Security for this year’s college entrance exams was tight, with armed guards patrolling all major thoroughfares. This was the result of repeated discussions among Wang Jie and the other county leaders. As everyone knew, the Illuminati’s favorite targets were high school students. With the enemy lurking in the shadows, their only option was to strengthen security.

Han Qiubai arrived in Tianning County by train. The moment she stepped out of the station and saw the scene before her, she let out a small, inward sigh.

’What a backwater. To think a small, roving band of cultists could throw the entire county into such a panic.’

She hesitated for a moment, then decided not to contact the local Martial Arts Administration Bureau.

She had two missions to carry out on this trip. The first was to confirm the authenticity of the so-called Celestial Pride. This mission was worth 10 academic credits. If he was the real deal, her next task was to recruit him for her school, Yuqing University, which would earn her an additional 1000 credits as a special reward from the university.

Her second mission was to eliminate the cultists operating within Y City. This was worth a total of 500 academic credits, with the final amount depending on her performance. During the mission, killing a single Inner Qi Realm enemy would earn an extra 50 credits.

Judging from the rewards, the base payout for simply confirming the Celestial Pride’s identity was low. However, if she could successfully recruit him for Yuqing University, the reward would be substantial. The credits for the elimination mission were just decent—though, of course, that was a reflection of the targets’ perceived strength.

This made it clear that in the eyes of the higher-ups, an entire group of cultists was less valuable than a single Celestial Pride.

Han Qiubai planned to find Yu Fei first, observe him for a while, and complete her assessment mission.

This "assessment" was a test of his combat prowess. A true Celestial Pride had to be capable of fighting opponents from a higher realm—an unwritten rule known to very few.

Han Qiubai’s plan was to find Yu Fei, pose as an Inner Qi Realm enemy, and attack him to observe his combat abilities firsthand.

Her status as a probationary investigator allowed her to look up Yu Fei’s information on a terminal, so finding him wouldn’t be difficult.

...

For the past two days, Yu Fei had been holed up in his meditation room, painstakingly practicing the Sword Nurturing Skill and constantly hovering on the brink of life and death.

Through this high-intensity training, his Sword Intent grew increasingly pure. He could now hold his own against the intent contained within the sword for longer and longer periods. He had gone from being instantly overwhelmed to fighting it on even terms.

When the last stick of Nourishing Spirit Incense finally burned out, Yu Fei stopped his harsh training.

Without the Nourishing Spirit Incense, recovering from depleted Spiritual Power was an incredibly slow process. Even with his exceptional spiritual talent, he would need three full days to recover. An ordinary person would likely need more than half a month.

He wouldn’t practice the Sword Nurturing Skill again until he got more Nourishing Spirit Incense; otherwise, the process would be far too inefficient.

Yan Hai had told him to come find him after using up the Nourishing Spirit Incense, promising even better supplementary resources. Yu Fei planned to visit Mr. Yan after the college entrance exams were over to show off his progress.

’It’s just like asking an investor for more funding,’ he thought. ’You at least have to show them some results.’

After days of quiet meditation, he felt an urge to move. He decided to go for a walk, see the sights, and try to dilute the Sword Intent that was flooding his mind.

Han Qiubai squatted boredly on a rooftop, holding a sky-blue parasol. A pile of discarded popsicle wrappers lay at her feet.

Inner Qi Realm Martial Artists were practically superhuman. Things like scaling walls and leaping between roofs were child’s play; they could easily jump hundreds of feet into the air. A mere 24-story residential building was something she could reach the top of in just a few bounds.

So for Han Qiubai, nipping down to the complex entrance to buy a popsicle was as easy as walking into her living room for a glass of water.

Yu Fei had remained cooped up inside, so Han Qiubai hadn’t found the right opportunity to conduct her assessment.

She was currently positioned on the roof of Building 17, diagonally across from Yu Fei’s apartment. As an Inner Qi Martial Artist, her senses had been enhanced back in the Body Tempering Realm. Even from a hundred meters away, she could clearly see Yu Fei meditating in his room on the 12th floor, right through the window.

Han Qiubai was starting to think this Quasi-Celestial Pride had a few screws loose. Every day, he would sit in meditation for no more than two minutes, then keel over and sleep for about an hour.

Her view was obstructed, so she couldn’t see the Cyan Lotus Sword. That, combined with the fact that Yu Fei was practicing an extremely unusual Contemplation Skill, led Han Qiubai to completely misjudge the situation.

’Oh? Is he finally going out?’

Han Qiubai’s interest was suddenly piqued. After all, anyone who had been foolishly baking on a rooftop for two days would have a fair bit of pent-up frustration.

It was nearly dusk. The horizon was streaked with blood-red, fiery clouds. As Yu Fei walked outside, he felt his spirits lift and his mind clear. Even the throbbing pain in his head—which for days had felt like his brain was being chopped into paste—began to subside.

Just outside the entrance to his residential complex was a commercial district, and this was the prime season for barbecue.

There were three barbecue joints right outside his complex. They typically opened in April and ran until November, and business was always booming in the hot weather. It was a little quieter now because of the college entrance exams, but once they were over, the entire county’s restaurant scene would be hit by a wave of revenge spending.

But life in the small county had a slow pace, and there were always people with time to kill who wanted to grab a couple of drinks. It was only four in the afternoon, but a few tables were already occupied by people eating skewers and drinking beer.

Yu Fei glanced at the scattered customers—about four or five tables in total—but didn’t pay them much mind.

The town wasn’t very big, so he started jogging with his sword on his back. He planned to head to the county’s north district, where there was a vast expanse of fields. Every spring, when the canola flowers were in bloom, they formed a brilliant yellow sea that stretched to the horizon, a popular spot for people to take photos for their social media.

The flowers were no longer in bloom now, so hardly anyone went there. Yu Fei figured he’d wander around for a bit and relax.

...

"Zong, I’ve got a bad feeling about this whole thing."

Zong tore a crispy piece of marbled, grilled pork belly off a skewer with his teeth. He then chugged half his mug of draft beer, leaned back in his rattan chair, and looked smugly at his scrawny underling across the table.

"Monkey, you tell me what’s so bad about it. We stuff our faces with hotpot and barbecue all day, party at karaoke clubs all night, and still pull in over ten grand a month. You think that’s not right? That’s fucking perfect, is what that is!"

Monkey put down the grilled chives he was holding and said with a troubled expression, "That’s exactly why I’m worried. It’s too good. This money... it doesn’t feel right. It’s not steady."

Zong looked at him with utter contempt. "You’re just a fucking glutton for punishment, aren’t you? You’d be happier working yourself to death in a factory, tightening screws? You were born a fucking wage slave! I’m telling you, just stick with the big boss and do good work. All you need to do is enjoy yourself."

Monkey lowered his head and finished his plate of chives; he found the grilled kidneys too gamy. Zong’s ranting continued in his ear. "Just think about our job! All we do is stake out a few people every day, send a text message, and get a fat stack of cash. Where else are you gonna find a gig this good?"

"But Zong, I’m just worried the big boss and his crew are going to pull something major. We’ll get dragged into it when it all goes down!"

Zong leaned forward, his eyes narrowing. "What trouble could you possibly get into? All we do is send a text. What’s the harm in that? And even if that day does come, you’ve eaten your fill and had your fun. You want to quit now? If you want to die, go right ahead, but don’t drag me down with you. Do you really think the big boss is running a charity? Just think about what happened to Chicken!"

A chill shot through Monkey’s heart at the mention of that name. "Fuck!"

"Hey, Zong, look. Isn’t that the kid?"

Zong followed Monkey’s gaze and saw Yu Fei walking out, a sword strapped to his back.

"Hold on, let me check."

Zong fumbled with his phone and pulled up his photo gallery. Sure enough, there was a picture of Yu Fei from when he won the martial arts tournament.

Monkey leaned over to get a look. "That’s him, no doubt about it."

Then he hesitated. "Zong, are we... are we gonna report this?"

Zong smacked Monkey across the back of the head. "What kind of dumbass question is that? Hurry up and notify the big boss."