Chapter Eleven: The Test. Are You Polite?

Lin Yi, you actually grabbed my shoulder?!

With a sharp tearing sound, a large section of An Miaoyi’s shirt was ripped open.

Lin Yi felt at a loss, wondering if he had gone too far. Would this goddess be angry?

An Miaoyi’s face flushed crimson in an instant. Damn this Lin Yi—he grabbed her, tore her clothes, what was he thinking? Furious and embarrassed, she bit her lip, her cheeks ablaze. The chill on her back snapped her to awareness—the rip on her shirt was quite substantial.

She wore a half-sleeved white blouse and jeans, a youthful yet conservative outfit. But now, the torn back revealed enticing glimpses, alluring in their partial concealment. Even the white garment underneath was exposed.

Deeply uncomfortable and suppressing her anger, An Miaoyi opened the small box in her hands. The water inside seemed to encounter something irresistible and vanished instantly. The dripping sounds around them faded as well.

At that moment, An Miaoyi turned and glared fiercely at Lin Yi, intent on slapping him. But in the next second, she paused, clenched her teeth, and scrutinized Lin Yi up and down, as if she had uncovered a monumental secret.

“As expected... Lin Yi, you’re pretending. If you were truly lost in the illusion, you’d react instinctively, like a drowning person—goosebumps all over. But look at you, nothing at all. That proves you know the water isn’t real...”

“You claim you’re helpless, that there’s no master behind you. Lin Yi, you’re such a phony.”

Lin Yi wanted to protest.

I never said I couldn’t do anything...

But before he could speak, An Miaoyi frowned. The watery illusion had vanished, but the old sword still buzzed with a trembling sound.

An Miaoyi muttered to herself, “That shouldn’t happen. The water ghost was already captured, so why is there still a reaction? I only brought it out to scare Lin Yi!”

Lin Yi had felt guilty—he had been caught red-handed, and accidentally tore An Miaoyi’s shirt in the process. Her pale, luminous skin was exposed.

But now, An Miaoyi’s words made Lin Yi bristle with indignation.

“Wait, An Miaoyi, you purposely tried to scare me? If I hadn’t practiced a few things, something might have happened by now. Sorry, I won’t play along—I’m leaving.”

With that, Lin Yi made to leave. If she knew, so be it—he was planning to take the meditation and martial arts exams soon, and would eventually have to reveal something. It was better that An Miaoyi knew a little.

But as Lin Yi tried to leave, An Miaoyi refused to let him go.

With an angry huff, An Miaoyi said, “Lin Yi, yes, I wanted to scare you. That was wrong of me. But it was for your own good... Don’t you want to serve your country? Don’t you want to fulfill your ambitions?”

“I’m not trying to guilt you; you’re free to leave. I just think you could help the country and yourself. If you prove you have ability, you can join our Bureau of Paranormal Investigation. Not only will you receive a salary each month, but also supplements for cultivation—elixirs and resources. Isn’t that good?”

Seeing Lin Yi about to leave, An Miaoyi hurried to press the elevator button repeatedly, unwilling to let him go.

Her words gave Lin Yi pause. Regardless of her suspicions about his background, the opportunity to join the Bureau came with many benefits—and that was very appealing.

What attracted Lin Yi most was the realization that An Miaoyi had set a trap for him, using a female water ghost to create all those illusions. This meant that An Miaoyi could control the comings and goings of such entities. If he joined the Bureau, wouldn’t he have access to all sorts of monsters and spirits?

Wouldn’t joining allow him to harvest experience any time he pleased?

Each time he defeated a monster or spirit, “The Divine Slayer Manual” rewarded him. If joining the Bureau greatly increased his chances to encounter and defeat such creatures, wouldn’t he receive even more rewards?

The way of cautious cultivation lay in steady progress. To keep a low profile required the capital to do so.

The principle of “The Divine Slayer Manual” was simple: slay monsters and spirits, and the manual would grow stronger and richer, granting him extra rewards.

Now, he had a path to gain a wealth of experience.

He could take it slow and steady!

Originally intent on leaving, Lin Yi now truly decided to stay.

An Miaoyi, skilled at reading people, saw Lin Yi deep in thought and did not interrupt. When she saw his expression relax and his brow unfurrow, she knew she had succeeded.

“I knew you’d agree, Lin Yi—help others, serve the country, reap good karma. It’s beneficial for you, too. I just wanted to scare you earlier, but that female water ghost is acting strange. Something’s wrong—could there have been an accident?”

“Come on, Lin Yi, follow me and meet our colleagues. Of course, you’ll still need to pass the assessment. Only then can you officially join the organization; otherwise, you’ll be just an intern, doing menial work—you wouldn’t want that. So, later, show your true strength!”

She finished, looking at Lin Yi with anticipation.

Lin Yi knew she was using reverse psychology. First the challenge, then the beauty trap—the combination was powerful. And with her admiring gaze, those enchanting eyes, if Lin Yi were just a naïve youth, he’d fall for it at once.

In truth, Lin Yi felt a bit elated, but he knew he needed to join the organization to gain experience.

Resolute, Lin Yi nodded.

A sly glint flashed in An Miaoyi’s eyes.

She laughed, “Alright, let’s go, Lin Yi. Come with me.”

This was a seventeen-story academic building; the first nine floors were classrooms, the upper floors offices. At this moment, the elevator had stopped at the ninth floor.

The air outside was much fresher than inside the elevator, where remnants of the female water ghost’s energy lingered.

Now, thanks to the sunlight, the corridor was bright, lacking any chilling aura.

This floor was an office area, with doors to offices spaced along the hall.

An Miaoyi led Lin Yi, turning right.

At the third office door, An Miaoyi pushed it open and entered.

As she did, she said, “What’s going on? You need to control that female water ghost—don’t let it release all its energy. Now I’m... Oh, and my shirt is torn, Xiao Na, find me something to cover up!”

Inside were three people. One wore a beige long dress, not very tall, with dyed yellow hair in a cute style—this was the Xiao Na An Miaoyi mentioned.

Hearing her, Xiao Na smiled at Lin Yi, took an air-conditioning jacket from the rack and handed it to An Miaoyi.

Another was a burly, muscular man with a stern face and a sword at his waist—a middle-aged man radiating murderous energy.

In front of him, slightly forward, stood a pale young man.

The young man had deep circles under his eyes. To Lin Yi, he seemed a master of time management—perhaps not a womanizer, but surely a night owl, judging by his appearance.

“This is Li Na, this is Xu Liuxiang, and this uncle is Wang Changshan,” An Miaoyi said, slipping on the jacket and introducing the trio.

The pale young man—Xu Liuxiang—held a dark metal box, likely iron, given the rust spots. From within came a cacophony of shrill cries, occasionally punctuated by sobbing.

Lin Yi, no longer naive, understood—the female water ghost must be inside.

An Miaoyi finished her introductions, her beautiful eyes lingering on Lin Yi, soft and gentle.

Xu Liuxiang, noticing An Miaoyi’s torn shirt, looked displeased. Seeing her gaze now, his face turned green.

He glanced at Lin Yi and said coldly, “It’s not Li Na or Uncle Wang’s fault—I misjudged things, sorry... Anyway, Yi Yi, if there’s nothing else, let’s go eat. I’m sure you’ve figured it out—this Lin Yi is nothing special. Let’s go, don’t waste our time on such trash.”

Lin Yi was speechless.

He wanted to curse—what was wrong with Xu Liuxiang? Was he even polite?

First meeting, and he calls him trash.

As Lin Yi’s anger rose, his mind worked quickly—he saw that Xu Liuxiang’s attitude was sycophantic, clearly An Miaoyi’s lapdog. The hostility was probably due to An Miaoyi’s attitude toward him.

A flash of insight struck Lin Yi—maybe the difficulty with the female water ghost was orchestrated by Xu Liuxiang, a deliberate show of power, and perhaps even a plot to eliminate him.

The thought made Lin Yi even more uncomfortable.

They were trying to harm him—maybe even cripple him!