Chapter 2964: Unreasonable Tier-2 Su

"Thank you."

Su Gao took the dessert saved for her, just as she had so many times before.

The next moment, she sat in the seat closest to Fu Qian and popped a spoonful into her mouth as if no one else were there.

It was hard to say which was whiter and more delicate—her fingers or the porcelain spoon she held. The sight felt entirely natural, possessing a seamless perfection.

The two experienced chiefs were so struck by this imagination-defying turn of events that they couldn't even bring themselves to interrupt.

"Tier 2?"

But that was fine. They still had Professor Fu.

Watching Su Gao earnestly finish her first spoonful, Fu Qian casually ruined the atmosphere.

"Yes... They happened to have the necessary trait here."

Showing absolutely no displeasure at the interruption, Su Gao looked over and nodded.

The scene was incredibly familiar. During her first trip to Shangjing, Professor Fu had asked if she was a demigod in that exact same tone.

"The Night Watchers truly have a profound foundation," Fu Qian praised, entirely unsurprised.

On the one hand, his Vision Radar saw it clearly: compared to when they parted ways at the Academy, Su Gao's health bar had achieved another qualitative leap.

On the other, he had already deduced at the end of the Millennium Journey that her condition was likely similar to his own early completion of the Tier 2 ritual.

With everything in place and the Night Watchers' extensive collection at their disposal, matching her with the corresponding divine trait was probably just a matter of routine procedure.

The only obstacle, perhaps, would have been the Night Watchers' attitude.

The facts ultimately proved that they weren't opposed to her taking things a step further.

They were even highly efficient about it. In theory, it hadn't been long at all since she returned.

...

Good food could relax the atmosphere of a conversation. Chief Yuan's strategy genuinely seemed flawless.

However, the casual chat between the two next to her was far too shocking.

Both Yuan Shan and Thirteen were forced into a prolonged silence.

"Congratulations—honestly, you scared me." By the time she finally digested the information and spoke again, Chief Yuan sounded as if she had overeaten.

Moreover, regarding the secrets of a Divine Emissary, she simply couldn't be as casual as Fu Qian and refrained from discussing them in a public setting.

"Did you know she was coming?"

Instead, Yuan Shan shifted her focus to the reserved dessert, looking at Fu Qian in disbelief.

This was the same guy who had suggested not skipping dessert just moments ago.

"I didn't know. I told you, I'd just eaten some before."

Fu Qian refused to take unearned credit, clarifying that he didn't possess such foresight.

That was the truth. He had deliberately saved the dessert, but he genuinely hadn't been certain she would show up.

"...How did Su Gao know we were here?"

Clearly finding it hard to believe, Yuan Shan turned to look at the other person.

"I didn't know. I just didn't see you inside, so I figured you might have come here."

However, her answer truly left them speechless.

Su Gao shook her head, indicating that she had relied on absolutely zero intel. She was just that unreasonable.

...

They hadn't even restricted Su Gao's movements.

So far, this Hongmen Banquet seemed fairly friendly.

Fu Qian naturally didn't doubt her explanation. Ever since they met, she had displayed far too many unreasonable feats.

However, the Night Watchers' underlying attitude was worth pondering.

Even if they didn't share many public interactions, the Council obviously knew that Su Gao had a deep connection with him.

By setting up this Hongmen Banquet—if there truly was some scheme afoot—it logically would have been best to minimize the chances of her interfering.

Yet, she had seemingly been informed the moment they arrived, and her freedom hadn't been restricted in the slightest.

Of course, there was another possibility: in the eyes of the Night Watchers, a mere Divine Emissary couldn't make much of an impact.

Whatever the case, the scope of things had certainly expanded.

"Alright..."

Yuan Shan seemed to finally realize that she had never been able to do anything about the two people in front of her, and she could only sigh helplessly.

"Regardless, it looks like I can slack off a bit."

Her optimistic nature allowed her to quickly look on the bright side.

The last time Su Gao visited the Academy, Professor Fu had personally hosted her.

Now that the roles were reversed, she obviously wouldn't mind acting as a guide.

"Thanks for your hard work."

As Yuan Shan prepared to wash her hands of the matter, Fu Qian didn't bother stopping her.

In his view, she likely wasn't planning to slack off alongside Aunt Thirteen.

Yuan Shan was probably far more worried about Henry's situation than she let on.

Plus, since the old man didn't much care for the Birthday Party to begin with, it was necessary for her to check on him.

...Aunt Thirteen, who suspected a "seemingly familiar" connection with Professor Fu, didn't utter another word until she finished paying the bill.

She simply rushed off, using official business as an excuse.

Sure enough, Chief Yuan didn't go with her. Instead, she walked partway back with Fu Qian and Su Gao, dumped the guide duties onto the latter, and hurried away.

In short, after thoroughly comforting their stomachs, this little lunchtime bliss came to a perfect end.

It was so perfect that Fu Qian almost believed Aunt Thirteen had actually gone back to handle official business.

His rather ostentatious performance earlier had, of course, been deliberate.

Though everything seemed peaceful on the surface, just as he had mentioned before, this endeavor was like feeling his way forward while undergoing a heavenly tribulation—an unprecedentedly grueling task.

So much so that any resource on hand had to be considered, including alternate personas.

Thanks to the effects of Burning Frost, the frost mage identity of Grimshaw was the cleanest one he possessed.

But alternate personas were meant to be discarded, provided they proved their worth.

After discovering he could switch back to Loss so freely, Fu Qian began wondering how to exploit the feature.

And at a time like this, Aunt Thirteen had actually come knocking on her own initiative? It certainly made suggesting Yuan Shan eat more and wasting those few minutes worthwhile.

In any case, after dropping a few subtle hints, certain seeds of doubt had been planted.

Furthermore, Professor Fu and Grimshaw were "two demigods with entirely different power types." Such a cognitive barrier would ensure those seeds didn't sprout too quickly.

Perhaps after this Hongmen Banquet, the alternate persona would inevitably burn away.

But while attending the banquet, it still served as an information advantage he could exploit at the right moment—you thought you gained insight into my secrets, but I had already gained insight into your insight.

If the Night Watchers were a monolithic block internally, this kind of behavior might be suicidal. But it had been proven long ago that they weren't...

"That spire over there only appeared recently. Aside from the work areas and a few special locations, the layout inside is constantly shifting, almost as if it were alive."

As he pondered, Su Gao proved to be a highly dedicated guide.

She soon gestured toward a spire not far away and introduced it. It was exactly one of Fu Qian's planned targets.

This also showed that Old Man Logan was equally dedicated, having actually relayed the guest's thoughts in detail.

"Are we going there now? Or should we go see Lily first?"

"Let's go visit the patient first."