The Elixir is for You, The Poison is for Me

#181 - Guo Shouhuai's concerns

"Old Huang, don't get angry," Guo Shouhuai had a good temper. He didn't get upset even after being scolded by Supervisor Huang. He simply explained, "Although I went alone, I made preparations beforehand. If I really encountered danger, escaping wouldn't be a problem.

"Moreover, before leaving, I left three letters, explaining my affairs."

Supervisor Huang's expression didn't improve upon hearing this; instead, his words became even more serious.

"Since the establishment of the Sitianjian, everyone has been of one mind, each fulfilling their duties. As Vice Director, you should fulfill your responsibilities, plan for the Sitianjian, and coordinate all personnel. If there's a reason to explore a secret realm, you can delegate a supervisor from the department."

"Yes, yes, you're right, but this time I must personally take a look," Guo Shouhuai said.

Seemingly sensing the firmness in Guo Shouhuai's words, Supervisor Huang finally didn't refute him this time. After a long silence, he asked, "What did you see?"

"I didn't see anything."

"What does 'didn't see anything' mean?" Supervisor Huang frowned even more.

"It means exactly what it says," Guo Shouhuai said, looking into the eyes of his former classmate, emphasizing each word, "The ancient secret realm deep in the East Sea is gone."

Supervisor Huang was shocked upon hearing this. "How could it be gone?"

"As for the reason… I haven't had time to start investigating, and it's not appropriate to draw conclusions too early. But twenty years ago, we both went there and knew how rich the secret power was in that area. But now, it's almost impossible for me to sense the existence of secret power there, so…"

Guo Shouhuai paused, then continued, "I personally suspect that the secret realm couldn't be maintained due to the depletion of secret power."

"Has this ever happened before?" Supervisor Huang still couldn't believe his ears.

"No, after returning, I searched through all the books in the department and never found a similar record."

Guo Shouhuai's tone was still very calm, but what he said next made Supervisor Huang shudder. "There are twelve secret realms in the world, which are also the source of secret power in the human world. Losing one… isn't actually a big problem, especially since the missing secret realm is deep in the East Sea.

"The impact on us is even smaller. What I'm really worried about… is that the disappearance of that secret realm isn't accidental or isolated."

"You think the secret power within the remaining eleven secret realms might also be depleted?" Supervisor Huang asked, terrified.

Guo Shouhuai nodded, but then opened his mouth to comfort him, "You know me, I always like to consider things in the worst possible light, but in reality, the situation isn't always that bad.

"But once that situation that neither of us wants to see appears, doing a little more is always better than… doing nothing at all. Recruiting more people is just one thing."

Guo Shouhuai's voice gradually lowered as he said this, "The matter of the secret realms is of great importance. I haven't told anyone else besides you, Old Huang.

"Afterward, I plan to find two or three supervisors who can keep secrets and are strong enough to put aside their other tasks and focus on investigating the cause of the East Sea secret realm's disappearance.

"Lao Li and Lao Qiu are my preferred choices. I want to find one more person. You've led several batches of new recruits; do you have any good recommendations?"

"Kui," Supervisor Huang said without hesitation.

"I have no doubts about Kui's strength, but I can't quite see through her," Guo Shouhuai pondered for a moment. "Forget it, now is not the time to be picky. If you trust someone, use them; if you doubt them, don't use them. I'll send Nightingale to deliver a letter to her later."

After finishing the serious business, perhaps to ease the somewhat heavy atmosphere, Guo Shouhuai chatted with Supervisor Huang for a while.

"I heard that the results of the assessment are almost out now. How are they?"

"The level of this year's new recruits is really good; I'm afraid they'll surpass us back then." Speaking of this, Supervisor Huang's tightly furrowed brows relaxed a lot. "Let's not talk about that little girl named Xia Huai, whom you've personally seen. Yan Yun, Zhao Ming… Oh, right, you just met that young man named Lu Jing, right? What did you two talk about?"

"I asked him which flower in the courtyard was the most beautiful," Guo Shouhuai said.

"That trick again?" Supervisor Huang was speechless upon hearing this. "Do you have to do this with every new recruit you're interested in? What was the result?"

"I don't know how he trained his eye technique, but among so many flowers, he could immediately see which two were exactly the same," Guo Shouhuai praised.

Supervisor Huang heard something unusual in his words, and paused, "Wait, did you just say eye technique?"

"That's right, he saw through the flowers I conjured with magic, but in the end, he didn't choose that flower," Guo Shouhuai said calmly.

"His secret power compatibility…"

"I'm afraid it's not optimistic," Guo Shouhuai said. "My Myriad Birth has reached the seventh level. The flowers I conjure have a natural attraction for people with good secret power compatibility.

"Not to mention geniuses like Xia Huai, as long as their secret power compatibility is above average, they should feel something from the flowers I conjure and feel joy in their hearts."

"This…" Supervisor Huang was speechless for a moment, then couldn't help but sigh, seeming somewhat regretful.

Guo Shouhuai didn't seem to care at all, and instead comforted him, "Our Sitianjian doesn't have strict requirements for secret power. He's on the Tianji List before he's even twenty years old, so his martial arts are high enough. Even if he's average at magic, I believe he can pass the final exam.

"Moreover, I heard that he and Xia Huai have a good relationship. Don't we have many husband-and-wife teams in our department? Xia Huai needs someone to protect her, whether she's setting up formations or casting spells.

"After all, not everyone is like that monster Kui, who is used to being alone."

"That's true, but knowing this result, many professors in the academy will probably be disappointed. He stayed in the Trial Realm for more than a month at once, and many people were very interested in him and wanted to pass on their teachings to him. However, most people's best skills still need to be performed through secret power," Supervisor Huang said truthfully.

"Isn't your formation also like that?" Guo Shouhuai said with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.

He just casually sighed with Supervisor Huang for a few words, then bid farewell and left, thinking about how to write a letter to Kui about the East Sea secret realm.

As Guo Shouhuai left, Supervisor Huang stood in the empty courtyard, looking at the bellflower that had appeared in the flowerbed, and couldn't help but sigh again.