"…Ehehe. The Divination Commission's Preceptor is indeed exceptionally wise, to have seen through even this."
Exposed, Yu Xian could only give a weak, awkward smile. Only then did he notice that the third eye on Fu Xuan's forehead was glowing faintly—an unmistakable sign that she was linking her consciousness to the Matrix of Prescience, drawing upon its immense computational power.
The moment he realized this, Yu Xian's hands and feet went ice-cold. Sweat poured down his face.
How was he supposed to keep this up now? How could he make her believe he wasn't mocking her? How could he protect his salary—or even his job?
In a daze, Yu Xian thought he could almost hear Fu Xuan uttering a single command that would send a squad of Cloud Knights to seize him on the spot. In his imagination, he saw his salary and credits sprouting wings and flying away.
But the real danger came a moment later.
Fu Xuan crossed her arms, her voice soft yet lethal.
"Qingque put you up to this, didn't she?"
"No…" Yu Xian began to deny it, but her next words cut him off sharply.
"Don't bother lying to me, Masked Fool. Why do you think I'm here?" Her tone was cold, commanding. "I didn't just divine your location to catch you sneaking out—I divined everything. Before my Omniscia Eye, all things are laid bare."
Under the weight of her gaze, Yu Xian could only stand frozen. This small, pink-haired girl—barely reaching his shoulders, wearing white stockings with little cloud patterns—was somehow terrifying enough to make his heart stop.
The contrast was almost absurd.
In the simulated universe's storyline, Fu Xuan always seemed a bit dreamy and adorable, even clumsy at times. So how did the real Fu Xuan become this sharp, this terrifyingly perceptive?
…But regardless, denial was useless.
"Preceptor, you've misunderstood," Yu Xian said quickly, forcing a smile. "Qingque didn't tell me to do anything. She only invited me to play cards. I was the one who was… too eager."
At the mention of "Qingque," Fu Xuan's eyes narrowed dangerously. She snorted coldly, her expression turning even frostier.
As expected—it was her.
That girl—well, technically they were the same age and height, but that didn't matter—had become completely incorrigible lately. Always skipping work, always dragging others down with her.
Fu Xuan's anger wasn't simply about Yu Xian leaving work early. Everyone in the Divination Commission knew Qingque often slipped out to play cards, snack, or nap somewhere, and though she was scolded from time to time, Fu Xuan had never truly lost her temper over it.
No, this time was different.
What truly infuriated Fu Xuan was how close Yu Xian and Qingque had become. Their relationship had crossed the line from casual friendship into something far more personal—and far more dangerous.
Dating? Perhaps even something deeper? At this rate, it wouldn't be long before they started talking about marriage.
Absolutely not. Fu Xuan refused to allow it.
A long-life species and a short-life species could never end well together. A human lifespan barely reached a century; Qingque's people lived for millennia. Such a union was doomed to tragedy.
Fu Xuan had seen this pattern countless times before—relationships between species that ended only in heartbreak and despair. And what frightened her most was that Yu Xian and Qingque seemed to be rushing straight into that same abyss.
Her anxiety had only worsened after she decided to divine their future out of concern.
[One hour before the end of work today, Yu Xian will leave the Divination Commission to go on a date with Qingque.]
[This will become the moment when Yu Xian proposes, and Qingque accepts.]
That revelation had made her drop everything and rush to intercept him.
A date? A proposal? Marriage?!
Fu Xuan couldn't believe it. Was Yu Xian out of his mind? Had he been on the Xianzhou so long he'd forgotten what he was? He was a short-life species!
Even if they did love each other, time itself would turn against them. In fifty years—or less—he would be gone, and Qingque would be left behind with only pain and regret.
She would mourn him for centuries. Her heart would wither, her spirit would falter, and her path would end in tragedy.
That was what truly enraged Fu Xuan—not Yu Xian's absence from work, not the disobedience, but his blindness to the pain his choices would bring to Qingque's future.
And Qingque was no better. What did she see in him? Why was she so infatuated, so reckless, so utterly unwilling to think about what came after?
Two love-struck fools, charging headlong into disaster.
Catching Yu Xian red-handed only confirmed everything her divination had shown. She had been right all along. The two of them were inseparable now—each change in one inevitably reflected in the other.
Their romance had already become an open secret within the Commission.
Fu Xuan sighed softly, her expression complicated. She bit her lip, her heart tightening.
A romance between a long-life species and a short-life species could only end in sorrow.
She had seen it before—the slow decay of love, the loneliness that lingered for centuries, the light in someone's eyes dimming as they clung to fading memories.
Fu Xuan shook her head, steel returning to her gaze.
No. She would not let that happen again. Not to them.
Both Yu Xian and Qingque were exceptional—rare talents unseen in the Commission for centuries. With proper guidance, either of them could one day succeed her as Preceptor. They represented the future of the Divination Commission—perhaps even the future of the Xianzhou itself.
Precisely because of that, she couldn't allow them to throw their futures away for something as fleeting as forbidden love.
Especially Qingque.
In such relationships, it was always the long-life partner who suffered most. And Qingque, with her naïve, carefree heart, would never survive the loss. Whether it drove her into despair, robbed her of her will to work, or even pushed her toward Mara centuries ahead of time—every outcome was unacceptable.
If this continued, the Divination Commission would lose both its brightest stars.
Fu Xuan clenched her fists, her expression hardening.
Thinking wasn't enough. Action was needed.
These two had to be stopped—before they went any further, before they sealed their fates.
That was why she was here.
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A/n: While I am a new translator, I have a Patreon! While it may be a bit empty right now both this and the other book on my page has advanced chapters posted on patreon.
patreon.com/deadlygoober