The opening scene reveals the story of Yao Lao, alarming the Soul Emperor.

The reactions on the platform varied upon hearing this.

Hun Yue took a half step forward, then abruptly pulled his foot back, his facial muscles taut.

The muffled sound from the back row didn't come out, but a very faint rustling of fabric came from that direction, as if someone had removed their hand from their knee.

The gray-robed celestial being's lips moved slightly, but he ultimately didn't utter a word.

Hunyuan stood above, his gaze falling on the unfolded white feather fan in Hunyu's hand. The golden feather patterns on the fan surface shimmered faintly in the dim light of the hall.

He neither stopped them nor spoke up for them; he simply stood there like a bystander.

Among the kneeling Dou Zun on both sides, someone secretly raised their eyelids for a moment, then quickly lowered them again.

Soul Extinction's vertical pupils narrowed slightly behind the black mist.

"What are you looking at?"

Hun Yu unfolded the fan, and the light patterns on the golden feathers shone slightly brighter.

"Distinguish between the truth and lies."

As he said this, his gaze swept across the faces of everyone on the platform. It wasn't a quick glance, but everyone felt that his gaze lingered on their faces for an unusually long time.

"You're investigating my people?"

Hun Miesheng's tone held a new quality, carrying a hint of scrutiny towards his prey.

"I wouldn't dare."

Hunyu lowered his head slightly.

"This junior only wants the Palace Master to see clearly who among those present is guilty."

"Feeling guilty?"

Hun Miesheng repeated the two words, but his tone was unreadable.

"When the Palace Master killed Hun Feng, everyone knelt down; everyone was afraid."

Hunyu pulled the fan back half an inch.

"But fear is different from feeling guilty."

"Those who are afraid lower their heads, and those who feel guilty avoid eye contact."

Hun Yue let out a cold snort.

"Whether I have a guilty conscience or not is none of your business to judge."

"What makes you, a mere collateral descendant with no cultivation, rely on for judgment?"

Hunyu didn't look at him.

"Five Heavenly Venerables, there's no need to rush."

"Why should I be in such a hurry?"

Hun Yue stepped down a step and looked down at the back of Hun Yu's head.

"Something that even the Palace Master investigated for three months without reaching a conclusion, you come out and say you can solve it in half a day?"

"I think you don't have a plan, you just want to show off in front of the Palace Master."

"That's one way to put it."

Hunyu's tone was flat and even, without a single word rising in pitch.

"Whether it's showing off or trying to gain attention, the Palace Master will judge for himself whether what I say is right or wrong after listening to it."

"If the Five Heavenly Venerables think that everything I've said is nonsense, they can wait until I finish speaking before making their move. It's not too late."

The celestial beings remained silent, but they subtly adjusted their postures, their expressions revealing a subtle tacit approval.

Hun Yue's words asked the question they most wanted to ask: What gives you the right?

Hun Yuan stood on the platform above, his gaze sweeping back and forth between Hun Yu and Hun Yue, without saying a word.

Hunyu's gaze remained fixed on the direction of the black mist.

"Lord of the Palace."

"The Five Heavenly Venerables' doubts are reasonable. This junior should indeed produce something to prove that I am not just talking nonsense."

There was a brief silence within the black mist.

"Then take it."

Hun Miesheng's voice was very faint.

"What if you can't get it out?"

Hunyu took the initiative to finish the sentence for him.

Soul Extinction's vertical pupils lit up for a moment.

"If you can't produce it, you're not leaving this room today."

"The imperial edict states that you will be delivered alive to Zhongzhou."

"But if you die within the rules of the Heavenly Gang Hall, the clan leader won't blame me."

The temperature inside the main hall dropped another notch.

A deep, muffled voice responded in the back row.

"The Palace Master is right. Rules are rules. Whether you are a collateral branch or a direct descendant, once you enter the Heavenly Gang Palace, you must abide by the rules of the Heavenly Gang Palace."

Hunyu nodded.

"fair."

"If I can't produce anything, the Palace Master can do whatever he wants with me."

"But if the Lord thinks what I've presented makes sense, then all the Heavenly Venerables must also acknowledge it."

"Will it work?"

The last two words were spoken to everyone on the platform.

No one answered.

No response means you agree.

Hunyu turned the fan around so that the fan face was downwards, and a faint glow spread out around the golden feather patterns.

He began to pace, his steps following a straight line down the center of the hall. He took three steps back from the front of the steps, then turned to the right and took five more steps.

"Operation Sixth".

His voice was unhurried, as if he were reciting a case file he knew by heart.

"The attack will take place at 3:45 PM. The route will cross the mountain on the north side of Black Abyss Canyon, bypass the two ancient tribe checkpoints, and take a small path."

"There are three people on the mission, led by a two-star Dou Zun, codenamed Black Thorn."

He paused, then turned to look at Hunyuan.

"How long did it take from the initial planning and approval of this route to its actual execution?"

Hunyuan acted almost without hesitation.

"Six hours."

"Six hours."

Hunyu repeated the number.

"The Great Celestial Venerable has a good memory."

"Then let me ask one more question: has the route changed in these six hours?"

Hunyuan's brow twitched.

"It has changed."

"How did it change?"

"The original route was to take the south side of Black Abyss Canyon, but it was changed to take the north side of the mountain four hours before departure."

"Who made the decision?"

"it's me."

Hunyuan's voice was unwavering, but after speaking, he pursed his lips slightly, because he had already discerned Hunyu's approach.

Who was with you when you made that decision?

"The duty officer of the Intelligence Department and the two adjutants in charge of route simulation."

"Three people, plus you, that makes four."

Hunyu's fan drew a vertical line in the air.

"Including the final approval of the Palace Master himself, no more than five people know the complete route of the sixth operation."

Hun Yue clenched his fist.

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

"Five Heavenly Venerables, please be patient, I will get right away."

Hunyu didn't stop, and took two more steps to the right.

"The ancient tribe set up their ambush point in a hollow on the ridge on the north side of Black Abyss Canyon."

"That notch is not on the original route; it was added to the new section of road after a temporary change."

He stopped and turned to face the platform.

"In other words, the leak occurred after the change."

"From the change of plans to the launch of the attack, only six hours passed."

A deep, muffled voice from the back row interrupted.

"What's wrong with six hours?"

"Six hours is enough to get a lot done."

"Yeah?"

Hunyu didn't turn around to look at him, but her voice delivered each word clearly.

"In six hours, this new route will be transmitted from the Heavenly Gang Palace to the ancient clan. After the ancient clan obtains it, they will need time to mobilize troops, deploy elite forces at ambush points, and dig pits for people to fall into."

"From troop deployment to deployment and concealment, it takes at least three to four hours."

"The intermediary only has two hours at most to deliver the information."

He tapped the palm of his fan with the rib of his fan.

"Two hours is enough time to get the message from the Heavenly Gang Palace to the ancient clan's frontline commander. Do you think that's enough time?"

The sound from the back row paused for a moment.

"A message to the soul is acceptable."

"A message from the soul?"

Hunyu's lips curved into a smile.

"The Heavenly Gang Palace has an independent encryption system for its soul messages, and the records of every soul message sent and received are kept on file."

"It's been three months. Have you checked the records of the spirit messages?"

"I've checked."

This time, it was Hunyuan who answered for him.

"No abnormalities found."

"Yes, there's nothing unusual."

Hunyu turned the fan halfway around, with the handle facing upwards.

"There are no abnormalities in the soul messages, nor in the call records of flying messenger beasts. All conventional intelligence transmission channels have been checked and are completely clean."

"There's not enough time, and the channels aren't open."

"Unless the ancient tribes obtained the route in a way that they didn't need a middleman to pass it on."

The gray-robed celestial being's voice came from the right side of the front row.

"You say there's no need for intermediaries, then tell me, how did the ancient race obtain the route?"

"Could it be that someone can directly implant information into the minds of ancient clans from hundreds of miles away?"

"The Three Heavenly Venerables have asked a good question."

Hunyu closed the fan in his palm and pointed the fan at the gray-robed celestial being.

"As I just said, the route is recorded by channeling soul power into the soul sea, and there is no physical record of it."

"There is only one way to obtain this information."

"Directly peer into the holder's soul sea."

"After spying, the information is sent out in the same way. The whole process does not require paper, pen, soul message, or any physical channel."

"Two hours is more than enough."

The gray-robed celestial being's fingers twitched inside his sleeve.

Do you have any evidence?

"I have logic."

Hunyu put the fan back into his palm.

"All conventional channels have been ruled out. The remaining possibility, no matter how outrageous it sounds, is the only answer."

The air in the main hall tightened layer by layer.

Hunyuan's face darkened. He didn't speak, but his silence itself said one thing: he couldn't find a way to refute Hunyu's logic.

Hun Yue clenched his teeth, and the muscles in his cheeks twitched twice.

He was stumped because he knew the specific details of the sixth operation better than anyone else.

Blackthorn was someone he personally trained.

He died that night in Black Abyss Canyon.

Above the throne, those blood-red vertical pupils lit up for a moment.

It was so short that only two people in the main hall noticed it.

One is the Abyss of Souls.

The other is Soul Feather.

Soul Extinction's finger twitched slightly in the black mist.

"continue."