Eldritch Horror Theatre

But...

In that moment, Rob finally realized why Excellency Fu Qian wanted him to bring the sword back.

But the problem was, unlike Demigod Fu who could effortlessly borrow the sword, he really had no story to spin when returning it himself.

"Just tell the truth."

Seeing his troubled expression, Fu Qian spoke gently, but left no room for negotiation.

"Trust me, compared to a reasonable excuse, Dean Li prefers honesty."

"Return it to him and explain things clearly. It won't bring trouble to Apocalypse or to you. It might even benefit the next step of your plan—finding someone to appraise this sword."

Being the person in charge didn't mean blindly indulging and shielding one's people. The big picture was important.

As was passing that big picture down.

Borrowing a sword for enlightenment was already a tacit understanding without words. Given that Fu Qian had been the one to ask, he was confident Li Weixuan wouldn't say anything even if no explanation was offered.

But if a sincere explanation were provided, he would undoubtedly be much happier, especially since this particular explanation was quite interesting.

"Alright... Thank you so much, really."

Without a reason or even the standing to argue, Rob hesitated for a moment before accepting Demigod Fu's advice, thanking him in earnest.

"Don't mention it. What you did was interesting, and that is the most important thing. I believe Excellency Claudora herself would be very happy to see it."

With those words of encouragement, Fu Qian got up and left.

...

"Rushing back for evening classes? You're early."

Paying no mind to whether Veil had gained anything at the Sword Pavilion, Fu Qian headed straight back to the laboratory. By then, the sky had already grown dim.

Surprisingly, his laboratory assistant, Classmate Liushuang, had returned quite early instead of staying longer to study at the Academy to make up for sneaking off midway.

"...Actually, I've just about finished organizing the report, so I wanted to confirm it with you, Professor Fu."

It seemed that over the past half-day, Ji Liushuang had digested some of the shock she had received earlier. Pursing her lips in a smile, she pointed to a stack of documents on the desk.

"That fast?"

Fu Qian didn't hide his surprise.

While there wasn't a massive amount of content, it was common knowledge that finishing an assigned task on the exact same day was something a seasoned clerical worker avoided.

Classmate Liushuang clearly had plenty of experience in this regard; she had even been present at his earliest hearing.

"It's fine. Mainly, after I went back to the Academy today, I just couldn't get the earlier experiences out of my head, so I figured I might as well get this organized first."

Exhaling softly, Ji Liushuang didn't feign composure, instead openly admitting that today's events had left quite a psychological shadow on her.

"I was also worried you might want to push the schedule forward. After all, once this report is submitted, I'm afraid it will bring some follow-up trouble."

"That's true. Good work."

He had to admit, having such a thoughtful assistant saved him a lot of hassle.

Fu Qian nodded, casually picking up the documents to look through them.

Naturally, the report had to conceal certain details—such as the fact that the test was conducted almost entirely within a dream, and that the White-Headed Sanctuary had ultimately burned in the Flame of Frenzy rather than being scared off by Professor Fu's awe-inspiring righteousness.

As an academic who didn't seek empty fame, there was no need to flaunt certain non-critical experimental methods.

Even so, it was impossible for such ground-breaking results not to cause a stir.

Not only would the Night Watchers be thrown into a flurry of nervous activity, but even the Academy—especially the former project lead, Professor Chang—would likely find it hard to sit still.

...

"Very good, but there's no need to be too low-key. The Heart-Questioning Sword Prison you executed this time played quite a vital role, after all."

Fu Qian's reading speed had always been astonishing. He finished browsing through it quickly, deeply satisfied with his assistant's thoughtfulness.

Classmate Liushuang's clerical skills were nothing to scoff at; she had judged the boundaries of the content perfectly.

But as everyone knew, no matter how perfect a draft was, a leader's review and feedback were indispensable.

After a moment of deliberation, Professor Fu offered some guidance, focusing specifically on how the author had been entirely too humble.

"Emphasize the Heart-Questioning Sword Prison as the key method of the test. It's also a great opportunity to show off the results of your advanced studies here at Apocalypse."

"Alright..."

Although her style was usually low-key, Classmate Liushuang clearly had no intention of defying his guidance.

Especially not after her leader had just elevated this new ability, the Heart-Questioning Sword Prison, to the heights of a collaborative achievement between departments.

"There might even be an unexpected reward."

Hmm?

For a moment, Ji Liushuang didn't realize what this "unexpected" reward specifically referred to.

"It's true that the Academy is redeeming itself this time, but from the Night Watchers' posture throughout the whole process, you can tell they actually misjudged that sphere to some extent."

Professor Fu chuckled.

"Their perception of its danger level is most likely about the same as Professor Chang's first draft."

"So this time, by taking on additional risks, we practically helped root out a massive hidden danger. We even obtained vital information like the White-Headed Sanctuary."

"Rewards and punishments must be clear. I believe that if the relevant people in charge are reasonable, they will at least consider showing some form of appreciation."

"This..."

When it came to laboratory operations, Ji Liushuang's perspective was still a bit lacking due to her status as a student.

Prompted by Professor Fu, she gave a small nod, clearly not very confident.

"But no matter what, this is still a mess caused by a former professor of the Academy, right? Besides, our testing methods this time were quite severe—"

"That's exactly why you need to specifically emphasize the contributions made by someone who isn't a professor."

Fu Qian's smile didn't fade.

"Severe methods are the professor's business. Using that to deny a student her rightful reward would be a bit too petty."

"In fact, just to avoid having the reward skimmed by some unscrupulous project team, if it were up to me, I'd choose an item that only suits you. Of course, the honor would still belong to our laboratory."

"If academic research is to achieve a virtuous cycle, blindly burying your head in research won't work. Operations are also very important."

"With just a little trick to the application process, both the honor and the actual rewards can be maximized."

Alright...

In the face of Professor Fu's deeply optimistic explanation, Ji Liushuang found herself momentarily speechless.

Of course, being a smart young woman, once she accepted this premise, she quickly realized a point Professor Fu's actions had left unspoken—she might gain much more than just material rewards.

In addition to her status as a student, she was also the head of the Gospel Team.

The latter was a somewhat sensitive life-saving project; an excellent track record from an incident like this would bring immeasurable value.

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