Chapter 28: Dongfang Sansan

Chapter 28: Dongfang Sansan "Senior Huang, this is an extremely important matter, and there aren't many superiors that we can reveal this information to. If the enemy finds out about this, our entire plan will be ruined..." "You're right, we do indeed have to be careful," Huang Yifan agreed. Fan Tiantiao was barely able to suppress the urge to roll his eyes in exasperation. "Senior Huang, if you don't have a plan on how to proceed, would you be able to find someone else in a high-up position to oversee this matter?" We know you're not cut out for this, so we never really had high hopes for you anyway. We just don't know who else we can trust, so we want you to recommend someone or report this matter yourself! Fan Tiantiao didn't think that Huang Yifan would be so dense that he would be unable to see through his intentions. Somehow, Huang Yifan understood the implication this time, and he abruptly slammed the table as he exclaimed, "You're saying I'm too stupid to make a decision myself!" Fan Tiantiao was speechless. How come you're so smart all of a sudden? I was trying to be subtle that time! Fan Tiantiao was slapped to the ground and trodden on Huang Yifan as the latter paced back and forth over the former's body. "If this is such an important matter, then I'll have to make a trip to the headquarters." Fan Tiantiao's bones were groaning under Huang Yifan's feet, but he gritted his teeth and suffered in silence. However, Huang Yifan took a step too far, and Fan Tiantiao finally caved as he wailed, "No, not there, Senior Huang! Please!" Huang Yifan was standing right on top of his kidney, and he was steadily exerting more and more force. Huang Yifan got down from Fan Tiantiao as he harrumphed, "How soft! You'd definitely turn traitor at the first bit of torture if you're ever captured!" Fan Tiantiao had a hand clasped over his sore kidney with an exasperated look on his face. How could I not beg for mercy when you're stepping on my kidney?! Besides, you're my superior, not my enemy! I'd like to see you how tough you are with one of the higher-ups from the headquarters stepping on your kidney! I should've known someone recommended by Chen Ruhai would be just like him! *** Huang Yifan told Fan Tiantiao to return tomorrow for an update, while he departed without a care in the world. Huang Yifan was a bit rough around the edges, but he had been deemed fit to serve as assistant dean, so he naturally wasn't as oblivious as he pretended to be. He had heard that Fan Tiantiao was often getting into altercations with Chen Ruhai, and Chen Ruhai was a former subordinate of his, so he had decided to teach Fan Tiantiao a lesson. Sure enough, the idiot took the bait. Huang Yifan had far more experience than Fan Tiantiao, and he had thought even further ahead. If what Fan Tiantiao had told him were true, then there were countless ways this situation could be taken advantage of. With that in mind, he traveled overnight to the headquarters, where he requested an audience with the chief advisor of the Guardians, Master Nine, someone many ranks his senior. Master Nine's real name was Dongfang Sansan, which was a rather funny name,[1] but it belonged to an incredibly shrewd and astute man capable of hatching plans and making predictions that bordered on miraculous. His strategic acumen had been the key to the Guardians' resistance against the Church of the Self-Righteous. It could be said that at the rate at which the Church of the Self-Righteous was growing, the Guardians would've most likely already fallen without Dongfang Sansan serving as their strategic backbone. Dongfang Sansan was often able to identify weaknesses in the enemy ranks and exploit them to great effect. It was only thanks to his brilliance that the Guardians still appeared to have an advantage over their sworn enemy. Dongfang Sansan's father wasn't a very well-educated man, but he was extremely healthy and married seventy-eight wives, with whom he had seventy-nine children. By the time the twenty-fifth child was born, he had well and truly run out of names. He felt it embarrassing to go to someone else to name his children for him, and he couldn't allow his wives to name them because he still held some very archaic views, one of which was that women had no right to name their children. If his wives were to name their children, where would that leave him as the leader of the clan? Hence, starting from the twenty-sixth child, he began naming them number, from Dongfang Erliu all the way to Dong Fang Qijiu.[2] Perhaps this would be a good time to mention that Dongfang Sansan's father was Dongfang Chongming, the former wielder of the fifth-ranked Heaven Stirring Warhammer on the Cloud Weapon Archive. Needless to say, Dongfang Sansan was Dongfang Chongming's thirty-third child. After Dongfang Sansan rose to prominence, he tried to cover up the origins of his name, so he proclaimed that he was able to see nine out of ten of all of the heavens' machinations. Three times three made nine, so the story worked out. Hence, only the older generation was aware of the true origins of Dongfang Sansan's name, while all of his juniors, regardless of their status or cultivation base, referred to him respectfully as Master Nine. Huang Yifan had to wait four hours before Dongfang Sansan finally had some time in his schedule to see him. As Huang Yifan entered Dongfang Sansan's office, there were still dozens of opened documents on the latter's desk, waiting for him to address. "You're still as busy as ever, Master Nine." In the presence of Dongfang Sansan, Huang Yifan was like an obedient little bunny, and his voice was even quivering a little. He felt both honored and overawed to be in the presence of someone so brilliant and so far above him. "You only have fifteen minutes," Dongfang Sansan said in a slightly weary manner. "Don't waste my time with small talk." Huang Yifan knew that Dongfang Sansan's time was extremely precious, so he immediately gave the quickest and most concise report possible on Fang Che, Ye Meng, and his own thoughts on the matter. As soon as he began delivering his report, a look of focus and concentration instantly appeared on Dongfang Sansan's face, and he listened in silence the entire time with a thoughtful gleam in his eyes. After hearing what Huang Yifan had to say, Dongfang Sansan pressed a button on his table. Someone immediately entered the room, and Dongfang Sansan instructed, "Push everything on the rest of my schedule back by two hours." "Yes, Master Nine." "Close the door and put up a soundproofing enchantment!" Huang Yifan immediately did as he was told. After some thought, Dongfang Sansan said, "We know that the Church of the Self-Righteous has been using Five Spirit Parasites to communicate with one another, but we haven't been able to replicate that or find out exactly how it works. “Hence, only the higher-ups among the Guardians are aware of this, but it's been kept secret from everyone else. All everyone knows is that the members of the Church of the Self-Righteous are able to communicate much faster than us, and we've been constantly trying to innovate ways to keep up or surpass them." "Why?" Huang Yifan asked. A hesitant and conflicted look appeared on Dongfang Sansan's face as he replied, "Because Five Spirit Parasites are living creatures, and planting them into the human body for communication purposes is not a feasible option. Perhaps it is for the Church of the Self-Righteous, but that's not the case for us. “If I'm not mistaken, perhaps there's already been a decisive outcome between beings that we are unable to fathom in some faraway, unknown place. The only thing we can do now is try and save ourselves." Huang Yifan was very perplexed to hear this. Before he had a chance to ask any questions, Dongfang Sansan sighed, "All you need to know is that this matter needs to be kept strictly confidential. The information is accurate, but it can be used by those with sinister intentions to calamitous effect." Huang Yifan was even more perplexed, but he did as he was told. "I'll make sure this remains a secret, and I'll instruct everyone else who knows about this to keep it confidential as well." Dongfang Sansan's brows had furrowed even further at the mention of this subject, and there was a hint of defeat deep within his eyes. After a brief silence, he asked, "Assistant Dean Huang, you think this Fang Che doesn't seem like a bad person, right?" He was speaking very slowly and deliberating, as if he were carefully pondering every single word. Huang Yifan was also beginning to grow a little anxious, and he carefully pondered his answer before replying, "I... I can't tell." He really wanted to say that Fang Che didn't seem like a bad person in his eyes, but he didn't dare to make such definitive remarks in the presence of Dongfang Sansan. Dongfang Sansan pulled out several copper coins that were polished to a bright glean, then shook them around in his hand for a moment before spilling them out onto his desk. He then carefully observed them for a moment before remarking with tightly furrowed brows, "His future is hidden to be by the will of the heavens." Huang Yifan didn't dare to say anything as he looked on with a dazed expression. "In that case, there's a good chance that he really is a member of the Church of the Self-Righteous," Dongfang Sansan sighed. "Why is that, Master Nine?" Huang Yifan asked. "We are not able to disrupt or affect the will of the heavens, yet the Church of the Self-Righteous is capable of that," Dongfang Sansan sighed. Once again, Huang Yifan was left perplexed, but Dongfang Sansan didn't offer any further elaboration. "His future is hidden to me, but it's unclear whether this is a sign of fortune or disaster. Why is that? It should solely be an omen of disaster, so where does this element of fortune come from? Could it be that we somehow stand to benefit from this? How?" 1. It literally translates to Dongfang Three Three. ☜ 2. Dongfang Two Six to Dongfang Seven Nine. ☜