"I've heard roughly what happened, so… you guys killed Lu Hao and the two officials he brought?"
At the same time.
Celestial Strategy Trading.
Ah Yue leaned against the desk, looking at Wu You and Xia Panqiu standing before him.
Xia Panqiu corrected, "To be precise, it was Chen Lusi who killed Lu Hao."
"In half an hour, he learned 'Eye' and 'Invisible Blade'."
Wu You added, "Although luck was involved… but the fact that we're both standing here truly owes to him."
"Half an hour, isn't that clearly a genius?"
Ah Yue looked at Wu You, a bit surprised, "Lu Hao spent almost half a year painstakingly researching that broken technique, and it was full of holes when he finally used it, needing your 'Heart Sound Reflection' to perfect it to a usable state, and he learned it just by looking?"
"Hmm, thinking about it carefully… it's indeed unbelievable."
Wu You exhaled, "I still don't feel real about it."
Ah Yue, arms crossed, looked at the ceiling, remained silent for a moment, then smiled, "Chen Lusi saved you guys, so it seems I owe him a big thank you… But this matter shouldn't spread, Lu Hao seemed to be called a Holy Son inside 'Self', now a newcomer has killed their Holy Son, if this gets out, there'll be a bunch of trouble within Celestial Strategy, and 'Self' will also come looking for trouble with Chen Lusi."
"Indeed."
Wu You nodded, then said, "So we haven't submitted the report yet… Moreover, Lu Hao was fully aware of your whereabouts, you know what this means, how do you plan to handle it?"
"Let's hold off on it, if you guys are angry about it, I'll go vent it for you in a couple of days."
Ah Yue thought for a moment then replied, "Regarding Chen Lusi, he did such a big thing without even a commendation, that's indeed disheartening… I'll go apologize in a couple of days, and maybe ask if there's any compensation he wants."
Wu You and Xia Panqiu neither said anything upon hearing this.
Lu Hao's death, it's not a small matter, nor a big one.
If it were Ah Yue who took out Lu Hao, making it public wouldn't be any issue.
The problem is… Chen Lusi isn't Ah Yue, he joined Celestial Strategy less than a week ago.
Under such circumstances, pinning the labels of 'genius' and 'taking out Lu Hao' on him would only harm him.
"Now, the next matter."
Ah Yue lowered his hands, retracted the smile on his face, and spoke of another matter, "You say, you witnessed Chen Lusi's death in person, then witnessed a little girl and a man with a clockwork head appear and bring Chen Lusi back?"
"Yes."
Xia Panqiu whispered in reply, "Moreover, he, as an Empowerer, was empowered with authority a second time and saw theoretically invisible blades."
Wu You continued, "Also, I personally witnessed him able to gather spirits, directly reaching out to gather spirits… can you imagine that scene? He formed a mass of spirits and then forcibly swallowed it? I know most authorities have a spirit-gathering effect when in use, but to be able to gather spirits without activating authority?"
"..."
Ah Yue slightly lowered his head upon hearing, contemplating.
"Ah Yue… the mysteries surrounding Chen Lusi are really too many, what exactly is his authority? Is it really a third-level authority?"
Wu You couldn't help but press, "The Yellow Springs Fragment that records his authority ability is with you, right?"
Ah Yue lifted his head, just about to answer.
Knock knock——
Someone knocked on the door.
The front-desk girl peeked her head in, looking at the three, "The hospital sent word that Chen Lusi has woken up, everything normal."
Having said that.
She then pulled her head back, closed the door.
Xia Panqiu and Wu You both sighed in relief upon hearing.
"Ah Yue, are you sure his authority ability is slashing?"
The slightly silent Xia Panqiu now looked to Ah Yue, asking the same question.
"Sure."
Ah Yue nodded and replied, "I wasn't mistaken, these things you say… I'm also shocked, does Chen Lusi's hometown have such strange tales of men with clockwork heads?"
"Shouldn't have."
Wu You shook his head, "And even if there were… how do you explain his 'slashing'? Dual authority?"
"The only possibility… is that his authority isn't as simple as it looks, far from being as weak as I assessed."
Ah Yue laughed, "That's what you want to say, right?"
"Right."
Wu You nodded, "What do you plan to do? I remember your reported evaluation… was very low."
"It's already reported."
Ah Yue shrugged, "What can be done… and this is just your wild guess isn't it? Are you sure the Clockwork Man is Chen Lusi's authority ability?"
Wu You and Xia Panqiu both said nothing.
They're not sure, this exceeds their understanding.
That's precisely why they're coming to ask Ah Yue.
"Exactly."
Noticing the expressions on their faces, Ah Yue said, "You're just guessing blindly. Now that Chen Lusi is awake, why don't you talk to him after he's discharged? Share what you know and ask him about his side of things. Even if you still can't confirm, it's better than guessing blindly here."
Wu You said helplessly, "What if he doesn't know either?"
"Then take your time to research."
Ah Yue said directly, "Chen Lusi will formally join your team next. You'll eventually figure it out, and remember to let me know when you do."
"..."
"..."
Xia Panqiu and Wu You were both at a loss for words.
It's not that they didn't welcome Chen Lusi... After all, the three of them had already shared life-and-death experiences as comrades.
Their main issue was with Ah Yue's attitude.
"Also, let Chen Lusi know and ask his opinion about moving to Peng City. This matter may be suppressed for now, but it's not impossible that 'Self' will seek revenge on him. Living alone could be dangerous, and being nearby means we can keep an eye on each other."
Ah Yue thought for a moment and added, "Also, Panqiu, tell him about the existence of the Yellow Springs Fragment. Although we haven't figured out his Authority Ability yet, he may need to submit it later if it involves recording his Authority Ability in the Yellow Springs Fragment.
It's best to be clear about this to avoid repeating Lu Hao's mistake... Forget it, better let Wu You tell him."
Ah Yue's words shifted as he thought of something.
"No need."
Xia Panqiu looked up, "I'm fine. What happened before is in the past. He's not Lu Hao."
Ah Yue asked, "Are you sure?"
"Mm."
"Alright, you guys should go back and rest now."
Ah Yue waved them off, "You look exhausted. Get some good sleep first; it's all over. Leave the rest to me."
Though Wu You and Xia Panqiu still had many questions, they were indeed too tired and had to leave.
Ah Yue watched them leave and stretched.
Then he thought for a moment, walked to the front of the desk, opened a drawer, and took out a piece of old brownish-yellow paper.
"You should really thank Chen Lusi."
At the doorway.
The receptionist returned, leaning against the doorframe, and suddenly spoke, "If it weren't for him, Wu You and Xia Panqiu would have been controlled. Do you know how many Yellow Springs Fragments Lu Hao collected? I found over ninety of them on him... That's enough to open the 'door.'
The reason he went after Little Panqiu wasn't just to grab the Yellow Springs Fragment from her; he was aiming to humiliate her. If I had forcibly intervened, the troubles I would have encountered wouldn't be few."
"Yeah."
Ah Yue raised his head and sighed, "I must properly thank him some time."
"So, what exactly is the Authority recorded on his Yellow Springs Fragment?"
The receptionist asked softly, "Don't tell me it's a Level 3 Authority. Only Little Panqiu might believe that, but even Wu You probably doesn't."
Hearing this, Ah Yue said nothing, merely flipped over the brownish-yellow paper in his hand to show her.
"..."
The receptionist looked at the blank brownish-yellow paper, puzzled, "What do you mean?"
"Nothing is recorded," Ah Yue replied casually.
"Huh!?"
The receptionist abruptly moved away from the doorframe and straightened up, "How is that possible? Is he a foreigner?"
"No, his family's been rooted here for eight generations."
Ah Yue set the brownish-yellow paper aside and replied, "I'm also puzzled as to why his Authority can't be recorded."
The receptionist asked with a serious expression, "So you have no idea what his Authority Ability is either?"
"I don't know."
Ah Yue shook his head, "But based on Wu You's description, I suspect it might be the Yellow Springs Root Source Authority."
The receptionist paused, then looked astonished, "Isn't there only one Yellow Springs Mainstream domestically? Where in the south is there a tributary? Yellow Springs Root Source Authority? Are you kidding?"
Ah Yue replied, "I'm investigating."
"And you're this calm about it?"
The receptionist furrowed her brows, "An entirely uncontrollable Yellow Springs Root Source Authority? Do you know what that means?"
"I do."
Ah Yue sat down heavily, then looked at the receptionist and softly said, "But isn't that actually a good thing? The reason Xia Panqiu and Wu You were attacked this time is because our top-tier capabilities have been thoroughly researched. With Chen Lusi's joining, it's like adding a variable, a 'secret weapon,' an unfettered presence..."
"..."
Hearing this, the receptionist fell into contemplation.