Editor and Proofreader: Rinrin

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Lin Wu ultimately succumbed to the irresistible call of the wild. He crept down from the upper bunk, slowly got dressed, and deliberately moved lightly, fearing to wake the three who were sleeping soundly.

But just as he finished putting on his shoes, a low voice floated down from the upper bunk: “Going out again…”

That voice was as haunting as a lonely spirit, nearly giving Lin Wu a heart attack. He took a few seconds to steady himself before whispering back, “You’re still not asleep?”

Li Junchi: “Can’t sleep…”

Lin Wu paused, his first reaction being, “You can’t be awakening to nocturnal instincts too, right?”

“Not that” Li Junchi said, “I’m exhausted, but I scrolled through too much news during the day, and now when I close my eyes, it’s like a hundred beasts are stampeding…”

Lin Wu felt like kicking him, but it wasn’t convenient in the current situation, so he could only grit his teeth and mutter, “Just clear your mind and go to sleep.”

Before Li Junchi could respond, a weak voice drifted from Ren Feiyu’s bed: “Lin Wu, be careful out there at this late hour.”

“……” Lin Wu felt drained. “Why aren’t you asleep either?”

“I could hear you tossing and turning in bed, so I knew you wouldn’t stay put tonight” Ren Feiyu said in a voice barely louder than a mosquito, afraid of waking Xia Yang. “Just be careful. I read online that the degree of awakening can vary from person to person. What if someone can’t control their frenzy?”

The chances of encountering someone in a frenzy were actually quite small, as there had been no confirmed cases of awakened individuals going berserk to date.

—

“You might as well pray that I don’t get caught by the teacher” Lin Wu thought that was more likely.

“It’s fine” Li Junchi had a plan. “If you do get caught, just say you’re Guo Xu from the 19th Vocal Music Department of the School of Arts.”

Lin Wu looked confused: “Who is that?”

Li Junchi: “A student who made me mark attendance for four elective classes but never paid me the final amount.”

Lin Wu: “…”

With the reminders of his two roommates in mind, Lin Wu finally reached for the doorknob of the dormitory.

Xia Yang: “If you come back when it’s dawn, bring me a jianbing guozi (a type of Chinese crepe)…”

Lin Wu: “…”

‘So no one is asleep after all!’

Slipping out of the dormitory building, the air outside seemed even fresher and more pleasant than during his last nighttime outing; perhaps it was just an illusion after being cooped up for the last few days.

After taking a few deep breaths, feeling completely relaxed, Lin Wu looked back up at the window of his dorm room.

He knew those three were worried about him, which was why they hadn’t fallen asleep.

The entire world was undergoing dramatic changes, but dorm 333 was still dorm 333; nothing felt more reassuring than that.

With his gaze returning to the path ahead, Lin Wu quickened his pace, first walking and then running lightly as he exited the dorm area.

Based on his previous experience, Lin Wu figured that the corridor was definitely a “high surveillance” area for teachers and decided to steer clear of it. So, he turned in the opposite direction.

Just as he finished turning, he heard a voice beside him: “Hey, are you also unable to sleep and out here?”

He turned to see an unfamiliar student.

Though they didn’t know each other, since they were both “night wanderers,” Lin Wu responded, “Yeah, can’t sleep.”

“This is your first time out, right?” The student pointed toward the corridor. “Everyone who’s night wandering is over there.”

“I know” Lin Wu appreciated the kind reminder, “but there are too many people, and it’s easy to get caught.”

The student looked puzzled: “Caught? That area is designated by the school; night wanderers can only move around there.”

The corridor’s scenic area.

Lin Wu stood in the corridor, gazing at the bustling crowd. His mind went blank, and he was left with the three existential questions: ‘Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing…’

After two days of absence, the number of night wanderers had increased geometrically, and the scene had become surreal.

There were those chatting, playing around, on their phones, mingling, and even setting up stalls!

“Over here! Hurry up! Damn it, go on—come on, I’m serious! Are you an undercover sent by the other side?”

“This is the real deal; do you want it or not? Ten yuan is the lowest I can go; any lower, and I might as well sell scrap paper.”

“Darling, let me just give you a solid color; the lighting here is bad, and painting could mess up easily…”

Lin Wu strolled through the corridor in a daze, the moonlight draping each student in a soft glow, whether they were gaming, selling second-hand goods, or doing manicures…

‘Enough.’

‘No amount of soft-focus filters could disguise the feel of a night market here! Just add some grilled skewers, chicken chops, and large squid, and this whole street would be up and running!’

‘At least a few hundred people were here; the usual evening roll call at the academy wasn’t even this lively.’

Lin Wu continued moving forward, passing small stalls and weaving through the crowd, occasionally brushing shoulders with unfamiliar students…

Gradually, that dreamlike lightness began to awaken again.

He felt as if he were in a fantastical realm.

The moonlight flowed like silk, and all beasts roamed at night.

“Keep your voices down… right, it’ll disturb the students still in their dorms… those over there, don’t wander too far; you need to stay within the designated area…”

A young teacher was maintaining order at the corner of the corridor, periodically reminding certain overly exuberant students.

【The school has defined our activity area; as long as you stay within it, you can move freely, and teachers take turns monitoring. Just don’t make a ruckus or disturb the dorms, and the teachers won’t bother you.】—When the student who had led him here said this, Lin Wu had been skeptical, but now he was thoroughly educated by the reality.

In just two short days, the chaotic night wandering had turned orderly, demonstrating the school’s quick response.

It was probably forced, Lin Wu thought with mixed feelings; all that had happened over the past month was enough to make even the most Zen person feel on edge.

After a busy while, the young teacher finally found a moment to sit down and rest.

Only then did Lin Wu see the teacher’s face clearly, and he was surprised to discover it was someone he knew.

Su Xiao, the former student council president of the Law School, had graduated last year. At that time, Lin Wu, still a freshman, met him during a school event. Su Xiao was friendly and capable, taking good care of the new students—he was the ideal upperclassman.

He had heard that he stayed at the school after graduation and became a counselor in the Foreign Languages Department. Lin Wu didn’t expect to run into him here.

Su Xiao also saw him; he was taken aback for a moment, then greeted Lin Wu naturally: “Lin Wu.”

Lin Wu nearly blurted out his name as before, but luckily, he reacted quickly and transformed “Su Xiao” into “Teacher Su…”

Well, even Lin Wu felt awkward after saying that.

Su Xiao laughed, his gentlemanly demeanor making him even more gentle as he replied: “Lin classmate.”

Lin Wu: “…You don’t need to go along with me like that.”

It felt like he had suddenly been demoted a rank.

Even though the title had changed, Lin Wu still instinctively regarded him as a friend. Since he was looking for a place to rest, he walked over and sat down next to him without hesitation.

“Can’t sleep?” Su Xiao didn’t adopt a teacherly attitude and was just like before.

“Yeah” Lin Wu sighed, “I’ve been up for two nights; I really couldn’t lie in bed anymore.”

Su Xiao looked at his dark circles: “Tough.”

“You guys have it harder” Lin Wu said sincerely, “You can’t sleep and still have to come here for duty.”

Su Xiao smiled: “Lin Wu, haven’t you thought that the teachers assigned for duty are also the backbone who can’t sleep at night?”

Lin Wu: “…”

—

Here’s the translation of your provided text:

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He almost forgot that teachers also face their own awakenings.

When one has been a child for long enough, even if their body matures, they subconsciously still regard their own world as separate from the outside world and from adults, believing it to be unconnected.

Lin Wu suddenly became curious about the direction of Su Xiao’s awakening. If he were also a nocturnal creature, what would he be?

“I don’t know” Su Xiao suddenly  said.

Lin Wu was taken aback: “Huh?”

Su Xiao continued, “I don’t know what animal I am, and I’m not even sure if I’m a nocturnal one. Although most of the on-duty teachers have clear nocturnal traits, I sometimes feel sleepy at night too, so I just end up blending into the duty roster.”

Lin Wu: “…”

‘Is this possible? Is this mind reading? An inherited skill or a newly awakened one?!’

Su Xiao smiled at him, his brows turned gentle.

Lin Wu swallowed hard and subtly shifted back a little, feeling that if he didn’t create some distance, his inner secrets might be completely exposed.

Last year, during an event they organized together, Lin Wu thought Su Xiao was quite impressive. He was gentle and polite to everyone, but he managed to resolve even the most challenging issues smoothly, making even the most troublesome students obedient like little lambs.

At that time, Lin Wu felt admiration. Today, perhaps because the night was so beautiful that everything felt dangerous, he suddenly thought that this person could very well be someone who would sell you out and help count the money.

Across from them, in the shadow of a pillar in the corridor.

Wang Ye’s wolf-like version of Temple Run was once again a game over.

In the brief moment of waiting to re-enter, he looked up at the diagonal front again.

The student beside him, Yuan Sixue, couldn’t hold back any longer: “You’ve watched it almost nine hundred and ninety-nine times. Do you know those two people?”

Wang Ye ignored him, focusing on starting a new game.

Yuan Sixue was practically dying of curiosity. There weren’t many things that could capture Wang Ye’s interest, let alone people.

“Are you ready? — DJ, drop the beat!”

The sudden shout nearly sent Yuan Sixue away.

After the hoarse opening, a deafening bass kicked in, the rhythm was infectious, and the atmosphere was electric.

All the students in the corridor, regardless of what they were doing, almost simultaneously stood up and craned their necks to look.

Not far away, on a slightly more open patch of grass, four speakers were blasting simultaneously. A group of male students had their arms around each other’s shoulders, swaying their heads in time with the beat.

‘…Dancing in the middle of the night?!’

Lin Wu was taken aback. This was truly a scene where the heart had rhythm, and the moon could serve as a disco ball.

Also, this had to be seen as a provocation, right? It was a blatant slap in the face to the on-duty teachers.

Sure enough, Su Xiao frowned slightly and hurried over.

The students who were watching didn’t seem to care about the chaos and quickly surrounded the scene. A senior who was halfway through her manicure brought her nail lamp and power strip along, unwilling to miss the live show.

Lin Wu missed his chance and could only stand in the corridor, gazing from a distance. Fortunately, his view was slightly elevated, and he could vaguely see the center of the commotion. Leading the charge was a rather dapper boy, with large eyes that made him look a bit like a girl from afar. Unfortunately, his outfit was extremely ostentatious, almost like he was wearing a huge gold chain.

Seeing Su Xiao approach, that boy not only didn’t look flustered but also proudly raised his neck, clearly ready for a showdown.

Lin Wu sensed something subtle brewing.

From the looks of it, this wasn’t just a free-for-all; it seemed like he was deliberately looking for trouble with Su Xiao.

Lin Wu began to worry for Su Xiao, as, with so many students around, regardless of any personal grievances, it would be difficult for a teacher to manage the situation.

To his surprise, Su Xiao didn’t confront the boy up close. Instead, he stopped at the inner circle of onlookers and took out his phone, seemingly sending a message.

Soon, Lin Wu saw that the dapper and ostentatious boy pulled out his own phone to take a look.

Then, he cursed in a dialect that sounded like Sichuanese^[1]people from Sichuan province in southwestern china. Lin Wu couldn’t catch it clearly, but after the curse, the boy left angrily, leaving behind a group of male students who had been dancing with him and a crowd of onlookers who were stunned.

Only then did Su Xiao walk over, neatly unplugging the speakers. In the now quiet night, he calmly looked at the remaining “comrades”: “School, department, year, name.”

The comrades responded, “Teacher, we’re not from this school…”

Su Xiao: “Oh. School, department, year, name.”

Comrades: “Teacher…”

With their big boss gone, the little brothers were now on the verge of tears.

As the farce came to an end, Lin Wu turned his gaze away.

It was hard to imagine Su Xiao getting into conflicts with others, but the opponent’s combat effectiveness was indeed lacking. They made such a big fuss, and in the end, they were taken down in one round.

As Lin Wu contemplated these things, he was about to sit down again when he suddenly felt a strange sensation, as if someone was watching him in the dark.

He looked around and finally spotted Wang Ye, leaning against a pillar in the corridor, playing on his phone.

“Hey.” Wang Ye greeted him in his usual manner.

But since he had taken the initiative, Lin Wu also responded “warmly”: “Hey.”

Yuan Sixue, who had been completely ignored, felt out of place: “…”

He really was just in the way standing there.