Star Odyssey

Chapter 2191: Living Together?

Bai Nan spoke up again. "To be blunt, anything regarding Progenitor Wen’s life or experiences happened too long ago for anyone to know about it. Meanwhile, it’s impossible to study the sourcebox array with practically all of the Lockbreakers being on the rear battlefield. Prof. Hao Yu, you can’t possibly think that you can trick us with this topic."

The young man was voicing the same thoughts that many other students had. On top of that, continuing to explore the topic that had been brought up would absolutely draw the attention of the Purple-Gold family. That attention would be enough to force Prof. Hao Yu to remain trapped within Virtue Archives.

All people love beauty and things that are pleasant to look at. This was why many of the female students were so partial to Lu Yin. Still, if Lu Yin proved to be nothing more than an idiot, he would be regarded as mere eye candy, which would greatly diminish their ardor and excitement.

Only true elites were able to gain admittance to Virtue Archives.

With a hint of a smile, Lu Yin raised a hand. Stellular energy gathered and formed an Inception Array in front of everyone.

"A sourcebox array?" someone blurted as they stared at Lu Yin in surprise.

All the students were stunned by the display. It was shocking to see a sourcebox array be setup so casually.

Prof. Zheng's expression changed slightly. So this new instructor was an Array Master? It was no wonder why he had been bold enough to claim that it was possible to study Progenitor Wen’s sourcebox array. He had not been overstepping himself at all.

The moment Lu Yin revealed his abilities, many of the female students grew excited again. "Prof. Hao Yu, are you an Array Master?"

"Prof. Hao Yu, what level of Array Master are you?"

Lu Yin glanced at Bai Nan, and he saw an ugly expression on the young man’s face. A professional smile appeared on Lu Yin’s face. "I should be considered a Senior Array Master."

Another commotion broke out at this reveal, and Bai Nan heard many comments. A great number of the students were mocking Bai Nan and laughing at him for trying to provoke Lu Yin.

"Prof. Hao Yu is a majestic Array Master at such a young age, so why can’t he research the academy’s sourcebox array?"

"Given Prof. Hao Yu's capabilities, he’s definitely able to study the sourcebox array, and he’ll even be able to answer this mystery."

Other people grew upset. "A Senior Array Master wants to study a sourcebox array that Progenitor Wen set up? What a joke!"

Some of the girls went after the doubters. "Who cares how long it’s been a mystery or how many people have studied it? Given Prof. Hao Yu's abilities, I believe that he will definitely be able to study the sourcebox array."

"Exactly!"

Bai Nan stared at Lu Yin. He had badly misjudged this instructor. This person was actually a Senior Array Master. Even normal Lockbreakers were treated with a great deal of respect everywhere in the Perennial World, let alone a Senior Array Master. This person was exceptionally gifted.

Even Headmaster Wen was caught off guard, as not even he had considered that Lu Yin was actually a Senior Array Master. "A Senior Array Master? Interesting…"

Lu Yin smiled as he glanced around at the students. He caught a glimpse of Prof. Zheng, and the fact that the older instructor was leaving was an indication that Virtue Archives was satisfied with Lu Yin’s lecture. "Exploring doesn't need to be centered on only one topic. There are too many remnants and mysteries left from the past, so rather than spend all of our time focusing on only a single mystery, tell me whatever mysteries you’re interested in studying in class, and we’ll go from there.

"Exploration is a very profound subject, and in the process of studying a single topic, we will encounter numerous problems and many unsolved mysteries. It’s even possible to encounter dangerous situations. Eliminating such dangers and overcoming the obstacles that arise are also a part of studying exploration. For example, with just the mystery that was already brought up, the flames of the Undying Bird and the Dark Undying Bird in Virtue Archives, we clearly need to start by studying lockbreaking. However, this is beyond the abilities of some of you students. Instead, you can instead focus on gathering information regarding Progenitor Wen…"

Some distance away from Lu Yin’s class, Mr. Tang met with Prof. Zheng. "So, how is the new instructor, Prof. Hao Yu? What does he plan to teach the students?"

Prof. Zheng quickly shared what had happened, and Mr. Tang was taken aback. "The subject of exploration? That’s something that even I’d be interested in attending. Human history covers countless years, numerous eras, and countless wars, all of which have left behind endless mysteries with no answers. Having a course dedicated to researching such mysteries would be wonderful."

Prof. Zheng nodded. "He’s very bright and has already taken a firm grasp of the hearts of students. Even if they aren’t interested in exploration, there will be some students who will occasionally come listen to his lectures if he’s going to talk about Progenitor Wen. Even storytelling can draw in a large number of students."

Mr. Tang smiled. "This Prof. Hao Yu is quite interesting. I hope that he can find the answer regarding the Undying Bird and the Dark Undying Bird’s connection to the academy. Also, students from the Purple-Gold family should be arriving soon."

"Let’s hurry up. They never skip classes," Prof. Zheng said.

…

Lu Yin's first class eventually finished. Even if it had been a turbulent class, it had also ended up being very exciting for the students. Not a single one of them had left partway through the lecture. All of them had been eager to hear about Lu Yin’s insight into the academy’s sourcebox array, as well as the legends of Progenitor Wen.

Bai Nan had wanted to embarrass Lu Yin, but he had completely failed. He was forced to leave and consider other options.

As the flames of the Dark Undying Bird filled the sky, Lu Yin returned to his own stone pillar. The first class that he had ever given had ended up becoming a good memory. The students of Virtue Archives were all very bright, and their whimsical ideas had continued to be shared. Some of them had even concocted a love story that had been told so convincingly that many of the female students had believed it to be true.

Additionally, the class had exposed Lu Yin as a Lockbreaker, which was not a bad outcome.

Several of the female students approached the bottom of Lu Yin’s pillar. "Sister, are you sure that we should try to meet with Prof. Hao Yu right now? He just came back to rest."

"Why would we find him if he isn’t resting? Ah! I mean we will be able to rest after him- No! I mean-"

"Alright girl, calm down. You’re going to embarrass yourself if anyone hears you."

"Little Sister, head on up."

"Why don't you go, Big Sister? You must be afraid of whatever restrictions Prof. Hao Yu has put up and don’t want to try. Don’t try to trick me—I’m not going to be the first one."

"Little Sister, you’ve gotten smarter."

"Hmph, of course! Wait, no! I was already smart!"

"Enough. I’ll go first and have the honor of being the first to meet with Prof. Hao Yu."

"The first to meet with Prof. Hao Yu? Wait, Big Sister! I’ll come! I'll go!"

A short time later, two embarrassed people descended from the pillar once more. "Big Sister, wasn’t that the wind restriction that Prof. Xiao Wen put up? Didn't Prof. Hao Yu put up his own restrictions?"

"I don't know. He definitely should have put his own up."

"Sister, Prof. Hao Yu can’t be living with Prof. Xiao Wen, could he? I mean, this was originally Prof. Xiao Wen’s pillar… I think that the story about Prof. Xiao Wen moving to a different pillar might be fake."

"You’re right! Why didn't I think of that? They must be living together! Ooooh, I'm so mad! Let's go!"

"Big Sister, why are you leaving?"

"I'm not feeling well any more. Don't let those other deadbeats get comfortable; we’ll tell everyone about them."

"Yes, let’s go."

Rumors about Prof. Hao Yu and Prof. Xiao Wen cohabiting immediately and quickly spread throughout Virtue Archives’ students, though the two instructors were both completely ignorant of the matter. Instead, they were both staring up at the night sky.

A few days later, Lu Yin was preparing for his next lecture. During this time, Jin Chongshan had passed the entrance exam and officially become a student of Virtue Archives. Right after that, Liu Que also passed the exam, which was shocking news for Virtue Archives’ students.

They were shocked that Liu Que was attending the academy. There was no one from their generation who had not heard of Liu Que before.

Liu Que's arrival also incited several other famous geniuses to come out of seclusion within the academy. Some of them could not resist challenging Liu Que, only to be defeated by a single attack from Liu Que’s sword. The young swordsman’s reputation spiked throughout Virtue Archives.

A few more days passed, and Lu Yin held the second lecture of his life. The attendance for his second class was a bit more than half of his first class’s. The fact that he had addressed the presence of the Undying Bird and the Dark Undying Bird’s flames in the academy’s sourcebox array had caused many of the students to grow excited, so they had decided to continue attending Lu Yin’s lectures. However, after a few days passed, much of the excitement had died down. Most of the students wanted to continue focusing on their cultivation, and what did exploration have to do with that?

The students who remained eager to attend Lu Yin’s class were either girls or people who wanted to study lockbreaking.

The short, stammering fat man also attended. He was eager to ask a few questions, but he struggled to speak them.

"First- Sir- Could I ask the academy- I mean, whi- which battle techniques can be combined with lock- lockbreaking?" the little fatty asked.

Lu Yin shook his head. "I only just arrived at Virtue Archives, so I’m not familiar with the academy’s battle techniques. However, I do want to remind all of you students that if you actually want to pursue lockbreaking, it’s important to develop your control of star energy, as that is the first step in lockbreaking. Well, having a domain is even more helpful.”

"Sir, if you have a sourcebox, could I ask you to open it?" a student asked.

Lu Yin smiled. "Even we instructors need to do our own training, but if any of you students have a sourcebox that you really want to be opened, I don’t mind. Just don’t be stingy with the credits."

"Great!" Many girls grew excited. Sourceboxes were not too rare for them, and credits could always be earned, which made this a wonderful opportunity to arrange for some private time with Prof. Hao Yu. Lockbreaking was a lengthy process, and as the girl who had asked the question continued to think about the matter, she quickly sent a message to her family, asking them to send her a sourcebox.

The second class quickly passed, and Lu Yin was becoming more and more comfortable teaching students. Most of the questions that were brought up were about lockbreaking, though some girls also voiced various conjectures regarding Progenitor Wen. Some of the stories that were proposed made Lu Yin feel as if there was something wrong with the girls’ thought processes.

Unexpectedly, the class proceeded smoothly to the end, though at the very end, one girl timidly asked a question that absolutely floored Lu Yin.

"Instructor, are you living with Prof. Xiao Wen?"

The girl’s voice was very soft, but the question silenced the entire lakeside. It might have been just an illusion, but it felt like even the noisy cicadas stopped chirping.

Lu Yin stared blankly at the nervous girl who was already blushing. "What did you just ask?"

Everyone was staring at the girl.

She bit her lip, took a deep breath and then loudly called out, "Are you living with Prof. Xiao Wen?"

Every single student turned as one to stare at Lu Yin.

Lu Yin was stunned. "No."

"But you’re living in Prof. Xiao Wen's home," the girl pressed.

Lu Yin felt increasingly confused. "Prof. Xiao Wen moved to the neighboring pillar. This should already have been announced to all of you."

"But your pillar still has Prof. Xiao Wen's restrictions! I know it, and so does everyone else!" The girl remained stubborn, as this information had already been confirmed to be true.

Lu Yin smiled wryly. "You’re overthinking things. I’ve only ever met Prof. Xiao Wen once, which was the day I arrived here at the academy. Don’t spread such ridiculous rumors, as even if I won’t be bothered by them, they’ll ruin Prof. Xiao Wen's reputation."

Someone else asked, "Then why does your pillar still have Prof. Xiao Wen's restrictions in place?"

"It must be a lie that Prof. Xiao Wen moved to a different pillar! You could have taken one of the unused pillars, so why would Prof. Xiao Wen need to move at all?"

"There has to be something going on for something so strange to be happening."

…

The entire class erupted into commotion, and Lu Yin left, feeling exhausted. It seemed that being good looking did not only have benefits. Those girls were too aggressive, and their behavior was giving Lu Yin a headache. Who would believe that he had left the old restrictions in place on his stone pillar just because he had been too lazy to change anything? He was a powerful Senior Array Master! Even if such a person did not set up a sourcebox array to restrict their pillar, they should have at least placed a sourcebox to stop the students from invading. There were too many options that were realistically available to Lu Yin to protect his pillar, but he had not used any of them.