Great! I'm surrounded by villains!
Chapter 94 - 14: Teacher, I Want to Learn Barrier

Chapter 94: Chapter 14: Teacher, I Want to Learn Barrier

Duan Mingyuan had gained many secrets unknown to the public from the Elder Princess, among which the most astonishing was that the Prime Monarch was "killed by death."

The company’s technology could no longer sustain his long-term rule, and that his life was coming to an end was just a euphemism, to save face for both sides, while on the issue of cultivating an heir, the company had been greatly supportive from the beginning.

But the real reason was to support a more obedient royal successor.

"Everyone thinks my father must have become senile,"

Ning Yueru said, "He bore the stigma, served as a puppet for hundreds of years, yet suddenly he began to defy the company in his old age. To defy the company is to defy heaven, and once the company selects a suitable heir, they would immediately cut off my father’s Life Energy maintenance device."

"This is actually quite normal, sometimes people suddenly want a change of environment."

Duan Mingyuan spoke from experience, showing understanding, "Before I came to the Chess Institute, I also spent four years at the company."

After learning of the company’s actions, he immediately felt he had wasted four years of his life, and as a puppet of the Extraterrestrials, perhaps no one on this world understood more clearly the deeds of "heaven" on this land than the Prime Monarch.

It was written in a volume in the library, "To hear of the Dao in the morning is to die content in the evening." He felt that this saying was very apt for the Prime Monarch in his later years.

Duan Mingyuan offered his support in spirit.

"Is that so?" Ning Yueru just laughed at herself, "I actually think he’s become more naïve with age, to even hope that I would take over his position."

Since the moment of her birth, her father had placed great hopes on her.

Though immobile, and needing a life support device to sustain his life all year round, everyone said that the Prime Monarch had poured all his affection into her, and her Flying Sword was the one her father had used during the wartime period.

But "heaven" did not linger long on her.

They appeared to be weary of the Prime Monarch’s actions in recent years and desired someone more obedient, who could also more aggressively execute the will of "heaven," to solidify the royal throne.

"The Royal Hunting Court has been destroyed, and the Chess Institute is the last stronghold. Once the Barrier of the Chess Institute is broken through by Yin Die, all the Strange Gates and Devious Techniques in this world will be taken into the Imperial Court,"

Despite always feeling that her father had become naïvely foolish in his old age, essentially they were the same, and perhaps it was this "foolishness" that her father saw in her.

As one of the potential Heirs to the throne, not only did she not express loyalty to "heaven," she left the Imperial Court and tried to protect from other claimants to the throne what "heaven" sought to take away.

Truly, it was foolishness to the extreme.

However, after coming to the Chess Institute, Ning Yueru found herself greatly disappointed.

She had studied every volume in the library carefully but was unable to find any Mysterious Techniques that could contend with Yin Die. The founders of the institute had hidden the parts of the Mysterious Techniques used for combat to prevent people of later generations from living in hatred. Now, most of the Mysterious Techniques passed down in the institute were only good for self-cultivation and could not compare with Yin Die, whose purpose from the beginning was killing.

That’s why Ning Yueru took such an interest in Duan Mingyuan, the newcomer who taught the "Evil Spirit Defense Class."

This was a master who had defeated Yin Die head-on.

"But there’s one thing I’ve never been able to understand, being able to track the movements and routes of the Messenger indicates that the traitor holds a high position in the institute, and might even be one of the four deans. Given that, Yin Die should have long known that the institute’s current Strength is insufficient to resist an attack. Why doesn’t the traitor lead Yin Die’s assassins to break through the Barrier directly, to march right in?"

In Ning Ruyue’s opinion, just by completely falling out, the institute could be littered with corpses overnight.

But from the series of recent events, it seemed the traitor was mostly having Yin Die moving outside the institute.

Perhaps they are wary of something, and maybe that was the real reason her father guided her to come to the institute.

"Although the founders of the academy concealed the part of Mysterious Techniques used for fighting, they did not leave posterity completely empty-handed."

Duan Mingyuan said, "The Barrier established at Qing Chi Peak by the several founders not only isolates the academy from the world but also provides descendants with weapons to resist invaders."

"Weapons?"

"What I just used was the power of heaven and earth contained in the Chess Institute’s Barrier. If one rashly goes to war within the academy, the course of battle will forever tend to unfold in a direction favorable to the academy."

Besides, the zither institute, the library, and the painting institute each have their respective Barriers to protect Qing Chi Peak. Duan Mingyuan guessed that the keys to manipulating these Barriers were held in the hands of the deans of each institute.

Not attacking rashly was the correct choice, otherwise, it would be equivalent to waging war against the holders of the Barrier within the Fourfold Barrier.

Unless one’s Life Energy overwhelmingly surpasses the sum of that of all the Barrier holders, it would be akin to seeking one’s own doom.

"The inner traitor must have understood this, which is why they have yet to take any action."

Thus, the next moves of the inner traitor could be predicted, Duan Mingyuan said, "They have only two paths to choose from: either kill the current holders of the Barrier, or find a way to destroy the Barrier from the inside. Until then, the academy is safe."

"Wouldn’t that mean the four deans are in danger..."

Ning Yueru’s pupils constricted.

"No matter."

Duan Mingyuan waved his hand, "After my class, I went to the library and studied carefully. It’s not difficult to operate the Fourfold Barrier. Even if a dean unfortunately met with an accident, I could fill in the gap at any time."

He now stood at the intersection of the first path, having cordoned it off with barrier tape.

Harming the deans of the four institutes was futile; he advised that the inner traitor should first consider how to take him down.

After all, he also played a healing role within the team.

Those who have played games know that if you don’t take out the healer when the fight starts, then the vast majority of the attack becomes ineffectual.

Duan Mingyuan believed his Hps were quite good; at the very least, they were more than sufficient for internal conflicts within the academy.

"So that’s how it is."

Ning Yueru came to a sudden realization but also felt a strong sense of defeat.

She had been at the academy for several years and in that time had rapidly become the master elder sister of the zither institute, but her understanding of the academy wasn’t even on par with a teacher who had been there for less than two days.

However, this might not necessarily be a bad thing.

Her swordsmanship had long reached a bottleneck, and she had been stagnating for years. Before she left the Imperial Court, her father, the Prime Monarch, mentioned that the Sword Control Technique was profound and inscrutable, and what she mastered was only the merest glimpse of it.

But the Prime Monarch could not personally impart this Mysterious Technique to her.

It wasn’t just because the life-sustaining equipment restricted his freedom of movement, but also because it would bring her danger.

"Heaven" hoped the heir of the Prime Monarch’s mantle would be a suitable person. The one watched by "Heaven" was not her.

Thinking this, Ning Ruyue drew a deep breath and bowed to Duan Mingyuan, "Teacher, please teach me the method to construct the Barrier!"