CHAPTER 35: CHAPTER 35: PARENTS’ FRIEND?_1

"He’s got some serious pull. I thought he wouldn’t be promoted and transferred until next year, but he was maneuvered out midway through this one." Wang Linchi smacked his lips, a sigh escaping him.

The Prefect Magistrate had been promoted and transferred. He had already left by the time Wang Linchi went to collect his Level Four allowance.

This left the Principal anxiously frustrated. After all, based on merit, he should have been promoted first, but instead, the Prefect Magistrate of Qinghe City was allowed to leave before him.

His successor was also from their faction, so there was no concern about conflicts of interest. Their established connections were simply passed on.

"However, nothing in the world is absolute," Wang Linchi muttered under his breath.

Even within the same faction, there were allocation problems. What if the newcomer wanted more? That would require redistribution.

Today, the Principal accompanied the New Prefect on an inspection of the academy. The commotion was significant, and even Wang Linchi was dragged along to make up the numbers.

The main issue was a severe generational gap. Ever since the Slaughter of the Dragon Worship Sect incident involving his cohort, the academy’s prestige had plummeted. Initially, with Yan Ming King’s Protagonist’s Aura, they could still maintain a facade of booming prosperity.

However, after Yan Ming King departed, taking with him the geniuses of their cohort, the Ming King battle team also gradually withdrew over the course of more than a year. This left Qinghe Academy struggling with a shortage of talent, unable to fill the void.

As for the Great Families, after they were purged, they too suffered a generational talent gap.

Awakeners from ordinary backgrounds emerged endlessly, but their overall quantity and quality were limited.

In the few cohorts after Wang Linchi’s, no Awakener with a Potential of 4 or higher had appeared. Even those with a Potential of 4 were scarce; the combined total from two cohorts didn’t even reach half the number from Wang Linchi’s own.

Apparently, the loss of the Protagonist’s Aura had caused a significant drop in quality.

This situation naturally made the Principal extremely anxious. After all, the Court also assessed the academy based on student enrollment numbers.

If they fell short in this area, it would affect his promotion.

He’s not planning to pull some strings and leave early, just like the previous Prefect Magistrate, is he? Wang Linchi suddenly had this thought.

After the Principal and the New Prefect perfunctorily toured the academy, they went to the Principal’s office for a detailed discussion. Wang Linchi and the others then dispersed.

They were merely there to make up the numbers because there genuinely weren’t enough people.

With graduations, early graduations, declining enrollments, and other such issues, the loss of personnel was severe.

This gave Wang Linchi the feeling that the previous boom brought by Yan Ming King had been more like an overdraft on the potential of Qinghe Academy and Qinghe City, even siphoning off their vitality.

Based on current trends, unless the New Prefect and the next Principal are both competent and willing to wholeheartedly serve the public interest, the decline of Qinghe City will be unstoppable.

When he returned home, he was just about to enter the house when he keenly detected something unusual.

Someone has opened the door!

Through his Soul Kind’s ability, he instantly sensed something was amiss.

Crucially, the traces were fresh—from half an hour ago at most.

If someone had merely jiggled the doorknob, it might have been a burglar. But this person had entered openly, which was suspicious.

Therefore, the first idea that flashed across his mind was to turn around and leave.

He could let them have the Soul Kind; his life was more important.

But just as he turned around, the door opened.

"Since you’re back, why don’t you come in?" The voice belonged to a middle-aged man.

"Oh, wrong house," Wang Linchi said calmly.

"You’re a lot sharper than your parents, kid. If only they had been as cunning as you, they wouldn’t have ended up dead." The man put his hand on Wang Linchi’s shoulder and dragged him into the house.

From that single action, Wang Linchi understood that he was completely outmatched.

Without using any Soul Skill or Soul Kind, just that one move suggested the strength of at least a Secret Silver Level Awakener. Of course, it was also possible his Soul Forging Method significantly enhanced his Physique.

"Have a seat. Make yourself at home; no need to be formal." The man sat down casually on the sofa and even poured Wang Linchi a cup of tea.

The tea must have been brought by him, as Wang Linchi did not have any at home, nor did he have the habit of drinking tea.

Wang Linchi also sat down, but he didn’t touch the cup of tea.

"So, who are you?" Wang Linchi asked.

He didn’t ask if this man was the one who had ransacked his house earlier in the year. After all, the intruder had been covert, aiming not to be discovered, so asking would be pointless.

Besides, he couldn’t tell if the man was friend or foe. As for claiming to know his parents?

He wasn’t even close to his own parents, let alone their friends. In all these years, no one had ever come to offer him any help. For someone to suddenly appear now, it was more likely for some personal gain rather than a social visit.

"My name is Fang Cheng, your father’s sworn brother. We went through life-and-death situations together!"

"You’ve really made something of yourself, kid, even managing to get the Level Three allowance from Qinghe Academy. It’s just a shame you awakened with a Waste Spirit Phase," the man said, his tone tinged with regret.

But Wang Linchi was thinking about the man’s motive.

The man must have seen the Excellent Level Soul Kinds in his basement. He wondered if they had been taken.

If they hadn’t been taken, then the man surely wanted more; otherwise, he wouldn’t be feigning cordiality like this.

So, after some small talk, Fang Cheng finally asked, "By the way, my sworn brother—your father—left you an inheritance, didn’t he? Have you claimed it?"

"Yes, I claimed it. A Common Level Flash Art Soul Seed. I don’t even know why he left that thing for me," Wang Linchi replied calmly.

At these words, Fang Cheng’s expression subtly changed. Although the change was slight, Wang Linchi had still caught it.

"That can’t be right. I remember it was a set of Excellent Level Rainbow Light Soul Seed Series," Fang Cheng said, deliberately probing.

"How could that be? It was just a Common Level Flash Art Soul Seed." Wang Linchi’s face showed shock. "Wait a minute, don’t tell me someone swapped it!"

"If it really was a whole set, it must have been worth a fortune."

Listening to Wang Linchi’s mutterings, Fang Cheng became hesitant. Could it really have been replaced?

If that were the case, no wonder he hadn’t found it when he came before.

It wasn’t because Wang Linchi hadn’t claimed it, but because he had never received it. This would also explain why Wang Linchi didn’t enter a combat major but instead chose an obscure, minor one.

"Uncle Fang, do you have any proof? If you do, let’s go to them! We can’t just let them get away with embezzling it!" Wang Linchi said, his voice filled with agitation.

"Calm down. I only heard your parents mention it; I don’t have any proof." Fang Cheng indeed had no proof, though he believed it was true. This meant his trip had likely been in vain.

After all, his target had always been this set of Excellent Level Rainbow Light Series Soul Seed.