Back in the villa district.
The whole way back, Fang Xiu’s mind was filled with memories of Yue Tianrui meeting him here, wanting to escort him to school.
Before, he’d always thought Yue Tianrui was up to something.
It wasn’t until the very end, when he saw Yue Tianrui sacrifice his own life to protect humanity, that the knot in Fang Xiu’s heart finally loosened.
But those previous encounters still left Fang Xiu confused.
’Why was it so coincidental?’
"So, the principal lived right next door to me!"
Fang Xiu shook his head with a wry smile.
Principal Yue Tianrui’s villa was right next to Fang Xiu’s, so running into him here was perfectly normal.
And since Principal Yue Tianrui was familiar with Zhao Yao, meeting near Zhao Yao’s shop was also to be expected.
Now that Fang Xiu had pieced it all together, everything made sense.
The place where Fang Xiu lived was a detached villa.
He had never actually known who his next-door neighbor was.
He just never expected it to be such a coincidence.
Upon returning to his neighborhood, Fang Xiu hesitated for a moment before heading toward Principal Yue Tianrui’s house.
The villa looked as if it hadn’t been cleaned in a long time.
Fang Xiu glanced inside. It was quiet, and it seemed no one was home.
"Hello, can I help you with something?"
Just then, a woman’s voice came from behind him.
Fang Xiu turned to see a middle-aged woman standing there.
"Ah... hello. I... Is this Principal Yue Tianrui’s house? I’m... a student from Qingzhou City First High School. I came to pay my respects."
Fang Xiu was at a loss for words.
"Ah, you’re one of Old Yue’s students. Come in and sit down!"
Hearing his words, the middle-aged woman nodded slightly.
"Ma’am, are you the principal’s..."
Although Fang Xiu was fairly certain of the woman’s identity, he still felt he should ask, just in case he was mistaken.
"Old Yue was my husband,"
the woman said softly.
Fang Xiu nodded slightly and didn’t ask any more questions.
Then she said to Fang Xiu, "Come in. Quite a few students have come to see him since he passed away. I suppose he can rest in peace now."
"Principal Yue was very famous among the students, and he was highly respected."
That much was true.
A Level 66 Awakened.
No matter where he went, he would be idolized.
Especially in the hearts of those who were about to go through their Awakening, or hadn’t even Awakened yet.
He was like a god to them.
"What’s the use of being famous? Now he’s hanging on the wall—even more high and mighty. Leaving me all alone... sigh!"
The principal’s wife sighed.
She then led Fang Xiu inside.
The villa’s interior, in contrast, was neat and orderly.
"Have a seat. I’ll get you a glass of water."
The principal’s wife said, then went to put away her groceries.
"Thank you, Ma’am!"
Fang Xiu didn’t refuse.
He didn’t sit down, either. Instead, he looked around the villa curiously.
The layout was basically the same as his own villa.
The only difference was the many photos of Principal Yue Tianrui and his wife on the wall.
Fang Xiu looked at them one by one. At first, they were photos of the couple together.
Later on, the photos were only of the principal’s wife, with an occasional separate picture of Principal Yue Tianrui.
The separate pictures were then placed together to form a pair.
"In the beginning, Old Yue would come home once a week, and we would always take a picture together. Later, it became once a month, or even longer. We couldn’t get a shot together, so we had to do it like this."
The principal’s wife’s voice came from behind Fang Xiu.
Fang Xiu quickly turned, took the water the woman offered him, and said, "The principal was very busy."
"I understand that."
The principal’s wife nodded slightly.
She led Fang Xiu back to the sofa, and they both sat down.
"You’re Fang Xiu, aren’t you?"
Just then, the principal’s wife suddenly looked at Fang Xiu and asked.
The question stunned Fang Xiu.
After a moment, he nodded slightly. "I am."
"This string of beads you have... Old Yue’s father left it to him. The fact that he gave it to you proves he thought very highly of you. Old Yue died in battle in the Demon Beast Realm... he was with you, wasn’t he?"
the principal’s wife asked again.
Fang Xiu was silent for a moment before slowly nodding. "It’s my fault I couldn’t bring the principal back."
This was a stone weighing on Fang Xiu’s heart.
’I probably should have brought the principal back.’
’Even if it was just his body.’
But the principal’s final wish was to be buried in the Demon Beast Realm.
Fang Xiu felt that although he had fulfilled the principal’s wish, it was perhaps cruel to his family.
He died, and not even his body was returned.
So now, as the principal’s wife questioned him, Fang Xiu’s heart pounded with nervousness.
"You did nothing wrong."
He never expected the principal’s wife to say something like that.
It left Fang Xiu somewhat puzzled.
"I heard that when Old Yue was dragged into the Demon Beast Realm, you desperately charged in after him, trying to save him,"
the principal’s wife said.
Zhao Yao had told her all of this.
Hearing this, Fang Xiu silently nodded.
At the time, he really had wanted to get Principal Yue Tianrui out.
But in the end, there was nothing he could do. He had died inside the Demon Beast Realm.
"You are very brave. You don’t need to blame yourself."
The principal’s wife said softly, "Actually, that was Old Yue’s wish as well. He once said that if he couldn’t defeat the Demon Beasts while he was alive, then after he died, he would want to be buried in the place closest to them..."
At this, the principal’s wife began to choke up. "He said he wanted to watch with his own eyes as humanity exterminated the Demon Beasts."
"I used to tell him all the time... we don’t have any children, you’re an Awakened, and I’m just an ordinary person. Your lifespan is longer than mine, so there won’t be anyone to carry out your final wishes..."
The principal’s wife’s eyes reddened. "And he would say, ’What if I die in battle someday...’ And I would cover his mouth and not let him continue. I never thought... he really would die in battle."

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