The entire sect is obsessed with love, but I'm the only one who's truly insane.

The carriage slowly traveled along the wide road, surrounded by a bustling crowd. Lin Du sat upright in the center, stroking the whisk that still had one last strike in its hand. His voice was calm, yet it made Yuan Ye dare not sit properly.

"Sometimes you can't judge a book by its cover. Those mechanisms were set up by someone with a higher level of skill than you. Haven't you ever thought about why Xie Yu, a mere mortal, was able to restrain those people?"

"People who are in love are crazy, not stupid!"

Lin Du tapped the man's head with the handle of his whisk. "How much blood has Xie Yu stained his hands? He is a general, and is naturally the bane of evil spirits."

"Even the Heavenly Dao in the mortal realm cannot tolerate these people harming others. Xie Yu's destiny is too strong and too noble. He is a hidden dragon and an extraordinary individual. If evil spirits want to harm him, the Heavenly Dao will first strike him with lightning, and all of these people will be wiped out."

"But why weren't they discovered when they possessed mortals?" Yuan Ye finally understood.

Lin Du put his hands in his pockets and said, "Then we'll have to ask Xie Yu what he found at the Imperial Preceptor's residence."

Xie Yu was able to revive the Great Zhou Dynasty, which must have been due to his own abilities in addition to the help of the dragon's energy.

Yuan Ye understood. "Junior Uncle, are we going to infiltrate the Grand Commandant's residence at night?"

"Are you plotting loudly? Grand Commandant Xie is still next to the sedan chair, isn't he?" Ni Jinxuan said in a low voice.

"Oh, then let's plot in silence." Yuan Ye also changed his voice to a whisper.

Lin Du: ...I can see that. He's developed a brain, but not a fully developed one.

Wei Zhi watched as the two children huddled together, looking sneaky, and were being scolded. His gaze then shifted to Lin Du's face, and as expected, he saw a face grinning with gritted teeth.

Only at this moment did that person stop looking listless and instead show a bit of vitality.

The whisk fell on Yuan Ye's head again. Lin Du sneered, "Guess why Junior Uncle dared to plot so openly."

Yuan Ye was taken aback. "But Junior Uncle, you can't use too much spiritual power."

Lin Du sighed, "No, but Master Wei Zhi can."

She was quite familiar with Wei Zhi's barrier.

Yuan Ye was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at Wei Zhi, but he could clearly sense that Lin Du had not trusted Wei Zhi before.

He suddenly couldn't understand his junior uncle.

Lin Du lowered his eyes and said, "Aren't we on our way to the Grand Commandant's mansion right now?"

"Aren't they going to visit their ancestral graves anymore?" Wei Zhi asked with a smile.

"Go during the day, since something's bound to happen sooner or later anyway, let's go at noon." Lin Du rambled on without thinking.

Danger: ...

Yuan Ye suddenly realized, "That makes perfect sense."

Ni Jinxuan nodded vigorously.

The Tantric Buddhist disciple silently touched his forehead and closed his eyes.

How did the Supreme Sect end up raising such a group of rare and exotic beasts?

The carriage finally arrived at its destination, and Wei Zhi silently removed the barrier.

The group got out of the carriage and were startled by the sight of the Grand Commandant's mansion.

It wasn't anything else. I've seen countless magnificent palaces and golden halls, but I've never seen such a cold and solemn official's residence. Along the way, it should have been the season when all the flowers were in full bloom. The flowerbeds of ordinary people's residences would have been blooming in vibrant colors long ago, but inside the Xie residence, there was only a patch of green. Along the way, the flowerbeds only had hibiscus that had not yet reached their blooming season.

You can still see servants and guards in the outer courtyard, but you can't see a single servant in the inner courtyard.

Lin Du released his divine sense and unexpectedly found a strange coffin made of golden nanmu wood in what should have been the main courtyard. It was a double coffin and had no nails on it.

Lin Du: ...Since when did she start having to deal with coffins everywhere she goes?

Her spiritual power wasn't strong enough to penetrate the coffin, but Wei Zhi's voice rang out just in time.

"It's a skeleton, female, around sixteen years old..."

Lin Du gasped inwardly.

This guy's hopeless in love, take him away, really.

"The Great Zhou is quite inclusive," Lin Du commented aptly.

Xie Yu remained silent the whole way until he led the person into a very small courtyard. The house was strange, with thick brick walls and what seemed to be characters carved on them by folk sorcerers to ward off evil spirits. There were no large windows, only a few ventilation holes.

Having been lectured the whole way, Yuan Ye was now much more clear-headed. He glanced at Xie Yu warily and asked, "You're not planning to lock me up again, are you?"

Xie Yu rarely showed a smile, but it was cool and didn't have any other meaning. "I have already witnessed the Daoist's abilities, how dare I be presumptuous?"

Yuan Ye withdrew his scrutinizing gaze and made no further attempt to threaten him.

It wasn't so much that he trusted his brother, but rather that he was ashamed to show off in front of Xie Yu.

The heavy burdens he tried to escape ultimately fell on Xie Yu's shoulders.

Xie Yu's sudden death would not benefit the Great Zhou. Killing someone for no reason would also burden a cultivator with the karma of killing. Moreover... from the beginning, Xie Yu had already determined that he would not lay a hand on him.

"The Imperial Advisor is inside," Xie Yu and Lin Du said at the same time.

The two exchanged a glance. Lin Du once again wore the same indifferent expression that he showed to both people and dogs, but Xie Yu inexplicably saw a hint of pity in the other man's eyes.

Yuan Ye watched as Xie Yu unlocked the door himself, and just as he was about to enter, Lin Du's cold voice, which had been standing outside, rang out again.

"Yuan Ye, do you still remember what I admonished you with today?"

Yuan Ye paused as he pushed the door open, then lowered his eyes and said, "This disciple understands."

He behaved very properly, like a young disciple who was extremely afraid of his elders.

Even Wei Zhi, after watching it, remarked that his acting skills had improved.

Yuan Ye, however, was not putting on an act. As soon as he stepped into the room, he understood why Lin Du had said that.

The imperial advisor, who had some skill but was a bit greedy, was now emaciated and huddled in a cage. He looked much older, with a full head of white hair. The setting sun shone through the door, causing him to instinctively shrink back. After squinting and recognizing the person who had come in, he did not immediately call for help, but instead instinctively cowered.

With just that one subconscious reaction, Yuan Ye's doubts were answered.

Given the original character of the Imperial Preceptor, in such a situation, his first reaction upon seeing him would be to call out to him and beg for his life, but now he couldn't help but feel fear.

"What did you do?"

Yuan Ye stood before the iron cage, his voice cold.

It was just a simple sentence, but the old man in the iron cell shuddered.

The young man stood against the light, his face dark and inscrutable, his phoenix eyes cold and sharp. The shadows cast on the sides of his face made his adult features even more striking.

Seeing the old man trembling and unable to speak, Yuan Ye laughed instead, "What are you afraid of? Does the Imperial Advisor no longer recognize me?"

Yuan Ye's smile only made the old man tremble more violently, with the messy tips of his beard swaying in the air.

Yuan Ye: I understand now. So Junior Uncle's smile has a surprisingly intimidating effect.

It has to be Junior Uncle!

Yuan Ye simply smiled without saying a word, while the Imperial Advisor knelt on the ground and began kowtowing repeatedly, crying out, "Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, spare me! I did it all for the sake of the Great Zhou's destiny! You only lost a little spiritual power, but the Great Zhou lost the entire realm!!"

"I was born a citizen of the Great Zhou, and I will die a soul of the Great Zhou. I had no choice but to resort to this strategy to save the country!"

Lin Du: ...This line sounds familiar, but I'm not sure. Let me listen to it again.

"Yes, even in death you will remain a part of the Great Zhou," Yuan Ye said softly. "Then die."