107: Chapter 107 The mole is revealed

Three days after the tremor in the earth veins, the air throughout the Sanyang Sect was thick with an inescapable sense of murderous intent.

Early in the morning, on his way to the Hundred Talisman Hall, Lin Xuan was stopped by patrols three times.

Each interrogation was more detailed than the last. The questions shifted from simple identity verification to interpersonal relationships, daily interactions, and even opinions on certain Deacon Disciples.

When stopped for the third time, the Law Enforcement Disciple conducting the interrogation was a cold-faced young man at the Qi Refining Stage 7, his eyes as sharp as knives.

"Emerald Bamboo Peak Disciple, Lin Xuan?" He checked the identity jade plaque, his gaze lingering on Lin Xuan's face for a few seconds.

"Yes."

"In the past half-month, have you had any private contact or transactions with anyone from the General Affairs Hall?" the Law Enforcement Disciple asked directly.

Lin Xuan's expression was calm: "I have only handled daily affairs at the General Affairs Hall, such as collecting my quota of supplies. These were all official matters; I have had no private contact."

"Do you know Deacon Wang An from the General Affairs Hall?"

Wang An?

Lin Xuan's heart stirred. He recalled Senior Brother Feng mentioning something—among the mining guards at Iron Ridge, there seemed to be a Deacon surnamed Liu who was quite close to a Deacon surnamed Wang from the General Affairs Hall, and the two often drank together.

"I've heard the name, but I have never met him, nor do we have any dealings." Lin Xuan replied flawlessly.

The Law Enforcement Disciple stared at him for a moment, seemingly judging the truth of his words. Finally, he nodded and waved him through: "Avoid contact with irrelevant people in the near future. Report any abnormalities immediately."

"Understood."

Lin Xuan used the Wind Control Technique to continue flying toward Thousand Talisman Peak, but ripples of unease stirred in his heart.

Wang An... The Law Enforcement Hall had begun a public investigation. And they were starting with the General Affairs Hall, a critical department that managed the allocation of supplies.

It seemed that the residual Spiritual Qi traces at the damaged earth vein nodes and the records of abnormal material flows had been cross-referenced to uncover some clues.

The atmosphere in the Hundred Talisman Hall was even more eerie than yesterday.

Although the Spiritual Qi storm had subsided, the storm in people's hearts had only just begun.

The corridors, usually quite lively, were chillingly quiet today.

Disciples walked quickly toward their cubicles with their heads lowered, avoiding eye contact, and even holding their breath.

When Lin Xuan walked into cubicle Ding-Wei 73, he saw Senior Sister Su in the opposite cubicle packing her things with a pale face—she had seven or eight failed Talismans piled in front of her; clearly, her state was extremely poor today.

Junior Brother Zhao in the cubicle diagonally opposite, Bing-Wu 12, was even worse off. He was slumped on his meditation cushion, staring blankly at the ceiling with empty eyes, a blank sheet of Talisman paper in front of him, too lazy to even pick up his brush.

Lin Xuan spread out his Talisman paper and began crafting Talismans.

The Spiritual Qi environment today was much more stable than yesterday, but that invisible pressure was even more suffocating than when the Spiritual Qi was chaotic.

The bell for the noon break rang. Lin Xuan had completed four Thunder Shield Talismans and prepared to go to the exchange counter to replenish his Materials.

Just as he stepped out of his cubicle, he saw two Inner Sect Disciples in dark gold Law Enforcement robes escorting a gray-faced Deacon Disciple quickly past the main corridor.

Lin Xuan had some impression of that Deacon Disciple. He seemed to be responsible for verifying the storage of certain Talisman Materials in the Hundred Talisman Hall, surnamed Li, with a cultivation level at the Late Stage of Qi Refining. He usually kept a stern face, but he was quite diligent in his work.

At this moment, this Deacon Li looked ashen, his lips trembling. He wanted to say something, but was glared back by the chilling look of the Law Enforcement Disciple behind him.

The corridor was deathly silent.

All the Disciples kept their heads down, eyes fixed on their own business, as if they had seen nothing.

But that chill crept up their spines.

Lin Xuan went to the exchange counter to collect two stacks of purple-patterned paper. The price had risen again—230 points per stack. The Deacon Disciple's hands were shaking as he tallied the account, whether from nervousness or something else.

Returning to his cubicle, Lin Xuan did not immediately continue crafting Talismans.

He took out a message Talisman, hesitated for a moment, and sent a message to Chen Hao: "How is it over at the Artifact Refining Peak today?"

A moment later, Chen Hao's reply came, his voice kept extremely low and even a bit breathless: "Lin Xuan, something happened here too! The Law Enforcement Hall came this morning and took away Senior Brother Zhou, who is responsible for maintaining the Earth Fire Array! They said it was to assist with an investigation... Now, everyone on the peak is panicked, and no one dares to speak loudly."

Lin Xuan was silent for a moment, then replied: "Do your own work, don't ask too much, don't look too much."

Ending the transmission, he took a deep breath and continued crafting Talismans.

The Thunder Spiritual Energy under his brush remained stable, but Lin Xuan's heart could not be completely calm.

Senior Brother Feng's words about the "internal impurity" felt like a thorn stuck in his heart.

Now, this thorn was beginning to fester, beginning to bleed, beginning to squeeze the filth hidden in the shadows out bit by bit.

In the evening, at the beginning of the You hour.

Lin Xuan handed in five quota Talismans and was about to leave the Hundred Talisman Hall when a commotion suddenly broke out outside the hall.

Immediately after, a voice as deep as a bell spread throughout the entire Sect via the mountain-protecting array:

"Deacon Wang An of the General Affairs Hall has colluded with external enemies, leaked Sect secrets, and damaged earth vein nodes. The evidence is conclusive. His cultivation has now been abolished, and he has been captured on the spot."

The voice paused, then continued:

"Half an hour ago, this villain attempted to sneak into the 'Red Flame Ginseng' herb garden on Danding Peak, intending to destroy the core Restriction, but was captured on the spot by an Elder of the Law Enforcement Hall. Magical Artifacts for contacting the Xuanyin Sect and several portions of 'Vein-Corroding Powder' were found on him."

"The Sect Master has ordered: Investigate thoroughly to the end. All those involved will be severely punished without leniency! Those who can provide relevant clues will be rewarded by the Sect according to their merit."

As the voice faded, the entire Sanyang Sect fell into a deathly silence.

The next moment, an uproar erupted!

In the Hundred Talisman Hall, the Disciples could no longer care about the rules. They rushed to the windows and corridors, looking outside. The sound of discussion was like an exploding pot:

"Wang An? That Deacon Wang who was always smiling? He... He is an internal traitor?!"

"The Red Flame Ginseng herb garden! That's one of the most important herb gardens on Danding Peak. Those dozens of five-hundred-year-old Red Flame Ginsengs are the main ingredients for refining 'Red Sun Pills'! Red Sun Pills are precious pills for Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators to break through Bottlenecks!"

"He wanted to destroy those dozens of ginsengs? This is cutting off the future path for our Sect's Foundation Establishment Disciples!"

"Colluding with external enemies... Was it him who leaked the information about the earth vein nodes? No wonder Iron Ridge was probed so accurately!"

"I heard that his family members were kidnapped by a group of bandit Cultivators a few years ago when they went back to the mortal world to visit relatives, and they were never found... Could it be that he was coerced back then?"

Fragmented information was quickly passed and pieced together in the crowd.

Lin Xuan stood in the corner of the corridor, listening quietly.

The thorn in his heart was slowly being pulled out, bringing with it blood and pus.

Wang An, Early Stage Foundation Establishment, Deacon of the General Affairs Hall, possessed authority over some material allocation.

His family was kidnapped, his cultivation stagnated, and he was turned by the Xuanyin Sect using cultivation resources and his family's lives as bait.

The information about the Iron Ridge earth vein nodes, the intelligence on the Sect's internal material reserves, the weaknesses of key facilities... all were leaked through him.

And today, when the Law Enforcement Hall was about to reach him, he became desperate and wanted to pull off one last big job—destroy the Red Flame Ginseng herb garden to cause irreparable damage to the Sect.

Unfortunately, the Law Enforcement Hall had already set a net.

Lin Xuan remembered what Senior Brother Feng said before he disappeared: The uplink was dead, and the records of abnormal material flow were lost.

Now that he thought about it, that record had probably been disposed of by Wang An or his accomplices long ago.

But the cross-referencing between the Spiritual Qi residuals at the earth vein damage points and the material allocation records had still dragged him out.

This was only the first one.

Lin Xuan turned and left the Hundred Talisman Hall silently.

The setting sun, like blood, shone on the wet mountain road.

Returning to his small courtyard on Emerald Bamboo Peak, the first thing he did was to carefully inspect every inch of the courtyard, every corner of the wall, and even the roots of the wild jasmine bushes.

He confirmed that no one had tampered with it and that no improper marks had been left behind.

Then, with a thought, he entered the Spirit-Taming Tower Space.

Lin Xuan walked to the center of the spirit field and looked at the thunder essence fruit tree.

Three days had passed, and the ovary at the center of the flower had grown to the size of a quail egg. The natural thunder patterns on the surface were becoming clearer and deeper, with electric light faintly flowing between the patterns.

The exotic fragrance was so rich it almost condensed into substance. Just one breath made him feel the Thunder Spiritual Energy in his Dantian become a bit more active.

The gestation was going smoothly.

Moreover, because of the drastic fluctuations in the external Spiritual Qi environment over the past few days, the stable Thunder Spiritual Energy environment within the space had become a "safe haven." The thunder essence fruit tree instinctively accelerated its absorption of spiritual energy, and its growth rate was about 10% faster than expected.

Misfortune and fortune are interdependent.

Lin Xuan exited the space and returned to the Quiet Room.

Outside the window, night had fallen.

But tonight, no one in the Sanyang Sect was destined to sleep.

The Law Enforcement Hall was brightly lit. Orders were issued one after another, and Disciples or Deacons were summoned, investigated, and isolated.

Those who had close dealings with Wang An were likely sitting on pins and needles right now.

Lin Xuan sat cross-legged and began his cultivation for the night.

The Purple Heaven Divine Thunder Art circulated, and the Thunder Spiritual Energy surged.

Wang An being caught was just pulling out one internal traitor.

But the harassment from the Xuanyin Sect would not stop, and Qi Tianyuan's Golden Core Tribulation would not be delayed.

The real storm was still to come.

He closed his eyes and sank his mind into cultivation.

Outside the window, on the distant Rising Sun Peak, the halo of the Golden Sun Grotto-Heaven rotated silently in the night.

The speed seemed to have increased by a fraction.

Like some kind of countdown.