AnalogHorror: Rule Kaidan 4016
Chapter 925 - 428 The Truth Behind the Head Yuan Incident?!_2

Chapter 925: Chapter 428 The Truth Behind the Head Yuan Incident?!_2

The reason behind some parts of the Mu Daxian Conference’s "Iron Law of the Night Watchman" seems to be explainable through this point!!

"This—this is the truth of the Head Yuan incident!!"

"When the Ash Messenger enters the campus, it’s equivalent to a mobile mine entering the campus. Those forces eager to harvest ’ashes’ only care about collecting them, without concern for the future of the pond they are exploiting."

"To them, it’s just a matter of reaping a fat harvest; once finished, what happens afterward doesn’t matter to them."

Class Teacher-040’s face looked somewhat grim: "What you said is cruel, but it aligns perfectly with my perception of certain forces..."

Lin Yi sighed deeply. Time was limited, and he didn’t want to linger too long on this topic now: "So, teacher, think about it—is your injury caused by the Ashen Apostle?"

"It probably is." Class Teacher-040 nodded.

"Are you going to be contaminated? Like Teacher 039?" Lin Yi asked with concern.

"Oh, are you worried about me?" Class Teacher-040 suddenly smiled, a mix of sincerity and a hint of expectation showing in her expression.

"Wow, come on now, your focus seems a bit off..." Lin Yi instinctively puckered his lips and said stiffly, "I’m leaving campus in three days; I just don’t want you to die faster than me—okay? I wouldn’t enjoy going through three homeroom teacher transitions in one cycle."

"I’ve never heard of anyone surviving long enough to go through three homeroom teachers either." Class Teacher-040 sighed helplessly and then asked, "You helped heal my wound—did you sense any ’ashes’ within me?"

"Nope." Lin Yi shook his head.

"If not, then there shouldn’t be any. ’Ashes’ don’t have a latent phase—it’s either ignited or not ignited; there’s no third result... well, except for your situation." Class Teacher-040 clarified.

"Your life structure, aside from being ’human,’ has no other manifestations consistent with what I recognize as ’human.’" She gazed deeply at Lin Yi.

"Hearing that, should I feel proud or not?" Lin Yi showed a bitter smile tinged with helplessness.

"Feel proud, because in this era, someone like you— ’human’ —is exceedingly rare."

"After hunting the Ashen Apostle, did you catch anything else?" Lin Yi asked.

"Now that’s the wrong question." Class Teacher-040 replied, "That Ash Messenger passed through here. I went out to test its depth and got injured in the process..."

"In terms of definition, it didn’t exactly enter the office, nor can it be considered something I hunted..."

"After I got injured, I initially shut the door, but the pain made sleep impossible. So I decided to suit up and crouch, using focused attention for hunting to distract myself from the injury. Plus, I thought maybe some unlucky fool would stumble upon me."

"And then not long after, I ran into you."

"Alright..." Lin Yi’s mouth twitched, realizing the ironic twist behind the sequence of events.

Yet Teacher-039 clearly said that night he went to the office to fetch that dictionary outside...

Could there be other ways to enter the office?

This was becoming harder to figure out.

Lin Yi shook his head. Since he’d already gleaned the dictionary’s information as well as the door’s secrets, there was no point prying further into this currently irrelevant matter.

"Then I’ll take my leave..." Lin Yi said, "I still don’t know when the clouds will drift over the Teaching Building, but I need to mark a spot there and lie in wait."

"Mm." Class Teacher-040 nodded, "You...all, be careful. There are many nocturnal species there."

"Don’t worry." Lin Yi smiled faintly, "Those Who Chase the Light Through the Fog End Up as Phantoms—this gleam of light in me, just let them try catching it."

As he spoke, his expression revealed a peculiar smile, confident yet cold, like the Black Moon hanging above a stormy abyss on a pitch-dark night.

"Huihuizi, let’s go." Lin Yi turned to the sofa and smiled at Li Huiyuan.

"Hmph!" Li Huiyuan gave a soft snort, pouting slightly in evident displeasure. Yet upon hearing they were leaving, her annoyance betrayed the faintest hint of happiness. "Fine, let’s go!"

Lin Yi then led Li Huiyuan to the office door. Before leaving, he glanced at the clock on the wall and double-checked the watch on his wrist.

9:22.

"Hmm, not bad."

He opened the door.

Standing in front of the door was someone who startled him.

"What the...!"

He nearly instinctively swung what could’ve been a blunt object in reaction.

Focusing his gaze, he suddenly realized the person before him was... the Mountain Man.

The Mountain Man seemed hesitant about knocking, but seeing the door open, he looked unfazed. However, upon noticing Lin Yi as the one who opened it—and Li Huiyuan beside him—he couldn’t help but frown.

The Mountain Man stared at Lin Yi, Lin Yi stared at the Mountain Man.

Li Huiyuan joined Lin Yi in staring at the Mountain Man.

The Mountain Man’s pair of eyes confronted two pairs of eyes, instantly putting him at a disadvantage.

The Mountain Man frowned discreetly.

Such was the nature of staring contests—when someone stares at you and you don’t glare back, it feels impolite.

Yet one person cannot glare at two people simultaneously. It may preserve politeness, but scattering one’s focus just ends up making them look like a fool.

And if politeness leads to foolishness, then the trade-off is no longer worth it.

Faced with the awkwardness, the Mountain Man quickly relaxed his furrowed brow and nodded at Lin Yi, stepping slightly aside to let Lin Yi and Li Huiyuan pass first.

Only when Lin Yi had shut the door behind him and led Li Huiyuan down the corridor in the direction opposite their classroom did the Mountain Man finally knock on the door of the office.

"Who is it?" From behind the door came Class Teacher-040’s routine, procedural inquiry.

The Mountain Man shifted his focus away from Lin Yi and Li Huiyuan’s retreating backs and replied, "Yuan Lijian... My student ID card number is ’X0230508132’..."

...

Lin Yi kept walking with Li Huiyuan until they rounded a corner, then he subtly pivoted into the shadows of the wall, carefully perceiving the Mountain Man’s movements.

Seeing Lin Yi’s behavior, Li Huiyuan pursed her lips unhappily.

"Don’t be upset; I just want to see what the Mountain Man is up to." Lin Yi whispered in explanation.

"Oh..." Li Huiyuan uttered begrudgingly, her expression suddenly shifting, "Wait—how could you tell I’m unhappy? Do you have eyes on the back of your head?"

Lin Yi smirked faintly, thinking to himself: Earlier, the entire office was filled with the sweet citrusy aroma of lemon... how could I not know?

Of course, I was aware, but pretending otherwise is a must...

The wisdom of a scheming frog—understand!

However, the Mountain Man didn’t seem to exhibit any unusual behavior. After verifying his identity, Class Teacher-040 opened the door and let him into the office.

"Looks like I’ll have to ask the teacher later what the Mountain Man was really up to..." Lin Yi muttered, rubbing his temples. The invisible maelstrom seemed to surge increasingly turbulently and menacingly.

Turning toward Li Huiyuan, he asked, "Huihuizi, would you like to explore the ’other areas’ of the Teaching Building with me?"

Li Huiyuan—normally coy yet sharp, especially when matters concerned Lin Yi—replied, "Are you referring to the areas above the 5th floor of the Teaching Building?"

Lin Yi nodded, "Exactly. I want to check them out... Want to come along? Don’t worry—things aren’t like they used to be. The old ’cannon fodder’ type of exploration relationship is in the past. We’re friends now, and I’m asking purely as a friend."

The relationships between people evolve over time—a shared life-and-death experience naturally deepened their friendship.

Li Huiyuan’s eyes brightened, her glistening gaze sparkling with an eager sense of adventure.

"Oh, so you mean the ’cannon fodder’ has become... ’friends with benefits,’ huh?"