CHAPTER 91: I AM A LOYAL SERVANT

Fang Che could only listen in a forlorn silence.

In the eyes of outsiders, instructors had cozy positions in academies, and it was a very easy and safe job, but was that really the case?

Bing Shangxue was putting her heart on full display to every single one of her students, and the emotional weight that came with displaying such a high degree of vulnerability was not to be understated.

"This continent is turning into a more and more hostile place," Bing Shangxue sighed. "In the beginning, wars were only waged over different ideals, and there was still humanity in everyone. After all, humanity encompassed both good and evil, as well as kindness and cruelty.

“Tens of thousands of years ago, regardless of which side came out on top in a war, they would encourage the people in their territory to be kind and do their best to ensure order and harmony. Hence, they could all really count as internal conflicts. However, all of that changed when the Church of the Self-Righteous appeared.

“Battles of ideals turned into battles of life and death. Even the most heinous individuals in the distant past would never engage in senseless slaughter just for the sake of it, and anyone that did so would be hunted down by everyone.

“However, humans have changed so drastically that they're barely even recognizable now, and the battle against the Church of the Self-Righteous feels more like a battle against some demonic race than a battle against fellow humans. It's almost like the relationship between humans and demon beasts.

“We treat demon beasts as food, and they see us the same way. It's two completely different races with different sets of values, so there's no good or evil to speak of. In our eyes, the people of the Church of the Self-Righteous, they... they don't even seem human at all. No one can understand how they became so evil and demented.

“It's as if... as if they've been possessed by demonic entities, and they no longer think and feel the same way as we humans do."

Fang Che was in full agreement with this sentiment.

Indeed, the Church of the Self-Righteous was a downright inexplicable force of evil in the eyes of the average human.

They possessed none of the traits that were considered virtues, and it really was as if they were a different race of beings altogether.

"We don't understand them, but we will continue to fight them. If such a demonic force is allowed to take over the continent, then that will be the end of life as we know it."

Fang Che nodded firmly in agreement.

Bing Shangxue reached to stroke his hair as she sighed, "We want you to be safe, to excel in whatever it is that you do, whether it be work, leading your clan, pursuing the peak of warriorhood, or fighting on the battlefield. However, regardless of what you decide to do with your life, we implore you to never raise your weapon against the innocent.

“Non-warriors are extremely frail, and even at your current cultivation base, you could easily wipe them out in swathes. However, they form the foundation of this world. All warriors were non-warriors once, and even those on the Cloud Weapon Archive started off from square one. All of us were non-warriors at some point, so do not look down on them.

“They continue to toil away despite the bleak and hopeless state of the world, and many of them possess far more resilience and mental fortitude than so-called warrior prodigies! They form the true foundation of humanity!"

***

Fang Che visited the scripture library with a jar of wine, sharing a meal with Old Man Shen before returning home.

He visited Old Man Shen once every two or three days to search for books, ask questions, or hear the latter's stories of the past.

Old Man Shen was extremely knowledgeable, able to answer whatever questions Fang Che posed on topics both mundane and niche.

As Fang Che prepared to depart, Old Man Shen said in a slightly inebriated manner, "Once you've earned enough merit points, remember to secure a few advanced cultivation arts from the secret scripture chamber of the scripture library.

“You may not be able to use them for now, but familiarize yourself with them as much as possible as they'll help you manifest aura in the future. In the short term, it would seem like your merit points are better spent on things that can directly enhance your cultivation base, but looking at the big picture, securing advanced cultivation arts is imperative, even if it means temporarily delaying progress in your cultivation."

Fang Che mulled over Old Man Shen's advice the entire way home.

Ye Meng was very pleased with herself.

She had just reached the fourth-rank General tier, and her cultivation base was progressing faster and faster.

Fang Che immediately noticed her chipper demeanor upon his return, and he asked, "Did you make a breakthrough?"

"I did. I'm a third-rank Warrior Master now."

Ye Meng had decided to speed up a little in the progression of her fake cultivation base as well. Otherwise, if Fang Che were to deem her too incompetent and chase her away, then that would put a premature end to her mission.

At this point, Ye Meng had already been made aware of just how important her work was to the Protectionists.

The fact that her file had been destroyed and reconstructed was already sufficient testament to that.

Clearly, the higher-ups were planning to invest heavily in Fang Che, so she had to show him her worth.

"The average thug or bandit wouldn't be able to beat you, but what good is that going to do? You have to at least reach the Lesser Grandmaster tier before you can be of any use to me," Fang Che scoffed in a disdainful manner. "Otherwise, you'll be a hindrance to me if I'm ever pursued by my enemies. When I took you in, I was only a Warrior, yet I'm already a Great Grandmaster now.

“Then look at you in comparison. Absolutely useless! Well, maybe not entirely useless. You can maybe serve as a distraction to delay my enemies. If you don't reach the Lesser Grandmaster tier in two months, I'm selling you to a brothel!"

There it is again! This idiot can't go five seconds without making that threat!

"Hurry up and go cultivate! You've eaten enough pills and natural treasures to produce at least five kilograms of shit, yet you're strutting around all happy and content, even though you're only a Warrior Master! You should be ashamed of yourself!" Fang Che grumbled before storming into his study.

A displeased pout appeared on Ye Meng's face, but she still set about brewing some tea for Fang Che.

"The hell are you going to the kitchen for?! Go back to your room and cultivate!" Fang Che snapped, stopping her right in her tracks.

Ye Meng was fuming, but upon returning to her room, she took a moment to reflect on what Fang Che had just said.

Indeed, back when they first met, he was only a Warrior, yet he had since become a Great Grandmaster.

In comparison, her rate of progress really was rather slow.

With that in mind, she decided that she was going to "progress" to a ninth-rank Warrior Master tier cultivation base in the shortest possible time while still avoiding suspicion, then pretend as if she had reached the Lesser Grandmaster tier.

Otherwise, if she were to continue at this pace, she would never be considered strong enough to be of use, and that would deprive her of the opportunity to come into contact with the most important intelligence.

***

Upon returning to his study, Fang Che pulled out his communication jade to read a message from Yin Shengong.

The contents of the message came as a real shock.

He's willing to sacrifice an entire branch helm just for me to earn merit points? Has he gone insane?! I'm just a Great Grandmaster, while a branch helm would have at least multiple Kings among its ranks! This doesn't make any sense!

With that in mind, Fang Che immediately sent a reply: "I must ask you to rescind this order, Pope Yin! A branch helm is far too important to be sacrificed for my sake! It would take far too much effort and resources to reconstruct a branch helm, so I cannot accept such an arrangement!"

Fang Che knew that Yin Shengong definitely wouldn't sacrifice a branch helm purely for his sake. Hence, there had to be some other factors at play.

Furthermore, once Yin Shengong made up his mind about something, it was set in stone, so the White Cloud Prefecture branch helm was doomed.

Hence, Fang Che was eager to jump on this opportunity to display his loyalty as he knew that nothing he said would sway Yin Shengong's decision anyway.

Sure enough, Yin Shengong was very touched, but he put on a cold front as he replied: "You think I'm doing this purely for your sake? You sure like to think highly of yourself!"

"I don't understand, Pope Yin."

"You don't need to understand! Just follow Elder Mu's orders and do as you're told!"

"Your wish is my command, Pope Yin, but it still feels like a real shame," Fang Che lamented, reiterating his concern.

"Piss off!"

"Yes, Pope Yin! That's something I've become very good at!"

Yin Shengong couldn't help but burst into laughter at Fang Che's final message.

"The little bastard's joking around with me! Who does he think I am, his father? If he doesn't get a top three spot in the Parasite Ascension Project, I'll beat him... I'll break both of his legs!"

He was going to say "I'll beat him to death," but changed tack at the last second.