The Chief of the Night Watchmen, Codename: Early Winter

Clap! Clap! Clap! 

Warm applause sounded from behind. Cui Anyu retracted her hand from the appraisal stone and turned to look at Le Tai, who was extremely surprised.

"Unbelievable! Miss An, your mother didn't tell me you're an S rank. This is truly a pleasant surprise!" Le Tai was in awe of Cui Anyu, and when he saw Cui Anyu's calm expression, his impression of her increased.

"Please come with me. I must introduce you to our chief!" When Le Tai saw Cui Anyu's level, he automatically classified her as a partner and changed his attitude from distant to friendly.

Although Cui Anyu was expressionless, her heart was already surging with waves. Her tightly clenched fists were already drenched in sweat.

The two of them left the appraisal area and followed the path they came from, heading deeper into the university town.

"Mr. Le Tai, does meeting the chief mean that I'm a member of the awakened?" Cui Anyu asked indifferently.

Le Tai raised his brows and smiled. "Miss Cui, you were already a member when you revealed your S-rank skill. Isn't that why you came here?"

His answer made Cui Anyu feel a little awkward.

Feng Jin Academy was under the Beastmaster Association's jurisdiction. They focused on nurturing beastmasters, while the Awakened Home was the exact opposite. For Cui Anyu, staying in the Awakened Home was not only beneficial to her cultivation, it was also the best choice.

However, when she thought about how Yu Guang was still in the school, Cui Anyu's heart was filled with reluctance.

She felt that her thoughts were too greedy, but she couldn't give up on either side.

"Mr. Le Tai." Cui Anyu stood still and didn't move forward. "Before I meet the chief, I would like to ask you to listen to my thoughts."

"Please go ahead." Le Tai cupped his hands.

"I'm very happy to be recognized by the Awakened Home, but I don't want to leave the school yet. If I have to drop out of school to join you, forgive me for not being able to do so..." Cui Anyu's eyes were unblinking as looked at Le Tai. She had already made up her mind.

Le Tai looked at her in surprise, then laughed and said, "Miss Cui, you can rest assured. The identity of the House of the Awakened is superimposed and will not replace anything. Of course, you can continue to attend school, but when we need you, you can just show up."

"I see." Cui anyu sighed in relief.

"I know a little about your situation, so forgive me for being blunt. If we talk about cultivation alone, the Awakened Home is more suitable for you than the school." Le Tai pointed out the pros and cons, but when he saw that Cui Anyu was unmoved, he immediately understood that Cui Anyu had a secret in her heart.

It was probably impossible to make her focus on the Awakened Home, but it didn't matter. Cui Anyu was an S-rank, so it didn't matter if she was stubborn.

"But since you have special feelings for the school, we respect your decision," Le Tai said with a smile.

"Thank you for your understanding." Cui Anyu was secretly delighted.

After making things clear, the heavy burden in her heart was lifted. Only then did Cui Anyu agree to move her feet and follow Le Tai into the house.

The Awakened Home covered almost the entire university town. It had an area of about 14 universities, but not every building was used. The distance between the office buildings was very far, and there was no means of transportation, so it would take them more than half a day to walk on foot.

Fortunately, they were all awakened, so moving quickly was normal for them.

When Cui Anyu walked deeper into the library, there were many awakened who ran past her. When they passed by, they would look at her with curious eyes.

Half an hour later, the two of them came to the door of a library. Le Tai pushed the door open and stood to the side. "The chief is inside. Please come in, Miss Cui."

"Aren't you going in?" Cui Anyu asked with a frown.

"I'll come to pick you up after you talk to the chief. Don't worry, I'll see you in a while." Le Tai smiled warmly.

Cui Anyu nodded, waved at Le Tai, and entered the library alone.

There were four floors in the library, and each floor was filled with bookshelves. The gap in the middle was so small that only one person could pass through it. The books on the shelves were arranged neatly according to their size, and chairs were everywhere. Overall, it looked messy. The manager of the library probably didn't care about such things. 

"Hello, is anyone there?" Cui Anyu tried to call out.

"Yes, yes!" a voice came from behind the bookshelves on the first floor. A few moments later, a man with a child-like face, white hair, and a gentle smile walked out. He took out a silver bookmark from his handkerchief bag and stuck it in the unfinished book.

"I'm so sorry. This book is so interesting that I lost track of time," the man apologized first, then introduced himself. "My name is Xie Heji. I'm the chief of the House of the Awakened."

Cui Anyu was stunned by the man's beautiful face. She didn't react until the man finished his introduction. "My name is Cui Anyu..."

"I know," Xie Heji interrupted her with a smile. "Cui Anyu, S-rank Ice Skill."

He put the book behind his back and extended his hand. "I sincerely welcome you to the House of the Awakened. We are very easy-going here except when we're facing enemies. I believe you will soon adapt to life here."

Cui Anyu was a little surprised, but since he was the chief of the House of the Awakened, it was not a big deal for him to be well-informed.

"Thank you. I like this place very much," Cui Anyu replied.

Xie Heji was very happy with her answer, and the smile on his face deepened. He opened the book in his hand and said, "From now on, your code name is Early Winter is that okay?"

"Code name?" Cui Anyu was puzzled.

Xie Heji pointed at a page of the book, which showed what he wanted to explain.

It was not that everyone who entered the House of the Awakened had a code name, but only those who had become the night watchmen would have a code name. The so-called night watchmen referred to the branch of the Awakened Home that had the highest combat power.

This was the tacit understanding between the Beastmaster Association and the Awakened Home when it was first established. 

The officially recognized Beastmaster Association guarded the light of this world, while the night watchmen were the unrecognized awakened who guarded the night. That was why they called themselves the night watchmen.

Because they had to carry out all sorts of dangerous missions and were worried that it would affect their normal lives, they called each other by their code names, distinguishing them from the people from the Beastmaster Association.

Cui Anyu understood the explanation on the page and nodded. "Thank you. I understand."

"That's good. Then, let's begin." Xie Heji flipped to another page after he finished speaking.

The words on the book seemed to have replaced his mouth, displaying everything he wanted to say. Cui Anyu stole a glance at the next page, which stated, "On how to cut a demon beast into 3,425 pieces." 

'How horrifying.' The corner of her mouth twitched slightly. She was sure that the contents of the book had nothing to do with the chief's personality. Perhaps he was reading it to gain more knowledge. 

While she was staring at the page, Xie Heji suddenly closed the book and looked at the door. "There's no need to read it. She's here. I'll let her explain it to you."