Strict law enforcement

The Hall of Penal Law, a place that made the Disciples of Starfall Pavilion turn pale at the mere mention of it.

The main hall was solemn and dim, with cold-faced law enforcement Disciples standing on both sides, while three unfathomable and expressionless Elders of the Hall of Penal Law sat at the head.

The air was filled with suffocating pressure and a murderous aura.

Lin Hao, Qin Feng, and Deacon Zhao Qian stood with their heads bowed, their clothes disheveled, and traces of a fight still on them, looking utterly wretched.

The Yellow Rank Magical Artifact in Qin Feng's hand, which had sparked the dispute, was now like a hot potato, gripped tightly until his knuckles turned white.

"Speak, why did you engage in a private fight in the back mountain?" The Elder in the center, with an ancient face and eyes as sharp as a hawk, spoke slowly. His voice was not loud, yet it carried an unquestionable majesty that pressed directly upon the Divine Souls of the three.

He was the Grand Elder of the Hall of Penal Law, impartial and selfless, known as "Elder Tie Xing."

Qin Feng stepped forward first, pointing at Lin Hao and Deacon Zhao Qian, and said anxiously, "Elder, please discern the truth! This Disciple discovered the two of them fighting over a treasure. Fearing they would damage the Sect's grounds, I stepped forward to intervene. Who would have thought they would attack without a word, even attacking this Disciple as well!"

He cleverly painted himself as an intervener and emphasized the word "treasure" heavily.

Influenced by the devilish seed, Deacon Zhao Qian's mind was already somewhat chaotic. Upon hearing this, he immediately retorted with blood-red eyes, "Bullshit! That treasure is a secret technique hidden by Lin Hao! It is my Opportunity! You all want to snatch it!"

He was incoherent and acted like a madman.

Lin Hao was trembling with rage; he was the most wronged one!

Suppressing his anger and trying to remain calm, he cupped his hands and said, "Respected Elders, this Disciple is wronged! I only went to retrieve an ordinary Magical Artifact I had hidden earlier, but Deacon Zhao suddenly rushed out and attacked me! After Senior Brother Qin arrived, he indiscriminately tried to seize my Magical Artifact, which triggered the chaotic fight! There is absolutely no secret technique or treasure! I ask the Elders to investigate!"

He pointed to the Magical Artifact in Qin Feng's hand, "It is this object, just a High Grade Yellow Rank 'Clear Heart Jade Pendant.' This Disciple can demonstrate its effect on the spot!"

Elder Tie Xing's gaze swept over the jade pendant. With his discernment, he naturally saw through its nature at a glance; it was indeed just an ordinary auxiliary Magical Artifact.

He looked at the crazed Deacon Zhao Qian again, his brows slightly furrowed.

"Deacon Zhao Qian, as an Outer Sect Deacon, your words and actions were inappropriate, you appeared deranged, and you attacked a Disciple. What is your crime?" Elder Tie Xing's voice turned cold.

A massive pressure instantly focused on Deacon Zhao Qian.

Deacon Zhao Qian was struck as if by a heavy blow, falling to his knees with a thud. His whole body trembled violently. Under the massive pressure, the devilish seed was temporarily suppressed, allowing him to regain a trace of clarity.

He realized what he had done and was immediately terrified, his Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, "El... Elder, spare me! This Disciple... this Disciple was momentarily possessed! I heard some rumors and thought Lin Hao possessed a secret technique... This Disciple knows he was wrong! I beg the Elder for mercy!"

"Rumors? What rumors?" An Elder beside him asked coldly.

Deacon Zhao Qian did not dare to hide anything. He quickly recounted receiving the mysterious Jade Slip and the rumors circulating about Nightmare obtaining a treasure, merely omitting the part where he was driven by greed to actively search, claiming instead that he was merely investigating out of curiosity.

After listening, Elder Tie Xing remained expressionless and turned his gaze to Lin Hao and Qin Feng, "How much do you know about the Inner Sect Disciple, Nightmare?"

Lin Hao immediately said, "This Disciple has no connection with Senior Brother Nightmare; these are just rumors and cannot be taken as true. I suspect that my encounter this time was also designed by someone in the dark to sow discord!" He glanced meaningfully at Qin Feng.

Qin Feng was startled and quickly cleared his name, "This Disciple also heard the rumors and was curious. Going to the back mountain today was just to find Junior Brother Nightmare and ask about the situation, certainly not to seize any treasure!" He was now full of regret; to cause such trouble over a Yellow Rank Magical Artifact was simply not worth it.

Elder Tie Xing was silent for a moment, having already understood the situation.

This matter was likely designed by someone using rumors, triggering Deacon Zhao Qian's greed and Qin Feng's recklessness, while Lin Hao became the unlucky target.

As for whether the designer was truly Nightmare, there was no conclusive evidence.

"Hmph!" He snorted coldly, the sound shaking the main hall, "Deacon Zhao Qian, your mind is crooked, and you attacked a Disciple. Your position as Deacon is revoked, and you are sentenced to ten years of hard labor in the Black Mine Abyss!"

The Black Mine Abyss! That place had a harsh environment, thin Spiritual Qi, and required heavy labor. After ten years, one would basically be ruined! Deacon Zhao Qian's vision went black, and he slumped to the ground.

"Qin Feng, you acted recklessly and failed to distinguish right from wrong. You are sentenced to three years of confinement at the Cliff of Reflection and will have three years of cultivation resources deducted!"

Qin Feng's face turned pale. The Cliff of Reflection was cold and lonely, and the deduction of resources was a fatal blow. After three years, he would surely be left far behind by his peers! In his heart, he hated the "Nightmare" who spread the rumors and the trouble-making Lin Hao to the extreme.

"Lin Hao," Elder Tie Xing's gaze finally fell on Lin Hao, "Although you are the victim, hiding items in the back mountain is also inappropriate. You are sentenced to clean the Martial Arts Arena for one month as a minor punishment."

This punishment was the lightest, almost just a formality. Lin Hao breathed a sigh of relief and quickly bowed, "This Disciple accepts the punishment."

The storm seemed to have ended just like that.

The news spread quickly.

Deacon Zhao Qian was deposed, Qin Feng was heavily punished, and Lin Hao was lightly punished. As for "Nightmare," who had never appeared but seemed to be everywhere, he became the focus of private discussion among the Disciples.

"Have you heard? Deacon Zhao went to rob Lin Hao just because he heard he had a secret technique, and ended up going crazy!"

"Senior Brother Qin Feng was also unlucky; he wanted to pick up a bargain and ended up getting himself dragged into it."

"What kind of treasure did that Nightmare get? To cause such a big mess?"

"Who knows? It's all so mysterious. It seems the Hall of Penal Law is investigating him now..."

Nightmare sensed Deacon Zhao Qian's fate through the devilish seed without a ripple of emotion. He was just a discarded pawn.

He also heard the rumors about himself within the Sect and the wind that the Hall of Penal Law might be investigating him. But this was exactly the effect he wanted—to muddy the waters and place himself in a vague position of "suspected of obtaining treasure," which was actually a form of cover.

The real danger came from the superiors.

He knew the methods of those old monsters in the Hall of Penal Law well; they would never just listen to one side of the story. They had likely already begun investigating in secret, including the devilish array of that ancient Immortal Cave and the whereabouts of the flowing cloud secret edict.

"This place is no longer suitable for a long stay." Nightmare made a judgment. The interior of the Sect was no longer safe for him; continuing to stay in Starfall Pavilion would only increase the risk of exposure.

He needed to leave the Sect, find a broader world, and improve his strength faster. And the flowing cloud secret edict in his hand was the key to guiding his direction.

He took out the secret edict again, concentrated his mind, and tried to fuse his Divine Sense with that trace of Azure Qi and Blood, slowly injecting it while visualizing the thought of "finding a safe place."

This time, the reaction of the secret edict was significantly stronger!

Hum!

Black light flared, and the Flowing Clouds on the surface swirled with unprecedented speed. Finally, the line of ancient characters reappeared: "Deep in the clouds where one knows not, in a single thought of illusion and extinction. Where the heart points, the edict directs."

Immediately after, all the black light converged, gathering at the tip of the token, transforming into an extremely condensed beam of dark light that pointed straight to the southwest, no longer wavering!

At the same time, a vague fragment of information entered Nightmare's mind: "...Thirty thousand miles to the southwest... Cloud Dream Great Marsh... Ruins about to appear..."

"Cloud Dream Great Marsh?" Nightmare's gaze narrowed.

That was a vast swamp area located southwest of Starfall Pavilion, with a complex and dangerous environment, filled with poisonous miasma and Vicious Beasts, but also containing countless ancient ruins and Heaven And Earth Treasure; it was a paradise for adventurers and fugitives.

Flowing Cloud's true Legacy was actually there? And it seemed the time was near?

"This is the place!" Nightmare made up his mind. The environment of the Cloud Dream Great Marsh was complex, which was perfect for him to hide and Cultivate.

He immediately began preparations. He erased all valuable traces in the cave and had the Treasure-Seeking Spirit Weasel go out again to find several deeply hidden Shadow-Hiding Grasses and poisonous miasma flowers; these were Materials for refining breath-concealing and self-defense poisons.

He used his last bit of time to simply refine some concealment pills and poisonous miasma powder for emergencies.

After doing all this, he did not hesitate any longer.

That night, the moon was hidden and the stars were sparse.

Nightmare took one last look at the direction of Starfall Pavilion, his eyes devoid of any attachment, only cold determination.

"Lin Hao, we part ways for now. When I return, it will be the time for us to settle our accounts completely!"

"Starfall Pavilion, heh..."

His figure flickered, turning into a faint devilish shadow that almost merged with the night, floating out of the cave like a ghost and speeding away towards the southwest.

The Demonic Shadow Evasion Technique was pushed to the limit; his speed was incredibly fast, yet silent and soundless.

Just like that, he quietly left the nest he had operated for several days, left the sphere of influence of Starfall Pavilion, and stepped into a broader and more dangerous world.

Not long after he left, two powerful Divine Senses quietly swept over the back mountain, focusing their investigation on the ancient Immortal Cave and the cave where Nightmare had previously been in seclusion, but they only found some residual, hard-to-track, faint Devilish Qi.

"A step too late." In the Void Realm, an old voice sounded faintly.

"This child has a meticulous mind and strange methods; he is definitely not a creature of the pond. Notify the others to keep an eye on his whereabouts in secret. As for Lin Hao... continue to observe."

"Yes."

The voice dissipated, and the mountain forest returned to silence.

As if nothing had ever happened.

Only the flowing cloud secret edict quietly pointing to the southwest, and Nightmare's determined departing figure, signaled that a new storm would rise on another land.

The chapter of Starfall Pavilion came to a temporary close, and the adventure in the Cloud Dream Great Marsh was about to begin.