Celestial Official!

Chen Xuyang and his group came prepared. Upon receiving the news, they immediately gathered their forces and rushed over.

There was absolutely no disdain or negligence towards "heretical and unaffiliated practitioners".

The Chen family of Gumang was merely a fifth-rank Daoist clan from a rural area. The only difference between them and those wealthy and powerful families was that they possessed the right to inherit a lineage of martial arts.

It's just that it's been passed down for a few more generations, and a few more cultivators at the early stage of Qi Refining have emerged.

Therefore, in order for the clan to continue to thrive and avoid the danger of extinction, the best way is naturally to rely on the orthodox tradition and willingly become its subordinate.

Mount Gumang, a land of mere resources, is a low-grade, almost forgotten "poor and desolate" place by the upper-level cultivators of the Jade Sleeve Sect.

For some reason, they have now sent more than ten ordinary laborers to cultivate the land.

Although Chen Xuyang appeared calm and composed on the surface, he tried his best to maintain the dignity of a clan elder and never showed his emotions in front of others.

But in his heart he was overjoyed, secretly marveling that the Jade Sleeve Sect had not forgotten his Gu Mang Chen family!

Therefore, how could Chen Xuyang allow "heretical" forces to run rampant and cause chaos here, ruining the reputation of "loyalty, honesty, and obedience" that his Chen family had painstakingly built up over generations?

"Take them all down, and hand them over to the Jade Sleeve Sect's superiors for further processing tomorrow!"

As Chen Xuyang finished speaking, more than ten members of the Chen clan behind him took out spears and clubs from behind and charged towards the group of cultivators on the other side of the cliff!

These members of the Chen clan all came from a lineage of Daoist tradition and had inherited the Dharma lineage; even the weakest among them had entered the path of Qi Refining.

It is far superior to the "outsiders" who have only learned some rudimentary Taoist techniques.

Those black-clad "outsiders" had little fighting spirit to begin with, and after barely holding on for about half an hour, they collapsed easily like an anthill, ending up in a sorry state.

……

Below the cliff.

Work sheds stood in rows, mine shafts were everywhere, and oil lamps hung high, swaying and casting a murky, dim light.

At first glance, it looks like a graveyard with rootless ghost flames floating in the air.

"It's over, it's all over!"

Xu Hui had already arrived outside the work shed, staring blankly at the distant firelight. His heart felt as if it were being tightly gripped by an invisible hand, his body stiffened, and he could hardly breathe.

"What exactly happened?"

"The theft of resources was clearly planned in great secrecy, so how could it have been discovered in advance?"

"Zhang Quan... Where did Zhang Quan go? Did he run away!?"

"Yes, the Jade Sleeve Sect will never tolerate disciples who collude with heretics. Staying here means certain death! I have to escape too!"

"I need to find my brother-in-law! I'll be safe once I get back to the 'Green Saint Cult'!"

Thinking of this, Xu Hui seemed to have gone mad, and once he saw a path, he ran wildly on his own.

Completely forgetting that the place beneath their feet was Mount Gumang, more than a hundred miles away from the Jade Sleeve Sect.

"Junior Brother Xu, which way do you want to go?"

A clear voice suddenly rang in Xu Hui's ears, which made him more alert.

"Who's there!?"

Then I saw him slowly slow down, looking ahead with a suspicious gaze.

Then a tall, handsome young man slowly emerged from the night.

He wore a loose cotton robe, his brows were calm, his expression was indifferent, and a faint burning light emanated from the back of his head. It was extremely subtle, yet it gave people a feeling of warmth and passion.

"Junior Brother Yan!?"

Looking at Yan Chen, who was completely different from usual, Xu Hui opened his mouth wide and muttered:

"You've reached the first level of Qi Refining!?"

"When...and why did no one in the courtyard mention it to me!?"

For some reason, a strong sense of frustration welled up inside me.

Xu Hui suddenly realized that perhaps everything he had done at the beginning was meaningless.

The owner of Cui Shu Lou, whom he had been longing for, was not someone he was even qualified to covet.

"Those who accumulate evil will surely suffer lingering consequences. Junior Brother Xu, if you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place?"

Yan Chen's eyes blazed with fury, his voice low and melancholic as he suddenly sighed.

"I have not colluded with any rogue cultivators of the 'Green Saint Sect'!"

Suddenly, Xu Hui's voice burst forth, heart-wrenching and resounding through the cold night, containing resentment and pleading!

"What a convenient way to admit defeat without being asked!"

A burst of firelight shone from behind him. Xu Hui turned around in a daze and saw a group of Chen clan members standing there, with more than twenty black-clad rogue cultivators bound behind them.

Chen Xuyang, pinching a tuft of his mustache, was looking at him with a smile.

Yan Chen spoke:

"Elder Chen, this man is also carrying two thousand coins of magic money that he obtained from the 'heretical sects.' If the two of us find it, it will be a major piece of evidence!"

Chen Xuyang's eyes lit up!

"Excellent!"

thump!

Xu Hui's body went limp, and he collapsed to the ground like a rag doll.

……

The next day.

After Chen Xuyang wrote a letter, explaining everything that had happened the previous night to the Jade Sleeve Sect,...

In less than half a day, a land vessel arrived from afar and slowly came to a stop outside Mount Gumang.

Besides the three supervisors, there was also a disciple from the Molten Gold Valley who came, which shows how much importance the valley attaches to what happened last night.

As for this disciple, he could be considered an "acquaintance" to Yan Chen.

It was none other than Wang Fu, who had inspected the three lower hospitals back then.

"Greetings, Deacon Wang!"

Chen Xuyang had also been to the Gold Melting Valley, and he could name almost all the stewards in the valley.

Therefore, the moment they saw the other party, they immediately put on a smile, showing even more enthusiasm than when receiving the guards.

Wang Fu nodded slightly, but he had no interest in idle chatter and got straight to the point:

Where are those "heretical insects"?

"They are all being held by members of my Chen clan and are under strict guard. Do you intend to interrogate them, sir?"

"No need for that. Just stuff it into the rear compartment of the boat along with the supplies, and we'll escort it back to the valley together later."

"By the way, this time they also uncovered a disciple of the Jade Sleeve sect who colluded with 'heretical sects'?"

"That's right, that fellow's name is Xu Hui, and he's from..."

After Chen Xuyang revealed all the details of Xu Hui's background,

Lü Mao then feigned surprise, his face full of disbelief.

After maintaining this expression for several seconds, he then used a tone of disappointment and frustration to exclaim repeatedly, saying things like, "How could this be?", "How pitiful and hateful!", and "You can know a person's face but not their heart."

Finally, with a serious expression, he spoke to the Prince's residence as if making a guarantee:

"Senior Brother Wang, although I have some connection with Xu Hui, it's only because of his older sister. In terms of personal relationships, there's practically nothing between us!"

"Junior Brother Lü is diligent and conscientious in managing the Engraving Institute. I have seen all of this."

Wang Fu chuckled and nodded, his words ambiguous.

After the common people had piled all the supplies into the rear warehouse of the land vessel, and then threw Xu Hui and a group of "Holy Sect" disciples in as well.

The dozen or so ordinary laborers who were tasked with reclaiming the land finally boarded the landboat one after another.

They were seen off by a group of members of the Chen clan from Gumang.

Lu Zhou rode his escape light and hurriedly returned to the Jade Sleeve Sect's mountain gate.

Inside the boat, Yan Chen sat down by the window, composed himself, and golden light shone in his eyes as lines of causal information belonging to Xu Hui appeared.

The above records Xu Hui's words, actions, and behavior over the past two days.

This is why Yan Chen was able to anticipate the actions of the so-called "Qing Sheng Sect" and set up surveillance under the guise of ordinary people picking out ores.

He himself then returned to the Chen family's location and recounted the whole story.

This matter concerns resources and land, and Chen cannot disbelieve it.

This led to a series of subsequent incidents.

"Although the orthodox tradition regards 'heretical paths' as mere mosquitoes and flies, and disdains them, if they infringe upon our fundamental interests, then it is as easy as swatting a fly away; their life and death are decided in a single thought..."

Yan Chen glanced at the blurry scenery outside the window and secretly made a decision in his mind:

"Now that the matter of the materials is settled, once I return to the Forging Academy, I should start thinking about the cultivation path to the second level of Qi Refining..."

"Although the origin of that Qi guiding technique is still unclear, the reason why the lineage is the lineage is because the transmission of the Dharma is measured and follows the two words 'rules'."

"As long as we can find a way to advance..."

While he was pondering this, a figure slowly came and sat down opposite Yan Chen without him noticing.

I raised my hand to block out the blurry view from the window.

Yan Chen was surprised when he saw who it was.

It was none other than Wang Fu, the disciple and steward of the Gold Melting Valley.

Wang Fu looked at Yan Chen with deep emotion and admiration, and said:

"I underestimated you, Junior Brother Yan."

"You're not just a talented person, you're a top-notch 'talent'!"

……