completely fabricating.

Currently, Liu Shuyue’s world, Angel’s world, and the world he was in... all have independently existing ability systems, and all these abilities can be identified by the scanner gun. Just using the erosion theory is evidently incorrect.

"By the way, your four abilities are blue level 3, blue level 5, purple level 1, and green level 2," Lin Qing supplemented according to Chen Xuan’s instructions, "You’ve learned history well, studied with professionals?"

Even with color and level distinctions? Honglian was again slightly shocked. She had never heard of these descriptions in the Mechanism, and the Dimensional Limit Mechanism was already the most knowledgeable about abilities in this world.

"...I’ve consulted with history professors," her answer unconsciously included a trace of reverence, "because when dealing with C-level intrusion, it’s essential to avoid historical disruption cautiously."

"Don’t worry, Shixin has said it, historical changes won’t spread to the other side of the intrusion point, you don’t need to worry about paradoxes. Moreover, the Mechanism’s classification method is fundamentally wrong, and they will soon realize this themselves."

"..." Honglian fell silent. Again, it seemed like she knew nothing and the other party was the real Mechanical Officer.

"Now the world ability will grant you a new ability... get ready, it’s not that comfortable."

As Lin Qing finished speaking, invisible hands seemed to choke her throat!

"Ugh—"

Honglian instinctively covered her throat, inhaling sharply.

But the suffocating feeling barely alleviated, didn’t completely vanish.

Is it an illusion?

No... she truly felt that she couldn’t breathe, as if part of her lung were missing, every breath required her full effort otherwise she’d suffocate. Within just ten seconds, sweat already appeared on her forehead.

"This ability is called ’Breathing Difficulty’... It won’t kill you immediately, but it’s enough to ruin your remaining life," Lin Qing’s calm voice seemed to come from afar, "With your physical condition, you might survive three or four years, but don’t think about fighting; a mere few hundred meters will leave you breathless. It’s not a disease, so modern medicine is helpless against it..."

"Strange, isn’t it? Abilities can also be purely negative, now you’ve witnessed it. Let me know if you’ve experienced enough."

Honglian gasped twice, gritting her teeth at Lin Qing, "How do I know it’s not your ability... causing it?"

"Me? Using an ability from far away on you?" She raised a smile, "Miss Honglian, have you forgotten? This is Elorie’s Consciousness Space? The ability is granted to the body, not the mind... At this moment, you’re in a room with only Wang Baihu."

In other words, if someone was using an ability on her, causing her difficulty in breathing, that person could only be Wang Baihu.

Her suspicion indeed didn’t make sense.

Honglian nodded, "Alright... what about removal?"

"Please look at the screen," Lin Qing pointed at the phone.

When she looked away, the strong discomfort instantly vanished, and her breathing returned to its previous smoothness. This process was indeed unrelated to her will; whether she agreed or rejected inwardly, the other party accomplished exactly as described in Wang Baihu’s account.

Unbelievable, this completely overturned the Mechanism’s understanding of abilities!

It actually separated abilities from the individual...

"How did you do it?" Lin Qing whispered, "Isn’t taking abilities supposed to require the other party’s consent?"

"I didn’t take it away, just gave her additional abilities," Chen Xuan chuckled. Since the unidirectional request mode requires consent, just use a secretive transaction—involve ’Weak and Ill’ and ’Deficiency of Blood and Energy’, and together they merge into ’Living Dead’, she’ll naturally not feel the side effects of a single ability.

"You’re really something," Lin Qing couldn’t help but praise him, then spoke to Honglian, "So, do you now believe that there’s power in the world beyond your and the Mechanism’s understanding?"

Honglian slightly nodded, "Though I hate to admit it, this phenomenon is indeed unheard of. What’s the World Ability Center’s true purpose? Is it just to save Elorie? What I want to know is... There are tens of thousands of Ability Users in our world alone, countless across other worlds, does it pay attention to each one of us?"

This seems impractical.

The Dimensional Limit Mechanism once eliminated a Wanderer, and till now, many Ability Users have died in mutual conflicts, yet the World Ability Center hasn’t shown any sign, otherwise the Mechanism wouldn’t be completely unaware of it.

From this angle, it presumably doesn’t care about an Ability User’s personal fate.

"You’re close to the answer by considering this." Lin Qing paused deliberately to heighten her focus, "Shixin is not concerned with individuals but with countless intertwined worlds... It interferes when a world shows signs of heading towards destruction."

Honglian frowned tightly, "Do you mean—"

"It’s not my implication but the warning conveyed by Shixin," Lin Qing emphasized, "It told me that this world is already on the brink of destruction."