Chapter 157: Unscrupulous Relatives

Qing's identity certainly could not be exposed. When asked about her family background, Chen must have fabricated some story that painted the higher-ups of the Sacred Martial Hall, including himself, as heartless and unscrupulous relatives.

Unable to deny this now, Bairwen had no choice but to go with the flow and say, "Well, regardless of everything else, I came here to see her this time. How is Yuqing doing?"

"She's doing all right. Fortunately, she's a strong girl. If it had been anyone else, I shudder to think how they would have coped with such a blow!" Luo Chen continued his chatter, then suddenly remembered something. "Wait! Yuqing's... wait a minute. If you're here to visit classmate Zhuo Yuqing, why are you looking for me?"

Luo Chen grew nervous. Could this old man have heard the rumors circulating around the academy? Thinking of this, he quickly clarified, "Old man, let me make this clear first. There is nothing going on between classmate Zhuo Yuqing and me. All of that is a misunderstanding; we are just very ordinary friends! Even if we seem a bit close, at most we can only be considered hunting partners. Because she ran away from home without any money, she teamed up with me to go hunting—"

"Hahaha, don't worry, I'm not suspecting anything," Bairwen said with a slight smile. "I just felt guilty toward Yuqing and was too embarrassed to inquire about her directly. Since you said you're her friend, I came to ask you first."

"Oh, so that's how it is!" Luo Chen relaxed.

Meanwhile, Bairwen began observing Luo Chen. Sean was right; this young man indeed possessed an aura similar to that of a Celestial Being, seamlessly blending into nature.

According to the latest intelligence, he was only at the fifth-level psionic tier. How could his psionic affinity be so strong?

Furthermore, Luo Chen's formidable spiritual power might be related to this celestial aura. He decided to probe the young man's depths first.

As they conversed, an invisible wisp of energy extended from Bairwen, enveloping Luo Chen like a tentacle. It was none other than the "Hand of Sumeru," the very technique Zhuo Yuqing had once used to spy on Luo Chen. This technique had been taught to Zhuo Yuqing by Bairwen himself. Being a Celestial Being, Bairwen naturally used it with consummate skill, capable of casting it effortlessly even while walking and talking.

The aura gently settled onto Luo Chen and began to seep bit by bit into his body, while Bairwen continued talking as if nothing were happening, diverting Luo Chen's attention. With any other young man, he wouldn't have needed to be so cautious. However, Luo Chen's spiritual power was well over seven thousand points and could not be underestimated; it was better to proceed with care.

Spying from the outside was fine, but the moment the aura penetrated inward, Luo Chen, who had been chattering away nonstop, suddenly let out an "Eh?"

He noticed it!

Bairwen couldn't help but feel a start of surprise. What acute spiritual perception! Even with his Hand of Sumeru, he had left no trace—yet Luo Chen could sense it the moment it barely penetrated. If he pushed any deeper, he would surely be exposed!

Bairwen sighed inwardly and smoothly withdrew his spiritual power. Even if the spiritual probe failed, he could retreat gracefully, making Luo Chen think it was just his imagination.

"Feels like an ant!" Luo Chen scratched his body before continuing to righteously lecture the high-ranking official of the Sacred Martial Research Department, "Look, Bairwen must be sensible. Even if you need to spend some money on her, she will definitely repay you in the future, returning it a hundredfold! Besides, family affection cannot be measured by money alone!"

Bairwen prudently abandoned his spiritual probe on Luo Chen and chuckled, "Heh heh, I know I was wrong."

"The fact that you even know to come to the academy to visit classmate Zhuo Yuqing proves your conscience isn't entirely dead!" Luo Chen nodded approvingly, adopting an elder-like tone. "Alright, as it happens, I'm going to see classmate Zhuo Yuqing right now. I might as well take you along!"

If Luo Chen knew at this moment that he was lecturing a Celestial Being and a high-ranking member of the Sacred Martial Hall, he would probably have been frightened out of his wits. However, believing Bairwen to be merely the relative who had adopted Zhuo Yuqing, he acted without the slightest bit of polite reservation.

***

Listening to Luo Chen's endless chatter along the way, Bairwen thought to himself that ever since he entered the Sacred Martial Hall, he had never been lectured like this. To be given such a thorough scolding all of a sudden felt quite novel.

They finally arrived at the agreed-upon location, where the campus belle was already waiting. Luo Chen called out from afar, "Classmate Zhuo Yuqing, look who I brought!"

Seeing Bairwen, Zhuo Yuqing's beautiful eyes widened in shock. Professor Bairwen!

"Haha, surprised, right? Classmate Zhuo Yuqing, although I didn't get your permission, I figured you are family after all, and this family member came all the way to the academy to visit you. Even if there were misunderstandings before, they should be cleared up now, right?" Luo Chen seemed to have contracted the good habit of Mentor Andrew, the "Mr. Harmony," constantly acting as a peacemaker between the two.

"Bairwen... Professor," Zhuo Yuqing stammered. "Thank you for looking after me along the way; we truly failed you!"

Zhuo Yuqing didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Had this foolish boy actually lectured Professor Bairwen? Was he out of his mind? Just what kind of person was Professor Bairwen—was he someone you could just lecture at will? He was simply courting death! Ah!

Among the members of the Sacred Martial Research Department, Bairwen had treated Zhuo Yuqing the best, which was why she still maintained some politeness toward him. "Professor Bairwen..."

"Aish, Yuqing, how can you address a family member like that? So formal!" Luo Chen started nagging again, but then corrected himself immediately, "Uh, Professor..."

Although Bairwen was a Celestial Being, inside the Sacred Martial Hall, members were more accustomed to addressing each other by their professional ranks.

Bairwen shot Zhuo Yuqing a look to keep her from blowing his cover, then said to Luo Chen, "Ah, well, I'm a scholar, specializing in history."

"Wow, I didn't expect you to even be at the professor level. That's amazing!" Luo Chen exclaimed dramatically. "However, since you're a scholar, you should understand reason even better."

"All right, Captain, stop talking!" Zhuo Yuqing was genuinely worried that if Luo Chen continued running his mouth, he would offend Bairwen—and this high-ranking official was the one who had treated her best.

Bairwen, however, only smiled gently. "It's fine, Yuqing. Classmate Luo Chen is right; I haven't cared enough about you in the past. That's why I specially came from afar to see you today. By the way, could we have a moment to talk alone?"

Luo Chen chimed in, "Yeah, classmate Zhuo Yuqing, an old man coming all this way to the academy isn't easy. Let's skip the hunting today; you two have a good chat, and we can resume next week. I'll take my leave now, poof!"

With that, Luo Chen bolted away in a flash, leaving the two of them a chance to clear the air. Little did he know that the situation was vastly different from what he imagined.

Watching Luo Chen walk away, Bairwen turned to Zhuo Yuqing and said, "Your friend is quite interesting. He's a good kid."

Zhuo Yuqing looked at Bairwen, feeling a twinge of anxiety. Could it be that the Sacred Martial Hall had gone back on its word and changed its attitude toward her, which was why they sent Bairwen?

If that were truly the case, she would fight to the bitter end. She would never submit this time!

Noticing her apprehension, Bairwen smiled and said, "Relax, Yuqing. I'm just here to check in on you while passing by."

The heart hanging in Zhuo Yuqing's chest finally dropped a little, but Bairwen continued, "Furthermore, the Research Department is rather interested in that friend of yours."

***

Zhuo Yuqing's heart tightened once again. Being scouted by the Sacred Martial Hall should have been every young person's dream, but being scouted by the Sacred Martial Research Department was not a stroke of good fortune—it was a tragedy.

Luo Chen's recent performances had actually alarmed the Sacred Martial Research Department. If he were targeted and dragged off for experiments, he would likely be doomed beyond redemption. She already owed Luo Chen too much; she didn't want to see him dragged into the abyss because of her.

At this thought, Zhuo Yuqing said coldly, "Professor Bairwen, you know what kind of person I am. What I told Sean last time still stands! If you people do anything to Luo Chen, your most important research to date will suffer a devastating blow very soon!"

"Yuqing, you're still as stubborn and unyielding as ever," Bairwen chuckled. "However, you've also changed somewhat. In the past, you would never have stood up to protect anyone, nor would you have cared about the life or death of another person."

Zhuo Yuqing retorted tit for tat, "That's because I never had friends before. But now, Luo Chen is my friend!"

"Heh heh, Yuqing, seeing this change in you... honestly, I'm very happy for you," Bairwen continued. "Don't worry, Luo Chen will be fine. I already probed him with the Hand of Sumeru just now, and I found nothing. When I return to the Sacred Martial Hall, I will tell the others that this young man's spiritual power is indeed quite special, but his psionic energy shows no abnormalities. Perhaps his spiritual boost is the result of a 'spiritual breakthrough'—after anything can happen to someone who has experienced a breakthrough."

Among the higher-ups, Bairwen was the most benevolent. In truth, the other leaders of the research department weren't entirely cruel or heartless either, but sitting in their positions, they had to put the Sacred Martial Hall and their research above everything else, casting personal morality aside. Bairwen, however, was somewhat more rational.

Since Luo Chen was Zhuo Yuqing's good friend, Bairwen really didn't want to use him as a test subject. Moreover, with Zhuo Yuqing adopting such a resolute, do-or-die attitude, Bairwen decided to let the matter drop after going through the motions.

Zhuo Yuqing was momentarily stunned. She had expected to go through a great deal of trouble to convince Bairwen, and she hadn't anticipated it going this smoothly. "Thank you, Professor Bairwen!"

Bairwen looked at her. This girl had always been full of boundless vitality within the Sacred Martial Hall, brimming with inexhaustible energy and mischievous ideas, seemingly content only if she turned the world upside down. Yet, there had always been a faint trace of sorrow lingering between her brows.

Now, that trace of sorrow had completely vanished. It seemed that having shaken off her shackles, she was indeed living very well now, having found a life and friends of her own.

Although the Perfect Human Project had suffered some setbacks due to Zhuo Yuqing's fierce resistance, Bairwen was in a very good mood right now, largely because he had always treated Zhuo Yuqing like his own granddaughter.

"Alright, no need to be so formal. I haven't left the Holy Light Continent in a long time. Today is a holiday at the academy, right? Yuqing, you're the local expert in Miracle City now. How about acting as an old man's guide and accompanying me for a walk around?"

"Yes, Professor!"