The third round of the assessment focused on knowledge of the demon race. This round was similar to the first, serving as a set of “free points” that one could specifically study for.
Because his performance in the second round had been too brilliant, Yun Heng knew it was useless to continue feigning incompetence.
Consequently, he was the first to submit his paper, finishing even before Lin Xiaoyue.
The final results showed Lin Xiaoyue with a perfect score of thirty points, Yun Heng in second place with twenty-six points, and Lu Renjia in third with twenty-one.
No one had any objections to these results.
“You three, follow me. The rest of you may leave.”
After the Fifty-Ninth Seat transmitted the results to the upper management via a jade slip for final auditing, she led Yun Heng and his companions into the depths of the Demon Inspection Department.
“Normally, you three would officially become employees of this department immediately following the evaluation. However, due to certain unavoidable circumstances…”
The Fifty-Ninth Seat’s gaze lingered on Yun Heng and Lin Xiaoyue before she looked away. “The higher-ups have decided to add a temporary interview.”
With a light flick of her finger, the environment around the three of them suddenly shifted.
Twelve high-backed chairs appeared silently. The people sitting in them wore silver-patterned black uniforms and masks.
Those masks were clearly more advanced than Xuan Sun’s hawk-beaked one; they seemed like extensions of the wearers’ faces, with beastly patterns that flickered naturally with their breathing.
Each person’s sitting posture was exceptionally strange and unique. Some were curled up, some lay reclined, some crouched, and others seemed to be dozing.
No one spoke, but the moment the three candidates appeared, every gaze snapped toward them. The sensation was chilling, as if they were being bound by twelve different invisible forces.
They were all experts at the Tribulation Transcendence stage or higher.
From the masks that corresponded to the twelve zodiac animals, it was not hard to deduce that these were the top twelve seats of the Demon Inspection Department.
They were known as the strongest demon inspection team in the cultivation world and the only group capable of facing any member of the Four Crazies in head-to-head combat—the “Earthly Branch Judges.”
As for why the Demon Inspection Department, an organization known for being “harsh to the point of coldness,” would suddenly add an “interview,” both Yun Heng and Lin Xiaoyue knew the reason.
As the frontline organization against the demon race, the core logic of the Demon Inspection Department had only ever been one thing: suspicion and verification.
Whether it was Lin Xiaoyue’s perfect score or Yun Heng’s performance that exceeded the limits of the second round, both warranted careful deliberation by the high-ranking officials.
They needed to judge whether this was true talent or some form of disguise.
One could only say that Lu Renjia was the unfortunate one, forced to face twelve great experts with only a Foundation Establishment stage cultivation because he was caught between two monsters.
“Let’s go from back to front.”
A fat man wearing a pig mask grunted twice.
His massive frame did not make him look cute; instead, his pitch-black, drooling mouth-hole made him look particularly terrifying. “Don’t waste time. I’m in a hurry to get home and eat.”
An invisible soundproof barrier spread out like a ripple, instantly isolating Yun Heng and Lin Xiaoyue from the scene.
The Fifty-Ninth Seat had long since fled this damned place. Inside the barrier, Lu Renjia was undergoing the “interrogation” of these twelve inhuman monsters, his eyes swimming with stars from the pressure.
Yun Heng remained calm, and Lin Xiaoyue showed no signs of nervousness either.
“Fellow Daoist Lin, regarding that question I asked you earlier…”
Seeing that Lu Renjia wouldn’t be finished for a while, Yun Heng decided to repeat his question. “Do you truly not know ‘Yue Wuhen’?”
Lin Xiaoyue looked at Yun Heng, her brown eyes as calm as they were when they first met. “Is Young Master Yun very close to this person? Why are you so obsessed with him?”
“I suppose you could call him an old friend,” Yun Heng said with a slight smile.
“I met him by chance during my travels. He played the flute very well and had an excellent tolerance for alcohol. Unfortunately, we lost contact later. It just so happens that I sensed a similar aura from you today, so I wondered if I could get some information.”
“I see.”
Lin Xiaoyue nodded. After a brief moment of contemplation, a hint of curiosity appeared in her eyes.
“However, I really do not know anyone named ‘Yue Wuhen.’ If Young Master Yun could provide a portrait for me to look at, perhaps I might find something?”
Yun Heng was slightly stunned.
He had expected Lin Xiaoyue to dodge the question again, but he hadn’t expected her to give such a direct suggestion.
In truth, there was a more direct method: using his golden finger, “hypnosis,” to forcibly read her memories.
However, first, this was the territory of the Demon Inspection Department, and he was standing before twelve of the strongest experts in the cultivation world.
Yun Heng did not want to cause unnecessary trouble. Second, if Lin Xiaoyue really was related to his dear friend, doing so would be a betrayal of that friend’s trust.
That would weigh heavily on Yun Heng’s conscience.
In fact, unless it was absolutely necessary, Yun Heng rarely used hypnosis. He firmly believed in the freedom of living beings and detested manipulation.
This was the reason he felt so guilty about using it on Jiang Keke when he first experienced his rebirth.
“One moment.”
Yun Heng took a brush and paper from his storage bag. Relying on his memory, he presented a portrait of Yue Wuhen to Lin Xiaoyue.
A span of 10,000 years was very, very long—long enough for him to learn many things and master them.
Theoretically, a portrait couldn’t prove a person’s identity because many cultivators were skilled in disguise and concealment.
However, both Yun and Yue had never cared much for such external things and always showed their true faces. Yun Heng was certain that even the younger Yue Wuhen would be the same.
“Young Master Yun’s painting skills are truly divine.”
Looking at the handsome man in the painting with his sharp eyebrows and starry eyes, Lin Xiaoyue couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly.
‘I didn’t expect A-Heng to be searching everywhere for me using my male appearance. Unfortunately, I created that face by referencing the “appearance of a banished immortal” from ancient records.’
‘I adjusted it countless times in a water mirror before I was satisfied. How could you possibly find him out of thin air?’
‘Still, he captured seventy or eighty percent of the spirit… It seems those years I spent hovering around you weren’t in vain.’
She looked up, her eyes curving slightly as she gazed at Yun Heng. Her voice carried a perfectly measured trace of regret.
“It’s a pity. If I had been lucky enough to see such a handsome man in person, I imagine the impression would have been very deep.”
Then, a flash of mischief crossed Lin Xiaoyue’s brown eyes.
“I hope the Young Master won’t laugh at me… but just looking at the painting, a small spark of affection has sprouted in this young lady’s heart.”
“Therefore, Young Master Yun, I am truly sorry. I really do not know the ‘Yue Wuhen’ you speak of.”
Yun Heng froze.
In a daze, scenes from his past life flashed through his mind.
It was just after the end of the second invasion of the extra-terrestrial demons.
Yun Heng and Yue Wuhen, with their Tribulation Transcendence strength, had joined forces to defeat five Mahayana demonic cultivators.
They had become famous “heroes” in the cultivation world. To celebrate, they bought ten pounds of wine starter from Lan Lan, swearing not to return until they were drunk.
“In this world, apart from my Keke, you’re the only one who understands my nonsense. Brother Wuhen, if you were a girl, I might actually fall for you.”
Yun Heng had sighed with emotion back then.
His coordination with Yue Wuhen in battle was, to some extent, even smoother than his coordination with Ling Yao.
With the latter, he sometimes needed to communicate with his eyes. With the former, even communication was skipped, as if they both thought of the same solution at the exact same moment.
It was no wonder many female cultivators in the cultivation world used the two of them as a topic of gossip, discussing them with great relish.
Yue Wuhen had looked down as he drank, saying softly, “Brother Yun, you’re drunk. You can eat whatever you want, but you shouldn’t say whatever you want.”
“Aside from the fact that you are a married man and I have no inclination toward men, I already have someone in my heart. So, even if you wanted to, I would never accompany you on a journey to find the Dao through romance.”
“Hahaha, I’m just joking! If you were inclined toward men, I’d make sure to stay far away. I would have had Keke hit you with her wolf-tooth club the first time we met! Come, drink!”
“Brother Yun, your alcohol tolerance really isn’t what it used to be…”
***
Yun Heng understood now.
If he wasn’t mistaken, Lin Xiaoyue must be Yue Wuhen’s beloved!
And the reason he had never heard her name was likely because Lin Xiaoyue had died prematurely in an accident, becoming the “white moonlight”—the unreachable ideal—forever etched in his best friend’s heart!
Though many doubts remained—such as the modified formations or her denial of knowing him—these could be easily explained.
He hadn’t seen the original version of the formation; perhaps the theoretical design was advanced even if it had practical flaws.
As for her denying their acquaintance, perhaps Yue Wuhen had done something to upset Lin Xiaoyue, so she was pretending not to know him. Such situations were common among young men and women.
In short, once he confirmed Lin Xiaoyue’s identity, many things logically fell into place.
Since she was the “white moonlight” of his best friend who had died young, then in this life, Yun Heng should ensure her safety.
Thinking of this, the way Yun Heng looked at Lin Xiaoyue became a bit more affectionate. He couldn’t help but pat her on the shoulder. “I understand.”
This made Lin Xiaoyue feel a bit awkward. She seemed to want to take a half-step back but stopped herself.
Helplessly, she could only use her left hand to gently press her right wrist, as if she were silently chanting “remain calm” or something similar to herself.
Yun Heng blinked.
It was too similar… they were practically the same person.
Yue Wuhen also had the habit of using that movement to relax himself.
However, he had worn a storage bracelet made of seven colored stones, while Lin Xiaoyue did not.
That bracelet had been a gift from Yun Heng. At the time, Yun Heng had teased Brother Wuhen for being like a woman, liking such a gaudy storage treasure.
Considering that Lin Xiaoyue was Yue Wuhen’s beloved, it was natural for the latter to mimic her habits, so Yun Heng didn’t think too much of it.
It was impossible for a best friend he had known for over 1,000 years to actually be a woman, right?
Even if Yue Wuhen really had been a woman dressed as a man, Yun Heng had been a Half-Step Immortal Venerable in his past life. How could he have failed to see through it?
Yun Heng imagined his friend “acting like a lady” for less than three seconds before he felt a chill run down his spine.
It was more terrifying than the extra-terrestrial demons.
At that moment, Lu Renjia finally finished the “interview” that had nearly caused him to wet himself. His legs were still trembling as he returned to Yun Heng and Lin Xiaoyue’s side.
“Next, Yun Heng.”
Zi Shu, who was curled up on his chair, placed his interlaced fingers under his chin. He was clearly speaking, but it was as if one couldn’t hear his breathing.
Not even the sound of his clothes rubbing together could be heard. His presence was as thin as a shadow.
The soundproof barrier opened again.
“Please describe how many ‘existences’ you perceive in this room at this moment. You do not need to count them; simply describe the ‘feeling.'”