In this cyberpunk era, why are you still playing the traditional villain?

Pan Ling answered directly, "Since I've encountered this situation, I thought I'd give it a try and see if it works... I didn't say anything wrong, did I? And I didn't misunderstand your meaning, Master, right?"

"You've been following me for so long, why are you still asking such childish questions?"

Xu Shi reached out and flicked her forehead. "But you should also know that Lu Baiyan is not so easy to persuade. Do you think what you just said will work?"

"It might work?"

The foolish apprentice thought it over in his mind, and then said seriously, "However, I think that persuading him is secondary. As long as we can plant the seed of doubt in his heart, and in the hearts of others, then what I said to him will not have been a waste of breath."

"Who are the others?"

"They're probably from the Vatican?"

Pan Ling frowned slightly and said, "Didn't my master tell me before that, according to intelligence from the royal family, he is currently caught in the middle in the Vatican? If that's the case, then the Vatican will probably have to keep an eye on him from the shadows. So these words are not only for him, but also for the people behind him."

Xu smiled, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

It can only be said that the foolish disciple's consideration was indeed thorough, at least his analysis was flawless... Logically speaking, the Vatican's suspicion of him probably didn't start today, and he had just sensed it with his mental power as well. There was indeed a tiny, unidentified strange insect in that space, tiny and unknown, but carrying a frighteningly high amount of "rust mist". This must be the method the Vatican used to monitor Lu Baiyan.

According to the information obtained from Cheng Gujian, there is indeed a Templar Knight with similar abilities.

Anyway, even if Xu Shi found out, he wouldn't do anything to alert them... because, as Pan Ling said, some things need to be heard by them, otherwise how can he further intensify the indecisive squinty-eyed man's efforts?

Whether Pan Ling can detect it is hard to say—if she can, it would be the best indication of her progress in mind-reading, which is also a mental ability; if she can't, it would mean that she has become more and more comprehensive in her thinking these days, which is also a gratifying thing.

Is that all?

Since it was an assessment, he wanted to ask a comprehensive question. So, after confirming his foolish apprentice's thoughts, he continued to press, "Are there any other considerations?"

"Hmm...a few too?"

Pan Ling blinked. "What I'm still thinking about is that there are actually quite a few nobles like the Lu family in the main city or even the whole empire. If we can take down such a typical example as him, then we can follow the same method and gain more support without bloodshed."

Xu Shi narrowed his eyes.

If the previous reasons were merely the passing grade, this is a bonus point—that's the logic. The Papacy has been operating in the Empire for many years, which has caused many nobles to waver between two sides. Those with the means, like the Lu family, can arrange for family members to report to both sides, while those without the means naturally have their own ways of maneuvering.

Once Lu Baiyan truly sides with him, it will be much easier to take down the others. Those who have Templar Knights at home know they're doomed, so what else can you say?

"last question."

Xu Shi took a deep breath and asked, "When you were persuading him just now, did you rely solely on your knowledge of the intelligence organization's language, or did you use your abilities on him?"

"Uh……"

Seeing his master's ambiguous smile, the foolish apprentice suddenly had a bad feeling.

But she didn't want to lie to him, so she honestly said, "I read his mind, so I could better know what kind of words would be most persuasive to him..."

"...Is what I'm doing alright, Master?"

She vaguely remembered that Xu Shi had placed some restrictions on her in this regard. Could it be that her master didn't want her to do this? Or should she rely more on pure analysis?

"Of course there's no problem, what's the problem?"

Xu Shi's answer surprised her. "Of course you can't read my heart, but you can read other people's as you please. With such a good ability, when else would you use it if not now? When you're eating?"

To be honest, Pan Ling was just being paranoid, or perhaps his smirking demeanor was really hard for the little girl to handle, and coupled with his previous bad behavior, it made her feel that using her abilities in this kind of situation was an opportunistic act... But in fact, if you have the ability, you should use it, otherwise what is the point of awakening to become an "Ascendant"?

Of course, if you can silence the other party and shake their mind without relying on your abilities, that would be an even more remarkable thing. But there's no problem using it. If she doesn't use such a suitable stage to show her skills, when will she?

What a fking KFC! Xu Sang, how much psychological harm have you caused that young girl?! (Furious)

Why does it sound like I'm bullying her...? Xu Shicai doesn't think there's anything wrong with what she did. Didn't she use it when the Cat Cult was first established? Reading minds one by one in a noisy environment is the most suitable training for her, and it seems to be quite effective now.

In his estimation, Lu Baiyan was probably unaware of this and was being led by the nose by his foolish apprentice without realizing it... Although he was also a very capable "ascended one", his abilities focused more on time and space rather than spirit. Since his expertise was not relevant, it was useless to say anything.

Or perhaps, even if he really knows it, he just won't say it out loud—because that's what he's thinking, and saying it out loud wouldn't do him any good.

After all, he was still being watched—compared to his lack of understanding of Pan Ling, Xu Shi was certain that he knew the Vatican had placed eyes around him.

We're all Templars, so who doesn't know who? Otherwise, why would he start stammering and even running away when it comes to such a big issue as his stance? A single wrong word could cause a major problem.

But he had no way to expose what the Vatican was doing in secret, especially at this critical juncture—it was already difficult enough to come to Xu Shi under pressure, and if you deliberately cut off or erased the traces of being monitored, you would only end up admitting that you did have a problem and were having an affair with Xu Shi.

"Oh……"

Pan Ling was still a little confused. So her master didn't object to her using her abilities. In fact, he thought it was great... No, it seemed that he had never objected at all. It was just that, as he said, he didn't allow her to read his mind. As for others, it was simply a matter of "if you have the ability, then listen to me," without any restrictions.

So why did I think that way? I'm even a little apprehensive... Hmm, it must be the fault of my bad teacher! Damn it!

"Then... if you were to give me a score, what score would you give me?"

Although she had some minor complaints, Xiaoling was generally happy with the bad teacher's affirmation, and couldn't help but ask a question, hoping to get a more specific answer.

You say you're satisfied, but how satisfied are you really? Please tell me what shortcomings there are, and I'll correct them if there are any and strive to improve if there aren't.

"Well..."

Xu Shi was both amused and exasperated. "Why are you acting like a primary school student, giving scores to everything?"

However, since it was rare for his apprentice to ask such a question, he wouldn't refuse. After careful consideration, he gave a very fair score: "If I were to give a score, I would give your performance this time... 98 points."

Pan Ling was overjoyed. So tall?!

It's really rare for the master to be so satisfied. Does this mean that Pan Xiaoling, you're finally going to make it big?

But before she could even enjoy her moment for a few seconds, Xu Shi poured cold water on her, saying, "A perfect score of one thousand."

"Oh, a perfect score is one thousand... Hmm?!"

The foolish apprentice, Qie Le, was suddenly dumbfounded when he heard Xu Shi say that.

"Is there...is there something wrong with what I did?"

She was starting to have doubts about life and wanted to find Xu Shi to get some answers.

"Well, there's almost nothing to criticize about how you treat Lu Baiyan. You're assertive when you need to be, and you're generous when you need to be."

Xu Shi said seriously, "I deducted two points just to prevent you from becoming arrogant."

"As for the remaining nine hundred points, that depends on your attitude towards your teacher."

"What...what's wrong with me?"

Pan Ling felt extremely wronged, racking her brains but unable to figure out what disrespect she had shown Xu Shi.

"Haven't you realized it yet?"

Xu Shi straightened his face. "What did you say to Lu Baiyan just now? 'Master'? Am I that old? I don't like hearing that. Deducting 900 points from you would be too lenient."

"?"

The clueless apprentice was completely bewildered. "Isn't this a term of respect? It's not like I'm actually saying you're old! Why are you so picky?"

Even the little girl couldn't help but mutter a few words about Tibetan in her mind... but she quickly realized what she meant.

Making a big fuss about something that isn't even a problem only represents one thing.

"Actually, Master, you just wanted to find an excuse to bully me, right..."

She frowned helplessly and muttered a complaint in a low voice.

"Hmm? What did you say, my dear disciple? I didn't hear you clearly."

Xu Shi looked at her with interest. "Or... do you think my grading was unfair?"

"No……"

With her wicked master's tyranny above her, how could Xiaoling dare to resist? She could only shake her head slightly, saying, "Master is right..."

Master is the most annoying, hmph!

Xu Shi enjoys bullying his apprentices, but others can't stand his behavior.

"That's enough, what kind of bullshit reason is that?"

Xie Qingyan rolled her eyes at him, "It's only because our apprentice is sensible and obedient. If it were someone else, the first thing they would do after graduating would be to cut you in half."

"That's right, Xiaoling did a good job this time. It's not right for you to bully her."

Jiang Chengcheng, unusually, did not side with him and echoed his sentiments.

That's true. Everyone knows there are some things you can't say yourself. Now that your apprentice is so understanding and willing to act as your scapegoat, you're still causing trouble. Where has your conscience gone?

"……Alright alright."

Xu Shi spread his hands and took the opportunity to back down, saying, "Considering that your two mistresses pleaded for you, I'll let this beating go for now and deal with it another day."

To be honest, he certainly didn't intend to punish Pan Ling, but the old tradition of bullying his apprentice couldn't be abandoned... Did he really think his buddy was that bad? It was just a verbal flirtation, nothing serious.

The two ladies couldn't help but roll their eyes. This was already a terrible situation, wasn't it? What kind of rubbish were you treating like a treasure?

"Oh, thank you for your kindness, Master."

The foolish apprentice thanked him in a sarcastic tone, but when he imagined Xu Shi spanking him, he couldn't help himself and hurriedly covered his mouth to hide the fever on his face.

Xu Shi had never actually hit her, but just thinking about it made her feel a little overwhelmed...

"Master, Master, I have a question."

Pan Feng, who had been silent, did not notice his sister's unusual behavior and instead raised his hand seriously.

"Hmm? What do you say, Xiaofeng?"

"What's so special about Lu Baiyan? I always feel that your attitude towards him is completely different from how you treat...or how you treat other people in the Holy See?"

She wasn't asking about his family background, but rather about him as a person. What was so special about those squinty eyes that made her master so concerned? She couldn't see it.

Or……

"Does Master still like men?"

Xiao Feng is a bit oblivious; she blurted out that without thinking.

Xu Shi's eye twitched. Do you want to hear what you're saying?

"Do you want to hear what you're saying?"

Someone acted as his mouth double; it was Xia Wuyou, who had just returned from a trip with her aunt and arrived late.

She didn't realize she'd missed a great show, but hearing such explosive remarks as soon as she got back was truly a bit unbelievable.

Let's leave other things aside, but what kind of pig talk is this?

"You think you're all grown up now? Daring to joke about your master's father?"

Her face was more unpleasant than ever before, and she looked at her apprentice with a dark expression and asked.