Chapter 382: Chen Miaomiao Suspends Her Studies

"So your Sect Master doesn’t come back herself, and just sends you to relay messages every time?"

Chen Miaomiao nodded and didn’t waste any time relaying the message from her Sect Master. "The Sect Master sensed something was off with a few disciples from the Fierce Eagle Sect."

She described the bizarre mental method. "The Sect Master wants to ask you, Senior, if you have ever heard of a similar mental method?"

Zhai Xiaotian’s brow furrowed at once. "She really saw it? How did she sense it?"

’Has Song Jiulai reached the Golden Core Stage?’

Chen Miaomiao read something in Zhai Xiaotian’s expression. "You know about it, Senior?"

Zhai Xiaotian considered this carefully, his brow still furrowed. "I have a very bad theory... I was in a very remote part of the Yunzhou Continent back then, but I still heard about this..."

He took a deep breath, then uttered three words: "The Broken Soul Sect. It was once a sect under the Tianyang Sect, but they were personally annihilated by Tianyang Sect a hundred years ago. How could they possibly have shown up now?"

’Asking about that now is pointless.’

’Their reappearance can only mean one thing.’

’They weren’t completely wiped out. Some slipped through the net.’

Chen Miaomiao’s heart hammered in her chest. A sect that had been directly annihilated by a major sect must have had serious problems. "What was wrong with them?"

Zhai Xiaotian explained the history of the Broken Soul Sect. "The Broken Soul Sect acted with absolute inhumanity. They couldn’t even be called Cultivators; they were just a group of killing tools acting on instinct. The Tianyang Sect moved to destroy the Broken Soul Sect precisely to prevent the situation from spiraling out of control. They even had a Mahayana Realm senior take action. The Broken Soul Sect should have vanished completely. How could any trace of them remain?"

Chen Miaomiao thought for a moment. "The Broken Soul Sect?"

’Of course she wouldn’t know much about the game’s sect lore, especially things that happened so long ago.’

Zhai Xiaotian narrowed his eyes. "Where did your Sect Master encounter them?"

Chen Miaomiao fell silent for two seconds, waiting for a notification from the system. Then she said, "In Liuyun Sect territory. But our Sect Master has already gone to the Fierce Eagle Sect."

"She went alone?"

Zhai Xiaotian said, "If it truly is a trace of the Broken Soul Sect, your Sect Master won’t be able to handle it alone."

As soon as he finished speaking, his figure vanished from where he stood.

’He’s clearly gone.’

Chen Miaomiao stared at the spot where Zhai Xiaotian had just been, muttering to herself, "That’s strange. I wonder which sect Senior Zhai belonged to. Why does he just stay in Wang’an County all the time?"

The system said, "If you’re so curious, why didn’t you just ask him?"

Chen Miaomiao was speechless. "It didn’t feel like the right time. Speaking of which, I’ve noticed Han Daozi often staring blankly at the Nüwa Statue in our Inner Sect. Could there really be something wrong with the statue of Lady Nüwa?"

"I really don’t know about that."

As Chen Miaomiao thought about the Nüwa Statue’s uncarvable face, she wondered, ’Could it be that in a world beyond the Yunzhou Continent, the deities of our world actually exist?’

’Otherwise, why would something that is just a myth on Blue Star have such strange properties on the Yunzhou Continent?’

’A face that can never be carved... it’s so bizarre.’

Chen Miaomiao sighed. "Oh, System, System... what world are you really from?"

System: "Why do you keep asking about classified information! That’s so presumptuous!"

Chen Miaomiao laughed. "I knew you wouldn’t say. I was just asking for the heck of it."

After their exchange, Chen Miaomiao logged off.

In the real world, her advisor needed to see her.

Chen Miaomiao got out of the game pod, changed her clothes, and left to find her advisor.

SLAM.

As she entered her advisor’s office, he slammed a thick stack of papers on the desk in front of her.

He was unusually angry. "Miao Miao, are you really sure about this? You want to turn down the lab position and take a leave of absence?"

That’s right. Chen Miaomiao was a top graduate student at the College of Agriculture. It hadn’t been easy for her to get this far.

But now, Chen Miaomiao had applied to take a year-long leave of absence to focus on matters concerning the Broken Sect.

Giving up her studies for a game would seem absolutely insane to anyone else.

But Chen Miaomiao had given it a great deal of thought.

If the changes related to the Broken Sect were limited to the game, it wouldn’t have been enough for her to abandon her studies. But now that her own body was starting to exhibit the same abnormalities, Chen Miaomiao had to take it seriously.

’A game that could potentially change the world versus my degree.’

’Chen Miaomiao knew which was more important.’

Besides, it was just a leave of absence. Even if her request was denied, she could just drop out. Chen Miaomiao could always re-enroll in the future.

She was confident in her abilities.

She just needed to seize this other opportunity.

Having now witnessed the mysteries of the Broken Sect, she couldn’t allow herself to fall behind.

"Don’t tell me it’s because of that game of yours!"

Chen Miaomiao had already let it slip that she played the game, so there was no point denying it now.

Lately, Chen Miaomiao had clearly not been focused on her research project.

Even though she did what was required and still did it well, she spent no extra time on it whatsoever.

She’d even procrastinate on her project until the very last minute.

Her advisor had noticed something was wrong.

Chen Miaomiao didn’t deny it. She just hummed in agreement. "Things are too busy in the game. I’m in charge of core affairs and have a big family to look after."

’The subtext was: they can’t manage without me.’

Her advisor clutched his chest, looking as if he might keel over from a heart attack. "You... you... you... It’s a game! Just a game! Even if it has paradigm-shifting technology, what on earth does that have to do with the College of Agriculture!"

"Of course it does!" Chen Miaomiao retorted. "What I’m doing in there is very similar to my work in real life, and I don’t want to miss this rare research opportunity. Besides, in the game, I’m not just one of many students in my field. I’m one of the top players. I’ve already established my career there, and I don’t want to give it up."

"What’s more, I can earn enough money in this game to be set for life."

’As the lead researcher on Spirit Grass, she was never short on points.’

’If she sold those points to other players, she could become instantly rich.’

Her advisor fell silent.

After a long moment, he sighed wearily. "We’ll hold your spot for a year, Miao Miao. I just hope you aren’t making a terrible mistake."

He then waved his hand, dismissing her.

He was emotionally drained.

Seeing her advisor like this, Chen Miaomiao felt a pang of guilt. "Professor, I know I’m being selfish, but I have my reasons for doing this. I’m sorry."

"Don’t apologize to me. Just make sure you don’t end up regretting this!"

As she walked out of the office, Chen Miaomiao let out a soft sigh.

Back in her rented apartment, Chen Miaomiao saw she had a message from Mu Qiu: [Since you’re taking a leave of absence, why don’t you come live with us? Han Tian rented a separate apartment for us. I’m living alone and it feels a bit empty. I’m planning to get a few more of the girls from the game to move in. The neighborhood is nice and safe.]

Before Chen Miaomiao could reply, the door to the neighboring apartment—where she rarely saw the occupant—suddenly swung open.

A beautiful, young, mixed-race girl beamed at her. "Hi, are you my neighbor? I just moved in. My name is Mo Xiao, what’s yours?"

Chen Miaomiao paused for a beat, then smiled faintly. "Hello, my name is Shui Ping."

Meanwhile, Shui Ping, far away on the Yunzhou Continent: ?