Chapter 8: The Confounded Huang Yifan

"Whenever I see Mistress Meng, I feel as if I'm very incapable, and that I still have much room for improvement."

This statement resonated strongly with everyone, and the conversation surrounding Meng Hejun continued for quite some time before everyone finally dispersed.

Fang Che and Huang Yifan had already arrived in the latter's office, and only now was Fang Che beginning to compose himself.

However, thoughts of what he had just seen and heard were still constantly racing through his mind.

Meng Hejun, Meng Chuxing, those couplets, and those bells that Meng Hejun was wearing...

Everything felt so familiar.

He couldn't help but wonder if they had known each other in his past life. Could she have been his wife? His sister?

Compared with Meng Hejun, the name Meng Chuxing evoked a far deeper emotional response within him, one of familiarity and longing.

As for Alkaid, that was the name of the final star in the Big Dipper.

Many thoughts associated with the Alkaid star sprang into his mind, but they did nothing to answer his questions.

However, he didn't want to unravel that mystery for now. Instead, he wanted to avoid it.

If such a minor interaction had had such a profound impact on him, then if he were to recover his memories and encounter an acquaintance from a past life, then his reaction would only be even more violent.

He doubted that he would be able to suppress his soul fluctuations in such a scenario, thereby putting him at a very high risk of exposure.

He didn't fear death, but he wanted to live a life of purpose with this second chance that he had been given, and the first step to doing that was preventing a premature death.

He closed his eyes and fought to compose himself, banishing the sound of those tinkling bells from his mind, even going as far as to use the Cool as Ice mental technique.

Sure enough, he was able to gradually calm down.

Prior to entering the office, Fang Che had noticed a sign on the door, indicating the office belonged to the assistant dean.

Is that who this Huang Yifan is?

Huang Yifan was accompanied by someone else, and both of them were carefully observing Fang Che, who was seated with his eyes closed.

He must be harnessing the benefits of the soul cleansing technique cast upon him.

With that in mind, the two of them decided to wait, and only after Fang Che opened his eyes of his own accord did they begin their questioning.

"You're Fang Che, right?"

"That's correct."

"My surname is Lü, and I am the superintendent of White Cloud Warrior Academy. This is Assistant Dean Huang Yifan."

Fang Che was the first-ever new student in the history of White Cloud Warrior Academy to have been granted the honor of such a grand audience, and this was only his first day.

This "accomplishment" was most likely not going to be matched for a very long time, if ever.

"You're seventeen years old, you come from the Fang Clan, a ninth-tier warrior clan in Green Wave City, and your master is Soaring Saber King Sun Yuan, is that all correct?" Superintendent Lü asked.

"It is," Fang Che replied in a relaxed manner.

"You killed over a hundred Blood Tooth Demon Wolves on your way here, is that right?"

"Yes."

"Your hunting method does not reflect your power at all, and that's why you've been called here," the superintendent explained.

Fang Che was silent for a moment, then smiled as he said, "I have been enlightened. I didn't know that intelligence isn't considered to be an element of one's power in this academy."

Superintendent Lü's expression instantly darkened upon hearing this.

"Also, I suspect this isn't the actual reason why you've called me here," Fang Che continued.

"Then what do you think the reason is?" Superintendent Lü asked.

"I don't know, I was hoping you would tell me," Fang Che replied.

Superintendent Lü and Huang Yifan fell silent with their faces set into stoic masks.

They had thought that a new student like Fang Che would be overawed by their presence and go along with whatever they said, but he was proving quite difficult to deal with.

In reality, Superintendent Lü didn't actually know the real reason why Fang Che had been called here.

That was a question that could only be answered by Huang Yifan, a thin old man with a white beard and a pair of eyes that seemed to hold boundless galaxies.

That was a telltale sign of immense mental power.

At this moment, Fang Che could see immense sorrow and pity in those unfathomably deep eyes.

He was the only one in White Cloud Warrior Academy that had been informed of Fang Che's identity.

Huang Yifan had made a name for himself two hundred years ago as the war god of the northwestern warzone, and he was currently the most powerful warrior of White Cloud Warrior Academy, with the exception of Meng Hejun, who was only the honorary dean.

"There's no need to be anxious, we called you here today to gather some information," Huang Yifan said.

"It's alright, I'm not anxious."

"Good. You arrived far earlier than everyone else, and your method of earning points was also rather unconventional, so we've called you here to verify that there wasn't any foul play involved."

He couldn't reveal the real reason, so he had to make up an excuse.

As he was speaking, he began to exert pressure on Fang Che with his aura.

There was clearly no reasoning with Fang Che, so he had to take a more forceful approach.

Fang Che felt as if there were a mountain hanging over his head, ready to fall at any moment.

It was the complete opposite of the delicacy and grace that Meng Hejun had displayed.

He immediately began sweating profusely, and he was barely able to remain upright in his chair.

Hence, he could only concede. "You're right, Assistant Dean. I'm happy to provide whatever information is required of me."

"As a safe haven and nurturing ground for all of the continent's aspiring warriors, our academy must remain free from the influence of the Church of the Self-Righteous. Hence, I need you to answer a few questions for me," Huang Yifan said as he continued to keep up the pressure.

"Please go ahead," Fang Che prompted with some sign of strain in his voice.

"Why did you become a warrior?"

Under this level of mental pressure, he was confident that Fang Che would be physically incapable of lying.

As soon as Fang Che displayed any sign of possessing a heart of evil, Huang Yifan would immediately cease his interrogation in order to avoid blowing Fang Che's cover. He could then use Fang Che's less than satisfactory answers to proclaim that he could've potentially come to academy with ulterior motives, thereby giving him just cause to deny Fang Che any rewards he would've been entitled to. From there, they would continue to observe him.

Huang Yifan had already been informed that Fang Che was a member of the One Heart Church, so he had to find a reason to strip Fang Che of his entitlement to academy rewards and benefits.

Fang Che suppressed his Five Spirit Parasite with the Boundless Sutra, then replied truthfully, "I became a warrior to protect."

After that, the mental pressure became too great for him to form coherent thoughts.

"Protect who?"

"My parents, my family, my friends, my home."

"What else?"

"The continent! Justice! Peace! Kindness!"

Huang Yifan's mental pressure wavered slightly upon hearing this.

It's like he's taken that answer straight out of a textbook! Shouldn't he be saying the opposite of this? They must've trained him well at the One Heart Church!

Meng Hejun's soul cleansing technique would've had some effect, but definitely not to this degree. If he really did possess a heart of evil, then the effects of a soul cleansing would've been all but negligible.

With that in mind, Huang Yifan slightly increased the mental pressure.

With Fang Che's current mental power, this was far too much pressure to bear, and he slumped down onto the ground from his chair, completely robbed of the ability to think.

Huang Yifan waved a hand to dismiss Superintendent Lü, who was rather perplexed by all of this, and he said in a concerned manner, "Make sure you don't go too far, Assistant Dean. He seems like a great kid to me."

"I know."

As soon as Superintendent Lü left the office, he discovered that Huang Yifan had set up a soundproofing enchantment inside, and his eyes widened in shock as he murmured to himself, "Who is this kid to be receiving this level of treatment? Could it be that he's the assistant dean's illegitimate son?"

Inside.

"What do you think of the Church of the Self-Righteous?" Huang Yifan asked.

"It deserves to be decimated and every single one of its members killed!" Fang Che replied through gritted teeth.

Huang Yifan couldn't help but draw a sharp breath at this decisive answer.

He grabbed onto his own beard before giving it a firm tug.

It hurt a little, so he definitely wasn't dreaming.

If he were to increase the mental pressure any further, then Fang Che would become mentally impaired!

"Do you see yourself as a member of the Church of the Self-Righteous?" Huang Yifan asked.

There's no way someone of his age and cultivation base can still lie through this level of mental pressure!

"No!" Fang Che replied in a categorical manner.

"Are you from the One Heart Church?"

"No."

"Are you from the Night Demon Church?"

"No."

"Are you from the Divine Heavenly Church?"

"No."

"Are you from the Church of the Self-Righteous?"

"No."

"What objective do you have for coming to White Cloud Warrior Academy?"

"To grow stronger and wipe out the Church of the Self-Righteous."

"Who are you?"

"I am... a Guardian..."

Finally, Fang Che passed out, unable to bear the pressure any longer.

Blood was trickling out of all of his orifices, presenting a sorry sight to behold.

Huang Yifan was seated in his chair in a daze, wondering if perhaps he was looking at the wrong Fang Che.

He had clearly seen that all of Fang Che's answers had been reflexive ones, and no one could've possibly lied in that situation.

Huang Yifan gave his own beard a firmer tug, this time even plucking off a few strands of hair.

"Ow!" he grimaced as he looked down at the strands of white beard hair in his hand.

What the hell is going on? This is clearly just a good kid! Which idiot told me that he's from the One Heart Church?!

This was the first time that Huang Yifan had encountered anything like this.