This time I chose Paladin.

Chapter 181 "Confess and you'll be treated leniently, old classmate."

“The only reason someone is persecuted is because there are bad people,” Han Jiangxue said. “You might think I’m just talking without understanding the situation. You might think my words are too naive or childish. You might want to find reasons for all of this, deeper, more malicious, darker, or more ‘everyone’s the same’ reasons. But this is the truth: someone is persecuted because there are bad people.”

"..." Fu Nian opened his mouth, remained silent for a moment, opened his mouth again, and then remained silent.

She couldn't respond to that.

She desperately wanted to say something sarcastic or critical, but looking into Han Jiangxue's eyes, she couldn't bring herself to speak. She also wanted to reminisce with Nie Weiyang about the past and try to appeal to his emotions, but looking into his eyes, she couldn't open her mouth.

“Tell me about the Star God Cult,” Nie Weiyang said. “When did they contact you?”

“Star God Cult…” Fu Nian murmured to herself, her thoughts swirling as she recalled the past.

Not long after arriving in the new world, she was betrayed by her boyfriend—they were camping together in the wild, and when they encountered some 'people,' her boyfriend quickly abandoned her.

In fact, she didn't intend to blame anyone. After all, their relationship was essentially a modern-day exchange of comfort and mutual needs. She knew very well that not everyone in this world had a sense of responsibility; after all, she admitted that she herself hadn't been born with much of that quality.

But after being scammed, she realized how unbearable life was without the protection of rules. The lack of basic necessities like food, rest, and personal safety quickly erodes a person's spirit. Soon, she became disheveled, unkempt, and lost. The knowledge she had acquired became almost worthless in the face of the collapsed order; everything that couldn't be used as fighting power had to be demoted in priority…

Death erodes reason, bloodshed brings fear. Humanity is neither inherently good nor evil, but sometimes the collapse of morality happens in an instant, followed by a long decline. Without the support of renewed benevolence and righteousness, and without sufficiently powerful violent intervention, the injustices suffered by the weak exceed the imagination of people in peaceful times and regions.

When she finally composed herself and changed her appearance, she instigated a riot in the camp, secretly killed the camp leader, and escaped in the chaos... She soon discovered that without roads, lights, or GPS guidance, it would be difficult for her to even travel at night under this false starry sky.

In the new world, those who have traveled long distances at night probably don't particularly like this starry sky. It may seem tranquil and beautiful, but without a systematic understanding of celestial phenomena, weather, and directional knowledge, its guidance is barely worthwhile.

For a period of time afterward, although Fu Nian gained her freedom, she also suffered greatly. Later, during a stargazing and recording session, she encountered members of the Star God Cult.

Then everything happened naturally. She became one of them.

When she looked up at the starry sky, she missed Earth countless times, to the point that she gradually deceived herself, telling herself that she once deeply loved Earth, loved humanity, and loved her hometown.

But whatever the truth is... Nie Weiyang can hear it.

“You don’t want to repay anyone, Fu Nian, especially since you came to this planet,” he said. “You don’t trust anyone; you just want to survive.”

Fu Nian remained silent at this point in his narration, but his fingers twitched involuntarily.

“It’s not wrong, the will to survive is a human instinct, but it’s wrong to use Ping Xingdou as a price,” Nie Weiyang said softly.

“…Not everyone is kind, not everyone wants to save people, and not everyone can live as strongly as you, Nie Weiyang. Saying that is just arrogance. If you were in my position, you would have done the same,” Fu Nian murmured. “And…”

"...He also longs to see the real starry sky, doesn't he?"

"Is that so?" Han Jiangxue frowned, which made her icy face seem more alive. "No, even if you switched places, he wouldn't become like you, just as you could never become like him—damn, I hate people like you who say 'you wouldn't be able to do it even if you switched places'! Is that a reason to do evil? Laughable. You're really incapable, that's why you have to harm people and seduce a promising scholar!"

Fu Nian almost blushed from her retort, and Nie Weiyang glanced at Han Jiangxue in shock at her tone, quickly patting the air in front of her to calm her down and prevent her from getting sidetracked. "You know perfectly well that he wants to see the real starry sky, and there will be plenty of opportunities in the future. But you chose to seduce him." Nie Weiyang's expression was serious. "Did the Star God Sect send you to do this?"

Fu Nian remained silent. She finally realized something was wrong: Nie Weiyang seemed to know what she was thinking!

"Oh, they made you do it... They, no, you are recruiting astronomers, astrologers, diviners, and even occult enthusiasts who study the stars and navigation from all over the world..."

Nie Weiyang stroked his chin and said to the wall beside him, "This part is important."

Fu Nian stared wide-eyed: There are people listening in here?! Could there be someone analyzing the psychology of the person being interrogated?

“No,” Nie Weiyang said, calmly ignoring the 'lie' echoing in his heart: “I’m already here.”

Fu Nian opened his mouth, his face blank, his thoughts a jumble of chaos, trying to mask his true feelings with a barrage of noise.

“Yes, mind reading,” Nie Weiyang said.

He stared into Fu Nian's eyes and gave a gentle smile.

"There's also lie detectors, and intuition—oh, the Cult of the Star Gods has that too, but that guy's insane? What a pity. What's even more of a pity is that the trick he taught you is so clumsy."

Fu Nian: "..."

In the darkness, the woman stiffly raised her eyes and looked at Nie Weiyang.

“Yes, you don’t need to answer, because the human brain dictates that when I ask a question, you will definitely think of that answer.” Nie Weiyang’s voice carried a hint of amusement. “For example, right now, I say: Elephant! — See, you think of an elephant. Then, a pink elephant standing in a forest? A pink and sky-blue elephant standing together?”

"Enough! Stop!" Fu Nian couldn't take it anymore. She shouted and slammed her handcuffed hands on the table in front of her. She stared at Nie Weiyang, but couldn't help but look away, only able to stare at his chest.

In the darkness, the cold gleam of the silver plate armor filled the air.

"I'll talk! I'll talk!" She abandoned all thoughts of hiding it, turned to the wall and shouted, "I only have one request: let him out!"

Nie Weiyang raised his eyebrows, stood up, and nodded gently.

“Confess and you’ll be treated leniently, old classmate,” he said. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

"I'm not happy!!!" Fu Nian shouted, finally breaking down: "Damn it, you're the one who makes decisions?! What the hell are you doing in Gushi?!"

Nie Weiyang did not answer, but simply left with Han Jiangxue, smiling.

(End of this chapter)