Great! I'm surrounded by villains!
Chapter 100 - 20: Campus Recruitment

Chapter 100: Chapter 20: Campus Recruitment

Although the process had some twists and turns, Duan Mingyuan’s trip to the Ghost Prison ultimately achieved a satisfactory conclusion.

When the three of them left the Ghost Prison, the oppressive shadows hanging overhead receded. For the first time in countless years, sunlight broke through the clouds and shone upon this land.

A consensus was reached between Chen Chou and Duan Mingyuan, however, Mo Song’s mood did not clear up after they bid farewell to the Ghost Prison’s guards and walked on a distance, until they were alone; he then suddenly stopped and asked seriously, "Mr. Mingyuan, could you resolve a doubt of mine?"

"Speak freely."

"A person like you, why come to Yunhai Academy to teach?"

After seeing Duan Mingyuan’s various skills, the strange feeling in his heart grew stronger.

At the moment of the academy’s dire straits, Duan Mingyuan arrived like a celestial soldier. Within a single day, he won the students’ recognition and even initiated a trend of practical combat that swept across the entire academy. Now, he had even resolved the academy’s centuries-old hidden concerns.

No matter how one looked at it, he did not seem to be just an employee from some Yunlong City company, as Da Jiang had said, but more like the heir of some reclusive family, or maybe a person from the Imperial Court.

"Wasn’t it you who invited us here?"

Duan Mingyuan himself felt a bit puzzled, and he remembered having explained this issue already while in the Ghost Prison, "The salary here is generous, the benefits are great. For someone who was unemployed at home, there’s no reason to refuse."

"I mean the recent happenings at the academy, do they not bother you?"

"Why should they bother me?"

"The issues you dealt with have far exceeded the academy’s expectations for a teacher."

"If you think I’ve gone above and beyond, you could give me a year-end bonus, I wouldn’t mind."

Since taking the job, Duan Mingyuan would do his best within his capacity. As a teacher, providing a good classroom atmosphere and imparting his knowledge to the students was part of his job.

"Mr. Mingyuan, I believe the Headmaster is implying, do you have any ulterior motives for coming to the academy?"

The empathetic Jiuyue actively took on the role of interpreter.

"Yes, yes, yes, that’s what I mean... no, that’s not right, the term ’ulterior’ isn’t quite appropriate."

"I see."

Duan Mingyuan nodded, "If you’re referring to personal motives, I indeed have my own considerations."

"Please, Mr. Mingyuan, enlighten me."

"Reconstructing the hunter industry is fraught with difficulties. I understand that not all students graduating from the academy choose to stay. Many of them choose to leave Qing Chi Peak and return to the outside world, breaking their ties with the academy and never coming back."

"Indeed, such cases do exist."

Mo Song neither agreed nor disagreed.

However, Duan Mingyuan’s statement wasn’t entirely accurate. When students decided to leave Qing Chi Peak after graduation, the academy would make an agreement with them. Once they left the school grounds, except in special circumstances, they would not, in principle, be asked to return to the academy. This was for the safety of the academy, as well as for the graduates to have lives truly of their own.

With the skills learned from the academy, seeking a livelihood in the outside world shouldn’t pose a problem.

"In that case, why not recruit directly from within the academy and have them work for the Royal Hunting Court right after graduation?"

Da Jiang had complained more than once that it was becoming increasingly difficult to find people for this industry.

Poor treatment was one reason, but ever since the fall of the Royal Hunting Court, they no longer had a stable recruiting channel and had to rely on monsters to go out and recruit people by every trick in the book.

The existence of Yunhai Academy precisely solved this problem.

Each year, many new graduates would emerge. Among them, many had come to Qing Chi Peak since childhood and knew nothing of the outside world.

To put it in simpler terms, "If the Royal Hunting Court is to be rebuilt in the future, Da Jiang hopes to establish a long-term partnership with the academy for campus recruitment every year."

As a teacher of the "Defense Against Evil Spirits" course at Yunhai Academy, Duan Mingyuan’s students all had the potential to become pillars in the hunter profession in the future.

This was a win-win collaboration.

Mo Song looked at Duan Mingyuan deeply, if the young man before him wasn’t deceiving him, then he could finally let go of his worries.

"Once the academy gets through this crisis, I will take the initiative to discuss this matter with Da Jiang."

..................

By the time he returned to the academy it was already afternoon, and the corridor leading to the dormitories was crowded with students. Seeing Duan Mingyuan approaching, students from all four schools gathered around him eagerly.

"Do you have some time later, Teacher Mingyuan?"

"I have many questions regarding the ’Defense Against Evil Spirits’ course."

"I heard someone say that Teacher Mingyuan plans to set up an advanced class, what are the criteria for joining?"

It was clear to see that the students were very enthusiastic about the ’Defense Against Evil Spirits’ course, with most students in this age group being passionate young people.

The academy was in a critical period of life and death, and it was the moment for them to step forward and save the academy from peril. Influenced by Duan Mingyuan’s ideas, the students of the academy had come together voluntarily to form the Martial Academy.

It was just unfortunate that the Martial Academy was discovered by the teachers during its formation and was forced to downgrade to a "Martial Arts Interest Group."

"Reporting to Teacher Mingyuan, the interest group currently has 73 members, all of whom are youths willing to delve into practical combat and defend the academy’s safety!"

"Very good."

Duan Mingyuan highly affirmed the students’ enthusiasm, then swiftly changed the topic, "But what we discussed in class today was only the basics; it’s applying what you learn in an actual fight that you need to work towards in the future. Continue your research."

Duan Mingyuan asked Jiuyue to go inside first and stayed at the door himself, attentively answering each student’s questions. By the time the last student had left, it was already dark outside the academy.

It was a busy day, but Duan Mingyuan found it exceptionally fulfilling.

The things he saw and heard at the Yunhai Academy made him realize the boundless possibilities of Strange Gates and Devious Techniques, and many of the conclusions he had reached in his manuscripts needed to be updated.

As soon as he entered the door, he couldn’t wait to tell Jiuyue, who was lying on the desk playing with her phone, "Jiuyue, I was wrong before. Strange Gates and Devious Techniques have limitless possibilities. Apparently, with enough research and study, everyone can potentially acquire various abilities to compensate for their own weaknesses!"

"No, Mr. Mingyuan, you weren’t wrong."

Jiuyue lifted her head and spoke.

Now that her identity as a Night Disaster had been revealed, there was no need for her to beat around the bush anymore, "Your previous conclusion was correct, the vast majority of people in this world can only master one ability, and it is extremely rare for someone to have the potential for two abilities."

She used herself as an example, "Bloodline inheritance is the most direct form of talent. For example, my father is a Ruihu, and my mother is a Hulu, so from the moment I was born, I could learn the skills of both Ruihu and Hulu. Almost all of the students in Yunhai Academy can only learn one school’s skills."

Pausing, Jiuyue added, "Mr. Mingyuan, the problem lies with you, you alone can steal the skills of others on top of the abilities you already possess."

She didn’t know whether this was a result of Mr. Mingyuan’s unique ability or because his physical structure was different from others.

But as far as results were concerned, in the domains of abilities and Barrier, Mr. Mingyuan was such a despair-inducing existence.

Jiuyue always felt that the trip to Yunhai Academy had illuminated a certain talent of Mr. Mingyuan, pushing him further and further down the path of cheating.

Now, not only could Mr. Mingyuan use your abilities after understanding them, but the Barriers he launched were several times stronger than yours.

But Jiuyue was used to it by now.

From initial skepticism, she had shifted to a mindset of "if it’s open, then it’s open."

Thinking of something, she opened a drawing app on her phone, tapped the seat beside her, and signaled Duan Mingyuan to come over, "Mr. Mingyuan, it seems you’re very interested in the theory of bloodlines. Come here, let me teach you a little about genetics of bloodlines today."