A Conversation with Mu Jin

"It's fine. That student of yours wasn't wrong. Shrek Academy is not a place where one cannot speak the truth," Qian Duoduo said, pulling Fan Yu away from the scene.

Barely back at the Soul Guidance Department, Qian Duoduo spoke to Fan Yu in a stern tone: "What were you thinking? Do you have any idea who that student you were arguing with is?"

Fan Yu's mouth twitched, and he quickly replied to Qian Duoduo: "Dean Qian, he is a student after all. To contradict me like that in front of everyone, this..."

Qian Duoduo helplessly rubbed his forehead, sat down on a nearby chair, picked up the coffee beside him, and took a sip. "You still know he's a student? Is it appropriate for a teacher to get into a shouting match with a student in public? The student was being unreasonable, so you decided to be unreasonable too?"

"Furthermore, I'll tell you clearly: it doesn't matter if you provoke an ordinary student; I can handle the pressure from the Martial Soul Department for you. But not this student. Do you have any idea who he is? Mu En personally forced Yan Shaozhe to go deliver that admission invitation himself. With that kind of connection, do you think you can afford to mess with him?"

Hearing Qian Duoduo's words, Fan Yu shuddered. He nodded immediately and said to Qian Duoduo, "I understand, Dean Qian. I've caused you trouble."

Qian Duoduo sighed, then patted Fan Yu on the shoulder. "Fan Yu, you are the future pillar of our Soul Guidance Department."

"But I must tell you: the Soul Guidance Department is a large department. Although its status in Shrek Academy doesn't compare to the pedigree of the Martial Soul Department, the difficulty of supporting this department is certainly not something that can be compared to you teaching a few students."

Fan Yu nodded quickly upon hearing this. Qian Duoduo draped his arm around Fan Yu's neck and continued, "So I hope you understand. To maintain a department like this, I, as the Dean of the Soul Guidance Department, am already exhausted. I don't want any more trouble. Do you understand?"

Fan Yu felt goosebumps break out on his back and nodded frantically.

Qian Duoduo's meaning couldn't have been clearer: you, Fan Yu, are a genius, but the many people in the Soul Guidance Department aren't all useless. If you keep causing trouble, the things the department has bestowed upon you can just as easily be taken back.

Soul Engineers are different from ordinary soul masters. What ordinary soul masters rely on is nothing more than soul rings, soul skills, soul power, and their martial soul.

These are things that no matter how you argue or what schemes you use, they cannot be taken away. If you want to target a soul master, the most you can do is set an ambush or use simple tricks like poisoning.

But as an eighth-rank Soul Engineer, Fan Yu knew all too well the ways to sabotage someone in the world of soul tools. If Qian Duoduo really decided to ruin him, he would only need to join forces with other teachers in the department to frame him for academic fraud, and his Soul Engineer certification would be revoked immediately.

Without his eighth-rank certification, he would just be an ordinary Soul Douluo. While his ability to earn money would still far exceed that of an ordinary person, it would be almost impossible to support the use and manufacture of soul tools on his own.

If his martial soul had been truly outstanding back then, he wouldn't have chosen to pursue the path of a Soul Engineer.

A Soul Engineer without soul tools is like a tiger without teeth; even if not entirely useless, it's not far off.

Thinking of this, Fan Yu's expression grew serious, and he said earnestly to Qian Duoduo, "Dean Qian, I can guarantee that what happened today will absolutely never happen again."

Qian Duoduo nodded, then waved his hand at Fan Yu. "Go on, get back to your work."

While Fan Yu had been thoroughly scolded and intimidated by Qian Duoduo into behaving, Lin Yao was being pulled aside by Mu Jin.

"Thank you, student Lin Yao." Mu Jin's face still bore tear tracks, but her tone had returned to its usual calmness.

Lin Yao said to Mu Jin, "Teacher Mu, you are brilliant and naturally beautiful. There will be no shortage of men who like you; there is no need to hang yourself from one tree."

Mu Jin sighed gloomily at these words and replied to Lin Yao, "I know. Actually, I understand everything. If you can understand such logic, how could I possibly fail to grasp it? It's just that Fan Yu is, after all, a phantom of the youth I once loved."

Mu Jin said this, then cast her gaze toward Ye Guyi, whom Lin Yao had already sent off to rest in the distance. She spoke to Lin Yao: "If Ye Guyi were to become obsessed with someone else, what would you do?"

Lin Yao leaned against the railing nearby, his tone calm yet laced with a hint of confidence as he said, "He won't become obsessed with anyone else."

Mu Jin glanced at Lin Yao, then revealed a smile. "I said 'if'."

Lin Yao shrugged and replied to Mu Jin, "There are no 'ifs'. And even if he were to become obsessed with someone else, my heart, set on reaching the pinnacle of the soul master world, would not waver. Because in this world, only by possessing power can one possess everything else."

Mu Jin nodded, her eyes filled with an unconcealable admiration as she looked at Lin Yao. "It is truly rare for someone of your age to see things so clearly. On this level, you can at least be considered a once-in-a-millennium talent."

Lin Yao smiled and said to Mu Jin, "Teacher Mu is too kind. In reality, it is simply that the environment I am in and the things I have encountered do not allow me to harbor so many romantic and idealistic fantasies."

Mu Jin asked Lin Yao, "If it is truly as you say, then why did you speak up for me?"

Lin Yao replied casually, "There is no other reason. Because you are my teacher."

Mu Jin nodded, and Lin Yao added, "My father, in a broad sense, could also be considered a teacher, though most of his students never saw him."

Mu Jin nodded, then looked Lin Yao up and down. "I heard that Dean Yan personally delivered the invitation to your home to bring you here."

Lin Yao nodded, and Mu Jin smiled with a sense of understanding. She said to Lin Yao, "Then your environment is indeed realistic; it truly doesn't allow you to indulge in romantic fantasies. After all, if you hadn't come in response to this invitation, you would have been hunted down by almost every major faction."

"After all, your talent has been recognized by Shrek Academy. If you joined another faction, it would be detrimental to their future. Thus, these factions would unanimously hunt you down. At the same time, Dean Yan coming to your door personally was also a signal that the academy had marked you as theirs..."