The woman looked human, her voice was human, her demeanor was human, but she was not human.
She was Puppet 1045.
However, unlike the instructor puppets, physician puppets, and other puppets within the welfare institute, 1045 was a distinguished all-around puppet. Not only was she equipped with a lifelike physical body indistinguishable from a real person, but her face could also display subtle emotional changes. Naturally, she possessed extremely high intelligence.
Her intellect was no less than that of a human, and her computational power surpassed even that of myths.
Her duty was to assist the Dean in his work, handling management, secretarial, financial, and other tasks, thus holding multiple positions.
Most importantly, 1045 was the highest-ranking individual within the welfare institute, holding the authority to dismiss him, the 'Dean' worker, should his performance fall short of expectations.
Emmm...
However, after observing for a while, Fang You's evaluation of 1045 was: not as impressive as Miss Trial Officer.
...
The welfare institute differed somewhat from an academy. It did not recruit annually but instead accepted a batch of children at specific intervals, developing training and learning plans for them. After four to six years of cultivation, when they 'graduated,' a new batch of children would be accepted.
There were approximately dozens of welfare institutes like Ri Guang in Xiaguang City.
Indeed, Xiaguang City was a first-tier major city, ranking among the top two or three in the vast Yunxia Province.
As for how large Yunxia Province truly was, Dean Fang had no clear concept. It might be larger than a continent on Blue Star, or even more... All of this was land bathed in sunlight, completely unlike super-oases that could only cling to a tiny corner of a vast territory.
If this place did not also follow a path of mystical systems and have rumors of corruption and disaster, Fang You would have difficulty associating this land with the dead, gray, and eerie world.
Putting aside other matters.
Xiaguang City alone occupied a far greater area than a seventh-tier oasis, and its military strength was also formidable... Just how strong, a mere welfare institute dean like him could not ascertain. In the mere half-day since entering the instance, he had vaguely perceived fleeting divine emanations throughout the city.
What the Kandra Empire was most famous for was not its mystical systems, nor its powerhouses within them, but its peak Rune Technology! Puppets, fortifications, and war machines—these were the Kandra Empire's strongest swords and shields.
"The city defenses of Xiaguang City are already this strong, which implies that the impending disaster is even more terrifying. I need to cultivate a force of 'embers' at least not significantly weaker than Xiaguang City's to influence the battlefield and resist the calamity."
Dean Fang felt immense pressure.
What if the calamity he needed to resist was not confined to the corner of Xiaguang City?
The instance had no standard mission requirements, only 'cultivate as much as possible' and 'resist as much as possible.' This further amplified his pressure. Regardless of the mission, the future, or the present of this timeline, he had to exert himself to the utmost.
And the foundation of these embers lay with this first batch of arriving children.
They, like him, bore burdens unbefitting their age.
...
...
At the main entrance of the Ri Guang Welfare Institute, long, passenger vehicles with wing-like extensions on their sides, resembling flying fish, descended slowly, spewing faint blue flames, from the open space outside the main gate.
"Screech—"
The tightly sealed vehicle doors slowly opened, and a transparent staircase about half a meter high extended from the door. Soon, a group of half-grown children scrambled down.
"Wow, is this where we can learn extraordinary powers!"
"I want to fly and burrow through the earth, I want to save the world, ha!"
"The path of top-tier powerhouses begins today!"
These children came from various primary welfare institutes, where they had already received a decent amount of cultural education and were well aware that starting today, they would begin their martial arts studies.
Whether they would soar like dragons or crawl like worms depended on these coming years, hum!
"I wonder what kind of person our Dean is like, and what kind of abilities he excels at? I hope the Dean excels at swordsmanship; I want to learn the sword and roam the world with it."
A rather cool young boy, about twelve years old, wielded a wooden sword and made a practiced gesture.
Another boy asked in surprise, "Aren't the instructors who will teach us puppets? Swordsmanship, archery, or magic... Whatever we want to learn, whatever abilities we awaken, we can learn from the instructors, right?"
"That's true,"
The cool young boy said, "But the most powerful human in the entire welfare institute must be the Dean. Once I become strong enough that the instructors can no longer teach me, then I'll have to learn from the Dean."
What you said makes sense, but I feel something is off.
...
As the children chattered, Fang You observed from afar.
These children numbered two to three thousand, hailing from several primary welfare institutes, and were between the ages of 11 and 13. According to 1045, they had all been tested and possessed cultivation talent.
—In reality, most ordinary people, with training and absorption of the mystical, had a chance to awaken. However, those with excessively poor aptitude had extremely low efficiency in absorbing mystical factors and a very low awakening rate. In the Kandra Empire's assessment, children with cultivation talent clearly exceeded this basic standard of awakening.
Fang You subtly observed using his detection skill. As expected, these children had a potential of at least White-tier, with many also being Green-tier.
As for those with potential evaluations above Green-tier, he spotted over a hundred at a glance.
However, he could not ascertain whether their potential was Blue-tier, Purple-tier, or Gold-tier.
The detection skill could only conclude 'above Green-tier.'
Still, Mentor Fang, having seen countless geniuses, still managed to identify a few children who, with careful observation, were highly likely to possess higher potential.
The cool boy with the wooden sword, acting like a ringleader.
A boy significantly taller than the others, standing at 1.89 meters... Fang You, having requested the list from 1045, discovered this child was only 11 years old.
And another, a quiet, introverted little girl with a topknot, standing in a secluded corner.
"Esteemed Dean, these are the children the welfare institute will need to cultivate and teach in the coming years,"
The welfare institute administrator, 1045, stated. "This is your first time serving as a welfare institute dean, so you may not be familiar with some of the rules. You have the freedom to formulate Ri Guang Welfare Institute's cultivation strategies and make adjustments to the instructors' teaching methods. You possess great autonomy in these matters, but you must fulfill the welfare institute's cultivation quotas."
"The welfare institute's quota assessments are conducted every six months. If you fail to meet the quota for the first time, you will receive a warning and a deduction in your bonus. If you fail to meet the quota for two consecutive assessments, you may be dismissed from your position as dean."
"The quota for six months from now is to cultivate over 200 awakened individuals of the First Order and over 10 awakened individuals of the Second Order."
These half-grown children had only received cultural education and very basic physical training in primary welfare institutes; they had no cultivation foundation whatsoever.
Even those among them who wished to explore the extraordinary had no means to do so.
The staff within primary welfare institutes also included awakened individuals, even high-tier awakened ones, but they could not and dared not privately instruct such young children.
Firstly, primary welfare institutes lacked the conditions for cultivation, and the mystical path was fraught with immense risks.
Secondly, the children were too young, their willpower was weak, and they were not suitable for the mystical path.
In mid-tier welfare institutes, they all started from the same baseline.
Starting from zero foundation, within six months, to cultivate over 200 awakened individuals, hmm...
This quota would be exceptionally difficult in super-oases, where they all spent two to three years refining their foundation before attempting to awaken. But in the Kandra Empire...
He carefully recalled and found that this quota was not stringent; rather, it was quite lenient.
After all, even the welfare institutes of the Kandra Empire possessed cultivation environments superior to super-oases, and their awakening ceremonies were tens of thousands of years ahead of their time.
Basically, as long as the dean did not court death or neglect his duties, he could meet the quota.
Especially for himself.
However, Fang You's personal goals extended far beyond the welfare institute's quotas.
Yet, he discovered a minor issue.
"The mystical factors that children need to accumulate for awakening..."
Hunting malevolent spirits was not feasible. Not only around Xiaguang City, but there seemed to be no trace of malevolent spirits within the entire Yunxia Province.
He had been in the instance for over half a day and had not heard the term 'malevolent spirit.'
1045 glanced at him strangely.
From her gaze, Dean Fang inferred a sense of 'unreliability.' But what could he do? The information he had received did not include anything about this aspect.
Clearly, he needed to understand this from the tool-person, 1045.
1045, as a tool-person specialized in assisting the dean, would absolutely obey unconditionally unless the dean did something that broke all bounds; this was a directive written into her puppet core.
No matter how unreliable she found it, she would not voice it. She paused and said,
"Within the welfare institute, there is a building called the 'Tower of Mystery' that continuously releases mystical factors, ensuring the concentration of mystical factors within the entire welfare institute's vicinity."
"However, how much of these mystical factors can be absorbed depends entirely on the children's own level. The stronger their physique and spirit in these two dimensions, and the higher their aptitude, the faster they will absorb them... As for how long they will need to accumulate enough to meet the awakening standard, and whether they can overcome the hurdle of awakening, it all depends on the esteemed dean's cultivation strategy."
1045 pointed into the distance.
There stood three black towers that seemed out of place in the pure white surroundings.
He had wondered why the mystical factor concentration in Xiaguang City was somewhat high, thinking it was a sign of an impending disaster. Now, it seemed it was only high within the welfare institute's boundaries.
The barrier surrounding the welfare institute was likely established to prevent the dissipation of mystical factors, wasn't it?
Truly worthy of Kandra technology.
"But simply absorbing the diffused mystical factors is still rather inefficient, perhaps too slow even for geniuses,"
He remarked.
1045 replied, "In addition to the Tower of Mystery, the welfare institute is also equipped with several Epic Anomalous Artifacts called 'Mystery Orbs.' These are instruments capable of absorbing, storing, and purifying mystical factors. They store vast amounts of mystical factors internally, enough not only for a few geniuses but for dozens or hundreds of them."
1045 was extremely confident.
Seeing her say this, Dean Fang was relieved.
...
The next day,
In front of the welfare institute's large training ground.
Fang You, along with several other senior instructors employed at Ri Guang Welfare Institute, were present.
This was also the first time Fang You had met these senior instructors. They varied in gender, height, build, and expertise, proficient in swordsmanship, fist fighting, fire magic, medicine, forging, and with diverse appearances.
However, it was evident that the most dazzling presence in the crowd was Fang Mouren, Dean Fang.
"Dean Brother, you're so young!"
"Dean Brother, are you really the Dean?"
A large group of children chattered excitedly.
Fortunately, they were not excessively unruly. Numerous professional puppets maintained order around them, preventing chaos.
Fang You selected a few of the ringleaders and asked them to represent the children from various primary welfare institutes and ask questions.
The cool boy holding the wooden sword stepped forward, a look of dissatisfaction on his face, "What kind of questions are you asking!"
He looked at Fang You, his gaze intense, "Dean, do you possess very powerful swordsmanship, or are you skilled in something else, like saber techniques, fist arts, archery, or magic?"
His eyes held anticipation for swordsmanship.
"As the Dean, of course, I know a little bit of everything. Swordsmanship included."
To the little boy's anticipation, he picked up the ordinary, even somewhat old, wooden sword and, on the spot, drew a slash towards the empty training ground in the distance.
A golden sword aura erupted from the unassuming wooden sword.
The sword aura was brilliant and vast, seemingly containing an unparalleled sharpness and carrying the profound mysteries of the sword. A thousand strong individuals observing this sword aura might glean a thousand different sword intents from it.
The half-grown children could not comprehend it yet, only feeling how incredibly impressive it was, their eyes turning into starry saucers.
The senior instructors observing, who were elites among elites in society and had discerning eyes, immediately recognized the profundity of this sword aura.
"It seems our young superior excels in the way of the sword."
"Old Li, your swordsmanship instructor role seems a bit awkward now."
"But indeed, one worthy of the position of Dean. When I first saw how young the Dean was, I thought he had gotten in through a backdoor of some influential figure."
"With the Dean's swordsmanship attainment, he has likely reached the realm of Extraordinary Sanctification."
The limit of mortals, achieving Extraordinary Sanctification in skill.
It was also one of the prerequisites for advancing to divinity.
Of course, divine beings could only cultivate mortal skills to the highest point of Extraordinary Sanctification. However, there was a vast difference between maximum-level and maximum-level!
Some people's swordsmanship reached Extraordinary Sanctification because their swordsmanship was truly exceptional, making them a master of the age.
Yet, for others, their swordsmanship reached Extraordinary Sanctification simply because the highest attainable rating for that skill was there.
Fang You's basic swordsmanship was indeed at the maximum level, but his swordsmanship had integrated skills such as 'North Wind Swordsmanship,' 'Cloud Cluster Sword Techniques,' and 'Heart and Soul Sword.' A casual sword strike contained immense true sword intent. While his teaching proficiency was not as high as Black Blade's, it was more than sufficient to teach a group of children.
"Of course, I also know a little about saber techniques, fist arts, and spear techniques."
He returned the wooden sword to the boy and then casually picked up a sharpened battle saber from a nearby weapon rack, delivering a powerful slash.
Whoosh—
A fierce wind howled, and a domineering saber intent spread outwards.
Following that was a majestic fist intent, and then a piercing spear intent, all demonstrated by Fang You.
The several senior instructors were stunned again.
"Is our Dean a weapon prodigy, a weapon master?"
Among them, three instructors proficient in weaponry felt both awkward and exhilarated.
"Naturally, I also know a little about magic."
Flames whirled, lightning snakes danced, and water currents flowed from Fang You's hands, stirring the hearts of the children about to embark on their cultivation journey and igniting their passion for practice.
Dean Brother truly knew a little bit of everything!
The instructors: Did you call this 'a little bit'?
...
Dean Fang's plain yet fulfilling life began.
As the dean, his duties mainly involved formulating overall strategies and occasionally delivering a few large lectures. The workload was not substantial, making it a leisurely position in the Kandra Empire.
However, Fang You was not a true worker. He felt immense pressure; leisure was out of the question.
He first inspected various instructor puppets and made some modifications to their teaching logic. Then, he solidified the buffs of 'Lv6 Training Ground' and 'Lv6 Apostle Dormitory' in areas like the training grounds and resting areas.
Furthermore, using the Shadow Clone Technique, he simultaneously conducted multiple courses.
Originally, the job of a welfare institute dean was to formulate plans and training policies. Specific training programs were executed by instructor puppets, and more profound or varied courses were taught by senior instructors.
But now, both instructor puppets and senior instructors were relegated to assistant roles, cooperating with the young dean.
In fact, the number of courses was far greater than the basic job requirements, with the dean himself setting the pace for overexertion.
The instructors should have been displeased.
They used to teach three days a week; now it was seven days a week. However, the Dean was simply too formidable!
By his side, their stagnant strength began to grow slowly, and they held hopes of glimpsing higher realms.
Let alone being a tool, they would even consider being dogs... cough, not impossible.
Dean 007, Instructors 007. The children, already brimming with passion, naturally also poured all their energy into cultivation.
At this moment,
Dean Fang's true self sat in his office, not resting.
He still had much work to do.
He declined invitations to gatherings from deans of other welfare institutes in Xiaguang City, and invitations to gatherings from friends on the 'Mythic Forum'... He had no extra time to waste on banquets or other meaningless activities. Moreover, he could not leave the welfare institute.
To be precise, he could briefly step outside, but that would mean his instance time would reset to zero.
This was likely a constraint imposed by time and destiny.
Beyond this, the most Fang You did was read.
The welfare institute was a mid-tier academy, containing a moderately sized library. His true self spent most of his time immersed in the library, absorbing the knowledge and technology of the Kandra Empire.
He also used the information device to understand the outside world.
However, he discovered an issue: his understanding of the Kandra Empire remained vague. Some information, after being read, could not be remembered; after being remembered, could not be recalled.
There was a pattern to this.
He could basically receive information from Xiaguang City.
Information from outside Xiaguang City, within Yunxia Province, became significantly abbreviated and blurred.
As for information beyond Yunxia Province, at most, he could only glean fragments from the local Mythic Forum.
A certain deity has fallen.
Corruption is spreading in a certain area.
He was still unclear about the Kandra Empire's Nine Pillars of the Nation, the empire's landscape and size, and the image of Emperor Guanghui.
This was clearly also a restriction of time and space.
Fortunately, technical knowledge outside of many historical secrets was not restricted. Fang You therefore turned to studying the forging techniques of the Kandra Empire.
If he could understand it, he would read it thoroughly; if not, he would forcibly memorize it.
During this period, he naturally did not forget to cultivate for a single day. He could remain in this instance for three years, and time itself was a precious asset.
Mythic cultivation could not be neglected.
The education of the welfare institute children also needed to be prioritized.
As he had expected, the children with the highest aptitude and fastest progress were the three he had previously noticed.
The top-knotted girl, Chi Yan.
The boy who liked swordsmanship, Liu Feng.
The sturdy boy, Zhou Bao.
During his teaching, he also used the opportunity to provide special tutoring to the young geniuses and to form contracts with suitable young men and women, allowing them to become magic youths... bah, allowing them to embark on the true path to the peak.
He felt somewhat ashamed that they had to shoulder responsibilities at such a young age.
But the disaster was imminent, and it was uncertain whether Xiaguang City would even exist then. Increasing their strength now was not a bad thing.
He had no other choice.
Suppressing his scattered thoughts, Dean Fang continued his routine of teaching, cultivating, and forming contracts as usual.
Time flowed by like water.
In the blink of an eye, the six-month quota assessment period arrived.
1045 stated, "In addition to the fixed number of awakened individuals, the welfare institute management will occasionally conduct practical skill assessments, organizing exchanges and spars among the welfare institute's children. Of course, these do not count towards the assessment quota."
At this moment, over a dozen outstanding young men and women from the neighboring welfare institute arrived at Ri Guang Welfare Institute for an upcoming sparring session.
They appeared older, clearly having cultivated for a longer time.
Of course, the combat was not one-on-one but a war of attrition, where they would face more opponents, which was quite fair and reasonable.
"Friendship first, competition second."
"There are no requirements for victory, but the winner will receive some rewards from the management,"
A certain official from the management stated.
Immediately, as if a keyword had been triggered, the listless young men and women lifted their heads, their eyes burning.
The next moment,
"Begin!"
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! ...
The young men and women from the neighboring welfare institute were sent flying like sandbags, landing with a thud.
The field fell silent.
The dean of the neighboring welfare institute: "What happened?"
The senior official from the management: "What's going on?"
The instructors from other welfare institutes: "These are children who have only cultivated for half a year?!"
This strength, this speed, this technique!
They gazed at the children on the field, their faces filled with astonishment.
Ri Guang Welfare Institute, terrifyingly strong!