Surviving the Magic Academy With Just Intelligence Stats-Chapter 130: Mind Reading

In the ethereal chamber, Ambrose regarded the suspended figure with analytical scrutiny. Her divine beauty and the massive chains that somehow failed to weigh her down created a paradoxical image that triggered his instinctive suspicion.

"What? You don't believe I'm the goddess?" she asked, her golden eyes gleaming with amusement.

"I haven't even thought about it, " he considered this silently, his expression betraying nothing.

"You don't have to think about it. It's written all over your face," she continued, her voice carrying a melodic quality that seemed to resonate within the chamber itself.

Ambrose mentally acknowledged her perceptiveness, impressed despite his skepticism.

"Thanks," she responded to his unspoken compliment, her lips curving into a knowing smile.

His analytical mind raced through possibilities. Perhaps she wasn't reading his thoughts at all, but merely pretending, using subtle cues to create an illusion of telepathy.

"Yes, I am," she answered his unvoiced hypothesis.

Ambrose allowed himself a small smile. If she truly possessed mind-reading abilities, she should be able to extract specific information from his consciousness.

"Two... no, five," she began, her golden eyes narrowing slightly as if focusing on something visible only to her. "Scratch that—1200."

The correct identification of his mentally selected number didn't fully convince him. Just a lucky guess, he thought.

"Are you for real right now?"

Perhaps she possessed some predictive talent, allowing her to anticipate his thoughts rather than read them directly.

"What?" she interjected, sounding genuinely confused.

Or more troublingly, she might be manipulating reality itself, altering his thoughts to match her statements.

"Isn't that even more difficult than mind reading?" she challenged, her chains shifting slightly as she adjusted her floating position.

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Ambrose pushed the test further. If her abilities were genuine, could he evade them by utilizing his Parallel Processing skill? He attempted to segregate his thoughts into separate streams, creating mental partitions.

"I can still read your mind. My skill isn't that easy to evade," she stated confidently, her golden eyes never leaving him. "Also, why do you care so much? Is there something you're hiding?"

Ambrose immediately recognized the clever trap she'd laid. By suggesting he was concealing something, she invited him to reflexively think of exactly what he wished to keep hidden. However, his Rational Mind skill prevented this instinctive reaction. Instead, he deliberately focused his thoughts on the chained woman before him.

"You're quite good," she acknowledged with an appreciative smile.

A plan crystallized in Ambrose's mind as he realized he might have discovered the parameters of her ability. His lips curved into a subtle smile.

"What do you mean?" she asked, her confidence wavering slightly.

Suddenly, her expression changed. Confusion flickered across her divine features, followed by unmistakable nervousness. The chamber fell silent as something unprecedented occurred—she could no longer access his thoughts.

"What number am I thinking of right now?" Ambrose asked, his smile widening at her growing discomfort.

She stared at him, her golden eyes widening with dawning realization. For perhaps the first time in her divine existence, she encountered something beyond her comprehension.

"You're not thinking?" she finally asked, disbelief evident in her melodious voice. "But that's not possible. How can you talk if you're not thinking?"

Ambrose savored this small victory over a so called divine being. "Well, you're not entirely wrong," he admitted. "I'm just thinking the moment I speak, so it doesn't matter if you read my mind."

"Huh? How's that even possible?" Bewilderment replaced her usual confidence.

"It's simple really," he stated with deliberate casualness. "I'm just thinking faster."

Her expression contorted with confusion, exactly as he'd anticipated. Internally, Ambrose congratulated himself on his successful deception. He had no intention of revealing his actual method—using his Parallel Processing to create an encrypted thought stream that transferred data to his main consciousness only when needed. This encounter had proven invaluable; he'd developed a defense against mind-reading abilities that had concerned him since meeting the War Goddess.

As he basked in this private victory, a sudden laugh from the chained divinity caused him to tense. Had she somehow penetrated his mental fortress?

"I've figured it out," she declared triumphantly.

Ambrose's expression betrayed a flicker of nervousness, which she immediately seized upon.

"Your expression confirms it," she announced with growing confidence. "It's you, right? Chosen Hero Rothschild."

"Umm, what now?"

…

The chamber reverberated with the thunderous clash of primal forces as Hualing and Princess Athena collided at the center of the room. The two apex predators locked in territorial combat, each refusing to yield even an inch of ground. The princess's transformed state granted her feline grace and devastating power, while Hualing's blood manipulation abilities allowed her to sustain damage that would have felled lesser opponents.

Athena struck with devastating precision, her clawed hands moving faster than normal eyes could track. Each blow connected with Hualing's body like a meteor impact, sending shockwaves through her frame that shattered bones and ruptured internal organs. The princess fought with the unrestrained savagery of her bestial form, yet retained enough tactical awareness to target vital areas—throat, spine, joints—seeking to incapacitate rather than merely damage.

Blood erupted from Hualing's wounds in crimson fountains, but instead of spattering across the chamber, the viscous liquid defied gravity. It hovered momentarily before flowing back into her injuries, knitting torn flesh and mending fractured bones with supernatural efficiency. Each healing cycle consumed precious resources, however, gradually depleting her reserves despite the blood she'd absorbed from fallen enemies.

Hualing responded with a barrage of her own attacks, her movements blurring as she unleashed combinations designed to overwhelm. Her fists struck with calculated brutality, targeting pressure points and nerve clusters that would have crippled normal opponents. Against the princess's transformed physiology, however, these precision strikes found little purchase. Athena's muscles had become dense as steel, her skin impervious to conventional damage.

Adjusting her strategy, Hualing summoned more of her blood from the floor, forming it into razor-sharp projectiles that orbited her body like a crimson constellation. With a gesture, she launched this deadly swarm at her opponent. The blood shards accelerated to lethal velocity, their trajectories unpredictable as they sought vulnerable points—eyes, mouth, the juncture between transformed limbs.

Princess Athena moved with fluid grace, her bestial instincts warning her of the danger. She twisted and contorted her body in impossible ways, evading most of the blood projectiles with supernatural agility. Those few that connected merely grazed her transformed skin, leaving shallow cuts that barely penetrated her enhanced defenses. Even these minor wounds served Hualing's purpose, however, as the blood from each scratch refused to fall, instead flowing upward to join her growing arsenal.

The chamber itself bore witness to their battle's intensity. Walls cracked under the pressure of bodies thrown against them, floor tiles shattered beneath powerful impacts, training equipment lay crushed and forgotten in the corners. Each time one fighter gained momentary advantage, the other would recover and retaliate with even greater ferocity, escalating the violence in a deadly spiral.

…

Athena launched herself across the room with explosive power, catching Hualing before she could fully prepare her defense. The princess slammed her opponent against the reinforced wall with bone-shattering force. The impact created a spiderweb of cracks across the seemingly impenetrable surface, dust and small fragments cascading down around them. Yet the barrier itself held firm.

The collision would have killed most warriors instantly, but Hualing's blood immediately responded, forming a protective cocoon that absorbed much of the damage. As her body peeled away from the fractured wall, she lashed out with a blood-forged blade that materialized from her forearm. The crimson weapon sliced across Athena's chest, finally drawing a significant amount of blood.

The princess howled—not in pain but in primal rage at being wounded. She responded by seizing Hualing's throat in one powerful hand, lifting her entire body off the ground with terrifying ease. Hualing's oxygen supply cut off instantly, but she didn't panic. Instead, she directed her blood to flow into the princess's hand through the minute spaces between fingers and flesh. The crimson liquid worked its way up Athena's arm, seeking entry points—pores, the fresh wound across her chest, even the corners of her transformed eyes. Once inside, Hualing's blood began its insidious work, attempting to drain the princess's vitality from within.

Athena sensed the intrusion immediately. Her bestial instincts recognized the parasitic nature of this attack, and she responded with pure survival reflex. She hurled Hualing against another section of wall with such force that the impact created a thunderous boom, the entire chamber seeming to shudder under the tremendous pressure. New fissures spread across the reinforced surface like lightning bolts, but still, the extraordinary walls held. Hualing slid to the floor, a crumpled heap surrounded by plaster dust and debris.

The princess then focused inward, her transformation power flaring brighter as she burned away the invasive blood through sheer vital energy. The display confirmed what Minghua had begun to suspect—Athena's reserves seemed almost limitless. The Blood Knight had drained enough vitality to fell multiple S-rank fighters, yet the princess showed only minimal signs of fatigue, and even worse, she seemed to be getting stronger as the fight went on. Her Battle Frenzy talent apparently granted not just enhanced physical capabilities but also extraordinary stamina and regenerative potential.