Chapter Seventeen: Three Skills Remained

Taking a deep breath, Wang Ling suppressed the budding thoughts in his heart. Entering the water pipe in the current princess-carry pose was out of the question—the pipe was simply too narrow. He recalled the situation in the aquatic realm earlier and, with an embracing motion, drew Peach close to him.

This was not only the most space-efficient position, allowing them to slide down the pipe together, but it served another purpose: Peach seemed to lack any underwater breathing skill, and soon enough, he might have to share air mouth-to-mouth.

Princess Peach’s body was soft, almost boneless; when Wang Ling pulled her into his arms, she trembled slightly. After all, this embrace pressed them together so closely they could feel each other’s warmth and heartbeat.

Holding her tight, Wang Ling jumped into the water pipe. As soon as they entered, the water inside began to swirl, pulling them down in a spiral. After about half a minute, they plunged into an expanse of water.

Peach let out a pained moan. In conditions of nervousness and a racing heart, oxygen consumption increases dramatically. A girl unaccustomed to holding her breath would naturally feel discomfort after being underwater for so long.

Wang Ling scanned the watery surroundings; there were no giant squids or other monsters. Far above, he saw the opening of another pipe—it looked like the exit.

He had a thin membrane over his nose and mouth that filtered air, so speaking was unaffected. He whispered into Peach’s ear, “We may be underwater for a while. I’ll share air with you through my mouth. Don’t panic—make sure you don’t let water into your mouth.”

Seeing Peach nod painfully, Wang Ling took a deep breath and pressed his lips to her soft ones—the underwater breathing membrane didn’t hinder contact; he’d bitten a squid’s tentacle earlier without any obstruction.

Every thirty seconds or so, Wang Ling shared air with her. After more than twenty minutes, he finally managed to swim out of the water with her, climbing with difficulty out of a tall pipe.

Peach emerged, coughing violently, her complexion fading from pink to pale. The prolonged time underwater, even with Wang Ling sharing air, had pushed the delicate girl to her limits.

Wang Ling noticed her pink dress was soaking wet, clinging to her body and outlining her graceful curves. The shape of her slender legs was visible as well. He quickly shook his head and turned his gaze to their surroundings, trying to figure out where they were.

He realized they had emerged from a tall green pipe, and the scenery was strikingly familiar. His heart stirred: “Isn’t this the place we entered at the start?”

Standing up and examining the area carefully, Wang Ling confirmed it: this was the location of the first pipe in the first castle, Area One (1-1). He hadn’t expected the water pipe underwater to connect directly with the entry pipe.

At that moment, the Dream Badge prompted him: “Dreamer No. 10521, the main quest of the Novice World—defeat King Koopa, complete; rescue Princess Peach, complete. The main quest is finished. The skills you temporarily acquired from Mario’s generous teaching will soon disappear.”

“Based on the increased difficulty of the main quest and your performance, you may choose three skills to retain. The retained skills will become LV1.”

Upon hearing the Dream Badge’s message, Wang Ling exhaled softly. He wasn’t disappointed. The number of skills he could keep was clearly tied to his performance in the final area. He hadn’t defeated Koopa with brute force, but by relying on the stone bridge mechanism, sending the turtle into the magma river.

Mario’s four basic skills and six others—retaining them all was impossible. In any case, keeping three was already excellent and within his expectations.

Since basic skills were prerequisites for learning and using other skills, Wang Ling reasoned there would be other ways to acquire them later. With only three choices, he wouldn’t waste them here.

Even so, it was difficult to pick just three from the remaining six.

Wang Ling’s first decision was to keep Sprint. No matter what world or situation he encountered, speed was an advantage. Sprint, though an active skill and consuming mental energy while running, would be useful everywhere.

“Sprint, Super Jump, Mario’s Head Stomp—these could form a synergistic system… Should I keep these three?” Wang Ling was tempted, but after careful consideration, he abandoned the idea, eliminating Mario’s Head Stomp, the skill rated highest among all.

It was a grade C attack skill with strict activation conditions: you had to step precisely on the enemy’s head to deal damage. The higher the jump, the greater the damage—but the skill had a fatal weakness: jumping made you an easy target. During the battle with Koopa, he’d been struck by a flying hammer, proving this flaw.

With this skill, to inflict heavy damage, you had to jump very high. If the enemy could attack from a distance—say, with a magma beam or gunfire—you might get killed before landing.

Besides, pure offensive skills would surely be available later.

As for Super Jump, Wang Ling hesitated over whether to keep it. He focused instead on the other three: Iron Head, Iron Legs, Underwater Breathing. He quickly eliminated Underwater Breathing.

Undoubtedly, it would be invaluable in certain terrains, but not every world required it. Using an oxygen tank or goggles could also achieve underwater stealth. With only three choices, he had to discard this unnecessary skill.

Now, he just needed to eliminate one more. He reviewed the descriptions for Super Jump, Iron Head, and Iron Legs several times, and decided against keeping Super Jump.

Increasing jump height and distance wasn’t as useful as damage reduction—especially when not strong yet. Iron Head and Iron Legs were both passive skills, reducing damage proportionally. Such skills were far more precious and practical.

With his choices settled, the Dream Badge dropped the skills to LV1 and displayed their stats:

“Sprint: When running at full speed, you can enter a sprinting state. Current level: LV1. In sprint state, your speed increases by 10%, consuming 1 point of mental energy per second. Your jumping power increases by 10%, agility decreases by 10%.
Learning and usage requirement: Basic Footwork LV2.
Skill type: Active. Skill rating: E.”

“Iron Head: You possess a head as hard as steel. Current level: LV1. Your head’s resistance to blows is increased; this area is less prone to injury or abnormal states. Physical attacks against this area deal 10% less damage.
Learning and usage requirement: Basic Parry LV2, Basic Endurance LV2.
Skill type: Passive. Skill rating: D.”

“Iron Legs: You possess legs and feet as hard as steel. Current level: LV1. Your legs and feet’s resistance to blows is increased; this area is less prone to injury or abnormal states. Physical attacks against this area deal 10% less damage.
Learning and usage requirement: Basic Parry LV2, Basic Endurance LV2.
Skill type: Passive. Skill rating: D.”

After reviewing the skill stats, Wang Ling understood: “At LV7, the damage reduction is 70%; at LV1, it’s just 10%. Now, these look more like the stats expected for E and D skills… Clearly, the gap between low and high LV levels is enormous!”

“But the potential of these three skills is tremendous. For example, Iron Head at LV7 reduces physical damage by 70%. If the skill can be raised to LV10, what would the stats be—100% reduction? That would be absurd… But imagining how powerful it could become is exciting!”

Excitement and anticipation welled up in Wang Ling’s heart.

“Skill selection complete. In thirty minutes, your time in this world will end, and you will return to Dreamspace.”

At the Dream Badge’s prompt, Wang Ling was startled. Though he’d spent less than a day in the Super Mario world, after all the fighting and challenges, pouring in his focus, it felt as if far longer had passed. Moreover, he’d developed genuine affection for the rescued Princess Peach, and now, in just thirty minutes, they would be separated—a wave of reluctance swept over him.

Peach had recovered from her underwater discomfort, her cheeks once again flushed with pink. Wang Ling looked at her, pain flickering in his eyes. “Now that I’ve rescued you, I imagine the Mushroom Chancellor and everyone else can rest easy.”

Princess Peach didn’t speak much, responding quietly.

“My task is complete, and I have to leave…”

At his words, Peach’s face turned pale. For the hero who had saved her from the terrifying King Koopa, she felt a strong sense of dependence. And Wang Ling’s earlier boldness made her both shy and fond of him. Hearing he was leaving suddenly felt like a heavy stone pressed on her chest, making it hard to breathe.

“Why do you have to leave? Come to my castle—the palace is very large, you could live there…”

Wang Ling shook his head, his voice tinged with sadness. “There are things I must do, so I have to leave. I can’t stay with you.”

“Will you… will you come back?”

“I don’t know.” Wang Ling smiled bitterly. Though there were many Mario games, he couldn’t guarantee he would return to the Mario world during future quests. Even if he did, he couldn’t know if this Peach would be the same or remember him.

Peach lowered her head in silence. Pearly tears slipped from her eyes, falling to the ground. After weeping quietly for a while, she raised her head, gathering courage. “If you come back, please visit me in the palace… I—I wouldn’t mind seeing you again…”

Seeing Wang Ling nod in agreement, Peach, though tears still glistened in her eyes, smiled. She threw herself into his arms, embracing him tightly as she had in the water. Wang Ling wrapped one arm around her back, the other gently stroking her silky golden hair.

They hugged for a full ten minutes before Wang Ling released her, saying, “After all, we’re still in Koopa’s castle. Let’s leave this place first.”