On how PhDs become human evil

This time, the fiery lotuses that filled the sky disappeared, and in their place appeared a golden-red flame dragon that was nearly twenty meters long.

"Goodbye."

As Bai Jie pronounced his judgment, the Flame Dragon roared towards the evil spirit, and the divine flames that burned through three thousand worlds instantly reduced its entire body to nothingness!

Section 369, paragraph 6: I wouldn't take it even if you gave it to me for free.

Standing under a parasol on the half-ruined railway tracks, Nangong Nayue frowned deeply as she looked at the tram, which was clearly destroyed by brute force: "Did the power of the spiritual veins gather unnaturally and create an evil spirit? Honestly, who was so idle as to do something like this?"

"Instructor Nangong, the on-site investigation is complete." A member of the Special Zone Security Team jogged up to Nangong Nayue and said, "According to the on-site test results, the site was once dominated by two enormous spiritual forces."

"Two forces?" Nangong Nayue frowned. "Besides that evil spirit, there's another person?"

"Yes, based on speculation, it should be that person who dealt with the evil spirit. In addition, based on the analysis of the remaining spiritual power, that person should have used the Fire Realm Spell."

Fire Realm Spell.

Anyone with even a slight understanding of the realm of spellcasting would know of this spell's existence, and Nangong Nayue was naturally familiar with it. However, in her recollection, there shouldn't be any exceptionally skilled users of the Fire Boundary Spell on Itogami Island...

(No, there are some, like Ashiya who transferred here.)

Because Bai Jie hadn't acted strangely in the past six months, Nangong Nayue lowered her guard against him and treated him as just a good friend of Xiao Gucheng.

But now, Nangong Nayue feels she needs to pay attention to Ashiya Doryū again. This Onmyoji from Ashiya on Honshu is definitely not as simple as he seems.

(Ashiya... he's always such a worry, whether it's a thousand years ago or a thousand years later.)

Nangong Nayue sighed: "I have made progress on this matter. I will handle the rest. You can call it a day."

"Yes!"

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Just as Nangong Nayue was about to talk to Bai Jie, Bai Jie went to a fast food restaurant near his home and ordered a large set meal for himself as dinner. Lan Yu Qiancong came with him.

Looking at Lan Yu Qiancong sitting in front of him, Bai Jie put down the half-torn hamburger wrapper: "Lan Yu, just say what you want to say. It's weird that you keep staring at me like that."

"...So you really do know Yin-Yang techniques."

"I remember I mentioned it on my first day here, right? I know Yin-Yang magic, and you're already so surprised by just a little bit I showed you?"

Looking at Bai Jie's matter-of-fact expression, Lan Yuqian felt that she still didn't quite understand this friend she had known for half a year.

Actually, Asagi and Hakuge recognized each other because of Akatsuki Kojou. Asagi hadn't finished her art assignment and wanted Akatsuki Kojou to be her model, but Akatsuki Kojou had something to do that day, so Hakuge had to take her place. That's how the two met.

Initially, Asagi Lanyu ignored Bai Jie, and Bai Jie was the same. He wasn't a lecherous man who couldn't resist women, so even though they knew each other, they were no different from strangers.

What changed their relationship was a chance encounter at the hospital.

At that time, the emotional program had only been loaded for a short time. In order to verify whether the emotional program was effective, Bai Jie went to the hospital to see if negative emotions such as sadness and grief were working. At that time, he met Lan Yu Qian Cong who was sitting on a hospital bench crying. Out of friendship with his classmate, Bai Jie did not leave directly, but comforted her for a few words. Unexpectedly, after that, Lan Yu Qian Cong became familiar with him.

Not long after becoming acquainted with Asagi Aiba, Motoki Yase joined them, and along with Kojou Akatsuki, the four of them were basically inseparable.

Regarding Onmyoji techniques, Xiaogucheng and the others had hoped that Bai Jie could demonstrate them more than once, but at that time the battle program had not yet been loaded, and Bai Jie could only use things like stargazing and divination. These things are basically considered magic in the modern understanding, so the three of them regarded Bai Jie's identity as an Onmyoji as a joke.

But who would have thought that Bai Jie actually knew Yin-Yang techniques! And judging from his fighting style just now, he wasn't a novice, but a master!

"Hey you, if you know Yin-Yang magic, you should have revealed it sooner."

"Do you expect me to set off firecrackers like fireworks all the time? If you scratched me, the Special Zone Police and Xiao Nayue would have called me in for a talk by now." Bai Jie rolled his eyes at her. "Besides, I have my own reasons for not using Yin-Yang magic. Also, nothing major has happened recently, so there's no need to use Yin-Yang magic. If it weren't for what happened today, I don't think I would have used it either."

"Um... what exactly is an evil spirit? Was it a terrorist attack orchestrated by someone?" Asagi asked.

After a moment of silence, Bai Jie gave a wry smile: "Who knows? Maybe it was just a coincidence that led to this situation? Almost every factory on Itogami Island uses the power of the spiritual veins. Perhaps it was during this process that the spiritual veins encountered some problems, leading to what happened just now."

In fact, similar things have happened before, but at most they were just the rampage of artificial life forms or abnormal fluctuations in spiritual energy. They never evolved into the appearance of evil spirits like they did today.

However, if we're talking about possibilities, this explanation is the most convincing.

Listening to Bai Jie's explanation, Lan Yuqian unconsciously clenched her hand. It was the hand that Bai Jie had held on the train just now. Although she knew that Bai Jie had held her hand to prevent her from falling or being accidentally hurt, she still couldn't help but think the wrong thing. It's a signal that boys and girls in their adolescence are holding hands, okay?

Stealing a glance at Bai Jie, and seeing him struggling with the hamburger in front of him, Lan Yu Qiancong pinched her father's short skirt: "Um... Dao Liu, thank you for today."

"Oh? It's nothing, it doesn't even count as exercise for me."

"But it's a fact that you saved me, and I still want to thank you."

"It's up to you. I'll probably finish eating in another half hour. If you want to go back, then go back first. If you're worried about safety going back alone at night, then wait until I finish eating."

"...Let's wait until you finish eating. Anyway, our houses are only one street apart." Lan Yu Qiancong smiled. "But you actually considered my safety. Are you captivated by me?"

Aiba Asagi didn't know how much courage she had to say those words, but if Bai Jie's answer was yes...

"No, you're overthinking it. Girls like you are totally not my type."

Reality dealt Aiba Asagi a heavy blow.

While chewing on his hamburger, Bai Jie said, "Well, my ideal type is someone who is self-disciplined and organized. In addition, she can't be weak; she needs to have the necessary ability to stand on her own. To give an example... she'd be like a female CEO of a big company or a policewoman."

"So if you're not interested in your JK style at all, then don't even think about anything fancy."

Blue Feather Asagi: God is dead...

Section 370, Chapter 7: Refusing to Give Away Freebies Starts with Me

The day after the tram incident, in the office of Caihai Academy, Bai Jie and Nangong Nayue were facing each other across a desk.

Bai Jie shrugged and asked, "So, Teacher Nangong, why did you call me here? I'd like to go back and study hard, if possible."

"Come on, if you're always first in the class in mock exams and you still want to study hard, how are others supposed to live?" Nangong Nayue directly exposed Bai Jie's clumsy lie. "After hiding for half a year, you're finally willing to show your strength, Ashiya. You really caused quite a scene yesterday."

"I didn't damage anything at the scene, it was all that evil spirit's doing, okay?" Bai Jie was an honest and good person. His Fire Realm Spell really didn't damage anything; he still had that much control over it.

Facing Bai Jie, who didn't even bother to hide his true intentions, Nangong Nayue sighed: "Of course I know that. There were no burn marks left at the scene. To be honest, I never expected your Yin-Yang skills to be so strong. Are you really only eighteen years old?"

"Who knows? Maybe I'll be an old man over a hundred years old by now."

"You bastard..."

Nangong Nayue naturally knew that spells that could keep people young forever existed, but she had already investigated and found that Bai Jie's background was indeed clean. The fact that he was born eighteen years ago could still be seen by checking the surveillance footage, and the paper documents also recorded it well. He was definitely not some immortal old man who had lived for more than a hundred years.

Therefore, there is only one explanation that can be drawn—Bai Jie is a genius of Yin-Yang arts, a prodigy who surpassed all Yin-Yang masters in just a few years.

"Ashiya, would you like to join the security force?"

Nangong Nayue suddenly spoke.

In her opinion, Bai Jie's strength, even if underestimated, was definitely no less than hers. In other words, he was close to the level of a True Ancestor. It would be a real pity not to recruit such a powerful fighter. With him around, Itogami Island would be much safer. Perhaps even the spiritual vein problem that had been troubling Itogami Island for so long could be solved by this expert in Yin-Yang techniques.

Bai Jie refused Nangong Nayue's invitation without even thinking: "Forget it, I'm a person who likes freedom. I don't like joining any organizations."

"However, if something really happens, I will still get involved, depending on the situation."

"So you mean you'll get involved in all sorts of things in your own name? That doesn't make me feel at ease."

"Don't worry, as long as you don't provoke me, I won't make a move. I'm a pacifist, and fighting over a disagreement isn't my style."

These words coming from Bai Jie, a walking natural disaster, are utterly unconvincing. Anyone who knows him knows that Bai Jie can unleash a nuclear-level spell at the drop of a hat.

Of course, Nangong Nayue, who didn't know Bai Jie at all, could only believe Bai Jie's lies.

"Then, Teacher Nangong, I'll head back to the classroom now."

After Bai Jie left her office, Nangong Nayue sighed and took out a document from the drawer beside her.

This document was delivered to her just yesterday; it was an order—or rather, a notification—directly issued by the national government.

Ashiya Dōryū was actually someone who secretly ran away from the family. For the past six months, the Ashiya family had been searching for his whereabouts, and now it has finally been discovered that he was living on Itogami Island.

However, the Ashiya family currently only has Ashiya Doryu as an Onmyoji, and the rest are ordinary people without any qualifications. Naturally, they cannot come to Itogami Island to capture Ashiya Doryu themselves, so the Ashiya family has assigned a third party to handle the matter.

The Lion King organization.

The National Public Safety Commission, a department of the Japanese government, is an intelligence agency responsible for handling large-scale man-made magical disasters and intelligence work. It also represents the Japanese government in receiving important international figures and is responsible for their protection and surveillance.

Although the Ashiya family has declined to the point of having only one Onmyoji, it is still a prestigious family in the underworld of Japan and has considerable influence in the political arena in the surface world. It is still possible for them to entrust the Lion King Organization to send a sword priest or a dancer to handle matters.

"Hmph, so you're planning to extend your reach to Itogami Island, Lion King Organization." Nagatsuki sneered.

The Lion King Organization has long wanted to do something to Itogami Island. This time, they probably sent people to Itogami Island under the pretext of taking Ashiya Dōryū away. They also know that it is impossible for the Sword Mage and Mai-hime to capture Ashiya Dōryū, the child prodigy, by themselves. So, the people who came this time were probably given the mission of "staying on the island to monitor him if they cannot take Ashiya Dōryū away".

It's a very Lion King-esque approach to the game, and given that both the Sword Witch and the Dancer are exceptionally talented young women, it's not hard to guess the other purpose behind it.

By using the surveillance network to establish a connection with the Ashiya family, they were able to access the secrets of the Ashiya family's thousand-year-old Yin-Yang arts.

"That's why I hate the Lion King Organization—their underhanded tactics of using ignorant subordinates to achieve their own goals."

"But whether it's the Fourth Progenitor or the Onmyoji of Ashiya, why are all the students in my class so sensitive about their identities?"

Nangong Nayue sighed heavily, picked up her teacup, and began to think about what would happen next.

Section 371, paragraph 8. Yes, I'm copying and pasting again.

In the midsummer forest—

The blazing bonfire illuminated the shrine grounds in the dead of night, while the pale moonlight streamed into the worship hall. The air was so cold that one could forget the season, probably thanks to the protective barrier surrounding the shrine.

The once noisy chirping of insects is now almost inaudible.

The girl remained silent, sitting in the center of the spacious worship hall.

She was a pretty girl, though she still retained a bit of her youthful innocence.

She was slender and delicate, but not ethereal. The young woman was more like a finely crafted blade, possessing a strength that was both supple and resilient. Perhaps this impression stemmed from her tightly closed lips and the intense light in her eyes.

The girl was wearing the uniform of a private junior high school located in Kansai.

It was a prestigious school that believed in Shintoism, but not many people knew that it was a lower-level organization of the "Lion King Organization".

There were three distinguished guests who had arrived earlier in the worship hall.

The curtain obscured their figures, preventing them from seeing anything. However, the girl had already known their identities beforehand.

They are the elders of the Lion King Organization, known as the "Three Saints".

Although the three saints are all top-level psionicists or mages, the aura surrounding them is tranquil and not at all oppressive. This is what is truly terrifying.