233: Chapter 233 Atone for Your Crimes? Then Stay and Guard the Sect.

The word "sinner" was like two cold iron spikes, ruthlessly driven into the hearts of Wang Tiexin, Li Wancai, and the other Elders kneeling on the ground.

They snapped their heads up, their faces pale, their eyes filled with terror and disbelief.

Just now, when Xu Ruyu had asked about Huo Lianzi's injuries in a gentle tone, they had even felt a flicker of hope, thinking this young Sect Master might be hesitant due to fellow-Disciple sentiment or choose to show leniency to maintain stability.

Who would have thought that the gentle inquiry was merely an illusion, and the cold judgment was the reality!

Hearing this, Granny Liu's eyes flashed, and her aged face showed undisguised approval.

Heavy penalties in chaotic times; if the law is not strict, orders will not be followed. This new Sect Master, it seemed, was not an indecisive person.

Lady Qingli had a smile on her lips as she watched the "sinners" below, whose faces were as ashen as death, enjoying the show that was about to unfold.

Grand Elder Venerable Kumu remained expressionless, but his fingers, which were fingering his prayer beads, came to a stop.

Fifth Elder Hua Xunhuan sighed softly, her gaze complex.

Xu Ruyu looked down from above, his gaze calmly sweeping over those faces that were either terrified, resentful, or pleading.

He did not announce the punishment immediately. Instead, he slowly sat back on the white jade throne, leaning forward slightly with his elbows on the armrests and his fingers interlaced against his chin, appearing to be in deep thought.

This brief silence was more agonizing than a direct sentence.

Wang Tiexin and the others felt every breath was incredibly long, the invisible pressure nearly crushing their spirits.

Finally, Xu Ruyu spoke; his voice was not loud, yet it reached everyone's ears clearly.

"Wang Tiexin, during your tenure in the Punishment Hall, you abused your power, framed fellow Disciples, and embezzled Sect resources. The evidence is conclusive.

According to Sect rules, what is your crime?"

Wang Tiexin's whole body trembled, his lips quivered, but he could not speak.

He himself was in charge of the penal laws, so he naturally knew what his fate would be once those deeds were uncovered—having his cultivation base abolished, being thrown into the Black Prison, and never being able to reincarnate would be the light end of it!

"Li Wancai," Xu Ruyu's gaze turned toward that obese figure, "you colluded with the External Merchant Association, sold off core Sect resources, and lined your own pockets with a massive amount, causing severe damage to the Sect's interests.

According to Sect rules, what should be done?"

The fat on Li Wancai's face shook violently, and cold sweat poured down like syrup, instantly soaking his magnificent robes.

"Huo Lianzi, failing in Artifact Refining and passing off inferior products as good ones, causing many casualties among our fellow Disciples;

Leng Mian, unfair law enforcement, abuse of private torture, and numerous wrongful cases;

Dan Xiazi, extremely poor quality control of Medicinal Pills, delaying cultivation, and limitless greed for wealth;

Zhen Xuanzi, dereliction of duty, leaving the Mountain Protection Array riddled with loopholes..."

Xu Ruyu called them out one by one, calmly stating the crimes they had exposed about each other during their arguments, or those Lady Qingli had secretly investigated and mastered (or those Granny Liu and others were well aware of).

With every crime he listed, the face of the named Elder turned a shade grayer.

"As Elders of the Sect, you did not think of serving it, but instead used your power for personal gain, hollowing out the Sect. Furthermore, in this time of crisis, you did not think of uniting against the enemy, but instead, for your own selfish desires, you publicly forced a confrontation, questioned the Ancestral Master's decree, and intended to rebel!"

Xu Ruyu's voice gradually turned cold: "For multiple crimes combined, according to Sect rules, you shall be sentenced to capital punishment, and the core Disciples under you shall also be punished by association, as a warning to others!"

The words "capital punishment" were like a final death knell, causing Wang Tiexin and the others to completely collapse!

"Sect Master! Sect Master, have mercy!" Li Wancai was the first to break down, collapsing to the ground with tears and snot flowing, "We were wrong! We truly know we were wrong!

We are willing to surrender all our wealth, only pleading for the Sect Master's mercy to spare my lowly life!"

"Sect Master! We were just momentarily muddled! We were deceived by villains!" Wang Tiexin also panicked, kowtowing repeatedly, "Please, Sect Master, for the sake of our fellowship, give us a chance to atone for our crimes with merit!

We are willing to go through fire and water for the Sect, and we will not hesitate even if we must die ten thousand deaths!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Atone with merit! We are willing to atone for our crimes with merit!"

The other Elders also cried out for mercy, losing every bit of their previous arrogance.

Looking at this group of "high-level Cultivators" making such a spectacle, many neutral Elders showed looks of disdain in their eyes.

If they had known it would come to this, why did they do it in the first place?

Xu Ruyu watched their performance quietly until the cries gradually faded, and then he spoke slowly with a hint of strange playfulness in his tone:

"Oh? Atone for your crimes with merit?"

He leaned back against the cold back of the chair, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest.

"That sounds like a decent proposal."

Hearing this, Wang Tiexin and the others felt as if they had grasped a life-saving straw, a flicker of hope reigniting in their eyes as they looked at Xu Ruyu expectantly.

"Indeed, the Hehuan Sect is currently in need of people."

Xu Ruyu seemed to be talking to himself, yet also to everyone present: "Externally, there are powerful enemies surrounding us, ready to invade in force at any moment.

"Internally, after this turmoil, people are panicking, and our strength has been greatly diminished..."

He paused, his gaze falling once more on Wang Tiexin and the others, his voice flat yet carrying an indisputable resolve:

"Since you are determined to atone for your crimes with merit, then this Sect Master will give you that chance."

Wang Tiexin and the others were ecstatic and kowtowed hurriedly: "Thank you, Sect Master! Thank you for your mercy! We will definitely pledge our loyalty unto death and never have a change of heart!"

However, Xu Ruyu's next words caused their joy to instantly freeze.

"This Sect Master has decided..."

Xu Ruyu's gaze swept over Granny Liu, Venerable Kumu, Hua Xunhuan, and the others (though they hadn't explicitly agreed, no one opposed him now), finally returning to Wang Tiexin and the others.

"To preserve the sparks of the Hehuan Sect's Legacy and respond to the impending crisis of Sect destruction, this Sect Master will personally lead a portion of the Sect's elites and core Elders, carrying some important Legacies and resources, to temporarily evacuate the Sect's Ancestral Land, find a secret place to lie low, and accumulate strength to wait for a future comeback."

Evacuate the Ancestral Land?!

This news was even more shocking to everyone than the judgment just now!

Even the neutral Elders showed looks of disbelief.

Giving up the Mountain Gate Ancestral Land that had been cultivated for eight thousand years? This was simply unimaginable in the Cultivation World!

The Ancestral Land is where the Luck is tied and where the Foundation lies!

Ignoring everyone's shock, Xu Ruyu continued, "As for you..."

He pointed at Wang Tiexin, Li Wancai, and the others, as well as their equally ashen-faced trusted aides behind them:

"You shall stay behind and guard the Hehuan Sect together with the Disciples under you."