After binding with a genius, I became an immortal by exploiting loopholes.

Chapter 125 All Resolved

"Old Sun!"

Zhou Ming's expression changed drastically, and he rushed over to help him down from the collapsed haystack.

Sun Zhiyuan's body was as limp as a lump of mud, and with each breath, blood foam gushed from the corner of his mouth, staining Zhou Ming's clothes red.

Liu Wenhua and Wang Youde also looked in Sun Zhiyuan's direction at the same time, but they did not raise the magic weapons in their hands. Sun Zhiyuan's negativity just now was still vivid in their minds.

Moreover, both of them were injured at the moment, and no one could step forward to help stop the scarred man.

The scarred man struck successfully and then retreated.

He glanced at Sun Zhiyuan, but his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

This palm strike severely injured his opponent, but when the force of the palm struck his body, he felt that the opponent's defense was almost non-existent.

The spiritual energy fluctuations of that cyan bamboo staff were scattered and weak, and it was not at the same level as the tricky and sharp sword energy just now.

That sword energy was unpredictable and precise, always striking at the most crucial moment of the battle.

But he didn't have time to think it over; the elders of the Qingxuan Sect would arrive in no time.

Retreat is more important than killing.

He didn't look at Sun Zhiyuan again, and turned to leave with his men.

Just then, two streaks of light pierced the night sky, flying towards the sect at an astonishing speed.

Elder Zheng took the lead, with Elder Han following closely behind.

Before the two even landed, they had already taken in the scene below: a pale blue light shield was covered with cracks, several Qi Refining stage cultivators were besieging Zhao Demao and the others, and two injured Spirit Plant Masters were lying on the ground.

The light vanished abruptly at the entrance of Qingmu Village.

Elder Zheng stood with his hands behind his back on the bluestone road. A beam of azure spiritual light flew out from his sleeve like a long whip, aiming straight for the scarred man.

Elder Han, dressed in the black robes of the Hall of Deacons, had a stern expression. A bronze mirror hung above his head, and wherever the dark golden light of the mirror swept across, the spiritual power around the five attackers suddenly stagnated, as if they were sinking into a quagmire.

Elder Zheng said coldly, "Don't let any of them escape."

Elder Han flashed into the attacker's retreat path. The bronze mirror spun, and a dazzling beam of light shot precisely at the black dagger in the scarred man's hand, causing the dagger to vibrate incessantly.

The agitated man tried to struggle, but Elder Zheng casually slapped him to the ground, leaving an expression of disbelief on his anxious face.

Seeing that his escape route was completely blocked, the scarred man knew there was no way to escape.

A resolute glint flashed in his eyes, and suddenly he gritted his teeth—a cloud of black energy surged from deep within his throat, spreading outwards.

His facial muscles quickly turned bluish-purple, and he died almost instantly, falling straight backward.

The agitated man also did the same thing at the same time—he hadn't completely passed out yet, he barely managed to crush the thing between his teeth, twitched a few times, and then stopped moving.

Another attacker followed closely behind, also biting into the poison sac and committing suicide.

Elder Han pointed a finger, and the bronze mirror suddenly spun, a beam of light accurately shooting into the mouth of the fifth attacker, knocking away the poison sac that was about to be bitten into pieces.

The man was shocked and tried to struggle, but Elder Han struck him on the back of the neck, knocking him unconscious.

Han Shuang was the last one to fall.

She didn't immediately bite into the poison sac, but instead glanced around with a very complicated look—the scarred man's body lay on the ground, the mission had completely failed, and her companions were falling one by one.

Then her gaze fell on a certain spot in the darkness at the end of the village.

That direction is where Lu Qingchen is hiding.

She seemed to want to confirm something, or perhaps she was just unwilling to accept it, but the night was too dark and she couldn't see anything.

She withdrew her gaze, closed her eyes, and bit down on the poison sac between her teeth.

When Elder Han arrived, she was already dead, with a dark line of blood hanging from the corner of her mouth.

Elder Zheng walked quickly to Sun Zhiyuan's side, squatted down and put his hand on Sun's wrist to feel his pulse. After a moment, his brows furrowed.

"The injuries were too severe; the sternum was fractured, multiple meridians were damaged, and the heart and lungs were also impacted."

He took out a bright green healing pill from his sleeve, put it into Sun Zhiyuan's mouth, and used his spiritual power to help him stabilize his heart.

After a moment, he slowly shook his head: "Although his life has been saved, the recovery will take a long time. If he can be sent back to the sect and properly recuperated with elixirs, he may be able to fully recover."

He paused, then added, "However, even so, it will leave lasting damage, and my future cultivation will likely be greatly hampered."

Zhou Ming and Liu Wenhua exchanged a glance, but neither of them spoke.

Wang Youde clutched his still throbbing chest, looking at Sun Zhiyuan lying on the ground, his face pale, his expression complex. If Sun Zhiyuan hadn't been so passive in the fight, he wouldn't have been beaten to the point of vomiting blood by Han Shuang.

But now Sun Zhiyuan is lying here, half-dead, and he doesn't know what to say.

Elder Han stood to the side, his face cold and stern. He merely glanced at Sun Zhiyuan before looking away.

He had just learned the general outline of what had happened. If this person hadn't backed down in the face of battle, the situation wouldn't have been so dire.

As an elder of the Hall of Deacons, he had seen too many cowards who feared death. In his view, Sun Zhiyuan's injury was simply his own fault.

Elder Zheng and Elder Han first inquired about the situation from Zhao Demao.

Zhao Demao recounted the events of the night from beginning to end—he was knocked down by Chen Mengxiang, Lu Qingchen risked his life to save him, crushed the communication talisman, awakened the other spirit plant cultivators, and organized a counterattack.

He spoke of how Han Shuang was found in the valley, rescued and brought back to the manor to recover from her injuries, and then used a sleeping potion at night, his tone revealing an undisguised lingering fear.

After listening, Elder Zheng nodded slowly, then turned his head and looked at the silent young man behind Zhao Demao.

"It's you again."

Elder Han stood to the side, and even his perpetually icy face twitched slightly.

A Qi Refining Level 2 cultivator, remaining conscious amidst a bewitching incense that had even knocked out Foundation Establishment cultivators, and even managing to revive the Manor Lord and help hold off five invading enemies—this composure and adaptability are truly rare. Elder Han's gaze lingered on Lu Qingchen for a moment; though still cold and stern, it was no longer as indifferent as it had been during the previous interrogation.

Zhao Demao continued, "These people went straight to the end of the manor, clearly heading for Lu Qingchen."

Elder Zheng and Elder Han exchanged a glance.

"Spirit Erosion Disease".

Elder Zheng spoke slowly.

Elder Han said coldly, "It seems we underestimated the seriousness of this matter. The person behind sending someone deep into the sect's territory to attack a spirit plant grower is definitely not an ordinary rogue cultivator."

Elder Zheng had someone use their spiritual power to carefully lift Sun Zhiyuan onto the makeshift stretcher.

Sun Zhiyuan was still unconscious and breathing weakly. Elder Zheng fed him another heart-protecting pill and instructed the disciples carrying the stretcher to be careful and cautious on the way.

Elder Han then bound the captured attacker with a specially made spirit-suppressing lock.

The Spirit-Sealing Lock is a pair of bronze shackles, with the buckles engraved with restrictive runes. Once fastened, it seals off the flow of spiritual energy in the meridians, temporarily reducing the cultivator to a mortal.

The elder carefully examined the man's mouth and, after confirming that there was no other means of suicide, handed him over to the disciples of the Hall of Deacons for safekeeping.

Just then, a streak of light flew slowly from the direction of the sect and landed at the entrance of the manor.

Old Sun emerged from the light, a pipe dangling from his mouth, his cloudy eyes sweeping over the chaotic scene at the end of the village.

His gaze first fell on Lu Qingchen to confirm that the boy was alright before he shifted his gaze to Elder Zheng.

"I'm a little late."

He exhaled a puff of smoke. "I was delayed a bit on the way. How's it going?"

Elder Zheng briefly recounted what had happened.

After listening, Old Sun remained silent for a moment, then walked up to Lu Qingchen and stood in front of him.

He didn't say anything, but looked him up and down, then reached out and patted him on the shoulder.

"It's good that you're alright."

He paused, a barely perceptible glint flashing in his cloudy eyes. "You did a good job this time."

Elder Zheng said to Elder Sun, "We'll take the suspect and the wounded back to the sect first. You stay at Qingmu Manor for now and see if there are any other hidden dangers."

Old Sun nodded and tapped his pipe on the sole of his shoe: "Alright, you can go ahead."

Lu Qingchen and Zhao Demao returned to the sect with Elder Zheng and Elder Han.

Two disciples from the Hall of Deacons escorted the unconscious Sun Zhiyuan and the bound attacker behind them.

The streaks of light rose one after another, piercing the night before dawn, and soon arrived at Mingfa Peak.

Upon landing, Elder Zheng immediately had Sun Zhiyuan taken directly to the treatment room.

The treating elder carefully examined his injuries and reached a conclusion consistent with Elder Zheng's initial assessment—a fractured sternum, multiple damages to the meridians, and impact to the heart and lungs.

Although his life is no longer in danger, his foundation will be damaged after he recovers, and his cultivation will probably never make any progress in the future.

Sun Zhiyuan lay in the treatment room for three days.

Zhou Ming came to see him once, left a few spirit stones and left. He stood there for less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, and said no more than five sentences.

Liu Wenhua and Wang Youde never showed up.

Zhao Demao did not come, nor did he send anyone to deliver a message.

After he woke up, he listened to his disciple's account of his injuries and remained silent for a long time.

He didn't ask how the others were doing, nor did he ask about what happened that night. He just stared at the roof beam for a long time, and then slowly closed his eyes.

He knew he could no longer stay at Qingmu Manor; even if he recovered, no one would trust him anymore.

A few days later, Sun Zhiyuan was transferred from Qingmu Manor to a sinecure position in the sect's internal affairs hall.

Nominally it was "temporary placement during recovery," but it was clear to everyone that he would never be able to return to Lingzhifu's inner circle again in his lifetime.

The interrogation began that very night.

The candlelight flickered in the courtroom of the Deacon Hall, and the walls were engraved with soundproofing, so not even a whisper of wind could get in.

Elder Han sat behind the interrogation table, with all the items found on the attacker spread out in front of him: a few low-grade spirit stones, two fragments of used poison-filtering talismans, an ordinary short-bladed magic weapon, and nothing else of value.

This person was bound by a spirit-suppressing lock, his hands and feet were chained to the trial pillar, his eyes were bloodshot, but he did not utter a word.

Elder Han didn't waste any words with him.

"Soul Searching Technique".

He gave the order in a cold voice.

The disciples of the Hall of Affairs affixed a dark red talisman to the man's forehead.

The man began to struggle violently, the chains rattling, his eyes filled with fear—he knew the consequences of the Soul Searching Technique: at best, his consciousness would be damaged and his memories disordered; at worst, his mind would be completely destroyed and he would become a cripple.

But the Spirit-Sealing Lock sealed off his spiritual power, and his struggles were futile.

The talisman glowed with a dark red light.

Elder Han closed his eyes and used his divine sense to invade the other's sea of ​​consciousness, searching for useful clues deep within his memories.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Elder Han slowly opened his eyes.

The information obtained from the soul search was fragmented and scattered.

This person is a fugitive cultivator who spends a lot of time in the Baicaoji area, taking on all sorts of shady commissions.

This commission was passed through several middlemen in the black market before reaching him. The commissioning party promised that if Lu Qingchen could be captured alive, the reward would be enough to keep him away from this area and free him from the life of living on the edge.