Aftermath

The next morning.

A knock sounded at the door of the Soul Guidance Department director's office.

The equipment room manager entered, his face pale, his speech stuttering, "Di-Director, something has happened."

The director of the Soul Guidance Department was named Fang, a middle-aged man in his fifties whose martial soul was a carving knife; his proficiency with Soul Tools ranked in the top three across all of Shrek.

He looked up, frowning at the manager's state, "What is it?"

"The equipment room has been robbed."

The manager's voice trembled, "The surveillance is completely broken. A lot of things are missing, and that scrapped training mecha... its core was dismantled and taken."

Director Fang set down his work and stood up, "Let's go, take a look."

A few people were already gathered at the entrance of the equipment room.

Director Fang walked over and immediately spotted the door that had been kicked in. The door wasn't broken, nor was the lock, but there was a clear footprint on the doorframe—it wasn't large, clearly belonging to a child.

His mouth twitched as he stepped into the storage room.

It was a mess inside.

Large sections of the shelves were empty, and a few parts that hadn't been chosen were scattered on the floor.

The scrapped mecha in the back stood with its chest cavity exposed, the cover plate ripped off and tossed on the ground, the core chamber left hollow and empty.

Director Fang walked over and examined the marks on the mecha's chest.

The cover plate had been torn off with brute force, and there were distinct sword marks along the edges.

The edges of the core chamber also bore sword marks, dense and numerous, as if someone had slashed at it many times.

He crouched down to examine those marks carefully.

The cuts were very neat, but the force behind them wasn't great; it didn't look like the work of an adult.

He stood up and remained silent for a moment.

"What about the surveillance?"

The manager quickly replied, "The surveillance room was also sabotaged. All the footage is gone."

Director Fang walked to the surveillance room.

One screen was shattered, its rear core pierced through by a single sword strike.

Although the other screens weren't shattered, their cores had all been destroyed as well.

He looked at the pierced core; the cut was thin and precise, hitting the exact center of the core with a single strike.

He remained silent for a long time.

"Go investigate," he said. "See who was here last night."

By the time the news reached Cai Yue'er, it was already noon.

As the dean of the outer court, it was only natural that such an incident would be brought to her first.

When she arrived at the Soul Guidance Department's teaching building, Director Fang was waiting at the entrance of the equipment room.

Cai Yue'er walked in, looked at the footprint on the door, then at the chaos in the storage room, and finally walked up to the scrapped mecha.

She stared at the sword marks for a long time.

She was all too familiar with those marks—left by Crescent Slash, left by that Mark Pursuit.

She had watched that nine-year-old child practice his swordsmanship for two years and had seen it countless times, yet she still found it hard to believe.

She walked to the surveillance room and looked at the shattered screen; the core had been run through by a single strike, the cut clean and decisive.

The angle, the force, and the precision of this strike were not something a nine-year-old child should be capable of.

Cai Yue'er stood there in silence for a long time. Then, she sighed.

"Director, please step out for a moment."

Director Fang was stunned, but he didn't ask questions and turned to leave.

Cai Yue'er stood alone in the surveillance room, staring at the shattered screen.

She remembered that the lights in Yun Jingheng's room had been on all night.

She remembered the expression on Ya Li's face this morning—that strange look of someone trying to suppress a laugh.

She remembered how distracted Yun Ming had been during the meeting this morning.

She closed her eyes, "This child..."

When she went to find Yun Ming, he was in the Sea God Pavilion reviewing files.

Cai Yue'er pushed the door open, sat down across from him, and without saying a word, just stared at him.

Yun Ming looked up, feeling a bit uneasy under her gaze, "What's wrong?"

Cai Yue'er fixed her eyes on him, "You don't know?"

Yun Ming fell silent for a moment. "Know what?"

Cai Yue'er took a deep breath. "The Soul Guidance Department teaching building was robbed last night. Half of the equipment storage was emptied, all the surveillance is broken, and the core of a decommissioned mecha was dismantled and taken."

She paused. "The door was kicked open, and there's a footprint on it—not a very big one."

Yun Ming did not speak.

Cai Yue'er continued, "The chest plate of the mecha was ripped open with brute force. There are sword marks on the edges, and sword marks on the edges of the core cabin as well. The core of the surveillance room was pierced through by a single sword strike, right through the center—very precise."

She looked at Yun Ming. "I still recognize those sword marks."

Yun Ming set down his files and remained silent for a long time before offering a bitter smile. "I see."

Cai Yue'er stared at him. "You knew all along?"

Yun Ming did not answer.

Cai Yue'er suddenly had a bad premonition. "You watched him go?"

Yun Ming still did not answer.

Cai Yue'er took a deep breath. "Brother Ming, you are the Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion. Your son robbed the Soul Guidance Department's teaching building, and you just watched from the sidelines?"

Yun Ming smiled bitterly. "I watched him leave, followed him over, watched him kick the door, watched him move the equipment, watched him hack at that mecha, watched him dismantle the core, watched him smash the surveillance, and then watched him carry the box back."

He paused. "I just watched."

Cai Yue'er fell silent.

She looked at Yun Ming, suddenly not knowing what to say.

Yun Ming sighed. "That child wanted those things. I don't know what he intends to do, but he isn't the type to act recklessly."

Cai Yue'er was silent for a while. "Even so, he shouldn't..."

Long Yeyue appeared at the doorway at some point, leaning against the doorframe. "If he wanted them, why didn't he just ask?"

Yun Ming smiled bitterly. "I don't know either. Perhaps he felt that if he asked, we wouldn't give them to him."

"Perhaps he felt this was his own business and didn't want to trouble others, or maybe he just wanted to do something sneaky because he thought it would be fun."

Long Yeyue glanced at him. "You certainly understand him well."

Yun Ming did not speak.

Cai Yue'er stood up. "Fine, I'll go handle it."

She walked to the door, and Long Yeyue stepped aside to let her pass.

Cai Yue'er walked a few steps, then turned back. "Brother Ming."

Yun Ming looked up.

Cai Yue'er looked at him. "Next time, tell him not to kick the door. The Soul Guidance Department's budget isn't that generous."

Yun Ming was stunned for a moment, then smiled. "Alright."

Soul Guidance Department teaching building.

Director Fang stood at the entrance of the equipment storage, his expression grim.

As Cai Yue'er walked over, he stepped forward to meet her.

"Elder Cai, have you found out the truth?"

Cai Yue'er nodded. "I have."

Director Fang waited for her to continue.

Cai Yue'er was silent for a moment. "It was the Pavilion Master's son."

Director Fang was stunned. "Yun Jingheng?"

Cai Yue'er nodded.

Director Fang remained silent for a long time, the expression on his face shifting several times.

From shock, to confusion, to realization, and finally to a look of utter bitterness.

"Elder Cai," he asked cautiously, "is it that the Soul Guidance Department isn't doing well enough?"

Cai Yue'er was taken aback. "What?"

Director Fang's expression grew even more bitter.

"I know that our Soul Guidance Department hasn't had any major breakthroughs in recent years, our funding has always been tight, and we struggle to retain talent."

"But we have been working hard... If the Sea God Pavilion has any dissatisfaction with us, you can just say so, there's no need to..."

Cai Yue'er's face darkened. "What are you thinking?"

Director Fang was glared at by her and swallowed the rest of his words.

Cai Yue'er took a deep breath. "The child was just curious about these things and came to find some items to do some research."

Director Fang was stunned. "Research?"

Cai Yue'er nodded. "Research."

Director Fang remained silent for a moment before asking cautiously.

"And... those things?"

"Let him keep them."

Cai Yue'er said, "Submit a list later, and we will replenish your supplies."

Director Fang breathed a sigh of relief, though the bitterness on his face had not yet fully dissipated.

"Elder Cai, the Pavilion Master's son... is interested in Soul Tools?"

Cai Yue'er thought for a moment, "I suppose... he is."

Director Fang's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Then would he be interested in attending classes at the Soul Guidance Department? We have the best teachers and the most comprehensive equipment here—"

Cai Yue'er interrupted him, "He is only nine years old."

Director Fang was stunned for a moment, "What does being nine have to do with it? Nine is the perfect age to learn! Besides, I saw the sword marks from when he dismantled the core last night; the force was light but the angles were precise, which shows he has a certain foundation—"

Cai Yue'er looked at him, suddenly feeling a bit amused, "His talent is very high. I will mention it to him, but whether he comes or not is his own business."

Director Fang nodded, a smile finally appearing on his face, "Good, good, good. Then I will trouble you, Elder Cai."

Cai Yue'er turned and left.

As she walked out of the Soul Guidance Department teaching building, she looked up.

The sunlight was beautiful, and she suddenly remembered that small figure from last night, clutching a large box as he walked under the moonlight.

She smiled and headed toward Sea God Island.

In Yun Jingheng's room, he sat at his desk, busy with a pile of blueprints all morning.

The structure of the lens barrel was drawn, the focal length was calculated, and the drive circuit for the core was half-designed.

He stretched and glanced out the window.

The sunlight shone in, falling onto his desk and the pile of parts.

He suddenly remembered the camera from last night.

He thought about it, decided there shouldn't be any issues, and continued to lower his head to draw.

In his Sea of Spirit, Xiao Jiu rolled over, "Weren't you seen last night?"

Yun Jingheng's hand paused, "I don't... think so."

Xiao Jiu scoffed, "Your father is a Limit Douluo, you know."

Yun Jingheng fell silent for a moment.

Then, he continued drawing his blueprints.

Whatever, if he knew, why hasn't he come to find me yet?

Since he hasn't come to find me, it means he didn't figure out who it was.

If he didn't even figure out who it was, what do I have to be afraid of?

Keep going, keep going.