The sleek, black car glided away from the curb, leaving Su Yang and Leng Xue standing on the sidewalk before the towering glass monolith of Celestial Code Innovations. The transition was jarring. Moments ago, they had been enmeshed in a world of primordial energy and celestial bonds. Now, they were two employees—albeit one now the de facto department head and the other the company president—returning to work after a lunch break.
The air between them crackled with unspoken truths. Leng Xue adjusted the cuff of her jacket, the movement crisp and professional, yet Su Yang's enhanced perception could see the faint tremor in her fingers, the subtle, lingering glow of awakened Qi just beneath her skin. The blue phoenix, though hidden, was a palpable presence.
"I will proceed to the executive floor," Leng Xue stated, her voice regaining its boardroom chill, though her eyes, when they briefly met his, held a depth of warmth known only to him. "The OmniCorp presentation requires my final review. You will ensure the Aether project documentation is flawless and distributed to the senior team by end of day."
"It will be done," Su Yang replied, his tone neutral, the perfect subordinate. Yet the glance they shared spoke volumes of a different hierarchy, a different set of priorities entirely.
They entered the building, the blast of air conditioning a sterile counterpoint to the vital energy thrumming within them. They parted ways at the bank of elevators, Leng Xue heading for the penthouse suites, Su Yang for the floor he had once inhabited as a lowly intern.
The atmosphere in the development department had shifted. The news of Manager Li's sudden "reassignment" and Su Yang's meteoric, unexplained rise had spread like wildfire, fueled by gossip and a healthy dose of fear. As Su Yang stepped out of the elevator, the usual low hum of conversation and keyboard clatter died instantly. Dozens of eyes flicked toward him, then quickly away, afraid to hold his gaze for too long.
Wang Lihua looked up from her monitor, her expression a complex mix of relief, lingering anger from the car ride, and profound confusion. She opened her mouth as if to say something, then thought better of it, simply giving a tight, nervous nod.
Su Yang acknowledged no one. He moved to his cubicle—his old cubicle, which now felt like a throne disguised as a pauper's stool. The stacked blue lunchbox was still sitting neatly to the side. He sat down, and the department slowly, hesitantly, returned to a semblance of work, the silence heavier than before.
An hour later, a new ripple of tension passed through the room. The head of HR, a perpetually flustered man named Mr. Bao, appeared at the entrance to the floor, clearing his throat nervously. Beside him stood a woman.
All conversation ceased again.
She was not like Leng Xue. Where Leng was sharp angles, ice, and imposing authority, this woman was… curves. Softness. She wore a stylish, form-fitting knit dress in a deep emerald green that accentuated a figure that was both lush and graceful. Her chest was full and generous, her waist narrow, her hips curved. She had a warm, open face with kind eyes the color of rich honey, and chestnut hair that fell in soft waves around her shoulders. She carried an air of gentle intelligence and approachability, a stark contrast to the corporate sharks that usually swam these waters.
"Ahem, everyone, if I could have your attention," Mr. Bao said, his voice slightly too loud. "This is Professor Lin Rouxi. She's joining us from Tsinghua University's advanced machine learning department. She'll be serving as a special consultant and instructor for the next six weeks, providing advanced training to enhance our team's capabilities, particularly for the OmniCorp integration. She will be holding seminars and is also assigned to audit and assist on key projects, including Aether. Please make her feel welcome."
Professor Lin Rouxi offered a warm, genuine smile that seemed to light up the drab office. "Please, just call me Lin Rouxi," she said, her voice a pleasant, melodic alto. "I'm looking forward to working with and learning from all of you. I believe the best innovation happens in collaboration."
A few people managed weak smiles in return. Most were still trying to process her presence, her beauty, and the sudden academic intrusion into their corporate world.
Su Yang observed her dispassionately. His initial assessment was mundane: an academic, likely brilliant in her field, brought in to add intellectual prestige to the OmniCorp deal. But then, as his gaze lingered, his perception, honed by the Primordial Emperor's inheritance and his recent breakthrough to the peak of Qi Condensation, shifted.
He wasn't looking at her body or her face. He was looking *through* them.
Beneath the warm, approachable exterior, he sensed a spirit root. It wasn't explosive or dominant like Leng Xue's Snow Phoenix Physique. It was something else—deep, nurturing, incredibly stable, and brimming with a gentle, yet immense, latent power. It was an **Earth Vein Spirit Root**, a constitution exceptionally rare and valued in the cultivation world for its connection to stability, healing, and profound, grounded wisdom. Those who possessed it were natural teachers, healers, and anchors. Their energy was not for flashy conquest but for unwavering support and deep, resilient strength.
It was a spirit root that complemented his own chaotic, overwhelming Yang energy in a completely different way than Leng Xue's Yin. Where Leng Xue was the moon to his sun, this woman's energy felt like the very earth beneath his feet.
Professor Lin's eyes scanned the room, taking in the faces. Her gaze, warm and intelligent, passed over Su Yang. For a fraction of a second, it hesitated. A tiny, almost imperceptible flicker of confusion crossed her features. It was as if her own latent spiritual sense, utterly dormant and unrecognized by her conscious mind, had brushed against the titanic force of his presence and recoiled, unable to process what it had encountered. She blinked, the moment passed, and her smile returned as she focused on Mr. Bao.
"...and her office will be set up in the conference room next to the server farm," Mr. Bao was saying. "She'll be circulating her schedule. I expect everyone to give her their full cooperation."
As Mr. Bao led her away to continue the introductions, the department erupted in a hushed, excited buzz.
"Did you see her?"
"A professor? And she looks like that?"
"What kind of advanced training do you think she's going to provide?"
"I suddenly feel very motivated to learn about machine learning."
Wang Lihua, who had been watching the exchange with keen interest, rolled her chair over to Su Yang's cubicle. The earlier awkwardness was temporarily forgotten in the face of this new development.
"Well, that's something you don't see every day," she said, keeping her voice low. "A professor who looks like a movie star. And she's going to be auditing Aether?" A note of concern entered her voice. "Do you think… do you think this is because of what happened with Manager Li? Did President Leng send her to check up on us?"
Su Yang considered it. It was possible. Leng Xue was thorough and would want to ensure the project that had caused so much turmoil was flawless. Sending a brilliant, external auditor was a logical move.
"Perhaps," he said noncommittally.
"She seemed nice," Lihua mused, almost to herself. "Not like… well, not like most people in management." She glanced toward the empty hallway where the professor had disappeared. "It'll be interesting to have her around."
Interesting was one word for it, Su Yang thought. His life had just become exponentially more complex. He had a celestial consort with a Snow Phoenix Physique who was also the president of the company, a department that was terrified of him, and now a visiting professor with an Earth Vein Spirit Root—a sleeping giant of spiritual potential—was about to be embedded in his daily life, auditing the very project that was the key to his current cover.
The mundane world of coding and corporate politics was rapidly becoming a minefield of hidden cultivation dramas. Su Yang turned back to his screen, the lines of code blurring before his eyes. The game was changing, and new players, whether they knew it or not, were taking the field. The Yin-Yang Envoy's path of ascension was proving to be anything but solitary.