This time I chose Paladin.

Chapter 168 Soul Concerto
"Astronomy no longer exists!"

The mountain where the observatory is located is quite far from the city. Nie Weiyang and his companion traveled over mountains and valleys to get here, and they heard this noise before they even got close.

The voice was old and hoarse, filled with intense despair: "How many times have I said it—astronomy no longer exists! Don't come looking for us anymore! What astronomy popularization, what remembering the starry sky, what not forgetting the sun? What people need to learn now is geology, agriculture, and industry, but not astronomy! Go back, let us starve to death here!"

Nie Weiyang and Yi Jian exchanged a glance and simultaneously slowed their pace. The difference was that the former simply resumed his normal silent walking, while the latter tried his best to keep his footsteps quiet.

The city's observatory, though called an observatory, is now just a small stone and wood building.

It is situated on the edge of a cliff with a wide view, with more than half of it embedded in the mountain. It can only be reached by following a mountain road.

At this moment, more than ninety people were gathered on the cliff. Among them were thirty soldiers stationed there. The other sixty people each had a book hanging from their waists. The books were decorated with things related to stars, star trails, astronomy, and astrology. Moreover, they seemed to prefer to use symbols on the cover to express meanings rather than words.

These are the only astronomers left in the old city. They were once astronomers, astronomy students, and astronomy enthusiasts. Back then, they were full of reverie and hope for the starry sky.

But now, they almost all... look worried.

'Snapped'!
The wooden door slammed open, and a middle-aged man pushed another man out the door, saying, "Don't come back again."

Yi Jian, standing next to Nie Weiyang, was slightly taken aback.

That aged voice actually belonged to this middle-aged man... wait, is his vocal cords growing out of shape in such a hurry?

"Don't come again...please don't come again." The middle-aged man's voice lowered, sounding like an old ox.

A messenger was pushed forward, dressed in a green post office uniform and carrying a tailor-made shoulder bag. He sighed and left. The middle-aged man scratched his messy, graying hair and turned to look at the crowd: "Have the city's people who deal with dark creatures arrived?"

Dark creatures? Nie Weiyang raised an eyebrow and exchanged a glance with Yi Jian.

"They're here!" Yi Jian strode out of the crowd. "But the people over there didn't say what it was about. They just said, 'Uh, if you have time, please let the two of us come over.'"

'The two of us'?
Nie Weiyang followed Yi Jian at a leisurely pace, his spirit "hearing" Yi Jian's "voice": It's certainly not good for me to lie like this, but I still hope Brother Nie will cooperate...

Nie Weiyang: “…”

"Hmm." Nie Weiyang nodded slightly.

He emerged from the shadows of the trees.

Two months later, his skin was still pale, and his appearance remained handsome and rugged. His tall and sturdy physique was not yet covered by armor, and even in a summer casual outfit, he looked as upright as a pine or bamboo.

A red hair tie bound his slightly long, wavy hair behind his head. The black and white hair extended, merging into a strange gray at the ends, swaying in the breeze.

Strangely, he exuded a natural aura of intimidation and menace, and his scarlet eyes emitted a faint red glow. The light was not like that of human eyes, but more like that of a furnace, a celestial body, or a spotlight, giving him an eerie and inhuman appearance.

This should have been a terrifying sight. But his demeanor was so upright, his expression so gentle, and the golden light emanating from the depths of his pupils that people simply looked away from him, no longer looking directly into his eyes, but did not feel any disgust, fear, or even the most basic aversion to him.

Upright, meticulous, gentle, reliable... these are the first impressions he gives people today.

Even though those eyes are no longer covered by sunglasses, they still evoke a startling sense of dread, as if something far greater is lurking deep within them. In the end, most people will only feel that he is trustworthy in front of this person.

But... whether you look directly at them or not, anyone who sees this person will remember those eyes.

It's like a scorching light that's almost icy cold, leaving an imprint on people's hearts. This swift and powerful strike won't be noticed by anyone, because these eyes deserve to be remembered, and this person is trustworthy.

The middle-aged man glanced at him, his gaze involuntarily tracing away from those eyes, but he still relaxed his guard slightly: "...Hello."

He seems very uncomfortable interacting with people.

“I am… the current director of the planetarium. Uh… my name is Ping Xingdou.” He spoke to Nie Weiyang, but his gaze darted around the people around him, a subtle hint of panic in his eyes: “You are…?”

"Hello, I'm Nie Weiyang," Nie Weiyang said. He smiled and extended his hand: "It's a pleasure to meet you, Director Ping."

"Oh, oh, it's nice to meet you." Ping Xingdou muttered, "Doesn't this name sound familiar...? Hmm?!"

His eyes suddenly widened: "You are—"

The guy who killed a boss as soon as he arrived six months ago? The guy who's always on TV—no, on the system announcements? The guy who saved Gushi City by fighting three tough battles in one day two months ago? The guy who's been traveling all over Zhongzhou these past two months? That paladin? That guy on the motorcycle? That Night Heron? That highly praised captain in all the Gushi City missions?
Nie Weiyang patiently waited for the expected description, but instead heard a new phrasing in the other person's mind:
"The one who donated a civilian astronomical telescope to us!"

Ping Xingdou excitedly grasped Nie Weiyang's hands. Even as a scholar, he was far too thin, but he held Nie Weiyang's hands tightly and shook them vigorously, as if that were enough to express his gratitude: "Thank you, thank you! That telescope really saved us a lot of trouble! Although it wasn't very accurate, wasn't big enough, and didn't have many replacement parts, but... thank you, thank you!"

Nie Weiyang: "...You're welcome."

Well, he did donate a civilian astronomical telescope to the city... but he really didn't expect that, in the current situation, someone would remember him because of this telescope.

Ping Xingdou, I've never heard of that name before.

This is someone who died long ago in the previous playthrough, but is still alive this time. As for why this guy died last time—well, there are too many possible reasons, after all, this guy seems really easy to kill now.

Nie Weiyang narrowed his eyes slightly.

He doesn't like listening to other people's secrets. His mind-reading ability, called [Mind Reading], is a passive skill. Once the judgment is successful, he will definitely receive other people's thoughts.

This inner voice is not a real sound, but a resonance of thoughts echoing deep within the spirit. He can easily discern where the information comes from and will not be easily influenced by it. This is probably the best form of passive mind reading.

but now……

What he read from the other person's heart was not a thought, but a melody like the colliding of crystals.

Nie Weiyang carefully examined Ping Xingdou.

A melodious tune played in my headphones, the theme song for all the astronomers around me. Deep within my heart, the melody of colliding crystals echoed—a reflection of my thoughts on the stars…

At some point, the two voices merged into one. As the wind pushed through the clouds and the light and shadow shifted, Nie Weiyang couldn't help but think of the dark night sky and the brilliant starry sky within it.

Ok.

There's a problem.

(End of this chapter)