Living with Tang Yue

"This house really isn't livable anymore."

Lin Lan looked at his room with helplessness written all over his face. The bed had been burned, the table was gone, and the room was flooded. The floor was covered in blood, while six pools of black liquid gave off a stench so foul it was even more disgusting than a septic tank.

"The Black Vatican is truly insane. Why the hell did they ambush me for no reason? Looks like they didn't know I'm usually very cautious. Someone had disguised themselves and passed by my house several times, thinking I wouldn't notice."

"But how did I catch the Black Vatican's attention?"

After thinking it over, Lin Lan decided there was only one possibility. "That idiot Yu Ang. Damn it, he saw me acting together with the Arbitration Council and, considering my identity, probably mistook me for a reserve member of the Arbitration Council. He was afraid I'd interfere with the Black Vatican's plan to seize the Earth Sacred Spring."

"Either way, I can't live in this house anymore. Since these Black Vatican members haven't returned, Intermediate Level Full Cultivation experts might come after me soon." With that in mind, Lin Lan decided to seek out his beloved Teacher Tang Yue and immediately called her...

"Hello, Lin Lan. What is it?" Tang Yue's voice came through as soon as the call connected.

"Teacher Tang Yue, something happened here. A few Black Vatican members who didn't know their place came to my house to kill me, but..."

"What did you say?! I'm coming over right now!" Tang Yue's voice was urgent. She hung up before Lin Lan could finish speaking. Lin Lan was a little stunned, but it seemed Teacher Tang Yue really cared about her good student.

Lin Lan didn't call again. Even if he did, Tang Yue probably wouldn't be able to answer—she was likely rushing over using Shadow Element magic. So he simply waited there, which would also let Tang Yue inspect the situation...

After waiting for around ten minutes, Lin Lan was still scrolling through videos of beautiful women and laughing when a figure emerged from the darkness, startling him.

"Holy shit! Teacher Tang Yue, next time you appear with Shadow Element magic, give me a warning first. I thought a ghost had come."

Once Lin Lan saw who it was, he teased Tang Yue.

"Are you all right?" Tang Yue's beautiful eyes were filled with concern as she kept looking Lin Lan over from head to toe.

"Teacher Tang Yue, don't look at me with such passionate eyes. I'll get embarrassed."

Lin Lan said with a smile, though he was genuinely touched. Tang Yue was his mentor and had always helped him. If he'd had a teacher like her in his previous world, he might have gotten into Tsinghua or Peking University.

"As long as you're fine. Where are the Black Vatican people?"

Seeing that Lin Lan was unharmed, Tang Yue finally relaxed and asked.

"I killed them all. Two are inside the room, and two are in that patch of woods."

As Lin Lan spoke, he pointed toward the woods. His home was in Bocheng's old district, and there was an undeveloped forest behind it. Whenever he had nothing to do, Lin Lan liked to go up there for a walk and clear his mind.

"Take me to see them."

Tang Yue said to Lin Lan.

Lin Lan first took Tang Yue to the woods to inspect the two headless corpses.

"You were far too brutal."

Tang Yue couldn't help glaring at Lin Lan when she saw the headless bodies.

"Teacher Tang Yue, I especially despise Black Vatican members. These people can't even be called human anymore—they can only be described as beasts."

Lin Lan looked innocent. He had only acted in self-defense. They had come to his home to destroy things and kill him, so being a little brutal was hardly wrong.

"All right, let's look at your room."

Tang Yue said nothing more. Lin Lan was right—Black Vatican people had long since lost their humanity.

The room was still the same, unpleasant to look at.

"Six Black Beast Demons and four mages. How did you manage that? You've been hiding some of your strength, haven't you?"

Tang Yue stared at Lin Lan, desperately wanting an answer. She simply could not see through his strength. A student who was so decisive in killing and possessed such formidable power—fortunately, he was not on the Black Vatican's side.

"I've reached the Intermediate Level."

Lin Lan said calmly.

"You can explain the Black-robed Scholar and the Gray-robed Cultist with the Lightning Element."

"But even if you reached the Intermediate Level, that still doesn't explain the deaths of these two Gray-robed Cultists. They clearly weren't killed by lightning—they died from gravity."

A glint flashed through Tang Yue's eyes. She had discovered the oddity and firmly voiced her conclusion, a meaningful smile curving her lips.

"All right. Teacher Tang Yue, I actually have Innate Dual Element. My strongest magic is the Space Element, and it's my Space Element that has reached the Intermediate Level."

"Also, I have an innate Lightning Element spirit seed."

After thinking it over, Lin Lan decided to tell Tang Yue. Shifting space appeared in one hand, while violent bright-white arcs of electricity flickered in the other before Tang Yue's eyes.

There was no point in hiding it anymore, and he could not keep it hidden anyway. One day, he would reveal it to the world. At that moment, Lin Lan's invincible bearing would amaze everyone.

Tang Yue had always treated him well. She was worthy of Lin Lan's trust.

"You truly are the most talented mage I've ever seen!"

Lin Lan's words were so shocking that they were almost impossible to believe, like hearing of an unbelievable miracle. Either of those two talents alone would make someone exceptionally rare, yet heaven had favored Lin Lan enough to grant him both.

"You really are outstanding, and you work very hard."

"To reach this level of cultivation in such a short time... no one would believe it if you told them."

Tang Yue had truly never expected this. Perhaps she had already guessed that Lin Lan possessed Innate Dual Element, but she had never imagined he also had an innate spirit seed. She had no idea how Lin Lan cultivated.

"Not entirely. I feel like I've always cultivated these two elements very quickly, as if I have some kind of built-in accelerator. At first, I simply spent more time cultivating than others. Later, whenever I meditated, I cultivated both elements, and I started progressing even faster than before."

Lin Lan said with a smile, a hint of shyness on his face. That was indeed how his cultivation worked. He had never encountered much of a bottleneck with either element, and his meditation had always progressed quickly.

"I'm truly impressed. If people heard about your talent, who knows how many would turn green with envy."

"If the Black Vatican finds out, they'll definitely want to get rid of you immediately."

Tang Yue frowned slightly, unable to help worrying about Lin Lan's talent.

"Don't worry, Teacher Tang Yue. I've always kept a low profile."

Lin Lan noticed Tang Yue's concern and reassured her.

"That's for the best."

Tang Yue knew Lin Lan really had always been like that. If she hadn't come to check today, she would still have been kept in the dark.

"Teacher Tang Yue, I can't stay at my place tonight. I'm afraid the Black Vatican might come after me again."

Lin Lan looked deeply worried.

"Can't you just find another place to stay?"

Tang Yue asked in confusion.

"How could that work, Teacher Tang Yue? Can I stay with you? That way, you can protect your student's safety too~"

Lin Lan's eyes were perfectly clear, his face full of pleading.

"No! What would people think if word got out? The Arbitration Council would be too ashamed to show its face."

Tang Yue spoke to Lin Lan somewhat angrily.

"Then I'll just wait for the Black Vatican to come kill me. At worst, a mid-level mage fighting a high-level mage."

At her words, Lin Lan put on an expression of indifference toward life and death.

"Fine, but you're not allowed to mess around."

Seeing Lin Lan like this, Tang Yue's heart softened, and she agreed to his request.

Posted it first. I'll check and revise it again tomorrow.