Chapter 162

Chapter 30: The Closer You Get, The Further Away You Are

　　After wrapping up their discussion, Yuan Xiaoling made a few minor arrangements.

　　Firstly, regarding the Four Squares Academy Ruins, after communicating with the municipal government, she dispatched a team to the site. Considering the capabilities of the Inner Stone of the Mind, they didn’t dare approach too closely, instead focusing on monitoring outsiders.

　　Next, in collaboration with the municipal authorities, a simple investigation was conducted into residential areas and population movement within Tianhai City. There wasn’t an expectation that this would directly uncover members of the Yun Family, as any confrontation would likely result in the investigators being overpowered. Identifying a few suspicious areas was the main goal.

　　After issuing these two relatively soft directives, subsequent plans slowed down.

　　The search for Wu Bian’s anchor point by Bai Ling had come to a halt following Grandma Li’s departure, leaving no new targets for now.

　　And the ghostly calamity in Tianhai City, without the Yun Family exacerbating the situation this time around, remained under control at an acceptable level.

　　In short, there was nothing pressing left to do.

　　The day after everything was tidied up, during a public lecture at school, Yuan Xiaoling unexpectedly spotted Fang Hui.

　　”I am the school’s specially appointed psychological counselor; you may call me Teacher Xiao Fang.”

　　This open lecture was accessible to all departments, including Physical Education and Broadcasting, though participation was voluntary, so the large classroom wasn’t overly crowded.

　　Outside the classroom, one teacher tugged at the principal, looking utterly confused: “Isn’t this my class?”

　　”Maybe it was changed but they forgot to inform you,” the principal replied casually, “anyway, it’s a psychology counseling session right now.”

　　The teacher became even more perplexed: “Why suddenly have a psychology counseling class?”

　　What? This is too sudden, there’s no reason for it.

　　”Tsk, you’re not thinking it through. Look, with all the recent events. After summer break, students come back to find their environment drastically changed, some classmates secretly gaining powers and becoming idols.”

　　The principal continued confidently, “Other students, regardless of how they feel about it, are definitely unsettled, greatly affecting their studies and lives. At such times, our school must step up and help guide the students’ mental states, helping them quickly return to normal.”

　　As for the unfamiliar psychology teacher, though unrecognized, her credentials and records were legit, confirming her as part of the school staff.

　　Listening to the principal, the displaced teacher thoughtfully nodded after a few seconds, enlightened: “Ah, I see. No wonder. I should go listen as well.”

　　Recently, due to Yuan Xiaoling’s affairs, the students were somewhat restless, needing psychological assistance.

　　Reasonable? Very reasonable!

　　The principal and the course teacher exchanged smiles, cheerfully turning away as if nothing had happened.

　　If Bai Ling were present, hearing this conversation and sensing the faint psychic fluctuations in the air, she’d immediately recognize it as a small meme. It influenced the principal and those he spoke with, making them believe the sudden introduction of this open lecture was justified.

　　But the white-haired maiden sat absent-mindedly in the classroom.

　　Fang Hui seemed to have prepared a bit, delivering her lecture competently, while the voluntarily attending students showed genuine interest.

　　Yuan Xiaoling casually listened but didn’t feel much, which was natural since the lecture was intended for others, guiding them not to be distracted by blonde-haired maidens with ample assets and reminding them to focus on their own studies and lives.

　　Soon enough, Ningning started zoning out, glancing first at Bai Ling beside her. The white-haired girl appeared calm, but knowing her well, Ningning could tell she wasn’t listening—she just didn’t know what she was pondering.

　　Then she glanced at Gu Hui behind her, who was fully focused, occasionally showing signs of confusion in her eyes.

　　Gu Hui wasn’t actually listening either, as Yuan Xiaoling had asked her to sit nearby and try to pick up Bai Ling’s inner thoughts.

　　Ding ding ding ding~

　　The bell rang, signaling the end of Teacher Fang Hui’s special psychological counseling class. Many students lingered, wanting more. As they left, Fang Hui smiled toward Yuan Xiaoling, acknowledging her presence.

　　Yuan Xiaoling had a sudden idea, nudging Bai Mao softly with her petite arm: “Bai Ling, isn’t Teacher Fang here to talk to you about that anchor point thing?”

　　Bai Ling paused slightly, seemingly snapping out of her reverie, instinctively responding before heading toward the exit.

　　After she left, Yuan Xiaoling flipped around and asked her roommate in the back row excitedly: “How was it? Did you hear anything?”

　　The back seats were higher than the front ones, so Ningning’s Dabeitu landed right on top, causing Qiao Lili to shout loudly, worried her mobile phone charger might get damaged.

　　Meanwhile, Gu Hui picked up her water cup, sipping tea to calm herself.

　　”I heard some stuff, but…” she questioned, “what are ‘Ke Wei,’ ‘Glorious,’ ‘Unyielding,’ ‘Canis Major,’ and ‘Cow-Cow’?”

　　And then there were terms like Belfast, Honolulu, St. Louis, making Gu Hui think she was attending a foreign language class.

　　”These are names of certain characters from a mobile game,” the well-informed Qiao Lili explained.

　　”Certain characters?”

　　”Yes, all with…ample chests.”

　　”…”

　　Yuan Xiaoling twitched her lips: “Not that, but is that all? Nothing else?”

　　”Hmm, pretty much. All I can perceive are these surface-level thoughts,” Gu Hui said innocently, “the deeper feelings hidden inside, I can’t hear.”

　　”…”

　　So Bai Ling spent nearly an hour daydreaming about these things?

　　Yuan Xiaoling was baffled.

　　What exactly was confusing her?

　　…

　　”Fang Hui, did you need me?”

　　Just as Fang Hui stepped out of the teaching building, intending to rest on the balcony, she heard this voice and turned to see Bai Ling approaching.

　　Uh, it wasn’t like she came specifically to look for her, but since they met anyway, she nodded, remembering Yuan Xiaoling’s request.

　　”Yes,” she said, “I wanted to ask you, what are your plans next? Continue searching for relatives?”

　　Bai Ling hesitated for a moment, then countered, “Do you have any leads?”

　　It was mentioned before finding Grandma Li that not all relatives would suffice; only specific ones were needed.

　　Fang Hui shook her head: “Sister Shumei helped us find Grandma Li, but Grandma Li doesn’t know anyone else, so… we probably don’t have any leads for now.”

　　Upon hearing this, a complex emotion flickered in Bai Ling’s eyes, a mix of slight disappointment and an odd sense of relief, as if finally able to catch her breath.

　　”So let’s put it aside for now and revisit it if we find any leads.”

　　Pausing briefly, Bai Ling added: “By the way, the photography studio you recommended, Ningning and I plan to check it out in a couple of days.”

　　According to the tailor’s progress, the outfits should be almost ready tomorrow or the day after.

　　”That’s great,” Fang Hui smiled, “then I wish you both a wonderful experience that day.”

　　Pausing for a second, she probed indirectly: “Bailin, with the information from the previous attempts, do you feel confident about that thing?”

　　A sudden cold wind blew through the late September sky, freezing Bai Ling’s thoughts in place.

　　”I… I’m not sure, maybe enough, maybe not.”

　　She glanced around but saw the school balcony’s potted plants standing still, untouched by the wind.

　　”Probably still lacking, because it… it’s incredibly strong, stronger than any enemy we’ve faced.”

　　Despite the limitations imposed by its form, the Inner Stone of the Mind couldn’t fully unleash its full potential, yet pseudo-sixth-tier was still sixth-tier, theoretically surpassing fifth-tier by a significant margin.

　　”Don’t worry, Bai Ling, you surely have a plan. It’s getting late, so I’ll leave first. If there’s anything else, just send me a message.”

　　Fang Hui smiled and turned to leave. Just as she reached the staircase by the balcony, she heard Bai Ling say:

　　”The closer you get to your goal, the further away you become.”

　　She turned back to see Bai Ling leaning against the balcony railing, shielding her eyes with her palm, gazing upward at the sky.

　　”I’ve read the records in the Four Squares Academy and heard several of their stories. They sought their wishes there but ended up losing everything.”

　　After waiting for a long time, Bai Ling fell silent, prompting Fang Hui to quietly slip away.

　　She then encountered Yuan Xiaoling downstairs.

　　”So, Teacher Fang Hui, did you discover the root cause?” the blonde-haired maiden eagerly asked.

　　They left later than the other students, so there was no concern about being overheard.

　　Fang Hui thought for a moment and said, “Bai Ling has been under a lot of pressure recently due to these matters, so…”

　　Seeing Yuan Xiaoling silent, seemingly lost in thought, she felt her explanation was a bit vague and was about to elaborate when she suddenly saw the blonde-haired maiden slap her palm.

　　”Oh, it’s just stress! Why didn’t you say earlier? Keeping it hidden, what’s the big deal with something so trivial.”

　　Fang Hui: “?!”

　　Such confidence.

　　She couldn’t help but marvel at Water Dragon LORD’s unique privilege card in version 1.0 of Heart’s Sea.

　　”Relax, handling stress is easy peasy for me,” Yuan Xiaoling confidently declared, patting her chest, “I’ll find the right moment in the next few days to give her a good pep talk.”

　　Stress? Just vent it out, super easy. Ningning excels at that.

　　”In that case, that’s wonderful.” Fang Hui chuckled awkwardly.

　　Truly, Bai Ling is lucky to have someone like you.