Chapter 89

Although, at Lu Shan’s suggestion, Song Yi had done a few tiny “good deeds” of “showing classmates some love,” her original intention had not changed: she had to do something big, make a major contribution, and then lock in her fake identity to obtain a special admissions opportunity.

Song Yi was not completely without ideas. When it came to making meritorious contributions, there were plenty of opportunities on the outskirts of the Human Realm. Danger likewise represented opportunity.

Wasn’t that how Old Yang had earned merit?

The problem was that without a guardian’s permission, minors could not possibly go out.

Buying teleportation tickets to other cities was simple, because order inside cities could mostly be guaranteed. It was fine for a child to wander around outside alone, provided it was not during school hours. Otherwise, they would be treated as a truant little brat and taken away.

But the edge of the Human Realm? Unfortunately, you could not even buy a ticket.

Going first to a nearby town, then taking a passage magical treasure such as a spirit-energy car out from there, was one possible route. But with Song Yi’s minor-looking body, she could be stopped at any moment.

However, Song Yi soon seized an opportunity. Wang Yisheng’s class would be going to the edge of the Human Realm for field study over the weekend.

Older grades always had more opportunities, and certain protections would gradually be loosened for them.

As long as she slipped in, wouldn’t it be settled?

Even if the teacher got a headache, once they reached the destination, they would not immediately send her back. Most likely, they would take her along when everyone returned.

Just as Song Yi was quietly making preparations, Li Wenwen and Lin Ze trailed after her, wanting to go along too.

Song Yi was a little uneasy. The Mystic Wonder Secret Realm did not count as the true edge of the Human Realm. She had never personally witnessed what it was like out there, but she had seen the chaos of the Old Era, and she would not hold any expectations toward the Chaotic Zone.

She was not certain she could absolutely protect them.

The two patted their chests and said, “Little Yi, we won’t drag you down. We’ll just follow the main group. The teachers definitely won’t let the students encounter any major danger. They’re probably just taking us to broaden our horizons. Besides, you still need us to support you.”

They lifted their school uniforms, revealing layer upon layer of protection underneath. They were practically armed to the teeth.

Considering that both of them had learned footwork very well, Song Yi had no reason left to stop them.

And so Senior Old Wang and the two classmates he was close with shouldered bulging backpacks, looking especially conspicuous among a crowd of classmates who had storage pouches hanging from them and storage bracelets on their wrists.

But Old Wang had his own methods. Although he usually seemed very low-key, he actually had excellent relationships with his classmates and a pretty good reputation.

Under his persuasion, everyone went and got backpacks, then diverted some of the items in their storage pouches into them.

When everyone was carrying a bag, they would no longer stand out.

When the lead teacher came over, she froze for a moment. What kind of equipment were these children carrying? Did they not find it tiring?

“This is the trendy outfit at the edge of the Human Realm. If you encounter danger, you can take things out at the first moment. I heard that someone once encountered an enemy attack, was utterly exhausted, and ran out of spiritual power. As a result, they died in frustration without even managing to take out the trump cards in their storage pouch.”

“Only rookies put everything in their storage pouches. We want to look a little more experienced too,” the students chattered.

The lead teacher’s head hurt from listening. Where had such an absurd story come from? There were too many points to criticize. She did not even know where to start.

The edge of the Human Realm did not have any trend like this either. These children had probably watched some movie or show again, or played some game, and taken it seriously.

Forget it. If they wanted to fuss, then let them fuss. Once they discovered the situation was different from what they imagined, they would return to normal.

Old Wang, mixed in with the crowd, smiled faintly, hiding his achievements and fame.

When he persuaded others, he never brought up “his own request.” He only told stories, and the rest was his classmates’ own choice. That was why he could hide behind the scenes every time. Even if there was responsibility, it could not be pinned on him, and everyone would still thank him for providing information.

Old Wang was such a good person!

This was probably the self-cultivation of an old schemer.

The three children inside the backpacks secretly gave him a thumbs-up to express their admiration.

Who said someone sinister could not be called a hero?

But while it was easy for Wang Yisheng to fool his classmates, it was difficult to completely muddle through. When the teacher wanted to take everyone away through teleportation, the teleportation array emitted a beeping buzz.

The lead teacher’s gaze swept around the students and landed on Wang Yisheng.

Wang Yisheng’s scalp tightened, but he still pretended to be calm.

By then, the teacher had already walked up to them and poked the three backpacks. She felt that there was something soft inside, and it could move.

“Open them and let me see.”

Three little “demon beasts” sprang out of the backpacks.

Wang Yisheng and his two classmates hugged the little demon beasts and looked pitifully at the teacher. “Teacher, we’re planning to follow the Dao of Beast Control in the future. This is one I raised, and I’m about to form a contract with it. I wanted to take it to broaden its horizons. It’s just that my family’s one is a little afraid of strangers, so I stuffed it in the bag.”

That was right. To guard against every possibility, Song Yi and the other two had put themselves inside demon beast skins.

This was an inspiration Song Yi had had last semester. Round Cub lived so comfortably, so if she turned into a demon beast, wouldn’t that be delightful?

Of course, Song Yi did not have a cultivation method that could turn a person into a demon beast. But at times like these, as long as people were willing to believe it was a demon beast, that was enough.

They had not simply draped the skins over themselves. That would be too fake, and anyone could tell. These were things they had specially asked Chu Wen to refine. Once worn, they automatically fit the body, and the exterior looked vivid and lifelike, just like real demon beasts.

Chu Wen truly did not understand. Why would anyone need such a thing?

If you liked fluffy things, you could go pet a real demon beast. If you did not want to care for a real one, there were also fluffy puppets.

Yet Song Yi and the others wanted neither. “It can make a person look more or less like a demon beast after putting it on.”

The moment you heard it, you knew it was not the request of any proper person.

Although she did not understand, Chu Wen still helped them figure out a way.

Then Song Yi had Tie Yuan display his might and smear his own aura onto these “outerwear” pieces. If one did not sense carefully, they would not be much different from demon beasts.

Why didn’t Tie Yuan come along?

On one hand, because he was too eye-catching. On the other, because he was now a very busy person. He and Barber Hero had gone explosively viral during the New Year, and Cloud Dream Sect had taken a liking to them and wanted to invite them to be the main characters.

As a major investor, Song Yi had originally wanted to get involved in the script preparations too. Her summary was: “Protagonist, sword cultivator, bitterly cultivates all the way, eventually becomes the strongest.”

The scriptwriters of Cloud Dream Sect looked at one another, expressing that they had never heard of such a boring story.

“You don’t understand sword cultivators! This is the necessary path for every sword cultivator!”

Then Song Yi was forked out on the grounds of “you don’t understand entertainment and culture.”

However, considering her identity as a major investor, they thought it over for a bit. “We can keep this character design for you. Supremely talented, hardworking, diligent, and very strong, right? Although he won’t be the protagonist, we’ll definitely give him plenty of scenes.”

Since they had put it that way, Song Yi stopped managing it. Tie Yuan had been dazzled by the bustling world, and Song Yi was likewise a very busy person.

In short, Song Yi had already made preparations for this outing as thorough as possible. A less attentive teacher might have been fooled.

However, human calculation could not compare to heaven’s calculation. The lead teacher was also surnamed Wang, and Song Yi knew her. She was the Teacher Wang who taught her Elementary Beast Studies course.

Teacher Wang followed the Dao of Beast Control, so she was extremely familiar with demon beasts. But the demon beasts Wang Yisheng and the others had brought gave her, someone who had “seen countless beasts,” an indescribably strange feeling.

She reached out and touched one.

Then, amid Wang Yisheng’s protest of “It’s really afraid of strangers,” she expressionlessly picked up the demon beast cub.

After that, Teacher Wang drew a knife.

The students were so frightened that they shut their eyes.

They had absolutely no idea what was happening, nor did they understand why Teacher Wang would draw a knife without a word. That demon beast was supposed to form a contract with Wang Yisheng and the others. How could she kill it just like that?

However, the bloody scene they imagined did not appear. After Teacher Wang cut open the three skins, three children rolled down.

Teacher Wang and the students: “…”

How to put it? Cultivators should have seen the world, but the scene before their eyes was still somewhat fantastical.

When the students had seen Teacher Wang’s actions just now, they had been somewhat shocked, even indignant. Even a teacher could not do something like that!

In the end, several children popped out, chilling the hot blood that had been about to flare up. It was as though a punch had landed on cotton, leaving behind only a heart full of bewilderment. What on earth was this?

Teacher Wang precisely grabbed the shortest child and felt that as long as this one was around, she never had to worry about low blood pressure.

Why was it that even when this child did not attend her class, she could still haunt her like a lingering ghost?

She saw Teacher Yuan not far away, and her eyes immediately lit up. First, get this trouble off her hands!

“Teacher Yuan, these are students from your class, right? They even wanted to pretend to be demon beasts and go out with us. I’ll leave them to you.”

Now the one who lost the smile on his face became Old Yuan. My weekend!

He sighed inwardly, then very skillfully picked up the three children. He was so practiced that Teacher Wang felt very heartbroken.

Wang Yisheng and the others pretended that they did not exist. What? The demon beasts I was preparing to contract with actually turned into classmates? I know nothing.

Teacher Wang glared at him and took a deep breath. But there was no time to settle accounts with them now.

With this prior warning, she carried out “security checks” again to make sure no audacious person was using similar methods to cause trouble.

The other students howled like ghosts and wolves, because Teacher Wang’s standards had risen. Things that could originally be brought casually could not be brought anymore, so inevitably some people were affected.

Meanwhile, in Teacher Yuan’s office, Teacher Yuan said mildly, “Speak. What are you trying to do?”

The cubs still wanted to make excuses. “We were just playing.” “It was a misunderstanding.” “We’re so wronged.”

But the experienced Teacher Yuan did not fall for this. He reminded them, “Be honest now, and I still have a chance to help you get what you want. If you’re not honest, I’ll keep watching you.”

Lin Ze and Li Wenwen looked toward Song Yi.

Seeing that she could not dodge it, Song Yi braced herself and said, “Teacher, I want to go outside and take a look. I want to make a contribution.”

This answer truly surprised Teacher Yuan. He pondered briefly, then asked, “Why would you have such an idea?”

Now Song Yi stammered and could not say it. She could not very well say that she actually was not doing this for herself, but to build momentum for a person who did not exist, right?

After learning their goal, Teacher Yuan became much more patient.

Song Yi refused to say the reason, but he did not mind. Clearly, the child’s reason was not so “lofty.” But this instead matched reality. No matter the reason, a child wanting to walk the proper path was something worthy of encouragement.

Teacher Yuan smiled faintly. “Then do you know what contribution means?”

Song Yi said without thinking, “It means giving others benefits.”

Technically, that was the logic, but the wording was far too rough.

“Then how do you understand this matter?”

This was not homework, nor was it an exam, so Song Yi let herself go. “When I give others benefits, and I gain benefits myself too, that’s pretty worthwhile. If I harm myself to benefit others, and then call it dedication and sacrifice, that’s just pure idiocy.”

Teacher Yuan compared Song Yi’s submitted homework to what she was saying now and did not know whether to laugh or cry. This child’s ideological and moral level had still not changed. She had merely learned how to cope with homework.

But he was not surprised.

He understood Song Yi’s behavioral patterns, and knew she was the kind of “self-interested” child who considered “whether I want to” when doing things. She would be constrained by the law and knew what she could not do, but she was not bound by a sense of morality.

Her problem-solving ability was also very strong. To achieve her goals, she would not hesitate to use a butcher’s knife to kill a chicken, which could produce some secondary effects, good or bad. She herself did not care about those effects. As long as she was not punished, she was indifferent.

Song Yi was a genius, but if handled poorly, she could also become a troublesome figure.

Teacher Yuan would not think badly of her because of this. Her situation was connected to her past experiences. She was still young, and the purpose of education was to help children build sound personalities, wasn’t it?

He asked again, “Then how do you understand seniors like Dao Monarch Qiao Wen?”

When the New Era was opened, there had been countless pioneers.

Song Yi’s expression became a little conflicted. After weighing her words for a long time, she finally said, “I admire them, but I don’t really understand them, because I can’t do what they did.”

That she could not do it was a fact. She had already lived through one lifetime, but she had done nothing.

She admired them because she was a beneficiary. But Song Yi likewise felt that the admiration of someone insignificant like her was of what use to the people involved? They had already died with their Daos destroyed. Nothing was left.

Teacher Yuan smiled and patted her head. “Actually, I don’t believe there is such a thing as pure dedication in this world either.”

Song Yi’s eyes lit up. “Teacher, does that mean my Moral Education is guaranteed to pass this year?”

Teacher Yuan changed his pat into a knock. “Dream on. I’m not agreeing with your view. Some people’s dedication is not for material rewards, but for spiritual satisfaction, for the completeness of their Great Dao. For example, if Wenwen and the others were standing behind you, could you ignore whether they lived or died?”

“That’s different. I don’t have feelings for strangers.”

How could strangers and friends be the same?

“It is different, but also the same. Let’s go. You want to go outside and take a look, so I’ll take you there.” Teacher Yuan stood up.

Teacher Wang’s side had been delayed by the security check, so Song Yi and the others happened to catch up.

The three children stood behind Old Yuan, grinning cheekily as if saying: After all that delay, isn’t the result still the same? You should’ve just been straightforward earlier.

Teacher Wang rolled her eyes speechlessly. She knew why these children could be so completely lawless. Wasn’t it because certain teachers had spoiled them?

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